That protagonist is trash; I could do better!

As Kenneth chanted the incantation, Weber, knowing he couldn't possibly fight his teacher head-on, jumped off the high building.

"This is outrageous!" Waver wailed. He had no choice and didn't want to waste a Command Spell to call Rider back. As the ground drew closer, he suppressed the dizziness caused by his fear of heights and quickly chanted the spell in Latin: "Gravity Reversal".

His falling speed slowed down rapidly, and when he touched the ground, it was as if he had just taken a light fall. Weber scrambled to his feet and fled into the shadows of the building.

Can we win?

Before participating in the Holy Grail War, Waver never thought he would be a match for Kenneth.

Now, Weber believes he still has a slim chance of winning.

At Einzbern Castle, he witnessed Shinji Matou defeat the stronger Archer using magic, which confirmed the point in his thesis.

To get to his side! To become his subject!

Weber cried out inwardly, recalling what Rider had once said, and his fear gradually faded away.

Kenneth stood at the edge of the building, watching Weber fall to the ground, his expression softening: "Hmph, you've grown a bit."

After speaking, he leaped down and chased after Weber.

Kenneth El-Melloi Archibald is ranked as a Color Rank magician by the Clock Tower, second only to Grand Rank magicians. However, due to the special nature of Grand Rank magicians, they are rarely seen. Color Rank can be regarded as the highest level magician in the Clock Tower, and is also the rank held by many monarchs of the Clock Tower.

If it weren't for the existence of the mage Kiritsugu Emiya, Kenneth would be invincible among Masters due to his thorough preparations. (As stated in an interview with Gen Urobuchi)

Incidentally, Shinji Matou's abilities as a magician are basically enough to overwhelm the Grand Mages of the Clock Tower. Magicians like Kenneth, who are invincible in the eyes of ordinary people, are basically weaklings in Shinji Matou's eyes. He can easily deal with him by controlling an elemental spirit.

Within the human realm, the highest level of magic that Shinji Matou has ever encountered is Zouken Matou. Five hundred years ago, Zouken's strength surpassed that of a regular color-rank magician, but he did not reach the level of a Grand Magician. In the past 500 years, his strength has not improved at all, and may even have regressed. Therefore, it would be about the same as crushing an insect for Shinji Matou to kill him.

······

"Weber is the perfect protagonist template."

Using the familiar's eyes to observe the ground, Shinji Matou lost interest in the two weaklings pecking at each other and wasn't worried about anything happening to Waver. Kenneth was spouting harsh words but had no intention of killing him at all.

If an ordinary magician were betrayed by his disciple, the best outcome would be to be caught and preserved in formalin as research material.

Kenneth's human side is too complex.

He has a perfect background but is arrogant and conceited; he has schemes but is not cunning enough; he is arrogant but has no principles. He is just a nobody. Among all these flaws, the only thing that Matou Shinji likes is his love for his fiancée.

One of the main reasons Kenneth participated in the Holy Grail War was to prove his abilities to his fiancée, even to the point of abandoning his dignity and the magic circuits that are most important to a magician, all in an effort to save his fiancée.

This is a quality rarely seen in magicians.

"The demons have been almost wiped out. Rider, prepare to unleash your Noble Phantasms and get to work." Shinji Matou landed on the ground and entered the underground parking garage of a building. That was the center of this hellish concept barrier, the breeding ground for demons.

Shinji Matou suddenly stopped in his tracks, looking surprised. Someone had already gotten there first.

It was indeed a person, neither a follower nor a demon.

Kirei Kotomine, the agent of the church.

There were surprisingly many harmonious words.

It took more than twenty minutes to revise it, and I also checked for typos. It was amazing.

Chapter 72 It's not you who's wrong, it's the world!

Standing before the dimly lit underground parking garage door, Shinji Matou gazed at Kirei Kotomine's slender figure and asked with interest, "What purpose does the Assassin's Master, or rather, former Master, the Church's agent, have in coming here?"

Kirei Kotomine stood in the center of the garage, surrounded by signs of a fierce battle. The ground and the supporting pillars were covered with sword marks from the black keys. The priest's clothes were disheveled, and he had been scratched in many places, with blood flowing freely. He was seriously injured.

Kirei Kotomine turned around, seemingly surprised to see Shinji Matou there, and replied indifferently, "Caster? I have withdrawn from the Holy Grail War and am now supporting the Church as its agent to defeat the demons summoned by Berserker."

Shinji Matou shrugged and said bluntly, "Don't give me that, Kirei Kotomine. I know people like you better than you know yourself."

"What's the meaning."

“You and Ryunosuke Uryu are the same kind of people, born with personality defects. Well, not quite. As humans, you are indeed defective. In some ways, your innate traits cannot be covered by acquired habits, which cannot be called a bad thing.”

Kirei Kotomine's pupils contracted, and he unfolded the black keys in his hand, saying in a deep voice, "How much do you really know about me?"

Shinji Matou smiled: "Many people know this more than you do about yourself, because I belong to this category as well, although we express it in different ways. Kirei Kotomine, do you know what origin is?"

Shinji Matou, after all, was someone who had read the script.

Kirei Kotomine nodded: "I have received some formal magic training."

"That's pretty much it. The difference is that you and Ryunosuke Uryu, that murderer, are both exploring the path of their origins, while I have already reached the end."

"..."

Kirei Kotomine was speechless.

Shinji Matou extended his right hand, creating an invisible wind blade. "Last time you prevented me from eliminating Ryunosuke Uryuu. Although I don't know what you wanted to do, it would be best to eliminate you before you cause more chaos. Kirei Kotomine, do you have any last words?"

Kirei Kotomine is strong, but he is not yet qualified to be compared with Servants.

Kirei Kotomine remained calm and composed, showing no fear or panic despite Shinji Matou's intention to kill him. Instead, he asked, deeply perplexed, "I came here to find the final answer, Caster. If you can understand, please tell me, which category do I lean towards: humans or these demons?"

"Nature is human, not just the body; your mental state and soul are more human."

"You feed on the suffering of others and find no pleasure in it, yet you call such a person human? Hahahaha." Kirei Kotomine chuckled darkly, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world, extremely pleased.

"Yes, what's wrong with that? It's precisely because we are human that we can build our happiness on the suffering of others. Human nature is uglier than that of wild beasts. What humans call evil is also an inseparable part of humanity. Reason versus animality, the greatness of humanity lies in overcoming the instinct of animality."

"I can not understand."

“I don’t think this is an incomprehensible principle. Try to see the world from God’s perspective. Humanity is nothing but dust in the universe. Human good and human evil are meaningless. There is no essential difference between the two. Their purpose is the same, which is the continuation of life. The appearance of good will inevitably reflect the existence of evil, just as there is always a shadow under the sun. This has been the case since ancient times, and it is still the case now.”

"I···"

shuh~

An invisible wind blade sliced ​​through the air, severing Kirei Kotomine's body along with the building's supporting pillar. His body was severed in two; his upper body fell to the ground, still struggling, his eyes gradually losing their light, as he murmured, "I...I haven't understood yet, I haven't found the answer..."

"I'm sorry, I've talked a bit too much." Shinji Matou shrugged. Spending so much time giving Kirei Kotomine his last words was the greatest mercy Shinji Matou could give him.

In order to understand his own latent nature, Kirei Kotomine must witness the birth of evil in this world. Kirei Kotomine's nature is no different from the evil of humankind. Once Kirei Kotomine realizes his own nature, he will inevitably do evil as long as he lives.

Shinji Matou used magic to burn Kirei Kotomine's body, and sighed, "It's not you who's wrong, nor is it the time. The fault lies with this damn world. Don't worry, I'll take good care of your daughter from now on."

Karen Hordesia, also an overseer of the Holy Church, took over her father Kirei Kotomine's overseer duties after the Fifth Holy Grail War. Her personality is exactly like Kirei Kotomine's; she can feel joy from the suffering of others and doesn't have much emotion.

Ironically, if Kirei Kotomine is a born villain, Karen Oldencia is the opposite; calling her a saint wouldn't be inappropriate.

The shadows of the underground parking garage were brewing something terrifying. Black cursed magic formed a demonic body, as if imprisoning the souls of hundreds of humans. Human faces kept appearing on the surface of the black substance, their expressions ranging from pain and anger to despair.

This image could frighten most people.

But the magician wasn't having any of it. Shinji Matou threw out a red gem, activating its magical properties. The red light burst forth, turning into a raging fire that burned the demon to ashes.

Shinji Matou threw out the fire element crystal in his hand again: "Get to work!"

buzz~

The highly concentrated elemental crystals transformed into fire elemental spirits, which illuminated the entire underground garage upon their appearance. Demons had nowhere to hide and dared not approach the fire elemental spirits even slightly.

Whether in terms of affinity or characteristics, fire elemental spirits completely counter demons. Fire symbolizes the oldest and most powerful force of humankind, used to drive away unknown enemies of the night before human intelligence was developed.

Next, all we need to do is wait for Rider to unleash his Noble Phantasm and wipe out all the demons in the central district.

"I'm so tired."

Shinji Matou sat down on the ground, let out a long breath, raised his slightly trembling right hand, feeling as if his body had just finished running a marathon, his physical strength and spirit squeezed to the limit.

With a clap of his hands, he unfolded a transmutation circle on the spot, activating the life force within his body. Half of it was used for healing, and the other half for restoring magic power. This kind of magic was not without cost; it was akin to overdrawing the body's future lifespan.

As he recovered his magic, Shinji Matou's brow twitched slightly. The elemental spirits on guard reported that something had broken in.

It is a silver eagle, its body made of silver threads, lifelike, beautiful and elegant.

The Poem of Angels, a unique magic of the Einzbern family.

The magnificent silver eagle circled in the air a few times, opened its beak and fired magic bullets, assisting the fire elemental spirits in clearing away the nascent demons around it.

Chapter Seventy-Three: The Lesser Holy Grail

Irisviel arrived at the underground parking garage. She instinctively sensed that it was not a good place. Frowning, she went to Shinji Matou's side and asked softly, "Mr. Caster, where is this place?"

"The place where Berserker's Noble Phantasm is unleashed, the center of its concept."

Irisviel nodded in realization: "No wonder there is so much malice gathered here, Mr. Caster. Are you alright?"

“No problem.” Shinji Matou waved his hand casually.

Irisviel's beautiful face showed displeasure as she said earnestly, "If possible, I hope you can give us more trust and not take on everything yourself."

Why do you say that?

The silver-haired doll's beautiful, jewel-like eyes met Matou Shinji's gaze, and she said with utmost seriousness, "Whether it was the previous actions, the fight against Archer, or now, wasn't it all Caster-san acting alone? If Archer's Noble Phantasm hadn't been so powerful, Saber wouldn't have had the chance to appear. I understand that you want to protect us, but we also hope to become a force that supports you."

Shinji Matou paused slightly, then said, "I will."

"Mr. Caster, may I ask you one more time? How are you feeling now?"

Shinji Matou thought for a moment, then replied with a wry smile, "Not too good. My mana is almost completely depleted, and because the mana output efficiency was too high, half of the magic circuits in this body are damaged."

"Very good, is there anything else to do now?"

"No, we'll wait for Rider to make his move. All we need to do here is dispel the magical concept of the Noble Phantasm."

Irisviel knelt down next to Shinji Matou, smiling as she patted his snow-white legs.

"Then please lie down here."

"..."

Shinji Matou asked with a strange look, "Where did you learn that?"

Irisviel blushed and said softly, "That's strange. Doesn't the book say that this can relieve fatigue? Don't worry, I can also use healing magic."

"Ok."

Shinji Matou lay on Irisviel's lap. Because his body possessed the characteristics of a Servant, magic used to heal Servants could also be used.

After a short rest of more than ten minutes, the elemental spirits reported that Rider had unleashed his Noble Phantasm, "King's Army." At the same time, Waver and his teacher Kenneth's magic contest also came to a conclusion.

Miracles did not favor Weber. He tried his best to prove his theory, but he was defeated by Kenneth. However, judging from the elemental spirits' report, Kenneth did not win by a complete crushing defeat.

Kenneth was indeed a very powerful magician. There is a fundamental difference between a magician and a magician. The former is like a scientist, while the latter uses magic as a means. Kenneth, who did not have much practical experience, suffered a lot of losses at the hands of Webber. After his victory, he did not execute Webber.

Shinji Matou lay down, nodded to Irisviel, and clapped his hands to unleash a transmutation circle, a magical concept meant to destroy the underground parking garage.