I'm Not A Master, I'm A Director (Patreon)

Chapter 72: What Would It Be Like to Have a Prisoner in the Family?

Fate/Zero has a very tight pace, with storytelling that wastes no time.

After all, it's necessary to tell the entire Fourth Holy Grail War in three hours, so there's no room to dawdle.

To ensure enough time for the main storyline, Shinji cut out many unnecessary side plots that had already been filmed.

Among them, a whole episode featuring Rin's adventure in the anime was completely removed by Shinji and saved for the future extended edition.

And the two episodes after the King's Banquet in the anime, "Summoning of the Holy Grail" and "Taboo Feast," were also almost completely cut by Shinji Matou.

Originally, these two episodes were just to fill time and provide a transition for the latter half of the anime season. Shinji Matou only left a few key scenes, deleting most of the content that dragged on.

What the audience saw was after the banquet ended, Kirei Kotomine arranged for Irisviel to stay at the Emiya residence, and Gilgamesh insidiously laid the groundwork for Kirei's future betrayal.

On the other hand, Kiritsugu Emiya felt hopeless after discovering his workshop was destroyed by Rider. However, with inspiration from his Master, Waver Velvet, he summoned a massive Sea Demon using a magical tome in the river.

This blatant act naturally caught the attention of the riverside residents. Moreover, the disturbance caused by the appearance of the Sea Demon even alarmed the Self-Defense Force.

Facing the danger of possible exposure, all the Masters except for Waver finally formed a temporary alliance to collectively subdue the rampaging Caster.

Thus, a great battle erupted naturally.

The alliance composed of Saber, Lancer, and Rider fought against the summoned giant Sea Demon in the river.

Logically, it should have been an easy victory for three against one, especially with Lancer's Noble Phantasm restraining Caster. However, the Sea Demon's regenerative ability was extraordinary, akin to the Hydra in Greek mythology—chopping off one head only resulted in two growing back.

The trio couldn't completely break through Caster's defenses and were nearly counter-killed instead.

Then, the Self-Defense Force made a grand appearance, sending two fighter jets to attack the Sea Demon, hoping to kill it with modern weapons.

But neither machine guns nor missiles had any effect on the colossal creature that resembled something out of a tokusatsu film. Instead, one jet was swallowed by the Sea Demon, and the other was controlled by Berserker to attack Gilgamesh.

In the background of other Servants attacking the Sea Demon, Gilgamesh engaged in a magnificent aerial duel with Berserker. Various Noble Phantasms and missiles flew around in the sky, creating one beautiful explosion after another.

At that moment, almost all theaters worldwide showing Fate/Zero fell silent.

All the audience held their breath, staring wide-eyed at the screen, witnessing the awe-inspiring action scenes that could only be described as earth-shattering.

"This is exhilarating! This is what a real battle between magi should be like!"

Shizuko, who longed for such excitement, wished she could jump onto the screen and join the battle against the Sea Demon.

To hell with hidden mysteries, to hell with covert operations; she just wanted to have a blast!

The places the Sea Demon attacked were left with ravines, and the houses along the river collapsed like paper, with countless civilians fleeing in all directions.

Even though Kiritsugu managed to snipe Caster's Master, Ryuunosuke Uryuu, from a distance, the Sea Demon continued to spread outward instinctively, causing continuous destruction.

Shinji Emiya used the simplest shots to tell the audience that the most breathtaking battles often only needed the simplest forms of expression—just smashing things.

This approach was crude but effective, tapping into the audience's primal desire for destruction.

"This is awesome! This is how war should be depicted!"

To prevent further disaster, Iskandar had no choice but to use his Reality Marble to take the Sea Demon away, allowing others to come up with a solution.

In the end, it was Kiritsugu Emiya who proposed a solution. He informed Lancer that Saber possessed an Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasm, but due to her left hand's disability, she couldn't unleash it. He left the decision to Lancer on how to handle it.

Out of chivalry, Lancer broke the cursed Golden Rose, releasing the curse and allowing Saber's left hand to recover.

With Saber able to exert her full strength, she unleashed the Noble Phantasm, Excalibur, and slew Caster's gigantic Sea Demon.

The golden light illuminated the entire river and also illuminated everyone's hearts.

"Wow, that's beautiful..."

As the conclusion of the battle, the radiance of Excalibur provided everyone with a peaceful ending, extinguishing the anger that had previously welled up within them.

Not only were the audience outside the screen drawn to this light, but even the Heroic Spirits within the movie were deeply moved by the victorious light emitted by the holy sword.

After dissolving the Reality Marble, Iskandar discussed with Gilgamesh and concluded that this young girl would not experience true love.

"Pfft—"

"Hahaha~"

"Is this what they call a 'macho man'?"

Upon hearing the words of the King of Conquerors, the audience who had seen Fate/stay night burst into laughter.

Just listening to the burly man speak in such a matter-of-fact manner seemed to make sense, but viewers who already knew the outcome of the Fifth Holy Grail War knew that this guy was just talking nonsense.

Compared to Iskandar, Gilgamesh was even more determined to marry this woman.

"Haha, Saber, why don't you just agree already?" teased the restless Gilgamesh, poking fun at Arturia's shoulder with his finger.

"You, with my attack ability at the EX level, and you, with a defensive Noble Phantasm at the EX level, are simply a perfect match!"

Cu Chulainn chuckled as he continued to tease, "By the way, the King with the EX-level Reality Marble can use his soldiers as the bridal procession. Then, your wedding will surely be the most luxurious of this century—"

Swish!

A gust of wind swept past as one of Cu Chulainn's hedgehog heads was shaved off.

"Cu Chulainn, how dare you suggest that the King and that golden monkey get involved!"

Lancelot held the unscathed Arondight against Cu Chulainn's throat, the blade emitting a blue light that moved like a chainsaw.

"Alright, you two, calm down a bit," Shinji signaled for the two troublemakers to tone it down.

"Lancelot, do not disturb others," Arturia's command made Lancelot reluctantly retract his sword, but his face still showed dissatisfaction.

"Also, Cu Chulainn."

Because there was another Lancer present, Artoria deliberately addressed the big dog by his name.

"Do not think that I have no means of resistance just because you have a way to counter it." Artoria said sternly, "A husband who fires light cannons all day and a wife who counters with a sword sheath—what kind of dysfunctional family is that? In modern society, the law of the king must be followed."

"Are you not the king yourself?" Cu Chulainn grinned, refraining from saying what he thought.

His earlier cheeky behavior had already displeased both Artoria and Gilgamesh. If he kept pushing, he might end up being locked up in the courtyard tonight by the "Chains of Heaven."

The Battle of Mion River marked a turning point in the Fate/Zero story. If the previous events had a touch of kingship, the story after the Battle of Mion River delved completely into darkness.

First was the duel between Saber and Lancer. What was supposed to be a fair duel between knights turned into a tragic affair due to Kiritsugu Emiya's intervention.

To ensure victory, Kiritsugu used Sola-Ui as leverage, coercing Kayneth into signing a Self-Compulsion Charter—forcing Lancer to commit suicide with the final Command Spell, in exchange for Kiritsugu never harming Kayneth and Sola-Ui.

Though reluctant, for the sake of his fiancee's life, Kayneth ultimately chose to compromise.

Under the compulsion of the Command Spell, Diarmuid's Gáe Dearg pierced his own body.

"Ah..."

Tears of crimson flowed from Diarmuid's widened eyes, a symbol of a knight's unwillingness.

"You all..."

Kneeling in his own pool of blood, Diarmuid desperately roared with a hoarse, deep voice.

"Do you all want victory that badly!? Do you desire the Holy Grail so much!? You trample even my only sincere wish, don't you feel ashamed!?"

The handsome face of the knight twisted with blood and tears, his countenance resembling a vengeful spirit, starkly different from his former self.

"Unforgivable! Absolutely unforgivable! I will not forgive you all! Captivated by fame and fortune, denigrating the noble radiance of knights, let the dream be tainted with my blood!"

"I curse the Holy Grail! I curse your wishes to become disasters! When you fall into the hell's cauldron, do not forget the anger of Diarmuid!"

Consumed by hatred, Diarmuid forgot the distinction between friend and foe, directing his raging wrath towards Kiritsugu, Saber, and all others in the world.

"It's comforting to know that at least Diarmuid's curse came true."

With his legs crossed, Kiritsugu remarked, "Everyone present, not a single person in this Holy Grail War has had a good ending. Nasu is really fond of playing out these kinds of scenarios."

Whether out of a perverse sense of humor or not, Nasu particularly enjoyed setting up strange flags for his characters, and then realizing them in even stranger ways (whether positive or negative).

One could say Love Hero's reputation was well-deserved.

"How does it feel? Seeing your own death."

As a "senior" who had died twice on screen, Cu Chulainn gestured for the "junior" Diarmuid to share his thoughts.

"It's just a performance," Diarmuid commented softly. "At least my Master in reality won't betray me again."

"Yeah, he won't betray you; he'll just squeeze you dry."

Cu Chulainn muttered under his breath, a voice only he could hear.

Recalling his experience of being overworked alone, Cu Chulainn felt he should unite with other similarly exploited Heroic Spirits.

"If only we could create a 'Heroic Spirit Labor Code,'" Cu Chulainn said sincerely.

Ultimately, with profound unwillingness, Diarmuid, now akin to a vengeful spirit, dissipated from the screen.

"Waa— Knight Diarmuid."

At this moment, sobbing could be heard in the theater.