From the noisy chaos and demonic frenzy at the beginning, to the now eerily quiet courtyard, it felt as though the grand banquet of Heroic Spirits had never taken place at all.
Saber stood alone in the courtyard. Though no longer lost, the young king's heart was still filled with bitter, complicated emotions.
Is there truly no one in this world who understands my path as a king?
Misunderstood by her retainers, underestimated by her enemies—even her own Master believed she was unfit to be a ruler. Am I really that unworthy?
Perhaps… he does understand me. But sadly, he wasn't her Master. If only I could be his Servant and fight in this Holy Grail War for him…
As she entertained that thought, Saber showed a bitter smile. What a terrible thing to be thinking, she chastised herself. How could I let such ideas take root?
No matter how despicable Emiya Kiritsugu might be, he was still her Master.
Unfortunately, he didn't understand her. And the one man who did understand her—was her enemy.
"It seems things aren't going too well between you and Emiya Kiritsugu."
As if reading her thoughts, Yoru said with a soft chuckle.
The girl flinched slightly, body tensing up, but chose to remain silent rather than respond.
"This… has nothing to do with you. Don't forget—after tomorrow, the next time we meet, we'll be enemies until one of us dies."
"No… I just find it amusing, that's all. Emiya Kiritsugu, with all his schemes, has ended up hoisted by his own petard."
Yoru shook his head. Kiritsugu had gone to great lengths to seize his relic, only to summon a Servant who refused to obey him. That must be incredibly frustrating for him.
For someone like Kiritsugu, a Berserker who obeyed orders blindly, or an Assassin designed for silent kills, would have been the perfect Servant.
But fate had other plans. Using that stolen relic, he summoned the noble and upright Saber—an idealistic young girl with a childlike heart.
Yoru found it hard to believe that someone like her could have become a king. In his view, true kings were ruthless, decisive, and cold-blooded. Both Rider and Archer fit that mold perfectly. They were tyrants, executioners with countless lives lost to their blades.
That flashy sword-drawing stunt must've worked wonders. Otherwise, a girl like her would never have claimed the throne.
Even so, King Arthur's empire was eventually buried by her most trusted followers. In the end, all that awaited her was a tragic downfall.
Yoru felt pity for Saber—but that didn't mean he approved of her ideals as a ruler. To him, Saber was still just a dreaming girl, worlds apart from Rider and Archer.
The only reason he had comforted her earlier when she was at her lowest was because he pitied her. The girl was innocent. The ones truly deserving of contempt were those who forced her onto the throne.
Saber had indeed wanted to be a good king… but she never truly understood what a king was.
"What are you trying to say? What exactly did my Master do?!"
Saber couldn't ignore the pity in Yoru's gaze and raised her voice. Deep inside, she felt this involved something very important.
"You mean… you don't know?"
With a sigh, Yoru began to speak slowly.
"The relic Emiya Kiritsugu used to summon you was actually stolen from the Einzbern family. To get it, he killed the entire transport team.
You were supposed to be theirs. You were supposed to be my Servant."
His face turned calm as he said those words, without any hint of guilt.
He didn't think there was anything wrong with revealing this. Kiritsugu had been shameless from the start. Using this to strike back and unsettle Saber was more than justified.
After all, if Kiritsugu dared to pull such a stunt, he clearly never worried about how it might affect his summoned Servant.
Servants had their own goals—the Grail—and were bound by Command Seals. Unless absolutely necessary, a Servant would never betray their Master.
After all, a Master could always use a Command Seal to order their Servant to commit suicide.
"Wh… what…? No! That's not true! It can't be!"
Just moments earlier, she had been imagining how wonderful it would be to be Yoru's Servant. And now—he had revealed a brutal truth that shattered everything.
Saber couldn't even muster a scream. She could only shake her head in denial, over and over.
Even though she knew Yoru wouldn't lie about something so easily verified, she still refused to believe it.
Could her Master really be that despicable?
Was even that faint connection between Master and Servant just an illusion?
From the very beginning, she had never belonged to Emiya Kiritsugu. She was just a prize he had stolen through vile means.
Why did it have to be like this…? Why?
The girl questioned herself in agony. Pain and regret overwhelmed her, and she shut her eyes tight.
Seeing that Saber still seemed unwilling to believe him, Yoru spoke once more.
"If you don't believe me, you can always investigate—or just ask Emiya Kiritsugu directly. I doubt he would lie to you about something like this."
A faintly mocking smile appeared on Yoru's face.
Though Kiritsugu was an unscrupulous mage killer, Yoru still had to admit he was a man who owned up to his actions. At the very least, he wasn't the type to deny what he'd done.
Having said his piece, Yoru turned away without sparing Saber another glance. He gently wrapped his arm around Irisviel.
"Let's go. It's late. Time to get some rest."
Irisviel nodded slightly, casting a worried look toward Saber. But in the end, she said nothing more and left the courtyard with Yoru.
"Thanks, Saber. If it weren't for you… I might never have met such a wonderful Master."
Whether it was intentional or not, Flan's parting words were like a dagger, piercing straight into Saber's heart.
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