That protagonist is trash; I could do better!

Irisviel and Saber exchanged a glance. At such close range, Saber was confident that she could kill Shinji Matou the instant he activated his magic.

Irisviel nodded: "Then we won't stand on ceremony."

The two took their seats. Shinji Matou was still sorting out his thoughts. Kiritsugu Emiya was not there, so the invitation lost its original meaning.

Putting aside more complex factors, what Shinji Matou wants to know most right now is whether Chaldea, the organization that ensures the survival of humanity, will appear in this Holy Grail War.

The time should be tonight. Under normal circumstances, Saber will clash with Lancer tonight. Otherwise, it's 90% certain that Chaldea will participate in this Holy Grail War.

It's not advisable to reveal too much before confirming this.

It should be said that Irisviel adapted quickly or was unguarded; she sat down and soon began to enjoy the food, eating very happily.

Saber couldn't resist the temptation of the food either. Even though she doesn't eat very fast, she emptied a large portion of the plate in the blink of an eye. She truly lives up to her title as the Saber King.

Looking at Irisviel's charming yet childlike appearance, Shinji Matou couldn't help but ask, "Excuse my rudeness, but how old are you, Einzbern homunculus?"

Irisviel paused for a moment, thought about it carefully, and replied, "Age has no practical significance for us androids."

Shinji Matou knew the answer. Irisviel was psychologically mature, but her actual age was estimated to be only nine years old. Therefore, under this mature demeanor, she often showed childlike curiosity.

"Alright, let's get down to business."

Shinji Matou frankly said, "The situation is quite different from what I expected. I'm sorry I can't provide you with more information, but since we've already made this conversation happen, let's give each other a reason to cooperate."

"The Servant summoned by the Tohsaka family is Archer, whose true identity is the protagonist of the oldest epic poem in human history, Gilgamesh, and the strongest Servant."

Irisviel exclaimed in surprise, "You mean the Tohsaka family's Master summoned the King of Heroes..."

"That's not all. On the surface, Assassin's Master Kirei Kotomine has parted ways with Tokiomi Tohsaka, but in reality, he is still secretly gathering intelligence to help Tokiomi Tohsaka secretly win this Holy Grail War. Kirei Kotomine's father, Ryou Kotomine, is the supervisor of this Holy Grail War. He has a close relationship with the Tohsaka family, and he will probably continue to protect the Tohsaka family in this Holy Grail War."

After a pause, Shinji Matou continued, "The only thing to be thankful for is that the King of Heroes was summoned as an Archer with high-level solo action skills, so Tokiomi Tohsaka cannot use this oldest and most aloof king at will."

Irisviel crossed her arms and said softly, "The existence of Servant Killer alone is enough to justify our alliance, but why are you so clear about this Holy Grail War? You also said some cryptic things just now, as if you knew the whole story from the beginning. It's okay if you can't tell us the whole truth, at least give us a reason to believe you."

His bright red eyes and earnest expression revealed a determination to get the answer no matter what.

Shinji Matou was very troubled and said helplessly, "The only thing I can tell you right now is that I witnessed the beginning and end of the Fourth Holy Grail War. As for the truth of the Holy Grail War, I will make a decision after tonight."

Chapter Twenty-Eight: The End of Ideals

After leaving the hotel, Saber and Irisviel drove away in a black car.

In the car, Irisviel looked at the bustling street scene and asked softly, "Saber, how credible do you think Caster's words are?"

"As for credibility, I'd rate it around 5 out of 10."

A look of surprise crossed Irisviel's face: "Saber's answer was even lower than I expected."

Saber smiled slightly: "I was once a ruler of a country, and I have seen many people like Caster. One thing is certain: he is a smart man. The things he considers, the benefits he wants to obtain, and the path he takes may be the same as ours, but the final result will inevitably be his greatest gain. Based on this result, we should consider his words. His credibility has always been the same. It's not about how credible his words are, but that we must maintain half of our credibility when dealing with such a person."

Irisviel smiled and praised, "Truly worthy of being Britain's greatest king."

The atmosphere grew heavy. Saber's azure eyes gazed at the pedestrians outside the window, and she shook her head with a complex tone: "Irisviel, this is hardly a compliment to me. I am a king who doesn't understand people's hearts, so in the end I couldn't save my own country."

Do you regret it?

Saber smiled bitterly: "No, when I pulled out Caliburn (the sword of kings, the sword in the stone), I already saw my end. It was a very tragic end. Even so, I have never regretted it for a moment. What I cannot forgive is the ending of not being able to save Britain in the end."

"Well···"

Irisviel moved closer to Saber and quietly placed her hand on Saber's shoulder: "You're too stiff."

"Irisviel?" Saber's pretty face was full of confusion.

Irisviel vigorously rubbed Saber's shoulders, her smile as gentle and kind as ever: "As expected of an excellent knight, is it because you still have a body that your shoulders are so, so stiff?"

"Huh?" Saber still didn't understand Irisviel's intentions, yet she could sense the care Irisviel showed her.

Irisviel leaned on Saber's shoulder, as if to pull her into her arms, gently comforting her: "Saber, I can't imagine how heavy the responsibility and past you carry. That must be the reason you answered the Holy Grail's call. I am a doll without wishes. If possible, from now on, please lend me your wishes as well, even just a little bit. I want to share those sad pasts with you."

Saber closed her eyes, seemingly recalling fond memories, her smile becoming natural yet tinged with bitterness: "A long time ago, someone said something similar to me. At that time, I did not respond to her expectations. Thinking back, the end I am facing may be the punishment for being a king who does not understand people's hearts."

Irisviel asked softly, "Now, what will you choose, Saber?"

Saber shook his head: "I don't know, so my wish is to go back to the time when I pulled out Caliburn (the sword of kings, the sword in the stone), to recall the feelings at that time, and if I had chosen a different ending, would my country have had a better ending for the knights who once served me? If destruction is inevitable, I hope to face it peacefully."

After a brief silence, Irisviel instructed the driver, "Please stop the car."

A black sedan was parked on the side of the road.

"Irisviel?"

"Let's get off the bus and take a look around."

"This is too dangerous. Even though it's daytime, we can't rule out the possibility of an enemy attack."

"As King Arthur and throughout your life, you have never had time to enjoy life like this. So have I. I am an artificial being created for the Holy Grail War. I have always lived in the castle and have never seen the outside world. This is the first time I have seen such a lively and peaceful scene."

Before Saber could object, Irisviel got out of the car first, opened the door on Saber's side, and stretched out her hand with a smile, saying, "Come on, my guardian knight."

"Irisviel..."

Irisviel puffed out her cheeks and urged angrily, "What's wrong? I'm going to get angry if you don't come. I'll go and enjoy the scenery of this city by myself. Hmph, then you'll be breaking your duty as a guardian knight."

Saber chuckled and said, "No, I will follow Irisviel wherever she goes. I was just thinking that it's rare to see Irisviel take such a firm stance."

Saber removed her black gloves, placed her right hand on Irisviel's hand, and was pulled out of the car by her.

The two looked at each other and smiled.

······

Trouble.

This is a huge problem.

After parting ways with Irisviel and the others, Shinji Matou lay on his hotel bed, lost in thought.

If this world were a singularity in FGO, then Shinji Matou's true enemy would change from Archer to Chaldea, the organization that preserves human order.

Chaldea's goal is to dismantle the Holy Grail War and not allow any potential threats to humanity to remain. On the surface, their goal is similar to that of Shinji Matou. However, considering their position as servants from another world, it's like two servants in the Holy Grail War who can cooperate to eliminate other servants, but ultimately cannot avoid fighting each other.

Considering Chaldea's strength, there was no possibility of cooperation between Matou Shinji and them from the beginning. If Matou Shinji had helped them dismantle the Holy Grail, Matou Shinji alone would certainly not have been their match.

"Is this distorted result the result of an inhibitory force?"

Shinji Matou muttered to himself, "Neither the Alaya consciousness's restraining force nor Gaia's restraining force allows anything that threatens their survival to appear, and then the Holy Grail will possess the power to destroy the world."

The fact that the Holy Grail War has remained unresolved without the influence of a restraining force is something Shinji Matou would never believe.

In a world without Kiritsugu Emiya, the Counter Force, seeing a chance of victory for the Einzberns, dispatches the transformed Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu Emiya to assassinate Irisviel and destroy the Lesser Grail.

This also reveals just how perversely humorous the Inhibitor is.

The only instance of a wish being granted in the Holy Grail War became the cornerstone of Chaldea's establishment, and it was Chaldea's existence that prevented the catastrophe of the burning of humanity.

Chaldea can be seen as the embodiment of the means to strengthen the inhibitory force and protect human reason.

"In any case, the outcome will be revealed tonight."

----------------------

If you still can't tell which ahoge (cowlick) it is after reading this chapter, you're disqualified from being a chef!

In addition, regarding the performance of FZ and FSN's ahoge (antenna-like hairs), see the image.

Also, what's with all these comments? So many people are talking nonsense about global combat power.

Chapter Twenty-Nine Gáe Bolg

The night was cold and the wind was biting.

Shinji Matou floated above the city, overlooking most of it. Under the cover of night, he even used magical camouflage to conceal his presence as a Servant. Shinji Matou believed that no one could detect his existence except for Caster-class Servants who were skilled in search magic.

In this Holy Grail War, Shinji Matou himself is the Caster.

"Still no sign of any Servant. Putting aside the Servants from Chaldea, why hasn't Lancer appeared either?" An ominous cloud hung over Shinji Matou's heart as he monitored for most of the night without any results.

Regardless of the timeline, on the night the Holy Grail War officially begins, Lancer should be provoking others and seeking out opponents.

Shinji Matou looked down at the warehouse next to the Fuyuki City Bridge. The lights were still on, and the warehouse was empty. It was the perfect place for Servants to fight.

This was supposed to be the place where the Servants of the Fourth Holy Grail War clashed for the first time.

"What's going on? Brush Bro, come out here!" Matou Shinji muttered to himself. A night breeze swept by, and Matou Shinji stretched out his right hand and chanted a spell: "Wind, explore the earth."

A gentle breeze gathers and falls from the sky onto the warehouse. This magical breeze does not have any exploration function. Instead, it carries the magic to the area below the warehouse, forming a magical domain. Anything related to magic will be revealed within this domain, much like an ultrasonic detector.

Silver eyes flashed, and indeed, not a trace of a Servant could be found in the warehouse.

As for Saber, she is being monitored by water elemental spirits, and there have been no reports yet, indicating that nothing unusual has happened there.

"The calmer things are, the more unsettling it becomes. What will be the future of this Holy Grail War?"

After searching for more than ten minutes, Shinji Matou, who was in the sky, suddenly felt a strange premonition. A bone-chilling cold overwhelmed Shinji Matou's consciousness, as if something was pressing down on his head. Shinji Matou had experienced similar feelings many times before, his body's instinctive rejection of death.

"What!?"

We've been discovered!?

Shinji Matou's first thought was that it was impossible; there shouldn't be any Servants in this Holy Grail War who could discover him.

Thinking this, Shinji Matou's body reacted instinctively. His demonic eyes flashed, and a transmutation circle appeared in the center of his pupils. He quickly mobilized the demonic power within his body and waved his right hand to unfold a solid defensive barrier.

"boom!"

The world trembled. Shinji Matou's magic circuits surged with magical power, and a bright red spear was pressed against the hastily deployed light purple barrier.

"Sizzle sizzle sizzle~"

The gun trembled, its tip striking the barrier and sparking fiercely. The tip was pointed directly at Shinji Matou's heart.

Lancer!

"Click~ Click~"

The spear tip gradually crushed the barrier, and spiderweb-like cracks spread rapidly. Shinji Matou's Mystic Eyes sensed an unusual aura from the crimson demonic spear.

"This gun! Could it be?!" Shinji Matou's expression changed drastically.

curse!

The curse, entwined with the magic spear and becoming one with it, pierced the barrier as the magic spear. The curse's magic power rapidly permeated every corner of the barrier, disintegrating its magical properties.