Cosmos in the Lostbelt 6: Faerie Realm of the Round Table - Avalon le Fae Part 3
Translators: Rayshift Team - Gaius, Fumei, Zaszc, PorksIope, Neo, Louay, Starfire, Miro
Editors: Rayshift Team - MaxAkito, Meru, Squishy, Azumi, Yusuke
Intermission
Gordolf:
Ah, it's been 45 days since we began our concealed operation off the coast of Britain.
Gordolf:
I assembled you all here for one reason. Once we leave this Lostbelt...
Gordolf:
Or is it “Lostworld” now, following the technical advisor's report? In either case, we have the choice to either withdraw and return to normal space,
Gordolf:
or send additional forces (Meunière and myself) to support the conquest of this “Lostworld”.
Gordolf:
We've finally reached a point where our hands are forced, and one or the other must be chosen—
Gordolf:
Hmph, Tifone returned some time ago. Captain!
Nemo:
Roger. Control room, restart.
Meunière:
Hah! The control room is lit again!? Then, does that mean—
Gordolf:
Yes, mission accomplished! We just received word that Morgan has been defeated!
Gordolf:
Fujimaru, Da Vinci, Kyrielight, you did it!
Gordolf:
In recognition of our meritorious deeds, the fairies are going to gift us with one of Camelot's Rhongomyniads!
Nemo Marines:
Yaay! Yaay! We're even getting the real thing and not just the magic formula!
Nemo Marines:
Now the Border will have a main guuun! We want to be in charge of gunnery!
Nemo:
I'll allow up to four crew. We'll draw lots later so it's fair.
Gordolf:
Rhongomyniad as the main gun, huh...hehehe. Naturally, as the director, I will handle the final trigger...
Nemo Professor:
Don't be so hasty. We're a long way from that, Master Gordolf.
Nemo Professor:
But this sure puts a grin on my face, as well. Large gun batteries on a ship's deck are so romantic.
Gordolf:
Indeed. I'd like to install it on the bow, but that's too terrible to contemplate.
Gordolf:
It would be preferable if we could purge the deck immediately in case it malfunctioned somehow.
Gordolf:
Anyway...
Gordolf:
The report says it will take seven days to transport it from Camelot to the coast.
Gordolf:
We decided we would remain here for seven more days.
Gordolf:
As it is no longer necessary to conserve power in case of emergency, we've restored it in the control room.
Gordolf:
Up 'til now we've consumed the minimum necessary power, but from now on we can be less strict with our rationing.
Gordolf:
It's been an uncomfortable 45 days together. Regain your strength and make preparations to receive Rhongomyniad!
Holmes:
...
Gordolf:
What is it, Administrative Advisor? This is the part where we smile and celebrate our victory, you know?
Gordolf:
I mean, come on. I can't believe I have to tell you something so obvious.
Gordolf:
You're putting on a face that says “—here is where the case really begins. ”
Gordolf:
Have you noticed the energy you give off?
Holmes:
My thanks for the warning, Mr. Gordolf. Watson often said as much to me.
Holmes:
But a correction: it is not a “feeling. ” It is fact that we have finally reached the climax of the case.
Gordolf:
Really? But the Lostbelt King is...you know?
Holmes:
We have not settled anything, New Director.
Holmes:
Why was this Lostbelt born? Why was this Camelot constructed?
Holmes:
What is the purpose of the Pilgrim's Bell ritual? What is the mission of the Fairies of Paradise?
Holmes:
Moreover, regarding the first Fairy Calendar...where the British Island came to an end before Morgan's involvement...
Holmes:
Those Great Calamities...where did the Red and Black Calamities disappear to?
Holmes:
To begin with, who exactly was the original adversary who wanted to destroy Britain?
Holmes:
Not to mention this unnatural sense of malice that flickers through Da Vinci's reports...
Holmes:
The true culprit...no, the truth is something entirely different.
Holmes:
I agree with restoring power and regaining our spirits. —However, it is not yet time for us to return home.
Holmes:
Please, put us on alert for the worst-case scenario.
Holmes:
This is where we of Chaldea are necessary—the battle to save the world.
Fujimaru 1:
And just like that, we're back in Salisbury.
Artoria:
Yes. After the battle was over, we discussed how to handle Camelot in the aftermath, got in a carriage, and now we're here three days later.
Artoria:
Just about everything has been taken care of. Everywhere we went, the fairies greeted us with praise.
Da Vinci:
Barghest stayed behind in Camelot to serve as Knocknarea's proxy in negotiations with the upper-class fairies.
Da Vinci:
Percival stayed behind as well to oversee the acquisition of the Holy Lance installed at the front of the castle.
Da Vinci:
It'll be one more day to remove it, while it will take three days to transport it to the shore where the Storm Border is anchored.
Da Vinci:
Still...I'm a little worried about Percival's condition. He says nothing is wrong, but...
Artoria:
Yeah...his movements were noticeably more labored...
Artoria:
I told him to take a break right away, but he “has to repay everyone,” so he wouldn't listen...
Da Vinci:
We don't have a lot of time left ourselves, so he's really saved us...
Da Vinci:
That's it, after he gets us the Holy Lance, we'll have him go straight to the Border's recovery pod!
Da Vinci:
That should at least take care of his fatigue. We'll treat him with the full course of modern medical technology.
Da Vinci:
From what I've heard, it seems like he's been overworking himself ever since the Round Table Army was formed☆
Grimm the Wise:
Whoa there, you should use that pod thing on Habetrot too.
Grimm the Wise:
Ever since Morgan was overthrown, she's been losing more and more energy every day. She says she's just sleepy, though.
Grimm the Wise:
She just sleeps, wakes up, writes in her journal, sleeps, wakes up, and writes in her journal, over and over.
Grimm the Wise:
She won't leave her bed here at the inn. She must have built up a lot of fatigue.
Senji Muramasa:
Still...are you really okay with this, Artoria?
Senji Muramasa:
It's fine that we're emulating Morgan by having the coronation ceremony in Salisbury's cathedral.
Senji Muramasa:
But...
Senji Muramasa:
“I'm handing over the throne to Knocknarea. I'm returning to Tintagel. ”
Senji Muramasa:
Now that you've said that, the next queen will be Knocknarea.
Senji Muramasa:
Even after helping you get this far, I don't understand giving up your victory that easily.
Senji Muramasa:
Well, now that the Child of Prophecy has said it, the other clans can't raise a stink,
Senji Muramasa:
and it's a good thing that things aren't moving too quickly.
Fujimaru 1:
...
Artoria:
Yeah, the future of Britain should come first.
Artoria:
The reason I'm able to do this is because Oberon gave himself up to help me.
Artoria:
If that was true, my journey would have ended back there.
Artoria:
Because in the end...I wasn't able to reach Morgan's level.
Artoria:
If I had beaten her on my own, maybe I'd be proud of myself,
Artoria:
but the rebels were the ones who defeated Morgan.
Artoria:
The Round Table Army came from Percival's achievements. The northern fairy army came from Knocknarea's hard work.
Artoria:
I tried to get the best part at the very end, but I failed miserably!
Artoria:
I don't really know anything about politics in the first place,
Artoria:
so I'll just let Knocknarea be the next queen and retire comfortably to my hometown!
Artoria:
A place where everyone will greet me, saying: “Well done, Child of Prophecy! ”
Senji Muramasa:
...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Well well, the Child of Prophecy is in a good mood! It is your triumphant return from battle, after all~!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
All thanks to Dabinchi! Six top-class apple waters, here you go!
Da Vinci:
Thanks, Mike. Hey, you don't see many other guests around, do you?
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Red Rab-bit came by earlier and said you all were coming, so you have the place to yourselves!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
If it was known that the Child of Prophecy would be coming, the place would be packed.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Fairies are coming from all over Britain to see the coronation of the next queen.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
You're actually bad with huge crowds, aren't you, Artoria? I know how that feels.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
So I thought it would be easier on you if it was quiet. Hehehe...
Artoria:
Yeah, that's true! Thanks, Mike!
Artoria:
Now everyone, raise your cups, and let's have a toooaaaast~!
Fujimaru 1:
Cheeeeers!
Artoria:
Wow, a victory toast really is the best! Thanks for your help everyone!
Da Vinci:
Anyhow, now that Morgan is gone, there's no further threat of an invasion into pan-human history.
Da Vinci:
The Fairy Kingdom of Britain is at peace. Until the bleaching of the earth is rescinded, anyway.
Da Vinci:
Once that happens, it remains to be seen whether this Fairy Kingdom of Britain will continue to co-exist with pan-human history, or be rejected by it...
Da Vinci:
At the very least, the fae won't disappear. I'm also looking at the possibility of emigration using the Storm Border...
Da Vinci:
Until we return, things will be taken care of by Artoria and Knocknarea.
Da Vinci:
After Chaldea has taken care of their own errands, our leader will return to greet them both again.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
—Dabinchi, are you leaving?
Da Vinci:
Yeah, once I've seen the coronation. I've got a lot of work piling up back on the Border.
Da Vinci:
But I'm free today. Feel free to ask me if there's anything you don't understand.
Da Vinci:
Oh yeah, let's work out your business plan for the next few years while we still can!
Da Vinci:
I swear on my title as a renaissance genius that Mike's will become a hotel or something equally amazing!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
R-really? That does sound amazing! I'll have so many goals again!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Heehee, I'm looking forward to it! Oh, this will be so much fun!
Fujimaru 1:
Oh yeah, Mash. You were talking with Barghest about something.
Mash:
Yes. Just before we left Camelot. Barghest said—
Barghest:
I've been entrusted with cleaning up Camelot.
Barghest:
The reform policies will be the work of Percival and Knocknarea's men,
Barghest:
but there are some unreasonable ambassadors and officials among them. I'll make them listen to me.
Barghest:
Spriggan and Aurora have said they will follow the queen designated by the Child of Prophecy.
Barghest:
It concerns me we haven't heard anything from Muryan, but that's not a major issue.
Mash:
Understood. I think that's very encouraging.
Barghest:
Your thanks are unnecessary. This is the least I can do.
Barghest:
But...why the long face?
Barghest:
I'm a traitor who betrayed my Lord. A woman without any right to be a knight.
Mash:
You're wrong. Barghest, you are a fine knight.
Mash:
Your allegiance to Her Majesty Morgan never once wavered.
Mash:
On top of that, you concerned yourself with Britain's future and rebelled...a difficult, thankless decision.
Mash:
I know of one knight who chose such a path. So—
Mash:
It warms my heart to see the rebels have accepted you so graciously.
Mash:
It is the duty of the strong to protect the weak. Take up your sword not for your own sake, but for the sake of the people.
Mash:
Please, don't look down on yourself so hard, Knight Barghest.
Mash:
You are a magnificent knight, just as Boggart said you were.
Barghest:
I see...you watched over him as he passed, did you not?
Barghest:
What did you think of him...? Was he a man worthy to be lord of Sheffield?
Mash:
He was a splendid man.
Mash:
He worried for both Sheffield and Norwich to the very end.
Mash:
I may be a member of Chaldea,
Mash:
but I think I'd like to be a knight of Sheffield in the Fairy Kingdom.
Mash:
It's because I've been given so much by everybody that I wish for that.
Barghest:
I see...that's just like that blockhead of a man. He looked rough, but he was chivalrous to the very end.
Barghest:
Despite his looks, he was always a ladies' man. Woodwose was no match for him in that department.
Mash:
I-is that true!? I had no idea Boggart was so popular...!
Barghest:
Yeah. He wasn't showy, so his words stirred many fairies by falsely engraving themselves into their hearts.
Barghest:
Even if he never meant to. How do you think he ended up taking 61 wives?
Mash:
I see—it may be too late now, but I deeply and quietly understand.
Barghest:
And same to you, Galahad. No, I suppose I should call you Mash.
Barghest:
After I sort out Camelot's affairs, I'll be facing a military tribunal—
Barghest:
Your words just now will be enough to endure a century of punishment.
Barghest:
You have my thanks, knight of pan-human history. A true Knight of the Round Table, you female knight unburdened by gloom...
Barghest:
If I could...I'd like to meet another Knight of the Round Table someday.
Mash:
I-is that so? Then...if you could choose, which one would it be?
Barghest:
I-I don't know...
Barghest:
Sir Gawain...would probably be a bad idea. My emotions would be a mess if he stood before me.
Barghest:
I suppose Sir Palamedes, Sir Tristan—and Sir Kay was rumored to be tall, so him too.
Mash:
In that case, you've already met one of them. Senpai told me.
Mash:
The knight who stopped you at the farm. That was Sir Tristan.
Barghest:
Wh–!?
Barghest:
I mean, um...really? Tristan the Lamenting...?
Mash:
Yes. Perhaps he didn't make that much of an impression on you...
Barghest:
No, such unbelievable transcendence, such finesse...how could I forget...
Barghest:
(What have I done. . !? How could I atone for this...!? )
Mash:
You faced him in single combat as a knight should, so I think Tristan would have approved.
Mash:
But...why are you so attached to the Knights of the Round Table, Barghest?
Mash:
I feel like it's not just because of the Gift that Her Majesty bestowed on you.
Barghest:
That's true...As a fellow lady knight, I suppose I can confess it to you.
Barghest:
They're strong, first of all, so it's only natural.
Barghest:
What I admired about the Knights of the Round Table was the direction their stories took.
Barghest:
They faced many problems, but in the end they came together and chose the way of protecting their country.
Barghest:
They were strong and just, taking on the wishes of the people, defeating evil that threw their world into chaos, and demonstrated righteousness.
Barghest:
That ending, the way things should be, that saved me. I hoped that it could be the same here in the Fairy Kingdom.
Barghest:
But...in the end, it was something I could never do. You and your friends took my place instead.
Barghest:
I want you to let the Foreign Magus know.
Barghest:
Tell [♂ him /♀ her] that I am thankful for your supporting our world...no, thank you for supporting the Child of Prophecy.
Barghest:
I may be a knight burdened by dishonor, but I owe [♂ him /♀ her] a debt of gratitude.
Barghest:
Should you ever need my horn, I shall stand by your side. Wherever that may be—
Fujimaru 1:
Barghest said something like that...
Fujimaru 2:
We have to live up to her expectations too...
Mash:
Yes. It's unfortunate we first met her as an enemy.
Mash:
From now on, I'd like to work together with her as a trusted ally.
Grimm the Wise:
What are you talking about? She may be all ready to be sent to the gaol, but Knocknarea won't allow it.
Grimm the Wise:
Barghest knows more about the fairies of Camelot than anyone else.
Grimm the Wise:
That's the kind of support Knocknarea's going to need most of all right now.
Artoria:
Are you going somewhere, Grimm?
Grimm the Wise:
Yeah, just taking care of some minor business. Going to check how Knocknarea's doing.
Grimm the Wise:
The northern fairies have never been to Salisbury or the cathedral before, you know?
Grimm the Wise:
The coronation ceremony is tomorrow morning. I think I'll be pretty busy getting them to the point where they're ready for it.
Artoria:
I see. I guess you do have the knowledge of the previous Grimm.
Artoria:
Give her my regards too. After all, it's that brat's big day.
Muryan:
...—Not here ......—Not here either.
Muryan:
It's absurd...finished so easily...no...
Muryan:
Is anyone there...? Is anyone there...?
Muryan:
Is there anybody left alive...?
Muryan:
If you're here...I'll ■■■■ you. So please answer, okay?
Koyanskaya:
Lady Muryan...
Koyanskaya:
There's nothing left in there. Isn't it about time you forgot about that thing?
Muryan:
Who's there!?
Muryan:
Oh, well look who it is. How long have you been there, Koyanskaya? Did you just get back?
Muryan:
Wait there, I have to go wash my hands. I feel disgusted for some reason. Isn't that strange?
Koyanskaya:
...
Koyanskaya:
...
Muryan:
There. There. There!
Muryan:
You can't run to the woods. You can't run anywhere. You can't, can't, CAN'T, CAN'T!
Muryan:
Get crushed! Run back to the start in disgrace and collapse in your own tears!
Muryan:
Hahaha. Hahahaha. Hahahahahaha!
Muryan:
Ha—
Muryan:
—What nonsense! How is this fun!?
Muryan:
Disgusting! Disgusting! Disgusting! What was so fun about all this!?
Muryan:
Answer me, you bugs! You started this, didn't you!?
Muryan:
Why did you do this!? Why are you begging for help!?
Muryan:
Then, then—
Muryan:
Why didn't you help us back then!
Muryan:
Who's there!?
Koyanskaya:
My apologies for disturbing you, Lady Muryan. Did I startle you?
Muryan:
Oh. When did you come in here? I haven't seen you around lately, when did you get back?
Muryan:
Listen to this, Koyanskaya. I've thought of an interesting idea for revenge.
Muryan:
Pest extermination using my game board. A bug cage you can never escape.
Muryan:
It will take hundreds of years to build an open world to house all of the Fang Clan...
Muryan:
But I am the princess encountered under the butterbur. The most patient fairy in the Wing Clan.
Muryan:
I'll definitely finish it. No matter how much work it takes.
Muryan:
That way, revenge will feel oh-so-sweet.
Muryan:
I'll give my entire life for just that one joyous moment!
Muryan:
There's nothing strange about it! There's nothing empty about it!
Koyanskaya:
Lady Muryan...
Koyanskaya:
(...you're already...)
Muryan:
So, how are things in Camelot? Has Her Majesty really been defeated?
Koyanskaya:
She has. Her Majesty has departed, and the rebels now control the castle.
Koyanskaya:
Tomorrow, the coronation ceremony for the new queen will be held.
Koyanskaya:
Gloucester too, will eventually come under suspicion.
Koyanskaya:
Such as where the missing Fang Clan went—
Koyanskaya:
If that were to become known, your position would be in serious jeopardy, Lady Muryan.
Muryan:
Hm? The Fang Clan is gone?
Muryan:
Well, whatever. Camelot is more important right now.
Muryan:
Artoria giving up the throne so easily was unexpected.
Muryan:
Now there's no chance of the two of them destroying each other in a falling-out. Rather anticlimactic, but—
Muryan:
It's good to have a new queen chosen so soon. We don't have much time left before the Great Calamity appears.
Muryan:
Knocknarea is a direct descendant of Mab. That being the case, she knows how important the throne is.
Muryan:
I'll contact her, and ally Gloucester with her.
Muryan:
Knocknarea can be overthrown after the Great Calamity is taken care of.
Muryan:
First, we have to ensure Britain survives.
Muryan:
After that, I will invite our enemies from pan-human history...the humans of Chaldea, into my garden.
Koyanskaya:
Oh my. Lady Muryan, you plan to wage war on Chaldea!?
Koyanskaya:
I was sure you had zero interest in them.
Muryan:
That was never the case...
Muryan:
I can see that pan-human history will become an obstacle to the Fairy Kingdom, but more importantly...
Muryan:
They're your enemy, aren't they? Then they're my enemy as well. Let's get rid of them.
Muryan:
But first things first, Knocknarea.
Muryan:
As soon as she's crowned the new queen, have the Round Table Army removed from Camelot.
Muryan:
Do not give a Holy Lance to Chaldea. All of them are the property of the Fairy Kingdom.
Muryan:
Could I ask you to carry a missive of that sort to Knocknarea?
Muryan:
Normally I'd ask Oberon to do this sort of thing, but he's fallen out of contact lately...
Koyanskaya:
Of course. I will attend the ceremony in your stead.
Koyanskaya:
But what will you do now, Lady Muryan?
Koyanskaya:
You've shut yourself up in your room for long enough...it's not good for you.
Muryan:
...?
Muryan:
I have matters to look into. The truth that Queen Morgan kept hidden...
Muryan:
How exactly did Her Majesty protect us from the Great Calamity? And what the Great Calamity is in the first place.
Muryan:
If I order a book from Camelot, there's always an answer.
Muryan:
So long as it's written in a book, there's nothing I can't uncover.
Muryan:
I swear on my title of “princess under the butterburs,” I will uncover the truth of this.
Intermission 2
Grimm the Wise:
Artoria gives her regards to the brat. She's looking forward to your coronation.
Knocknarea:
Oh, is she? I can't say I'm happy to be congratulated by a gutless coward who gave up at the last second.
Grimm the Wise:
You're still mad about that?
Grimm the Wise:
Artoria didn't run away from her rivalry with you.
Grimm the Wise:
If anything, it's the other way around. She willingly stepped back so you wouldn't get sucked into the mission of the Fairies of Paradise.
Knocknarea:
I know that! That's why I'm not even more pissed off!
Knocknarea:
Walking off the stage for my sake?
Knocknarea:
So she just does something amazing that nobody will ever know, and runs off getting to say she saved the world?
Knocknarea:
Aaah, geez, I can't believe this! I won't let her! She's as bad as Morgan!
Knocknarea:
Just watch. When I take the throne, the first thing I'll do is start a hunt for the Child of Prophecy.
Knocknarea:
I'll find you wherever you are, and then I'll invade your “Paradise! ”
Grimm the Wise:
What the hell? If anyone's as bad as Morgan here, it's you.
Grimm the Wise:
But if you really mean to fight her, you'd better be prepared for it.
Grimm the Wise:
To go against the mission of Paradise is to go to war with pan-human history.
Grimm the Wise:
You'll bring an entirely different war to a Britain that's only just found peace.
Knocknarea:
I don't care, bring it on. I don't intend to coexist with pan-human history.
Knocknarea:
I don't think I'll be as extreme as Morgan was, but that's still “another country,” isn't it?
Knocknarea:
I couldn't be happier there's another land to invade.
Knocknarea:
My purpose is to “rule. ” I want treasure enough to fill both my hands, not just one.
Knocknarea:
The bigger the world, the more the magical energy in my heart gets fired up!
Grimm the Wise:
You're using words you only just learned, so you must be in a good mood. In that case, I won't stop you.
Grimm the Wise:
Whatever the event, rebuilding the Fairy Kingdom will take time. During that time, Chaldea will have achieved their goals.
Grimm the Wise:
Fujimaru is leaving. You okay with that?
Note: Male Player
Knocknarea:
Yes. It'll be a brief farewell...but isn't that destiny?
Knocknarea:
When I invade pan-human history, I'll become a better queen than Morgan ever was.
Knocknarea:
When he sees that I've become the greatest fairy on earth, he'll have no choice but to go along with me, right?
Note: Female Player
Knocknarea:
That's right. I wanted her to be my counselor, but it couldn't be helped.
Knocknarea:
It sucks that she let this chance go. But there will definitely be another.
Knocknarea:
After all, I'm going to become an extremely wicked queen and invade pan-human history.
Knocknarea:
Me and Fujimaru will meet again. As rivals!
Note: Branch End
Grimm the Wise:
You get what you want no matter what, huh? How very like you.
Grimm the Wise:
Just like Camelot's throne. “No matter what, it must remain unharmed. ”
Grimm the Wise:
Something like that is normally just ornamental. But you insisted on it.
Grimm the Wise:
Just like how Morgan never left it. You know what that thing is?
Knocknarea:
All right...you're Grimm the Sage, so I guess I can tell you.
Knocknarea:
Morgan's throne is the lynchpin of the Fairy Kingdom, and what maintains the cycle of fairies.
Knocknarea:
The cog that turns all those lives that were lost at the end of the Fairy Calendar.
Knocknarea:
After completing her pilgrimage, Tonelico founded a false Round Table in defiance of her “mission”.
Knocknarea:
—The Summoner's Throne.
Knocknarea:
Whosoever joins themselves to that throne becomes the Master of all fairies in Britain.
Knocknarea:
Morgan was alone and desperate, so she summoned the fairies of the Fairy Kingdom and maintained their lives in order to survive.
Knocknarea:
Queen Mab learned this in the year 400 of the Queen's Calendar, during her last decisive battle.
Knocknarea:
Mab, the clan heads, and some upper-class fairies were the only ones to not succumb to the Great Calamity at the end of the Fairy Calendar.
Knocknarea:
Mab wasn't one of the fairies resurrected by Morgan, so she had no reason to obey Her Majesty.
Knocknarea:
But neither could she fight Morgan, who went that far to keep Britain alive.
Knocknarea:
And so, Mab and Morgan forged a secret pact.
Knocknarea:
“If you, Morgan, should grow weak and your strength ever fail you, the King's Clan shall succeed you. ”
Grimm the Wise:
I see. “I'll take care of the rest, so you can go do what you want,” huh?
Knocknarea:
Yeah. A sort of friendship...or something, I guess. Anyway, Mab settled into retirement in Edinburgh.
Knocknarea:
Producing an heir for when Morgan grew weak—
Knocknarea:
That was the arrangement between them. The mission I inherited from my predecessor.
Knocknarea:
I am the one born to be the next Queen.
Knocknarea:
No matter what I do, no matter how I live, that's the mission I have to accomplish first.
Knocknarea:
It pisses me off that it happened in such a half-assed way, though!
Knocknarea:
Fine then. As soon as the coronation ceremony is over, I'll sit right on the throne and pick up where Morgan left off!
Knocknarea:
Well...there was no other way from the start.
Knocknarea:
I'm the only one whose Saint Graph can reforge the contract with all of Britain's fairies.
Knocknarea:
Artoria just can't do it. It couldn't be helped, could it?
Grimm the Wise:
Yeah. It's just like Ainsel said.
Grimm the Wise:
The Child of Prophecy will pave the way, and then the “true king” will appear.
Grimm the Wise:
The Child of Prophecy and the true king were different fairies all this time. That prophecy was talking about the both of you.
Grimm the Wise:
If you know that much, then there's nothing left for me to tell you.
Grimm the Wise:
See you around, Knocknarea.
Grimm the Wise:
This Lostbelt and pan-human history—they're mutually exclusive, but I suppose we can forget that for a few days.
Grimm the Wise:
Tomorrow's finally your coronation day. You have my blessing as the Sage.
Narration:
In the end, it became an ocean. In the beginning, there was only an ocean.
Narration:
The meteor passed over, civilization vanished, and all of the land was gathered as resources and became an ocean.
Narration:
A mistake occurred on this planet, and everything disappeared.
Narration:
This is the voice of an island on its deathbed. Even now, it resounds with the agonizing breath of someone who outlived death.
Fairies on their way to the Coronation:
Salisbury, Salisbury, venerable Salisbury!
Fairies on their way to the Coronation:
A new queen and a new calendar!
Fairies on their way to the Coronation:
The Child of Prophecy? Or the Child of the Queen?
Fairies on their way to the Coronation:
Who knows which one it will be, but who cares so long as they manage things?
Fairies on their way to the Coronation:
Hurry up with the coronation! Goodbye to the merciless Queen Morgan!
Fairies on their way to the Coronation:
Hm? Wait everyone, look over there. There's a single Mors up on the hill, looking this way.
Fairies on their way to the Coronation:
Just one of them isn't scary. If it's far away it's not scary.
Fairies on their way to the Coronation:
Britain is going to get a fresh start. What will our new queen make of this country?
Narration:
The critical point is almost here.
Narration:
The Mors will outnumber the fairies. Thanks to a suitable sacrifice, the god has awoken.
???:
Upon reflection, the reality is that there is no way it can be reclaimed.
???:
Being aware, but aggravating it; realizing, but doing so too late.
???:
Those who cry foul shall with foulness be contained.
???:
Who will take responsibility? It's natural. No one will shoulder it.
???:
As such, there can be no cure.
???:
You know how they say “a day after the fair”? That is exactly the case.
???:
At the very least, when this all comes to a close, I'll offer you something grand.
Section 25: The End ～Coronation Ceremony～
Da Vinci:
Goooood morning~! Is everybody reeeeeeady~!?
Da Vinci:
It's coronation day! Let's get to the cathedral before it gets too crowded!
Grimm the Wise:
We've got special seats as guests of honor, though.
Grimm the Wise:
The ceremony itself should be over in an hour. Have you thought about what you're all going to do afterwards?
Mash:
Senpai, Da Vinci, and myself are going to wait for Percival to arrive.
Mash:
We're hoping we can help with the transport of the Holy Lance.
Artoria:
I'm...going to go report about our successful journey to the Welsh forest.
Artoria:
After that...hm...
Artoria:
I think I'd like to help with the recovery effort in Londinium until it settles down.
Senji Muramasa:
Not a bad plan. Once I've seen this through, my job will finally be done.
Senji Muramasa:
I saw Artoria's journey through, and what's more, my job of defeating Morgan has wrapped up too.
Senji Muramasa:
I can leave Britain without any regrets.
Artoria:
Huh? You're going back home, Muramasa!?
Senji Muramasa:
Of course I am. I'm not some vagrant, you know. I'm still under contract, after all.
Senji Muramasa:
Plus, I still have one oddball coworker to deal with. I can't quit without a reason.
Da Vinci:
We'd like to scout you ourselves, but I get that you're not the type to decide that based on pros and cons.
Da Vinci:
“While we're in Britain we won't fight each other. ” As agreements go, it worked pretty well for us.
Da Vinci:
By the way...has Habetrot still not come out of her room?
Grimm the Wise:
Yeah. She's drowsy, so she's sleeping it off. She said not to worry about it and to just go to the coronation.
Mash:
Uhm...shouldn't we check on her one more time just to be sure?
Mash:
I'll—
Fujimaru 1:
No, I'll go myself.
Fujimaru 2:
You guys go on ahead.
Morgan:
You chose to be a dream. A path which exists separate from my Fairy Kingdom.
Morgan:
The short time between her arrival in Britain and when she's spirited away by the Water Mirror, that's the period wherein you are permitted to be active.
Morgan:
Remember this, Totrot...
Morgan:
When the morning lark cries, you must wake from your dream.
Habetrot:
...
Fujimaru 1:
Habetrot, are you awake?
Fujimaru 2:
You okay, Habenyan...?
Habetrot lying down:
Whoa, you came all the way here to check on me? Aren't you courteous, Fujimaru!
Habetrot lying down:
Hey, everyone's waiting for you outside! Quit worrying about me and just go.
Habetrot lying down:
I'm just worn out is all. I'll snap out of it soon enough.
Fujimaru 1:
I see. Well, see you later then.
Habetrot lying down:
Yeah, see you. Make sure you say your goodbyes!
Fujimaru 2:
Still...are you really okay?
Habetrot lying down:
What do you mean? There's nothing to be worried about.
Habetrot lying down:
You think I'm hiding something, huh? Like, could I actually be some sort of fairy world bigshot!?
Fujimaru 1:
No...it's not like we actually know anything about your past...
Habetrot lying down:
Right? Then there's nothing to worry about.
Habetrot lying down:
If even one person knew about my situation, I'd be in serious trouble.
Habetrot lying down:
So you shouldn't try to find out. I just have a few more things to take care of.
Habetrot lying down:
But I appreciate you asking. It's too early to say goodbye yet, but thanks.
Habetrot lying down:
Get along with Mash now, Fujimaru! You'd have made a pretty good-looking [♂ groom /♀ bride] too!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Leaving...leaving...I see...Dabinchi's going away...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
But where is she going?
Fairy Tavernkeep:
What is the outside world? What could be out there...beyond Britain?
Fairy Tavernkeep:
If she goes there, will Dabinchi's illness be cured? If her body gets better, then it's a good thing!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
.......... uuu.... uuuuu...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
It's awful...awful...it's too awful...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Everyday is fun now, so why would you say that...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Don't do this. Don't take Dabinchi away from me...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
If Dabinchi goes away, I'll be all alone again...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
How can Dabinchi stay...
--ARROW--
Artoria:
We made it to the cathedral! There's upper-class fairies everywhere you look!
Artoria:
Aurora, Spriggan, and all the other famous ones are upstairs in the VIP section!
Artoria:
But we won't lose to them.
Artoria:
I may have given up the throne, but we were the star players in the capture of Camelot!
Artoria:
We'll definitely get the front row...the front row...uh, is already all full?
Artoria:
Let's see, we're seated...on the first floor...all the way in the back...
Artoria:
The seats for the friends of friends...so that's where she placed us, huh...
Fujimaru 1:
Now, now.
Fujimaru 2:
It's so we don't stand out.
Percival:
Good, you all made it as well.
Fujimaru 1:
Percival!?
Fujimaru 2:
You're not in Camelot!?
Percival:
Yes. I had planned to be, but Lady Barghest insisted.
Mash:
“How would it look if the Round Table's commander didn't appear? It's fine, just leave this to me,”
Percival:
Those were her exact words. She also gave her regards to Mash.
Da Vinci:
That sounds like her, she is a very considerate guardian knight. I'm glad you're here to witness this event as well.
Da Vinci:
Oh, but how is the removal of the Holy Lance going? Smoothly, I hope?
Da Vinci:
If it's too difficult, I'll go to Camelot to assist.
Percival:
Please, don't worry. All is going well.
Percival:
We expect it will be finished by noon today, and it will be transported to Salisbury by tomorrow night.
Da Vinci:
That's great news. I'm not sure if a Holy Lance made by Morgan herself is something we can handle,
Da Vinci:
but it'll be great reference material for a Divine Construct. You've really saved us.
Artoria:
Quiet down, everyone! Knocknarea's here!
Artoria:
—
Fujimaru 1:
Whoa...she's beautiful...!
Mash:
Yes, she's so beautiful she's grabbing all the attention in the room!
Mash:
Being so sparkling and majestic fits her well, right Artoria?
Artoria:
—It does! Damn you, Knocknarea!
Artoria:
It frustrates me, but she is the best!
Knocknarea:
—
Spriggan:
Thank you all for coming. It may only be temporary,
Spriggan:
but as the representative for the six clans, I, Spriggan, shall proceed with the coronation ceremony.
Spriggan:
The new sovereign of Britain. Our representative, who will build a more prosperous future.
Spriggan:
Lady Knocknarea, of the King's Clan. Please proceed to the cathedral's altar and take your seat on the throne of coronation.
Knocknarea:
...
Mash:
It's begun...what a solemn atmosphere...
Mash:
With the blessings of the six clans on that crown, Knocknarea will become queen...
Da Vinci:
Yeah, the ceremony itself seems simple enough.
Da Vinci:
The groundwork has probably already been taken care of, and anyone who disagreed—oh?
Cathedral Guard:
Everyone, your cups.
Cathedral Guard:
This is to share in the joy when the blessings are complete.
Fujimaru 1:
(Wow, alcohol...! )
Fujimaru 2:
Thank you.
Mash:
(Senpai, are you going to drink that? )
Fujimaru 1:
(I can't drink, but I can at least pretend to, right? )
Mash:
(Understood...! I'll follow your example! )
Artoria:
(Me too...I'm not really used to alcohol...)
Da Vinci:
(Is that so? Hmm, then I'll do the same. )
Percival:
(I'm a little bit of a lightweight, so...)
Senji Muramasa & Grimm:
(Guess I have no choice...I'll read the room and hold myself back...)
Spriggan:
Now, in celebration of the birth of a new queen, I bestow the sign of my blessing upon you.
Spriggan:
The New Queen, Knocknarea. Please give your vows for your diligence and your fairness, your tolerance and your purity.
Knocknarea:
—Very well.
Knocknarea:
As one of the “fairies of Britain”, I hereby vow to remain fair.
Knocknarea:
As leader of the “northern fairies”, I hereby vow to remain diligent.
Knocknarea:
As the one entrusted with this island by the Child of Prophecy, I hereby swear to believe in the righteousness of coexistence.
Knocknarea:
As daughter of the Great Queen Mab, I hereby vow to retain my purity for the rest of my—
J：???:
—Objection.
J：???:
We assert that not one thing in that declaration is worth believing.
J：???:
Knocknarea is a villain. The northern fairies are not needed in Britain.
Knocknarea:
Who dares!? Show yourselves!
Knocknarea:
Wh—you are...King's Clan—my subjects—
King's Clanmembers:
We accuse. We accuse.
King's Clanmembers:
Knocknarea does not deserve to rule. We shall now reveal the atrocities carried out in the north!
King's Clanmembers:
The tyranny of the north has been terrible.
King's Clanmembers:
Whosoever Knocknarea shares her blood with becomes her slave, unable to defy her!
King's Clanmembers:
All their actions are restricted, military service is compulsory, and your very status as a “fairy” is taken away!
K：King's Clanmember Convert:
That's not all! Both me and my brother had the Mors sickness!
K：King's Clanmember Convert:
We heard that if you went to Edinburgh you could be cured, so we became subjects of Knocknarea!
K：King's Clanmember Convert:
But what I saw couldn't be called a cure at all!
K：King's Clanmember Convert:
All it did was transfer the curse to a fairy with no value and force them to die!
K：King's Clanmember Convert:
I managed to survive, but...
K：King's Clanmember Convert:
My brother who came with me was forced to take the curse of who knows how many fairies.
K：King's Clanmember Convert:
Not only did he become a hideous monster, but he served as a slave in Knocknarea's Giant Corps!
Knocknarea:
—What's wrong with that? Those fairies had already given their consent!
Knocknarea:
They were near death, so they dedicated themselves to saving their brethren. And moreover, it was thanks to them that Morgan was defeated!
Knocknarea:
They deserved to be rewarded for their dedication. It's not one-sided exploitation!
King's Clanmembers:
Then—what lies in the bowels of the Queen's City? How can you explain that horrifying contraption?
Knocknarea:
—you—
King's Clanmembers:
Everyone gathered here, please listen!
King's Clanmembers:
Hear now the betrayal of Britain concealed by Queen Mab and Knocknarea.
King's Clanmembers:
Was Queen Mab ever really dead in the first place!? No, she remains alive.
King's Clanmembers:
Her form has been changed to that of the Queen's City, Edinburgh.
King's Clanmembers:
She turned her own corpse into a city and even now remains “active”!
King's Clanmembers:
What is this “activity”, you ask? It's something horrible...
King's Clanmembers:
Mab ate the corpses of fairies to expand the city. Simultaneously, she intended to create a stronger version of herself.
King's Clanmembers:
And the proof of that success is Knocknarea! Knocknarea, the lady of the tomb herself!
King's Clanmembers:
Now you understand why the lands of the north don't expand.
King's Clanmembers:
It's been 1,500 years since the founding of Edinburgh!
King's Clanmembers:
Fairy corpses are supposed to make up the lands of Britain, yet...this woman was made from all of them!
King's Clanmembers:
If that is not betrayal towards Britain, then what is!? “King's Clan,” how laughable!
King's Clanmembers:
To Mab and Knocknarea, we fairies of Britain are nothing more than prey!
Knocknarea:
How can you call it a betrayal when you know not what Mab thought...!?
Knocknarea:
Without a fairy strong enough to join all fairies, it would be impossible to maintain the Fairy Kingdom!
Knocknarea:
And if you know that much, Mab's gone from being the Queen's City to...!
Knocknarea:
Very well, I'll tell you!
Knocknarea:
There's a reason why the once ruined “fairies of Britain” still exist.
Knocknarea:
What we inherited from Morgan was this land's true—guh—!?
Northern Fairies in Attandence:
Lady Knocknarea!? Oh no, Lady Knocknarea's coughing up blood...!
Northern Fairies in Attandence:
Arrest these insolent dogs! What have the guards been doin—urgh!?
King's Clanmembers:
They've collapsed, they've collapsed! Now that her crimes have been exposed, she can't bear them anymore!
King's Clanmembers:
Now, guardsmen! Judgement on Knocknarea! Judgement on the false queen!
King's Clanmembers:
We can't have a northern fairy for a queen! Because there's one much more worthy!
Fujimaru 1:
Ah—!
Fujimaru 2:
Artoria!
Artoria:
What the hell are you all doing—!?
--ARROW--
Knocknarea:
As soon as I drank the contents of my cup, I calmly realized what was happening.
Knocknarea:
The alcohol served had been laced with poison.
Knocknarea:
It had likely been mixed into the cups served to me, the northern fairies, and Artoria's group.
Knocknarea:
It didn't affect me. If my body couldn't withstand poison like this, I would've succumbed long ago.
Knocknarea:
It would have been bad for Artoria and Fujimaru, though.
Knocknarea:
When I snuck a glance at them in the back row, none of them had touched their cups for some reason.
Knocknarea:
It might have simply been a coincidence, but that was their saving grace.
Knocknarea:
I don't think Artoria would have noticed it, so maybe Fujimaru suggested it.
Knocknarea:
The fairies of the north are my oldest subjects. Their connections to me are strong.
Knocknarea:
If I'm calm in the face of this, then my subjects will endure it too. As such, I feigned ignorance and proceeded with the coronation ceremony.
Knocknarea:
I didn't want to be interrupted by my stingy anxiety.
Knocknarea:
When the Great Calamity could strike at any time, there is no more leeway for a king to be absent.
Knocknarea:
I didn't want to think about who served this, it wouldn't benefit me, but—
King's Clanmember:
We assert that not one thing in that declaration is worth believing.
King's Clanmember:
Knocknarea is a villain. The northern fairies are not needed in Britain.
Knocknarea:
—Even so, when I saw the faces of the fairies who opposed me, I knew things would turn bad.
Knocknarea:
The enemy had already prepared for this by having my clansmen be the ones to denounce me, rather than another clan.
Knocknarea:
My body, which had been alright until moments ago, began to numb. My fingers clenching, my throat and insides burning.
Knocknarea:
The objections of these so-called “king's clan” were not occurring just here. It was happening all over Britain at the same time.
Knocknarea:
Loyalty is my greatest weapon, but also my biggest weakness.
Knocknarea:
If a fairy who once shared their power with the “king” separates, my power would decrease by that same amount.
Knocknarea:
—I found myself having been reduced to not even half.
Knocknarea:
The poison that moments ago was harmless now spread violently, and even my oldest subjects began to collapse.
Knocknarea:
A guard's spear, usually no more harmful than a comb through your hair, enters through my abdomen and pierces through my back.
Knocknarea:
I guess I'm beaten...I'm still just a little girl.
Knocknarea:
I wonder if it's because I finally got to wear the dress I always wanted to? I guess I got too carried away in the moment.
King's Clanmembers:
Eep! The Child of Prophecy has attacked the cathedral's guards!
King's Clanmembers:
I knew it, Knocknarea and the Child of Prophecy were working together!
King's Clanmembers:
The descendant of the northern fairies and the Fairy of Paradise! How shameless! What a truly awful matched set!
King's Clanmembers:
They're both outsiders to Britain, and someone needs to hurry up and get rid...Aaaah! What was that!?
Grimm the Wise:
Shut up and leave. Or die if you can't. I won't say it twice.
Artoria:
Knocknarea—Knocknarea!
Artoria:
This is bad—stay with me, Knocknarea!
Knocknarea:
—
Artoria:
What's happening, the bleeding won't stop—her wound won't close!
Artoria:
Shouldn't you recover easily from wounds like this? What's wrong with you, Knocknarea!?
Da Vinci:
The amount of magical energy her body produces is decreasing...? It's as if her Saint Graph is being reduced little by little...
Da Vinci:
As if...she's being reduced more and more to her childhood state...?
Artoria:
Knocknarea! Wake up, Knocknarea!
Artoria:
You're about to become queen. Isn't that what you've worked so hard for!?
Artoria:
Get up and laugh it off like you always do, you idiot!
Knocknarea:
—Huh? Oh no, did I fall asleep?
Artoria:
Knocknarea...! Oh good, you woke up! Just wait, we'll get you some help...
Knocknarea:
Ah...no, there's no need. I'm used to this. I'm fine.
Knocknarea:
But...how strange. That face of yours...I know it very well...
Knocknarea:
When I have...a hard time...I always thought of it. We make a good pair as...as...as rivals, don't we...
Knocknarea:
But it's strange...I'm sorry...I know you...
Knocknarea:
But not...not your name...I somehow...don't know...
Knocknarea:
Where...is this? I am...I am...Knock...narea...
Knocknarea:
I have...an important...mission—mission —mission? What is...
Knocknarea:
With each heartbeat...I'm forgetting more and more—
Knocknarea:
Ah...I see...
Knocknarea:
Because I gave it away to so many others...
Knocknarea:
It seems...the intelligence I came from...has long since vanished....
Artoria:
Wh—what are you saying, Knocknarea? You gave everyone...
Artoria:
You shared...everything? For all of them? For Britain?
Artoria:
Your magical energy. Your miracles. Your intellect. You exhausted them all before everyone came here—?
Knocknarea:
Ah...
Knocknarea:
Um...
Knocknarea:
Sorry...don't...cry, whoever you are.
Knocknarea:
I...still...know you. Because...you were...always in my thoughts.
Knocknarea:
If you follow that light, you will find your way home. No matter what path you take, don't waver—
Artoria:
Stop saying things like that! Stop wasting your breath!
Artoria:
I mean, we still haven't had our rematch yet, have we!? At least fight me before you go!
Artoria:
Weren't you going to fall in love after you became queen!? You haven't even gotten started yet!
Artoria:
So please, Knocknarea—please...!
Note: Male Player
Knocknarea:
—No. This too is my...worth...the night sky with .
Knocknarea:
Love...I had a little taste of it. It was very—
Knocknarea:
Very wonderful, a comforting feeling. When this ceremony is over—
Knocknarea:
I'll definitely make them mine. Fufu. It's going to be even harder than becoming a queen.
Note: Female Player
Knocknarea:
It's okay. The me in the other world...would have known lots of love.
Knocknarea:
—That's odd. Her name...I wonder what it was?
Knocknarea:
On my grave...rather than my name—
Knocknarea:
It should definitely be...a name like a flower.
Note: Branch End
Artoria:
Wait—wait, Knocknarea. Don't go. Don't just quit while you're ahead.
Artoria:
It's because of you...because of people like you...I was able to...
Artoria:
If even you go, I'll...
Knocknarea:
You're...lying. You...can't lose...
Knocknarea:
Even...if you're left alone...you'll always...look for the star...
Artoria:
Knocknarea...is dead.
Fujimaru 1:
...
Senji Muramasa:
The guards have put their weapons away. The attending fairies have all run off too.
Senji Muramasa:
This was probably Spriggan's doing...or maybe not. He ran off in a panic as well.
Senji Muramasa:
There's a lot of noise outside. Sounds more like people killing each other than an argument.
Senji Muramasa:
I thought that fairies don't get into fights unless they're in the military.
Percival:
It's the residents of Salisbury trying to purge the northern fairies who came here...I think.
Percival:
I don't know exactly how effective that testimony against her before was,
Percival:
but Knocknarea isn't around to stop the conflict anymore.
Percival:
The southern fairies now have casus belli to attack Edinburgh.
Percival:
And the northern fairies, still acting as the King's Clan, will resist them in order to avenge Knocknarea.
Percival:
If this keeps going, Britain will fall into civil war again...how foolish...
Mash:
Yes...They were supposed to enter a new age, under a great ruler...
Mash:
This is just like the time at Londinium's coronation, and—
Mash:
Just like...that time...?
Grimm the Wise:
Sorry, but we don't have time to talk about this. The cathedral is completely surrounded. We need to deal with this instead.
Grimm the Wise:
There's a bunch of guards spoiling for a fight outside. If we stay here we're done for.
Fujimaru 1:
Hah!? Why!?
Fujimaru 2:
You don't mean...they think Artoria...
Artoria:
...planned the murder of the queen of the north after she conquered Camelot.
Artoria:
Then I guess I'm next. I don't know what I'll be charged with, though.
Artoria:
Probably something along the lines of “colluding with the queen of the north to conquer Britain,” or something.
Artoria:
No...
Artoria:
The fairies of Britain would love to see my kind dead.
Grimm the Wise:
No. Whoever poisoned the drinks had no idea about the mission of the Fairies of Paradise.
Grimm the Wise:
If they did, they wouldn't have killed Knocknarea.
Grimm the Wise:
She's the only one who could have saved Britain...or rather, the fairies of Britain.
Grimm the Wise:
And now, they've squandered their own last hope, though they don't know it yet.
Percival:
...
Grimm the Wise:
All right. So what are you gonna do, Artoria? You gonna stay here with Knocknarea?
Grimm the Wise:
Or do you want to get started on “what's next? ”
Grimm the Wise:
I'm not some ogre. I'll respect whatever you choose, for now.
Fujimaru 1:
"What's next"...?
Fujimaru 2:
The pilgrimage is over, though...
Artoria:
...
Coral:
That's enough of that, Child of Prophecy, Foreign Magus. Lay down your weapons and surrender.
Coral:
You are charged with the murder of Lady Knocknarea.
Coral:
Not only have you disrupted the coronation, but you murdered the guards who tried to stop you.
Coral:
Many fairies have testified to this.
Coral:
As the one in charge of Salisbury's safety, I am here to arrest and imprison you.
L：Knight of Salisbury:
Imprisonment? What are you saying, Lady Coral? The nature of their crime is obvious.
L：Knight of Salisbury:
The Child of Prophecy who deceived us. The untrustworthy Foreign Magus.
L：Knight of Salisbury:
And the seditionist, Percival of the Round Table Army. These three cannot be allowed to live.
L：Knight of Salisbury:
Let's cut them down here and put their heads on display in the square.
Coral:
No. Testimony is just that. It does not constitute fact.
Coral:
I will hear the truth of what happened from [♂ him /♀ her]. This is the way of the Wind Clan, as we value impartiality...
Coral:
What are you doing!?
Q：Knight of Salisbury:
Let's do it. Don't get sloppy just because we outnumber them.
Q：Knight of Salisbury:
These are the guys who fought Morgan and survived. They're probably tougher than those Londinium soldiers.
O：Knight of Salisbury:
Resist if you like, but that's the same as admitting your guilt.
O：Knight of Salisbury:
Come along quietly and the other fairies will live. Either everyone can die, or just the three of you.
O：Knight of Salisbury:
You're free to choose—
O：Knight of Salisbury:
I-impossible...! This was custom-made mythril armor—!?
Grimm the Wise:
Shut up. We don't have time for this either, we're not following your script.
Coral:
Y...y...you...laid a hand on the guards again—
Grimm the Wise:
If you want to run, do so. I'm not the type to burn someone who seems like a decent sort...
Mash:
Cu Chulainn!
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
You blocked my attack...!
Mash:
Of course! The sword of Sir Lancelot could never be used for a surprise attack!
Coral:
Mélusine...!? You were sent here!?
Coral:
So...then...these disturbances...they called you...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Be silent, Coral. I'm not here to protect you.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
My task is to neutralize both the Child of Prophecy and the forces of Chaldea.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
The rest is your job.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
You can turn them all into rabbits and strangle them to death, throw them into prison, or whatever you want.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Right...but, you shouldn't go outside for the next few hours.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Fighting has broken out all over the city. If you get caught up in it, you'll die.
Senji Muramasa:
And now Lancelot's here, huh...? We might be able to break through with all of us, but...
Senji Muramasa:
(Artoria still hasn't recovered. Without her support, one or two of us will definitely...)
Percival:
No! I can take her on my own!
Percival:
Everyone, please get outside! Meet me outside the city at the usual place!
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
What are...my business is with the Child of Prophecy and Chaldea, it has nothing to do wi—
Percival:
No, it has everything to do with me! They're my respected comrades who I've fought alongside!
Percival:
They might be a Fairy of Paradise and denizens of the outside world,
Percival:
but even if they're from different worlds, that doesn't change the fact that we support each other!
Percival:
I'm committed to believing in the right path, and to helping those who believe the same thing!
Percival:
I will use all my power to support those who would die for it! That is what a knight is. That is what the Round Table is. That—
Percival:
That's what I learned in the garden of this cathedral!
Percival:
I was told to become a knight worthy of the Spear of Selection, to stand in for the Child of Prophecy!
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That's right...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Even should children be gathered with evil thoughts, there is no need to corrupt their aspirations or how they are.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That's how you grew up. I'm very proud of you. But that's why I don't want to lose you here.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Once, six years ago...Once, against Woodwose.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
You've used the Spear of Selection twice now. Any more and you—
Percival:
That doesn't matter. I always intended to use it against you from the start.
Percival:
This spear carries the will and bravery of the knight Gareth.
Percival:
Fairy Knight Lancelot.
Percival:
If you still bear that name after the death of Her Majesty Morgan, then I will show you no mercy.
Percival:
If you're going to do it again—I'll correct that mistake again right here.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
...
Percival:
Phew. That worked better than I thought. I was actually in a cold sweat.
Fujimaru 1:
Lancelot...withdrew?
Fujimaru 2:
You drove her away...with that!?
Percival:
Yes. Despite appearances, Sis—Lancelot is actually a kind, compassionate girl.
Percival:
If you confront her head-on in an argument, she usually backs down, so I bet on that possibility.
Mash:
(That felt less like an argument and more like she ran off after being scolded, didn't it, Senpai...)
Senji Muramasa:
She'll likely be back once things settle down here, though. Either way, now is our chance.
Senji Muramasa:
Artoria, Fujimaru. Let's break through this encirclement and escape the city.
--BATTLE--
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Percival...you've grown into a splendid knight...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Straightforward, calm, trustworthy...still, I've never seen that side of you before.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
If I think about it, I was the one who taught you all that.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I know...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I know I'm being foolish...I know, but what choice do I have?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Hm? Screams from Salisbury...?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
No...it's not just Salisbury. Gloucester. Oxford. Norwich.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I can hear screaming from everywhere...Are those Mors?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
They're not just in the forests and valleys. They've crawled out into the plains and on the highway—no.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
The fairies are turning into Mors on their own...!?
Round Table Army Soldier:
News from Salisbury on the Voice of the Wind! Queen Knocknarea has been murdered! Somebody killed her!
Round Table Army Soldier:
Accusation against the King's Clan has increased feelings of opposition towards Edinburgh.
Round Table Army Soldier:
Fights have broken out between the upper-class fairies and the northern fairies inside the castle!
Barghest:
What fools, being so incited by baseless rumors...I'll go shut them up! Where are they!?
Barghest:
Arrest the fairy who distributed the Voice of the Wind! We'll hand down the first dishonorable discharge of the new regime!
Round Table Army Soldier:
Reporting! A swarm of Mors has appeared inside the castle town!
Round Table Army Soldier:
We have multiple sightings of company-sized groups! There's more than we can deal with on our own!
Round Table Army Soldier:
What should we do, Representative Commander Lord Barghest!?
Barghest:
Don't call me that, it makes my horn itch!
Barghest:
What are you doing allowing Mors inside the city!? Is the main gate still broken!?
Round Table Army Soldier:
There's no sign they came in from outside!
Round Table Army Soldier:
It's an outbreak of Mors from the interior! They're going out from the castle town itself!
Barghest:
...! —How's the dismantling of the Holy Lance proceeding!?
Barghest's Soldiers:
The last report from the team assigned to it was an hour ago!
Barghest's Soldiers:
Not only that, but all the fairies in the castle are complaining of numbness in their—their— the
Barghest's Soldiers:
the—th—ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt–
Round Table Army Soldier:
Dremmond...!? How!? He didn't even touch a Mors!
Round Table Army Soldier:
Ah...whaa—what is that!? It's coming out of the Great Pit...!
Barghest:
—What is going on?
Barghest:
It's not the Mors...it's something fundamentally more horrible—
Barghest:
Guh—!
Round Table Army Soldier:
Representative Commander Lord Barghest!?
Round Table Army Soldier:
Oh no, get away from the terrace! Give me your hand! Keep away from the Great Pit!
Barghest:
Ugh...no, I can stand on my own! You all need to get out of here!
Barghest:
The Mors are coming from down there! Soon the castle will be full of them!
Barghest:
Get out of here and escape to the plains before that happens! Tell that to every Round Table Army soldier!
Round Table Army Soldier:
U-understood!
Round Table Army Soldier:
But what about you!? If you escape with the others...
Barghest:
—Don't concern yourself with me! If I was going to run away, I would have long since done it!
Barghest:
As of now, we're abandoning Camelot! I shall cover the retreat!
Barghest:
All you need to think about is staying alive! I won't allow you to die here!
Round Table Army Soldier:
Yessir—! If we have the protection of the Fairy Knight Barghest, we can definitely make it!
Barghest:
—A fine soldier. The humans of the Round Table Army are all strong in body and mind.
Barghest:
Gh...!
Barghest:
I feel hot...has the Mors' poison affected me that much...? No, this is...
Barghest:
The curse of the Black Dog...Her Majesty kept it sealed, but...
Barghest:
Now that I'm no longer Gawain, I too will—
Barghest:
No. Before that, there's something I must do! I have to protect all these fairies and humans on my own...!
Barghest:
I'll kill all the Mors in the castle! If I can't do that, I'll never be able to face Chaldea again!
Barghest:
That's right...so long as [♂ he /♀ she] is there, there's hope.
Barghest:
Emigration...even if it's just a few, Britain's fairies will be saved...
Barghest:
Adonis, to get away from this—that's what I've been living for!
Section 26: An End
Fujimaru 1:
Haa......haa......!
Fujimaru 2:
We made it out of the city somehow......!
Senji Muramasa:
Yeah, thanks to a fight breaking out in the city between the north and the south.
Senji Muramasa:
I figured it'd be easy to make our getaway as long as we could shake the cathedral guards, but......
Da Vinci:
The gates of Salisbury have closed! No, you could say we made it in the nick of time!
Mash:
Please wait. Habetrot is still in her room at the tavern!
Grimm the Wise:
Now that the gates are shut, we can't get past the walls...
Grimm the Wise:
Unless we dive down from high up in the sky like Lancelot did.
Grimm the Wise:
Don't worry, Habetrot is a tough one, despite her looks. She's used to this sort of infighting.
Grimm the Wise:
I'm sure she's ordering Mike around and thoroughly protecting the tavern right about now. We can go pick her up once the frenzy dies down.
Grimm the Wise:
You and Habetrot aren't even that close in the first place, no?
Grimm the Wise:
There's no need to be that worried. She'll be fine on her own.
Mash:
That...may be so, but...
Senji Muramasa:
I'm worried about Habetrot too, but we can't afford to rest on our laurels here either.
Senji Muramasa:
Artoria is a suspect in the murder of Knocknarea—
Senji Muramasa:
No, it was only a matter of time before war broke out between the northern and southern fairies.
Senji Muramasa:
We're allied with the northern fairies, so we'd be labelled as an enemy of the six clans along with the Round Table Army.
Senji Muramasa:
Percival, you should head back to Londinium while you still can...
Senji Muramasa:
Percival? Hey, your mug is all pale, what's wrong?
Percival:
No...please, don't concern yourselves with me, I'm just a little tired.
Percival:
I'd like to believe this rioting is limited to Salisbury, but...
Percival:
As Muramasa has said, the situation requires an urgent response. We need to act fast...
Artoria:
Nonsense, you need to get treated first, don't you!? You aren't even breathing properly, Percival!
Artoria:
Good grief, let's borrow a bed from either Gloucester or the village nearby!
Artoria:
We can worry about things afterwards!
Fujimaru 1:
(Has Artoria recovered a little? )
Fujimaru 2:
I agree, let's find a place to rest right away!
Senji Muramasa:
No, we've got some major cleanup to do before that. All this noise attracted the Mors here.
Senji Muramasa:
It's smooth sailing compared to how bad it is in Salisbury, though. Let's take care of this quickly and—
Senji Muramasa:
Hold on, these numbers aren't normal. What's happening!?
Senji Muramasa:
Mash, Da Vinci! Take Percival with you and run! Get to that forest over there!
Senji Muramasa:
Grimm, Fujimaru, Artoria! Let's do this, brace yourselves!
Senji Muramasa:
We'll be fine if we can hold out for two minutes! After that, we'll run for the woods too!
--BATTLE--
Fujimaru 1:
T-that was absurd......!
Fujimaru 2:
(Don't tell me all of Britain is like this now...)
Percival:
I'm sorry...even though I need to be fighting...
Artoria:
That's enough of that! Here, eat this!
Artoria:
Dried fruits reserved for the occasion! You should be able to recover a bit of your strength!
Percival:
Thank you...very much for this. You really are the Child of Prophecy.
Percival:
An incredibly strong and straightforward girl...I'm glad I believed in and waited for you.
Da Vinci:
This road's messed up! There are Mors piling up everywhere!
Da Vinci:
We can't make any careless moves! What on earth is happening!?
Grimm the Wise:
Woah, you made it back. How are the other cities holding up?
Grimm the Wise:
I see. So it's finally begun...
Da Vinci:
Grimm?
Grimm the Wise:
Both Gloucester and Londinium are out of the question.
Grimm the Wise:
Mors are appearing all throughout the island. Every city has closed its gates and gone on the defensive.
Grimm the Wise:
On top of that, fairies consumed by fear are likely to turn into Mors on their own.
Grimm the Wise:
There is no safe haven left in Britain. The Great Calamity has begun.
--ARROW--
Fujimaru 1:
Why did this begin so suddenly!?
Grimm the Wise:
It was bound to happen. Morgan had been anticipating it for years.
Grimm the Wise:
However...she couldn't have known what form the Calamity would take until the time came.
Grimm the Wise:
The Great Calamity is like rot that's gathered across Britain for over a thousand years.
Grimm the Wise:
The island is flooded with the magical energy of a large amounts of “voices of agonizing death”, which the Calamity accumulates to grow in size.
Grimm the Wise:
That's how the Great Calamity is...as long as Britain exists here, it is bound to happen.
Da Vinci:
It sounds like a form of bloodletting...
Da Vinci:
It's like it's getting rid of the bad blood in its veins...or rather, the earth's...
Da Vinci:
Do you understand what kind of Calamity will come from that this time, Grimm?
Grimm the Wise:
I do...no, more like I know what it is.
Grimm the Wise:
I didn't get it when Morgan was around, but now that's she's gone I can guess what's going on.
Grimm the Wise:
The Great Pit. The guy secluded down there is on his way up.
Grimm the Wise:
That's the reason I was sent here. But...there's more to it than that.
Fujimaru 1:
That's not all...?
Fujimaru 2:
The red and black Calamities in the prophecy...?
Artoria:
...
Grimm the Wise:
Yeah. According to Freki and Geri's noses, there's signs of more than one Calamity.
Grimm the Wise:
Those two are out of my jurisdiction. I have no idea what form they will take.
Mash:
Please wait a second. Did you just say “signs? ”
Mash:
Then the Calamity hasn't really begun yet, has it? The Great Pit...
Mash:
Tonelico said “if it wakes up, Britain is finished. ”
Mash:
Whatever's at the bottom isn't fully awake yet, so...!
Grimm the Wise:
You want to strike while we still can? Sounds like a plan. You saved me a long explanation, lass.
Grimm the Wise:
But we'll need the cooperation of the Fairy of Paradise. “What comes after the pilgrimage”—
Grimm the Wise:
The God of Wisdom says we have to put what's at the bottom of the pit back to sleep.
Grimm the Wise:
Still, they're some pretty vague instructions. I don't know exactly what it's talking about.
Grimm the Wise:
—Artoria, this is where you take over.
Grimm the Wise:
The final stop on the pilgrimage. The true purpose of the Fairies of Paradise.
Attention! Crucial Dialogue Select
Fujimaru 1:
Artoria...?
Fujimaru 2:
...(It's probably...)
Artoria:
That's...
Artoria:
It's—
Da Vinci:
Aah, what awful timing! Read the room or something, geez!
Da Vinci:
Ignore, ignore! Just keep going, Artoria, I'll call them back later!
Mash:
Uh—
Fujimaru 1:
No, wait a second!
Fujimaru 2:
We got a call! Da Vinci, that was from Chaldea!
Mash:
That's right, Da Vinci! That was the radio! The radio is working again!
Mash:
None of our electronics were working in Britain, but now they are!
Da Vinci:
...!
Da Vinci:
Of course! Of all the boneheaded...Hello? Hello!?
Da Vinci:
Codename Watson here! Chaldea, come in!
Holmes:
This is 221B Baker Street. It seems our reception is good, Miss Watson.
Holmes:
We're not quite certain what is happening there. Our last carrier bird message was four days ago.
Holmes:
So I'll just sum up our situation for you.
Holmes:
The Border's internal systems have been gradually coming back online for the past hour.
Holmes:
The systems knocked offline just by approaching Britain have also been restored.
Holmes:
We're currently replenishing energy with steam power and performing maintenance on all sections.
Holmes:
Also, the radar has confirmed high levels of magical energy pollution throughout the island.
Holmes:
Britain is starting to fall apart. It may only be speculation, but I'm confident that's the truth.
Holmes:
The island itself was rejecting pan-human history, including the Storm Border.
Holmes:
If Britain loses its power, then we'll inevitably be able to intervene.
Fujimaru 1:
So the Border can move now!?
Holmes:
Of course, [♂ Mr. /♀ Miss] Fujimaru.
Holmes:
For that reason, I'd like you all to return to the Border immediately.
Holmes:
Professor is still not fully recovered.
Holmes:
Da Vinci's assistance will be necessary to put together a cruising program for Britain's magical energy density.
Holmes:
The Storm Border will return to full functionality about six hours after you return.
Fujimaru 1:
—Hurry, Da Vinci!
Mash:
Right! If it's coming from that Great Pit, then the Storm Border can...
Mash:
No, we can stand up against any Calamity! We can treat Percival too!
Percival:
No...I'm very grateful you thought of me, but...
Percival:
Please...if you would, just leave me behind.
Percival:
You're in a race against time now, aren't you...? You can't afford to let me burden you.
Mash:
That's not the case at all!
Mash:
I'll carry you on my back, so we should have no trouble moving!
Mash:
Isn't that right, Da Vinci!?
Da Vinci:
As long as we don't run across a swarm of Mors again. Though that doesn't seem very likely.
Da Vinci:
Percival...the Mors will come even if you stay here.
Da Vinci:
If we leave you behind, that means we'll be leaving you to die.
Da Vinci:
You know that and yet you'll still ask us to do so?
Da Vinci:
You called us all friends. Artoria, Mash, and Fujimaru.
Percival:
That's...
Percival:
Yes...I know it's terribly selfish of me.
Da Vinci:
I see...If you're prepared to go that far, then there's nothing more for me to say.
Mash:
Da Vinci!?
Da Vinci:
Yep. Talking more would be pointless, so let's just force you to come with us!
Da Vinci:
All right, Red Rab-bit! I know you're hiding, come out here!
Red Rabbit:
Oh, I've been found out? But I was champing at the bit for the best timing.
Fujimaru 1:
Red Rab-bit!? What are you doing here!?
Red Rabbit:
Why indeed? There is a reason, but I cannot disclose it.
Red Rabbit:
Please do not question or investigate this any further. That is the relationship between me and you.
Fujimaru 2:
Don't tell me...you were following us!?
Red Rabbit:
Well, yes...those were my orders. To follow and report on you.
Red Rabbit:
But I've stopped doing that. I've resigned from various positions, and right now I'm unemployed.
Red Rabbit:
Anyway, I've understood the situation while hiding behind a tree.
Red Rabbit:
Everybody, do you require a carriage? It happens to be a special runaway express.
Red Rabbit:
Driven by the foremost of the greatest horses in the Fairy Kingdom, capable of running all the way to the destination without rest.
Barghest:
Hah...hah...hah...that makes seventy, huh...
Barghest:
Pathetic...feeling tired from a fight of this magnitude...
Barghest:
Aah...my body feels hot...my horn feels like bursting...!
Barghest:
Aaaaaahhh!!!
Barghest:
Haah, haaah—
Barghest:
Unnnngh.... !
Barghest:
What's going on...the more I kill, the more there are...no...
Barghest:
I feel more and more tired...and I can't think straight...
Barghest:
They're still here...? There's no end to them. There's no end, but...
Barghest:
The Round Table Army is escaping outside...! Come, Mors! I will be your opponent!
--BATTLE--
Barghest:
What's happening...I'm seeing red...did the Mors poison get into my eyes...?
Barghest:
I...can't see well...it's almost like it's nighttime, but...
Barghest:
Alright...that was the last one. They gave me a fair bit of trouble, but now the Round Table Army humans should...
Round Table Army Soldier:
...
Barghest:
Aaa...aaaaah...aaaaaaaaaaaaaah!
Barghest:
—I'm sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough...
Barghest:
Telling them to flee the castle...how conceited of me—!
Barghest:
But...was there any other way...?
Barghest:
If only death awaits both inside and outside, then...
Barghest:
Would it have been better—if I had just devoured them all?
Barghest:
The weak are sustenance for the strong. The strong should protect the weak.
Barghest:
—That's right.
Barghest:
Even if this is...the end for Britain...there are yet things I want to protect...
Barghest:
I have to go...I'm sorry, but I cannot afford to fall here with you all.
Barghest:
Manchester...to Manchester...as the lord of that city, I have to...
Barghest:
I have to protect the denizens of Manchester—
--ARROW--
Spriggan:
—Ooh, there are Mors all over the plains! Those same predatory types that showed their faces in Norwich!
Spriggan:
Hurry! I don't care if you ruin the wheels, we have to reach Norwich before sundown!
Fairy Horse:
B-but, Lord Spriggan! The soldiers we left outside Salisbury are—!
Spriggan:
Not another word about that! I brought up that army myself! It's deplorable!
Spriggan:
Even so, with this many Mors there is nothing that can be done! An armed human would make no difference!
Spriggan:
Only the Fang Clan could handle this many Mors!
Spriggan:
And unfortunately for us, they vanished after heading to Gloucester!
Fairy Horse:
Th-then, isn't it pointless to escape to Norwich!? If we join forces with the northern fairies once more—
Spriggan:
It's precisely because I cannot do that is why I'm resorting to this! The lot of them won't settle down now that Knocknarea is dead!
Spriggan:
I was planning on dealing with her eventually, but there's a time and a place for everything!
Spriggan:
Why kill her now!? Why not wait until after the Great Calamity!?
Spriggan:
The fairies absolutely need a ruler to rally under! Morgan's history is proof of that!
Spriggan:
What was that woman thinking— —thinking—
Spriggan:
No, could it be...she wasn't thinking at all?
Spriggan:
No thoughts of the future, no aspirations of power, no belief that she'd best ruler this kingdom—
Spriggan:
Nothing...at all?
Spriggan:
Is she nothing more than a woman who wishes to get rid of anything she dislikes!?
Spriggan:
—I don't believe this!
Spriggan:
You can't live for more than 2,000 years thinking like that! She's nothing but a monster!
Fairies:
Don't believe the northern fairies! Knocknarea was the Calamity!
Fairies:
Salisbury is Lady Aurora's city, and we'll protect it ourselves!
Fairies:
Is anybody affected by the Mors' poison!? Say something before it gets worse, we'll treat it right away!
Fairies:
The outside is dangerous! Protect the humans! They're our property! Don't let them leave the city!
Fairies:
Anyone who opens the gate is a traitor. Report as soon as you find one!
Fairies:
Conduct yourselves as befits your clan! Lady Aurora will see us through this somehow!
Fairies:
Hail, Lady Aurora! Hail, Lady Aurora! Hail, Lady Aurora! Hail, Lady Aurora!
Aurora:
The day breaks without a single issue. How nice.
Aurora:
How nice to see all the commotion outside has calmed down! Now, let's enjoy our morning tea, Coral.
Coral:
Lady Aurora...to call that peaceful...
Coral:
They are having difficulty disposing of the fairy corpses on the main road. The gates have been shut, so they cannot be carried outside...
Coral:
And what's more...the northern fairies...
Aurora:
Yes, what a sad ending for them...
Aurora:
Not only is Knocknarea dead, but the secret of Edinburgh is out...
Aurora:
What has happened to the northern fairies in Salisbury?
Coral:
They've all gradually lost their strength and collapsed, as if in response to Knocknarea's death...
Coral:
We've reopened the nursery and placed the ones still breathing under house arrest there.
Aurora:
A nursery? Is there such a place in Salisbury?
Coral:
The institute for raising human children you ordered built sixteen years ago, Lady Aurora.
Coral:
It has stood abandoned for six years, so I took it upon myself to make use of it.
Aurora:
Oh, that little house! I loved it! So adorably built.
Aurora:
But that...what was his name, the grey-haired human child.
Aurora:
It's been a little difficult to go there since that child was discarded...
Coral:
That was...someone we've already forgotten. Why did you discard him, Lady Aurora?
Aurora:
Hm? Well, he grew up from making use of the spear, didn't he?
Aurora:
He's only human. Once he looks like an adult, he can't be the Child of Prophecy anymore, can he?
Coral:
So that's what it was...
Coral:
Was it selfish of me to reopen the nursery?
Aurora:
No, it was a good idea, Coral. That place is well-equipped for purging the interior.
Aurora:
We can send them all off to sleep with but one finger. Just right for the wounded northern fairies.
Aurora:
Anyway, have the Child of Prophecy and her friends been captured yet?
Aurora:
To murder Knocknarea simply because they lost their competition...
Aurora:
I will not allow it. The Child of Prophecy must be punished accordingly.
Aurora:
The Foreign Magus is...equally guilty, but must have been tricked by the Child of Prophecy.
Aurora:
As the leader of the Wind Clan, I will offer clemency for [♂ his /♀ her] crimes.
Aurora:
[♂ He /♀ She] must have so many stories about the outside world to share!
Aurora:
Hehe, what fun this will be, Coral! What could the world outside Britain be like?
Aurora:
There must be so many different types of humans. After all, it's a world expanded through their own efforts.
Aurora:
It must be filled with so many strange, captivating things.
Coral:
—Now is not the time for that.
Coral:
The Mors continue to increase in number outside the city, and the fairies that have escaped from the surrounding forests are beating on the gate.
Coral:
Some fairies inside Salisbury are developing symptoms of of the Mors sickness.
Coral:
We urgently need more places to treat them.
Coral:
After opening the gates and admitting the refugees, we must open the cathedral for that purpose.
Coral:
We can't handle this on our own.
Coral:
We should ask the humans of Gloucester or Londinium for assistance—
Aurora:
Why? Why not just keep the gates closed?
Aurora:
Have the guards pass judgement on any fairy who contracts the Mors sickness. That is why we raised the humans, after all.
Coral:
Lady Aurora...what are you saying?
Coral:
It's true that humans are lesser beings, but they too have hearts.
Coral:
Having them execute their fellow citizens is...
Coral:
And to abandon the refugees outside—
Aurora:
They will be fine. They are strong children who chose a life in those shabby woods rather than in my city.
Aurora:
They will survive this time as well, somehow or another. We shall preserve the peace in Salisbury.
Aurora:
Everything will settle down in time, Coral. Let's just remain calm until then, alright?
Coral:
So we...do nothing? Just hide away in the safety of the bell tower?
Aurora:
You shouldn't say such naughty things, you know? Now I'll have to take away your wings.
Aurora:
Just like that argument-loving Harobalomia.
Aurora:
You know my feelings, and you work for me—
Aurora:
What a smart girl. She always was, and always will be.
Gloucester Fairy:
That's it...we don't know the details, just what was relayed with the Voice of the Wind.
Gloucester Fairy:
The coronation ceremony at Salisbury was interrupted. Lady Knocknarea was murdered by the Child of Prophecy,
Gloucester Fairy:
and Mors are materializing all over Britain.
Gloucester Fairy:
The Mors' corruption is leaking out of the Great Pit, and Camelot has fallen under a dark fog...
Muryan:
I understand...it will definitely spread this far.
Muryan:
It seems the Great Calamity has begun. But Gloucester's position will not change.
Muryan:
Gloucester's way...
Muryan:
Accept any and all refugees, so long as they swear to contain their fun within clan lines.
Muryan:
My Fairy Territory is still going strong. The Mors will not come into Gloucester.
Muryan:
Still...there's nothing that can be done about the fairies turning into Mors inside.
Muryan:
Call on some Fang Clan mercenaries to execute them.
Muryan:
Wait, no. Have them immediately sent to the surrounding forests to clear them out.
Muryan:
The Fang Clan can withstand the Mors' poison better than any other. That's how they subdued the Mors King.
Muryan:
If this is nothing more than a large outbreak, then they should be able to handle it.
Muryan:
We'll have to deal with the Calamity that comes next...the fog coming out of the Great Pit.
Muryan:
Her Majesty Morgan may be no more, but the system she laid out is still solid.
Muryan:
The Fang Clan and Camelot's reserves...
Muryan:
If used appropriately, there will be no need to fear any Calamity.
Gloucester Fairy:
Uhm...Lady Muryan. The Fang Clan is no longer...
Muryan:
Hah? I've given you your instructions. Hurry up, get moving!
Muryan:
I must continue to study the Great Pit, and finally uncover the truth about it.
Muryan:
The story of Britain's origin, which Her Majesty decided to keep hidden away from the people...
Muryan:
The “first prophecy” and “Cernunnos. ” If I can parse those out, I can uncover the true nature of the Great Calamity.
Muryan:
I don't know what exactly is trying to destroy our Britain...
Muryan:
But I swear on the Wing Clan, as the Lord of Gloucester I shall expose it magnificently!
Gloucester Fairy:
O-of course you will, my lady!
Gloucester Fairy:
You are Lady Muryan, wisest and most fair in all of Britain!
Gloucester Fairy:
I am so proud to be a citizen of Gloucester! Please, leave the city to us!
Muryan:
...
Muryan:
This isn't a situation where I can afford to relax. There's no time to lose.
Muryan:
If I don't have an answer before Koyanskaya gets back, I won't look good enough to be her friend.
Muryan:
I knew it...
Muryan:
Koyanskaya told me about the existence of “gods,” but...
Muryan:
In Britain, there was only one being who fit that description—Cernunnos—the beastial god of an island across the sea...
Muryan:
This must be the “God” at the bottom of the Great Pit.
Muryan:
The question is why did this “God” disappear, and what did the six clans wish for?
Muryan:
And—
Muryan:
Why did this world follow a different path than pan-human history in the first place?
Muryan:
The answer...I'm so close...
Muryan:
...14,000 years ago...an invader fell from a shooting star...
Muryan:
...did this...the fairies...
Muryan:
H-how could that have happened!? But still—
Muryan:
Retribution for—no, the sins of the forefathers are exclusively their own. It makes no sense to extend that grudge to their descendents!
Muryan:
Besides—if this is the truth, it's only natural the Great Pit would be there.
Muryan:
It's not “God” trying to destroy us, it's the island of Britain itself—
Muryan:
—?
???:
Congratulations. You found your answer, Muryan.
???:
Well done on eradicating the Fang Clan. Thanks to you, the scale of this Calamity has increased dramatically.
???:
If they were still around, they could have defeated the Mors, and this wouldn't have developed into a Great Calamity.
???:
But this time, it'll be quite a show. The bigger the Calamity, the better. Thank you for your contribution in causing this apocalypse.
???:
You've had your revenge. And now you know the truth about Britain.
???:
Then you have no more regrets, right? It's that time, after all.
Muryan:
—aah—y-you—
???:
Oh, that's right. I have one final confession.
???:
It was so long ago, but I really am sorry for setting the Fang Clan after the Wing Clan.
???:
There wasn't really a reason for it, I was just in a bit of a bad mood at the time.
Muryan:
—
--ARROW--
Red Rabbit:
We've been running towards the west coast for a day and a half now! We'll reach our destination soon!
Red Rabbit:
By the way, both my front and hind legs are going numb!
Red Rabbit:
If I may be so frank, I feel that any more of this would be dangerous! No, my racing life as a fairy horse will be at stake!
Fujimaru 1:
To go that far...(sob)!
Fujimaru 2:
Thanks for taking us this far, Red Rab-bit!
Red Rabbit:
Yes. My legs aside, we have about twenty seconds before the carriage wheels break.
Red Rabbit:
Are you ready to jump out and run to the ocean? I can see a large number of Mors on the beach.
Red Rabbit:
To the very end I wasn't sure about ban heman history,
Red Rabbit:
but perhaps you are the heroes who will truly save Britain.
Red Rabbit:
It was an honor to accompany you on that journey. And now—
Red Rabbit:
This is as far as I go. Everybody, please stay strong!
Senji Muramasa:
Thanks, Master Red Rab-bit! We couldn't have come this far without you!
Senji Muramasa:
Leave the rest to us. Let's kick their asses, Grimm! We'll clear a path to the coast!
--BATTLE--
Fujimaru 1:
We're back!
Fujimaru 2:
(The bridge is unprecedentedly hectic! )
Gordolf:
Congratulations on a job well done! You did well coming back safe and sound, Fujimaru!
Gordolf:
So it would seem that this so-called 'Great Pit' is a threat! We're picking up abnormal magical signatures on our end!
Gordolf:
According to SHEBA, the collapse event is due to occur in a few hours!
Gordolf:
I would've liked to let you take a short break in your room, but can you give us a detailed rundown!?
Gordolf:
I'd lose my nerve otherwise! No, first we need to get a headcount!
Gordolf:
You're the King Arthur of the Fairy Kingdom, Artoria, that was in the report!
Gordolf:
You're Percival of the Round Table Army! And you're obviously Cu Chulainn!
Gordolf:
Then we have the apostle of the Alien God, Senji Muramasa the Alter Ego!
Gordolf:
Hmm, you're as reliable as I had imagined! This solidifies our chances, I'd say!
Gordolf:
Guten Tag. Pleased to make your acquaintance, fellows from Fairy Kingdom Britain.
Gordolf:
I am the Director of Chaldea and Honorary Commander of the Border, Gordolf Musik.
Gordolf:
The situation is what it is. I have no intention of putting labels like pan-human history or Lostbelt on any of us.
Gordolf:
I'd like you to lend us your strength, as comrades, in putting an end to this unprecedented panic.
Gordolf:
By the way...
Gordolf:
Aren't we missing a few here? You had more companions in your reports, right?
Fujimaru 1:
Gareth and Oberon are...
Fujimaru 2:
Habetrot is still in Salisbury...
Gordolf:
What are you saying!? What about the northern fairies then?
Gordolf:
Didn't you become Mab-friends with that Medb lookalike after a Mab-match with her!?
Mash:
Knocknarea...passed away at the coronation...
Gordolf:
Oh...I see. A death at a coronation...must have been a violent one. How unfortunate.
Gordolf:
We can't count on the departed, nor have we any need to blame them...
Gordolf:
Allow me to go over the situation again, ladies and gentlemen. Currently, this ship is preparing for a water takeoff sequence.
Gordolf:
Nevertheless, it will be some time before takeoff.
Gordolf:
Technical Advisor, hurry over to the computer room. Nemo Professor needs your help.
Gordolf:
Mash Kyrielight will give the Fairy Kingdom pair a warm welcome.
Gordolf:
Hmm, Percival doesn't look too good. Take him to the infirmary first.
Gordolf:
As for Muramasa and Grimm, now that you have boarded this ship, you will both be treated as Chaldean Servants.
Gordolf:
Have a chat with Captain Nemo regarding our upcoming battle formation.
Gordolf:
As for Fujimaru, you will—
Gordolf:
Huh...you look as pale as I, but I suppose you're used to it.
Gordolf:
First things first, get yourself checked for physical trauma in the infirmary, then replenish your Command Spells with our precious 'spare Command Spells'.
Gordolf:
Come back here afterwards so the Administrative Advisor and I can debrief you. I'll need you to explain each and every last aspect of Britain.
Gordolf:
After all, we'll be storming it in a couple of hours with the Storm Border.
Gordolf:
I'll need information on not just the land itself, but also your understanding of the fairies.
Fujimaru 1:
—Yes, sir!
Gordolf:
Very well! It's been a day and a half since our last remote communication. Assuming there's another six hours until takeoff, that'll approximately be two days.
Gordolf:
There's no possible way the world can end in just two days, we still have plenty of time left! We have to!
Gordolf:
Intense fighting is to be expected from this point forward. I want each and every last one of you to avoid panic, remain calm and recuperate!
Narration:
~Two hours since the emergency meeting began~
Holmes:
I see...I've got a good grasp on the situation at hand.
Holmes:
Thank you for the detailed report, [♂ Mister /♀ Miss] Fujimaru.
Holmes:
Now we know what must be done. Although, we must re-examine whether it is possible or not.
Gordolf:
Hmph. What exactly do you mean by 'what must be done'?
Holmes:
Broadly speaking, there are two things.
Holmes:
One is stopping the fall—the Collapse of Britain.
Holmes:
In other words: investigating the Great Pit, and preventing the Calamity. That is, eradicating the Mors that have appeared all over Britain.
Holmes:
Second is our objective as Chaldea. The acquisition of a Divine Construct.
Holmes:
This was just a hair's breadth away, although it unfortunately ended in failure.
Gordolf:
Hmm, the dismantling of Camelot's Holy Lance!
Gordolf:
I won't blame the Round Table Army, but couldn't they have finished it a day sooner!? Damn it!
Holmes:
While we're on that topic...Grimm the Wise, would you kindly step over here?
Grimm the Wise:
What's the matter? You have a question for me?
Holmes:
Just a few, regarding the Divine Construct.
Holmes:
We had assumed our objective would be complete once we manage to seize the Holy Lance of Camelot, however...
Holmes:
According to [♂ Mister /♀ Miss] Fujimaru, you had a dispirited look on your face when that topic was brought up.
Holmes:
May I ask why?
Da Vinci:
That's great news. I'm not sure if a Holy Lance made by Morgan herself is something we can handle,
Da Vinci:
but it'll be great reference material for a Divine Construct. You've really saved us.
Grimm the Wise:
Woah, you sure do pick up on the details. Well, I guess so. That is a mistake.
Grimm the Wise:
You can remove the Holy Lance all you want, but you can't arm this ship with it.
Grimm the Wise:
A Divine Construct comes as a set with its wielder. Even if you make one, it's still unusable if you lack the qualifications.
Grimm the Wise:
It's something that you Chaldeans—no, something that the bleached pan-human history lacks.
Grimm the Wise:
As long as you lack that, Chaldea can never possess the Divine Construct.
Fujimaru 1:
Qualifications...?
Fujimaru 2:
Something we lost in the bleaching...?
Holmes:
—It can't be. No, if considered more coherently—
Holmes:
The reason we had to come to this Lostbelt, no matter what.
Holmes:
I see, so the reason Miss Sion was so insistent about Britain was because she knew about it...!
A：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Woah, warning, waaaarning!
A：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Gravitational fluctuations have been confirmed in the heart of Britain! Amazing, it's like the Alien God's pseudo-black hole.
A：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Something really bad's coming out (sob)! Ugh, I'd rather not use the scope to check it out!
B：Nemo Marine (Observer, Right):
What are you—oh no, we're in big trouble! Fires are breaking out all across Britaaiiin!
B：Nemo Marine (Observer, Right):
The source of the fire is northwestern Britain!
B：Nemo Marine (Observer, Right):
Fiery winds are sweeping across the entire island of Britain, like a tsunami, from the city of Manchester~!
Fujimaru 1:
Gravitational fluctuations at the Great Pit!?
Fujimaru 2:
Fires in Manchester!?
Nemo:
No panicking, calm yourselves! Gather more detailed observational data.
Nemo:
I'd also like to have a visual. Aim the super telephoto lens we used in Atlantis at the heart of Britain.
A：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
It's not showing up on the screens! It's pitch black, I'm telling you, pitch black!
A：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
It's like I'm taking a peek at the darkest, abyssal depths! But something is occurring, no doubt about that!
Nemo:
Looks like we'll have to go there ourselves to confirm it...
Nemo:
What has Professor reported? How much longer until the cruising program is complete?
B：Nemo Marine (Assistant Pilot):
She said it's already complete! They're currently verifying it and they want 30 minutes to renew it.
Nemo:
As expected of the talented Da Vinci. Three hours ahead of schedule.
Nemo:
Gordolf, Holmes. The ship will now prepare for combat.
Nemo:
Fujimaru, go and fetch Mash and Artoria Caster.
Nemo:
We have no time to spare.
Nemo:
As captain, I'm reluctant to say this, but we likely won't have the time to perform a test run.
Da Vinci:
For the time being, I attempted treatment of minor injuries and tried using active ampoules, but...
Da Vinci:
Are you really sure you don't want to enter a recovery pod?
Da Vinci:
Even if we can't hope for a fundamental recovery, I think we could get a little of your strength back...
Percival:
Thank you for your concern. However, I'll have to decline until the Great Calamity has been purged.
Percival:
If I lie on that bed, I won't be conscious for a few days, will I?
Percival:
As the commander of the Round Table Army, I find that hard to accept.
Percival:
Even if I cannot contribute, I wish to see Britain's fate with my own eyes.
Percival:
Hey, besides...
Percival:
I wouldn't be able to face the Round Table Army if I sleep through it all.
Artoria:
...
Percival:
...
Percival:
Speaking of which, there's something I'd like to tell Artoria as well.
Percival:
I would've preferred not to say it, but since I got ahead of myself at the cathedral and let it slip...
Da Vinci:
You're talking about being a 'substitute Child of Prophecy', aren't you...? Is that why you're in such a terrible condition?
Da Vinci:
Aurora was the fairy who took in a human child...you, when you were but a newborn.
Da Vinci:
Woodwose selected you at the nursery. And Lancelot taught you swordsmanship.
Da Vinci:
Their purpose was to rear a Child of Prophecy of their own...am I correct in assuming this?
Percival:
Yes. Ever since Ainsel's prophecy, many measures were taken throughout Britain to obstruct the Child of Prophecy.
Percival:
The queen's troops would round up newborn fairies, and in some villages they'd shelter the next generation in order to let them grow.
Percival:
Certain places would raise them in secret.
Percival:
That's what the Lord of Salisbury must have thought.
Percival:
If you can't know where they're going to show up, why not just prepare one for yourself?
Artoria:
And so they gathered human children...and raised them as warriors.
Artoria:
To be a substitute Child of Prophecy, should the Child of Prophecy not appear 16 years later.
Percival:
I suppose so...I suppose they must have been thinking along those lines.
Da Vinci:
So what happened after that...?
Percival:
Lord Woodwose found me the most talented out of all the candidates.
Percival:
Salisbury housed the weapon that the savior Tonelico, who saved Britain during the Fairy Calendar, once wielded...
Percival:
This spear—the Spear of Selection—which had been left behind.
Percival:
A seal had been placed on it by Tonelico, such as “only the sinless may wield it”.
Percival:
There wasn't a single fairy who could touch the Spear of Selection. Only humans.
Da Vinci:
So that's why they gathered up human children. Even if their vitality falls short, they would still be capable of wielding the Spear of Selection...
Da Vinci:
To do so would be the minimum prerequisite to being named the Child of Prophecy.
Percival:
Yes. And one day, after having spent ten years at the nursery, I was able to draw out the power of the Spear of Selection.
Percival:
I believe I was...chosen by the Spear of Selection. “Kill the wicked fairies with this spear”.
Percival:
I undoubtedly heard that voice in my head.
Percival:
And...that was also the day the Mirror Clan vanished from Britain.
Percival:
The day I was chosen by the Spear of Selection, she made her way to the Lake District, at her lord's behest.
Artoria:
—Huh? Wait, hold on a minute.
Artoria:
The Mirror Clan vanished six years ago, right? But Percival, you're...
Percival:
The Spear of Selection expends the life of its wielder to exhibit its true power.
Percival:
I'm sorry, Artoria...I turn sixteen this year.
Percival:
I was roughly 10 years old when the Spear of Selection chose me, hence my appearance.
Percival:
I'd say my biological age places me around 26 years old.
Da Vinci:
The average life expectancy of a human in Britain is 30 years...So that's why you didn't undergo a second growth spurt.
Da Vinci:
Because there was nothing past that point from the start. Percival, the reason you're alive is—
Percival:
Yes. I believe it to be because I am sturdier and blessed with a longer lifespan compared to my fellow humans.
Percival:
Lord Woodwose had a keen eye, it seems.
Percival:
That is what I'd like to apologize for, Artoria.
Percival:
I was to act as a substitute Child of Prophecy...no, I was raised to undermine you.
Percival:
I hid that fact from everyone, and flew my banner in support of you.
Percival:
I used your name to establish the Round Table Army for my own sake.
Percival:
I preached peace for Britain even while my position itself was a falsehood. Where it was not my place to do so.
Artoria:
...
Artoria:
That's not...that's not true...
Artoria:
It wasn't for your sake...because Percival, you're still...
Artoria:
(You're still forcing yourself to act, to save Mélusine, aren't you...? )
Nemo:
Attention, all Storm Border staff. The ship will now prepare for combat.
Nemo:
Intense gravitational fluctuations have been observed at the heart of Britain. Holmes believes this to be the onset of the Collapse event.
Nemo:
In 30 minutes, the ship will cease standby operation at sea, shift to flight configuration, and storm Britain.
Nemo:
Combatants are to assemble on the bridge. Combatants are to assemble on the bridge.
Nemo:
I repeat, the ship will—
Da Vinci:
Looks like that'll be all for now...I'm heading off to the computer room. What about the two of you?
Percival:
I'll head for the bridge. I have named myself a Knight of the Round Table, no matter how false it may ring.
Percival:
To witness Britain's fate is the least I can do to honor my fallen comrades.
Percival:
Though my wish was a futile one...
Percival:
Their wish of a future for both human and fae was genuine.
Artoria:
...
--ARROW--
Gordolf:
Th-th-this is impossible! How is this happening!? It's only been a day and a half!
Gordolf:
There's no way all of Britain could go up in flames in that time!
Gordolf:
Are the Mors really such terrible creatures!?
Mash:
No, the Mors don't burn things! This is an entirely different phenomenon!
Senji Muramasa:
It's probably the “Red Calamity”...It seems like the fire started in Manchester...
Senji Muramasa:
That's where you struck your deal with Barghest, right?
Senji Muramasa:
The one where in a worst-case scenario, you'd load fairies onto this ship and take them into pan-human history.
Mash:
Yes, I heard about that from Barghest!
Mash:
She said she already explained the situation to Manchester's citizens,
Mash:
and all the fairies happily agreed to it!
Fujimaru 1:
Then we need to hurry...!
Fujimaru 2:
Can't we head to Manchester first!?
Nemo:
That was the plan. We have to confirm what started the fire.
Nemo:
It'll be a bit of a side trip, but it'll give us no problems on our way to storm into the Great Pit.
Nemo:
Da Vinci, how are things on your end?
Da Vinci:
No abnormalities with any of the Storm Border's functions! We're holding steady at 60 knots!
Da Vinci:
Manchester, right? I was thinking that should be our first stop too.
Da Vinci:
We promised Barghest after all! We're about ten minutes away, but—
Da Vinci:
There's a huge fire surrounding the city at the moment!
Da Vinci:
The city's protected by walls, so the fairies inside should still be safe!
Da Vinci:
To take them into the Border, we'll need them to all act as a group.
Da Vinci:
So for that reason, I want Fujimaru and Mash to head into the city first!
Da Vinci:
As soon as we reach altitude, we're airdropping the Shadow Border.
Da Vinci:
The autopilot can handle the landing, but we need a driver. Meunière, can I ask you to take care of it?
Meunière:
S-sure thing! The old man's commanding, so I've got no choice!
Nemo:
A brave answer, Meunière. As expected of the Border's longest-serving pilot.
Meunière:
Ah! O-of course! I've just been putting my feet up until now, so I can at least do this much!
Da Vinci:
I'm counting on you all. Gather all the fairies together and explain the situation to them.
Fujimaru 1:
Roger!
Fujimaru 2:
Prepare to bring them onboard!
Meunière:
Whoa, we're like an airborne division! All thanks to Da Vinci's autopilot!
Meunière:
Surrounding hostiles—no Mors detected! Exterior temperature—1000 degrees Celsius!?
Meunière:
It's just like a wildfire out there! Fujimaru, keep your Mystic Code on!
Meunière:
Full throttle all the way to the streets of Manchester! Chaaaarge—!
Fujimaru 1:
We made it...!
Fujimaru 2:
Open the hatch, we're heading out!
Mash:
...!? Meunière, I can't disengage the hatch's lock!
Mash:
Open it quick—
Meunière:
You can't...you can't go out there now.
Meunière:
Shit...what the hell is going on!?
Meunière:
Wasn't Manchester supposed to be the perfect city!? So why—
Meunière:
How did it end up like this!?
Mash:
Meunière? What are you—
Fujimaru 1:
Mash...
Fujimaru 2:
Look at the monitors...
Mash:
Wh—is...this—
Meunière:
Corpses. Mountains of corpses! It's not just fairies, humans too!
Meunière:
And they didn't die in the fires.
Meunière:
There's human corpses with bite marks, and fairy corpses torn apart by stab wounds.
Meunière:
Meaning—
Fujimaru 1:
The humans were mauled to death...
Fujimaru 2:
The fairies were slain with weapons...
Fleeing Fairy:
Help! Help me! They're gonna kill Jenny too!
Fleeing Fairy:
Lord Barghest has lost her mind...!
Fleeing Fairy:
No, Jenny doesn't want to die, Jenny doesn't want to die...! They said we'd survive!
Fleeing Fairy:
They said that when the Great Calamity came, Chaldea would save us...!
Fleeing Fairy:
No, Jenny doesn't want to die yet! Jenny doesn't want to burn to death, Jenny doesn't want to be a knight anymore!
Fleeing Fairy:
Save me, save me, Oberon!
Fleeing Fairy:
Jenny didn't want to be born only to be killed!
Barghest:
Haah...aah...aaah...aa—aaah—
Mash:
Bar...ghest...?
Meunière:
That's her...? She doesn't quite match the impression I got from the report...
Meunière:
Did she...do all this to Manchester...?
Fujimaru 1:
(Open the hatch and exit! )
Meunière:
Fujimaru, you idiot!
Fujimaru 2:
...(It's dangerous. we can't go outside...)
Meunière:
The amount of magical energy is increasing...! What the, it's greater than the Storm Border's!?
Meunière:
She's devouring the smoke!? She's drawing magical energy out of the fairy corpses!
Barghest:
Aaah—aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!
Fujimaru 1:
Barghest! What are you doing!?
Barghest:
Aah...aah—Chal...dea...your...promise—
Barghest:
No...get away...disappear...
Barghest:
You...already...the fairies...outside...
Barghest:
I'm sorry...for all my foolish deeds—
Barghest:
Aah—AaaaaaAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!
Mash:
Master, get back in the Shadow Border...! It's not safe out there!
Meunière:
We'll be blown away like a ball! But we can't talk to her from inside the Border!
Mash:
Wah! Meunière, get us away from her! She's the magic eater from the report!
Mash:
She's sucking the life force out of Senpai!
Meunière:
I'm already on it! ...No, wait.
Meunière:
She's heading off somewhere. It's like she's ignoring us.
Meunière:
She's leaving the town...towards Gloucester? And it's not just her.
Meunière:
She's leading a lot of black dog-like things...like the Pied Piper of Hamelin...
Meunière:
She's started marching along with her black dogs...
Mash:
That's—
Fujimaru 1:
The Black...Calamity?
Fujimaru 2:
Barghest...why...?
--ARROW--
Da Vinci:
The retrieval of the Shadow Border is complete. Should I set a course for the Great Pit?
Holmes:
Yes. Manchester has fallen utterly.
Holmes:
Barghest, with Black Dogs in tow...for the sake of convenience, let us refer to it as the “Beast Calamity”.
Holmes:
We could engage in combat with, and subsequently neutralize her, but heading to the Great Pit takes precedence.
Holmes:
No objections, I presume?
Senji Muramasa:
Hey, it is what it is, but you could've phrased it better.
Senji Muramasa:
She may have been our enemy, but Barghest was one of the best the Fairy Kingdom had to offer—
Artoria:
You're right...
Artoria:
I don't know why Barghest massacred the fairies at Manchester, but...
Artoria:
If she did all that, then it's no different than being a Mors. I have no objections towards labelling her as a Calamity.
Senji Muramasa:
Well...that's fine and all, but don't be too hard on yourself, Artoria.
Da Vinci:
Nevertheless, a confrontation with Barghest is all but inevitable. She's the source of the flames sweeping across Britain.
Da Vinci:
Cities shielded by ramparts are holding out, but there's not a trace left of prairies and forests.
Da Vinci:
Black smoke is accumulating in the skies, birthing thunderclouds. She seems to be primarily feeding off the resultant lightning as sustenance.
Da Vinci:
The amount of magical energy in her is steadily rising as she strides across the ground.
Da Vinci:
At this rate, she'll end up an invincible monster. I'd have liked to neutralize her before that happens, but...
Nemo:
Confirming the situation at the Great Pit takes precedence. There's a red and a black Calamity, no?
Nemo:
Total war can wait until we assess the enemy's strength. Fortunately, the advance of the Beast Calamity is a slow one.
Nemo:
It appears to be headed in the direction of Oxford, but it will take four or five hours at this rate.
Nemo:
In the meantime, we can work out a countermeasure. Artoria, Fujimaru, am I clear?
Fujimaru 1:
...(Nod)
Fujimaru 2:
Do we...really have to defeat her?
Artoria:
Yes...Barghest is gone for good.
Artoria:
I finally realized the purpose behind her gifted name.
Artoria:
It was to seal that which would have become a Calamity, by bestowing a different name upon it.
Artoria:
But because we...because I defeated Gawain...
Mash:
The curse of the Mors King...that was placed on the Black Dog, on the Fang Clan...
Mash:
Could it be that Barghest...
Mash:
Knew she would become a Calamity ever since she was born...
Mash:
And that's why...she was so strict with herself, striving to become the ideal knight...
G：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Hyaaah!? What is that, what is that, what is thaaaaat!?
G：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
It's gross, it's gross! No, no, I don't want to look anymore!
Nemo:
Oh, shut it, lookout! What on earth is—
Nemo:
I see, you saw the Great Pit, didn't you? You can cry about it later, project it on the frontal monitor!
Nemo:
Regardless of whether we can make use of it or not, our main objective is the Holy Lance at Camelot!
Nemo:
We need to confirm the situation at the Great Pit as quickly as possible!
G：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Ugh, I don't like this, but roger that. Projecting the video feed!
Fujimaru 1:
Wha—
Fujimaru 2:
What on earth is that?
Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
The dark mist oozing out of the Great Pit is an intensely contaminative curse layer!
Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Anything it touches will lose its sense of self entirely and rot away, so be sure to avoid contact!
Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Yes, but this is amazing. The interior of the Great Pit is like an entirely separate dimension!
Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
I'm not getting any readings no matter what I fire off! That's a bottomless pit of curses right there!
Nemo:
—No, we can worry about the Great Pit later. Our concern is this!
Nemo:
What are you doing, metrologist!? Do your job!
Nemo Marine (Measuring Officer):
That's a tall order—!
Nemo Marine (Measuring Officer):
Magical energy measurement, impossible! Saint Graph designation, unknown!
Nemo Marine (Measuring Officer):
Unable to put either total height or volume into exact numbers!
Nemo Marine (Measuring Officer):
Just above the Great Pit, it sports a height of over 2 kilometers!
Nemo Marine (Measuring Officer):
It's way too big! A creature like this doesn't exist, not even in the deep sea!
Gordolf:
—
Holmes:
Grimm the Wise, is this the god that was identified during Britain's creation period?
Grimm the Wise:
Yeah. To the Celts, he was the King of the Beasts and Knower of the Underworld. In this Britain, he was the dawn of creation.
Grimm the Wise:
—Beast God Cernunnos. The reason I was chosen as the vessel of the God of Wisdom.
Grimm the Wise:
However—
Grimm the Wise:
I had no idea he 'changed' this much. You've got to be kidding me, O God of Wisdom.
Grimm the Wise:
This is beyond the scope of what either human or fairy could handle, you know?
Fujimaru 1:
—This figure—
Fujimaru 2:
It was on the mural
Gordolf:
A-A-a-a-a-a-are we dreaming this!?
Gordolf:
Zeus was a machine, so that was still fine! There was the thing with the Lightning Tsar, but with snow mountains and a mammoth, it's still all well and good.
Gordolf:
But that thing is alive!
Gordolf:
A creature of that scale couldn't possibly exist! On top of that, it's looming right there in front of Camelot!
Gordolf:
This makes it impossible for us to retrieve Rhongomyniad! Or can we!?
Gordolf:
What do you reckon, Administrative Advisor!? Do we have a shot at it!?
Holmes:
I say this with great reluctance, but...
Holmes:
I haven't the faintest clue, Mister Gordolf. There are far too many unknowns regarding that life form.
Holmes:
However...just looking at it through the monitor is enough to tighten my chest and leave me breathless.
Holmes:
A fearsome 'curse' indeed.
Holmes:
Surely there can be no mightier God of Curses.
Holmes:
It would be suicidal to disembark at Camelot right now. But...in all likelihood...
Holmes:
Queen Morgan prepared the Holy Lances for this instance. That much is clear judging by their placement.
Mash:
Then...Tonelico...no, Queen Morgan...
Percival:
She was preparing a means of defeating that thing.
Percival:
—She must have had a plan in place to protect Britain.
Fujimaru 1:
Then we should head for Camelot right away...!
Senji Muramasa:
Yeah. That big fella is still as a statue.
Senji Muramasa:
It's possible that the creature is stationary, and a Servant can withstand the curses to an extent.
Senji Muramasa:
Like Fujimaru said, we ought to drop in on the throne at Camelot.
Artoria:
It's pointless...it's too late...it's all too late.
Fujimaru 1:
A dark mist is rising from the Great Pit...
Fujimaru 2:
That shape...
Mash:
It showed up in Norwich...! Then that means the Calamity back then was this creature's—
Artoria:
That's right...that was just its 'hand'. Nothing more than one of its many hands.
Gordolf:
This is no time for that kind of talk! That hand, the blotches on that hand...! They're scaling the wall up towards Camelot...!
Fujimaru 1:
The castle—is being destroyed—
Nemo Marine (Measuring Officer):
Magical energy count is skyrocketing! The contaminative curse layer from the Great Pit is rapidly expanding!
Nemo Marine (Measuring Officer):
The estimated amount of contaminant emission is 640 million tons! And it's still rising!
Nemo Marine (Measuring Officer):
—It's a tsunami of curses that's going to drown all of Britain!
Nemo:
Sharp turn, 180 degrees! Exit this airspace with engines at maximum output!
Nemo:
Even the Border won't hold up if we are consumed! Assume even the slightest scratch will do us in!
Meunière:
Guh, it's no use, the output isn't rising! We can't get to a higher altitude!
Meunière:
Cernunnos' hands...one hundred, two hundred. Woah, they're nigh uncountable, we can't shake them off!
Meunière:
There are hands in every direction! There's no dodging this!
Nemo:
—! Da Vinci, how's the Shadow Border!?
Da Vinci:
It's useless, even if we load everyone on the Shadow and escape, the surface is a sea of curses.
Da Vinci:
There isn't a single escape route anywhere! This is—already—
Nemo Marine (Observer):
Ahhhh, contact in 7, 6, 5—! Bye-bye, everyone!
G：Nemo Marine (Observer):
—Visibility, clear! Somehow that disgusting thing is gone!
Meunière:
We have our output back! We can do this, we can escape from this sector!
???:
Splendid. That makes it worth my effort putting myself on the line.
???:
Did that teach you a thing or two about the secureness of NFF Services?
Gordolf:
Wha—this icily sweet, Vitchily beautiful voice is—!
Fujimaru 1:
Tamamovitch Koyanskaya!?
Koyanskaya:
Lady Muryan? You left the lights off again, good grief.
Koyanskaya:
I have just returned from the coronation. I believe you already know the situation at hand—
Koyanskaya:
This is...a bloodstain...
Muryan:
—
Koyanskaya:
Muryan!?
Muryan:
Oh...Koyan...skaya...welcome...back...
Muryan:
Thank goodness. I still haven't said my farewell.
Koyanskaya:
That's a relief. Because I too came to say goodbye.
Koyanskaya:
I truly am grateful for the flexibility of financing and commerce in Gloucester.
Koyanskaya:
Although the only things I stocked up on in Fairy Britain were Mors,
Koyanskaya:
I was able to enjoy a relaxing vacation thanks to your generosity, Lady Muryan. I will return this favor someday, I swear it.
Koyanskaya:
When I establish my very own Primatosphere, I will be sure to extend an invitation.
Muryan:
Hehe...that does sound very exciting.
Muryan:
But...I'm sorry. I...can...no...longer...tell.
Muryan:
Because, even now...it's like I'm having a dream. Once I wake up, I'm sure...
Koyanskaya:
That you'll forget...?
Koyanskaya:
Please rest assured, for I am the Beast of Treasuring. Unlike humans, I never forget a debt owed.
Koyanskaya:
You peculiar princess, who called me a friend.
Koyanskaya:
I hereby purchase your joys and sorrows as a valued product.
Koyanskaya:
Moreover, as it is a favorite of mine, I shan't be putting it up for sale.
Muryan:
I see...then...I suppose I'll have you pay for it.
Muryan:
I was a fool...I couldn't hold back my hatred, or my wretchedness.
Muryan:
And this was the result...I never realized who the real enemy was...
Muryan:
I was manipulated to the bitter end. That's why, at the very least—
Koyanskaya:
You wish to retaliate? Please, leave it to me. I shall follow this trail of blood and make sure to visit vengeance–
Muryan:
—at the very least, keep Britain safe.
Muryan:
We were creatures fated to perish. Oh, so very sinful—
Muryan:
But, please protect Britain and this Fairy Kingdom, in spite of that.
Muryan:
Not perishing as a matter of course against the Great Calamity.
Muryan:
But rather...seeing this year as our final destination...and perishing as we make that our goal—
Muryan:
Would you be willing...to humor me, Koyanskaya?
Muryan:
For you, oh-so-lonely without a kindred spirit, all alone in this world, just like me—
Koyanskaya:
To 'protect Britain in the truest sense of the word'—the order you placed has been received.
Koyanskaya:
If it is not to defeat, but to protect, then it is clear what I must protect.
Koyanskaya:
Please, leave it to the powerful, state-of-the-art, united front of NFF Services.
Koyanskaya:
Oh yes, I will protect it indeed, quickly and swiftly as the biggest obstruction to the mastermind!
Holmes:
Ah! That's Koyanskaya's Beast form! Marine, can you get us a visual!?
G：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
I can't, our visuals are being jammed! No response on the sonar either!
G：Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Hold on, wooooooah!!!!
Koyanskaya:
Would you kindly refrain from firing off those waves like you're off whaling? It's getting in the way of my focus.
Holmes:
Hm, sonic wave interference.
Holmes:
(A confrontation with Koyanskaya is all but inevitable, just like with Limbo...)
Holmes:
(I was hoping for some inspiration for my deductions along with collecting data to subdue her...)
Koyanskaya:
On a separate note, do hurry up if you intend to retreat. This emergency evasion is a one-time bonus.
Koyanskaya:
I will have to charge an appropriate fee for a second deployment ♡
Gordolf:
Right, commence full speed retreat! It's bound to be an absurd sum of money!
Gordolf:
But we'll still be paying the price for that first time sooner or later! Truly it was one head in nine tails. No, it was more like one survival in nine deaths!
Gordolf:
By the way, are you aware that I based this dandy joke of mine just now,
Gordolf:
on the fact that we had already triumphed against Koyanskaya at Olympus?
Meunière:
This is bad, we're losing engine output for some reason! Shut up, you old man, don't turn Koyanskaya off!
Nemo:
No, the pressure from the surface is returning...it would appear even Koyanskaya cannot ward it off more than once!
Nemo:
Meunière, I don't care if we lose a Triton! Floor it!
Meunière:
Aye aye, sir! My apologies, Engine!
Koyanskaya:
—This is as far as the friendship fee goes.
Koyanskaya:
I shall be withdrawing to my headquarters, so I leave the rest up to everyone at Chaldea...
Koyanskaya:
It's easy to misconstrue the curse of Cernunnos as a world-ending weapon...
Koyanskaya:
Gah...but this curse is not one directed at foreign enemies. It's a curse of self-destruction, placed on oneself...and one's brethren.
Koyanskaya:
I had no choice but to absorb it in order to protect the ship, but this is—
Koyanskaya:
This is shaping up to be quite the poor investment...
Narration:
The ship made a narrow escape from the heart of Britain.
Narration:
Barghest, the Beast Calamity, who transformed into a titanic 'thing', laid waste to cities in her wake.
Narration:
Curses continued to overflow from Cernunnos as it crawled out of the Great Pit.
Narration:
The fairy villages scattered about burned as the earth cracked and collapsed, having reached its limit.
Narration:
Two hours had passed since the Storm Border took off, determined to 'save Britain'.
Narration:
Yet there was nothing left to be saved.
Narration:
The residents of Norwich were fighting over two ships, and had begun killing each others, divided between humans and fairies.
Narration:
In a barbershop, a human boy comforted a frightened fairy girl.
Narration:
Residents who had moved to Oxford in the hopes of becoming new nobility,
Narration:
were annihilated without the means to defend themselves from the Mors. Without the Fang Clan, they were helpless.
Narration:
Salisbury, despite having shut its gates in an act of self-defense, met an end far ghastlier than any other city.
Narration:
Londinium silently burned to ashes.
Narration:
The few survivors of the Round Table Army welcomed the fleeing fairies and repelled the Mors.
Narration:
In truth, the soldiers of the Round Table consisted mostly of the wounded,
Narration:
and the huddled fairies steeled themselves and protected them to the bitter end.
Narration:
In contrast, the denizens of Gloucester painlessly disappeared one after another.
Narration:
A girl who, a while back, was liberated from the western ranch, made her way back to Gloucester after much hardship.
Narration:
To save the downtrodden fairy—her master, who had needed her.
Narration:
Stepping into the burning city, reuniting, hand in hand, they disappeared into the cracks of the earth.
Mash:
So beautiful...this Britain that was so beautiful is...
Holmes:
That's right, Miss Kyrielight...
Holmes:
A Lostbelt cut off from its Fantasy Tree will disappear unnoticed as though it were just another day.
Holmes:
But this is different. This is a total apocalypse.
Holmes:
Even if a reason for such an end existed in this Fairy Kingdom—
Holmes:
If an individual responsible for this conclusion were to exist, I would not be able to accept them.
Gordolf:
H-hm. I can understand both Kyrielight's sorrow and Holmes's anger.
Gordolf:
I do understand, but what do we do now?
Gordolf:
If that dark mist overflowing from the Great Pit is to propagate across the earth,
Gordolf:
shouldn't we be preventing it at all costs!?
Da Vinci:
That's no longer possible...Even the Storm Border can no longer approach it.
Da Vinci:
Our trump card, the 12 Rhongomyniads, were destroyed along with Camelot.
Da Vinci:
There's no stopping the Collapse predicted by TRISMEGISTUS II now...
Holmes:
That is correct...Britain's destruction is certain.
Holmes:
And this destruction will propagate across the earth, engulfing Lostbelts and pan-human history alike in darkness.
Fujimaru 1:
...
???:
Come now, there's still hope. You're an hour too early to be giving up.
???:
The sinful deeds of the fairies accumulated over 14,000 years.
???:
The two Calamities mentioned in the prophecy. The carcass of the god that appeared in the Great Pit.
???:
The power of pan-human history cannot overcome them. They are not something you can defeat.
???:
But these are all fantasies with 'this situation' as their precondition.
???:
The British Lostbelt grew into a Singularity and reached a standing like that of pan-human history.
???:
A distortion of history, so to speak.
???:
If you correct the Singularity, history will be restored and the Fairy Kingdom will never have existed.
???:
Truly, this is your area of expertise. After all, you have conducted many such corrections, have you not?
Fujimaru 1:
This voice—
Fujimaru 2:
I heard it in a dream before leaving for Britain
Mash:
Yes! This voice is unmistakably—!
Merlin:
Hello there. I'm sorry I kept you waiting, everyone. The Magus of Flowers, Merlin, has finally taken the stage.
Merlin:
It's not like you all to give up. Your fight against Britain is just beginning.
Section 27: Time of Creation
Merlin:
Now, let me greet you once more. Hello, members of Chaldea.
Merlin:
With Morgan's defeat, the “Garden” is no more. I've been free for quite a while now.
Merlin:
Hope you don't mind me being so late. I was a little occupied with other preparations.
Fujimaru 1:
Merlin!
Merlin:
The one and only. You seem to be doing well, Fujimaru.
Merlin:
But hey, what's with that tone just now? You seem glad I'm okay, but it sounds more like you're angry with me for watching from the sidelines.
Merlin:
That's a bit harsh coming from a level-headed [♂ chap /♀ lass] like you, don't you think?
Fujimaru 2:
Fou Fooou!
Merlin:
That was Cath Palug's voice! No fair sticking with Chaldea!
Mash:
Sorry, Merlin...that was Senpai imitating Fou...
Merlin:
Is that what's popular in Chaldea now!? You should stop playing such games immediately!
Merlin:
Ah, right. Excuse me, I'm still wavering, not entirely unlike a waking dream.
Merlin:
The me you're seeing right now is an illusion. I'm not really with you.
Merlin:
The only thing that comes back to me are your voices.
Merlin:
I can't see Fujimaru or Miss Mash.
Merlin:
So let's put off our joyous reunion for a little bit.
Merlin:
Hey, in a few hours I'll be able to see how far you all have grown.
Merlin:
I'll be sure to get myself all gussied up for when you find me at the entrance to Avalon.
Artoria:
Merlin...? You're Merlin the magician...?
Merlin:
Oh, is that the voice of the Child of Prophecy? Sorry to surprise you.
Merlin:
I have a lot to tell you, but now's not a good time. We'll talk privately later.
Merlin:
Your new commander is Gordolf, isn't it? Is he here?
Gordolf:
Y-yes. I am Gordolf Musik. You...you're Merlin the magician, correct?
Gordolf:
I won't ask why you just showed up out of nowhere. This definitely isn't the time.
Gordolf:
The only thing that matters is what you just said! What did you mean by “there's still hope”!?
Merlin:
What a nice, powerful voice. It makes you seem like the complete opposite of the previous acting director.
Merlin:
Hope is the means, the possibility of preventing the currently occurring Collapse.
Merlin:
To put it bluntly, I want the Fairy of Paradise back here right now.
Merlin:
You've been hearing the call of Avalon ever since you rang the bells, right?
Merlin:
The time has finally come for the Fairy of Paradise to carry out her mission.
Merlin:
Once that happens, you'll be able to defeat Cernunnos and eliminate this Singularity.
Fujimaru 1:
(Does Paradise hold the way out of this situation...?
Fujimaru 2:
...
Artoria:
But...I'm not qualified enough for that...
Grimm the Wise:
Whether you are or not doesn't matter.
Grimm the Wise:
If the Fairy of Paradise returns after ringing the Pilgrim's Bells, Cernunnos' curse will be weakened.
Grimm the Wise:
It won't vanish entirely, but it won't get any stronger either.
Grimm the Wise:
This is coming from the God of Wisdom who dumped his power on me. The mythology is different, but there's no mistaking it.
Grimm the Wise:
Isn't that right, Ambrosius? My job is to get Artoria to you.
Grimm the Wise:
“Just so long as she rings the Pilgrim's Bells. It doesn't matter if she's dead. ”
Artoria:
Ah...I knew it...I knew that's how this would go...
Fujimaru 1:
Grimm! What the hell is wrong with you!?
Fujimaru 2:
And Artoria! Why aren't you upset!?
Artoria:
I knew about it already...From the start, I could see what Grimm was planning to do.
Senji Muramasa:
...
Merlin:
That was only the worst-case scenario, Grimm the Wise. It doesn't apply now.
Merlin:
She's in the best possible state right now. That's how it feels to me.
Merlin:
The Avalon le Fae will fulfill her mission of her own free will.
Merlin:
“This is ridiculous, let's stop here. ” “We've done enough, let's give up and all just get along! ”
Merlin:
Even should others try to convince you, stay the course.
Merlin:
No matter what, you all must come to Avalon.
Merlin:
Albion, the dragon of boundaries, sank in the Dark Swamp. From that corpse, you can enter the Spirit Cave that leads to the Inner Sea of the Planet.
Merlin:
Now that Britain is dying, the road has opened up. It's only an hour's worth of spelunking.
Merlin:
Be that as it may, it's the world of magecraft's most sacred ground. Not just anyone can come in.
Merlin:
Fujimaru, as humanity's representative. Mash, as a member of the Knights of the Round Table.
Merlin:
Our Fairy of Paradise, and...well, I guess Muramasa can come as her servant.
Merlin:
The Spirit Cave will open the way for those four alone. Everyone else will just have to sit tight and wait.
Holmes:
So it seems. What do you think, Director Gordolf?
Gordolf:
Well, what choice do we have!? Captain, set course for the Dark Swamp!
Gordolf:
I'm sure it was in the Lake District! Technical advisor, do you have the coordinates!?
Da Vinci:
Locked in and ready to go!
Da Vinci:
But the Spirit Cave? Merlin's only letting those four people in.
Da Vinci:
I'm not sure about such a small group...More importantly, I've always wanted to see the Inner Sea of the Planet!
Da Vinci:
I guess we'll have to trust them and just see them off! Are you ready, Fujimaru?
Fujimaru 1:
Yeah, but...
Fujimaru 2:
Artoria, are you okay with this...?
Artoria:
Mmmm...well, I guess so! If not, I'd just end up arguing with Grimm.
Artoria:
And if you think about it, isn't this like my first trip back home? I'm kinda looking forward to it now!
Mash:
...
Holmes:
Very well. Then let us amend our strategy according to Merlin's directives.
Holmes:
Fujimaru, Mash, Artoria, Senji Muramasa.
Holmes:
These four will go through the passage labelled the “Spirit Cave” and head for the Inner Sea of the Planet—to Avalon.
Holmes:
The Storm Border will hold position over the Lake District. Captain and Da Vinci will stay focused on controlling it.
Holmes:
If we are attacked in any way, Grimm and I will intercept.
Percival:
Please wait...
Percival:
I may not understand any of this, and I don't know how much help I will be,
Percival:
but I too am a son of Britain. If there is an emergency, I will take the field as well.
Artoria:
Ah—no way, you need to rest, Percival!
Artoria:
You're still not fit to fight, are you!?
Artoria:
This is my decision as Child of Prophecy!
Artoria:
Percival must be well cared for and get lots of rest!
Artoria:
Okay!? Ab-so-lute-ly must! If that doesn't happen, I'll dump my whole mission here and now!
Percival:
All right then...if that is what the Child of Prophecy orders. Still...
Percival:
I never thought the time would come when you would seriously scold me.
Percival:
You were always so concerned about keeping the peace around you that you stifled your own feelings.
Fujimaru 1:
I know, right?
Fujimaru 2:
You're good at playing the honor student, Artoria.
Artoria:
Y-you think so? I'm always upfront about my feelings and don't hide anything...
Senji Muramasa:
Yeah, you're like that when you're acting aggressively stupid. The rest of the time though, you just hide it by acting all meek.
Artoria:
I don't act meek, and I don't hide anything! Who are you calling meek, Muramasa!?
--ARROW--
Nemo:
As we said earlier, the Storm Border will hold position over the Lake District.
Nemo:
The operation is expected to last for three hours. Any longer than that and the ship—no, all of Britain will be gone.
Nemo:
We can't predict what will happen inside the Spirit Cave.
Nemo:
Stay cautious, Fujimaru, but use your best judgement.
Fujimaru 1:
Roger. Breaking into the Spirit Cave Albion!
Mash:
This is...it feels different from how the Water Mirror did when I got sent away in Norwich.
Mash:
Is this the Spirit Cave Albion? Communications are—
Mash:
Just like Da Vinci expected...all communications with Chaldea are cut off.
Mash:
Now identifying our current coordinates.
Mash:
10...20...40...80...80!?
Mash:
Master. It may sound unbelievable, but we're currently 80 kilometers below the surface...!
Senji Muramasa:
It's far deeper than Britain's Great Pit. Actually, could this even be considered underground?
Senji Muramasa:
Not only is it pitch dark, but I can't even feel my footing.
Merlin:
Ah, you can tell. This is a world of different layers. Put simply, it's like a different dimension.
Merlin:
There's just a path down here from the surface thanks to Albion's influence.
Merlin:
From here you go even further down.
Merlin:
In pan-human history, Albion died at the 80 kilometer mark.
Merlin:
However, in this Lostbelt it managed to open a path to Avalon.
Merlin:
But that was too narrow for it to get through, so it had to die above ground.
Fujimaru 1:
Is there a Spirit Cave in pan-human history?
Merlin:
There is. Over there it's called the Spirit Tomb though.
Merlin:
The Spirit Tomb Albion of pan-human history is a dead end at this depth.
Merlin:
Beyond that is the realm of fairies, a land that humans cannot enter.
Merlin:
On the other hand, this one isn't bound by that limitation. This Lostbelt itself is a fairy realm.
Merlin:
As such, you can go all the way.
Merlin:
Put realistically, past the 400 kilometer depth all the way to the D-Layer 2,700 kilometers down...
Merlin:
That's your destination—the Inner Sea of the Planet.
Senji Muramasa:
We're only 80 kilometers in, and our destination is at 2,700? Isn't that asking a bit much?
Merlin:
Not if you make use of shortcuts.
Merlin:
When I said one hour, I wasn't talking about distance. I meant the time it takes.
Merlin:
You can consecutively shorten the travel time to bring you closer to your goal.
Merlin:
Then again, this is all a bit boring. Let's turn on some lights.
Fujimaru 1:
It suddenly became a cave!
Merlin:
What do you think? This fits the name of the place a bit better, don't you think?
Merlin:
Now, just keep going forwards. Each step you take will reduce the travel time.
Merlin:
This is Earth's memory...no, it's more like an infosphere.
Merlin:
You can get to your destination faster by skipping past vague information.
Mash:
T-that would be a big help...but...
Artoria:
Is that...Merlin? (for the third time)
Senji Muramasa:
Is this the first time you've seen him?
Merlin:
Hm? Is there something wrong? Aah, you're just so taken with how dependable I am, right?
Merlin:
Oh yes, keep thanking me! You may start doing it too, Muramasa!
Merlin:
You know it's my first appearance here in awhile, so I want to make a strong impression with the time I have!
Fujimaru 1:
(No matter what I see, I'll just say nothing. )
Fujimaru 2:
(This seems suspicious, so I won't say anything. )
Mash:
(You're right...it feels like we shouldn't get too deeply involved in this. )
Mash:
I'm more concerned about that though...Senpai, look at the wall...
Fujimaru 1:
Yeah. That's the mural that was in Londinium.
Fujimaru 2:
I think that's...the Insect of the Abyss...
Merlin:
Oh? Is that a reflection of the priestess' memory?
Merlin:
This is a good opportunity. In the hour it'll take to reach the Inner Sea I'll tell you how it all began.
Merlin:
The genesis story of Britain's Lostbelt, the Paradise Fairies' mission, and what that entailed.
Artoria:
...
Narration:
At the end was the sea. At the beginning was the sea.
Narration:
As the falling star passed, all the earth became a stream...
Narration:
That is a story from long, long ago.
Narration:
When the six fairies went outside, they found that the whole world had turned into an ocean.
Narration:
“I'm sorry you had to face this, and I'm sorry things are this way. ”
Narration:
A tremendous shadow arose from the ocean.
Narration:
It was a huge body covered in fluffy, bushy hair.
Narration:
On its shoulder sat an animal that should have no longer existed.
Narration:
The six fairies made friends with the god.
Narration:
The empty sea was boring, and difficult to live in,
Narration:
but the god held back the waves so that the six fairies could live in comfort.
Narration:
“The ocean without waves is nice, but we really miss the land! ”
Narration:
The six fairies gave their joy to the god.
Narration:
The six fairies gave their pleas to the god.
Narration:
The six fairies offered to the god.
Narration:
Their wish was granted.
Narration:
The festival came to an end.
Narration:
Tricked into drinking poisoned wine, the god passed away.
Narration:
The six fairies obtained the god's corpse.
Narration:
It became new lands where there previously was none.
Narration:
They even cared for the animal that screamed as it was dragged away.
Narration:
Because there was only one human. Because only one human wasn't enough.
Narration:
Chopped, diced, scattered in a way that it wouldn't die.
Narration:
They used magic to make sure it wouldn't die no matter what they did to it.
Narration:
That was how Britain came to be. That is how this mistake originated.
Narration:
Salvation upon the original six. Curses upon the original six.
Merlin:
You might have heard it somewhere before, but that's the folk tale of how Britain was created.
Merlin:
Do you have any questions?
Fujimaru 1:
The details are different...
Fujimaru 2:
Is that how it happened...?
Merlin:
Yes. The first six fairies...the ancestors of the six clans, murdered Cernunnos.
Merlin:
The Great Pit in the land above is his grave, and the curse spilling out of it now is his wrath.
Mash:
Why would they...? Why would the fairies ever—
Merlin:
Well, they killed it because it became a bother.
Merlin:
When the six fairies left Paradise 14,000 years ago,
Merlin:
the Earth had already become an Ocean of Emptiness.
Merlin:
They were saved by a Celtic beast god that had also come to Earth...
Merlin:
The god that would later be known as Cernunnos.
Merlin:
He, along with the beast god's priestess, the last remaining human,
Merlin:
jointly protected the fairies. At first, they were grateful for it.
Merlin:
But no matter how much time passed, the Ocean of Emptiness remained unchanged. The land wouldn't appear.
Merlin:
The fairies eventually came under the impression that Cernunnos wasn't strong enough.
Merlin:
Besides, the priestess was constantly telling them to “live by the rules” and “reflect on their deeds. ”
Merlin:
They really didn't like that about her.
Merlin:
Unable to take it anymore, the fairies decided to kill Cernunnos.
Merlin:
If there was no land, then a replacement would be fine.
Merlin:
The fairies though that if they could float Cernunnos' huge corpse, it would be about the size of a small island.
Merlin:
But their target was a god. He wouldn't die easily. So the fairies devised a plan and held a festival.
Merlin:
They said they would enshrine the Celtic beast god as their own deity. They held a feast and fed him wine.
Merlin:
Cernunnos was overjoyed to be worshipped as a god.
Merlin:
He probably thought the fairies were finally repenting for their deeds.
Merlin:
Despite his priestess' cries against it, Cernunnos accepted the feast...
Senji Muramasa:
...and was killed by the poisoned wine. And so the festival came to an end.
Fujimaru 1:
—
Fujimaru 2:
And the priestess that was left behind...?
Merlin:
The fairies used her as the basis—no, as the origin of the “humans” that came later.
Merlin:
Every human in Britain's Lostbelt is a “degraded copy” of the priestess that was killed during the time of creation.
Merlin:
The six fairies were A-Rei, so they created “Children of Stone” and “Children of the Forest” to increase their clans,
Merlin:
while more and more of Cernunnos' corpse was turned into land.
Merlin:
But, life became hard for the fairies after 100 years.
Merlin:
Their children started to die. And after they died, they drifted away into the ocean like fallen trees.
Merlin:
The number of fairies didn't decrease because the next generations would be born.
Merlin:
And there were copies of humans made from the priestess' cells. So, bit by bit, civilization was created.
Merlin:
As civilization was built up, the number of roles to play increased, there were more varieties of fairy, and the forests flourished.
Merlin:
Still, they were dying. For no reason at all.
Merlin:
The six fairies finally realized that this was Cernunnos' anger at them.
Merlin:
Cernunnos' soul had been extinguished, but his body hadn't fully died.
Merlin:
For you see, the flames that consumed only his heart had not yet gone out.
Merlin:
Cernunnos' corpse even now still seethes with rage and curses.
Merlin:
He was in a state where he could come back to life at any time.
Merlin:
The fairies were astonished, and fled from Cernunnos' corpse.
Merlin:
Fortunately, at that time the bodies of their children were starting to form new lands.
Merlin:
To put it simply, fairy bodies are made up of the material of planets.
Merlin:
The fallen trees became earth and rocks, rapidly reclaiming the sea to hide their own sin.
Merlin:
And so the island of Britain became a Lostbelt that spread by use of fairy remains.
Merlin:
It took the fairies one or two thousand years to obtain a Britain of their very own.
Merlin:
Meanwhile—Cernunnos' body remained.
Merlin:
The tomb of the god that prevented the ocean from being filled with fallen trees.
Merlin:
It refused the corpses of the fairies, as evidence of their lingering sin.
Merlin:
Before long, one of the fallen trees dammed up the water, and Cernunnos' body was left at the bottom of the ocean.
Merlin:
That's what the Great Pit really is. It's not a pit at all, but a dried-up ocean.
Mash:
An island created by killing a god...the fairies' original sin...
Senji Muramasa:
Not only did they kill the god...but also the priestess that served him.
Senji Muramasa:
No...she was reduced to little more than a tool. For fourteen thousand years.
Senji Muramasa:
No wonder Cernunnos is so pissed. Killing all the fairies in Britain won't be enough for him.
Senji Muramasa:
But...why did Cernunnos come to Earth in the first place? He came down of his own free will, didn't he?
Senji Muramasa:
Isn't it a bit too narrow-minded to curse the entire world because you got killed after being mixed up with fairies?
Artoria:
That's probably...
Artoria:
...because Cernunnos was the “Envoy of Paradise” who was sent to scold the fairies.
Artoria:
Cernunnos came down to Earth to punish the fairies from the very beginning.
Artoria:
As this mural shows, Cernunnos is a gentle god...
Artoria:
He didn't want to go through with punishing them, but...
Artoria:
From the fairies' viewpoint, his mere being there was terrifying...probably.
Fujimaru 1:
It originally came there to scold them...?
Fujimaru 2:
You don't mean the reason the world became an empty ocean...
Merlin:
Yes. How it became a Lostbelt in the first place. The greatest mistake of them all.
Merlin:
For you humans, 14,000 years ago was the greatest turning point in history.
Merlin:
You've heard of Olympus, right? The story of the “planet” that destroyed the prehistoric ancient civilizations?
Mash:
Yes. The civilization-destroying White Titan that fell from a shooting star—Sefar.
Mash:
It laid waste to many mythological cultures, and nearly wiped out all civilizations on Earth.
Mash:
But in the end, it was defeated not by the gods, but by a human. They wielded the power of a Divine Construct—
Mash:
Items said to be forged in the Inner Sea of the Planet for the purpose of opposing “that which threatens the planet. ”
Mash:
The Holy Sword Excalibur is the greatest of these, and originated here in Britain—
Mash:
—here in Britain—
Mash:
—and yet nobody ever spoke of it up until now.
Mash:
It's as if the concept of “Holy Sword” doesn't exist on this version of Britain.
Mash:
So that means—
Fujimaru 1:
Excalibur was never forged?
Fujimaru 2:
But they have Arondight and Galatine.
Senji Muramasa:
Those are fakes. Just the names taken from the Round Table Knights of pan-human history.
Senji Muramasa:
Barghest's Galatine is just her horn, and Mélusine's Arondight is just a crystallization of magical energy.
Senji Muramasa:
No Holy Sword was ever forged in this Britain...that's what he's talking about.
Merlin:
Yep. You can probably guess how well that worked out for them.
Merlin:
The humans of this world had no way to defeat Sefar.
Merlin:
So they died out. All of the land was razed and reclaimed by the ocean,
Merlin:
leaving behind the Ocean of Emptiness, with nothing but a few aquatic organisms remaining.
Merlin:
Why wasn't the Holy Sword forged, you ask? The answer is very simple, and one you can probably relate to pretty well.
Merlin:
“Can't we just skip work for once? ”
Merlin:
The six fairies were the A-Rei in charge of forging the Holy Sword in the Inner Sea of the Planet...
Merlin:
But they all got together and decided it was all right to slack off, and so they did.
Merlin:
After that, they came to realize something was amiss, so they went to Earth's surface to become aware of the consequences of their actions.
Merlin:
But they couldn't change what had happened, and they wouldn't admit it was their fault the world ended.
Merlin:
As the only god who had taken refuge in Paradise for the sake of his priestess—
Merlin:
Cernunnos was sent as their supervisor. To make them repent for their sins.
Merlin:
So they killed him, along with his priestess, the last human.
Merlin:
At that point, they were no longer able to return to the Inner Sea.
Merlin:
“Only those without sin may pass—” The only fairies that can go to Paradise are the innocent.
Merlin:
The same goes for the descendants of the six fairies, the “fairies of Britain”.
Merlin:
No matter who they are, they can't enter the Inner Sea. Continuing to suffer on that cursed island of sin became their atonement.
Fujimaru 1:
With just one act of sabotage—
Fujimaru 2:
This Lostbelt was born
Merlin:
Yes. Everything started because the Holy Sword was never forged.
Merlin:
In order to rectify this mistake, a fairy from the Inner Sea was selected and sent to Earth.
Merlin:
The first of them was Vivian. And the second was you, Caster.
Merlin:
Your mission was to get the six clans to admit to their sin, and to inherit the Mystery of the Holy Sword's creation.
Merlin:
The Pilgrim's Bells indicate that the clan leaders acknowledge their guilt, and the fairy who rings them all becomes the Holy Sword itself.
Merlin:
Vivian refused to do this and became Morgan.
Merlin:
If the Holy Sword is created, the foundation of this Lostbelt will no longer be.
Merlin:
Caster. When you rang the bell in Orkney, you should have come to realize this.
Merlin:
Moreover, you never stopped advancing, defeated Morgan, and came here together with Fujimaru.
Merlin:
You must have had many worries and doubts.
Merlin:
You probably still have them, and they may never be fully resolved.
Merlin:
But I believe that all the battles you fought getting here are the way things should be.
Merlin:
—Well then. It's been quite a journey, but we're almost at the end.
Merlin:
Ahead of you awaits the final dragon, whose beliefs will challenge your qualifications.
Merlin:
“Only those without sin may pass—”
Merlin:
It's not about the original sin you carry from birth, or the sins you commit.
Merlin:
What will you do now? Where will your hearts go to now?
Merlin:
The theory for life to exist as a living organism. The principle of survival and prosperity.
Merlin:
The land of hope will only be open to those who demonstrate those certainties and strengths.
???:
—Ruin. —The whole surface world in ruin.
???:
—The sky, the sea, life...All to which that I bore witness.
???:
—There will be no need for my records to accumulate anymore.
???:
—There will be no need for my joy to be renewed anymore.
???:
—He who chooses the bearer of the Holy Sword. He who chants the name of the King.
???:
—If you would seek the new world, leave the old one behind.
???:
—My name is ■■■■■■. The last dragon, who chose to continue flying above the Earth rather than return to the Inner Sea.
???:
—If you can go beyond these tears, I would devote my heart to the one who will reforge the star.
--BATTLE--
■■■■■:
Aah...I hear the tolling of bells.
■■■■■:
My heartbeat has ceased to drum, but yours is yet true.
■■■■■:
Welcome back, O Fairy of Paradise, Avalon le Fae. May that hope resound into the future—
Fujimaru 1:
Is that...light from the outside?
Merlin:
Indeed. This is the entrance to the Inner Sea of the Planet.
Merlin:
The realm of everlasting youth, the eternal spring. The answer to the dream many have sought.
Merlin:
Welcome to a paradise overflowing with time—Avalon. The journey to the birth of a planet ends here.
Section 28: The Moment a Planet is Born
Artoria:
So this is the Inner Sea of the Planet—
Artoria:
The land King Arthur left for after he died in pan-human history—Avalon—
Fujimaru 1:
The whole thing is a flower garden...
Fujimaru 2:
The air, the wind...everything is so warm and gentle...
Merlin:
It sure is, isn't it? There's no such thing as “evil” in Paradise.
Merlin:
It's another land that will never be influenced by how much the outside world is ruined.
Merlin:
Here there is nothing but hope. Hope to bring you and this planet to a happy ending.
Merlin:
A workshop for weaving together every single possibility.
Merlin:
Still, this is only a remainder of the real thing. It's nothing but a shadow reflected in the British Lostbelt.
Merlin:
It doesn't have the tower I'm trapped in or a lake where the fairies gather, and the mana is thinner than the real thing.
Merlin:
All that's here is the “Site of Selection”—
Merlin:
Where the Holy Sword should have been forged by the six fairies.
Mash:
The “Site of Selection”...is it anything like the rock where the Sword of Selection was stuck in Arthurian lore?
Mash:
Where the squire Arthur drew the sword and showed his fate as King,
Mash:
after being raised as Sir Ector's adopted son?
Merlin:
Yeah...their meaning is basically the same. My job is to guide you all there.
Merlin:
See that altar over that hill over there? That's where we're going.
Merlin:
It's a short trip in terms of distance. But there are a few hurdles to get over on the way.
Merlin:
Avalon's defenses...actually, you could think of it as your final test.
Merlin:
The past deeds of the Fairy of Paradise are materialized as obstacles.
Fujimaru 1:
What she did in the past, meaning...
Fujimaru 2:
What she's done since birth?
Merlin:
That's right. What she's done with the time she's had...an album of her life, both affirming it and burying her past.
Merlin:
It's quite a journey that begins with a harsh, cold “winter” and ends with a warm, enjoyable “spring”.
Merlin:
In the past, the first obstacle was always the hardest to get through.
Merlin:
Your role, Fujimaru, will be to get rid of these obstacles and make sure the Fairy of Paradise can proceed.
Merlin:
It'll be fine. You're going in decreasing order of difficulty, so it'll only get easier as you go along.
Merlin:
Let me say it once more, the Fairy of Paradise's job is to forge the Holy Sword.
Merlin:
With this, Britain's Lostbelt will lose its origin point, and human history will be stabilized.
Merlin:
Without its Fantasy Tree, this Lostbelt will probably just fade away, just like all the others.
Merlin:
More importantly, forging the Holy Sword is vital to the protection of human history.
Merlin:
If this Britain were to merge with pan-human history, we'd end up with a world without the Holy Sword.
Merlin:
Should that happen, the path to defeating the Alien God will be closed off.
Merlin:
But the Alien God can't stop the collapse either, so the match would be called off due to injury...or would that be a tie game?
Merlin:
Anyway, that's all there is to explain. Do you have any questions?
Fujimaru 1:
Artoria's mission is to forge the Holy Sword...
Fujimaru 2:
(But that will probably...)
Artoria:
Wh-why do you look so serious, Fujimaru!?
Artoria:
There's no need for you to worry! I'm still the Child of Prophecy!
Artoria:
This is the moment I've fought for. I rang the bells to get here.
Artoria:
In the first place, I knew my mission was to forge the Holy Sword after I rang the fourth bell at Orkney.
Artoria:
I planned to come here alone after Knocknarea became queen.
Artoria:
So—
Artoria:
So don't worry too much about it.
Artoria:
Besides, Chaldea needs a Divine Construct, right?
Artoria:
Then we have to hurry. I will protect Britain where I have led my life.
Artoria:
And you're going to reclaim your own world.
Artoria:
We both have things we need to do. The time for them has come, that's all.
Artoria:
This is the end of our journey. We fulfilled our pilgrimage to the very end.
Artoria:
Let's head for the Site of Selection, Fujimaru.
Artoria:
We finally made it to Avalon, so it would be a waste not to enjoy it! I'm counting on you to escort me!
--ARROW--
Senji Muramasa:
Still, just flowers as far as the eye can see. It's the complete opposite of seeing Britain covered in flames.
Senji Muramasa:
Having eternal youth means not worrying over your next meal. Not fussing over time or lifespan either, doesn't it?
Senji Muramasa:
So there's no hatred or strife here.
Senji Muramasa:
If there's no need to take anything from others, then there's no temptation to be up to mischief.
Merlin:
You're right. Everything you could ever desire is here, so you don't have to work to compensate for anything.
Merlin:
It's hugely different from the Lostbelt, where “emptiness” had to be filled with the corpses of fairies.
Merlin:
Speaking of which, this is a good opportunity to talk about what's happening up there.
Merlin:
The prophecy talks about two Calamities. The “Black” and the “Red. ”
Merlin:
But the number of Calamities isn't fixed. Be sure to remember that.
Merlin:
So long as the root cause isn't taken care of, new Calamities will arise.
Merlin:
Cernunnos—until his neverending punishment of the fairies is stopped, the Calamities will never end.
Merlin:
And thanks to Morgan's efforts, fairies born in the Fairy Kingdom became able to emigrate to pan-human history.
Merlin:
The Calamities won't just affect Britain. They'll spread across the bleached Earth, and incinerate pan-human history.
Merlin:
It'll be just like the King of Mages' incineration of the Human Order, but on a smaller scale.
Merlin:
Before that, you will have to defeat all the Calamities before you.
Mash:
Cernunnos' curse must not be allowed to spread any further...
Mash:
We have to stop the Calamities while we're still in Britain, then.
Merlin:
Yeah, something like that.
Merlin:
The Calamity that's raging across Britain right now is the Great Calamity that should have happened 1,000 years ago.
Merlin:
The Calamity that Morgan managed to avert was passed on to the fairies of the Fang Clan.
Merlin:
The chieftess of the Black Dogs, Barghest. She's no longer a fairy.
Merlin:
The Black Calamity...it's become a Calamity of Beasts, burning the entire island.
Fujimaru 1:
Barghest is...
Fujimaru 2:
...
Merlin:
Yes. This was predictable. She was born as a Child of Calamity.
Merlin:
That was why Morgan bestowed the gifted name on her, to contain it. So long as she remained as Gawain, she would never become the demon dog.
Merlin:
But even that had its limit.
Merlin:
Barghest had already reached it, whether or not you had defeated her.
Merlin:
If anything, it's a wonder she held it back for so long.
Merlin:
When you return to the surface, Cernunnos won't be the only one you'll have to fight.
Merlin:
I'm sorry to tell you this, but you need to be prepared for that.
Merlin:
Like I said, you can't let a Calamity get off the island.
Merlin:
The plan of resettling the fairies wasn't a bad one.
Merlin:
It's just that she can't. She was never able to from the start.
Mash:
...
Artoria:
...
Merlin:
Meanwhile, there's another Calamity...
Merlin:
However, defeating Cernunnos should be pretty straightforward.
Merlin:
He's just a corpse that hasn't realized it's dead yet. His soul was destroyed 14,000 years ago.
Merlin:
But he was a pretty strong god originally. His flesh has bloated over the years, so now it's as thick as the Spirit Cave that led you here.
Merlin:
It's a layer of curses as thick as 400 kilometers of the stratum of this planet. Lifting those curses would take more than the spells crafted by the God of Wisdom and Chaldea's strength combined.
Merlin:
An opponent that can barely be exorcised by utilizing an anti-Cernunnos Divine Construct.
Merlin:
You know, you have almost no chance of winning when I think about it.
Merlin:
I can't leave Avalon either, so showing you the way like this is the most help I can provide.
Merlin:
Oh, crap. I was hoping to avoid a story that would only lead to crushing defeat.
Fujimaru 1:
Eh...
Fujimaru 2:
The great magician Merlin has no plan at all!?
Merlin:
It sure looks that way, doesn't it? It sure would be convenient if I had a god-killing weapon just laying around.
Artoria:
No! We already have a trump card against Cernunnos! It'll be easy!
Mash:
We do? What do you...?
Artoria:
It's Muramasa!
Senji Muramasa:
Hah?
Artoria:
You said it before, didn't you? “I can cut anything, so long as it's a god. ”
Artoria:
You were bragging about how you sliced some amazing god right in half back in...uh, Olympus, was it?
Artoria:
Then you can do it here too! Make up for your bad streaking at Camelot!
Fujimaru 1:
Artoria. It's "break a bad streak. "
Artoria:
—O-oh, I see. Is that how it's said in pan-human history? You learn something every day.
Fujimaru 2:
Of course, Muramasa!
Senji Muramasa:
Well...I could give it a shot if you asked me to, but...
Artoria:
Yeah! You go and do it, Muramasa! Just like you said!
Senji Muramasa:
—Sheesh. There's that selfish streak I was talking about.
Senji Muramasa:
I can't make any promises, though. Don't get your hopes up, alright?
Senji Muramasa:
Artoria!?
Mash:
Master, Artoria has vanished! Is this one of the aforementioned “obstacles”!?
Merlin:
Yeah. She's reached the first one. She's being confronted with her memories right now.
Merlin:
While she's doing that, you're going to have to fight and overcome this.
Fujimaru 1:
Merlin, what is that!?
Fujimaru 2:
Is thata wyvern, in Avalon!?
Merlin:
Close, but no cigar! Get yourself together!
Merlin:
That's an abstract and radical materialization of her 'winter memories'.
Merlin:
She won't come out of her memories unless that thing is defeated.
Merlin:
You've come this far, so it shouldn't be that big of a deal. Just go ahead and cut loose on it.
Merlin:
Of course, I'll help you out here.
Merlin:
It's been quite a while. I want to see how much you and Mash have grown.
--BATTLE--
Fujimaru 1:
Somehow, it really...
Fujimaru 2:
Feels sickening...
Merlin:
Well, that's to be expected.
Merlin:
That just now was a memory of the most painful time in her life.
Merlin:
We may never know what it was, but by defeating it, some of those feelings were shared with us.
Artoria:
Hmm? Where were you all? I was worried because you suddenly disappeared...
Senji Muramasa:
You're the one who disappeared. We were here with those bizarre Mors.
Merlin:
No, no, it's fine, Muramasa. The right people in the right place, as they say.
Merlin:
She has to purify herself to enter the Site of Selection, while we eliminate the obstacles that stand in the way.
Merlin:
Let's do this three more times solemnly, why don't we?
Merlin:
Even if there's something you want to say, save it for when we get to the Site of Selection.
Artoria:
You said it! It's also easier for me if I don't have to fight! Let's get a move on!
Fujimaru 1:
...
--ARROW--
Narration:
—Whenever I shut my eyes, I would always find myself here.
Narration:
I would tremble, just like this, whether awake or asleep.
Narration:
Whoosh. Whoosh. The ear-shattering sound of the wind.
Narration:
I had nothing to cover myself with, and so my body was as cold as stone.
Narration:
I was surrounded by pitch black darkness, with no source of warmth to find, and no place to go.
Narration:
Such was the scenery I saw. For me, Britain was nothing short of hell.
Mother:
The prophecy held true.
Mother:
Now we will be saved. Now we will be forgiven.
Mother:
The savior who drifted ashore, bearing the name 'Artoria'.
Mother:
I pray you grow strong and healthy until your sixteenth year. I pray the Queen’s soldiers do not find you.
Mother:
—Now. Quick, quick, quick, quick.
Mother:
You must turn sixteen as quickly as possible.
Mother:
We put all our faith in you. You must devote everything you have to us.
Narration:
The boat that drifted ashore carried a plentiful stash of treasures and a little, newborn fairy.
C：Village Fairy:
Now there's something you don't see everyday. There's no doubt about it, this girl is the Child of Prophecy!
D：Village Fairy:
Can't say I'm too happy about an omen like this. We're done for if Her Majesty finds out!
Narration:
Despite the village fairies differing in their opinions, they all reached the same conclusion.
Village Fairies:
“Either way, the Child of Prophecy will be of use. Let's raise her until she turns sixteen. ”
Village Fairies:
“But she's a Fairy of Paradise, isn't she? How unpleasant. She'll definitely look down on us! ”
Village Fairies:
“A normal roof's too good for her. What do humans do at a time like this? ”
Village Fairies:
“Oh, I know! They'd raise her like livestock! Let's build a lovely stable! ”
Village Fairies:
“If we tell them we're raising horses, even the other villages won't find out! The Child of Prophecy belongs to us alone! ”
Narration:
I was cherished at Tintagel.
Narration:
I possessed very little magical energy, so the villagers were all worried for me.
Village Fairy:
To think you'd only have this much magical energy, even though four years have passed...how pitiful...you're no different than a human like this.
Village Fairy:
To think you cannot do anything special. I'm worried. Is this this girl even going to survive?
Village Fairy:
Oh, I get it. We need to train her properly.
Village Fairy:
Even more strictly, even more carefully. To the point she won't even have time to sleep.
Village Fairy:
Forgive us, Caster. We're all doing this for you.
Village Fairy:
Right now, being the Child of Prophecy is an unreachable dream. There's no time for you to be having dreams in your sleep.
Village Fairy:
We really need you to grow up a bit.
Village Fairy:
At this rate, they won't believe in you, even once you turn sixteen. Because they'd just about mistake you for a human!
Village Fairy:
Things like overthrowing Her Majesty don't matter. What matters is that you hold 'value'.
Village Fairy:
To at least seem like the Child of Prophecy, even if you're not the real deal.
Village Fairy:
We can get our hands on a lot of money that way. Who in their right mind would shelter a Fairy of Paradise otherwise?
Village Fairy:
We just have to raise her such that she doesn't die. She's a weak fairy anyway, so it's not like she can escape.
Narration:
But the village fairies did not know that my eyes were those of 'Fairy Eyes'.
Narration:
That I could see their unspoken, true intentions. Even against my own will.
Narration:
I saw that deep down inside, everyone feared and hated me.
Narration:
The fearful fairies truly believed in the Child of Prophecy, and that is why they abused me.
Narration:
The hateful fairies loathed the Fairy of Paradise, and they mistreated me as a matter of course.
Narration:
Other than that, they were mostly indifferent.
Narration:
While being cherished in the village, I was simultaneously treated as something both there and not there.
Narration:
Even so, it mattered not. Somehow, I was always aware of my mission.
Narration:
“Deliver salvation unto the fairies of Britain. Grant them righteous salvation so that they may be absolved from their suffering. ”
Narration:
And I knew...even as a child, I knew doing so would result in the destruction of the Britain we all knew.
Narration:
I could bear the abuse, the mistreatment, and the indifference as long as there was a reason behind them. However, this sound was the only thing I couldn't bear.
Narration:
I heard it at all times. When I shut my eyes. Even when asleep.
Narration:
“Deception,” “self-preservation,” “selfishness,” “envy”. All that they were, I could hear their true hearts.
Narration:
I lost sight of where I was and where I was supposed to go.
Narration:
I hear the tolling of bells. They tell me to set out on a pilgrimage to save the fairies.
Narration:
—Sigh. Truth be told, this sound is also a depressing one.
Narration:
I'm sure it's a noble mission. But isn't it far too unreasonable to ask me to save all the fairies like that?
Artoria:
Oryaa–! Torya–! Die–!
Narration:
And so, I trained intensely yet again that day at a field near the village.
Narration:
I underwent intensive close-quarters combat training yet again, using the Staff of Selection that was on the boat as a weapon.
Narration:
After all, I couldn't use a Fairy Territory! And hitting things is about the only thing you can do with a staff!
Artoria:
Toa–! Toaaa–!
Artoria:
Toaaaaa–!!!! Haa...
Artoria:
Haha...ahahahahahaha...
Narration:
I fell on my back all of a sudden. It was in the early afternoon of my sixth year.
Narration:
The only time I had to myself, free from the village's surveillance (not that I could escape anyway), was during intensive physical training.
Artoria:
Ahahahaha...haa...ah...
Narration:
And as though matching my voice, fading away all alone in the field:
???:
Ahh...aaaaaa, how disgusting! The fairies you're with disgust me!
Artoria:
Ah!? T-the staff spoke!?
???:
Not quite. I'm not the Staff of Selection.
???:
Tintagel was just too nauseating and you were just too pliant for me,
???:
and so I spoke up. I'm just a meddler, that's all.
???:
Good grief, I had no intention of getting involved like this. But I suppose there's no helping it now.
???:
Listen carefully now, I am Merlin. Merlin, the Magus of Flowers.
Merlin:
I'll be your mentor going forward. Keep that in mind.
Narration:
That was how I met Merlin, the 'voice I heard from the Staff of Selection'.
Narration:
That was how I started down the path of a mage.
Artoria:
M a g e c r a f t! I know, it's the art employed by Her Majesty Queen Morgan!
Artoria:
But...what exactly do you mean by that? What are you going to teach me?
Merlin:
What...magecraft, of course. Merlin's magecraft. I'll have you know it's amazing.
Artoria:
Oh, I want to fly in the sky! Vrooom, like a bird!
Merlin:
Fly in the sky...fly in the sky, huh...you're setting a high bar all of a sudden...
Artoria:
You can't do it? Are you a greenhorn?
Merlin:
No, I can. It is but a trivial matter. After all, I am the renowned Merlin.
Merlin:
But we'll get to that later, Artoria. Even the Wind Clan cannot roam the skies.
Merlin:
The skies are the domain of dragons. Only a select few of the elite fairies can take flight there.
Merlin:
It's better to start with something a little more down-to-earth. Something that'd make your life easier.
Merlin:
What would you like to have right now? Go ahead, tell me.
Artoria:
In that case...some warmth at night sounds great, I suppose.
Artoria:
My house can get very cold.
Artoria:
It freezes up in the winter. Last year, I lost two of my toes.
Artoria:
Ehehe...it's rather embarrassing though so I'm keeping it a secret from everyone!
Merlin:
—Alright, I'll go stud–ahem, make preparations.
Merlin:
You'll need to wait three, no, two days. I'll go fetch some instructional materials for you.
Artoria:
???
Narration:
I learned a lot about magecraft from Merlin.
Narration:
Heating, tracking, first aid, wordcraft, mimicry, lock picking, ambush, explosives, barriers.
Narration:
Whenever I wanted to learn some new magecraft,
Narration:
“Now's not a good time. Wait until our next lesson. ”
Narration:
is what he would say as we made magical tools together. This would later go on to become the basis of Merlin's magecraft.
Narration:
I'm sure he must have concocted a number of ways so that even someone like me, lacking in magical energy, could use magecraft.
Artoria:
But why are you teaching me magecraft? All the fairies in Britain hate me.
Merlin:
That would be because I'm not a fairy of Britain. Well, take that as a joke.
Merlin:
You are a Fairy of Paradise, no matter what the village fairies may think. In time, you will have many fairies as followers.
Merlin:
For when that time comes, you must become your ideal—
Merlin:
No, you must become a convenient savior befitting the wish everyone has of you. One of fantasy.
Artoria:
Fantasy?
Merlin:
Yes. In the vein of a fairy tale-like existence.
Merlin:
It differs from person to person. A mighty king, a gentle king, a terrifying king. There are lots.
Merlin:
But you must become someone capable of taking on all of that.
Merlin:
The thing from which all those wishes stem. No, rather, the thing which joins them.
Merlin:
People differ in what they wish to perceive. That's why a fixed name will only get in your way.
Merlin:
You need to be a nameless king, so to speak. Not one who exists at the center of the world, but rather, at the edge of it...
Merlin:
Like a lighthouse in the farthest ends of the world, a sign of hope for people just by its sheer existence—
Merlin:
The starlight that acts as a glimmer of hope. That's the sort of king I'd like you to be.
Merlin:
Even in foreign lands, even at the end of time. Inspiring the people from atop the ramparts, you know.
Artoria:
Is it even possible to be like that...?
Merlin:
Sure, what's impossible in reality is possible in fantasy.
Merlin:
And people have always realized their fantasies. A dream-like future will eventually cease to be just a dream☆
Narration:
Merlin was an exceedingly garrulous and entertaining person.
Narration:
But that came to an end after a year.
Narration:
A fairy girl spotted me laughing in the field and reported it to the village chief.
Narration:
They confiscated the Staff of Selection until the day of departure when I turned sixteen.
Narration:
The days that followed only got worse.
Narration:
That concludes my winter memories.
--BATTLE--
Narration:
This happened around when I was twelve years old.
Village Leader:
You're twelve too? You've grown up so well.
Village Leader:
Hm...I suppose I have an errand for you to run.
Village Leader:
I'm worried about sending you off on your own, but you've toughened up a bit since you started using magecraft.
Village Leader:
You know Cape Drift? There's an Earth Clan fairy that lives alone there.
Village Leader:
Deliver this to him for me. Just make sure to be back by sundown.
Artoria:
—Wait a second. You don't mean...that house—
Narration:
There was no mistaking it.
Narration:
That house alone on the cape was the workshop of the craftsman Merlin had talked about. A theme park of iron.
Narration:
One day I'd definitely go there! Number one on the list of things that didn't exist in Tintagel...
Artoria:
A blacksmith—!
Artoria:
Whooooah—! Whoooa—!
Artoria:
Woooooow! Amaaaaaaazing—!
Narration:
Even I have to say my state of mind at the time was a bit off.
Narration:
I had never seen anybody acting suspicious before. Actually, I probably came across as a robber.
Narration:
So...
Earth Fairy:
Whaaaat do you think you're doing, girl!? You want me to smash your head open and toss your body into the sea!?
Artoria:
Aaaaaaah!?
Narration:
And as you can see, at our first meeting I gave him the worst possible impression.
Narration:
His name was Ector. A smith of the Earth Clan.
Narration:
He was an eccentric who had lived alone on the cape for hundreds of years, feared by everyone in the village.
Narration:
He was stubborn and scary-looking, but he never once lied to me, and respected me as a friend.
Ector:
Hmph. A Tintagel-made leather bag, huh? You're not taking iron, you're bringing...
Ector:
So you're not a thief. Hmph. A delivery from the village chief, huh?
Ector:
What is it? You're mumbling. I can't hear you! Speak loudly and clearly!
Narration:
Ector had poor hearing, so I had to exaggerate my speech to get my intent across.
Narration:
What's more, he hated fairies. Both his emotional state and the voice of his heart were black with disgust.
Narration:
“If I stay here, he'll kill me. He'll really split my skull with that hammer. ”
Narration:
The excitement of seeing his workshop faded, and I decided to just leave the bag and run back home.
Narration:
But...
Ector:
—Wait. Let me see your face. You're—
Ector:
—the Child of Prophecy, aren't you?
Ector:
I see. It's already been twelve years since Ainsel's prophecy.
Ector:
Hurry up and get back to your village. This is no place for little girls.
Ector:
The whole reason I live out here is because I don't want to be bothered by anyone.
Ector:
Never come back here, you got it!? I don't have time to be bothered by the Child of Prophecy, or anyone else!
Artoria:
Y-y-yes, sir! I'm sorry to bother you~!
Narration:
And so I scurried out of his house. After all, he threw a hammer at me.
Narration:
I left the cape and made my way back to Tintagel.
Narration:
I trudged the whole way, and my pace was even more listless than usual.
Narration:
And then I went back.
Ector:
I told you not to come back. Why are you here? Why don't you listen?
Ector:
Are all the fairies who look like you hogs or bears?
Ector:
Don't touch that! That's wrought iron, it makes fairies break out in hives...
Ector:
...but not you, huh? I see. You look like Wind Clan, but you're actually Demon Boar Clan.
Narration:
Obviously, there was no such clan.
Ector:
You're not afraid of the furnace or the iron? What, you interested?
Ector:
I see.
Ector:
I see.
Ector:
You've been coming around frequently. Well, the villagers probably don't want me coming around.
Ector:
Your clothes are all kinds of ragged. You got lots of pocket space, but the stitching and finishing is pretty shoddy.
Ector:
Hmph...hey, tell the village chief.
Ector:
“Send her by to assist me, and I'll teach her a little. ”
Artoria:
Ector, do you mean...!?
Ector:
Don't call me that! Just “smith” or “old man” is fine!
Ector:
Come once every other day, you got it!?
Ector:
Sheesh...I don't know who taught you that, but even the way you hold the tools is dangerous.
Ector:
You don't even know the basics. If you die messily. then it'll reflect badly on smiths everywhere.
Ector:
If you're interested in smithing, then I'll train you from the ground up.
Ector:
Naturally, there's no tuition fee. Just pay me back when you make it big.
Narration:
My training for my journey as the Child of Prophecy had taken one more step.
Narration:
Ector was scary, but he was actually quite good at finely detailed craftsmanship and clothing.
Narration:
One year after I started helping him, Ector was a master craftsman, renowned by a select few.
Narration:
He received special orders not just from villages in southwest Britain, but also Salisbury and Oxford.
Narration:
Sometimes from as far away as Manchester.
Narration:
For example...
Blonde Fairy:
Excuse me. Is Master Ector here?
Artoria:
—
Narration:
It was the first time a customer had come directly to his workshop.
Narration:
I was the assistant, so I received her properly in order to build up Ector's reputation.
Blonde Fairy:
Master Ector, I am Gawain, the one who sent the letter. Are you here?
Narration:
She completely ignored me. Had she not heard me, or was it intentional?
Ector:
So you're Gawain? Never thought I'd see a Fairy Knight again.
Ector:
You're well-tempered...You probably won't lose to the armor.
Ector:
It's in the back. Try it on, and if there aren't any issues, we'll box it up for you.
Ector:
Give me a hand, Artoria. This is high-grade stuff, so make sure not to drop it.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
No, that won't be necessary. If it fits well when I try it on, I'll make use of it starting today.
Ector:
I see. Then come over here. Artoria, go tidy up the workshop.
Narration:
I could hear the clanging of armor being donned in the back room, as well as Ector conversing with her.
Narration:
She was a highborn member of the Fang Clan, chosen to become a Fairy Knight.
Narration:
She was huge, strong, and acted polite and respectful in a way that wouldn't be out of place in Gloucester's upper crust.
Narration:
On top of that, she was rich enough to afford that silver armor that Ector had spent the last four years working on.
Artoria:
...
Narration:
It kind of pissed me off.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
What excellent work. You have my heartfelt appreciation, Master Ector.
Ector:
Hmph. It was a job worth doing. The only one I've had since I came here, I'd say.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
Is that so?
Fairy Knight Gawain:
A craftsman of your skill would be in high demand in any city.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
It may be disrespectful of me to ask, but...we are still without a large workshop in my own city.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
If you don't mind, Master Ector...
Artoria:
Huuuuuh!? What the heck are you saying!?
Fairy Knight Gawain:
What was that odd sound just now? Was it an overgrown toad...or perhaps a nachtkrapp?
Ector:
Stay out of this, you idiot! Are you trying to pick a fight with a Fairy Knight!?
Artoria:
B-b-but Ect–old man, she's too arrogant to think she can up and recruit you!
Narration:
I had a bad habit of talking back around there. I'm sure it was Merlin's fault.
Narration:
But I really was mad at the time, so I crowded the Fairy Knight and tried to get her to leave.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
So you're Master Ector's apprentice...
Fairy Knight Gawain:
It's not like I don't understand how you feel. Parting with a fine teacher is sad.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
In deference to your feelings, I will overlook your vulgar language just now.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
However...In any case, please try and grow up a little more before you speak to me.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
Because of my height, my neck does ache from dealing with small things.
Fairy Knight Gawain:
Well, I suppose with a body like that you can only imagine it.
Artoria:
—
Narration:
And just like that, she left.
Narration:
It was like she forgot all about me after we spoke.
Narration:
The signature on the sales voucher she gave to Ector didn't say Gawain, but ■■■■■■■■.
Narration:
It was as if a strange curse was making it impossible to read, but no truth can escape me.
Narration:
Hmph. I'll never forget that name!
Ector:
She has a point. I've been teaching you for a little under four years now.
Ector:
You may be my apprentice, but you're a full-fledged blacksmith now. There's nothing to be done about your low magical energy.
Ector:
What about the village fairies? Do they still believe you're the Child of Prophecy?
Artoria:
That much hasn't changed. Half the village still doesn't even believe in that.
Artoria:
Even so, sending me off is what everyone wishes for, for better or worse.
Artoria:
What about you, old man? Do you really think I'm the Child of Prophecy?
Ector:
I don't care. Tintagel's situation is none of my business.
Ector:
More importantly, go gather some sand from the beach. Tomorrow we're making more jewelry.
Ector:
There's a festival in Ketsee Forest coming up soon. Doesn't matter if it's all cheap stuff, they put in a large order.
Narration:
Ector's skill let him work not only arms or household items, but jewelry as well.
Narration:
A variety of jeweller's tools were always lined up on the workshop desks.
Narration:
Ector dismissed them as flimsy playthings, but I, with my one set of clothes, had no eyes for appraising their value.
Narration:
Red, blue, green. Sometimes yellow. Like stars shining in the night sky.
Narration:
Without realizing it, I had stopped working and had started staring at the jewelled hair ornaments on top of the desk.
Narration:
In autumn of my second year there, Ector couldn't stay quiet seeing me like this anymore.
Ector:
If you like, you can take one as a pattern to work off of. Parting with just one is well within my margin of error.
Narration:
Errors. The flawed products of work that turn out broken.
Narration:
Ector didn't make failures, but he pushed me onward with those words.
Narration:
But, that said...
Artoria:
I don't want one. If I get something of my own, it'll just be taken away again.
Narration:
I was so happy and wanted it so badly that my vision blurred over.
Narration:
Something as important as the Staff of Selection can't be taken.
Narration:
But, for the first time in a while, I remembered a conversation I had as a child.
Narration:
It was a conversation with Merlin, who was responding to my unreasonable requests, increasing by the day.
Merlin:
Abominable things that need to disappear! The narrow-mindedness of the fairies that own you!
Merlin:
No, no, no, no, no! Everybody in Britain right now is disgusting!
Merlin:
—Just joking. But if you think like that, Artoria, then you should say so.
Merlin:
It's okay to want what you want. Don't hold back.
Merlin:
Now, don't be shy and tell me what would be the best thing for you right now.
Artoria:
I want magecraft that blows my enemies to smithereens. Something like that.
Merlin:
Mm-hm. A tool that stockpiles magical energy, and magecraft that equals gunpowder in explosive power?
Merlin:
Wouldn't that be a fine act of terrorism...
Merlin:
Well, you never know when you might be attacked by a Black Dog.
Merlin:
Sure, I'll whip up a recipe. Can you give me three—no, maybe six days?
Merlin:
Uh...I'm sure in Norwich...there's a smith who knows about this stuff...
Artoria:
You're awfully kind and caring, Merlin. Are you popular with the ladies?
Merlin:
Well, I don't know about that. I'm a bit lost when people like you talk about stuff like love.
Merlin:
It's like a meal. I just visualize what it tastes like instead of who I'm eating it with.
Merlin:
Because I'm like that, I'm not the type loved by humans or fairies.
Merlin:
I suddenly found myself in that role though, and when I tried my hand at it, it turns out I'm better at this stuff than anybody else.
Merlin:
To be honest, I'm the one most confused about that myself.
Artoria:
Don't you have someone you love? Even just one person? Despite being the magus of flowers?
Artoria:
Aren't you lonely?
Merlin:
Hmm. You might be right. It's a degree of sentimentality I'd only notice when you mention it.
Merlin:
I knew from the start that was something I could never have, so I never worried about it.
Merlin:
But—I suppose that's true.
Merlin:
Studying magecraft, searching for a way to save Britain, looking for a significant other...it's all the same to me.
Artoria:
Um...what do you mean?
Merlin:
Well, it's lonely looking for a star that probably doesn't exist, but it's still fun all the same.
Narration:
And so came the morning of my sixteenth birthday. Everybody in the village gathered in the square and chanted:
Fairies:
Show us proof. Show us proof.
Fairies:
Show us proof that you are the Child of Prophecy. The blacksmith living on that hill is one of the Queen's elite guard.
Fairies:
You're the only one that blacksmith isn't wary of. The only one he opens up to.
Fairies:
If you are the fairy that will save Britain, then go kill that blacksmith.
Fairies:
Please. Please. Every day is nerve-wracking.
Fairies:
That's why—you must protect us by taking care of him...!
Narration:
That concludes my autumn memories.
--BATTLE--
Narration:
The Earth Clan fairy that had settled down on the cape used to be one of Queen Morgan's elite guard.
Narration:
The fears of the village fairies were justified.
Narration:
They believed that if Ector was killed, the village's safety would be secured.
Narration:
Everyone was urgently saying:
Fairies:
Go kill him. Go kill him.
Fairies:
If you're the Child of Prophecy, go kill the minion of the Queen!
Narration:
Their wishes suffocated me, and as usual I was too exhausted to refuse them, so...
Artoria:
Yes...
Artoria:
All right...after all, I'm the Child of Prophecy.
Narration:
I did what was wanted of me, what was expected of me. I decided to kill my friend.
Narration:
It's just like I said. I could never keep anything I treasured.
Artoria:
I have to kill him...I have to kill him...
Artoria:
I have to kill him...I have to kill him...
Artoria:
If I don't, they'll kill me. They'll kill me for being a fake.
Narration:
Ector was hard of hearing, so sneaking in was simple. He was completely defenseless, asleep on his stone bed.
Narration:
In my hand I carried a rusted-over knife that was given to me by the villagers.
Artoria:
—, —
Narration:
It would be a lie to say refusing was too much of a pain. I was simply afraid.
Narration:
Afraid of being labelled a fake. Of being beaten for being useless.
Narration:
Afraid that everything I had done so far would end up meaningless.
Narration:
That's why...that's why...
Artoria:
— Gh—!
Narration:
I was so pissed I swung the knife down as hard as I could.
Artoria:
Ahhh...well, I guess I can manage somehow...
Narration:
I walked down the darkened street, putting away the chipped blade.
Narration:
I was merely anxious, but the fairies of the village were naïve.
Narration:
I returned, optimistic that I would be able to muddle through if I explained it well, but...
Friend:
Don't listen to her! She didn't kill the blacksmith!
Friend:
I saw it all! She only hit a helmet with the knife, the smith wasn't there!
Friend:
What's more, the magecraft she's using is just gunpowder!
Friend:
She's not the Child of Prophecy! She's no special fairy! She's just a liar!
Fairies Gathered in the Square:
What the— What the—
Fairies Gathered in the Square:
You couldn't kill the elite guard...you couldn't kill Morgan's minion...
Fairies Gathered in the Square:
Then you can't be the Child of Prophecy...we knew there was something wrong about you!
Narration:
Despite my attempt at running away from the town square, the village fairies were far stronger than me both physically and magically.
Fairies:
Get Caster! Get the liar!
Fairies:
For passing yourself off as the Child of Prophecy, you'll be given to Woodwose's execution squad!
Narration:
I was soon caught and put in a jail cell built underneath the village.
Narration:
My friend, who had accused me, was so proud of it too. I understood that as well.
Narration:
She always addressed me as “friend” in the village, but was always envious and suspicious of me.
Narration:
It's not like she was a bad person.
Narration:
But still, she was just another person, less fortunate though she might have been...
Narration:
I became “nothing special,” so no more good feelings were had towards me.
Narration:
After that, the village got more and more hectic.
Narration:
Woodwose's execution squad.
Narration:
A terrifying unit dedicated to capturing the Child of Prophecy and bringing them to the castle.
Narration:
They would arrive in Tintagel in three days. Until then, I passed the time in my jail cell.
Queen-supporting Fairy:
You've finally shown your true colors. I'll be relieved to present you to Her Majesty.
Queen-supporting Fairy:
I never believed in you from the start. There's no way a fairy like you could have saved the world.
Child of Prophecy-supporting Fairy:
I don't want to do something horrible like turning you over to Woodwose, but...
Child of Prophecy-supporting Fairy:
Everyone thinks that since you're a fake, we have no choice...but, no...is that what we're fixated on...?
Village Leader:
How could this happen...so close...we were so close...
Village Leader:
No, it was impossible from the beginning...
Village Leader:
The year you drifted in, this village was supposed to disappear...
Village Leader:
And you...you gave us hope...and a boatload of treasure...but now that's all spent...
Village Leader:
Now the village will...no, if we can pass you off as the real thing, we could maybe get a bounty for you...
Mother:
I'm sorry, Caster...I did my best...to convince everyone, but...
Mother:
I'm sad things turned out this way, too...and you worked so hard...
Narration:
A lot of fairies came to see me in my jail cell. Fairies of all manner of standing and circumstances.
Narration:
The fairies of Tintagel were divided among supporters of the Queen and the Child of Prophecy.
Narration:
Based on what had happened to me, the Queen's faction seemed to have gained the upper hand over the Child of Prophecy's faction.
Narration:
There was not a single fairy who could help me.
Narration:
But there were fairies who wanted to let me go, so I had to concede that it wasn't all lost.
Narration:
Whether I was to win or lose, it would happen three days later.
Narration:
Just before being taken out of the jail cell and presented to the execution squad, I would have one last chance to make my escape.
Narration:
I kept track of my physical condition so that I could run at any time. I remained vigilant.
Artoria:
It's only natural, of course...I've been training myself for the Pilgrimage, after all.
Artoria:
Having it end before I even set out is too much to ask for.
Narration:
When I heard a clamor from outside I braced myself, thinking the execution squad had arrived.
Ector:
Hmph, you're still alive. I guess the villagers weren't that stupid after all.
Artoria:
Ector!? You're wounded!
Ector:
This is nothing. I just beat up some nobodies. Spare me the talking and let's get out of here.
Ector:
Put this on. Better you wear a hat instead of a helmet, it'll hide your face a little better.
Artoria:
You came to help me escape!?
Artoria:
Ah, this hat is so cool and cute! You've got great taste, Ector!
Ector:
Don't flatter me. And take this too. It was yours to begin with. I'm just returning it.
Artoria:
—
Narration:
It was the Staff of Selection that had been taken from me when I was a child.
Narration:
Though it had been nine years, it remained as familiar to me as my own body.
Narration:
But then...Merlin's frivolous voice seemed to be long gone.
Ector:
Now get out of here, there's no time. Woodwose's execution squad is nearly—
Artoria:
Ector!?
Ector:
Don't say that name...For you, it's ominous. It will bring you bad luck.
Ector:
I've taken out the guards, but replacements will be here soon. You have until daybreak.
Ector:
Run as far as you can. If you can make it to Salisbury's plains...
Ector:
What the hell? What's going outside—
Narration:
The execution squad had arrived, and were setting the village ablaze.
Narration:
At the time, that was the only sensical scenario that came to my mind.
Ector:
How...they said they were going to cut down on the number of mouths to feed this winter, but...
Ector:
To go so far as to start killing each other...this is beyond stupid, it's just pathetic...
Woodwose:
What the hell is going on!? I get a tip to come out here, and the villagers are all killing each other!?
Woodwose:
Who is in charge here!? Where's the Child of Prophecy!? Bring them here!
Woodwose's Soldier:
Lord Woodwose, please stay back! You're losing your composure!
Woodwose's Soldier:
You can't carry out an interrogation this way! Please, stay rational!
Woodwose:
Tch...alright, listen up! Polemen, exterminate the village inhabitants! Spearmen, barricade all the exits to the village!
Woodwose:
With things this bad, our hands are tied! Don't let even one of them escape! Put the fire out only after the riot has been quelled!
Woodwose:
The fairy thought to be the Child of Prophecy must be captured alive! This is Her Majesty's command!
Artoria:
—Everyone!
Narration:
I wasn't thinking anything in particular. No, it was more like there was no room to think.
Narration:
I ran towards the village square to help everyone, but...
Ector:
Don't go! You'll never make it! Leave the village, Artoria!
Ector:
Why bother helping those villagers!? Aren't they the ones who sold you out!?
Artoria:
That's true, but—!
Narration:
We had all lived together.
Narration:
They may have been full of lies for 16 years, but that didn't mean it was okay to abandon them.
Ector:
Fool...
Ector:
Just come on! They're here for the Child of Prophecy!
Ector:
If you get outside the village, you'll be safe from the executioners!
Ector:
Run to a nearby forest! After that, do whatever you want!
Narration:
The old man pulling on my hand started to run.
Ector:
—Hmph. Right, from here on you're on your own.
Ector:
I ran into one of Woodwose's soldiers on the way. They're after you. You need to leave now.
Artoria:
What about you...? Are you coming...or not?
Ector:
No. I still have work to do.
Ector:
As soon as I see you off, I'm going back to my forge on the cape. This is goodbye.
Ector:
You're a nuisance, little girl. Don't show your face at my place ever again.
Artoria:
—B-but...Ector—Ector...!
Narration:
It was a white lie. I could see that.
Narration:
The sharp wound in his side he hid under his clothes. The many stab wounds all over his back...
Narration:
...and his weakening heartbeat that would stop as soon as I took my eyes off him. I saw them all.
Ector:
I knew it...Fairies of Paradise are such a pain.
Ector:
The village is done for...the executioners are already here.
Ector:
Lift your head. Grasp your staff. It's time for you to set out, Artoria.
Ector:
No matter what anybody says, or even if you doubt it yourself, you are definitely the Child of Prophecy.
Ector:
You didn't kill me that night, did you? That's your true character, who you really are.
Ector:
No matter how much Britain rejects you, no matter how hard the fairies shun you.
Ector:
No matter how much weaker you are than the other fairies. You're more of a savior than anybody else.
Ector:
It looks like you haven't noticed it. You're fundamentally incapable of getting mad for your own sake.
Ector:
And—
Ector:
You're just like her, kiddo.
Ector:
You're stubborn and hate to lose, and always get back up no matter how many times you fall. You'll definitely accomplish what you set out to do.
Artoria:
No...I'll go back to the forge and live on the cape! That way, things will be better!
Artoria:
Then when I turn 17 and the prophecy turns out to be a lie, I won't bother you—
Ector:
—
Narration:
But that was an impossible dream, and my words never reached him.
Narration:
I never knew what kind of person he was. I didn't understand why he went so far to help me.
Narration:
At the time, the only thing I could understand was the sound of my heart within my chest. That was the only thing left alive.
Artoria:
—Yeah. That's right.
Artoria:
My specialty is getting back on my feet, no matter how many times I get discouraged or depressed.
Narration:
I held on tight to the Staff of Selection, and firmly put my new hat on my head.
Artoria:
—Goodbye, everybody. Thank you for raising me until I turned 16.
Artoria:
I am a Fairy of Paradise. The one who will deliver salvation to Britain.
Artoria:
As you all wished, I will start the Pilgrimage.
Narration:
Or so I said, but my Pilgrimage was never even acknowledged.
Narration:
I attempted to meet with the Wind Clan head in Salisbury, but was turned away at the door by the rebel army.
Narration:
Despite the fact that I performed several tasks and was asked to show proof I was the Child of Prophecy...
Soldiers of Salisbury, A:
What forest did you come from, fairy? You've got shabby clothes and the bare minimum of magical energy.
Soldiers of Salisbury, A:
Well, I guess you took care of the job in your own way. Good work killing the Mors on the highway!
Soldiers of Salisbury, A:
Good luck with saving Britain! I don't know how many centuries it'll take though!
Soldiers of Salisbury, B:
We don't need the Child of Prophecy anyway, little girl. We have Lady Aurora.
Soldiers of Salisbury, B:
The fairies are welcoming the Child of Prophecy? Ah, that's just for show.
Soldiers of Salisbury, B:
Fairies jump whenever there's fun to be had. They'll go for anything that's popular.
Soldiers of Salisbury, B:
Nobody actually believes in the Child of Prophecy. They don't wish for one.
Soldiers of Salisbury, B:
We're fine with the system the way it is. If only Morgan would just go away.
Narration:
With the laughter of the crowd seeing me off, I bitterly wandered west and east.
Narration:
I scratched my cheeks and visited many forests, convincing myself that it was yet too early for me to try the big cities.
Narration:
The results were the same. I was used, laughed at, and shooed away as a nuisance.
Narration:
Outwardly, they were all for the Child of Prophecy, but their hearts were more honest.
Narration:
“Isn't there anything more fun? ”
Artoria:
I see...They love the rumors about the Child of Prophecy, but the real thing is just a hindrance, huh...
Narration:
I had no fairies to ask for instruction, and no friends to share in my suffering.
Narration:
All the fairies in Britain hated me the instant they saw me.
Narration:
The humans hated fairies, too. At that rate, I would have to simply continue my journey alone.
Artoria:
It's too painful...
Artoria:
It's painful...
Narration:
Feeling weak, I went into the Nameless Forest.
Narration:
I didn't have any particular thoughts about it, just for a little while...
Narration:
I just wanted to be myself, and nobody else.
Narration:
But the curse of forgetfulness doesn't work on Fairies of Paradise, so fortunately, it was a letdown.
Narration:
I pretended to have lost my memories and withdrew into the tent for newcomers, feeling empty inside.
Narration:
Then, a new fairy was brought over.
Fujimaru:
—Mash?
Narration:
[♂ He /♀ She] had lost [♂ his /♀ her] memories. Both [♂ his /♀ her] body and mind were in shambles, and [♂ he /♀ she] couldn't be left alone.
Narration:
And most importantly—
Narration:
If [♂ he /♀ she] had forgotten all about the Child of Prophecy, I thought that perhaps we could be friends.
Narration:
There lay my summer memories.
--ARROW--
Artoria:
It's finally time for the spring memories!
Artoria:
If it's spring, they must all be happy ones!
Artoria:
The obstacles that appear will probably be easy ones too. Feel free to beat them up.
Fujimaru 1:
...
Fujimaru 2:
If we can, I'd rather not fight Mors, but...
Mash:
Yes...if that thing is the embodiment of Artoria's memories, then...
Mash:
They must be extremely painful memories...
Mash:
Just facing the Mors causes us heartache...
Merlin:
To be fair, that's only up to summer.
Merlin:
“Spring memories” are made up of only things that person considers enjoyable.
Merlin:
The obstacle that appears here, well...
Merlin:
There's no mistake, she either dressed herself up or is treating us to something pretty huge here.
Senji Muramasa:
Well...that's okay. Before this turns into a fight, I want to make one thing clear.
Senji Muramasa:
You said that when all the Pilgrim's Bells have been rung, the Fairy of Paradise will become the Holy Sword itself, right?
Senji Muramasa:
So, essentially that means—if the Holy Sword is created, Artoria herself will vanish, right?
Merlin:
You got it. She'll disappear in exchange for the establishment of the concept of the Holy Sword.
Merlin:
That's not only the mission of the Fairy of Paradise, it's their purpose. Forging the Holy Sword is no simple task.
Merlin:
Her accumulated memories, experiences, her Saint Graph, even her destiny. All of these will be used as “materials” to forge the Holy Sword.
Merlin:
Don't think of it as a sacrifice. It's equivalent exchange to the bitter end.
Merlin:
Not just anybody will work. If it's not her, then it's impossible.
Fujimaru 1:
—
Fujimaru 2:
Does Artoria know this?
Merlin:
She does. Once her mission is accomplished, her life is forfeit.
Merlin:
She should have known that much from the start.
Merlin:
I can understand how you all must feel. But I want you to understand there are no other options.
Merlin:
She descended into the Spirit Cave knowing this.
Merlin:
It may be partly forced upon her, but she proceeded to the Site of Selection of her own free will.
Mash:
...
Artoria:
Eh? Huh? What is it, everybody?
Mash:
Artoria?
Senji Muramasa:
Wait, isn't it too early? The setup is all different.
Fujimaru 1:
After all, we haven't fought...
Fujimaru 2:
Artoria:
I see...
Artoria:
This time was too easy! I was finished before I realized it too!
Artoria:
The Site of Selection is up on that hill, isn't it? All right, let's have a race to see who gets there first!
Fujimaru 1:
How can she be so carefree...!?
Senji Muramasa:
You said it...she's taking this way too lightly.
Senji Muramasa:
Fujimaru, I'm relieved you're so upset about this.
Senji Muramasa:
But just leave what happens after this to your elders.
Mash:
Muramasa? What are you...
Senji Muramasa:
Don't worry, just run after her. At this rate she really is going to get ahead of us.
Senji Muramasa:
No matter what, this is the ending of a long journey for her. Let's be sure to watch her see it through.
--ARROW--
Narration:
When I closed my eyes, I saw it. When I slept, I saw it.
Narration:
But none of that is true. It's a lie. Whether I close my eyes or fell asleep doesn't matter.
Narration:
To me, this was simply what the human world had always looked like.
Narration:
The wind and dark clouds were no storm. They were the voices of people.
Caster:
Aaaa—aaaaaaa—aaaaaaaaa—
Narration:
I crushed my eyes because it was too ugly. I crushed my ears because it was too repulsive.
Narration:
And yet the darkness wouldn't lift. The wind wouldn't stop.
Narration:
In this world suffused with corruption, I had to fulfill my mission as a Fairy of Paradise.
Caster:
I can't...! I can't...! I just can't do this...!
Narration:
No matter how much I cried out, there was nobody to hear me. I couldn't even hear my own voice, as the wind drowned it out.
Narration:
After learning many things in the village and getting to know the hearts of the fairies, the storm became much, much stronger.
Narration:
I didn't know where to go or what I should be doing.
Narration:
I thought Queen Morgan was rather lucky.
Narration:
“I will make Britain a country of my own. ”
Narration:
With such (enviable! ) conviction, there was no way she would get lost in this storm.
Caster:
I can't. I don't have that. I can't measure up to her.
Narration:
I hated Britain. I hated fairies. I hated humans.
Narration:
There was no way I could find my way like that.
Narration:
No...I could see it. It was shown to me when I rang the Pilgrim's Bell.
Narration:
The King of Britain—Artoria Pendragon.
Narration:
When I learned that this was the state of myself in pan-human history, I felt nauseous from the bottom of my heart.
Narration:
An ideal knight, a life led for others. A king who gave their all for the future of Britain.
Narration:
I wouldn't want to turn out that way. I don't think I'd want to live a life like that.
Narration:
But the forging of the Holy Sword sealed her fate.
Narration:
If only there wasn't a Holy Sword, her life would have turned out very differently.
Narration:
If it weren't for the Holy Sword, Britain would have met a very different end.
Caster:
I'll quit...I'll just quit. Yeah, that's fine.
Caster:
After all, I'm the only one who can save that girl.
Narration:
Every time I heard the bells toll, I thought that over and over again.
Narration:
But...
Caster:
—That star is still watching.
Narration:
I didn't know what that star was.
Narration:
It wasn't my aspirations, my purpose, or something important to me.
Narration:
But it was always there. Ever since I was born.
Narration:
The star that was always there, no matter how small or frail it was in the midst of this raging storm.
Caster:
—I don't know where I want to go.
Caster:
I don't care about the mission. I don't want to be the Child of Prophecy.
Caster:
And yet, why—
Narration:
I didn't stop moving forward.
Narration:
I didn't want to just give up and lose to this storm.
Caster:
I don't get it...why am I so stubborn...
Caster:
What am I throwing away my life for...?
Narration:
There is no spring for Fairies of Paradise like myself. There's nothing to be gained.
Narration:
That's why I at least want to know the reason I couldn't give up until the end.
Narration:
The reason why someone like me, neither a queen nor a savior, was able to make it this far.
Narration:
What was that tiny star to such an ordinary person like myself—
Artoria:
This is...the Site of Selection...where the Holy Sword is forged, right?
Merlin:
That's right. In the center there is the Sky Furnace. The place where the Fairies of Paradise must return to.
Merlin:
Once you offer your body to it, the Holy Sword will be established.
Merlin:
And it won't be for just this Lostbelt. The concept of the Holy Sword will finally be returned to you guys on the bleached Earth.
Merlin:
It won't be a temporary recreation like a Heroic Spirit recorded in the Lostbelt,
Merlin:
but the weapon meant to defeat alien invaders, once belonging to the humanity of this age.
Artoria:
So...Fujimaru and Mash's world can be saved, right?
Merlin:
Yes. The chance of it being saved will go from zero to one.
Artoria:
I see! Then we really have to do it!
Artoria:
Britain will return to how it should be, and the outside world will be saved! We're killing two birds with one stone!
Mash:
But...that's...
Fujimaru 1:
...
Artoria:
What's wrong, you two? You look sick to your stomachs.
Artoria:
Oh, if you want, why don't you rest outside? This won't take long.
Fujimaru 1:
That's not it.
Merlin:
You got it. She'll disappear in exchange for the establishment of the concept of the Holy Sword.
Attention! Crucial Dialogue Select
Fujimaru 1:
Stop this. This is bullshit.
Artoria:
But you're the one who told me to not run away. You told me that.
Fujimaru 2:
—
Artoria:
Well then.
Artoria:
Ah. Since this is the end, I have a confession to make.
Artoria:
Fairies, humans, Britain, and my mission, I hated them all.
Artoria:
Fighting is scary. Hating everything equally is exhausting. I'd have been happy to live a normal life.
Artoria:
People would be disappointed if I said any of that, so I had no choice to but act as the Child of Prophecy.
Artoria:
So my journey with everyone has always felt like walking on thin ice.
Artoria:
I somehow persevered this time, but come a second time, I'm sure I would abandon it.
Artoria:
To think I'd be able to make it this far, I'm the most shocked of all.
Artoria:
To forge the Holy Sword also means erasing the Fairy Kingdom.
Artoria:
I never grew any fonder of fairies or humans, but I could see their underlying “wishes”.
Artoria:
Every single one of them suffered on the inside. They all yearned for salvation.
Artoria:
I don't think anyone deserves that much, even if sinners should be punished for their crimes.
Artoria:
—After all, we're all the same!
Artoria:
If you're alive, then there are both fake and real lies!
Artoria:
And the voice under them all is that everyone wanted to be saved!
Artoria:
Seriously...I wish they'd stop doing that.
Artoria:
Even the road to Avalon was rough. I mean, I felt like “what the heck!? ”
Artoria:
But I'm glad I was able to look back on it. My life didn't turn out all that badly.
Artoria:
Until now, I've been thinking there's no way I could save this world.
Artoria:
That there's no way I could bring their world to an end.
Artoria:
Because, well, the fate of the world isn't something you should shoulder if you don't even like it, right?
Fujimaru 1:
—Yeah...
Fujimaru 1:
But you'll still do it, right?
Artoria:
—Yeah. I will.
Artoria:
I'm here to fulfill my mission. And the funny thing is I don't even understand why myself!
Artoria:
It's probably some self-righteous reason, you know. Something of no worth to anybody else.
Artoria:
Just like Fujimaru showed in the depths of [♂ his /♀ her] Dejection.
Artoria:
Just like when Mash confronted the Calamity in Norwich.
Artoria:
Not for someone else, not for you, not for what's right.
Artoria:
I think it's just for me.
Artoria:
For at least one thing that could never be betrayed. The thing in the midst of that raging storm I could never go back on.
Narration:
I dissolve away from my fingertips. My silhouette is disappearing.
Narration:
After this, I'll lose my memories, and in the end I'll lose my sense of self.
Narration:
The Inner Sea isn't taking my memories by choice.
Narration:
It's taking them because it's necessary to use the state of humanity of this era as materials to forge the Holy Sword.
Narration:
I was just the vessel to accumulate them. To forge a stronger, better Holy Sword.
Narration:
—I'm glad. This will definitely be an excellent blade.
Narration:
Like the beacon in that tempest. A shining star that won't be defeated by any evil on Earth.
Narration:
—A there that is not here. —A you who is not me.
Narration:
A sword that is worthy of you, the granter of many wishes, the recipient of many smiling faces, and the one who raised their head in the Site of Selection.
Narration:
Aah, I'm glad...Caster has no spring memories.
Narration:
But for me, it is the memory of a wonderful journey.
Narration:
I don't have a form of my own anymore. By forging the Holy Sword, the mission of the Fairy of Paradise comes to an end.
Narration:
Caster's—the one who chants'—journey ends here.
Narration:
And that's fine. I haven't come this far because I didn't want to die.
Narration:
But—
Narration:
I just wanted to know.
Narration:
That light that I saw. That light that saw me.
Narration:
I've been trying to understand that, and I knew I wouldn't be complete until I did.
Narration:
I thought I'd understand on my journey, but in the end I never found my answer.
Narration:
It's just...a little...disappointing—
Senji Muramasa:
I see. Then you're not done here.
Narration:
Huh? —Why?
Senji Muramasa:
No special reason. I'm a swordsmith.
Senji Muramasa:
Who the heck do you take me for? I cut rules, I cut karma, I dedicated my life to the sword. I'm Senji Muramasa.
Narration:
—
Senji Muramasa:
Come on, get outta here. You've gathered the raw materials. Now it's the smith's job.
Senji Muramasa:
So, this is the Sky Furnace in the Inner Sea of the Planet, huh? Gets me fired up just getting close to it!
Senji Muramasa:
This is going to be quite a job. My thanks, Artoria.
Senji Muramasa:
Being your bodyguard wasn't a bad gig, but you know, a tiger can't change its stripes.
Senji Muramasa:
This is more suited for me.
Narration:
No! I mean, I'm happy, but no...! It'll turn you to ash, Muramasa...!
Senji Muramasa:
Oh, bring it on!
Senji Muramasa:
Striking the metal is the one real desire of a smith, and if it's at a divine forge then it's worth burning my life up!
Senji Muramasa:
Of course this thing is burning me up! Even if my Saint Graph goes up in flames, it won't stop me from striking!
Senji Muramasa:
It's looking good. The mold is ready, so let's make good use of it!
Narration:
I told you it's—wait, why am I floating!?
Senji Muramasa:
Oh, I took over the job for you. You're in the way now, so you're being kicked out.
Senji Muramasa:
See you, Child of Prophecy.
Senji Muramasa:
Who says you have to give it all up? Especially if you still have unfinished business.
Senji Muramasa:
It's just a little power, enough to finish the job, but you can keep it for yourself.
Senji Muramasa:
But this is the end of my job with those guys. They bought my life, so isn't it only natural I pay them back with it?
Narration:
That bill was settled a long time ago!
Narration:
You're from the outside world, Muramasa! You're Fujimaru's enemy!
Narration:
You have nothing to do with Britain! Isn't your real job supposed to come after this!?
Senji Muramasa:
Yeah, this way I don't have to face the Alien God! I'll probably never see it again!
Senji Muramasa:
Well, it's not your problem. I like it as much as you do, kid.
Senji Muramasa:
This was how it was going to go from the beginning. But what the hell.
Senji Muramasa:
I really wish I could have made myself that hairpiece, though.
Narration:
—
Fujimaru 1:
The light...disappeared...
Fujimaru 2:
Artoria...
Mash:
One Saint Graph response...has vanished...
Merlin:
...
Mash:
Artoria...even though it was so we could forge the Holy Sword...
Artoria:
That's right. I think there's a problem with the forging process.
Artoria:
I don't know if the human spirit isn't there, or if it's just not efficient enough.
Artoria:
Still, the Inner Sea is where the planet's soul is kept. It didn't have a human soul to start with.
Mash:
—
Fujimaru 1:
—
Artoria:
Sorry to have kept you waiting, Fujimaru, Mash.
Artoria:
This is the “base model of the Holy Sword”—its “essence”. Please deliver it while you have the time.
Artoria:
Da Vinci and the rest of Chaldea should be able to refine the formula using this as a base.
Artoria:
I wish you could have gotten Excalibur, but...it seems like that didn't work out so well.
Fujimaru 1:
It's just like a Holy Grail...!?
Mash:
Yes, it's a fundamental truth of magecraft of the same quality, no, of the same rank! But that's not the problem here, Senpai!
Fujimaru 2:
Wait, what the heck is this!?
Merlin:
Why did she come back? I wasn't expecting this either.
Merlin:
I thought for sure there'd be a Chaldea-brand Excalibur—
Merlin:
No, wait. I don't know when it happened, but he's not here anymore.
Merlin:
I see...so there was someone to give you a slight reprieve.
Fujimaru 1:
—Muramasa.
Fujimaru 2:
The old man is gone...
Mash:
Yes...just a moment ago, a single Saint Graph definitely vanished...
Mash:
That...was due to Muramasa's actions, wasn't it...
Fujimaru 1:
He protected her...to the very end...
Fujimaru 2:
Just like him to finish the job...
Artoria:
Yes. The Heroic Spirit Senji Muramasa died according to his beliefs.
Artoria:
The reason I'm here is because he was the one who put the finishing touches on it.
Artoria:
The Holy Sword was delivered to the Inner Sea of the Planet, and the basis of this Lostbelt was overturned.
Artoria:
It'll be pruned back to nonexistence before too long, probably.
Artoria:
But there are things that need to be done first.
Artoria:
The Fairy Kingdom of Britain, the Lostworld created by the traitor Morgan.
Artoria:
The Calamity created in that place cannot be allowed to become a pruning phenomenon.
Artoria:
This is a threat to humanity that you will all have to overturn with your own hands.
Fujimaru 1:
The air about her is different, but...
Fujimaru 1:
I'm glad you're safe. Welcome back, Artoria.
Artoria:
Yeah, I'm back!
Artoria:
Artoria Caster, keeper of the Holy Sword, is back stronger than ever!
Merlin:
Yeah, she's powered up no matter how you look at it. And that magecraft theory...!
Merlin:
Rather than Hero Creation, it's like Holy Sword Creation!?
Merlin:
Hey, no fair stealing my skills! Are you trying to upstage me!?
Fujimaru 1:
Same as ever, Merlin.
Fujimaru 2:
Don't listen to him, Artoria.
Mash:
It's a shame that Fou isn't here.
Merlin:
Well, can't be helped. We have different roles to play. I'll call it a good thing and suck it up.
Merlin:
—He protected her, and she endured. This is definitely some kind of cause-and-effect.
Merlin:
Here, the Holy Sword was created, and a star was born.
Merlin:
The Child of Prophecy carried out her mission, and the foreign magus assisted her.
Merlin:
Now it's my turn. Things may have passed the point of no return up there, but I can fix it a little.
Merlin:
To be more specific, I mean Cernunnos. I'll rewind time just a little bit.
Mash:
Rewind...? To before Cernunnos appeared?
Merlin:
Yeah. With Cernunnos out and about and the curses overflowing, you'll have no chance even with the Holy Sword's protection.
Merlin:
That's why I'll go back...yeah, about two hours.
Merlin:
I thought this might happen, so I've been looking into the dreams of the “Great Pit. ”
Merlin:
We'll just pretend that the Cernunnos from before was a dream he was having, and wake him up from that.
Fujimaru 1:
You can do something like that...!?
Fujimaru 2:
That's right, you did something like this in Uruk...
Merlin:
Yeah. I was free of the Garden, so it was really boring just waiting here.
Merlin:
I spent my time casting spells on the Great Pit. Thanks to that, my Saint Graph is all worn out.
Merlin:
Once this dream realm is lifted, this me will vanish.
Merlin:
I'm sorry to say I won't be able to bear witness to your battle.
Merlin:
Oh? As you might expect, I wasn't going to just leave everything up to her.
Merlin:
I didn't quite expect this result, though. But that's the margin of error for you.
Merlin:
As a special bonus at the end, I'll drop you off at the Storm Border instead of having to go through the Spirit Cave!
Merlin:
You have one hour until Cernunnos appears. And one hour until the curses overflow.
Merlin:
That's your time limit for this battle. This time you have to win.
Merlin:
Muramasa and I have done all we can here. All that's left is for you to all do your best.
Merlin:
Isn't that right, king without a name? Can I ask you to take care of Fujimaru and Mash for me?
Artoria:
Of course. You be well too, True Magus of Flowers.
Artoria:
Well...this is just a shadow of Avalon, after all. You're probably still imprisoned in your tower even now.
Merlin:
You can tell that much, huh? It seems like you've become the true guardian of the Holy Sword.
Merlin:
Well then, return to the ruined Britain!
Merlin:
To greet the clear blue sky beyond the twilight!
Merlin:
Okay, I've safely sent them back. I've just about reached my limits, good thing they made it in time.
Merlin:
Oh, I forgot to ask them one thing though.
Merlin:
I was using Clairvoyance to watch Chaldea's journey as close as possible...
Merlin:
Fujimaru was talking to [♂ him /♀ her]self an awful lot this time.
Merlin:
Hmm. What was that all about?
Intermission
~The skies over Britain~
~Two hours since the demon dog's appearance~
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That enormous Demonic Beast...I see, the Lord of the Black Dogs...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
The glutton of magical energy, feasting on black smoke and lightning. So you've finally become a Calamity, Barghest...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Cernunnos' curses won't stop pouring out of the Great Pit...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
There's nowhere left to run. You can join the Unseelie Court, or you can become one of the Mors...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Either way, decent fairies are becoming scarce. I don't know how long I will be able to retain my sanity, either.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Even if this is the Great Calamity...this is all...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
All her fault...Aurora...my love. My raison d'être. My—
Aurora:
Listen to me, Lancelot. Ainsel is a very, very dangerous fairy.
Aurora:
Muttering these absurd prophecies. No one is even aware of their true nature.
Aurora:
Who knows what she'll do once she becomes popular by drawing everyone's attention like that—
Aurora:
The Mirror Clan, just like the Rain Clan, is a clan that sheltered the Fairy of Paradise, no?
Aurora:
To think they'd make such a prophecy now, when we don't even know when the Great Calamity is liable to occur—
Aurora:
It's nothing short of treason against Queen Morgan. Just the thought of it clouds my wings.
Aurora:
■■■■■■■■, you understand how I feel, don't you?
Aurora:
After all, you are my prince.
Aurora:
You always bring me what I desire the most, don't you?
Narration:
She possesses no malicious intent. In the first place, for her, there exists no such thing as good or evil.
Narration:
“The most compassionate and benevolent fairy who dreams of a world where fairies and humans may coexist. ”
Narration:
But that's not exactly the case. It only appears to be.
Narration:
The only one she loves is herself.
Narration:
She treasures a world where she stands at the top, beloved by all around her.
Narration:
The reason she shelters humans is because, by doing so, she will receive their praise in turn.
Narration:
The reason she acts as a symbol to the fairies is because, by doing so, she will receive their admiration in turn.
Narration:
The reason she appears to be an exceptional leader is because she has no quarrel with anyone.
Narration:
The reason she survived this long is not because she was strong.
Narration:
But because she excels at dragging the other leaders down.
Narration:
Whenever a fairy more popular than herself appears, she makes the world take a turn for the worse with those ideas of hers.
Narration:
This was one such case...
Narration:
She possesses no malice whatsoever.
Narration:
She simply believed, from the bottom of her heart, the Mirror Clan were dangerous fairies.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
—Aaa. Haa—haa—......aaa.
Narration:
And so I slaughtered them. I slaughtered them, just like she desired.
Narration:
It was clear as day that the Mirror Clan was innocent.
Narration:
But I had to kill them. Because otherwise, Aurora would be the one to end up dead.
Narration:
Things always going your way. A world that revolves around you.
Narration:
Genuinely believing that to be is Aurora's true nature as a fairy.
Narration:
That is why, for her, there exists neither good nor evil.
Narration:
For 3,000 years, the reason she never lost her radiance was because her self-esteem was out of this world.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Ahh......uuu......aaa—
Narration:
I covered my face with hands stained in the blood of the Mirror Clan, as if to block out the view.
Narration:
I had no right to ask for forgiveness, nor did I have the right to apologize.
Narration:
Despite knowing the sort of person Aurora is, I still placed her radiance above all else.
Narration:
Because, to me, Aurora is more important than all the fairies in Britain.
Narration:
Aurora is without sin. I am the only wretch here.
Narration:
A false love depending on me. I continued to commit sin after sin, all because I did not want to lose it.
Narration:
But that day was special. The Mirror Clan was special.
Narration:
They were gentle fairies protecting that which was once me. The carcass of Albion.
Narration:
Not a single one of them resisted. On the contrary, they seemed to pity me.
Narration:
Those women stepped up and offered their lives.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
But there was no other way...because Aurora would have died otherwise.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I'm not to blame...I never wanted to kill them. Aurora...Aurora, you need to hear this.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That's right...for you, I...if you would thank me with just a smile, that's all I—
Narration:
I chose not to fly, so as to not leave any evidence behind. That night, I returned home, covered in mud, and concealed myself.
Wind Fairy:
To think the city of the Mirror Clan vanished...I wonder what could have happened.
Wind Fairy:
They say it was a Mors attack, but...Mors scaling the city's ramparts, really...?
Wind Fairy:
It must've been Queen Morgan...wrathful towards Ainsel's prophecy—
Aurora:
Surely that is not the case. Queen Morgan is a prudent person.
Aurora:
The prophecies of the Mirror Clan, which foretold the future, were priceless to her.
Aurora:
In the first place, Ainsel was a great clan head who worried for Britain's future.
Aurora:
Ahh, poor Ainsel...to think this would happen...
Aurora:
Whatever attacked the Mirror Clan is something that does not belong in this world.
Aurora:
Surely it is the foulest beast in all of Britain, rotten in both body and soul.
Aurora:
No matter how hard it tries to appear beautiful on the surface, in the end, it is but a pale imitation of me.
Aurora:
Oh, how detestable—just the thought of a creature like that makes me squirm.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
—, —
Narration:
It was a miracle. A genuine miracle.
Narration:
She gently embraced that lump of flesh writhing in the dark swamp, as though it were something precious.
Narration:
“Hello, sweetheart. Or should I say, good morning? ”
Narration:
“I am Aurora. Do you have a name? ”
Narration:
That was the moment I gained a heart. Gained a form. Understood emotions. Understood yearning.
Narration:
—I felt an unwavering love that could never be undone.
Narration:
But—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Of course...that's the sort of fairy she is.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That's the sort of fairy she is...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Even I know...why she embraced me back then...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I know...I know...I am unloved, I know...!
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
But even so...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Even so, I love you...I love you, Aurora...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That's right...as long as I have this heart, I can remain the way I am.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Even if I should lose Queen Morgan's gifted name, I can remain the way I am. As long as I have Aurora.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Should she disappear...I will return to my old self.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
To the 'me' who carried the grudges of the northern fairies who perished in the Spring War 8,000 years ago.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I need to head for Salisbury...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Even if Britain is coming to an end...my life shall be hers until the very end—
Fairies:
Ki■■! Ki■■! Ki■■ the northern fairies, the invaders who beckoned the Calamity!
Fairies:
Are there any fairies ravaged by the Mors poison!? If you find any, grab them and ki■■ them before they turn into Mors!
Fairies:
Round up the humans! Have them fight the Mors! Ki■■ any reluctant humans to set an example!
Fairies:
The cathedral! Open the cathedral gates! This city has been defiled, flee to the cathedral!
Fairies:
Lady Aurora will surely help us! Lady Aurora will surely save us!
Fairies:
After all, she is the new queen of Britain! She will surely sacrifice herself to the Mors for us!
Aurora:
How horrifying...and to think all of you once used to be such gentle fairies...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
—Aurora.
Aurora:
Who goes there!? How did you get in here!?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
It's me, Aurora...I landed on the bell tower above us and came down here.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
The city's in a terrible state...The majority of the fairies have organized themselves into a mob.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Eventually, they will make their way into this cathedral.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I would much rather not say this, but...Salisbury has...
Aurora:
Well—I suppose so. I suppose that is true. But you're here, Mélusine!
Aurora:
Thank goodness you're safe! Are you hurt? You aren't, are you?
Aurora:
After all, you are Britain's strongest Fairy Knight. Never will you be hurt, nor will you deteriorate. No matter what.
Aurora:
You haven't faded one bit since the day we met, my precious knight.
Aurora:
You really came through at the right time...you truly are the only one I can rely on.
Aurora:
Yes...Salisbury is at an end. No, the entirety of Britain is...
Aurora:
Surely, there no longer exists a path to salvation for us...
Aurora:
How did it come to this...it's so very sad...
Aurora:
And yet, we have no other choice. Mélusine, come with me...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Yes...you're right. We should at least be together for the end—
Aurora:
Let's make our escape together, shall we? You can take me with you, can't you?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
—What?
Aurora:
Did that surprise you? I think it's only natural to run from danger, though...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
It isn't...you've just stopped thinking again.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
What comes after we escape, Aurora...?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Where will you go after you abandon this world and the fairies who believed in you?
Aurora:
You're right. That is unfortunate. But they no longer love me at all, do they?
Aurora:
So enough about them. More importantly, why don't we go somewhere more pleasant?
Aurora:
Outside Britain! You heard it from those people from Chaldea, did you not?
Aurora:
It should be far better there compared to this boring world.
Aurora:
I mean, it's a world exclusively for the pitiful, filthy, weak humans.
Aurora:
It will be much easier to create an ideal world that will be much better behaved.
Aurora:
You and I will be the only fairies there.
Aurora:
See—isn't that what you wish for?
Aurora:
Such a lovely person, my Mélusine. I love you the most right now.
Aurora:
Give me your hand. Take my hand in yours. Let's start a new life, shall we?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That is...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That is...indeed what I wish for.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Once again, you will spread those butterfly scales, all too unaware of it.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Telling yourself that you aren't aware...You will do the same once more in the world outside.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Because your purpose is to be 'the most beloved of them all'.
Aurora:
Mélusine? What's this, all of a sudden?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
What about Coral...? Where is she?
Aurora:
Coral...? Oh, you mean that Coral!
Aurora:
I transformed her into a caterpillar, because she was irritating me! And just a few moments ago, I accidentally squashed her beneath my foot!
Aurora:
There's little bits of her smeared all over the floor. Watch your step, okay? You'll get the floor all dirty.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Aurora...I love you.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I love you, even if you won't believe it, even if it matters not to you.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
No matter how evil you may be...I will grant each and every last one of your wishes.
Aurora:
Yes, yes, that's right! I have no idea what you're talking about, but you're right!
Aurora:
Let's head for the world outside! I'm sure those wonderful days will start anew.
Aurora:
—Hah?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
No way that's happening...there's no way that's happening...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
There's no way that's happening...!
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
There's no way you could possibly be loved in the world outside...! Because here is the only place where you can stand at the top...!
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Pan-human history isn't as gullible as Britain, they'll immediately see you for the poison you are...!
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Do you think you could live on in a world like that!? You, who can't live without clean, pure water!
Aurora:
—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Those wings, that form, they will all fade and waste away in no time! When...when that happens—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
You yourself won't be able to stand it...You won't be able to love yourself anymore, and you will despair.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
And yet you will continue to deceive yourself, even in a form far removed from your present, you will continue to live the way you always have—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
And with each sunrise, you will continue to die in front of a mirror.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
It may be nothing out of the ordinary for the other fairies...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
But for you, it would be the cruelest torment of them all.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Unable to muster the resolve to die, weeping in despair that only grows with each passing day.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
And yet, you will keep on clinging to an unreachable glory. A new hell where you would just continue to loathe yourself.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
That—something like that—!
Aurora:
Hehe...what are you talking about, Mélusine?
Aurora:
Putting such an impossible future into words. You horrible, mockery of a fairy.
Aurora:
Even though wasting away day by day is far more dreadful than death, you know?
Aurora:
Ah...more importantly—hurry up and take me—
Aurora:
To the world outside—to the days of being loved by everyone once more—
Aurora:
You live for my sake, do you not?
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I do...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
It would've been fine if I were a creature living for myself.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Because then—I would've kept you alive, no matter the cost.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Because, without you, I would go back to being a lump of flesh. But—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I cannot help but live for your sake. And for that, I cannot bear to bring you into the hell outside.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Ugh...uuuaaaaaaaa—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
—uuuuaaa—aa...a...—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Ah...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Even now, I still remember. It comes to mind, forever and ever.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
The wind that swept across the dark swamp. A dazzlingly brilliant aurora.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
—I swore my life to defend you with everything I had.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I love you, Aurora...I love you, Aurora.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
—Even...even should I lose this form of mine.
Aurora:
—
???:
—aaa—
???:
—AaAaAa, Aa—
???:
—Aaaaaaaaaaaa—
Section 29: A Prophecy
Gordolf:
The density of magical energy in the atmosphere is rising dramatically, and a second highly concentrated magical signature has appeared!
Gordolf:
On top of that, Cernunnos has vanished from the Great Pit!?
Gordolf:
Well, it would be a big help if that's true! Can you explain what the devil is going on, Technical Advisor!?
Da Vinci:
The reason the magical energy density in the air is increasing is because all the fairy corpses are burning up!
Da Vinci:
This isn't going to cause any problems right away, so let's just ignore it!
Da Vinci:
I haven't been able to monitor the second high-energy magical signature yet, so that has to wait too!
Da Vinci:
As for the Great Pit— The Great Pit—
Da Vinci:
Sorry, I don't even know where to begin! All our measurement data is missing for just that spot!
Da Vinci:
It's as if time itself has been rewound around just the Great Pit!
Da Vinci:
Hold on, I'm confirming a space-time ripple on the bridge! Something's coming through! Everyone, brace yourselves!
Fujimaru 1:
We're back!
Fujimaru 2:
What's happening right now!?
Gordolf:
Fujimaru! Kyrielight, Artoria Caster!
Gordolf:
Wait, you came directly back here!?
Gordolf:
No, forget that, give me a report! Make it quick, no more than five minutes!
Fujimaru 1:
...and that's what happened in Avalon.
Da Vinci:
So Muramasa is gone now too, huh...
Da Vinci:
Mash, bring the Round Table Shield to the analysis room. Place the Holy Sword's essence in storage while you're at it.
Mash:
Yes. I'm on my way right now!
Holmes:
Now then, let's take stock of the situation. Very well done, Fujimaru.
Holmes:
The truth behind the birth of the British Lostbelt. What happened to Cernunnos, and the truth behind the Great Pit.
Holmes:
The developments around the Great Pit have been reset thanks to Merlin the Magician.
Holmes:
And then...the Holy Sword forged in the Inner Sea of the Planet, and its guardian, Artoria Caster.
Holmes:
With this much information, we can begin to form a strategy.
Holmes:
Captain, patch me through to Professor.
Nemo Professor:
Speaking~. I've been listening to everything up till now~.
Holmes:
The observation data on the Great Pit is all gone, but we still have the ship's logs, right?
Holmes:
Using those, I'd like you to calculate the time between Cernunnos' appearance and the flood of curses.
Holmes:
Additionally, the battle against Cernunnos is liable to be at close range using Servants deployed on the Border's main deck.
Holmes:
Physical defenses are a given, but take steps to counter magical contamination from curses.
Nemo Professor:
You don't think we can just bombard him using the Storm Border?
Nemo Professor:
I believe that if the target is a large structure, bombardment would be more effective.
Holmes:
We can attempt it, of course. But conventional physical means may not be effective.
Holmes:
It may have the spiritual core of a god, but it's buried under that thick mass of curses it has for flesh.
Holmes:
As long as the curse itself is driven by the flesh, the correct approach would be to “exorcise” it rather than defeat it.
Holmes:
Artoria Caster. Or perhaps Grimm the Wise.
Holmes:
Only a spiritual attack blessed by those two could possibly provide interference.
Holmes:
(Most of all...we're missing the deciding factor after that...)
Holmes:
(I'm sorry, Captain, but we may have to bet everything on sacrificing the Storm Border...)
Nemo Professor:
I see, I see~. It's true the ship is not equipped to perform spellcasting.
Nemo Professor:
Oh, got it. Thirty minutes until Cernunnos appears.
Nemo Professor:
Last time, the Great Pit was overflowing with curses after an additional hour.
Holmes:
There you go, ladies and gentlemen! Win or lose, we have an hour and a half!
Holmes:
Our greatest enemy is of course Cernunnos in the Great Pit. But before that, there is another Calamity that must be stopped!
Holmes:
We cannot afford to let this Calamity escape the island of Britain.
Holmes:
If it does, that means its existence will be accepted as part of pan-human history.
Holmes:
The Calamity is moving from Manchester to Norwich by way of Oxford...
Holmes:
Defeat Barghest quickly, and make preparations for Cernunnos' appearance in the Great Pit!
Holmes:
Neither we nor Britain have time to spare, so the operation begins immediately!
Holmes:
Master Fujimaru, Artoria Caster, and Grimm...
Holmes:
Captain and the Marines, formulate a strategy for defeating Cernunnos here!
Holmes:
Professor and Da Vinci, you two work on the Storm Border's anti-curse barrier—
Nemo:
Wha–!?
Holmes:
What's happening!?
Fujimaru 1:
An attack from outside...!
Fujimaru 2:
Just now, on the monitor
Meunière:
Impact, starboard astern! It broke through our physical defenses in one blow!
Meunière:
The armor's burned through too! Our inner passages have been exposed!
Meunière:
Damn it, we've lost one of the Marines! Damn it...!
Nemo:
—I'll replace him, Meunière, confirm our status first!
Nemo:
Da Vinci, what was that heat signature just now!?
Nemo:
The only way to penetrate the Storm Border's armor should be with a Divine Construct!
Da Vinci:
I've got it! Putting it on the monitor!
Holmes:
That's—
Fujimaru 1:
A fighter jet...?
Fujimaru 2:
No, a dragon...!
Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
It's reached 1200 km/h and it's still accelerating! Whoa, it's bouncing off the magical energy in the atmosphere!
Nemo Marine (Observer, Left):
Mach 1, Mach 2, and still increasing! It's gone supersoniiiiic (in tears)!
Nemo Marine (Observer, Right):
Wait, how can it even maneuver at that speed!?
Nemo Marine (Observer, Right):
Oh no, nononono! It's turning back towards us! It's heading for the booww!
Nemo Marine (Observer, Right):
Impact in 10, 9, 8...!
Nemo:
Increase altitude! Maximum acceleration! If we're hit head-on, the bridge will be torn apart!
Nemo:
Escape into the upper atmosphere right before it changes course!
Meunière:
Woooaaahh!
Meunière:
Urgh, we just barely made it! It just grazed the tip of the bow!
H：Nemo Marine:
Distance from hostile 10—14 km! Ah, it's turning back around again!
H：Nemo Marine:
What should we do, Captain!? It's definitely gonna hit us!
Nemo:
I know, just keep climbing! There's no way we can disengage!
Nemo:
We just have to pray that our altitude limit is higher! Da Vinci!
Nemo:
What the hell is that thing!? Don't you have any new data!?
Da Vinci:
I do! That attack just now wasn't from a talon, it was magical energy expelled from the mouth of the enemy!
Da Vinci:
Barghest wasn't the only one razing the lands of Britain!
Da Vinci:
Breath that can tear up the earth through heat alone, acceleration unaffected by air pressure or temperature,
Da Vinci:
and absurd wings that allow flight that spits in the face of inertia!
Da Vinci:
There's no mistaking it. That's the third Calamity—the pure-blooded dragon, Albion!
Fujimaru 1:
The third Calamity—!
Fujimaru 2:
(So that's Albion, which means...)
Da Vinci:
Albion's pursuing the Border! If the stern is struck by its breath, we're finished!
Da Vinci:
It's sharp enough to cut through our physical defenses like paper, and one hit could sever our engine!
Nemo:
All hands, take a seat and buckle in! Da Vinci, calculate the timing of the next breath attack!
Nemo:
Two seconds before impact, deploy gravity sails to maximum spread and drop the ship!
Nemo:
We'll bounce the ship all over the sky! If we stay still, we're dead!
Nemo:
Then, as soon as we've dodged its breath, we'll level out and maintain altitude!
Da Vinci:
It's coming! It's within range! 6, 5, 4, 3!
Nemo:
Bow up! Deploy the sail! Full tuuuuurn!
Fujimaru 1:
Uwaaaaaaa!?
Fujimaru 2:
The Border is rotating vertically!?
Meunière:
Captain, we're above the sea of clouds! Damn it, we've depleted the magical resources we've been stockpiling up till now!
Meunière:
What now!? We won't be able to avoid the next one!
Nemo:
Tch...
Artoria:
May I? I may be able to stop it as I am now.
Artoria:
But I can't protect the entire ship, and it will only be for a few minutes.
Artoria:
Which part...well, if it's just that one you call the engine section, then I can deploy anti-purge defenses.
Artoria:
Would that be sufficient to overcome this?
Holmes:
That would be very promising. But first I have a question, Artoria Caster.
Holmes:
Why is it attacking us? The Calamities should be destroying the fairies of Britain.
Holmes:
Were we not supposed to be off their radar?
Artoria:
Huh? Uh, well...I don't think I can answer something like that yet...
Grimm the Wise:
It's because we've obtained the means to save Britain.
Grimm the Wise:
As you were before, Chaldea was just a bump in the road as far as the Calamities were concerned.
Grimm the Wise:
But now, Artoria has returned, and we're devising a way to defeat Cernunnos.
Grimm the Wise:
“Fairy of Paradise. ” “Enemies of Britain. ” That's how they sense us.
Holmes:
I see. We were just bystanders before, but now that we've obtained a deadly weapon, we've become suspects...
Holmes:
If that's the case, then it's a different story. It's not after us.
Holmes:
It's after Artoria Caster. So, that being the case...
Fujimaru 1:
I see...Holmes...
Fujimaru 2:
I don't like where you're taking this, Holmes...
Holmes:
Yes. By merely putting Artoria out on the main deck, we can narrow the enemy's focus.
Artoria:
Hah!?
Holmes:
Artoria will raise her hand on the bow deck and draw Albion to her.
Holmes:
When Albion comes in to finish her off, we engage it in close-quarters combat.
Holmes:
I call it Operation Titanic. What do you think, ladies and gentlemen?
Artoria:
How can you even suggest something so ridiculous!? What kind of Heroic Spirit are you anyway!?
Fujimaru 1:
He's the world's greatest detective.
Artoria:
I don't know what that word means! Maybe pan-human history deserves to be destroyed!
Fujimaru 2:
But it's our only countermeasure...
Artoria:
No, even should it take the bait, in that situation I wouldn't be able to put up a barrier to protect the ship.
Artoria:
I can either act as bait for Albion or protect the ship from its breath.
Artoria:
It's one or the other. I can't do both.
Gordolf:
Damn...! I thought we could do this, only to be told it's impossible after coming this far...!
Da Vinci:
Artoria, if something can't be done, say it plainly.
Da Vinci:
At a time like this, it's not a matter of how you feel, it's a matter of carefully measuring your abilities.
Da Vinci:
If Artoria says we can't do it, then we have to give up on the idea.
Percival:
No, it could work. You just need a decoy, is that right?
Percival:
If so, then I'll draw in the dragon. Artoria, please focus on protecting the ship.
Fujimaru 1:
Percival!?
Fujimaru 2:
Weren't you undergoing treatment in the sickbay...!?
Mash:
I'm sorry, Percival insisted on coming up to the bridge...
Holmes:
Your offer is appreciated, Percival. But there's no point in you doing it.
Holmes:
The Calamity is after the Fairy of Paradise. Nobody aside from Artoria can—
Percival:
You're right, but if it's only to act as substitute, I can do it.
Percival:
I hold the Spear of Selection, a tool of the Fairies of Paradise.
Percival:
I'm an artificial Child of Prophecy. There is none more suited for this role than I.
--ARROW--
Narration:
That thing no longer harbored humanoid sapience. This fact did not detract anything in particular from it.
Narration:
The vengeful grudges of the northern fairies, lingering from past ages.
Narration:
A mass of decaying cells expunged from the dragon's skeleton.
Narration:
In other words, a doomsday device meant to incinerate the bodies of the fae.
Narration:
It was no more than an “inanimate object”. Pain is there no more, lament is there no more, love is there no more.
Narration:
The instructions running through its brain were exceedingly simple.
Narration:
“Reason: unknown. ” “Objective: prevent the collapse of the British Island. ”
Narration:
“Target: hostile airborne craft” “Target: bow of hostile airborne craft”
Narration:
“Action: elimination” “Action: extermination”
Narration:
It shot across the twilight sky. The sound of the wind gave way to a cry as it soared.
Narration:
It felt nothing. Nothing at all. No current resembling a humanoid's could be found flowing through it.
Narration:
“Target: acquired. Target: acquired. T a r g e t—”
Narration:
As fluctuations presented itself in its visual information, pain ran through its heart, which should have been a hollow cavity.
Narration:
The figure of the target standing on the bow of the hostile airborne craft appeared so very—
Percival:
Alright...I'm still good to go.
Percival:
I'll pull through somehow...will you watch over me, guys?
Percival:
I understand the plan.
Percival:
I won't be able to move from the bow, so I'll leave the dragon slaying to you all.
Percival:
I'm in no condition to fight, anyways. Being a decoy sounds about right.
Percival:
Come now, don't look so hurt.
Percival:
I'm content with this. The two of you need not worry about me.
Percival:
However...the thing is, I do have a final request to make.
Percival:
I would like to request that you bear no ill will towards Britain and the fairies.
Percival:
There are benevolent fairies and malevolent fairies, just like how benevolent humans and malevolent humans exist.
Percival:
There is no such thing as an evil race, just as there is no such thing as an evil society. Only two alignments.
Percival:
I possess no knowledge of pan-human history. However, I can say this with confidence.
Percival:
Even if this is the end result...
Percival:
No matter how sad it may be, no matter how painful it gets...
Percival:
The Fairy Kingdom of Britain was a beautiful land. A wonderful world.
Percival:
Our Britain is doomed to perish...however, that does not make it a mistake.
Percival:
It is not because this was an evil world.
Percival:
What ought to remain shall remain. What can continue on will continue on.
Percival:
That is all there is to it. That is why I beseech you, hold your heads high.
Percival:
Ours is a world that has arrived at this point after over 10,000 years.
Percival:
It was a premature, incomplete world—however, yours still has a future.
Percival:
Since there is still a future, I would like you to reach it someday.
Percival:
Beyond your own thousands and thousands of years.
Percival:
Reach the destination known as utopia, where all men, all life, will find salvation.
Percival:
Hmm...I suppose it's too little, too late. But I feel like I've said something rather conceited...
Percival:
Well, what's done is done. I was able to make Fujimaru and Mash laugh too!
Percival:
Now then—let's do this. I am Percival, Knight of the Round Table!
Percival:
This is the final defensive, I shall strive to live up to that name!
Percival:
...
Percival:
Nevertheless...this is quite something.
Percival:
Standing atop a flying ship feels like something straight out of a fairy tale.
Percival:
Yes. If all goes well, I shall brag about this to Gareth and the Round Table Army.
Nemo:
—Hostile draconic organism, approaching! This vessel will now proceed to fly parallel to the hostile craft at maximum speed!
Nemo:
Judging from the amount of fuel remaining, we only have one shot at this strategy!
Nemo:
Master, you will deploy all the firepower you can to the utmost with Artoria Caster at its center.
Nemo:
Ten seconds to contact!
Nemo:
—This marks our first battle against a Calamity, best of luck to everyone!
--BATTLE--
Mash:
The hostile draconic organism has withdrawn from the deck! We weren't able to defeat it...!
Nemo:
No, we cannot let it escape...! There won't be a next time if it retreats here!
Nemo:
We have to finish it off no matter what...! Engine, get us more speed!
Nemo Engineer:
That's fine and all, but the Border won't hold up, you know!? It's going to get all warped, starting with that exposed part on our starboard!
Nemo Engineer:
We're done for if the ship's keel gets warped, Captain Bastard!
Nemo:
Damn it all, what a disaster! We're letting it go—all because of my inadequacy...!
Fujimaru 1:
—No...
Fujimaru 2:
We'll settle this...
Nemo:
Huh? But we no longer possess the means.
Mash:
—Not to worry, Captain. Please maintain our current speed.
Mash:
She will fall here. Because Britain's strongest knight stands on the bow of this ship.
Percival:
Should Queen Morgan fall, you would be free...
Percival:
The role of a Fairy Knight binds you.
Percival:
I once thought as much. For that reason alone, I established the Round Table Army.
Percival:
That's right, I—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Who even swings a sword around while crying? Come on and take a break, Percival.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
You're doing well. Far better than those fairies lounging about.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
I'm so proud of you. As expected of the child who persevered to the end of the selection process—
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Jeez, why are you crying even harder!? Ah...I see, that wasn't very nice of me...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Sorry for being such an insensitive sister...You see, I don't have a good grasp on human emotions...
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Of course you wouldn't. After all, you were the only one chosen.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
You were so close with the rest of them. You had no choice but to get stronger, even if it brought you pain.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Alright, in that case, I also have something I can teach you.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
It's fine even if you feel an obligation towards your friends, even if you can't come to love yourself.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Someday you will find something you deem even more precious than yourself. After all, it was the same for me!
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
Don't forget this, Percival.
Fairy Knight Lancelot:
No matter how horrible a world this Britain may be, if you can find even one thing you can love, then—
Percival:
Yeah...
Percival:
And for that, I have deceived many. I shall accept my punishment here.
Percival:
—Holy Lance, call to order.
Percival:
O Spear of Selection, if you will, deliver unto me righteous judgement for my deeds.
Narration:
The Spear of Selection pierces through the heart of the dragon carcass.
Narration:
The dragon carcass loses its strength and falls. The knight's body shatters, unable to endure the ensuing deterioration.
Narration:
His end is reflected in the eyes of the falling dragon.
Dragon Corpse:
—a—aa, a—a—
Dragon Corpse:
—Percival—Percival—
Dragon Corpse:
—Perci—val—
Dragon Corpse:
—my—
Dragon Corpse:
—little brother—
Narration:
Pain shoots through its hollow heart. The sound of the rushing wind being engulfed in flames, in that moment, resembled the sound of tears.
--ARROW--
Gordolf:
Well done, all of Chaldea. The same goes to you, Artoria Caster of Britain!
Gordolf:
But we cannot afford to pat ourselves on the back just yet! Technical Advisor, I want a report on our current situation!
Da Vinci:
The Storm Border has sustained extensive damage on its starboard side. Furthermore, significant loss of fuel has occurred due to our battle just now.
Da Vinci:
We'll need to keep the Border stationary in midair while we refuel and repair the armor.
Da Vinci:
Assuming we can extract the atmospheric mana,
Da Vinci:
it will take at least 20 minutes to repair the ship. I'd like to have 30, if at all possible.
Gordolf:
O-oh, that long!? Please do something about that!
Gordolf:
Administrative Advisor, how are we looking!? What do you make of this time loss!?
Holmes:
20 minutes have passed since we engaged the Flame Calamity.
Holmes:
30 minutes to go until the Storm Border is once again ready for combat.
Fujimaru 1:
Cernunnos surfaces in 10 minutes...
Fujimaru 2:
And in an hour, the curses will overflow, so...
Holmes:
That's correct. We won't be present when Cernunnos surfaces. However, we do have a grace period of 40 minutes until the terminal catastrophe.
Holmes:
Our prospects are looking good, provided it's only about defeating Cernunnos. However—
Holmes:
The problem is the other Calamity, Barghest.
Holmes:
She's razed Oxford to the ground and should soon arrive at Norwich, with a pack of Black Dogs in tow.
Holmes:
The Storm Border is not capable of simultaneously taking them both out. If we wish to eliminate them, we will have no choice but to split up.
Grimm the Wise:
Truth be told, I think it'd be wise to give up on that one. As they say, we've got bigger fish to fry.
Grimm the Wise:
The Great Pit brings a Calamity of global proportions, while the Black Dog is one that razes cities.
Grimm the Wise:
The world won't end even if we let her be.
Holmes:
I am of the same opinion, Grimm the Wise...
Holmes:
Once she heads out to sea from Norwich, Barghest will be perceived as a Calamity by pan-human history.
Holmes:
Of course, the fairy Barghest from English fairy folklore will be treated differently as a result of that, but...
Holmes:
We can deal with that Calamity in the future. It is not our current priority by any means.
Mash:
No, please wait! I request a separate deployment!
Mash:
I understand our priorities. That all our resources should be focused on Cernunnos.
Mash:
Even so...even so, I beg you! Please, let me head out!
Mash:
I can't allow Barghest to become an enemy of pan-human history!
Mash:
Besides...besides, Norwich is Boggart and Barghest's hometown.
Mash:
To have her destroy it with her own hands is far too—
Gordolf:
Kyrielight—
Fujimaru 1:
Mash—
Fujimaru 2:
Well, I guess you have a point.
Gordolf:
Are you up for it, Fujimaru...?
Gordolf:
Mash Kyrielight is your personal Servant. If you decide you're up for it, I shall grant permission.
Gordolf:
We still don't know the sort of Calamity that Barghest has turned into...
Gordolf:
The battle will be a fierce one. You are aware of that, I presume?
Fujimaru 1:
Naturally.
Gordolf:
Very well! Holmes, devise a strategy! I don't care how reckless it is!
Gordolf:
Within the time it takes for the Storm Border to depart for the Great Pit, that is!
Gordolf:
Furthermore, Artoria Caster will remain on the Border!
Gordolf:
Should you fail to return, she will be our trump card against Cernunnos.
Gordolf:
Rather...Artoria Caster and Grimm, as well as the Storm Border.
Gordolf:
As long as these three are present, it should be possible to eliminate Cernunnos.
Gordolf:
If you fail to make it in time for our take-off, we'll leave you behind without a second thought.
Gordolf:
Listen up, be sure to return immediately should it turn out to be a lost cause! And you must be sure to be punctual!
Gordolf:
For the first time, I will not abide any rule-flouting on this matter. Consider yourselves stuck in a cell all week long should you break that rule!
Fujimaru 1:
—Yes, sir!
Holmes:
—Goodness gracious. The bar has been raised on the difficulty of this mission.
Holmes:
Nevertheless, I do prefer difficult cases over simple ones. I will respect the choice you've made.
Holmes:
I figured this would be the case, so I finished the Shadow Border's maintenance while you were descending down the Spirit Cave.
Holmes:
As for its driver...
Holmes:
Mister Meunière, may I request you drive again?
Meunière:
S-sure, leave it to me! I've gotten used to being airdropped, anyways!
Holmes:
Then it's decided. The ones who will purge the Calamity at Norwich will be our elite force,
Holmes:
[♂ Mister /♀ Miss] Fujimaru and Mash Kyrielight.
Holmes:
The operation time will be 30 minutes. We cannot afford to spare more time than that.
Holmes:
We will catapult the Shadow Border and have it land close to Norwich.
Holmes:
Once you have eliminated Barghest, the two of you will make your way to the rendezvous point via the Shadow Border.
Holmes:
The Storm Border will retrieve the Shadow along with its personnel and make its way to the Great Pit.
Holmes:
Is there any problem, Da Vinci?
Da Vinci:
No, that's perfect. I wanted some extra time too on a separate matter.
Da Vinci:
After a scan, I've found a reason to go to Salisbury regardless.
Da Vinci:
I have to go and get something I forgot. I left Tifone behind at Mike's tavern.
Da Vinci:
Recorded in it are a bunch of memories of our trip. I'd like to retrieve it if possible.
Fujimaru 1:
Speaking of Mike's inn, Habetrot's also there!
Da Vinci:
Oh, of course...she's been made to play a difficult role.
Da Vinci:
Once it has launched the Shadow Border, the Storm Border will head for Salisbury.
Da Vinci:
We'll have the ship stand by above Salisbury while I personally head down to pick Habetrot up at the tavern.
Da Vinci:
After that, the Border will head for Norwich's vicinity where we will await your arrival.
Nemo:
Looks like that settles it. Then let's commence the operation.
Nemo:
The Marines will work with Engineer and Nurse to repair the starboard armor!
Nemo:
As for the separate detachment, hurry up and board the Shadow Border! The ship will continue to head in Norwich's direction until launch preparations are complete!
Nemo:
Once the Shadow Border has been launched, we will steer towards Salisbury and send Da Vinci down!
Fujimaru 1:
Roger that! Please stay safe, Da Vinci!
Da Vinci:
No need to worry, I know Mike's tavern like the back of my hand!
Da Vinci:
Let's meet up later, Fujimaru! I believe you'll stay safe!
--ARROW--
Narration:
Curse you. Curse you. Curse the Fang Clan.
Narration:
One day, a beast will be born among you. A Black Dog, stronger than all others, born in the shape of a person.
Narration:
“Oh, it's your reward for exorcising the Mors King. Accept it gratefully. ”
Narration:
One who harbors the Wild Rule. One who lives by the law of the jungle.
Narration:
A disgusting, otherworldly fairy who lives off of that which they love.
Barghest:
Uuurgh...aaah...aaaaaaaa...
Barghest:
Uuurgh...Aaaaah, ah—Uuuaaaaaah...!
Narration:
She sobbed as she devoured the flesh of the fairy she loved.
Narration:
This time it was a new one, not of her clan, but derived from the young of the forest.
Narration:
It was a rugged, splendid fairy, one stronger than she was. She recognized it with a single glance, became infatuated, and made love to him.
Narration:
She loved him truly, from the bottom of her heart. That's why, she thought, this time it wouldn't happen.
Barghest:
Aaah...Aaah...Haah...Aaaaaah—
Narration:
Her appetite was relentless.
Narration:
She vomited it back up many times in self-loathing, but her mouth, throat, and gullet were slick with rapture.
Narration:
Delicious. Pitiful. Despicable. Because she truly loved it, the meat was especially delectable.
Narration:
It had been 400 years since she was born into Britain.
Narration:
Her mind had long since collapsed, her predation a mixture of love and joy, of grief and pain.
Narration:
Every time she lost a lover, she pondered commiting suicide, but abandoned the idea.
Narration:
Dying would be easy. But then, everything she had ever done, every act she had taken, would be boiled down to her appetite.
Narration:
Her first prey. The citadel lord Foul Weather. It was only to save Britain that she ■■■■ed him.
Narration:
She took that superior Mystery into her own flesh, and waged war on the Calamity.
Narration:
It was her nature to love the strong. To make it her flesh and blood in order to do so.
Narration:
That is the law of the jungle.
Narration:
So long as she lived eating that which she loved, dying merely because she wanted to was unacceptable.
Narration:
As long as she was born strong and brought up as a daughter of her Clan, she had to take responsibility for snatching them away.
Narration:
As long as there were those who believed in the Child of Calamity, she had to exemplify justice more than anyone else.
Narration:
That pride was the only thing that held together her shattered heart.
Barghest:
Aaah...Aaaah...Aaaaaaah...!
Narration:
Even so, she had reached her limit here.
Narration:
There was no way an abomination like her should be allowed to live.
Narration:
She sobbed while pulling out her blade, trying to end her own life—
Boy with a Cane:
Hello? Is there someone crying out here?
Narration:
In the year 2,000 of the Queen's Calendar, she met a sickly human child.
Barghest:
Haah...haah...haah...
Barghest:
Manchester...Manchester...I have to...hurry...
Barghest:
Manchester's fairies...to Chaldea—
Barghest:
To get him...to give Adonis...a little more time—
Narration:
It had been 17 years since she met him that day...
Narration:
The days since then had been happy ones.
Narration:
For the first time, she knew peace and happiness.
Narration:
“Loving only the strong...” She was confused, yet happy to know love that ran against that rule.
Narration:
He was obviously weak. There was no way he would become her prey.
Narration:
For she who ate the strong in order to become stronger,
Narration:
that love was proof that she was no beast, and she took solace in that.
Narration:
And so she swore to protect him at all costs...
Narration:
She decided to fight for that beautiful heart.
Narration:
The coexistence of humans and fairies. An equal relationship.
Narration:
Even if it was difficult for the entirety of Britain, she thought it would be possible within her own territory.
Narration:
The fairies of Manchester agreed with her. They were all too happy to emigrate to pan-human history as well.
Barghest:
...Britain...is done for...
Barghest:
The Mors have overrun Camelot...and soon they will take the other cities...but...
Barghest:
I have to gather all the citizens of Manchester and make it to the shoreline where Chaldea is before that...
Barghest:
...I can't go with them...but at the very least—
Narration:
She went through the forest, arriving at the streets of Manchester.
Narration:
However...
Barghest:
—What?
Narration:
What she beheld was the fairies of Manchester, laughing as they ■■■■■■ the humans.
Fairies:
Clean them out, clean them out! We're moving soon, so let's clean out all the old playthings!
Fairies:
It's fun to pluck off all their limbs! It's fun to yank out their guts!
Fairies:
That first scream is the best! None of the later ones measure up!
Fairies:
■■■■, ■■■■! Let's finish before Barghest comes back and finds out!
Fairies:
If she finds out we've been hiding them in the sheds, she'll get furious!
Fairies:
If she finds out we've been ■■■■-ing them in the shed every day, she'll swoon!
Fairies:
Loving Barghest! Gluttonous Barghest!
Fairies:
“Why didn't you let me in on it too?! ” She'll beat us all!
Barghest:
—What...the—
Barghest:
—What are you— —What are you all doing—?!
Narration:
She screamed at the citizens who had become monstrous fairies. They sneered back at her, laughing.
Fairies:
What? It's just like you and your plaything! We all know about it!
Fairies:
We saw what's in the mansion! We know what you were hiding!
Fairies:
What fun, playing house! What a lovely story!
Fairies:
Every day seemed so fun! We're just imitating you!
Barghest:
Killing humans? This is...imitating me...?
Barghest:
Killing humans—I...killed—
Barghest:
Ah. —Ah...ah—
Fairies:
You were so nice to him! You treasured him!
Fairies:
Barghest ate him! She ate him in the back of her mansion!
Fairies:
It was so, so funny! So we did it too!
Fairies:
Fun fun fun, more fun than watching! It's such fun to ■■■■ humans!
Barghest:
A—AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
Barghest:
Uurgh...Urraaa...Uaaaaaaaaaah...!
Narration:
I dreamt of the “act” several times.
Narration:
I am crying. I am sobbing while that which is my lover is being ■■■■■.
Boy on the Bed:
You're crying again, ■■■■■■■■. Now now. Come here.
Boy on the Bed:
Just tell me what happened to you today. It's okay if you cry.
Boy on the Bed:
It's going to be fine. No matter how pitiful it was, I won't hate you.
Narration:
I ■■■ only the strong. So there is no way I would ■■■ him.
Boy on the Bed:
Hey, when you have a rough time, you should talk about something you like. How about your beloved Knights of the Round Table?
Boy on the Bed:
The flotsam that washed ashore in the Changeling. Showy, prideful, and rather lonesome.
Boy on the Bed:
The story of those gallant knights you so adore.
Narration:
But I had long since been broken. Strong or weak made no difference.
Boy on the Bed:
Look at the garden. The flowers you planted are coming in beautifully.
Boy on the Bed:
You put in a new one for me today, since I can't walk.
Narration:
A vile beast, wanting only to ■■■ that which I loved.
???:
Taking your life to atone for your sins? I know how you must feel, but take a step back.
???:
It would be lamentable if the most virtuous fairy of all forfeited her life.
???:
I'll make a contract with you, Barghest. It's still a little too early for you to succumb to the curse.
???:
I'll put a lid on this memory. He can live on in your heart as long as you like.
???:
Oh? If it gets to be too much, come back to this room. You can relive his final days in your dreams.
Fairies:
Now let's go, let's go! Let's jump over to the outside world, where there are a lot of humans!
Fairies:
Fun, fun! It's sure to be ten times as much fun!
Fairies:
Let's play, let's play! Let's have fun with the humans! We read all about them in the flotsam!
Fairies:
All about those things called demons!
Barghest:
—, —
Narration:
—I had to kill them, I thought.
Narration:
I was mistaken. I was mistaken about what I had to protect. From the very beginning, there was no justice on this island.
Barghest:
—aah, Aah—
Narration:
“You must take responsibility. They must never leave this island. ”
Fairies:
Look everyone, Barghest is laughing! That ever-hilarious drama is about to begin again!
Fairies:
Crybaby Barghest! So happy, she's crying!
Fairies:
What will your prey be this time? Don't be stingy, let us have some too!
Narration:
“Kill every single one of these evil creatures. ”
Spriggan's Guardsman A:
Whoa, another tremor!? Even the Vault Fortress is no good! It's all over for Norwich!
Spriggan's Guardsman B:
Let's get out of here! If we stay here, we're dead! We'll be chewed up along with the city walls!
Spriggan's Guardsman A:
What about Lord Spriggan!? Shouldn't we take him with us!?
Spriggan's Guardsman B:
Who cares!? He's shut himself in the treasury! He's no lord of mine anymore!
Spriggan's Guardsman B:
Fine, I'm opening the doors! Once we get outside, we'll head for the harbor!
Spriggan's Guardsman B:
If we make it out to sea, at least we won't burn—
Spriggan:
Escaping? You fools, where exactly are you going to leave this work of art for?
Spriggan:
My Vault Fortress will not fall.
Spriggan:
Britain's strongest iron tower, built over 100 years of reinforcing the bell tower.
Spriggan:
I don't care how many Mors are outside, this tower alone will stand!
Spriggan:
Waah, stop, please! This is going too far!
Spriggan:
What if all the art I've collected is damaged!? Who's going to compensate me!?
Spriggan:
Nobody will! Yes, nobody! Even Morgan didn't understand the value of these items!
Spriggan:
Imitating these is unthinkable! True, 90% of it are empty and shallow fakes.
Spriggan:
But the remaining tenth—yes, miraculous works of art to be found in the mud!
Spriggan:
There was 'art' that could even be likened to truth! There was a magnum opus that could only have been born in this country!
Spriggan:
Yes. Yes, that's it!
Spriggan:
If you know not of its value, then that's fine. It's utterly ridiculous to converse with the mediocre over every little matter!
Spriggan:
Britain's works of art belong to me. That is all I have lived for!
Spriggan:
Ever since that day, ever since that night. Ever since that moment I strayed into this world!
Spriggan:
My very soul has grown fascinated with this world! To collect these treasures is my reason to live!
Spriggan:
I shall not let anyone else have it! I shall not hand it over to another soul!
Spriggan:
I would much rather have Britain be destroyed than give up on this vault!
Spriggan:
Damn it, that's enough! What am I, jinxed? What on earth is—
Spriggan:
—Dear me.
Spriggan:
Dear me...
Spriggan:
No...no. How volatile of me.
Spriggan:
I did say I'd rather have it be destroyed...but even madness will die down if one were to gaze upon that thing.
Spriggan:
Goodness gracious...Not only did I misjudge my business partner, but to think I'd even lose my momentum in breaking it off.
Spriggan:
Yes. I did want a moronic puppet. However, even that has its limits.
Spriggan:
There's nothing more unmanageable than a stuck-up snob. And that makes me the clown for looking down on it.
Spriggan:
However—
Spriggan:
To think that Britain's end would come not at the hands of Queen Morgan or Chaldea, but on the whims of a foolish woman.
Spriggan:
No matter how prosperous we may be, our starting foundations are small.
Spriggan:
And so we collapse all so easily from the bite of a small insect.
Meunière:
Alright, nice landing! Norwich is straight up ahead, let's floor it!
Meunière:
The temperature outside is the same as Manchester, over 1000℃! There are Black Dogs everywhere!
Meunière:
Fujimaru, I'll repeat the instructions Holmes gave!
Meunière:
Given our prior engagements with Barghest and our encounter at Manchester,
Meunière:
humans with low magic resistance will have their life sucked out just by approaching her!
Meunière:
In other words, you can't stand on the front lines! You will have to make do with remote summonings from inside the Shadow Border!
Meunière:
Barghest's magical energy devouring has a range of 1 km in radius! This is our first time summoning at this distance!
Meunière:
According to Nemo Professor's calculations, the summoning limit is one Servant! Two if you're pushing your limits!
Meunière:
Nemo Nurse also had something to say! 'Fighting by summoning two Servants earns you a ticket to the brig! '
Fujimaru 1:
Roger that, I'll summon two Servants...!
Fujimaru 2:
I'll do my best to support Mash.
Mash:
...! Please do, Master!
Meunière:
Well, you won't listen anyway! I'll let Nurse scold me right alongside you then!
Meunière:
—Whoops, a high-grade magical signature has been confirmed! 6 km ahead, smack dab in the middle of Norwich!
Meunière:
I'll put the feed from our long-distance scope up on screen! That's Barghest right now—woaaaah!?
Meunière:
She's over 40 meters tall!? And eating thunder to boot!
Meunière:
We don't stand a chance against that monster without the Storm Border!
Meunière:
It's not too late, want to turn back!?
Meunière:
Holmes said so too, didn't he? In the worst case scenario, we don't have to deal with this one!
Mash:
—No. We'll go, please let us go!
Mash:
There is no need to fear that thing! Barghest seemed stronger before!
Meunière:
Seriously? Barghest's amazing! Damn it, Fujimaru, you're fine with this, right!?
Meunière:
If you won't hit the brakes, we have no choice but to go for it!
Fujimaru 1:
Keep going straight.
Fujimaru 2:
Be careful, Mash!
Mash:
Understood! Opening hatch, starting magical energy reinforcement of the legs. Mash Kyrielight, here I go!
--BATTLE--
Fujimaru 1:
...!
Meunière:
Fujimaru, get a hold of yourself! This is why I told you not to push yourself!
Meunière:
I've been monitoring it too, but it's a lost cause! Not just its battle prowess, but the way it consumes magical energy is anathema to mages!
Meunière:
There's no way we can win with just Mash alone, let's withdraw! Contact Mash right away and—
Meunière:
—What's happening? Mash's shield is glowing...?
Meunière:
Hmm? There's a new Saint Graph signature?
Meunière:
I'll put the Saint Graph data up on the screen, Fujimaru. Do you recognize it?
Fujimaru 1:
This is...
Fujimaru 2:
No doubt about it...!
Meunière:
What are you suddenly standing up for—wait, did you just inject yourself with an active ampoule like an idiot!?
Meunière:
You're still pressing on!? Didn't they tell you the limit is two Servants!?
Fujimaru 1:
Yeah, because—
Fujimaru 1:
That's Mash's fight!
Mash:
The flames scorching the city...the demonic hound that incinerates fairies and devours black smoke and lightning...
Mash:
You've completely turned into a different creature, haven't you...?
Mash:
Your eyes can no longer tell that this city is Norwich, nor do you remember your own name...
Mash:
An opponent I lack the means to defeat...Your average Heroic Spirit would only end up as its prey...
Mash:
Even so! I cannot afford to lose to you, not in this city!
Mash:
For those who held you in high regard! For those who wished to return to this city!
Mash:
Your—no, the shield of the Knight of Righteousness that you so admired is right here!
Mash:
Rob, Wag, Winky...
Mash:
The 'me' they believed in is, by no means, someone who would falter in a place like this...!
Mash:
I am the Knight of Sheffield, Mash Kyrielight!
Mash:
A member of the Round Table! The one who will purge the Calamities and save Britain!
Knight of the Sun:
A most excellent speech. Not one filled with rage against the enemy, but a cry meant to inspire oneself.
Knight of the Sun:
Having those words reach me, I could not possibly restrain myself.
Knight of the Sun:
It may be a nuisance to suddenly have me acting like your senior, but I beg your understanding in that regard.
Knight of the Sun:
May I join you on the battlefield, Dame Mash?
Mash:
—
Knight of the Lake:
To think you would beat me to the punch, Sir. And here I thought protecting the beautiful damsel was my role.
Knight of the Lake:
—But it would appear I have made a hasty call in that regard as well. She has no need of an escort.
Knight of the Lake:
That fighting spirit, such bravery, truly she is like spring thunder. She stands out, even among our ranks.
Knight of the Lake:
I won't let you monopolize the privilege of fighting alongside her, Sir Gawain.
Knight of the Lake:
Even should she call me a doting parent for it.
Mash:
T-this feels like parents' day, Father!
Mash:
N-no, that's not what I meant. How did the two of you make it here!?
Mash:
Heroic Spirits of pan-human history are unable to be summoned to this Britain...!
Knight of the Sun:
That appears to be the case. However, we also appear to be exceptions.
Knight of the Sun:
There must have been individuals in this country who received our names.
Knight of the Sun:
If they've been using them freely, then it stands to reason that there'd be place for us as well.
Knight of the Sun:
Well, it's like trading existences, so to speak.
Knight of the Lake:
Hmm, I have no way of knowing who received my name, but—
Knight of the Lake:
I'm grateful for their foolhardiness, or rather, their great efforts. Thanks to them, I stand now on the greatest of proving grounds.
Knight of the Lake:
This Saint Graph won't last for more than a few minutes, but that will suffice. I'll leave the left foot to you, Gawain.
Knight of the Lake:
Our opponent is a demonic hound, much like Cath Palug. This is no time to be feuding.
Knight of the Sun:
Right back at you. Be sure not to fight rashly just because you're in front of Dame Mash.
Knight of the Sun:
There are three Knights of the Round Table present here. Defeat is out of the question.
Knight of the Sun:
Let's go, my fellow Round Table comrade! Let us carve open a path for the knight of the shield with our own hands!
Knight of the Lake:
On it! Lancelot shall hereby sally forth!
Mash:
Thank you, both of you!
Mash:
Please bestow upon me the power to defeat her...no, the chance to save her!
Mash:
Her name is Barghest, a most loyal knight who protected this Britain.
Mash:
One who fulfilled her duty as one of the powerful, one who wished for the survival of the weak.
Mash:
The Black Calamity. The head of the pack of fairy-eating beasts.
Mash:
As one of the Round Table—I will halt her advance here!
--BATTLE--
Meunière:
High-grade magical signature...disappeared...
Meunière:
The flames shrouding Norwich have disappeared as well, as has the black smoke...
Meunière:
She did it, Mash did it, Fujimaru! She purged the Calamity! That's impressive!
Fujimaru 1:
Hehe, my kouhai's amazing, isn't she?
Fujimaru 2:
Yeah...she really did her best.
Meunière:
No, you were cutting it close too...! Two remote summonings, and back-to-back at that...!
Meunière:
That's enough from you, fasten your seatbelt and take a nap!
Meunière:
Ten minutes to go until we rendezvous with the Storm Border. Mash should be back soon...
Meunière:
Alright, we'll make it just in time! Relax and lie back!
Fujimaru 1:
In that...case...
Fujimaru 2:
This was...a little demanding...
Peperoncino:
I wonder why I always know what you're aiming for.
Peperoncino:
The both of us are fundamentally awful people. We thought more about the end than the journey.
Peperoncino:
Make sure you remember that. Don't let your guard down until it's all over, alright?
Mash:
Haa—aaa.
Narration:
The battle came to an end. The Calamity had been purged by the Knights of the Round Table.
Narration:
On the verge of death, what appeared to be tears could be seen in the red eyes of that titanic demon hound.
Narration:
Were they tears of suffering, or tears of gratitude? I hope they were tears of suffering, but we'll never know.
Mash:
Thank you, Sir Gawain and Sir Lancelot...
Mash:
I was able to display it at the very end, thanks to your efforts.
Mash:
Display righteousness by vanquishing evil...The figures of the Round Table Knights that she longed for.
Narration:
Nevertheless, the price of victory was far too great.
Narration:
The report of the night Sheffield fell mentioned signs of the Shield of the Round Table initiating consecutive summonings.
Narration:
The Fairy Kingdom imported the title 'Knight of the Round Table' and gave it recognition.
Narration:
Therefore, the existence of the Knights of the Round Table was permitted in this Lostworld.
Narration:
That was the greatest advantage possessed by Galahad—no, Mash Kyrielight.
Narration:
The summoning itself was performed by the Round Table and the Heroic Spirits that appeared were constrained by time limits.
Narration:
Even if there was no contractual price to pay, Mash's stamina and vitality would still be scraped off.
Mash:
Bodily functions, diminished by fatigue, but no lasting damage...no respiratory impediments either...
Mash:
Thank goodness...I'll be able to return to action after a short rest.
Mash:
Oh, I have to contact Meuniére.
Mash:
I will return to the Shadow Border in three...no, four minutes. Please stand by—
Narration:
In her current state, it would take around three minutes for Mash to recover her stamina and magical energy to a level where she could resume operations.
Narration:
She would be able to return to their vehicle—this so-called Shadow Border—sitting two kilometers away in less than a minute.
Narration:
—However...
Mash:
—?
Narration:
Little Red Riding Hood, beware the big bad wolf.
Narration:
If you fall asleep now, the wolf will come and get you.
Fujimaru 1:
Look out, Mash—!
Fujimaru 2:
Oh no you don't, Beryl!!
Mash:
Senpai...!? No, why are you here!?
Fujimaru 1:
I had a bad feeling about this, so I dashed here!
Fujimaru 2:
I don't need a reason! End of story!
Mash:
No, you should be receiving treatment right now! Master, get behind me!
Mash:
Thanks to you, I've recovered my stamina at breakneck speed! Thank you for warning me!
Beryl:
Fuuuuuu—huuuuuu—
Beryl:
Haaaaa—......AAah
Beryl:
You can't possibly be this much of a killjoy. You actually rushed in from over there.
Beryl:
You're a lousy Master. Didn't they teach you to stick to the rear?
Beryl:
The tasting I've been saving for this moment's been ruined, all thanks to you. Haahaa—damn it all.
Beryl:
To think I'd screw up like this. Looks like I'm losing my touch, huh?
Fujimaru 1:
—(What a rancid smell...)
Fujimaru 2:
That body's already...
Mash:
Beryl Gut...so you're still alive.
Beryl:
Oh, I couldn't possibly go and die on you. After all, I still have a reason to live.
Beryl:
Isn't that right, Mash?
Beryl:
I do apologize...I've been neglecting you for so long.
Beryl:
I haven't grown tired of you or anything like that. It's just there are a lot of things that keep getting in my way, you see.
Beryl:
Not only can we not be together, just like we used to back then,
Beryl:
you've also gotten so lively, moving around and all...
Beryl:
Just as the doctor expected. I do miss that infirmary at Chaldea.
Beryl:
You seemed so bored. So out of compassion, I gave you some stimulation.
Beryl:
Even if you don't have human emotions, pretty much everyone responds to pain.
Beryl:
The sound of fingers breaking, the sound of pain leaking out, they all reverberated so well.
Beryl:
Like a concert hall before a performance. It was just me and Mash, just the two of us in the whole world!
Beryl:
Haa...my head hurts. What the hell is happening?
Beryl:
Doesn't matter. The Doctor isn't here. There's another obstacle, though...
Beryl:
But whatever, I'll take care of that in no time...sorry for making you wait so long.
Fujimaru 1:
What the hell are you—
Fujimaru 2:
Are you saying...
Beryl:
What? I'm talking about love, you know, love.
Beryl:
I just want to love Mash. Not kill her. So please, get out of my way.
Beryl:
Hey Mash, won't you talk to me? We're just having a conversation.
Beryl:
This is an expression of my love.
Mash:
Yes...you never had any hostile intentions, no desire to kill me.
Mash:
In the infirmary, when you were breaking my fingers...you even tended to my body.
Mash:
You listened intently to my voice as I responded to the pain.
Mash:
You—said that was love.
Mash:
That the figure of someone suffering in pain, rather than rejoicing with happiness, is what strikes a chord in you.
Fujimaru 1:
—Beryl, you're—
Fujimaru 2:
That's not love you're feeling.
Beryl:
But of course. We're all only human. There aren't many people we can call kindred spirits.
Beryl:
The same goes for hobbies and tastes. To understand each other is—
Beryl:
Ahh...damn it all. I wanted to spend more time, but...
Beryl:
My head's burning up here. The Mors curse is getting to me.
Beryl:
But that's fine. All it means is that I won't be able to act human anymore.
Beryl:
I'll have my bride before that happens. You can give me your blessings, kouhai.
Beryl:
Feel free to save the world. We all have our hobbies.
Beryl:
I don't get it myself, but I won't stop you. So—
Beryl:
Don't get in my way. —Don't get in the way of someone's love.
--BATTLE--
Narration:
Beryl Gut was a mage, but his primary occupation was that of a killer and his raison d'être alike was to kill.
Narration:
He learned black magic from his mother, who was one of the 'rejects' of the magical world—
Narration:
A creature known as a “witch”.
Narration:
For the Mage's Association, “female mages” are not classified as “witches”.
Narration:
“Witches” are inhuman beings.
Narration:
The founders of a faculty in the Mage's Association...the department of witchcraft and pharmaceuticals, Yumina.
Narration:
Supernatural beings involved in the establishment of the First Magic.
Narration:
However, “witches” are no longer involved with the Mage's Association.
Narration:
One after another, with the development of civilization, those women changed their forms and way of being.
Narration:
Beryl Gut's mother was one of them.
Narration:
There are many ways in which “witches” change themselves.
Narration:
There are those who returned to the earth, those who returned to the past, and those who joined the First.
Narration:
For mages, these changes were akin to miracles and are held in awe.
Narration:
On the other hand, there are also “witches” who immersed themselves in human society and became “human”.
Narration:
These fallen “witches” receive neither reverence nor pity.
Narration:
No matter what magecraft they possess, no matter how much Mystery they hold, no mage will acknowledge these women as people.
Narration:
An “unsightly reject”. That is the fate which awaits those witches who survived until the present day as humans.
Beryl as a Boy:
Hey, old hag. Why do witches die when they fall in love with humans?
Narration:
Beryl once asked the “witch” he called Mother this question.
Narration:
His mother, who in her robes could have been mistaken for a giant toad, said:
The Grime Witch:
Kihihihihihi, that's simple, kihihihihihihihi!
The Grime Witch:
Because it dilutes the blood. Because it rots the soul.
The Grime Witch:
Kihihi, kihihihihihihihi! We are fairies, we do not birth children!
The Grime Witch:
I am my own daughter! Kihihi, kihihihihihi! Kihihi...hi...hihi...
The Grime Witch:
But I am a hopeless failure! I failed, I failed!
The Grime Witch:
Aaa, aaaaaaa, aaaaaaaaaaa! How did I even end up like this!
The Grime Witch:
Please take me back, please take me back! Please take me back to how I used to be!
The Grime Witch:
I envy Meinster, I envy that girl! Can Yumina's direct descent get away with anything?!
The Grime Witch:
Even though I failed, even though I was deceived! Aah, if only I had never met a man like that!
The Grime Witch:
If only I had never gotten involved with humans! I wouldn't have had to give birth to a child like you!
Narration:
After those words left her mouth, “Mother” hurriedly apologized to Beryl.
The Grime Witch:
It was a slip of the tongue...it was a mistake. I'm sorry, Beryl. My dear, cherished boy.
Beryl as a Boy:
It's alright, old hag, I understand. I know you didn't mean it.
Beryl as a Boy:
If you cry that much, your starry eyes will go to waste, you know? That part of you alone is more beautiful than anyone else.
The Grime Witch:
Beryl...! Thank you, thank you...!
The Grime Witch:
You're the only one on my side...you're the only one I live for...
Narration:
Beryl Gut learned a variety of witchcraft from his “mother” who hid from human society.
Narration:
An insidious ritual. A witch's cauldron that crossbreeds organisms.
Narration:
It is not clear to what extent these techniques, which in essence use “life as an ingredient”, affected Beryl's personality.
Narration:
Hunting prey, concealment of oneself, lethal poison, malignancy of karma, amplification of pain, loan of misfortune.
Narration:
Beryl preferred magecraft oriented towards assassination and torture, and his mother was more than happy to teach him such things.
Beryl:
You have nothing left to teach me? I see. That's unfortunate, Mother.
Narration:
Beryl crushed his mother's eyes and left the forest behind.
Narration:
After that, he lived free. He enjoyed life as a mage specializing in murder.
Narration:
But he went way too far, and it became hard for him to live, even in the underbelly of society.
Narration:
While he was looking for a place to belong, he was scouted by the Director of Chaldea, Marisbury Animusphere.
Narration:
And then, he made Chaldea's Antarctic base his third home.
Narration:
There, he met a creature so unsightly he couldn't believe his eyes.
Beryl:
Oh man, are you for real? What the hell is that?
Beryl:
Isn't Chaldea supposed to be a humane organization for the preservation of the Human Order? Does stuff like that fly here, Doctor!?
Narration:
By unsightly, it was not in reference to one's appearance. By unsightly, it was in reference to one's way of life, one's way of being.
Narration:
She wasn't complete. She was as a premature baby. “She's just like a balut,” Beryl laughed.
Narration:
On top of that—
Beryl:
Her name. What's that girl's name, Doctor?
Beryl:
That girl is special. I guarantee it because I've given her a thorough appraisal.
Beryl:
No matter how premature she may be now—in time, she will be more beautiful than anyone else.
Narration:
Beryl Gut had a talent for “growing flowers”, perhaps stemming from his mother's teachings.
Narration:
Even if it looked shabby now, in ten years time, it would blossom into a beautiful flower.
Narration:
Convinced of that, Beryl decided to watch over the flower's growth. His boring days became rather enjoyable.
Beryl:
But you know, to tell the truth, I'm not much of an artist—
Beryl:
Whenever I visit a new country, I always drop by its art museums.
Beryl:
I've seen landscapes and paintings well-received by everyone, but none of them moved me in particular...
Beryl:
Of course, I knew they were well made. But that's the extent of it.
Beryl:
I “don't know what is beautiful”. I always thought of myself as being that kind of guy.
Beryl:
But—
Beryl:
—I've fallen in love, Mash. I was finally able to confront myself with that.
Beryl:
I won't hurt you because I hate you, or because it's fun.
Beryl:
I will hurt you because you are precious to me. Because I love you, I will hurt you to love you.
Beryl:
That is who I am.
Beryl:
You only realize something is beautiful after it has been tarnished.
Beryl:
I will protect you.
Beryl:
From everyone. From everything. From the Doctor, too. I won't let Marisbury have his way.
Beryl:
I won't let them carve a Sirius Light onto you. I made that a condition for becoming part of their cleanup crew.
Beryl:
Please...just remember this.
Beryl:
As long as you're here, I won't die. A world with you in it is one I enjoy.
Beryl:
You don't believe me, do you? I'm the same. I can hardly believe it.
Beryl:
You're the most important thing to me in the entire world.
Beryl:
That's why—
Beryl:
That's why...it's okay, right Mash? I really want to see you suffer, no matter what.
Doctor:
Beryl Gut—!
Narration:
Beryl Gut was temporarily detained and his means of access to that facility confiscated.
Narration:
These events occurred a year before that fateful day, when the A-Team conducted their first Rayshift experiment.
Beryl:
—Oh, that's odd.
Beryl:
Why am I being beaten, Doctor...? Are you going to take it away from me again?
Beryl:
Please wait, you can't do that. I haven't realized it yet.
Beryl:
It's because they said you'd be here that I agreed to something as stupidly tiresome as coming back to life.
Beryl:
It's all so I could see you— so I could see you—
Fujimaru 1:
If you get any closer...
Fujimaru 2:
...
Mash:
It's fine...please leave him be, Master. He can no longer do anything.
Beryl:
Yes...you have fine eyes. Your eyes, they're so beautiful...
Beryl:
You need to take good care of them...you only have two of them...take good care...
Beryl:
You don't have to run...I'll protect you...
Beryl:
—I love you.
Beryl:
—I love you, Mash.
Beryl:
—I love you, Mash. From the bottom of my heart.
Mash:
Yes. I'm sure that is truly the case. But—
Mash:
I do not understand your love.
Mash:
Perhaps no one ever will, Beryl Gut.
Beryl:
—
--ARROW--
Da Vinci:
The Shadow Border is headed towards Norwich. I'm up next. I'll be back in twenty minutes.
Gordolf:
U-understood. I hear Salisbury is the most peaceful city in Britain.
Gordolf:
I doubt you'll run into any danger there, but...are you sure you don't want any escorts?
Gordolf:
Captain and the Marines have their hands full with the Storm Border's repairs, but...
Gordolf:
How about asking Grimmlainn or Artoria Caster to help?
Gordolf:
W-well, this is a tough call to make, but depending on the circumstances, Holmes or even I can accompany you.
Da Vinci:
You would, Gordolf? You hate Singularities, don't you?
Gordolf:
I hate both Singularities and Lostbelts! I don't even want to imagine getting off the Border!
Gordolf:
But I can't afford to say something like that this time. Let's just say I have a bad feeling about this...
Da Vinci:
You're such a worrywart. I'm glad you feel that way, but I'll get things done faster on my own.
Da Vinci:
They think I'm a fairy over in Salisbury. Besides, I know the place well.
Da Vinci:
Not to mention, there's only one jet backpack. I'll be down in a jiffy, head over to the tavern,
Da Vinci:
and I'll be back with Habetrot in tow.
Da Vinci:
I'll be off, then. Captain, please take care of the Storm for a while.
Nemo:
Got it. I may be the captain, but you're the brains behind this ship. I pray for as swift a return as possible.
Da Vinci:
Oh c'mo~n, Professor can handle it just fine. Captain, you charmer.
Da Vinci:
But I'm glad you're counting on me! If you're going to go that far, I'll just have to come back right away!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
The city is burning...it's been burning for a long, long time now...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Lady Aurora's Voice of the Wind is nowhere to be heard...everyone in the city's changed...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Of course...I knew it...deep down inside, everyone envied each other.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Pretending to laugh while glaring daggers...secretly ridiculing while acting sad.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
That's the sort of creatures we are...so it's inevitable. This was inevitable.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
It's gotten so quiet in the tavern...even though everyone shared so much laughter here...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
No one's coming anymore...Britain is...coming to an end...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
But it's fine...things are just going back to how they used to be...after all, this is how my tavern used to be...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Gloomier than the shops on the main street...mediocre and boring...just like me...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
The last few days have been so fun, so special...almost like a lie.
Da Vinci:
Whew! Somehow, I managed to get here without being spotted!
Da Vinci:
That was a close shave, a close shave indeed. Gordolf was right! Salisbury is smack dab in the middle of civil war!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Ah! Dabinchi! Dabinchi, you're back!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Wooooo, hooooooo! Thank goodness, thank goodness! You're safe!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
There was this terrible incident at the cathedral, wasn't there? I was so, so worried...!
Da Vinci:
Yeah, I'm back, Mike. I'm glad you're safe too.
Da Vinci:
Well, I wasn't that worried, though.
Da Vinci:
Your place is built well. And most importantly, you lean on the cautious side, Mike.
Da Vinci:
I knew you wouldn't go out and riot like the other fairies, or be led astray by rumors.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
O-oh, t-that's right, of course not! I was in the kitchen the whole time, thinking up a new menu!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Come and see, Dabinchi. This one's amazing!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
The buckwheat flour that arrived from Norwich lets you bake the bread dough just slightly!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Add in a bunch of ingredients to it, whip some cream onto it, a bit of ham—
Da Vinci:
Really, Mike? That's a galette!
Da Vinci:
This is something not even Norwich, which had freed itself from the Queen's yoke, discovered!
Da Vinci:
You've been going through trial and error on your own, haven't you? Speaking as a teacher, I couldn't be happier.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
—Yeah. Yeah, that's right. You're right. I did my best.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
It was hard, but fun. It was difficult, but fascinating.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
It's like an entirely different world compared to when I had nothing to do. I won't let them call me useless-Mike anymore.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Thanks to Dabinchi, I've become a full-fledged fairy.
Da Vinci:
You exaggerate. You were always a hard worker, Mike.
Da Vinci:
I'm sure you would've livened up the tavern eventually, even without me.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
—Dabinchi? Where are you going? Do you have business on the second floor?
Da Vinci:
Yeah, I came here to pick up something I forgot.
Da Vinci:
I need to pick up Tifone and Habetrot, then immediately return to the ship.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
—Return?
Fairy Tavernkeep:
...to where?
Da Vinci:
Our ship is parked in the sky above. After this, we're off to go exterminate the Calamity.
Da Vinci:
Speaking of which, Gordolf will scold me for this, but why don't you tag along, Mike?
Da Vinci:
There's no sign of the riots outside dying down, is there? If it's just you, it won't hinder the operation any.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
N-no...I'm good here. Here's fine.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
T-the tavern's got a basement. It's safe there, no matter what happens.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
It's safe...this place is as safe as it gets.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
There's no need to go out...you can just stay here forever.
Da Vinci:
Habetrot, are you awake!? She's still conscious!
Habetrot:
...hnn...aaa...
Habetrot:
Ah...that voice, you're Da Vinci, aren't you? I figured you'd come pick me up.
Habetrot:
I really wanted to head over there myself, though...well, no matter.
Habetrot:
I can tell by the look on your face. We can spare ourselves the explanation.
Da Vinci:
I suppose so...
Da Vinci:
How did it come to this? For what reason was this choice made? I can hardly tell.
Da Vinci:
But, after scanning the entirety of Britain with the Border, I can only come to that conclusion.
Da Vinci:
Will you help us...?
Habetrot:
Of course. After all, keeping myself awake the whole time is hard.
Habetrot:
I'm sorry, but you're going to have to take me with you. My body isn't listening to me.
Da Vinci:
That's the plan.
Da Vinci:
Thank you for everything, Habetrot. You truly are a guardian of brides.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
I know, Dabinchi...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
That while you're not a human, you aren't a fairy either.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Fujimaru and the others probably don't know...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
That you may be stronger than humans and fairies...but your lifespan is so, so short...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
That the end...is coming soon...
Da Vinci:
Alrighty, Tifone II has been retrieved! I took longer than expected, I need to hurry!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Then, you should just stay here forever.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
That's right, you should be able to live a little longer than if you go outside.
Da Vinci:
Sorry about the commotion, Mike! But you were a great help!
Da Vinci:
Not just today, but for everything up until now.
Da Vinci:
If I hadn't met you, our journey would've been a far more difficult one.
Da Vinci:
Thank you for listening to me that day. Tavern life was so much fun.
Da Vinci:
I'll tell you this, because this may be the last time...
Da Vinci:
You're a far more wonderful person than you think you are, Mike.
Da Vinci:
Even happier days await you down the line.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
—
Da Vinci:
Alright, take care then! I'm off to save the world!
Narration:
■■■■■■■■ turns on her heels, back towards the exit. Her defenseless back faces me.
Narration:
If I don't do anything here, ■■■■■■■■ will leave. She will leave. She will leave.
Narration:
I'll go back to being that old, boring me once again.
Narration:
I don't want that. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm so, so scared. I'm so scared that I can't stand it.
Narration:
I need ■■■■■■■■. She should stay here.
Narration:
She'll live longer that way. So, so...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
—aaa—aaaaaa...!
Fairy Tavernkeep:
aaaaa...aaaaaaa—
Narration:
The door opens. She's walking away.
Narration:
The kitchen knife I'd been hiding behind my back falls to the ground.
Narration:
Drenched in my own tears, I stare at her back as she walks away.
Narration:
That's right. ■■■■■■■■ is...Dabinchi is only Dabinchi because she's free.
Narration:
She's Dabinchi because she dares to go anywhere.
Narration:
She shines so dazzlingly precisely because she broadens her horizons and chases her dreams the best she can in what little time she has.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Uuuuuuu...uuu...!
Narration:
So I have to see her off. I have to keep smiling to the very end.
Narration:
Up until now, I was able to get anything and everything in the Fairy Kingdom. I thought it was a world of dreams, but I was wrong.
Narration:
A true 'dream' is something you cannot obtain. That is what makes every day painful yet fulfilling.
Narration:
It's what makes you feel like giving it your best to go on living. Even in a world that's about to meet its end soon.
Narration:
Even for dreadful monsters like us fairies...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Yes...yes...
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Farewell, my friend from a faraway world.
Fairy Tavernkeep:
Thank you for coming to Britain— Thank you for coming to my tavern—
Fairy Tavernkeep:
—Thank you for these wonderful, dreamlike days.
Narration:
The angel's wings go on forever and ever.
Narration:
Straight through that perilous city. Racing towards the other side.
Nemo:
Mash, Meunière and Fujimaru, who headed for Norwich.
Nemo:
Da Vinci, who headed for Salisbury.
Nemo:
Both detachments have completed their missions and have successfully regrouped.
Nemo:
We will hereby set a course for the Great Pit. However, before we do that—
Nemo:
Commander Gordolf, please sign off on the operation, if you will. We do have that much time.
Gordolf:
U-understood. After all, it's important to sign off! Thank you for your heartfelt attentiveness!
Gordolf:
To the Lostbelt Investigation Unit, pride of Chaldea. And to our local allies!
Gordolf:
I hereby announce the start of our campaign to eliminate Cernunnos at the Great Pit!
Gordolf:
It is expected that this shall be our final battle in Britain. There is no need to take any further combat into account.
Gordolf:
With all your might...your trump cards, so on and so forth...
Gordolf:
I'd like you to give it all you've got! Because you lot tend to have things like that up your sleeve!
Gordolf:
No surprises this time! We will certainly eliminate Cernunnos, as planned.
Gordolf:
After all, we have already been crushed once!
Gordolf:
Although we were saved by that mangy Koyanskaya...
Gordolf:
According to Da Vinci, her Saint Graph signature has not been detected.
Gordolf:
We believe she has already fled Lostworld Britain! Hmph, that's a load off my shoulders!
Gordolf:
Listen up, this is our second and last chance! I don't want to hear third time's the charm!
Fujimaru 1:
Roger that...!
Fujimaru 2:
I'll do my best!
Gordolf:
Good. Administrative Advisor, the details of our strategy, if you will.
Holmes:
Understood, Commander Gordolf.
Holmes:
We have completed repairs on the Storm Border. There will be no issues with cruising and combat.
Holmes:
On the other hand, 20 minutes have passed since Cernunnos surfaced in the Great Pit.
Holmes:
Although it'll take another 40 minutes for the Calamity Hands that assaulted us the last time to overflow from there...
Holmes:
It is expected that Cernunnos will undergo changes, just like the Flame Calamity that attacked the Storm Border.
Holmes:
To be more specific, I refer to the manifestation of its defensive mechanisms.
Holmes:
There is a high probability that the Calamity, having sensed that we possess the Divine Construct known as Artoria Caster in our midst, will intercept us.
Holmes:
It is impossible to evade a plethora of curses of that scale.
Holmes:
Therefore, we will focus everything on our anti-curse layer defense and take it head-on. Is this correct, Grimm the Wise?
Grimm the Wise:
Yeah. On the deck I'll set up a meditative field—a “fountain”.
Grimm the Wise:
I am still the God of Wisdom, for the record, even if only as a proxy. If I really focus on it, I can consecrate the entire ship.
Grimm the Wise:
I can't block Albion's heat rays, but spiritual interference is another story.
Grimm the Wise:
I'll handle Cernunnos' wrath—his curses. We're from the same place, so I'll at least hear his complaints out.
Holmes:
With Grimm the Wise's assistance, the Storm Border will get as close as it can to Cernunnos.
Holmes:
Last time, Camelot was destroyed 50 minutes after Cernunnos surfaced. We will eliminate him before that happens.
Holmes:
Our combatants will be Fujimaru, Mash, and Artoria Caster.
Holmes:
Naturally, Grimm the Wise will be on the deck. If needed, we Chaldean Servants will also participate.
Holmes:
The battle can take no longer than 30 minutes, starting now. This is a battle with a time limit.
Holmes:
Master Fujimaru, be sure to keep that in mind.
Nemo Marine:
We've passed Oxford! Cernunnos will be in sight in 5 minuuutes!
Nemo Marine:
You sure we should keep going like this~!? Should we take a little detourrr!?
Holmes:
That won't be necessary, Marine. Get ready, Grimm the Wise.
Holmes:
We will hereby commence the purging of the final Calamity!
--ARROW--
Fujimaru 1:
...
Fujimaru 2:
(We're almost at the Great Pit...)
Artoria:
Are you nervous?
Fujimaru 1:
Yeah, I am...
Fujimaru 2:
Embarrassingly enough...
Artoria:
Me too! I mean, we're going to be fighting a god!
Artoria:
We're talking about a god, you know, a god! As far as unreasonable opponents go, that's the highest grade!
Artoria:
While I may say that, I'm just a neophyte who learned about pan-human history at the Site of Selection.
Artoria:
You're used to this sort of thing though, right? You must have seen this kind of scenery many times already.
Fujimaru 1:
I have...
Fujimaru 2:
It's always like this.
Artoria:
—I see.
Artoria:
Hearing that is a relief. It's okay to be nervous.
Artoria:
Well, I'm going to be the one dropping my staff or something, so when that happens, please coolly back me up.
Fujimaru 1:
Haha, that does sound like you, Artoria.
Artoria:
Yep! It's not like you can do everything alone! Even if I fail, the people around me will definitely help me out!
Fujimaru 1:
...
Fujimaru 1:
So, did you find your reason?
Artoria:
No. That alone, I couldn't. It's frustrating, but I couldn't find a single, convincing reason.
Artoria:
But, that's okay. I don't know the reason why, but—
Artoria:
There seems to be someone who knows the reason why 'I'm trying this hard'.
Artoria:
Oh, that's right, that's not what I wanted to talk about.
Artoria:
Fujimaru, I'd like to thank you while I have the chance.
Artoria:
We will be parting ways after we defeat Cernunnos. I'll be going back to Avalon.
Artoria:
I am the 'remnants' of the last work that Muramasa undertook.
Artoria:
Once I use up my magical energy, my role will end, and I will fall into a deep slumber.
Artoria:
Just like how your King Arthur slumbered on her journey to Avalon,
Artoria:
so too shall I return to Paradise after I have exorcised the Great Calamity.
Fujimaru 1:
I see...
Fujimaru 2:
For a moment there, I thought you'd
Artoria:
Yes. It's clear where I must return to. It has been ever since I dedicated myself to the Site of Selection—
Artoria:
No, ever since I drifted ashore.
Artoria:
However, it would be far too unfair to leave it at that.
Artoria:
I've been in your care for so long. Allow me to return the favor.
Artoria:
For us Fairies of Paradise...saving Britain meant denouncing the false Britain...and restoring it to how it should be.
Artoria:
But, that wasn't the case for you. You wanted to save Britain, even if it happened to be a fake.
Artoria:
That's why—I'd like to share the same goal as you, at least once.
Artoria:
As long as you persevere and hold onto hope, the 'Fairy of Paradise' will answer you.
Artoria:
Next time, not to save Britain, but to save the world...
Fujimaru 1:
Yeah...surely one day.
Artoria:
By the way, I have a question for you, Fujimaru.
Artoria:
What has been the most enjoyable part of our journey for you so far? Please leave Manchester out of your answer.
Fujimaru 1:
That came out of nowhere...
Fujimaru 2:
Umm, in that case...
Fujimaru 1:
The revealing of the Child of Prophecy in Salisbury?
Fujimaru 2:
The diving incident at the Dracae river?
Fujimaru 2:
That 'thing you should never have made' in Edinburgh?
Fujimaru 1:
What about you, Artoria?
Artoria:
Me? Let's see, as for me...
Artoria:
The chocolate making got me fired up, but Norwich shocked me...
Artoria:
As for my happiest moment, that would be fourteen days after we met, in the forest of Wales.
Artoria:
My third handshake with you!
Artoria:
“But on top of that, I want to help the Child of Prophecy too. ” Whew, now that was smoooooth! Woo~hoo~!
Fujimaru 1:
— (blushes)
Fujimaru 2:
You actually remember that!?
Artoria:
Yes. That's why, please accept this. This will be the last time.
Fujimaru 1:
Our fourth handshake...
Fujimaru 2:
Thank you for everything, Artoria...
Nemo:
Distance to Cernunnos, 5000! We're dropping altitude and closing in now!
Nemo:
Two minutes to engage! Remain seated with your seatbelts fastened until then!
Fujimaru 1:
Alright then, see you later!
Artoria:
Although...what I really enjoyed was the eleventh day, at Gloucester.
Artoria:
It might have been nothing special for you.
Artoria:
But for me, for the first time in my life, I could walk down the main street with someone I love.
Nemo:
Entering Cernunnos' estimated vantage point! —Lookout, report!
Nemo Marine:
There's movement at our destination! Multiple magical readings from the bottom of the Great Pit—
Nemo Marine:
Cursed Hand, incoming~~! Anti-curse layer,[r]anti-misfortune barrier, deplooooy!
Nemo Marine:
Woah, can this really block it!? It looks like the Niagara Fallllls!
Grimm the Wise:
Leave it to me, I'll push it all back in one go!
Grimm the Wise:
I hereby speak of life through death!
Grimm the Wise:
O Well of Mimir, leyline of the mistletoe! Sever the past and be the branch that grows into the future!
Grimm the Wise:
Forbid all foolery for nine days! Surpass the twilight—Great God Altar: Gambanteinn Valhalla!
Nemo Marine:
Amaaaazing! That hand turned into light and disappeared, right down to the stem!
Nemo Marine:
A second wave appears to be on its way, but we shouldn't be in any danger.
Grimm the Wise:
Guh...! Damn it, he sent a curse right back at me...!
Grimm the Wise:
Hey, as you can see, there won't be a next time! Finish it in one go, Chaldea, Fujimaru!
Holmes:
Of course we shall!
Holmes:
The armoring can protect us, but it cannot shield us from the magical pollution in the atmosphere.
Holmes:
Master Fujimaru will contribute to the battle by way of summoning from the bridge.
Holmes:
At the same time, he will continue to supply Mash Kyrielight with magical energy!
Holmes:
We will now launch the Servant offensive!
Holmes:
Our target is Cernunnos of the Great Pit! We shall completely eradicate Britain's Great Calamity here!
--BATTLE--
Fujimaru 1:
We should've beaten it, but...!?
Fujimaru 2:
It's not working...at all!?
Meunière:
Cernunnos has regenerated immediately following the termination of his magical signature! No external damage observed!
Meunière:
It didn't work, he's not stopping! We just peeled off a bit of his skin!
Meunière:
Mash! What's the reaction on your side!? Have you noticed anything!?
Mash:
Yes...!
Mash:
We've defeated Cernunnos several times, however, there appears to be no lasting damage!
Mash:
In all likelihood, it's propagating curses faster than we can damage it!
Mash:
What we're seeing now is a carcass bloated with curses...
Mash:
I don't think we can purge this Great Calamity unless we attack the source of the curses...!
Grimm the Wise:
Well...this about takes care of the first aid.
Grimm the Wise:
Whew. A god's still a god, even when he's rotting. No, it's even harder to get rid of him now that he's that way.
Grimm the Wise:
He has a divine core, I realized that after fighting him.
Mash:
A divine core...are you talking about a Divine Spirit's soul? But, Cernunnos is already dead—
Grimm the Wise:
Something must have entered the coffin that is his core. An extra special sacrifice. Something that cursed the fairies.
Grimm the Wise:
With that sacrifice, Cernunnos was rebooted as a carcass and surfaced.
Grimm the Wise:
No point in chipping away at the skin, we have to blow that whole thing away along with its core.
Fujimaru 1:
But, we don't have that sort of firepower—
Grimm the Wise:
We do, actually. It's been there for a long time now.
Grimm the Wise:
The 12 Holy Lances mounted at the gate of Camelot. If we can activate them, we can defeat Cernunnos.
Grimm the Wise:
This is what we must fight for.
Grimm the Wise:
It's not enough to just prevent Camelot's destruction.
Grimm the Wise:
Our role is to hold the line here against Cernunnos and send the Keeper of the Holy Sword to the throne.
Grimm the Wise:
And we've already done that. All that's left is to see this journey through to the end here.
Mash:
Eh—
Fujimaru 1:
—Wait a minute.
Fujimaru 2:
Mash, where's Artoria...?
Mash:
She's not here...Artoria isn't here!
Mash:
She was gone from the deck by the time I realized—
Fujimaru 1:
—So that's...
Fujimaru 1:
So that's why earlier—
Fujimaru 1:
Mash, we're going on the defensive...!
Mash:
Right! We'll do what we can—
Mash:
Reengaging Cernunnos! I will block all of his attacks!
Narration:
Camelot has become a castle of death.
Narration:
There are no fairies. There are no humans. No corpses. No Mors.
Narration:
She dashes through corridors now devoid of all life and majesty.
Artoria:
Haa, haa, haa, haa—!
Narration:
She had jumped off the Storm Border and landed on an intact part of Camelot's ramparts.
Narration:
And now, she was making her way towards the throne.
Artoria:
It's probably this way, it's got to be this way...!
Artoria:
I've been here with Fujimaru once, I've got to trust my gut, I can't stop—!
Narration:
She runs to the point of losing her breath. The battle she had just been in had not tired her out as much.
Narration:
What hurries her is the giant beast outside the castle, separated by just a single layer of wall.
Narration:
The silent curses of the deity, Cernunnos, almost seem suffocating.
Artoria:
I can tell, it's coming, it's coming...! Crawling up from the bottom of the pit...!
Narration:
Camelot had fallen to the curse that had come crawling out of the Great Pit before the visit to the Spirit Cave.
Narration:
The curse has been there for an hour since Cernunnos appeared.
Narration:
There is little time left. Ten minutes at best, five at worst.
Narration:
She has to reach the throne and analyze the mechanism behind Morgan's throne before that.
Narration:
And then, readjust it for her own use.
Artoria:
Haa—haa, haa, haa—!
Narration:
In the past, she would've tried to find a different way after dismissing this as 'impossible'.
Narration:
But now, she knows she can do it.
Narration:
After returning from the Site of Selection, she is no longer who she used to be.
Narration:
More than half of her is now an existence of fantasy.
Narration:
A king who will one day draw the Sword of Selection, and with the Holy Sword in hand, guide Britain into a new age.
Narration:
She can feel that she is now a part of that concept from pan-human history, that way of being.
Artoria:
I'm not at the center of the world, but rather, at its edge.
Artoria:
Like a lighthouse at the farthest reaches, even should time end—
Narration:
She remembers the words the mage had once said...
Narration:
A nostalgic fairy tale. The story of a nameless person, composed of countless hopes.
Artoria:
This is it, this crossroads, I remember it! Then, up ahead is—!
Narration:
Morgan's throne.
Narration:
The masterpiece of Tonelico the Savior, holding the magical energy collected from fairies all throughout Britain, that which controls the Holy Lance.
Artoria:
Haa—aaa. Haa...haa...haa...
Narration:
Behind the throne is a terrace overlooking the Great Pit.
Narration:
And there lies a deity who 'simply exists'. A towering 14,000 year old carcass.
Artoria:
—Haa.
Narration:
She chokes on her breath and recoils in the face of that sinister figure, at the meaning behind that 'silence'.
Narration:
The god is justified in its wrath. The god's curses are righteous.
Narration:
He was killed by the fairies. He reached out with good faith and was rewarded with deception.
Narration:
His beloved priestess was deprived of both her life and her sanctity. For 14,000 years, the sinners had prospered.
Narration:
The Calamities were not born of hatred. They were 'obligations' stemming from anger and grief.
Narration:
“These creatures must not be left to their own devices,” he said.
Narration:
He tried to close the lid on the world, as one who once spared their lives.
Artoria:
—Nonetheless, you are mistaken, after all.
Artoria:
If you think Britain is a land of sinners, if you think that's all it amounts to...
Artoria:
A system is needed to atone for sins, not just punishment. The time to allow for sinners to atone is long since due.
Narration:
She connects her consciousness to the throne. Becoming one with the 12 Holy Lances installed in front of her.
Narration:
Crawling. Crawling.
Narration:
Crawling up from the bowels of the earth with lightning speed.
Narration:
Foreseeing the end of the curse, its nullification, countless grudges crawl up. As if to say “we won't let you”.
Narration:
The deaths of fairies, accumulating for 14,000 years, emerge as a torrent.
Artoria:
Amazing...she really was a genius.
Narration:
However, rather than feel rushed, she instead feels awe towards Morgan.
Narration:
Not just for her power as a fairy, but also for her idea of turning the entirety of Camelot into a Mystic Code.
Narration:
Despite the scale of the formula, there is not the slightest mistake whatsoever in the magical circuit connections and magical energy circulation.
Narration:
Truly a genius on the level of the divine. The greatest of all the Fairies of Paradise.
Narration:
The issue being, this mechanism was developed on the premise that it would be used by that genius.
Artoria:
Uuu...ahh—!
Narration:
An excess of magical energy runs throughout her body.
Narration:
She lacks the circuits required to make use of all 12 turrets, and so sparks of magical energy flow out from the throne.
Narration:
Her blood vessels expand, and it permeates her nerves, bones, and flesh from the inside.
Narration:
Her consciousness fractures. Her eyeballs rupture. Her respiratory tract burns and her knees are on the verge of giving out.
Artoria:
—But with this—
Narration:
She was convinced that she could do it. This time, she won't run.
Artoria:
Spirit Vein obstruction-type armament— Rhongomyniad: loading. Round Table Holy Lance, 12 units anchored in parallel.
Artoria:
Anti-Calamity Grand Ritual, open! O Spear of Salvation, be the rain of Orkney—of the farthest end—that washes away all sin!
Artoria:
Gah...!
Narration:
The firepower was plenty. It was powerful enough. It had enough power to reduce even the walls of Camelot to ash.
Narration:
But it still wasn't enough. It wasn't strong enough to purge the accumulated curses.
Narration:
If the fairies had been here, they would have probably laughed.
Narration:
Laughed at how the weapon Queen Morgan prepared had failed to kill the god.
Artoria:
That's not it...! I just haven't mastered it...!
Narration:
Squinting those eyes that no longer worked. Swallowing the blood that had welled up in her mouth.
Narration:
Her anger was not directed at the fairies, nor was it directed at Cernunnos.
Narration:
It was directed at herself, for being reluctant to pay the price. Even now, she had set aside enough power to return.
Artoria:
To hell with wanting to stay a little longer...! I've already had plenty of that...!
Narration:
She was supposed to have disappeared at the Site of Selection.
Narration:
The fact that she came this far was because one of her travelling companions offered his life to give her a little more time.
Artoria:
—All of it. The 'me' standing here, the 'me' who once stood here.
Artoria:
I will offer it all up. That's why I've come this far.
Narration:
The Holy Lance Rhongomyniad is Morgan's magecraft. It's only natural she could not fully use it.
Narration:
She cannot use the Holy Lance. But she can make use of its structure.
Narration:
If the Holy Lance is a turret, then all she has to do is load a different ammunition into it.
Narration:
Right now, she is the “concept of the Holy Sword”. In that case, the formula to load is—
Artoria:
Connect the circuit from the throne to this heart...
Artoria:
Switch the magical energy source from Camelot to the Avalon le Fae.
Artoria:
Switch from Spirit Vein obstruction-type armament— Rhongomyniad— to Dragon Vein incineration-type armament—Excalibur.
Narration:
Tens of trillions of cells burning in pain. Enough pain to scorch the universe.
Narration:
The Cursed Hand, its innumerable fingers, reach the throne room's terrace.
Narration:
For a moment, her thoughts, accelerated by the pain, stretch into eternity.
Narration:
And calmly, gently, they replayed the memories of what was once her.
Artoria:
—Morgan, my archenemy in a distant world.
Narration:
She recalls Norwich.
Narration:
“I should have done this. I should have done that. ”
Narration:
Such regrets did not come to mind. Instead, she recalled a dazzling scenery.
Artoria:
—I couldn't beat you. I never did beat you.
Artoria:
I couldn't assert myself through power. I couldn't find the words to retort either.
Narration:
But she was bestowed with a chance. At the very end, the last bit of magical energy still left in that body.
Narration:
Using all of it, she had a chance to show who she is.
Fujimaru:
Did you find your reason?
Artoria:
—No, I didn't become the ideal me.
Narration:
But here she stands. Not a ruthless Queen who continued to protect this throne.
Narration:
But rather, a great and respectable Savior. To reward that life.
Artoria:
I will do now what you should have done 2,000 years ago!
Narration:
She holds her head up high against the towering sin. The last of her power as the Fairy of Paradise.
Narration:
Including all the magical energy that gives her form.
Artoria:
Holy Sword, draw—!
Artoria:
O revered deity, forgive us our transgressions!
Narration:
—There was only one thing left behind.
Narration:
A staff of mistletoe, its purpose fulfilled, sat on the winter throne like a sword.
Nemo Marine:
12 supreme grade magecraft reactions detected in front of Camelot. 12 simultaneous shots confirmed! They've hit the target!
Nemo Marine:
Cernunnos' Saint Graph signature has gone from negative to positive!
Nemo Marine:
90% of the external curse layer has evaporated and come off! Something's visible, something's visible!
Nemo Marine:
That's the divine core! You can really feel the divinity from it!
Fujimaru 1:
That's—
Fujimaru 2:
The core of Cernunnos...!
Gordolf:
Well done, Artoria Caster! But—
Gordolf:
Isn't the flesh around it writhing? Doesn't it look like it's trying to regenerate!?
Nemo Marine:
Yep, it's started regeneratiiinng (cries)! Even Rhongomyniad couldn't beat it!
Nemo Marine:
360 seconds until Cernunnos returns to its original state! What do we do, what we we do, Captain!?
Nemo:
If that is indeed the divine core, then it cannot be destroyed with this ship's weapons.
Nemo:
—Da Vinci, order the crew to abandon ship.
Nemo:
Use the Shadow Border. The Nemo Series and I will be the only ones staying behind on the bridge.
Nemo:
As soon as we confirm the departure of the crew, we will accelerate the Storm Border to maximum speed and ram into him as a kinetic weapon!
Gordolf:
A-a suicide attack!? Don't be stupid, I won't let you do that! What a waste!
Nemo:
There's no time for debate. Fujimaru, you need to hurry and—
Da Vinci:
No, that won't be necessary.
Da Vinci:
Our mission ends once Cernunnos' divine core has been exposed.
Da Vinci:
Hurry to the deck now, Fujimaru. Mash is waiting for you.
Da Vinci:
Your Command Spells will be needed for the slaying of a god—You understand what I mean, don't you?
Fujimaru 1:
Ah...—Yes!
Mash:
—The divine core of the target has been exposed, but at this rate it'll quickly—!
Mash:
The opening Artoria gave us...there was a way to make use of it...
Mash:
If only I—if only I hadn't been afraid back then...
Mash:
If only I hadn't run from my choices, from my responsibility, this wouldn't be...!
???:
It's so frustrating it makes you want to cry, doesn't it? I get it. You were running from the fight back then.
???:
No matter how gallant and courageous you try to be, you're a person who's fundamentally averse to conflict.
???:
That still hasn't changed, but—what lies beyond your gaze has changed.
???:
You've gained the will to fight, the heart to fight. So there's no longer any need for me to be safekeeping this.
Mash:
Eh—?
Mash:
You're—Habetrot?
Habetrot:
Yes. This is something that was once used at the castle of Sheffield. Something you turned your back on.
Habetrot:
Something that should not be in this Britain. Something precious that signifies who you will become.
Habetrot:
You call it the Black Barrel, right? Don't forget this time, Mash.
Mash:
—
Tonelico:
We are simulations projected by the Fantasy Tree, in a 'what-if' world.
Tonelico:
Mash did not exist in the actual Fairy Calendar, only Galahad did. That is the premise we will work on.
Tonelico:
Both you and I must not remember anything regarding Mash.
H：Totrot:
No! I don't want to forget Mash!
H：Totrot:
Mash will be in danger again in the Queen's Calendar, won't she? I need to be there for her!
H：Totrot:
Tonelico, you'll be there in the Queen's Calendar too, won't you!? I'll do something about it too!
H：Totrot:
The coffin of ice! I'll ask Grimm to make me one just like Mash's!
H：Totrot:
Because I haven't kept our promise yet! I'm going to make an astounding wedding dress for Mash!
Tonelico:
All fluctuations will disappear with the advent of the Queen's Calendar...
Tonelico:
You cannot overcome time itself. Not with your memories intact.
Tonelico:
Even I cannot. It would end up causing a paradox.
Tonelico:
If this knowledge carries over to the 'me' from the Queen's Calendar, 'I' would cease to be me.
Tonelico:
We have no choice but to forget Mash.
Tonelico:
However...if you survive until the Queen's Calendar, and wish to remember her...
Tonelico:
Be prepared for that.
Tonelico:
As long as you possess memories of Mash, you will be someone who 'should not exist'.
Tonelico:
Your history will disappear the moment Mash is sent away from Norwich.
Tonelico:
The name of the first Fairy Knight will be lost to everyone.
Tonelico:
Do you understand? No one in the Queen's Calendar must know that you are the first Fairy Knight.
Tonelico:
If even one person recognizes you as Totrot, you will disappear from the Queen's Calendar.
Tonelico:
You, who originated from a Lostbelt—a fantasy— cannot exist within a Singularity—a reality.
Tonelico:
That's why...I will erase all of Mash's memories of you.
Tonelico:
Memories starting from when she met you at the city of Sheffield in the year 2017 of the Queen's Calendar, to the moment she enters her coffin.
Tonelico:
If she has no knowledge of even that, you should be able to act even in the Queen's Calendar.
Tonelico:
Do you understand? Once Mash is freed of the coffin, you mustn't interact with her under any circumstance.
Tonelico:
If she happens to remember you, you will disappear from the Queen's Calendar.
Tonelico:
Just like a Midsummer Night's Dream. When the morning lark cries, you will awaken from your dream.
Mash:
Totrot—no, Habetrot...!
Mash:
How could I have forgotten!? I'm sorry, I'm sorry...!
Mash:
But I'm happy, I'm glad! That I could see you again...
Mash:
No, you've been with me this whole time, you've been protecting me...!
H：Fairy Knight Totrot:
Well, a promise is a promise. I'll be giving this back to you, Mash.
H：Fairy Knight Totrot:
I put it inside the Spinning Wheel to hide it. You didn't notice, did you?
Mash:
The Black Barrel...! Could it be, that's why you fell so unsteadily from the sky back then!?
H：Fairy Knight Totrot:
Yep, I quickly stowed it away while Beryl Gut was busy dawdling! Aren't I amazing!?
Mash:
Yes! That was really swift of you! I didn't notice it at all either—
Mash:
Habetrot...?
Fairy Knight Totrot:
—The morning lark finally cried out. This is the end of my dream.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
I'm mostly done with the things I've been meaning to do, and my most important promise has already been fulfilled.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Habetrot will be taking her leave here. I didn't get to see the end of your journey, but I hope it'll be a happy one—
Fairy Knight Totrot:
You're in good hands, anyway! Your anniversary will surely be blessed with fine weather!
Mash:
Wait—aaa—aaa...!
Mash:
I-is it because I remembered? Is it because I remembered you, Totrot!?
Mash:
Why—why would you—you didn't have to go this far for me, I don't deserve it!
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Yes, you do. I don't really care about what you're worth or what you deserve and such things, though.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
I just want you to be happy. After all, everyone did the best they could, didn't they?
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Tonelico, Ector, Wryneck...even Grimm was a great guy.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
They're all gone now, though. We had a good journey.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Besides, I'm an ally of brides. I want you to be smiling into the future.
Mash:
—Aaa—aaaaa—don't go— please don't go...!
Mash:
I take it back, I take it all back...! I won't remember you anymore, Habetrot...!
Mash:
So—please don't go—
Mash:
You...worked harder than anyone else...cried, and realized your dream...
Mash:
Even though you did all that—
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Come on, don't be stupid now.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
But...let's see. In that case, don't forget about me.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
About me or Tonelico. About our journey through this beautiful Britain.
Mash:
—I won't. I won't—...!
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Well, time's up. Fujimaru's on [♂ his /♀ her] way here.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Please put Cernunnos to sleep. He looks like he's in a lot of pain.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
This is the reckoning of the dream that awaits you. A ray of light will shine through, no matter how painful the parting may be.
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Come on, cheer up!
Fairy Knight Totrot:
Show the Fairy Knight Totrot how awesome you are, Mash!
Mash:
—Of course, I will! Please watch me, Totrot!
Fujimaru 1:
Mash, with this Command Spell—!
Mash:
Yes, I won't run anymore! As a knight who has completed her pilgrimage—
Mash:
I will use this power to annihilate the Calamity of Britain!
Mash:
Confirmed annihilation of the enemy—! Did you see that, Habetro–
Mash:
Uh...uuua...aaaa—
Mash:
—Thank you...so much.
Mash:
Fairy Knight Totrot. Habetrot the Seamstress.
Mash:
If I have become your dream, then there is no greater honor than this.
Mash:
Farewell...may blessings be upon you like flowers—
Fujimaru 1:
The sky is back to its usual twilight...
Attention! This option shows if you selected the right crucial points! This skips to the big reveal!
Fujimaru 2:
...(And now...)
Note: Crucial Selects Fail Branch 1
Fujimaru 1:
The sky is back to its usual twilight...
Nemo:
Attention, Fujimaru and Mash Kyrielight on deck.
Nemo:
The annihilation of the deity Cernunnos has been confirmed. The eruption of curses from the Great Pit has ceased.
Nemo:
The bottom of that seemingly bottomless pit is also observable now.
Nemo:
The Calamities that appeared in the British Lostbelt, the threats to pan-human history, have all been subdued.
Nemo:
The ship will now head for the western coast, make a water landing and resupply.
Nemo:
We will return to Novum Chaldea as soon as we confirm the British Lostbelt's safety.
Nemo:
Good work. We'll be cruising at low speed for a while, so take your time coming back.
Grimm the Wise:
—Whew. We somehow did it.
Grimm the Wise:
I was panicking when even Rhongomyniad couldn't beat him.
Grimm the Wise:
But you guys had one hell of a weapon up your sleeve! A trump card that beats Muramasa at his own god-killing game!
Fujimaru 1:
But...Artoria is...
Fujimaru 2:
Only because Habetrot took good care of it...
Grimm the Wise:
Well...I suppose you're right. It was a pyrrhic victory.
Grimm the Wise:
It's not common for everyone to make it out safely. There are casualties in most cases.
Grimm the Wise:
This was no exception either...
Grimm the Wise:
I think those two were happy, though. They did what they could to the best of their ability.
Grimm the Wise:
Because they believed you would win. Because they wanted to see you win, more than anyone else.
Grimm the Wise:
Trust...no, call it fraternity. Prioritize that over your sadness if you're going to carry this in your hearts.
Grimm the Wise:
Britain is not the end of your fight.
Grimm the Wise:
Because beyond this, the real enemy—the Alien God—awaits you.
Mash:
Yes...many thanks to the two of them. And to you too, Grimm the Wise.
Mash:
I wasn't able to ask you during the battle, but are your eyes alright!?
Grimm the Wise:
Yeah, it's what you'd call a mythical performance. You increase the performance of your magecraft by blinding an eye!
Fujimaru 1:
Grimm, your body...
Fujimaru 2:
I see...because your role is over...
Grimm the Wise:
Looks like it.
Grimm the Wise:
The role that the God of Wisdom gave me was to ensure Chaldea acquires the Holy Sword.
Grimm the Wise:
As a Celtic Heroic Spirit, I was also able to see Cernunnos through to the end.
Grimm the Wise:
Now my battle in this Lostbelt has come to an end.
Grimm the Wise:
For the record, I was able to save face as your only helper from pan-human history.
Fujimaru 1:
?
Attention! This option shows if you selected the right crucial points! This skips to the big reveal!
Fujimaru 2:
(The only one from pan-human history...)
Note: Crucial Selects Fail Branch 2
Fujimaru 1:
?
Mash:
Thank you very much. But what happens now?
Mash:
Will Cu Chulainn be recorded as a Caster in Chaldea?
Grimm the Wise:
Grimm! It's Grimm! Now that you know how it is, please call me Grimm from now on!
Grimm the Wise:
Still...I do owe you guys now. And not just me, the God of Wisdom feels the same way.
Grimm the Wise:
If this Saint Graph is still allowed for me after I return to the Throne, I'll drop by your place as a Caster.
Grimm the Wise:
I'll see you then! —I have a feeling we'll meet again!
Fujimaru 1:
Grimm's gone too...
Attention! This option shows if you selected the right crucial points! This skips to the big reveal!
Fujimaru 2:
And now...
Note: Crucial Selects Fail Branch 3
Fujimaru 1:
Grimm's gone too...
Mash:
We too will leave this Lostbelt...no, this Lostworld behind...
Mash:
The island has been devastated by the Calamity.
Mash:
There can't have been many survivors. Still, it's not as if they completely perished.
Mash:
I'd like to at least see Britain's reconstruction through before returning to Chaldea...
Da Vinci:
Well, let's see...hmm? The curses and flames have disappeared, but...
Da Vinci:
The discharge from the island's land hasn't stopped...no, on the contrary—
Nemo Marine:
Report, repooorrt! A gravitational shift has been confirmed all across Britain!
Nemo Marine:
The force generating gravity is no longer functioning, the ground, the land is rising—.
Nemo Marine:
Like it's going to crash down! What's happening? I don't get it, everything is falling!
Nemo Marine:
Observation Lens SHEBA has detected a crisis of the highest grade!
Nemo Marine:
The cause is unknown, but at this rate, in one hour Earth will be in danger!
Nemo Marine:
It's the Collapse! The Collapse event has begun!
Holmes & Da Vinci:
...!
Fujimaru 1:
What's going on!?
Attention! This option shows if you selected the right crucial points! This skips to the big reveal!
Fujimaru 2:
...
Note: Crucial Selects Fail Branch 3
Fujimaru 1:
What's going on!?
Mash:
All the Calamities have been purged! There are no threats to Britain anymore!
Mash:
So why has the collapse begun!? There's no threat anywhere!
???:
Oh, but there is. You just did not register it as one, because it's been in plain sight from the beginning.
???:
Do you remember that mural in Londinium?
???:
That was a 'prophecy foretelling the destruction' that the priestess of Cernunnos left behind just before she was dismembered.
???:
“As the world grows anew, the roots grow tiresome. At long last, unbeknownst to all,”
???:
“from the bite of a meagre insect, shall it collapse. ”
???:
It did not refer to Britain's future.
???:
If you gnaw away at the roots, this is the end result, no matter how solid human history's foundation.
???:
Everything will come to an end, including the planet.
Fujimaru 1:
Oberon!?
Attention: Successful Branch
Fujimaru 2:
I knew it...so that's the score.
???:
Oh dear, did you know all along, Fujimaru?
???:
I'll be damned. Now you're making me feel embarrassed for trying to time this right, but...
???:
Well, so what? I wasn't hiding it from you in the first place.
???:
Because among all the insignificant pawns, you stood out as the least significant of all.
Note: Crucial Selects Fail Branch 4
Fujimaru 1:
Oberon!?
Note: All Branches End.
???:
Hmm? What happened to you, Blanca? That wonderful antenna of yours isn't twitching at all.
???:
Oh, so you died. Perhaps from the Mors' black stain...
???:
Did you catch all the poison of Britain directed my way in my stead?
???:
Thank you. I don't really care, though.
Holmes:
—Oberon. Is that Oberon?
Holmes:
He does feel like a Fairy King...what's going on here, Da Vinci?
Holmes:
According to your report, Oberon was a local ally...a Servant of pan-human history summoned to this land.
Holmes:
But his Saint Graph is not that of pan-human history.
Holmes:
No, he's neither human nor fairy. There is no category of life form he falls under!
Holmes:
Is that—really the Fairy King Oberon?
Da Vinci:
It is, I've already confirmed it many times over—
Da Vinci:
...!? The Border's radar cannot pick up his magical signature!? No, it can pick it up, but...
Da Vinci:
The data isn't matching at all! His Saint Graph is fluctuating by the second!
Da Vinci:
The information on his Saint Graph has no credibility at all!
Da Vinci:
At this rate, he's no different from an invisible man who's both there and not there at once!
Mash:
T-then who on earth is that person?
???:
—
Nemo Marine:
Ah! A massive otherworldly space has been confirmed in northern Britain! No way, no way, when did this even appear!?
Holmes:
Excuse me, but otherworldly space doesn't cut it! I need more details!
Nemo Marine:
Umm, umm, well, something strange is there! Are those...living...beings?
Nemo Marine:
It's inexplicable. I repeat, we cannot explain it!
Nemo Marine:
I've never seen a creature like that before anywhere on this planet!
Nemo Marine:
I've tried using sonar but there's no reactioooon~ (cries)!
Nemo Marine:
This is bad, SHEBA's pitch black! I don't believe it, but we're done for!
Nemo Marine:
“Return voyage impossible”, “perpetual state of non-arrival”, “currently on an endless voyage”. What's with these status reports!?
Nemo Marine:
Captain, I'm scared, this is scary! Have we been sunk!?
Holmes:
Indeed, there is something that can only be described as a hole in space flowing over northern Britain...
Holmes:
Can't you see it on the monitor?
Holmes:
[♂ Mister /♀ Miss] Fujimaru! Can you confirm it from the deck!?
Fujimaru 1:
Yes...
Fujimaru 2:
It's been visible for a while now...
Mash:
—Master, what is that?
Mash:
Something like a black mist that's sucking up the ground...no, devouring the island.
Mash:
What—what exactly is that horrifying creature...!
Fujimaru 1:
It's probably—
Fujimaru 1:
—an insect.
???:
That's right. It's an insect.
???:
Of course, as you can see, it's a conceptual insect. An infinite hole which will consume Britain and this planet from the inside out.
???:
Well, you can think of it as an endless void.
???:
Oh, and it is also me.
???:
I don't know which is the main body and which is the shadow, though.
Fujimaru 1:
Who—are you!?
Fujimaru 2:
Tell us your real name, Oberon.
Fujimaru 1:
Who—are you!?
???:
—Very well. Since it's a request from you of all people, I'll answer.
Mash:
Senpai...Oberon's form is...no, his very Saint Graph itself is—
???:
My word, these fairies are truly incorrigible.
???:
They killed a god above the land they lost due to their own negligence, and built a small island.
???:
But not satisfied with just that, they reclaimed the sea with corpses and made land.
???:
The audacity of that and their disgusting way of life makes you want to puke. Doesn't it, Fujimaru?
???:
Even a human like you would find it questionable.
???:
From the perspective of the original British Island, which was lost, it is hopelessly sickening.
???:
To the point where it wants to be wiped out, even if it means spreading the Calamities around.
Fujimaru 1:
Oberon—
???:
But Cernunnos wasn't like that. He was a guardian of the fairies.
???:
Unless he disappeared, I wouldn't be able to surface.
???:
Morgan made sealing Cernunnos, rather than defeating him, a precondition of the Fairy Kingdom.
???:
That was a quandary, really. I had no way of defeating Morgan.
???:
And so, I waited for a someone who could.
???:
For someone who could remove the lid on Cernunnos, and defeat him.
???:
The foretelling of the Child of Prophecy was a godsend. To the point I thought things were getting interesting.
???:
That's why I even lent a hand.
???:
So that the Child of Prophecy would set out on her journey. So that the pilgrimage would be successful.
???:
—So that, by your hands, everything would be rendered meaningless.
Fujimaru 1:
Say your name, Oberon!
???:
Fine.
???:
I am a fantasy born of your pan-human history, one who took the form of the Fairy King Oberon.
???:
The embodiment of the will of Britain, which yearned for its own destruction alongside the end of the Age of Mystery.
???:
—The name is Vortigern.
???:
Oberon-Vortigern.
Oberon Vortigern:
The Insect of the Abyss come to destroy the Fairy Kingdom of Britain alongside you.
Section 30: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Narration:
Britain is collapsing.
Narration:
Buildings made in imitation of human civilization.
Narration:
Corpses from the distant past. Corpses that lost their lives to the Calamity currently present.
Narration:
With each passing moment they ascend and are devoured by the insect.
Narration:
The land in the north melts like snow. The land in the south is swept away like ashes.
Narration:
Those who barely managed to survive held hands as they fell.
Narration:
As though it had all been a fleeting dream from the beginning.
Nemo Marine:
I can't narrow down that mysterious Servant's Saint Graph pattern (cries)!
Nemo Marine:
It doesn't fall under any of the seven classes a Saint Graph is normally applicable for, nor does it fall under the extra classes!
Nemo Marine:
I've never seen this kind of class before! What on earth is it, Hoooolmes!?
Holmes:
All I can say is that it's a hitherto unknown class...
Holmes:
Righteous 'heroes' are revered by the masses, great beings who were paragons of their time.
Holmes:
And 'anti-heroes' serve as counterparts to those heroes...obstacles necessary for the achievement of good.
Holmes:
Among them, there are those who lie—those who deceive others, achieving great acts through those lies.
Holmes:
A forgery and fake—no, 'someone' who gained more power and left behind feats and achievements greater than the real deal by deceiving even their own souls.
Holmes:
Not one who avenges, nor one who arbitrates. Not one from outside the domain, nor a distinct, detached personality.
Holmes:
—One who acts out a role—a Pretender. A fabricated Heroic Spirit whose enemy is neither man nor beast, but rather, the world itself.
Holmes:
Truly befitting the name Oberon...!
Gordolf:
D-d-don't—
Gordolf:
Don't be ridiculous, what's the meaning of this!?
Gordolf:
The [♂ boy /♀ girl] won. Kyrielight did it!
Gordolf:
We may be at odds with the Lostbelt—
Gordolf:
But, it's not like we want to destroy them either! We saved Britain!
Gordolf:
So why is this happening!?
Gordolf:
Answer me, Holmes! What in blazes is that monster!?
Holmes:
—In all likelihood, that is the concept of a void.
Holmes:
It may appear to be a living organism, but it lacks muscles, bones, and digestive organs.
Holmes:
Neither is that its mouth, as much as it is a 'hole'.
Holmes:
It may appear as though the earth is being sucked up, but in truth, it's 'falling in'.
Holmes:
Imagine, if you will, a bathtub full of water. Our world is the water in that bathtub.
Holmes:
That thing is the bathtub's 'stopper'. Now. what happens to the water once that stopper is removed?
Gordolf:
I mean, it's water, so it'll circle the drain and flow down the drainpipe...
Gordolf:
So...in other words, that thing isn't sucking anything up...
Holmes:
Yes. We are—no, space itself is falling towards that thing.
Holmes:
It would be pointless even if we managed to escape this place.
Holmes:
Now that the 'stopper' is removed, everything on the planet will fall down that 'hole'.
Holmes:
A 'pitfall' in the truest sense of the word.
Holmes:
I did not quite expect a 'hole' that swallows up the world itself.
Mash:
Vortigern...the vile king who killed Uther, the father of King Arthur...
Mash:
In other words—the enemy of King Arthur from this Lostbelt...!
Oberon Vortigern:
Not really, though. I couldn't care less about King Arthur.
Oberon Vortigern:
You need to think on a bigger scale, Mash. I am humanity's enemy.
Oberon Vortigern:
Even in your world, Vortigern was the very fate of Britain, wasn't he?
Oberon Vortigern:
Refusing to acknowledge the Age of Man,
Oberon Vortigern:
wanting to end Britain while it was still in the Age of Mystery, before humans could trample on it.
Oberon Vortigern:
Suicidal ideation, in other words.
Oberon Vortigern:
Yes, I get it. I get it!
Oberon Vortigern:
The spotlight going to that which you hate is just adding insult to injury!
Oberon Vortigern:
Well, it's all over once King Arthur defeats you, though.
Oberon Vortigern:
In pan-human history, good and evil are both as naïve.
Oberon Vortigern:
To destroy humanity is to destroy the planet.
Oberon Vortigern:
That Vortigern kicked the bucket because he couldn't bring himself to do that.
Fujimaru 1:
Why? Why are you trying to destroy humanity?
Oberon Vortigern:
Because they disgust me.
Oberon Vortigern:
I don't have any other reason. What of it?
Oberon Vortigern:
You would feel disgust too if you found vermin in the corner of your room, wouldn't you?
Mash:
This Britain...disgusts you? You say this Fairy Kingdom where fairies and humans live is disgusting...!?
Oberon Vortigern:
Huh. You liked it, Mash? That's amazing. You have poor taste.
Oberon Vortigern:
Still, I'm disgusted by just about everything I lay eyes on, though.
Oberon Vortigern:
It's not just the Fairy Kingdom. Your world looks like a shithole to me.
Oberon Vortigern:
Oops...sorry about that, I slipped in some foul language there. I'd rather not use words unbecoming of a Fairy King.
Oberon Vortigern:
I'll be more careful next time, so please let that one slide. You will, won't you? After all, it's just between us.
Oberon Vortigern:
I'll even apologize for everything I've said so far if you want.
Oberon Vortigern:
If it displeases you, we can pretend this conversation never happened.
Mash:
Umm—Y-yes. U-umm...what?
Mash:
Master...just now, I felt pure trustworthiness from Oberon...
Fujimaru 1:
Stop deceiving Mash...
Oberon Vortigern:
How do you mean?
Fujimaru 1:
You're full of lies.
Fujimaru 2:
Because you're Oberon, the Great Liar.
Fujimaru 1:
You're full of lies.
Oberon Vortigern:
—That's the spirit. I'm glad, Fujimaru.
Oberon Vortigern:
I am indeed a liar. I've never once spoken the truth, I swear it!
Oberon Vortigern:
But I was truly serious! I seriously endeavoured to destroy Britain.
Oberon Vortigern:
And above all else—I was counting on you the most.
Oberon Vortigern:
To that end, normally you'd be at a loss if someone told you to destroy Britain, wouldn't you?
Oberon Vortigern:
Truth be told, that was the case for me too. Good grief.
Oberon Vortigern:
Furthermore, if you think about it carefully, it wasn't as simple as just defeating Morgan.
Oberon Vortigern:
The destruction of the Fairy Kingdom required a variety of factors. I needed a variety of desires.
Oberon Vortigern:
It wasn't as simple as just having Morgan and Chaldea settle things.
Oberon Vortigern:
I needed everything. And I only got one shot at it.
Oberon Vortigern:
I couldn't afford to be careless with this. But—
Oberon Vortigern:
When I saw you on that beach, I had a feeling.
Oberon Vortigern:
That this kid is a real moron. The best [♂ actor /♀ actress] I could imagine. [♂ He /♀ She] will surely live up to my expectations!
Oberon Vortigern:
[♂ He /♀ She] will take care of everything once and for all as the worst, yet best audience. I believed that from the bottom of my heart!
Fujimaru 1:
Gee, thanks...
Fujimaru 2:
Am I supposed to be an actor or the audience?
Oberon Vortigern:
Sorry, let me correct myself. You're an annoying critic. Are you happy now?
Oberon Vortigern:
Well—in any case, you've more than lived up to my expectations.
Oberon Vortigern:
So I would've been fine with letting you go—
Oberon Vortigern:
But, I'd better get rid of Chaldea.
Oberon Vortigern:
Vortigern's purpose is to destroy the false Britain that merrily continued existing even after his death, but...
Oberon Vortigern:
My purpose is to eradicate your human history.
Oberon Vortigern:
Chaldea's role is to protect pan-human history, isn't it? Then that makes us enemies.
Oberon Vortigern:
I'll take care of you here. It'll be a bother if I get the tables turned on me later.
Fujimaru 1:
—The Abyssal Insect is falling towards us—
Meunière:
What's going on? We can't shake it no matter how fast we go!
Meunière:
Captain! Da Vinci! Holmes! Even the old man will do at this point!
Meunière:
Get those two on the deck back inside the ship! No, they won't make it—!
Meunière:
The Collapse is approaching from right above the Storm Border! We can't evade, we'll get swallowed up...!
Meunière:
All our instruments have stopped functioning. We can't monitor the situation on the outside either!
Meunière:
I mean, it's pitch black! There's no sound or light!
Meunière:
What do we do, Captain? This is a hopeless—
Nemo:
Fix gravity values on the deck floor, raise the bow vertically, and keep the engine going steady at its second stage!
Nemo:
If we're falling, all we have to do is climb!
Nemo:
Even if we're in pitch black darkness, even if this is an endless void—
Nemo:
We're not giving up until the engines die! All hands, maintain battle positions!
Nemo:
Fujimaru and Mash are outside, along with the enemy life form responsible for the Collapse!
Nemo:
We're definitely—
Nemo:
We're definitely going to find a way out!
--ARROW--
Narration:
When he was born, he could not even draw breath.
Narration:
There was not a single inch of his body that felt at ease.
Narration:
He was no more than a fluid inside a festering chrysalis.
Narration:
Under those circumstances,
Narration:
can you understand how it felt upon awakening under the light of dawn?
Narration:
In the autumn forest on the outskirts of the Fairy Kingdom.
Narration:
Fairies without a place to call their own, fairies who escaped abuse and suffered persecution gather...
Narration:
They all gathered in that autumn forest and were left with no choice but to die.
Narration:
Those who had nowhere left to go.
Narration:
Those who had no choice but to perish, hated and forgotten by all.
Narration:
In the midst of all that, a chrysalis emerged.
Narration:
The chrysalis looked identical to a fairy, although it was not one. In truth, it was a doomsday device birthed by Britain itself.
Narration:
“It's disgusting how a history that's long since dead has clung to life for over 10,000 years! ”
Narration:
“I want to erase every last trace of this island, along with everything that lives on it! ”
Narration:
He was little more than an insect birthed out of 'disgust towards living creatures', spewed forth by the island.
Oberon Vortigern:
—aaa—aaaaa—aaaaaaa—
Narration:
However, the birth of a maggot, spawned out of such excreta, was a miserable one.
Narration:
The chrysalis was a pitiful yet beautiful sight to behold. As such, they must have come to believe he was their king.
Narration:
The fairies of the autumn forest gathered around the chrysalis, and stood vigil around it until the chrysalis was able to stand on its own.
Oberon Vortigern:
Aaa—haaaaa, that felt disgusting.
Narration:
By the time it stood up, that thing was no longer a chrysalis.
Narration:
The ideal king of fairy tales that the fairies of the autumn forest had been awaiting.
Narration:
It was born in the form of a Fairy King, one written by a famous, genius writer with a bit of a mean streak.
Oberon Vortigern:
First it was the Mors King, and now this?
Oberon Vortigern:
Heh, so this is a Ghost Liner...what they call a Servant, huh?
Oberon Vortigern:
So as long as it's something born from the desires of people, it makes no difference whether the form is based on truth or a fabrication.
Narration:
The fairy known as Oberon existed in both pan-human history and this Fairyland Britain alike.
Narration:
But the 'Oberon' who the king became was a great liar, made up only of lies.
Narration:
A story 'with no truth to it whatsoever' told with the preamble that 'it was all a single night's lunacy'.
Oberon Vortigern:
Amazing. Everything I say, everything I do, eventually becomes warped.
Narration:
I love you' means 'I don't love you'. 'I don't love you' means 'I don't even like you'.
Narration:
That is Oberon's idiosyncrasy.
Narration:
As that is how he is as a Heroic Spirit, even he himself cannot circumvent it.
Oberon Vortigern:
Hmph, very well, not that it matters. I was planning on deceiving everyone anyway.
Oberon Vortigern:
Still...this is just because you have flotsam drifting ashore to Britain.
Oberon Vortigern:
Morgan loves pan-human history a tad too much, doesn't she? So much for her claims of hating it.
Narration:
Thus, the Fairy King was born.
Narration:
That was the fateful year when the song of the 'Child of Prophecy' caught the attention of the world.
Narration:
The king knew about pan-human history, to an extent. However, he was thorough in his research this time.
Narration:
The story of King Arthur, the archenemy of Morgan.
Narration:
All so that he could manipulate the Fairy of Paradise, who had appeared somewhere in Britain.
Narration:
When I was born, I could not even draw breath.
Narration:
There was not a single inch of my body that felt at ease.
Narration:
I was little more than a fluid inside a festering chrysalis.
Narration:
Under those circumstances...
Narration:
The sea of insects, writhing like garbage, was the entire world that unfolded before me.
Narration:
Oberon was born from Britain's death throes.
Narration:
He harbored no love for the creatures that live on the island.
Narration:
In the first place, even the heavy burden of destroying the Fairy Kingdom, as willed by the island,
Narration:
was something that depressed him. He asked himself, “do I really have to do that? ”.
Oberon Vortigern:
That said...now that I'm born, I have no choice but to go through with it.
Oberon Vortigern:
Oh, I still can't move my body...
Oberon Vortigern:
I feel like even taking a breath could kill me.
Oberon Vortigern:
I feel like I would pass out just from moving my fingertips.
Oberon Vortigern:
And, above all else—
Oberon Vortigern:
Just being alive makes me want to puke.
Narration:
Oberon, as a chrysalis, did not have the ability to close his eyes.
Narration:
As such, he could not avert his eyes from them.
Narration:
Swarming. Swarming.
Narration:
Swarming. For half a year, Oberon continued to stare at them.
Narration:
Oberon was born of muddy filth.
Narration:
Even the inside of the chrysalis was filled with muddy fluids.
Narration:
The scenery that unfolded before his eyes was likewise a muddy one.
Oberon Vortigern:
—
Narration:
The sight of weaklings, going with the flow, clinging to hope without any prospects, was a disgusting one.
Narration:
Being depended on by weaklings who had withered away after continuously falling victim to the deceptions of others, felt disgusting.
Narration:
It felt disgusting to be crowned king by creatures that could only writhe and swarm around.
Narration:
And above all else, he was disgusted at himself, the lowest of the low—the one they flocked to.
Narration:
Just like the corpse of a butterfly being swarmed by ants. The lowest of the low, taking its place at the bottom of a garbage dump.
Oberon Vortigern:
—
Narration:
The hatred and repulsion that arose in his heart was not directed at anyone in particular.
Narration:
Not at the insects that had gathered, nor towards himself, the one being swarmed.
Narration:
What Oberon felt was unnecessary was the 'structure of the world' itself that included all of those.
Narration:
In any case, leaving his story aside for the moment.
Narration:
Get ahold of yourself, Fujimaru. A little longer, just a little longer now.
Narration:
You're going to show me an amazing comeback at the very end, aren't you?
Fujimaru 1:
That star...
Oberon Vortigern:
Hmm? You're still alive? That's strange, we're in the abyss.
Oberon Vortigern:
Have you by any chance overcome your 'dejections'?
Oberon Vortigern:
If so, your awakening would make sense. Although, I think it'll make for a more painful death.
Fujimaru 1:
Where am I?
Oberon Vortigern:
On the deck of your ship. You were swallowed whole by the Abyssal Insect.
Fujimaru 2:
Where's Mash!?
Oberon Vortigern:
Mash is fast asleep right next to you. Though not in form, because she hasn't woken up.
Oberon Vortigern:
But now that you have woken up, why don't we have a little chat?
Oberon Vortigern:
I've just finished taking a walk around inside your ship. I found some food inside, you see.
Oberon Vortigern:
I'm talking about those portable meals. You're tired, aren't you? Have some.
Oberon Vortigern:
You look like you want to ask why I'm being so courteous...it's written all over your face. Well, I'm not being courteous.
Oberon Vortigern:
I took a walk in your ship while going around killing your comrades,
Oberon Vortigern:
I even went and killed Mash first. And you'll die soon enough too.
Oberon Vortigern:
Right now, you're all falling down an endless void. The body of the Abyssal Insect is infinite.
Oberon Vortigern:
That which is swallowed by it will continue to fall endlessly. Without a destination. For eternity.
Oberon Vortigern:
It's infinite, so once you're swallowed, there are no 'entrances' or 'exits'. It's the end.
Oberon Vortigern:
No matter how strong the life form may be, no matter how superior they may be, they will never escape this void.
Oberon Vortigern:
Unless they kill me.
Oberon Vortigern:
But there's no one awake here. Everyone's in the midst of a 'falling dream'.
Oberon Vortigern:
If they wake up, they will appear like you did. However, most people just keep falling.
Oberon Vortigern:
I think they're happier that way, though. It'd just be hell for them if they were awake.
Oberon Vortigern:
In this darkness, you keep falling even after you die. It's horrible to think about, isn't it?
Fujimaru 1:
—In other words, help isn't coming?
Oberon Vortigern:
Of course not. Would you like to try?
Fujimaru 2:
That would mean you're in hell too, Oberon...
Oberon Vortigern:
That's right. But now that the Abyssal Insect has been formed, the world will perish on its own.
Oberon Vortigern:
It doesn't matter whether I'm in here or out there. Besides, I've been in hell from the start.
Oberon Vortigern:
Either way, there's nothing you can do. You can't even perform a simple summoning here.
Oberon Vortigern:
After all, this is a void that human history has never witnessed. Not a single Heroic Spirit is recorded here.
Oberon Vortigern:
You can't summon what isn't there.
Oberon Vortigern:
Will you go mad, unable to endure the endless fall here?
Oberon Vortigern:
Or will you close your eyes and dream of falling, like the others?
Oberon Vortigern:
Choose whichever one you want. If you ever feel like sleeping, please give me a shout.
Oberon Vortigern:
Of course, if you want to save the world, you don't have time to be thinking it over.
Oberon Vortigern:
The Lostworld Britain is no more. We're in a normal flow of time now.
Oberon Vortigern:
Chaldea observed the end of the world in 24 hours, did it not?
Oberon Vortigern:
That's exactly right. There won't even be a single minute of a grace period.
Oberon Vortigern:
If you want to save the world, then fight me and you'll be killed. That in itself isn't such a good death either, is it?
Fujimaru 1:
—Yeah.
Fujimaru 2:
You're exactly right!
Oberon Vortigern:
Wow, you really took a swing at me. You're very easily provoked, aren't you?
Oberon Vortigern:
Well, if you want to die, I'll be happy to oblige. Fighting with no chance of victory can also be fun!
Fujimaru 1:
—There is a chance of victory.
Oberon Vortigern:
Huh? How, exactly?
Fujimaru 1:
—It will be here soon.
Oberon Vortigern:
Like I said, help isn't–
Fujimaru 1:
After all, we are bystanders, aren't we?
Fujimaru 1:
Come, Caster!!!!
Oberon Vortigern:
—!
Oberon Vortigern:
You're—you're...!
Artoria:
I have come in response to the Foreign Magus' summons, in accordance with our contract.
Artoria:
If it is a battle to save the world, and not to admonish Britain.
Artoria:
Then even at the end of time, this sword will be within [♂ his /♀ her] hands.
--ARROW--
Narration:
You hear the tolling of a bell. Not the bell of obligation you have heard countless times before.
Narration:
But the nostalgic toll of a bell that believes in and beckons you.
Narration:
You have always been running amidst this storm. This maelstrom of malevolence. This crucible of truth.
Narration:
Amidst cold, dark and deafening voices that are no different from sewage.
Immature Self:
No, no, no, no—
Narration:
You have lost count of how many times you had given up, of how many times you wished for death.
Narration:
The reason you were able to keep on going, without hesitation...
Narration:
It was because you had that light. That distant, small, blue star shining in solitude beyond the storm.
Immature Self:
Haa, haa, haa, haa—!
Narration:
Whenever you fell, you would stand up crying. Whenever you were tired, you would boldly hold your head high.
Narration:
That star always shone bright in the distance.
Narration:
“A handful of good intentions amidst the malice. ”
Narration:
“A bright future that would be bestowed upon you one day. ”
Immature Self:
No way. There's no way that'll happen. No, I couldn't care less about that.
Narration:
For you, that star is nothing more than a light shining bright.
Narration:
That alone was enough to make it your goal.
Narration:
The fact that somewhere out there, someone else is also gazing at that star.
Narration:
That was your only hope. Through any and all storms, that fact alone never changed.
Immature Self:
Yes—that's right. That was all I had.
Immature Self:
I was afraid of a great many things. I couldn't believe in a great many things.
Narration:
But the light of that star was always there to cheer you up.
Narration:
That star has nothing to do with you whatsoever.
Narration:
That star will never turn your way, nor will it ever come down for your sake.
Immature Self:
Yes...I couldn't care less about Britain, I couldn't care less about the future.
Immature Self:
But as long as that star continues to shine.
Narration:
No matter what storm sweeps across the world of man. Even if the suffering outweighs the reward.
Narration:
That light which has always kept watch over you since you were but a child.
Narration:
That lone light that shone amidst the storm.
Narration:
Not for the sake of society, not for the sake of peace, not for your sake.
Immature Self:
I don't want to betray the light of that little star that always shone bright.
Disappointment in You:
Oh—
Narration:
However, there is nothing past this point.
Narration:
Embracing the sound of that bell. Ending your journey.
Narration:
There is no life for you beyond this. Just as she, in her chalk white castle, never found happiness.
Narration:
If you, the one who chants the name of the king, go any further, you will disappear. You will no longer be needed.
Narration:
Can you do it? For the sake of that small, lone star?
Narration:
Can you say simply say “I don't want to betray that beautiful star”,
Narration:
for a reason as meaningless, insignificant, and trivial as that?
Disappointment in You:
Hiii—aaaaa, guh, aaaaa—
Narration:
A voice curses me, the one who ended Britain. A voice resents me, the one who fulfilled the duty of Paradise.
Narration:
Tens of thousands of complaints. Hundreds of millions of voices accusing me.
Narration:
This is simply the face of malice. In reality, there is no star shining amidst the storm.
Narration:
With a reason like that, I could not possibly save someone other than myself.
Disappointment in You:
Haa—aaa—aaa...aaa—aaa?
Disappointment in You:
Who...? Someone is shielding me—
Disappointment in You:
No, they're not shielding me at all. They're desperately reaching out a hand to me—
Narration:
Someone who lost their life at your whim.
Narration:
Someone from the furthest end, no different from you, that you have long since forgotten.
Narration:
Her name was...
D：Mash:
I understand. Not having a name must be miserable.
D：Mash:
Then, how about something like this? Really, it's just an idea I had just now...
D：Mash:
Please use my name. Artoria Caster.
D：Mash:
Either Artoria, or Caster. Whichever you prefer!
D：Mash:
Hmph, it's not like I'll be using it anymore. Feel free to call yourself that!
Fairy Girl:
—Thank you. I'll cherish—I'll cherish it.
Fairy Girl:
Not just this name, but also your heart. Forever and ever.
Artoria:
—aaaaa—aaa—
Narration:
Her name was Hope, one who found the light of the star at the very end.
Narration:
One who had grown tired of her role, that of giving hope to everyone, and lamented. Yet she did not lose her smile.
Narration:
She protected me all this time, over a mere random act.
Narration:
She believed in me, even now, over something as insignificant as that.
Narration:
—It wasn't anything special or noble.
Narration:
And it may seem like a trivial reason for others.
Artoria:
No...thank you for cherishing it.
Narration:
That's right, I never had some exemplary reason either.
Narration:
I'm no different from her.
Narration:
I have nothing I can be proud of, even the talent I was praised for is surely just for show.
Narration:
Surely, I will never find a reason that everyone will be envious of me.
Narration:
But...yes, but—
Narration:
What about it? I'm fine with that.
Narration:
I just don't want to betray that star. I just don't want to discard this feeling.
Narration:
For such an insignificant reason, we...you—
Artoria:
Always! I always have to do my best...!
Narration:
Even if it's false courage, even if it's just self-complacency. Even if I lack confidence to the very end, not knowing the answer.
Narration:
Even if it appears to be a meaningless, insignificant reason to others.
Narration:
I believe in that alone. I can only believe in that.
Narration:
That alone keeps me running, even now.
Narration:
Goodbye, dear child. Now, from now on, forevermore.
Narration:
The pulse of the star within your heart. The tolling of the bell will, in time, resonate within you.
Artoria:
I have come in response to the Foreign Magus' summons, in accordance with our contract.
Artoria:
If it is a battle to save the world, and not to admonish Britain.
Artoria:
Then even at the end of time, this sword will be within [♂ his /♀ her] hands.
Oberon Vortigern:
—You've got to be kidding me. No, I suppose this is what I told you to become.
Oberon Vortigern:
But the Fairy of Paradise becoming a Heroic Spirit? Now that's a surprise. How kingly can you even get?
Oberon Vortigern:
Still though, isn't this a bit indecorous of you? You've already left the stage, haven't you?
Oberon Vortigern:
I don't know if this is your future self or a guardian categorized as such, but Britain has perished.
Oberon Vortigern:
You've lost. Your time in the spotlight has long since passed.
Oberon Vortigern:
An actor who has departed the stage, lacking in strength, has no business coming back.
Artoria:
I suppose you're right...that which I protect is no longer here.
Artoria:
However—Fairy King Oberon. The one who desired the end of Britain.
Artoria:
It is indeed unsightly to see that which is dead continue to cling to life.
Artoria:
Your act of ending it was a righteous one.
Oberon Vortigern:
I know, right?
Artoria:
But I cannot allow you to propagate this elsewhere.
Artoria:
Even if the fairies are beyond salvation, even if there is no longer any hope in our future,
Artoria:
it is wrong to rob the present of those who still have a future.
Artoria:
It is more unsightly than staving off destruction.
Artoria:
Isn't that right, Oberon? Your actions are well and truly disgraceful.
Fujimaru 1:
(She fired back twofold...! )
Fujimaru 2:
(This Artoria's super harsh...! )
Mash:
Guh—where am...my body is—
Artoria:
Oh dear, what a surprise.
Fujimaru 1:
Mash!
Fujimaru 2:
Thank goodness, you woke up!
Mash:
Y-yes, I was in an inexpressible, endlessly falling dream—
Mash:
Wait, Senpai? Artoria!?
Oberon Vortigern:
Even Mash woke up. Ah, so it's your doing, Artoria.
Oberon Vortigern:
Then I suppose even the ones on the bridge are awake. How bothersome.
Artoria:
Mash, Fujimaru will explain later.
Artoria:
Right now, I need your strength.
Artoria:
We will destroy the source of the Abyssal Insect here, before it can propagate beyond Britain.
Mash:
Roger! Please leave it to me!
Oberon Vortigern:
As usual, you change gears quickly. Still, it doesn't matter.
Oberon Vortigern:
After all, Chaldea's motto is to always defeat the enemy, isn't it? Very well, I'll play along.
Oberon Vortigern:
I was just about tired of talking anyway. I've fully explained who I am.
Oberon Vortigern:
In terms of theatre, this is the climax. Though the fly in the ointment would be that we lack an audience.
Oberon Vortigern:
Well, it is a third-rate performance, so I suppose a squalid theatre is fitting.
Oberon Vortigern:
Very well, bring them out, Fujimaru. Now's the time to summon away to your heart's content.
Oberon Vortigern:
Go ahead and raise the curtain on the fight to protect the Human Order with that self-satisfied look of yours!
Note: Crucial Branch Fail, selecting takes to Branch End
Fujimaru 1:
Bring it on!
Note: Shows for Crucial Branch Success.
Fujimaru 2:
I'll ask again one last time...
Oberon Vortigern:
Hah? What is it?
Fujimaru 1:
What are you after?
Oberon Vortigern:
Oh, I just want to wipe the slate clean.
Oberon Vortigern:
I've already spoken plenty about it, have I not? That I found both humans and fairies equally and hopelessly disgusting.
Oberon Vortigern:
That's why I'll get rid of them all. That's why I used you.
Oberon Vortigern:
Were you perhaps thinking that it was a fun journey? My condolences, if so.
Oberon Vortigern:
Everything I say is a lie. Not worth a mite of trust.
Oberon Vortigern:
I couldn't care less about Britain's peace, Artoria's mission, or just about anything else.
Fujimaru:
That may be true...
Fujimaru:
But what about that shining star, Titania?
Oberon Vortigern:
Oh, I really hate it when you do that.
Note: Branch End
Oberon Vortigern:
The calamity of collapse. The remains of twilight. They are all but a midsummer night's dream.
Oberon Vortigern:
I am Oberon. Oberon Vortigern.
Oberon Vortigern:
A Threat to Humanity who will always oppose you, no matter what. A doomsday device of deception.
Oberon Vortigern:
Unlike the Beasts, I will never harbor any love. This battle shall prove that.
Oberon Vortigern:
Now, let the curtain rise on this tragedy! The pilgrimage ends here!
--BATTLE--
Welsh Fairy A:
Welsh Fairy B:
Oberon Vortigern:
Hey everyone, I'm back. Did you manage to somehow survive another day?
Oberon Vortigern:
Oh, you all burned to death? I see. A fitting ending. It would've happened sooner or later!
Oberon Vortigern:
Then let's leave the story about the outsiders for another time. To be honest, I don't have anything to talk about anyway.
Oberon Vortigern:
Oh dear, you're—
Fujimaru 1:
Hey there.
Fujimaru 2:
Sorry, did I doze off for a bit there?
Oberon Vortigern:
—Are you serious? Just how impudent are you, you [♂ bastard /♀ bitch]?
Oberon Vortigern:
Oops, no swearing here. No swearing.
Oberon Vortigern:
Is my mind playing tricks on me? Did you really fall asleep in the middle of a battle?
Oberon Vortigern:
No matter. Either way, this is a dream. Why don't we have some tea one last time?
Oberon Vortigern:
Though I have nothing left to say. I've said all that can be said about my goal, my character, and my story.
Oberon Vortigern:
I don't think there's any reason for you to be here any longer.
Fujimaru 1:
There's still something you haven't told me.
Fujimaru 2:
If this is it, at least tell me how you really feel.
Oberon Vortigern:
Huh? Is your brain rotten? Even worse than mine? Is your memory worse than that of an insect?
Fujimaru 1:
I mean, you are a liar, Oberon.
Oberon Vortigern:
—Exactly. If you point that out, then it's my loss.
Oberon Vortigern:
Sure, I do have my own true feelings. Yes. Quite a bit.
Oberon Vortigern:
Vortigern was Britain's fate and I was born as his alter ego, but...
Oberon Vortigern:
You see, at the same time, I'm also Oberon.
Oberon Vortigern:
Didn't we talk about this before? About what the Fairy Kingdom is.
Oberon Vortigern:
You see, this whole place is a fairy tale. It's all one big story.
Oberon Vortigern:
A 14,000 year old picture book crafted by Morgan, who had no place besides a fictional history to call her own.
Oberon Vortigern:
As usual, you lot denied it. Called it wrong. Called it meaningless.
Oberon Vortigern:
I hated that. I was beside myself with disgust.
Oberon Vortigern:
After envisioning a convenient existence, a story everyone dreams of.
Oberon Vortigern:
Even after having your lives changed by that story.
Oberon Vortigern:
You trample on it and mock it because it's a 'fantasy that does not exist in reality'. You people disgust me.
Fujimaru 1:
—Is that—
Fujimaru 2:
Resentment towards the story...?
Oberon Vortigern:
Yes. No matter how hackneyed the kingdom may be, the unsung side characters still have meaning.
Oberon Vortigern:
Even a story that will be forgotten once its last page has been turned, left behind by the speed of reality—
Oberon Vortigern:
It should have the right to continue existing.
Oberon Vortigern:
Well, there's no point in telling this to a human like you. You'll just end up forgetting once something new comes up, anyway.
Oberon Vortigern:
Growth and renewal, are these not the tenets of pan-human history? There is no eternity. It will go on forever.
Oberon Vortigern:
I find that tiresome.
Oberon Vortigern:
I was just pissed off at it all, I wanted it all to end.
Oberon Vortigern:
Are you satisfied now? Then time to wake up.
Oberon Vortigern:
Neither the morning lark nor the curtain of night have a need of you yet.
Oberon Vortigern:
Cheers, you Chaldean bastard! It was a dull journey, but one full of twists!
Oberon Vortigern:
Good luck with the next one! I will pray for your good fortune from the bottom of my heart!
Welsh Fairy:
Welsh Fairy:
Note: Scene Change to Battle
B：Oberon Vortigern:
Aaaaaaaaaaaa!
Fujimaru 1:
Oberon—!
Mash:
The enemy Servant has fallen from the deck —down towards the void...!
Artoria:
Severe damage has been confirmed on Oberon Vortigern's spiritual core.
Artoria:
For the Insect of the Abyss—for Vortigern, the Holy Sword is both food and poison, a double-edged sword.
Artoria:
He'll never crawl back up again, not with that wound.
Artoria:
He will continue to fall for all eternity, down towards that nonexistent abyss.
Mash:
Down the pit, for all eternity—that's—
Fujimaru 1:
No, this is fine...
Fujimaru 2:
It's fine...
Artoria:
Oops, I don't have time to be savoring the aftertaste either.
Artoria:
Just like that, the time has come for me to leave.
Artoria:
Well, it's only expected seeing how I came here of my own will, similar to the Merlin of pan-human history.
Fujimaru 1:
I see. (So you came here on foot)
Artoria:
I didn't walk here. More like I transcended space and time and swung by.
Fujimaru 2:
Yeah...thank you.
Artoria:
—It's my pleasure. I heard your voice, you see.
Artoria:
I hope I've been useful to you.
Nemo:
Storm Border bridge to Fujimaru, do you copy?
Nemo:
I have not been able to confirm the facts, but I have a grasp on the situation at hand!
Nemo:
Just now, the collapse of this conceptual space...no, its occlusion process has been confirmed!
Nemo:
Right now, the abyssal hole is losing all connection to the outside world!
Nemo:
If we can't escape before the occlusion process is complete, we will also continue to fall eternally.
Nemo:
As such, we will be performing a full speed vertical takeoff—and head for the sky!
Nemo:
Fujimaru, Mash Kyrielight, take shelter in the Border immediately!
Mash:
We have our instructions, Master! Umm...what should we do!?
Artoria:
Please evacuate, don't mind me. I've already said my goodbyes.
Artoria:
The girl who travelled with the two of you, Artoria Caster.
Artoria:
Her existence is unique to this Lostbelt. She will return to the Inner Sea of the Planet, along with the shadow of Paradise.
Artoria:
However—
Artoria:
Her actions and the answers she found are engraved in me.
Artoria:
I am not King Arthur, but rather the keeper of the Holy Sword—the conceptual manifestation of the 'Knight of the Holy Sword'.
Artoria:
Only those chosen by the Holy Sword—only those who wield it—shall be entrusted with it.
Artoria:
So think of this as a special service. Just because of a precious contract I couldn't break.
Fujimaru 1:
—It's a one-off thing, after all.
Artoria:
Yes. Just as you wished for it, that other 'me' also wished to be your strength.
Artoria:
Please hurry, you mustn't get caught up in the Abyssal Insect's collapse.
Artoria:
Goodbye, Fujimaru, Mash.
Artoria:
Go without fear, for the light of the stargazers of Chaldea illuminates the path you walk.
Fujimaru 1:
—Goodbye, my dear friend from Britain.
Fujimaru 1:
Goodbye to the ordinary girl who was my kindred spirit...
Mash:
Senpai...
Fujimaru 1:
Come on, let's go!
Mash:
Yes!
Da Vinci:
Fujimaru and Mash are confirmed to be onboard! Captain, hit it!
Nemo:
Alright! Commence parallel operation of all four Triton Engines!
Nemo:
Target speed, 10,000 km/h! Storm Border, advance towards the mouth of the void!
Nemo:
Professor, how long until the occlusion process completes!? Can we make it at this speed!?
Nemo Professor:
Report coming up~. It will take an estimated five minutes for complete occlusion of the Abyssal Hole to occur.
Nemo Professor:
On the other hand, the computer room was down for twenty minutes, so assuming our ship has fallen further during that window,
Nemo Professor:
calculations indicate we have fallen roughly 420 km.
Nemo Professor:
Even taking accelerations and decelerations into account, we should be able to make it out with time to spare if we go at Mach 8. 5!
Da Vinci:
No wait, there's no point in calculating our time falling to the distance of the exit!
Da Vinci:
This pit is infinite! There are no exits or entrances once you're in!
Da Vinci:
No matter how fast we go, we won't reach the entrance we fell in from!
Holmes:
Which means we'll need to 'make' an exit...!
Holmes:
Captain, do you think you can make a hole in the side with the Storm Border's shelling?
Holmes:
If we cannot reach the exit no matter how high we climb, we have no choice but to overturn the concept of a 'void'.
Holmes:
It'll be a gamble as to where we actually exit, but in five minutes, even that won't be an option for us anymore!
Nemo:
I'm sorry, we don't have that many resources left after all our battles so far!
Nemo:
It's taking us all we have just to fly this ship!
Nemo:
Even if we shut one engine down, there's not enough time to generate a Spiritron Warhead!
Gordolf:
In other words—you're saying we can't get out of here as long as there's no exit?
Holmes:
Yes...and then we will no longer be able to go anywhere.
Holmes:
If the connection to the outside world is lost, this void will be worse than a black hole.
Holmes:
Black holes are gravity wells that even light cannot escape from, but even then, an exit still exists.
Holmes:
There is still a chance for escape if we could navigate like a leapfrog.
Holmes:
But here in this void, even an exit itself doesn't exist.
Holmes:
No matter how advanced humanity's means of transportation get, there is no escape from this space—
Holmes:
A 'pit' in the truest sense of the word. We are falling towards the abyss even as we climb.
Gordolf:
This is no time to be impressed—! Blast it, is there nothing we can do!?
Gordolf:
It's not like we're under attack by the enemy. It's not like the ship is in any danger of exploding!
Gordolf:
I will not accept being defeated just because we couldn't find an exit.
Nemo Marine:
Report, repoorrrt!!!! A mysterious explosion has been confirmed 3000 km away!
Nemo Marine:
The void is being torn asunder and you can see the outside!
Nemo Marine:
That heat ray, no doubt about it. It's Albion! Albion's mana emission!
Nemo Marine:
I don't know why, but for some reason, Albion attacked the Abyssal Insect!
Narration:
Having used up all her power, she fell.
Narration:
The sky of the end. Longing for that distant boundary, she spiralled down towards the ground.
Narration:
Neither reason nor memories no longer existed. All that made her who she was had crumbled.
Narration:
What remained was a lump of flesh that had fallen off the dead dragon.
Narration:
No purpose, no wish. A falling star, meant only to crumble away now.
Dragon Corpse:
—
Narration:
However, she felt pain shooting through her hollow heart. She knew there was something she had to remember.
Narration:
“—Searching—Searching. Searching—”
Narration:
Scenery that crumbled each time it was recalled. Each time she viewed those records that could never be replayed,
Dragon Corpse:
—, —aaa—
Narration:
Vivid sparks scattered across her cells.
Narration:
Who am I? Who was I?
Narration:
—As if to answer those questions of why she had been soaring across this land.
Dragon Corpse:
—Aaaaa—
Narration:
And among them, she saw it.
Narration:
That which destroys the Fairy Kingdom. That which guided the Fairy Kingdom to this conclusion.
Narration:
—The White Dragon of Britain.
Narration:
That which devours the world her loved ones lived in, that which she shares the same cause with. That apocalyptic figure.
Dragon Corpse:
Aaa—aaa. Aaaaaaaaaaa......!!!!
Narration:
Spreading those broken wings. Shouting from that crushed throat.
Narration:
Those scales falling off from her flight. That flesh falling off, unable to endure the restart.
Narration:
Accepting all of them, the dragon soared.
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
—That's right. I have to fly. I have to fly.
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
Even if I cannot be proud of anything as a fairy. Even if I cannot be praised for anything as a knight.
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
Even if I'm just an outsider who, from the beginning, only ever imitated people...!
Narration:
She was not a fairy of Britain.
Narration:
She was a misfit who belonged with neither fairies nor humans, because she was a superior life form.
Narration:
The Dragon of the Boundary was treated as a being of pan-human history, even in the Lostbelt.
Narration:
From the start, she was a foreign life form.
Narration:
From the start, she never had a place to belong in this Britain.
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
I never had any land or peace. I cannot—
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
I must not desire them. All I have is this scenery.
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
This boundary that divides the heavens and the earth, the planet and the universe.
Narration:
But there was something she had gained.
Narration:
She had something, even if it was false, even if it was something she had let go of.
Narration:
She could no longer remember anything, but this void in her memory circuits showed that it did exist.
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
The name of this craft is...the label attached to this record is...
Narration:
The atmosphere scraped away at the craft. The faster it went, the more the flying object lost its appearance as a dragon.
Narration:
At the rate it was going, it would self-destruct. What little life remaining in it would burn out.
Narration:
Disqualified as a weapon and paradoxical as a life form. The dragon's own thoughts pointed out its mistakes.
Narration:
Despite this.
Narration:
“Reason: unnecessary. Objective: subdue all that threatens Britain. ”
Narration:
The flames that lit in her eyes accelerated that iron body.
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
I am Mélusine—Fairy Knight Mélusine!
Fairy Knight Mélusine:
Fly...! Even if you're just broken remains...!
Narration:
She cut through the winds and confronted the enemy. She soared, beyond that apocalyptic scenery.
Narration:
As one of the lives saved by this Britain, the crumbling dragon's final roar resounded.
Aurora:
...aaa...that sound just now.
Narration:
She felt as though she heard a strangely irritating sound, and stirred.
Narration:
It was moments after she had been pierced by the Fairy Knight's blade. Lying on her back, she opened her eyes in a daze.
Aurora:
How very quiet...I wonder if the tumult from the city has subsided.
Aurora:
Hehe. I suppose that must be the case. They were making a ruckus for so long, they must surely be tired by now.
Aurora:
Didn't I say so? You only need to wait for it to subside. Someone else will take care of all your worries.
Aurora:
That's how it has always been with me. Surely the same must have happened this time too, right?
Narration:
The sound of coughing.
Narration:
She spoke with her usual grace, with a gentle smile.
Narration:
There was no longer anyone in the room. There were no longer any survivors in the city.
Narration:
Only memories of the past continued to echo.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
“To shine the brightest”. That is the only love you harbor.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
You've never thought of cultivating yourself. You've never thought of growing or making an effort.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Because you were born complete.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
There is no need to toil like the Earth Clan. No need to scar like the Fang Clan.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
No need to learn like the Wing Clan. No need to serve like the Mirror Clan.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Fairies whose worth lies in just being there. That is the conclusion drawn by the Wind Clan.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
—You are the embodiment of that, Aurora.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
You love no one, and in return, you need no one. All you need are ornaments to adorn yourself with.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Truly a fascinating way of being. I like it. Yes. I love it.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
But, you're no good when someone more popular than you shows up.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
It's not like you to do it yourself. Let your followers handle it.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Just like you did with Londinium. Or just like you did with Ainsel.
Aurora:
What are you talking about, Oberon? They brought their own demise on themselves, you know?
Aurora:
I was sad, too...but there must have been some kind of grudge...
Bug sitting on the Desk:
I see. That's a relief.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Then you knowing Gawain would be there at the human farm in the west,
Bug sitting on the Desk:
and you sending along a capable fairy horse as a watcher, are all just me imagining things as well.
Aurora:
I did know of Gawain's schedule, but...
Aurora:
Is there a problem with her running into the Child of Prophecy?
Bug sitting on the Desk:
None at all. Thanks to that, my schedule's moved up. It is a shame that we lost an actor, though.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Well then, I'll be counting on you from now on. Play nice with Spriggan.
Aurora:
Are you leaving already?
Aurora:
I'd have liked to hear more interesting stories from you...what a pity.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
You already know the whole story, more or less, even without me needing to tell you.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
As a matter of fact, I'm no match for the Wind Clan when it comes to espionage. There has never been a scarier means of doctoring information than the 'Voice of the Wind'.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Oh, but—
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Will you kindly refrain from laying a hand on Artoria and Fujimaru?
Bug sitting on the Desk:
They're both important pawns of mine. For defeating Morgan, that is.
Aurora:
Oh dear, you're making a face I've never seen you make before. I'm almost jealous of them.
Aurora:
Tell me, Oberon. You said your purpose is Morgan's downfall, but...
Aurora:
I can trust you on that, right? You're not a pest meddling with my Britain, are you?
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Of course. I act to secure the future of Britain.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
We're sitting here like this precisely because I believe you to be the most suitable ruler for Britain.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
But it is true that you should not trust me too much. After all, my words are all lies.
Aurora:
Hm? What do you mean?
Aurora:
If everything you say is a lie, then your words 'don't trust me too much' would also be a lie...
Bug sitting on the Desk:
That's the kind of Heroic Spirit I am.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
I do not hide the truth, neither do I spread lies.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
From the very beginning, the words of Fairy King Oberon are 'not worth placing trust in'.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Whether it be a truth or a falsehood, the moment I speak of it will make it a lie.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
I'm your polar opposite, Aurora. Everything becomes the truth with you.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
No matter what dark thoughts you harbor. No matter how much you pretend to be someone you're not.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
The moment you put them into words, the fairies, the world and even you yourself, will come to believe there is not a shred of lie in those words.
Aurora:
Hehe. Oberon, you eccentric. Always saying something incomprehensible.
Aurora:
Umm, in other words...you're calling me a liar? Something like, it takes one to know one?
Bug sitting on the Desk:
Of course not. You don't even realize you're lying yourself.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
You're both perpetrator and bystander. That's how you've survived this far.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
You're not the most beautiful fairy in Britain.
Bug sitting on the Desk:
You're the most innocent usurper in Britain.
Aurora:
My word, he was a cute one. I should have captured him and killed him.
Narration:
The most beautiful fairy in Britain. The most glamorous fairy in Britain.
Narration:
To be such was her 'purpose'. For 3,000 years, she strove to be like that.
Narration:
Neither lies nor violence were sins. They were just the price to pay to be like that.
Narration:
She had no awareness of evil. No awareness of good. Everything was but a tool for her to 'shine'.
Narration:
However—
Aurora:
—Long ago, just once—
Narration:
Just once, she did something that did not benefit herself.
Narration:
In the year 1600 of the Queen's Calendar, in the Lake District. When she paid a visit to the hometown of the Mirror Clan with her attendants.
Narration:
In a dark lake, she found that creature.
Narration:
A writhing lump of meat. A repulsive being, immersed in rotting filth.
Aurora:
Oh dear—
Narration:
All she had was a scheme. She just wanted to look good in front of her attendants.
Narration:
“The most beautiful fairy in Britain saving the most repulsive thing in Britain. ”
Narration:
An act meant to show how being able to do this made her more wonderful than anyone else.
Aurora:
I am Aurora. Do you have a name?
Dragon Corpse:
—, —..., —...
Narration:
The one thing that surprised her was that the lump of meat she had embraced wept like a person.
Narration:
She had never seen tears as tragic, as warm, or as sincere before.
Narration:
It was not envy that followed after that— what she felt about her own actions was—
Aurora:
—My word, I never wanted to touch a thing like that.
Narration:
“I want to be like you”. With those words, the lump of meat became a beautiful fairy.
Narration:
She may have been immortal, but she aged all the same. The brilliance of her wings had diminished since the Queen's Calendar began.
Narration:
Unless she amused herself every day with new and unusual matters, that brilliance would certainly fade.
Aurora:
—Aah, and yet that girl.
Narration:
Strong, beautiful, and unfading above all else.
Narration:
As she did not realize that she was a repulsive creature, there was no need for even innocence.
Aurora:
See? Even now, in a place like that.
Narration:
A dragon fairy soaring in a sky of solitude. How annoying. How hateful. How unpleasant.
Narration:
While she lied there, covered in mud, on the ground. That fairy remained more beautiful than anyone else.
Aurora:
Foolish child...if you had killed me...
Narration:
The dragon fairy would become a lump of meat once more.
Narration:
She would never come to love the dragon. With her pride on the line, she would never allow the dragon to be rewarded.
Narration:
The dragon should continue to suffer forever, despairing at the false words of love.
Narration:
That longing, that despair, that is what made the dragon a fairy.
Narration:
Above all else, that dragon had to continue to protect her, the source of its suffering.
Narration:
But that dragon ended her life, not for itself but for her sake.
Aurora:
Yes, that's right. I am not afraid of death.
Aurora:
What I fear is losing my brilliance. Fading away and no longer being special.
Aurora:
That's why—
Narration:
Even if it meant the dragon would to return to being a repulsive lump of meat,
Narration:
it killed the one it loved the most in the world, the miracle that saved it, Aurora. For her sake, with its own hands.
Aurora:
I really do hate you...Fine then, I finally feel relieved now that we've parted ways.
Aurora:
Look, Oberon. A fool like that is what it means to be innocent.
Narration:
Something she embraced for appearances' sake. Reflecting her own ugliness, like the surface of a lake.
Aurora:
Go away. Go away...
Narration:
But what came afterwards truly was beautiful.
Narration:
For the first time, she smiled, knowing she had done something good.
Aurora:
Higher and higher...
Aurora:
Higher than anything...
Narration:
The wreckage of a crumbling dragon.
Narration:
While staring up at it like a child, her life ended, along with her brilliance.
Fujimaru 1:
That's the exit—!
Gordolf:
R-right, that is indeed the exit! But why would Albion do that!?
Nemo:
Worry about the details later! Da Vinci, how far away is our destination!?
Da Vinci:
Distance to the tear in the void, 800 km! It's further than it looks, but we can definitely make it! Captain!
Nemo:
All hands, grab onto something, anything will do! Meunière, maximum output! Don't worry about anything else!
Meunière:
R-roger, leave it to me! Storm Border, full steam ahead!
Meunière:
Let's step on it, all the way to the sun!
Narration:
Oberon fell.
Narration:
Through bottomless cavities and never-ending tunnels, he fell endlessly.
Narration:
He no longer had the strength to take flight. No, after all—
Oberon Vortigern:
The wings of my back are just for show. As if I could fly into the sky, you fool.
Narration:
He sneers hatefully. In truth, he must have been delighted.
Narration:
Although he had been bested, Oberon had accomplished his goal.
Narration:
The only thing that irked him was the fact that he couldn't take Chaldea down with him.
Oberon Vortigern:
Go, go! Fly off wherever the hell you want! It's a relief knowing I won't have to see you anymore!
Narration:
Moving away further and further.
Narration:
The Foreign Magus and the other Child of Prophecy— his companions on that long journey—were flying off into that distant sky.
Narration:
And Oberon, the Great Liar, hatefully saw them off.
Oberon Vortigern:
Well, it doesn't matter. My wish for Britain's destruction came true.
Oberon Vortigern:
Ahh, but—
Oberon Vortigern:
O fictitious you. Titania, who could love the twisted Oberon.
Oberon Vortigern:
My wish to destroy pan-human history for your sake could not come true.
Narration:
Born 'that way' and thrown aside as 'nothing' afterwards.
Narration:
His sacrificial love that could only exist within a tale.
Narration:
—or perhaps, even if he had encountered something similar to that,
Narration:
Oberon, the Great Liar, would not have acknowledged it.
Oberon Vortigern:
Ahh, but still, even though I got beaten to a pulp—
Oberon Vortigern:
Why am I this calm?
Narration:
The abyssal hole was disappearing. Falling endlessly.
Narration:
And in the midst of it all:
Oberon Vortigern:
Hmph, so that's the sky of pan-human history...
Oberon Vortigern:
I'll be damned, if it isn't so beautiful it makes you want to puke—
Narration:
And so the lid closed on the infinite void. The Insect of the Abyss fell, never to reach anywhere.
Epilogue: Finish
Nemo:
We'll reach the boundary of normal space in 40, 30, 20...!
Nemo:
Stop Triton Engines two through four! Decelerate to standard cruising speed now!
Nemo:
Here it comes, everyone brace for impact! Up ahead lies the skies above the British Lostbelt—no...
Nemo:
The island of Britain!
Mash:
Senpai! Look out the window!
Fujimaru 1:
Yeah—yeah!
Mash:
Yes, it's a familiar sky! Shall we head for the deck!?
Fujimaru 2:
Let's head for the deck, Mash!
Nemo:
Attention all hands. Our vessel has made a safe return to the skies above the island of Britain.
Nemo:
State of alert has been lifted.
Nemo:
Return any self-defense armaments to the armory promptly and return to your assigned stations.
Nemo:
Furthermore, Commander Gordolf has an announcement to make. Here's the mic.
Gordolf:
H-hmm! You did well on this unprecedented, long-term operation.
Gordolf:
The surveyors who explored an unknown world, cooperated with the locals, and prevented the collapse of the world.
Gordolf:
The staff who stood by and maintained the ship in total darkness for 50 days.
Gordolf:
The Observation Lens SHEBA has returned to its normal state thanks to your efforts.
Gordolf:
The predicted Collapse that would've propagated from Britain has been thoroughly purged!
Gordolf:
Therefore, I consider our operation on the island of Britain—
Gordolf:
Our Lostbelt conquest, complete! Well done! Well done!
Meunière:
Snrk, what's with that? Hey, old man, you don't exactly have the most expansive vocabulary~!
Gordolf:
I-I simply voiced my honest feelings! How would you like to experience the ordeal of giving a speech for once!?
Gordolf:
It's no easy task to speak articulately and without any nervousness, I'll have you know!
Nemo:
Good grief...Da Vinci, hand me the mic.
Nemo:
Now then, onto business.
Nemo:
Our vessel is currently cruising at low speed for a systems check.
Nemo:
An airnet has been deployed at the edge of the deck. I hereby grant permission to head out onto the deck for 20 minutes.
Nemo:
—Go and have a look. It may be painful, but it's a way of getting closure.
Nemo:
A conclusion to your memories of Britain.
Fujimaru 1:
Ah—
Fujimaru 2:
(The color of the sky really is striking)
Mash:
—But, the island of Britain...
Mash:
The Fairy Kingdom of Britain...is no more...
Fujimaru 1:
Yeah...
Fujimaru 2:
It is, after all...a restored Singularity...
Fujimaru 1:
But, it still existed. Just like the other Lostbelts.
Mash:
—Yes. Yes...!
Mash:
The priceless memories of a journey that taught me a lot of precious lessons...!
Da Vinci:
Heeey! Fujimaru, Maaaash!
Mash:
Da Vinci! Did you also come here to have a look at Britain?
Da Vinci:
Yep. I came here to say my goodbyes, as someone who travelled that land.
Da Vinci:
I got some booze from Bakery. Figured I'd pour one out for Mike.
Da Vinci:
This is my goodbye, Mike, and here's a parting gift. Even now, you're living it up at that tavern.
Da Vinci:
I believe and hope so. Even in a different world, once pruned and now corrected.
Da Vinci:
Even if the universe deems it unnecessary and halts any observation of it.
Da Vinci:
What once was will remain, even now, within the planet's memories.
Da Vinci:
—I'll cross that boundary and pay you a visit someday. To see how much progress you've made.
Fujimaru 1:
Yeah...
Fujimaru 2:
I suppose you will, Da Vinci...
Da Vinci:
Oops, speaking of which, I have other business too!
Da Vinci:
Mash, Fujimaru, hurry on over to my workshop!
Da Vinci:
There's this Saint Graph that's started glowing and going 'meow, meow'!
Da Vinci:
We'll check up on it. Tag along, summoner! There's no telling what'll pop up!
Mash:
Hmm. If that's the case, then please leave it to me. I won't lose, no matter what shows up.
Mash:
Because I'm Super Kyrielight, powered up from the Fairy Kingdom.
Fujimaru 1:
Oh...speaking of which, Mash...!
Mash:
Yes! What's the matter, Master!?
Fujimaru 1:
Your Saint Graph output's gone back to normal.
Fujimaru 2:
Super forms tend to come with a time limit.
Mash:
—!
Mash:
I-I figured as much, that's fine! I'll sulk alone later!
Mash:
Leaving that aside, let's head for Da Vinci's workshop!
Mash:
For some reason, my heart is throbbing. I have a feeling that a wonderful encounter awaits!
Da Vinci:
Is that so~~? I suppose I'll bet on Super Kyrielight's intuition.
Da Vinci:
Now then, farewell once more to Britain. Thank you for all the encounters.
Da Vinci:
Then—let's be off, Fujimaru.
Da Vinci:
Our journey has yet to end. Engrave these memories in your heart for now and let's go home.
Fujimaru 1:
—Yes!
Fujimaru 2:
Got it. Goodbye, Britain!
Mash:
I'm a little nervous, though.
Mash:
I wonder what sort of Heroic Spirit this newly summoned individual is?
Sion:
—TRISMEGISTUS II. Cessation of Catastrophe Defragmentation.
Sion:
Switching the situation over to Catastrophe Automation. Congratulations on locating the unexpected dead end and correcting it.
Sion:
Dear me, I expected nothing less of Chaldea! You prevented the future of the Collapse 23 hours and 58 minutes in!
Sion:
But no time to sit around here either. I suppose I'll start preparing for the next dead end.
Sion:
Let's see, the remaining special, dangerous cases are...
Sion:
The juvenile Beast that flew away from Britain and the possibility of the formation of the largest Singularity ever recorded...
Sion:
As for Kadoc's recovery...
Sion:
I was unable to extract the so-called Sirius Light, so we'll have to just give up on that front...
Sion:
Hmm, the hieroglyphic predictions say 'No problem. Rebel. Eyelids, eyelids'.
Sion:
I have no clue. Arabic please!
Oh well, let's ignore this one for now.
Sion:
More importantly, what we ought to be paying attention to right now is our dear lady. I wonder what move she'll make.
Sion:
Oops, and here's this prediction...This is as obvious as it gets, but we don't have much time.
Sion:
Now then, I'll need to hurry with the preparations too.
Sion:
Chaldea has conquered six Lostbelts now. The Alien God must surely have finished her studying.
Sion:
Both sides have narrowed their targets down to one.
Sion:
This is as far as victories without casualties go. There's no assurance of safety from this point onwards, is there?