Zongman, the journey begins from the wrong place

Unlike his rough appearance, like a silent rock, Kotomine Kirei's mind is actually very delicate.

Moreover, since Kotomine Kirei doesn't care about anything else, he is extremely sensitive to anything that may be related to the answers he is seeking.

This is similar to color blindness. When the interference of colorful colors is filtered out, people will become very sensitive to disturbances of objects.

Now, Kotomine Kirei could keenly sense that the woman from the Einzbern family should also have some similarities with Emiya Kiritsugu.

It wasn't for wealth or power, it seemed to be for some other reason... In short, that was definitely what interested Kotomine Kirei.

Is that what the world calls love?

A frail and sickly face, but with eyes radiating deep tenderness, flashed through Kotomine Kirei's mind, causing his thoughts to pause for a few seconds.

In short, this might also be the reason why Gilgamesh, the extremely arrogant ancient king, took the initiative to order him not to harm the Einzbern mother and daughter.

If I kill them, Gilgamesh will surely be furious, right?

When he thought of that scene, Kotomine Kirei's solemn expression couldn't help but twist a little.

However, for the sake of greater pleasure, he had to suppress this thought.

Kotomine Kirei had never been afraid of death in the past, and now that he had grasped the great secrets of life, he cared even less about living.

However, death cannot be in vain. One must experience the most wonderful pleasure in the world before dying.

Well, this is called, live to old age, be happy to old age, and devote yourself to the great cause of happiness!

In short, just don't kill.

Well, let's just treat it as an appetizer.

After making the decision, Kotomine Kirei broke through the barrier set up outside Einzbern Castle without hesitation.

Then, his good eyesight, enhanced by magic, allowed him to accurately capture Snow White gazing at him from the watchtower of a majestic exotic castle.

9五零⒈八０九0㈨

Long silver hair, bright red pupils, and a beautiful face that is so exquisite that it almost has an inhuman quality.

It was confirmed that she was Emiya Kiritsugu's pillar, the android of the Einzbern family.

On the edge of the observation deck where the cold wind was biting, Irisviel looked at the black Grim Reaper rushing towards her and bit her pink thin lips.

“Have you set the trap, Maiya?”

"Everything is done, but because the enemy attacks too quickly, I only deployed the outermost layer of attacks. I will use my own attacks to make up for the shortcomings of the traps."

In the woods below the castle, Hisau Maiya gripped a submachine gun, hiding herself behind a tree as best she could, and listened attentively to the approaching noises.

"If I fail, ma'am, please run away."

"No, we can't run away. If we can't defeat him in our base camp, where can we run to? And now Illya is here, he will definitely catch up if we leave. We can only hold on here and finish him off!"

Moreover, Irisviel had a little selfish motive in her heart.

The sight of Emiya Kiritsugu hugging her and her daughter and crying bitterly yesterday deeply hurt Irisviel's heart.

She didn't know what happened, but one thing was certain, Emiya Kiritsugu had a very brief contact with a man named Kotomine Kirei yesterday.

For Emiya Kiritsugu, who still has a hint of innocence in his heart and is almost crushed by sin, Kotomine Kirei is a dangerous man who can directly hit his inner vulnerability!

Absolutely, this man must not be allowed to come into contact with Emiya Kiritsugu!

A hint of determination flashed in Irisviel's eyes, and she was prepared.

Listening to the usually innocent and romantic Irisviel's calm analysis in a critical moment, Hisau Maiya suddenly felt a little jealous.

People who live together for a long time will always become more and more similar in all aspects.

For example, if a family often eats together and has similar schedules, their physical health will naturally become closer, and women's menstrual periods will even gradually become synchronized.

In addition to the physiological aspects, people's personalities will inevitably become more and more similar.

She had known Emiya Kiritsugu and fought alongside him for almost ten years, but she had only learned the surface of what he knew.

Although Irisviel still appears innocent and romantic on the surface, spiritually, she and Emiya Kiritsugu are the closest to each other.

"Then let us fight together, Madam!"

Kotomine Kirei, who had entered a state of combat readiness, keenly sensed the traps and easily avoided them all.

Even if Assassin was lost, he was an agent of the Templar who had been fighting heretics all over the world for more than a decade. There was no way he would be entangled by these little things.

But once he went around into the jungle from next door and saw a woman firing a gun at him skillfully and steadily, Kotomine Kirei realized that the trap outside was deliberately set up to lure him here.

She's a good woman who can use such tactics.

As expected, there are always people or things around that man Emiya Kiritsugu that can excite him.

Facing the bullets pouring down like raindrops, Kotomine Kirei remained calm. He simply held three black keys in each hand and waved them to block the bullets aimed at his vital points.

The bullets fired at other parts of the body were easily blocked by the specially strengthened robe.

After World War II, due to changes in combat distances, assault rifles and submachine guns with less gunpowder and smaller calibers came into being.

A pistol with a smaller caliber couldn't even kill a cow or a pig, so Kotomine Kirei dared to take it head-on.

If it was a large-caliber rifle bullet, Kotomine Kirei could only avoid the attack, just like he did yesterday evening.

In this way, Kotomine Kirei approached Hisau Maiya step by step and asked.

"Are you Emiya Kiritsugu's collaborator, or simply a hired mercenary? Or, are you the one who sniped me last night?"

Hisau Maiya said nothing, but just kept shooting silently.

After the bullets were all gone, she took out her dagger and rushed forward to prepare for close combat.

This action made Kotomine Kirei frown. If the other party was so childish, he would be a little disappointed.

"I don't want to kill anyone, but if you don't answer my questions, I can only treat you as a heretic and execute you!"

Before getting the answer, Kotomine Kirei had no intention of killing this woman whom he admired.

However, if the other party persists in doing so, he will not show mercy.

Anyway, Gilgamesh only asked him not to kill Einzbern and his daughter.

Moreover, Kotomine Kirei's interest in this woman was far less than that of the Snow-White Princess.

Looking at Hisau Maiya rushing towards him with a knife, Kotomine Kirei's expression froze. He assumed the opening stance of Bajiquan, ready to cripple the opponent with a cannon punch that could easily penetrate granite.

But just as he took a step forward, more than ten silver threads suddenly emerged from the soles of his feet, winding around him like snakes and binding his legs tightly.

"alchemy?"

This signature skill of the Einzbern allowed Kotomine Kirei to react quickly, and he tried to break free with his legs.

Alchemy may look very cool to outsiders, but in the eyes of real combat masters, it is just like a kick, which can only be used to bully people who are much weaker than oneself.

Because alchemy takes time to form, although it is very short, it is enough to be fatal in close combat.

For example, now, although the silver thread is wrapped around him, Kotomine Kirei can still break free with his strengthened body.

He thought that Hisahi Maiya was already approaching with a sharp knife in hand, aiming at his throat.

Although he twisted his waist reflexively and bent backward to avoid the attack with an amazing flexibility that was completely inconsistent with his physique, his attempt to break free was also halted.

In just less than a second, the alchemy was complete and bound him tightly.

On the other side, Hisau Maiya's finishing attack also arrived.

Alas, I am drifting away.

Thinking back to the battles since entering this forest, Kotomine Kirei couldn't help but blame himself. After discovering the secret of pleasure, he became arrogant and always thought that he could have the upper hand with the two women.

Look, I got hit twice in a row.

If he had fought those heretics with this mentality before, the grass on his grave would be three feet high now.

After learning from his mistakes, Kotomine Kirei decided to mend his ways and fight with his true abilities.

So, Kotomine Kirei also did not resist, but just tensed the muscles in his neck and took the knife head-on.

The alloy blade that could cut through hair instantly pierced Kotomine Kirei's neck, cutting through the flesh, but Hisau Maiya immediately noticed that something was wrong with the feel.

However, when she tried to withdraw, Kotomine Kirei had already pulled out the black key hidden in his sleeve and injected magical power into it.

As a special exorcism weapon made by the church, the Black Key only exists in the form of a hilt, and the blade is woven from magic power. Although it has strong destructive power against spirits, its physical attack is relatively weak.

But even so, the extended sword still pierced directly through Hisau Maiya's defenseless abdomen.

Then, Kotomine Kirei used all his strength to hit Hisau Maiya on the head with a headbutt.

This was also his final attack, because more silver silk-like threads had tightly wrapped around his entire body.

The sharp and strong silk threads cut through the reinforced robes and penetrated deep into the flesh.

Under this force, Kotomine Kirei couldn't even bend his body and could only fall to the ground like a cicada pupa.

Kotomine Kirei closed his eyes tightly, mobilized his magic power to strengthen his body to the highest level, and was able to barely compete with it.

With nothing else to do, Kotomine Kirei stopped struggling.

If the opponent planned to continue to stalemate with him using alchemy, he could be entangled for a long time, and it might even be possible to drag him down until Kotomine Kirei's body reached its limit and broke through the defense, but the female mercenary on the ground with a pierced abdomen would probably die before him.

Come on, make your choice...

When he heard the rustling sound of footsteps on the leaves, Kotomine Kirei knew that he had guessed correctly.

The rumors were true, the Einzbern androids were indeed not good at fighting.

*

At the foot of Mount Enzo, Emiya Kiritsugu held his burning little finger with a dazed look on his face.

Long ago, Emiya Kiritsugu and Hisau Maiya took a strand of each other's hair, cast a spell on it, and buried it under the skin of their little fingers.

Whenever one party's vitality weakens to the point of being on the verge of death, the hair entrusted to the other party will burn as a warning.

That was set up to take into account the worst-case scenario where it was no longer possible to convey information via radio or familiars, and it itself was a signal that it was too late.

Hisau Maiya is on the verge of death, so Irisviel and Illya...

The image of the mother and daughter lying in a pool of blood flashed before his eyes, and Emiya Kiritsugu subconsciously wanted to use the Command Seal to order Gilgamesh to protect Irisviel.

But in the next second, he froze again.

Because he looked at the remaining bright red mark on the back of his hand and remembered that this was his last Command Spell.

Once he used up this final stroke of the Command Seal, he would completely lose control over Gilgamesh, a Servant who did not hide his ill will towards him at all and who might betray him at any time.

What Kiritsugu Emiya lost was not only the Holy Grail War, but also his faith and the lives of countless people including Shirley, his father, and Natalie.

why?

Why did this moment come so suddenly?

Emiya Kiritsugu was like a driver driving towards a cliff. Although he knew that moment would come sooner or later, he was still looking forward to the extension of time in his heart.

Although the end of the Holy Grail War itself means the death of Irisviel, this time he has to make a decision before the sad future arrives.

Irisviel, or the Holy Grail War?

One person, and six billion.

My beloved wife, and six billion unrelated humans.

However, perhaps because he was enveloped by that darkness and despair, Emiya Kiritsugu actually felt that the pain in his heart was so insignificant.

Golden light condensed in front of him, and a pair of scarlet eyes stared down at him condescendingly, with undisguised malice and appreciation revealed on their faces, just like a painter appreciating his own work.

"Oh, Kiritsugu, it looks like you need help."

122 Give Up

Looking at Gilgamesh with an arrogant and playful smile on his face, Emiya Kiritsugu closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Feeling the sharp pain in his heart and lungs with every breath and every heartbeat, images flashed before his eyes.

There are nostalgic, cruel, happy, and bloody ones...