Chapter 28: Banished Ideal
To fulfill his ideal, Emiya Kiritsugu would eliminate all obstacles.
But... when it truly came time to make a choice, would he waver if the sacrificed minority included his wife and daughter?
Such a question arose in Emiya Kiritsugu's mind.
Of course, Emiya Kiritsugu knew that given his personality, he would ultimately choose the option of sacrificing the few to save the many, even if his wife and daughter were included.
But... doing so would be infinitely painful.
The moment his ideal was achieved, he would undoubtedly choose self-destruction.
A machine with no attachments, knowing only slaughter, should not exist in a peaceful world.
The instant this thought flashed through his mind, Emiya Kiritsugu suddenly felt his vision blur, and fragmented, indistinguishable images flashed before his eyes.
The sky was red, as red as blood.
Black mud, surging like the waves of an ocean, turned the city into a purgatory.
Everywhere were mountains of withered corpses, slowly sinking into the gloomy sea.
And he himself was walking through it, his face numb...
Emiya Kiritsugu rubbed his eyes; the illusion-like image had already vanished.
"What's going on... Am I too stressed?"
His heart inexplicably accelerated slightly. Emiya Kiritsugu glanced at the partially destroyed Hyatt Hotel.
He didn't intend to waste time any further, lest more unforeseen complications arise.
Since Kayneth wouldn't come out, he would have to take the initiative.
Emiya Kiritsugu, hidden in the shadows of the building, suddenly noticed something and looked toward the other side of the street.
"Is that...?"
A figure was approaching him from that direction.
The light emanating from the streetlamp illuminated the person's face, revealing the handsome features of a red-haired young man.
It was only then that Emiya Kiritsugu suddenly realized that the young man's gaze had been fixed on him the entire time.
"How could this be..."
Emiya Kiritsugu was startled, feeling an inexplicable sense of danger.
As the Magus Killer, he had long walked on the edge of life and death, so his alertness to such crises was naturally quite sharp.
Precisely because of this, he knew that the sense of crisis he was experiencing was absolutely not false.
Without the slightest hesitation, Emiya Kiritsugu immediately pulled out the USP handgun he carried and pulled the trigger toward the young man.
The bullet fired from the USP's suppressor made a "shwoosh!" sound. Immediately after, Emiya Kiritsugu witnessed a scene he would never forget.
Blue light surged in the young man's hands, and two swords, one black and one white, symbolizing Yin and Yang, materialized.
Clang—!
Blade met bullet, and sparks flew, causing the light in the night street to flicker.
The bullet was simply cut in half.
Emiya Kiritsugu was utterly shocked by this sight.
"Who... are you...?"
He had already mastered all the information regarding everyone in the Holy Grail War, but this young man was a complete stranger he had never seen before.
Emiya Kiritsugu couldn't understand for the life of him why this young man was doing something so unbelievable.
And what the opponent just used seemed to be 'Projection' magecraft?
Just the thought of this conjecture made Emiya Kiritsugu feel it was preposterous.
So-called 'Projection' magecraft is a discipline that materializes prana to create a theoretical image of an original object. Its efficiency is extremely poor.
If one wants to create a replica of an original object using 'Projection,' it's simpler and more practical to create a copy using standard materials.
Originally, a replicated object 'projected' only existed for a short period of several minutes and was merely superficial, shattering easily upon light contact.
However, the scene Emiya Kiritsugu was witnessing completely overturned his previous understanding.
This was absolutely not an illusion; it was truly happening right before his eyes.
"What do you want?"
Emiya Kiritsugu tightened his grip on the USP handgun. This weapon, which was always effective against ordinary people, now offered him not even the slightest sense of security.
"You tried to invade my home, and I'll take your life. Seems reasonable, doesn't it?" Shirou looked at Emiya Kiritsugu calmly.
"As the Magus Killer, you must have been prepared for this, right?"
Emiya Kiritsugu frowned at the words.
The young man who appeared before him was someone he had never seen.
Emiya Kiritsugu did not recall having such an enemy, or perhaps, as the Magus Killer, his list of enemies was simply too vast, leading to an oversight.
While Emiya Kiritsugu struggled to understand, Shirou had no intention of wasting more words with him. His figure shot out like a blue phantom.
"Time alter—double accel!"
As the incantation was recited, Emiya Kiritsugu felt everything around him slow down. He retreated several steps, pulling out a single-shot pistol from behind him.
This single-shot pistol was not special, but the bullet it used was unique.
It was Emiya Kiritsugu's specially made 'Origin Bullet'.
This 'Origin Bullet' was not much different from an ordinary bullet when aimed at an ordinary person, as they would die either way.
But once the target hit was a Magus, it would unleash its terrifying power.
The bullet would materialize Kiritsugu's 'Origin' onto the object it struck.
If it hit a living body, there would be no wound or bleeding; the impact site would simply become like a necrotic old injury.
The surface appeared healed, but the nerves and capillaries failed to regenerate correctly, losing their original function.
The Magus hit could not use magecraft to save himself; the more he used it, the more he dragged himself into the abyss.
If a Magus's Magic Circuits were likened to high-voltage electrical circuits, then the 'Origin Bullet' was like a drop of water.
What happens when a conductive liquid adheres to a dense electrical circuit—the current shorts the circuit, destroying the circuit itself and causing a complete malfunction.
Similarly, the terrifying effect of Kiritsugu's Mystic Code was to 'short-circuit' the Magic Circuits.
To avoid the damage caused by Kiritsugu's magic bullet, one must rely on purely physical means to defend against the bullet, without using any magecraft.
Bang! Bang! Bang!—!!!
Three consecutive gunshots rang out. Emiya Kiritsugu had unhesitatingly pulled the trigger on the approaching young man.
'Origin Bullets' were limited in number and extremely precious, but in this life-or-death crisis, Emiya Kiritsugu had no intention of holding back.
Clang! Clang! Clang!—!!!
The rapidly fired 'Origin Bullets' clashed with the two swords, one black and one white.
The flashing sword light dazzled Emiya Kiritsugu; the three 'Origin Bullets' were surprisingly and effortlessly sliced apart.
"How is this possible!?"
The hand holding the gun trembled slightly.
"This is the end."
Shirou gave Emiya Kiritsugu no further opportunity, swinging the swords in his hands again.
Slash—!
Blood splattered. The wall was stained with black and red marks, and the man, whose eyes had become lifeless, fell backward into a pool of blood.
His gradually cooling body temperature and increasingly blurred vision reminded Emiya Kiritsugu that he was about to die.
At this moment, on the brink of death, Emiya Kiritsugu saw a more complete version of the scene he had dismissed as an illusion earlier.
"Three hundred people, a hundred and twenty people, eighty people, sixty people, twenty-five people... the scales that only get smaller... losing everything, all alone... Is this how my ideal ends..."
With this faint murmur, Emiya Kiritsugu fell into eternal sleep.
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