[Video Danmaku]
Utaha Kasumigaoka: "Irisviel... honestly, does love make people this foolish? To actually think of sacrificing herself for Kiritsugu Emiya's sake?"
Eriri: "It's not just love, is it? They're already married. At most, it's selfless devotion to her husband."
Magical Girl Illya: "Mama... why? What wish does Kiritsugu want from the Grail so badly—that he would even sacrifice Mama for it?"
Kars: "This creature called 'human' is truly curious. To think a woman this foolish could exist. However... I, Kars, respect this woman. Not just anyone possesses such resolve."
Muzan Kibutsuji: "Tch, what is there to respect about such an ant? She had a chance to live, yet she threw it away for a man. Indeed, women are creatures who think only with their emotions."
Tanjiro: "Shut up, Muzan Kibutsuji! You bastard, you don't understand Miss Irisviel's greatness at all—"
Kars: "Hoh—you dare to refute me? To refute I, Kars? The Ripple users who once dared to refute I, Kars, were wiped out thousands of years ago."
Muzan Kibutsuji: "And just what are you? So what if I refute you?"
Wamuu: "You bastard—how dare you speak to Lord Kars like that! I will not forgive you!"
Kars: "It's fine, Wamuu. It's just a talking piece of bread. No need to pay it any mind."
In the world of Demon Slayer— Seated in the Infinity Castle, a vein bulged on Muzan Kibutsuji's forehead when he saw what Kars had called him. A piece of bread? To describe the Demon King with such a thing... Kars... no matter who he was, the Demon King Muzan Kibutsuji would not let him off easily.
However... for the other party to be completely unafraid of him meant he had some power. Hmph—once he found the Blue Spider Lily and overcame his weakness to the sun, no one in the entire world would be his match.
The exchange between Muzan and Kars was merely an interlude. Amidst the flood of real-time comments on the screen, aside from admiration for Irisviel's self-sacrifice, there were also those speculating about what would happen next.
Conan: "Here we go. So the Holy Grail really does have a problem, and it's a big one. It's highly likely that Marisbury is behind it."
L: "Marisbury said before that the corrupted Grail wasn't what he wanted, and that he needed Solomon to restore it to its original state. Looking at it this way, the magical energy from the defeated Servants is most likely with Solomon."
Otto Apocalypse: "With the King of Magi's abilities, that would be child's play. However... the Holy Grail War has always used a homunculus from the Einzbern family as its vessel. Where will Solomon find another vessel? And... what secrets does that corrupted Grail hold...?"
Schicksal HQ— Otto continued to slack off in his office. Ever since the viewing screen appeared, he had basically been slacking off every day. His own plans hadn't started yet, so he could just leave the trivial matters to Amber.
To Otto, the Holy Grail War was a very interesting game, one he could learn a lot from. But more than the Holy Grail War, he was interested in that warrior from the Previous Era.
The Void Archives held only a tiny bit of information about her, and just mentioning her name was enough to make even the arrogant Divine Key tremble.
What truly happened in the Previous Era? Elysia... stop hiding the Honkai energy inside you. Let me see it... the Previous Era's Fusion Warrior, second only to Kevin.
---o---
[In the video—
The fact that Irisviel had ceased to function as the Holy Grail's vessel was already known to the nearly omnipotent Solomon.
Clairvoyance was simply too overpowered, especially Solomon's, which was of the highest rank. In all of Fuyuki, the only thing that could compare to his Clairvoyance was Gilgamesh's Sha Nagba Imuru, but alas, that arrogant king was far too careless.
Under the influence of Solomon's magecraft, Gilgamesh would be unable to use his omniscience until the very end of this Holy Grail War.
And just as the viewers had guessed, the magical energy of the defeated Servants had indeed been extracted by Solomon. At its core, the Holy Grail War was just a particularly intricate and rigorous magical ritual. As long as it remained within the domain of magecraft, Solomon was invincible.
Finding a new vessel, or resolving the vengeful spirits of Servants within the Grail—these were simple matters for Solomon.
If Solomon wished, he could even reshape the entire set of rules for the Holy Grail War. The system established five hundred years ago with painstaking effort by the Three Founding Families was nothing more than a child's clever trick in the eyes of this king.
"Caster, how are things with the matter I requested of you?"
A voice broke Caster's contemplation. Marisbury walked up and asked Solomon in a gentle tone. Though he appeared humble and mild, the viewers who knew this man's true nature no longer dared to underestimate him.
The man before them was a character who had played every participant in the Holy Grail War for a fool, and it was still unknown what kind of scheme he was plotting.
"Elysia is not a figure from a parallel world. I pushed my Clairvoyance to its absolute limit, even using forbidden powers, and was only able to obtain a few trivial pieces of information."
Solomon responded to Marisbury with the emotionless tone of a machine. This was the kind of king he was. Compared to the Holy Grail, he was more like a true omnipotent wish-granting machine.
"Just the trivial pieces will be enough. Tell me everything you know, Caster."
Marisbury held a peculiar fascination for Elysia. It was a curiosity for the unknown, a thirst for the unknown. Magi often developed an intense curiosity for unknown things, which is precisely why they pursued the Root.
A person who didn't even exist in parallel worlds—this was clearly beyond Marisbury's comprehension. Could she be an unobservable entity, similar to the Outer Gods?
But the Outer Gods certainly didn't have such deceptively beautiful faces.
"Understood."
Paying no mind to Marisbury's thoughts, Solomon nodded and then began to state all the information he had in a deadpan voice.
But he didn't start by talking about Elysia directly. Instead, he presented a certain concept to Marisbury:
"Master, if we were to compare our world, and all the parallel worlds we can connect to, to a 'multiverse box,' then Elysia would be a person from another box, entirely outside of this one. Her origins, her past deeds, have left no trace in our box. Therefore, abilities like Clairvoyance and omniscience are utterly meaningless against her."
"And according to the information I've obtained, in reality, the moment Elysia first descended into this world—that is, on the first night of the Holy Grail War—the Counter Force began to monitor her. But this monitoring only lasted for one day before vanishing without a trace."
"This is a clear anomaly. For the Counter Force, Elysia, who has left no trace in the box, should be a disaster-level threat to the world's existence. Regardless of whether she is an ordinary person or not, the Counter Force should have erased her. Yet not only did it not act, but its surveillance on her only lasted for a single day."
"In other words, the Counter Force knew about the box Elysia comes from from the very beginning. It may have even communicated with a certain existence within that box. Therefore, it is incredibly knowledgeable and familiar with Elysia. That surveillance was likely to confirm whether Elysia matched the information the Counter Force had received."
Solomon laid out his speculations and the information he had obtained through forbidden powers. Marisbury, in turn, fell into deep thought. This involved another multiverse, completely different from the one they were in. The mysteries within were beyond his ability to fathom.
"Continue, Caster. What is the meaning of Elysia's arrival in this world?" Marisbury asked.
"Correction," Solomon replied without hesitation.
"Correction?"
"Correct. Someone made a choice that violates the original trajectory of history, but the Counter Force was unable to stop it, or perhaps could not stop it. So it chose to seek a solution from another multiverse."
"And the people who are affecting the world's history from developing along its original path... are us."
As Solomon's words fell, not only Marisbury but also the audience outside the screen fell silent in shock.
In other words, Elysia's existence wouldn't harm the world; on the contrary, she was here to help this world continue on a better path?
What kind of bizarre plot development was this? Solomon's explanation was a bit too complex. And how could two multiverse boxes even communicate with each other?
No, no, this was just Solomon's speculation. There were still many unresolved questions... such as who the Counter Force was communicating with, and how it could be sure that Elysia would definitely ensure this world's continuation.
"Hahahahahaha~~~"
While countless people were perplexed by this, Marisbury began to laugh without restraint.
"Us? Are you saying that my entire scheme from the very beginning has been carried out right under the Counter Force's nose?"
Solomon remained silent. The Counter Force's behavior was strange, and this time was no exception. It had restricted the King of Heroes' power, yet it hadn't placed many restrictions on him. This in itself was an anomaly.
Some powerful Servants possessed Noble Phantasms with world-destroying power. To prevent such Noble Phantasms from affecting the world, the Counter Force would normally restrict the abilities of such Servants.
But the restriction placed upon Solomon was less of a restriction and more of an illusion, left there to make him believe he was being restricted. Compared to the restriction on Gilgamesh, the shackles on him could be broken with a wave of his hand.
As Solomon pondered, Marisbury's wild laughter ceased. His face instantly returned to its original expression, and as if he had thought of something, he said:
"Sigh, this is ridiculous. To think the world is so fragile. Does it only permit Saber to achieve victory in the Holy Grail War? But speaking of which, Caster, since the Counter Force didn't stop me from the beginning, does that mean... it cannot stop my advance?"
"That is what I am puzzled by as well. I cannot see through the thoughts of the Counter Force."
"Then I understand. Before I summoned you, the Counter Force had countless ways to eliminate me beforehand, or to prevent me from participating in the Holy Grail War. But it took none of them..."
Marisbury paused, then continued, "In other words, my very participation in this Holy Grail War was a permitted act. The work I wish to complete is also something it cannot stop."
Solomon: "You mean...?"
"Elysia's existence is an accident. The Counter Force never intended to correct what I have done. It was only because it happened to encounter another box that it sent Elysia to this world, hoping for a correction. Elysia herself doesn't even know the meaning of her arrival."
"So... why should I choose to make an enemy of an unknown opponent over such a small matter? In fact, choosing to act against Elysia would be the most foolish choice."
"My plan will proceed. When everything is on the right track, I expect the Counter Force will erase me."
"But before that happens, it can no longer stop our advance. Chaldea must be established. That is the foundation of everything, and it is the existence the Counter Force least wishes to accept!"
Marisbury declared with righteous conviction, having already identified the world as his enemy.
There is a thing in this world called fate. Until now, every step he had taken felt as if it were guided by fate.
This included summoning Solomon and wanting him to win this Holy Grail War. Among all the Heroic Spirits, only Solomon could achieve this. If it were any other Servant, be it a god-tier Servant like Gilgamesh or any other Grand-class Servant of Solomon's caliber, none could accomplish his great work—
"Elysia, whether you intend to stop me or not, everything I do is in accordance with the will of heaven. Oh, Holy Grail—as All the World's Evil, prepare to welcome your rebirth."
Standing between the skyscrapers, Marisbury left these words behind. He then looked towards the distant Einzbern Castle. That was the only existence that could affect his plan, yet Marisbury held no malice towards her.
Elysia's existence only made him feel fortunate—fortunate to be able to witness an even vaster world.]