Artoria the Big Liar

"Oh? A miniature simulated star constructed by magic? Caster, your level is quite good... But, are you being too impatient?"

Arthur's words fell.Then, the fireball was extinguished.

Because at the entrance of the castle hall, a petite girl appeared.

Her long silver hair reached her knees, and her red pupils were as magnificent as rubies.Wearing a gorgeous white gown and a white crown on her head, she looks like a saint destined to be martyred.But the physical grade is only about ten years old,

"Caster, don't fight yet."

"...Abiding, Master."

The girl wanted to get out of the house, but Emiya Kiritsugu held her shoulder.

Until this moment, Arthur was still wearing armor and still holding the oversized sword and gun in his hand.

Therefore, the girl could only stand at the entrance of the hall, looking at Arthur from a distance.

The night separated her and Arthur, as if they were in two completely different worlds.

One is warm and beautiful, and the other is bloody and terrifying.

"...Is it Saber? Is it really Saber?"

The girl tries to call, like she tries to call her hero after waking up from a nightmare in the middle of the night.

Arthur's expression was shrouded under the dragon helmet, and no expression could be seen.

It's just that the strength of her left hand holding my wrist has increased slightly.

"Long time no see, Elijah."

Arthur's voice could be called calm, even indifferent.

"Saber! It's really Saber!"

But the girl rejoiced, broke away from Emiya Kiritsugu, and tried to come to Arthur.

However, in the next instant, the black, profane and fear-inducing sword and spear pointed at the girl's fragile body.

— Arthur is serious.She really let out a murderous intent, as cold as her gauntlets.

If the girl dared to take another step forward, she would die-absolutely die.

"Illya!"

Calling the girl's name, Emiya Kiritsugu hurriedly pulled Illya back inside the castle.

Afterwards, Caster slowly floated between Arthur and the girl, seemingly convinced that Arthur would never make a move.

"Your behavior has crossed the line, Rider." The male voice and the female voice are the same indifference and hostility. "Could it be that you want to be in Caster's position before the official start of the Holy Grail War【"

Arthur didn't look at Caster, her gaze still seemed to be fixed on the girl.

Her voice was the same as before, so indifferent that it made my heart ache.

"Sorry, Illya... I'm here today just to inform my decision - I need the Holy Grail, whether it's true or not, whether it's polluted or not, whatever its state, I need it more than any Everyone needs it more."

The girl's expression was shrouded in the shadow of the backlight, and all I could vaguely feel was her trembling childish voice: "...Rider, if... if you really need it, the Einzbern family can provide any Help... what I said is true, Rider... Einzbern is really..."

"Illya." Arthur interrupted the girl indifferently, his voice was terribly low. "What I'm saying is, what I need is not some incomplete Holy Grail. What I need is the Great Holy Grail that is active, fully activated, after six of its servants are dead. Do you know what I mean, Ellie Ya? You will die, and you will die miserably, your body will mutate into the shape of the Little Holy Grail, and your soul will be dissolved in the magic power of the Holy Grail—the same way of death as your mother Irisviel."

"So, are you here to cut off the karma and connection of the past, Rider?" Emiya Kiritsugu's voice was still calm.

"That's right. The winner of this Holy Grail War is only me, and it can only be me." Taking a breath from the air, Arthur said: "The past has passed, and there is no love between us. Now, you can think that I am crazy, that I am completely tainted by the Holy Grail—in order to save my beloved, I am willing to give everything I have, and give up everything I want, just for the smallest possibility."

"Rider..." The girl's eyes were blurred, and she tried to call out.

But the past has passed after all, and Arthur is no longer the same Arthur as before.

Seriously, I understand the feeling - the girl must think of Arthur as her hero, right?

Sacrificing one's own wishes and existence, burning oneself like firewood, trying to destroy that filthy Holy Grail.With her own complete sacrifice, she saved the city, her father, and even herself—that must be an extremely great, glorious image like a beacon of life, right?

"Sorry, Illya, I can't answer your call."

As soon as the words fell, the Black Flame King jumped up, flapped his wings, hovered and soared in the air.

Arthur didn't look back, didn't say goodbye.She discarded everything 20 years ago here, and will never find it again.

"Wait a minute, Rider! Wait! Rider——!!!"

The girl stretched out her arm, and the voice reached Arthur's ears, but it couldn't reach her psychology.

The Black Flame King, who is connected with Arthur, flew to the distance without looking back, and was with me.

But, suddenly, a dark red barrier erupted with scarlet light.It is fully activated, like a closed city wall, nothing inside can go out, and nothing outside can enter.

Like teleportation, Caster's red figure appeared in front of Arthur and me.

The flying technique of this dragon is extraordinary, I can't feel the bumps at all, which is equivalent to the feeling of being still.

"Rider, my master said, please wait a moment. Didn't you hear?" The male voice was frivolous, and the female student was furious.

Arthur looked up at the dark red barrier, seemed to have noticed something, and said flatly, "This enchantment...Caster, what is your real name?"

"Since you have decided to be hostile, please forgive me for refusing to answer—unless the master uses a command spell on me." The male and female voices were equally indifferent and hostile.

"Interesting. Caster, have you decided to override the Master's order and represent the Einzbern family by yourself to control and dispose of alliances, negotiations, and declarations of war? Even 20 years ago, I was not so arrogant."

"Compared to these trivial matters, it is the duty of a servant to fulfill the Master's expectations—besides, you have declared war just before. You are already the enemy of the Einzbern family, and naturally it is also my enemy. "

In the torrential rain of the night, the Black Flame King flapped his wings again, turned around with incredible maneuverability, and hovered in front of the girl.

At this moment, a dark red barrier separated Arthur and the girl, and only voice could pass through it.

"Illya, is there anything else you want to say to me?" Arthur's voice was still so flat.

"Rider...is there really no other way?" The girl's voice trembled, her pupils trembling.

"It's a pity, Illya. After all, I can only protect the people around me." Arthur seemed to be talking about things that had nothing to do with him.

"Rider, can you tell me why the complete Holy Grail is necessary? The Einzbern family is good at healing magic and human body magic. No matter what kind of human defect it is, you can find a way to heal it." The girl is still delusional, Still living in the dreamland of the past, unwilling to wake up: "It's really not possible...it's not possible, it is also feasible to temporarily transfer the soul to the doll! I will find a way later, such as changing the body regularly! Mr. Aoqi Chengzi taught me Many, many of these are achievable!"

"Illya, have you forgotten? At that time, who told you the name 'Aozaki Orange'?"

Arthur's voice finally brought a touch of warmth.But this warmth quickly turned into apology and regret: "Ilya, it is precisely because I know that Einzbern can't do it, so I have no choice. Jeanne's disease is not in the body, but in the soul. Therefore, I need the Holy Grail, the complete Holy Grail, and I want to fulfill your Einzbern family's 2000-year-old expectation—the third magic called 'Heaven's Feel'. Only in this way can Jeanne's illness be cured cure."

At this moment, I felt the feeling of my soul being watched.

I looked at the source of the line of sight - Caster was lifting the veil with his withered left hand.

It was a horrible face, with almost no muscles, and it looked haggard, like burnt skin wrapped around the bones.Those huge eyes had no whites and were as black as obsidian.Because he was too thin, I couldn't tell whether he was a man or a woman at all, but I could only see his old age like a lamp with exhausted oil.

But, I don't know why, while looking terrible on the outside, maybe because of those eyes, this face exudes a strange beauty, like a supernatural charm and temptation.

Before I could understand the essence of this charm, Caster put the veil back down.

The male and female voices echoed in the air with the same disdainful tone: "Hmph...so that's the case. Rider, your depravity is more thorough than I imagined."

Arthur looked at him, but he looked at the girl, and said to her: "Master, Rider's judgment is not wrong, there is no way to save her soul except the third magic 'soul materialization' .”

"Caster! What... what's going on?" the girl asked anxiously.

Caster looked at me.And I was like a mouse stared at by a poisonous snake, my muscles were stiff, my nerves were shut down, and I couldn't even breathe.

"That empty shell is indeed a human body. But her soul is not even a man-made human. It is just the appearance of a soul kneaded by consciousness, emotion and spirit foundation, and then imitated the appearance and ability of a heroic spirit to create a creation. The creator The method used is extremely inferior, without the subtlety of magic, and does not consider the possibility of success at all. As a result, at the beginning of the design, she did not have the parts and functions to replace the 'soul'. Counting from the date of birth, at most one month time, she will decay and die for want of a soul."

But... that doesn't seem to be the case.When I looked into Caster's eyes, I felt his emotion—not disdain, not ridicule, but a kind of sadness and pity that was suppressed to the extreme, close to anger.He was pitying me, and he was pitying Arthur.It seems that the audience under the stage mourns for the plot on the stage.

After a brief pause, male and female voices echoed again with indifference.

"If it's just like this, it's not impossible to save. But ah, master... her spiritual base source itself is a fake that is not on the 'Heroic Seat', and she herself is a fake of fakes. As a result, her The memory is instilled, and her emotions are consciously modified. Her name, her identity, and everything she thinks in her mind are all false things that have been set up. Like things in a dream. The reality you see can only become a vain illusion——Rider, if you fall in love with such an existence, are you sure your rationality is still normal? Beast?"

For a moment, Arthur held my hand trembling in the distance.She really wanted to use force, but she didn't dare to use force, that's all she could do.

This shows that what Caster said is true, not a single word is false... Otherwise, Arthur will definitely refute, and it will be mocking, grasping a certain point and attacking.Instead of being like this... not saying a word.

"Arthur..." I whispered her name softly.

"It's okay, it will be resolved. Leave it to me..." Arthur's voice was weak and trembling.She took a deep breath, turned her head to look at the floating Caster, her tone returned to ice-cold: "About this question...Caster, I can answer you. I'm serious, I made the decision to seize the Holy Grail based on reason— —Or to put it this way, maybe Jeanne’s feelings for me are false, but my feelings for her are real. You have never experienced true love, so naturally you cannot understand my feelings.”

Caster was stunned.He didn't say a word, just suspended in the air like this, as if he had been petrified.

Emiya Kiritsugu and the girl were already speechless in astonishment, digesting the information Caster gave.

At this moment, there are only roaring thunder and pattering rain between heaven and earth.

After a long time, Caster finally spoke again.This time, both male and female voices trembled strongly: "Rider... Rider! What kind of misfortune did you go through to place your hope in this false love? What kind of despair did you go through to give up your own love?" Country, own people, own dignity, own beliefs, those who died, those who still love you? Just... just so that this shell, this fake within a fake, can stay with you By your side, you actually took the initiative to drive yourself crazy, and wanted to embrace the 'all the evils of this world'? I can't agree...I can't agree at all!"

"Faust, whether you agree or not has nothing to do with me. I don't need you to teach me what to do." Arthur's voice was terribly low.

"You...know my real name?" Both male and female voices were extremely surprised.

"The ability given to me by the Holy Grail. It's similar to 'Real Name Discovery', but the principle and method of operation are different." Arthur explained indifferently, as if what Caster-Faust had said before were all lies. "Thank you for your kindness. You are the same as the long poem recorded. After all, you are a kind-hearted person. However, I cannot respond to this kindness. Unfortunately, in this Holy Grail, I only respond to you with pure hostility—— You must kill your unstoppable hostility."

Faust's figure was shaking, and it was shaking extremely strongly, as if he was about to be unable to maintain his phantom.

Extremely strong emotions stirred in his heart.He didn't want to admit it, he didn't want to admit it.It was as if, by acknowledging that Arthur's feelings for me were real, what he had been holding on to went from priceless to worthless.

"...Finally, I still want to advise you, King Arthur." The male voice and the female voice are sometimes high-pitched, sometimes indifferent, opposite and intertwined, almost crazy. "A dream is a dream after all, and there is a moment of waking up from a dream. At that time, you won't even remember that you had a dream, only the emotions that are so faint that they can be ignored linger in your heart, and then dissipate quickly, and then continue your life as you should. "

"So, I need the Holy Grail. So, I need to complete the third method." Arthur responded.

"...Then what? I got the Holy Grail, I got the soul, then what?" Both the male voice and the female student were ignited with anger.

"We'll talk about the rest later." Arthur was still indifferent, "I have no obligation to tell you, Faust."

"Hmph... hum... hum ha ha ha ha!" Faust laughed, but I couldn't hear any smile. "Stupid... stupid! Really stupid! It's so stupid! I'm so stupid to argue with a lunatic about this kind of thing! With a lunatic who would rather indulge in dreams forever! A lunatic who hopes that reality is false!" Tight Then, he took another deep breath, raised his head, and forcibly controlled his emotions. "Forget it, that's it... People can't understand a madman unless they fall into the same madness-so, Master, stop having illusions, she is no longer the person you know."

Afterwards, Faust's figure was completely spiritualized and dissipated into the air,

The dark red barrier in the sky disappeared immediately, and the torrential rain fell again.

At the entrance of the castle, the girl seemed to want to say something, but her voice was drowned out by the clattering.

The Black Flame King flapped his wings, carried Arthur and me, and left the castle.

In the air, Arthur disarmed his sword and armor, looking into the distance in the storm.

The Wind King Barrier blocked the rainstorm, but it couldn't stop the sound of the rain falling.

In this white noise, I put my body close to Arthur while recalling Faust's words.

Try to use her temperature to tell yourself that I am still alive...

Try to use my temperature to tell her that I am still living by her side...

(8154 words in this chapter.)

(There are a lot of updated words in the recent chapters, and I feel a little overwhelmed by my body. I may ask for leave tomorrow.)

(But maybe, in fact, I have been in a very good state recently, and I feel that writing novels is more interesting than playing games.)

Chapter 48: The Determination to Live ([-] words)

Back at the hotel, Arthur picked me up and jumped into the hotel.

I was going to get off her and onto the couch.But Arthur walked right up to me, put me gently on the couch, and sat down beside me.The whole process was held in the princess's arms, as if I was a patient who couldn't even stand up.

Moreover, as soon as I sat on the sofa, Arthur grabbed my waist again and let me lie on her side.

She herself opened a bottle of bottled water, drank it in one gulp, closed her eyes, and half-lyed on the sofa to rest.

Veins are clearly visible in her arms.Skin that is too fair is almost completely transparent.Her condition is still not good.

The only good thing is that this time the rest was very short, and she opened her eyes in less than a minute.

She didn't look at me, and I didn't look at her, we were all just looking at each other's reflections on the black TV screen.

"...Jeanna, don't pay attention to what that guy said."

"Well, I know, it's all fake. How can I not have a soul?"

"Yes, they are all false... This is a certainty."

It can be said that, after all, he is only deceiving himself.