Chapter 1170 1170 ‘Answer’

Chapter 1177 ‘Answer’

But Tokiomi would not give in just yet. He still wore an attentive smile, and his expression did not waver at all.

"Since what Einzbern hopes for is the achievement of the Third Law, then if I entrust the Holy Grail to Tohsaka Tokiomi, whose purpose is to reach the 'root', it is not in line with your original intention." "?"

Hearing this, Irisviel gave Tokiomi a contemptuous sneer.

"Did the Tohsaka family even beg for money in order to seize the Holy Grail from us?"

"Hmph... Although this explanation makes people doubt the character of the questioner, it doesn't matter. The problem now is that a guy who knows nothing about the Holy Grail may win the final victory. I will never allow the Holy Grail to fall into the hands of laymen. In our hands - we should have the same opinion on this point."

To put it simply - Tokiomi believes that Rider is the only person who poses the greatest threat. Irisviel agreed.

Now that he understands the other party's purpose, it's almost time for him to express his stance.

"We Einzbern have never had the habit of joining forces with others. The so-called alliance will only make people laugh. However, if you want to fight the enemy one by one, we will also show our sincerity."

"……Tell me?"

"After defeating the other Masters, we will then treat Tohsaka as an enemy - we are willing to abide by this agreement."

Irisviel spoke in a roundabout way, making Tokiomi nod coldly.

"That is, a truce agreement with conditions, which is appropriate for both parties."

"We have two demands."

Irisviel said immediately as if to suppress the other party and take over the dominant position.

"First, reveal to us the information you have about Rider's Master."

When Tokiomi heard this, he laughed secretly in his heart. Since Einzbern made such a request, it should mean that she really planned to defeat Rider herself. This development was entirely expected.

"——Kirei, tell them."

After listening to Tokiomi's order, Kirei, who had been watching silently, began to explain in a calm tone.

"Rider's Master is a trainee magician under Kayneth, named Webber Velvet. He is currently living in the home of an old couple named Makaki in Nakagotsu 2-chome, Miyama Town. They have nothing to do with the Holy Grail War. Ordinary families, but under the suggestion of Weber’s magic, they believed that Weber was their biological grandson.”

Kirei finished speaking fluently, and Irisviel and Maiya couldn't help but tremble when they heard the words. Although he had already made a rough guess, he never expected that Kirei, who once controlled Assassin, could launch an espionage operation so thoroughly.

"...Okay, what's the other condition?"

Tokiomi urged happily. Irisviel looked directly at him with a solemn expression and said in a strong tone that could not allow the other party to refuse.

"The second request is to exclude Kotomine Kirei from the Holy Grail War."

Tokiomi, who was originally looking calm, couldn't help but be dumbfounded when he heard this. But Kirei remained calm and didn't even move his eyebrows.

"I'm not saying to kill him. I'm just saying to let him leave Fuyuki - no, leave Japan - before the battle ends. I hope he can leave tomorrow morning."

"Can you explain why?"

Tokiomi calmed down his inner turmoil and asked in a somewhat deep voice. As a discerning person, Irisviel now became even more convinced that there was a gap between master and disciple - it was obvious that Tokiomi did not know what Kirei had done.

"That agent has a lot of enmity with our Einzbern. If Tohsaka wants to include him in the camp, we will not be able to trust you at all. In this case, we will treat you as our top priority The excluded targets will join forces with Rider and others to attack you."

"..."

There was no hint of joking in Irisviel's tone. Finally, Tokiomi realized that there were still many things he didn't know, so he cast doubtful eyes on Kirei beside him.

"What's going on, Kirei?"

"..."

Kirei remained expressionless and silent as if he was wearing a mask. But since he didn't offer any refutation of Irisviel's words, his silence spoke volumes.

Sighing, Tokiomi hid his emotions in his heart again and stared at the Einzbern camp with an indifferent expression.

"Kirei, as the agent of the deceased Father Risei, inherited the position of supervisor. If you think he must leave, then we also have a condition."

Irisviel nodded quietly to indicate for him to continue.

"——I watched last night's battle. Your Saber's Noble Phantasm is too destructive. I hope you can restrict her use."

Saber frowned now. She understood that Tohsaka wanted to force the duel with Rider on her. This additional condition can only be said to be unreasonable.

"Why interfere with our strategy?"

"We are the managers of Fuyuki. If the Holy Grail War is to be separated from the secrecy of the Holy Church in the future and carried out openly, I hope that unnecessary disturbances can be avoided."

At this time, Maiya, who had been silent until now, suddenly interrupted.

"Did Saber's Noble Phantasm cause damage to nearby facilities last night?"

"-Luckily, it was only minimal damage. It happened that there was a large ship in her attack route, but if you are not careful, it will indeed wipe out all the homes on the other side of the river."

"We were the ones who placed the ship there."

After hearing what Maiya said, Saber raised her eyebrows. Indeed, it was because of that ship that she felt at ease to use the "Sword of Contracted Victory". But after she said that, she realized that it was Kiritsugu who placed it.

"As an aside, we have confirmed that the owner of that ship has insurance. You don't need to remind us that we in the Einzbern camp have already made careful considerations about the destructive power of Saber's Noble Phantasm."

"I'm asking you to turn your so-called considerations into a treaty."

Tokiomi interrupted Maiya's words somewhat harshly.

"In Fuyuki City, it is unconditionally forbidden to use Noble Phantasms on the ground. Even in the air, if it will indirectly cause harm to the residents, the same applies - can you agree to this condition, Master of Einzbern?"

"...If I agree, will Kotomine Kirei really leave Japan?"

"Ah, I'll be responsible for the guarantee."

Tokiomi nodded without thinking. Kirei beside him was angry but couldn't vent, so he could only grit his teeth alone.

Irisviel asked Saber for her opinion. Saber nodded in agreement.

Saber also didn't want the Noble Phantasm to cause unnecessary sacrifices. If Tōsaka Tokiomi's concerns were the same as hers, this wouldn't be considered an excessive restriction.

"--Very good. Since you have confirmed that you can fulfill the conditions, then we also agree to a truce."

·············

After the meeting, Kotomine Kirei stayed alone in the church where both Masters had left.

Just as Tokiomi had said just now, Kirei was now a staff member of the Holy Church, and was handling the aftermath of the incident in various parts of Fuyuki City. Due to the death of his father Risei, who was the supervisor, the on-site command system was in chaos, and there was no time to wait for the Eighth Conclave to send a formal successor.

However, after only giving appropriate guidance on the management of each place, the work at each site was now being carried out in an orderly manner. This showed that Risei's instructions before his death were very correct. Kirei's job was to dispatch tasks one by one along the track that Risei had laid, and there was actually nothing particularly difficult about it.

But now, he had to make a conclusion at work.

In fact, for Kirei, when he realized that Tokiomi had the intention to form an alliance with Einzbern, he knew that his situation was precarious. The decision made at the meeting just now was not unexpected. The women of Einzbern - and the real manipulator behind them, Emiya Kiritsugu - have gradually realized the threat he posed to them. And for Tōsaka Tokiomi, he is just an "ordinary assistant", so the alliance with Einzbern is more important than himself.

As for the Command Seals that appeared on Kirei's arm again, and the existence of the Command Seals that he secretly inherited from Risei, Tokiomi did not know. Kirei also did not tell him that Saber's real Master, Emiya Kiritsugu, has not yet appeared, and that Matou Kariya has been rescued. Hiding such important information at this time, this behavior itself means that Kirei has given up his duties as Tokiomi's subordinate. This will be seen through by Tokiomi one day, and now he has no right to complain.

After calling the staff in various places, Kirei returned to his room alone. He sat down by the bed, feeling the quietness of the empty church.

Staring at the darkness, Kirei asked himself.

He had asked this question thousands, tens of thousands of times in his life.

And tonight, this question really oppressed him. Only this time, he had to get the answer before dawn.

——What exactly is my wish?

When dealing with the aftermath, among the large amount of information sent by the staff, there were two pieces of information that Kirei could not ignore.

One——On the river bank where Caster's sea monsters had thrown the river into chaos, a strangely dead adult male corpse appeared in front of the public. The corpse was taken over by the Holy Church and avoided being handed over to the police. Due to the severe damage to his face, his identity could no longer be identified, but through the traces of the Command Seals on his right hand, it could be basically determined that he was Caster's Master, Uryu Ryunosuke. Cause of death——Two large-caliber rifle bullets with a caliber of 30 mm or more.

And the other report was even more shocking.

Just a few hours ago, the bodies of Kayneth El-Melloi Archipelud and Solana Zelai Sophia were found in an abandoned factory on the outskirts of Shinto. The two bodies were also discovered and disposed of by patrolling church staff. A signed self-compulsory certificate was found abandoned at the scene, which was naked evidence that the perpetrator had used despicable means to kill Lancer's Master.

Emiya Kiritsugu - this cold-blooded hunting machine, is destroying his opponents one by one.

I'm afraid that he is still fighting somewhere now. Unlike Kirei, who can only sit there in confusion, he is moving towards the Holy Grail.

This battlefield called Fuyuki made the man who had been engaged in empty battles come back after nine years of silence. But Kirei had to leave here without knowing what his intentions and reasons were.

What would the man pray for when he got the almighty wish-granting machine?

Can this answer really fill the gap in Kirei's heart?

"... Who are you?"

He suddenly said to himself. He had been looking forward to Emiya Kiritsugu with a premonition that was almost equivalent to a prayer, looking forward to his answer. Now Kirei felt a sense of crisis. What went back and forth in his mind were the women standing in front of Kiritsugu. Why would they fight so hard for Kiritsugu? Or, has Kiritsugu fallen to such a vulgar level that he can share his purpose with a third party?

In the deep silence, Kirei felt a commotion. The breath was approaching from the corridor outside the door. This aura was already quite familiar to Kirei. Even though he was just walking silently, the heroic spirit did not conceal the gorgeous majesty exuding from his body. Even if he steps into the realm of God, he is still so unruly.

Archer walked directly into Kirei's house without knocking. Seeing that Kirei was deep in thought, he sneered with a tone of mockery and pity.

"It's now, what are you still thinking about? There must be a limit to slowness."

"...You asked Tokiomi-sensei to go back alone? Archer."

"I sent him to the hotel. Recently, there are poisonous insects more sinister than Assassin lurking in the night."

Kirei nodded. That Emiya Kiritsugu would not turn a blind eye to the meeting just now. He would definitely wait for an opportunity to take action while Tokiomi was on his way to or back. Kirei had fully instructed this in advance—not to Tokiomi, but to Archer.

"However, you are really an honest guy. You know that you are in a bad situation but you are still worried about the safety of the Lord."

"This is a reasonable judgment. I have long fulfilled my responsibility as Tokiomi-sensei's tool, and there is no reason to continue to stay in Fuyuki."

"——You don't really think so, do you?"

Archer's eyes seemed to see through everything. Kirei looked at him in silence.

But Kirei didn't intend to refute, because Archer was right, otherwise he wouldn't be sitting here stupidly like this, but should have started preparing to leave Fuyuki long ago.

"Now the Holy Grail is still calling you, and you yourself are eager to fight."

Archer said this. Kirei remained silent and gave up on refuting.

Anyway, there is nothing to hide from Archer. This heroic spirit has even seen through the fact that he is deceiving himself. Then, I'm afraid the answer Kirei has been looking for should already be in his heart.

The red eyes seemed to be looking down at the lost mouse from above. There is no inducement or rescue. Appreciating other people's troubles may be something that makes the King of Heroes happy.

"...I have been exploring a question since I was sensible."

As if speaking to the darkness in his heart, Kirei stood in front of Archer.

"I wasted time and endured pain...but everything ended in futility. But now, I feel that I have never been so close to the 'answer'.

What I seek must be in Fuyuki, at the end of the war. "