IBHJ 1020 (Patreon)

He frowned, "You played with world lines?"

She nodded, "Yes, we played with world lines. Making new world lines, then destroying them, burning them for energy. That's how we won, and that was our sin."

"So, the truth behind Connection Points..."

"Yes. Connection Points came from those world lines we created, destroyed, and burned. That's why some areas inside them feel off - isolated, partial, incomplete. The Council used these leftover world lines to make Connection Points."

Shirou went quiet. He'd wanted to ask about the Lord of Salvation, but instead he'd learned something even more terrifying.

He finally understood the truth behind the Connection Points.

It made sense now. Why there were no other continents in the Norse Connection Point. Why there were no other civilizations in the South American one. These Connection Points were never whole to begin with.

You could say everything happening now was just the aftermath of that ancient conflict.

Messing with world lines, no matter how you looked at it, was a massive mistake. A huge sin.

His mind raced. Not only did they mess with world lines, but they destroyed and burned them for energy. Enough power for a cosmic-scale war.

Messing with world lines was clearly wrong. But not doing it meant destruction. What's the right choice between survival and evil? Between saving your people and committing a cosmic crime?

The ancients made their choice. And now they were paying for it.

"Is the Lord of Salvation some kind of... universal punishment for what you did?" he asked, looking at her intently. "Is the Root trying to erase past mistakes?"

She shook her head. "The Root doesn't work like that. The universe is a dark forest where anything is permitted. Even playing with world lines is allowed. The Lord of Salvation is something far more terrifying than you think. But I can't tell you more."

"Why not?"

"Everything about It can't be explained by others. You have to find out for yourself."

He leaned forward. "Then how do we stop It? How do we make the Lord of Salvation disappear?"

"Make the right wish to the awakened Eternal King."

"What's that mean?"

"You're Eternal King, Shirou. But Eternal King is also a vessel, an empty throne. Eight years ago, I found you - a blank slate with the [Foreigner] qualification, but not tied to Evil Gods or other outer beings. That's what makes you special. I chose you, but Eternal King didn't. You became Eternal King on your own."

"So you're both Eternal King and Fujimaru Shirou. Only you can awaken Eternal King. And that's not something you were born with - it's a soul-flame you built through all endless resets. I can't help you grow any more than this. You're as strong as any great soul now, but you still have doubts and weaknesses. No one can solve those but you."

"So I have to awaken Eternal King myself?"

"Yes. And you must find the answer on your own," she said with utmost seriousness.

"This Eternal King's—"

He opened his mouth to ask more, but suddenly the miasma around them started going wild. It bubbled and swirled like a massive storm, knocking both him and Tethys off balance.

He stumbled, confused and alarmed. "What's happening?"

She glanced at the causal river of time, then looked back at him with a pained expression. "You really came up with a terrible idea!"

Shirou's brow furrowed in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"In the real past, you used Misaya's black magic to become Ayaka and surrender to Manaka. That let the real Ayaka attack the Greater Grail with Gilgamesh, and you stabbed Manaka from behind just as she was about to win. Now your past self is using Medea's spell to turn into Arthur, trying to do the same thing."

"Isn't that good?" he asked, puzzled. "Manaka can't resist Arthur."

She shook her head. "The problem is what you just did to Manaka. You made her regain her intelligence. She's at her calmest now. She saw through your past self's plan and Medea's spell at a glance. Now she's hunting your past self down."

She couldn't help but add, "As expected of you, sabotaging even your past self."

Shirou fell silent for a moment, then calmly replied, "It doesn't matter. Letting him suffer a bit now will be good in the long run."

Tethys: "..."

She stared at him, speechless.

What's wrong with this guy? she wondered to herself.

Shirou kept to himself the fact that he still held a grudge against his younger self for teasing him about body-swapping with Artoria.

"One more experience, one more chance to grow. No need to worry about him," he said casually.

"But Mordred is there too."

"What?!" Shirou's calm demeanor vanished. "How could that nerd bring Mordred to such a dangerous place!"

...

Meanwhile, Fujimaru and Mordred were indeed running for their lives, with Manaka Sajyou in hot pursuit.

He glanced back at the wave of pitch-black monsters behind them. His skin crawled, and he pushed himself to run even faster.

Mordred, hiding in his shadow, hissed, "You moron! Didn't you say Manaka wouldn't see through your disguise?"

"How was I supposed to know?" Fujimaru shot back, frustration and fear in his voice. He was practically crying as he ran. "I even had Medea adjust my aura to match Arthur's. In theory, Manaka shouldn't have been able to tell unless she looked really close... who knew!"

"You absolute idiot!" she snarled. "We haven't found Eternal King, and now we've kicked a hornet's nest. If I die here, I'll strangle you before I go!"

He rolled his eyes. "How can you say that? I'm hurt. Besides, you're the one who wanted to tag along. How is this my fault?"

"Shut up, just shut up! Less talking, more running!"

"I don't need you to tell me that!"

Fujimaru pushed himself harder. Thank goodness Gilgamesh had loaded him up with Noble Phantasms before they left. Between those and Medea and Misaya's strengthening spells, he might just make it out alive.

At least the monsters, for all their numbers, were slow.

Suddenly, a violent tremor shook the underground tunnels of Shinjuku. Dust and small rocks showered down from the walls.

Fujimaru grimaced. He knew what that meant - Gilgamesh and the others had started their assault on the Greater Grail and were fighting Manaka's Heroic Spirits.

But that wasn't his problem now. He'd already failed his mission. All he could do was run and try not to make things worse for Gilgamesh and the others.

At least he had those enhancements, and the monsters were slow. The vast underground tunnels gave him some hope.

As he sprinted, a light appeared ahead. His eyes widened. "The exit!"

He rushed toward it, heart pounding. Then a sweet, chilling voice stopped him cold:

"Where do you think you're going?"

A blonde girl in a small western-style dress stepped out of the light. The very sight of her filled the air with an indescribable sense of dread and horror.

The young man froze. Icy fear crawled up his spine like a cold hand.

He sucked in a sharp breath.

Manaka Sajyou!

"Ma-Manaka...!" he stammered.

His scalp tingled as he stared at the girl; this was the monster who could devour the world. His first and most terrifying enemy!

"Disguising yourself as Arthur, you planned to stab me in the back when I let my guard down, didn't you?" Manaka's smile was sweet poison. "Too bad I saw right through it. You won't get that chance, Fujimaru... Fujimaru... Hm. What was your name again?"

The young man didn't answer. He just stared at her, cold sweat forming on his face.

"Paralyzed by fear? No matter. I can see everything about you." Manaka's smile widened as she activated her power.

Her eyes pierced through the very fabric of reality, seeing all causality and fate laid bare before her.

But when she turned that gaze on the young man, she froze.

"I... I can't see. How is this possible?"

Manaka was stunned. She was omniscience. Nothing in this world could surprise her all-seeing eyes. She was the end of all truths, the very embodiment of fate itself.

Only once before had she been caught off guard - when Arthur stood before her, holy sword blazing. That moment had awakened her to life, to first love.

But that was before she'd fully connected to her power. Arthur, shielded by his holy sword, was naturally beyond her sight then. Now, fully connected, she should see everything. Yet this young man... she couldn't see a thing about him.

Fate, causality... it was all a blank.

"Impossible. This can't be happening."

Manaka's whispers were frantic. She knew Shirou and this young man were the same person. But while she could trace the causality of his past by looking at others in Shinjuku, this young man himself was a blank slate. No fate line, nothing.

Why?

She didn't know. She didn't even want to investigate. The truth was, this young man was a foreigner, a soul from another world. A blank foreigner with no record in the Root.

This was why Tethys had chosen him, why he could inherit the vortex. But becoming Shirou? That was all his own doing, born from struggle and ideological clashes.

Manaka knew none of this. Yet an unexpected joy began to bubble up from deep inside her.

"What... is your name?" Manaka looked up, her eyes wide with curiosity.

"I—I—My name is—"

Fujimaru stumbled backward, his mouth dry as sand. No words came.

Suddenly, a glint flashed across his glasses. In that moment, a figure burst from the shadows behind Manaka. With a quick "whoosh," Mordred's blade pierced through Manaka's abdomen.

Time seemed to slow as crimson bloomed across Manaka's white dress. Fresh blood, startlingly bright, trickled down the length of the blade. It gathered at the tip, forming perfect drops before falling.

Drip. Drip.

Manaka looked down, disbelief etched on her face. She turned to Mordred, her complexion rapidly paling, then collapsed into a growing pool of blood.

Mordred yanked her sword free, casually wiping the blade clean. "Thought she'd be immortal again. Turns out even with her Root connection, she's just a regular girl. Wasted my time asking Gilgamesh for that immortal-slaying sword."

Fujimaru adjusted his glasses, a smile playing on his lips. "So, how was my strategy?"

Seeing the young man's eager look, Mordred grunted a few times before reluctantly admitting, "I guess... it was okay."

Everything had gone according to Fujimaru's plan. The Arthur disguise was just Plan A. Even if that failed, he had Plan B: leveraging his foreigner identity.

Tethys had told him long ago - even if Manaka was connected to the Root, she couldn't see through a foreigner.

His only unique trait was being a Foreigner. The Root had no record of him, so Manaka, connected to it, was blind to his existence.

Just as Manaka, who never looked at her own fate, had been surprised by Arthur and fallen in love, the young man whose fate she couldn't see had also caught her off guard.

In that moment of vulnerability, he'd let Mordred, wielding the Grail, strike from behind. To counter Manaka's potential immortality, Mordred had even borrowed a special sword from Gilgamesh - one that could slay the undying.

It was a gamble, of course. Both sides had bet their lives.

And the young man had won.

"What an excellent strategy, Mr. Shirou."

A seductive female voice, accompanied by slow applause, suddenly cut through the air. The young man and Mordred spun around, their victorious smiles freezing on their faces.

It was Demonic Bodhisattva.

She smiled charmingly at the young man. "Knowing the future, you took a different path and killed this girl. How impressive, truly impressive."

The young man felt his scalp tingle as he stared at Demonic Bodhisattva. This was no Manaka Sajyou. It wasn't human and wouldn't fall to a single sword strike.

Mordred gripped her weapon tightly, eyes never leaving Demonic Bodhisattva.