Although Kenneth had been ranting about making Emiya Kiritsugu pay, in his current state, he was no match for even an ordinary person.
Had Risei Kotomine been the least bit cautious, Kenneth wouldn't have been able to kill him. Risei died solely because of his own carelessness.
But Kenneth couldn't calm down. The familiar sound that had just rung out reminded him of the pain he had felt when all of his magical circuits were severed. He couldn't stop himself from roaring into the darkness like a madman.
"Was it you?! Emiya Kiritsugu! Was it you?! Come out, you mangy dog! You failure! A disgrace among magi!"
A moment later, a cold sensation touched the back of his head—causing every word stuck in Kenneth's throat to die instantly.
Faced with the stark threat of death, he recoiled.
"Emiya Kiritsugu…" he growled, turning his head to glare at the man before him—dressed in an old, worn coat, unkempt hair, and a tired beard.
Despite his gaunt face, the man's eyes still gleamed like blades—sharp and merciless.
Kenneth would never forget him. The one who had ruthlessly shredded every magical circuit in his body.
A dog of the Matou family. A blank-faced devil in a long trench coat.
Kenneth's eyes seethed with hatred. His hands clenched the wheelchair's armrests so tightly they twisted.
His once-proud face contorted in madness and rage.
If he weren't now a cripple, he might have leapt from his chair and strangled the devil standing before him.
A piece of paper fluttered to the ground near him.
It looked like ordinary stationery, but Kenneth's eyes locked on the brief message scrawled across it:
"If you don't want your lover to die, quietly look behind you."
Kenneth froze, his eyes widening in shock.
He turned the wheelchair slowly, changing his orientation.
Deep within the darkened ruins of the abandoned factory, a shaft of light from the skylight shone down like a spotlight.
Illuminated in that cold light was the outline of a woman lying unconscious on the ground.
"...!"
No matter how dim the light, no matter how far the distance—Kenneth would never mistake that face.
Despite the pallor of Sola's expression and the pain and exhaustion etched upon it, a lock of hair fluttered near her lips, lifted by a faint breeze.
It was proof that she was breathing—she was still alive.
Emiya Kiritsugu had a miniature submachine gun aimed at her head.
Kenneth's breath caught in his throat as he stared at the cold, merciless man, unsure of his true intentions.
Another piece of paper floated down.
When Kenneth read the words written on it, his eyes flew open in horror.
Suddenly, and without warning—
The vibrant crimson of blood spilled across the battlefield.
Both Saber and Lancer, locked in combat, stared in disbelief at the abrupt conclusion.
And no one was more shocked than Lancer himself.
The pain and despair hit him without warning. Without preparation.
He stood dazed, staring at the crimson flower blooming on the ground from the blood dripping off his red spear.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't believe it was his own.
His beloved weapon had pierced his own heart.
The hands that had driven the spear into his chest… were his own.
This was not his will.
This was not his desire.
His spear was meant to pierce Saber's heart.
If anyone was to pierce his heart, it should have been her sword, not his own hand.
Only one force could so completely override his will and strip everything away:
Command Spells.
"…Ah…"
Crimson tears welled up in Lancer's wide, despairing eyes.
Betrayal—again.
Once more, he had been betrayed.
He had returned to this world as a Heroic Spirit to redeem himself, to serve faithfully once more.
Yet the result was only a tragic repetition.
He had been forced to relive despair and heartbreak all over again.
With his eyes stained in blood and tears, Lancer looked behind him—
Two Masters emerged from the factory to witness his end.
Kenneth, sitting motionless in his wheelchair with a hollow expression.
And the man cradling Sola's unconscious body—the same man he had recently seen as Saber's Master.
"You two… so…"
Lancer collapsed into a pool of his own blood, forcing out raspy words through clenched teeth.
"So desperate for victory?! So eager for the Grail?! That you'd trample even my one true wish?!
Do you feel no shame?!"
"Unforgivable… I will never forgive you! You… slaves to ambition! You defile the honor of knights!
Then let my blood stain your dream!
I curse the Grail! May your wishes turn to calamity!
When you fall into the pits of hell—don't forget the rage of Diarmuid!!"
Even as his form faded, dissolving into shadow, Lancer continued to shout his curses.
Gone was the radiant figure of a Heroic Spirit—only a howling voice of wrath remained.
Servant Lancer had finally vanished.
Kenneth stared blankly at the space where Lancer had disappeared.
Kiritsugu casually laid the still-unconscious Sola onto Kenneth's lap.
Gently stroking her weary face, Kenneth spoke weakly to Kiritsugu.
"…So, the contract… is complete?"
"Yeah. I can't kill you two anymore…"
Kiritsugu slowly backed away, lighting a cigarette.
That, perhaps, was the signal.
A gunshot rang out from the shadows—
From the Steyr assault rifle wielded by Maiya Hisau, who had been watching everything.
The magus and his fiancée, who had once so arrogantly dismissed bullets as meaningless, were torn apart by them—riddled with holes and collapsed onto the concrete floor.
"True," Kiritsugu said blankly, spreading his hands innocently. "I couldn't kill you myself.
So I asked Maiya to do it."
"Ugh… ah…!!"
Perhaps Sola, who died instantly, was the lucky one.
Kenneth, thrown from his wheelchair with his body riddled by bullets, was not so fortunate.
Though mortally wounded, he still clung to life.
Even if it was only for a few seconds more—those seconds, in agony, stretched on like eternity.
"…Ah… kill… me…"
"Sorry. That's a contract I can't fulfill."
Ignoring the faint, pleading voice at his feet, Kiritsugu exhaled a puff of pale purple smoke and answered coldly.
The sound of sobbing in pain soon faded.
Saber, unable to bear it any longer, swung her sword and ended Kenneth's suffering.
"Let's go."
Kiritsugu said indifferently, not sparing so much as a glance at Kenneth and Sola's corpses.
The dead of the Holy Grail War would be dealt with accordingly—he didn't need to care.
Of course, he still didn't know that Risei Kotomine, the war's supervisor, had already been killed by Kenneth.
Now, three Masters and their Servants had exited the stage.
Only three of the strongest Servants remained in the battle.
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