Blood!
No—it couldn't even be called blood. Those scattered fragments were pieces of Shirou Emiya's very soul, torn free beneath the black-and-white twin blades.
Two swords pierced deeply into Shirou's shoulders.
An intense weakness surged through his entire being.
But he had no time for this. He couldn't remain here. He had to move forward.
This was a race against time, and Shirou knew better than anyone that he couldn't afford to stop for even a single moment.
Countless blades tore free from the barren earth, shooting into the sky before hurtling mercilessly toward him.
Two colossal swords emerged from the endless snowfields, crashing down upon the running Shirou with earth-shattering force.
A mournful, echoing gunshot pierced the darkness, driving unerringly into Shirou's heart.
Flames that incinerated everything surged forth, accompanied by the ringing of endless hammers, cleaving toward him in a world shattering like snowflakes.
"You've finally come—"
Only upon hearing this voice ahead did Shirou finally see clearly through the blinding radiance before him.
It was utterly different from the surrounding darkness.
The space before him was filled with blooming flowers; everything in this world seemed crafted from pure beauty, suffused with endless blossoms.
It was a place that soothed the heart and eased the soul.
Standing in its very center was a woman dressed in an elegant white gown, exuding a sacred aura. Her long silver hair cascaded gently behind her as she stood gracefully in absolute serenity.
She was the core of the Greater Grail—the legendary magician hailed as the "Holy Maiden of Winter," Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern.
"You've arrived just in time."
Standing before Shirou, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada praised him softly, voice devoid of any detectable emotion.
Shirou Emiya now knelt on one knee, gasping desperately for air. The unbearable wounds across his body and the relentless tearing of his soul overwhelmed his spirit.
Yet Amakusa himself was also suffering greatly. His torso lay bare, crisscrossed by countless deep, bleeding gashes. Blood streamed down his powerful frame, dyeing the flowers beneath him crimson.
Clearly, he'd also endured tremendous trials. Both his arms glowed visibly, covered in intricate magical formations, emanating intense magical energy.
[Right Hand – Evil Eater]
[Left Hand – Xanadu Matrix]
These were Amakusa Shirou Tokisada's Noble Phantasms.
Rank: D
Type: Anti-Unit
Range: 1
Maximum Targets: 1
These arms, instruments that once performed miracles to give hope to his suffering followers, had become universal keys (Skeleton Keys) capable of connecting with and utilizing any magecraft system.
Furthermore, the right arm granted battle assistance akin to Eye of the Mind (True), while the left arm provided enhancements resembling Eye of the Mind (False), significantly empowering ritual incantations and granting him ageless immortality.
Amakusa's magical circuits had become continuously mutable, changing by the second, their numbers sometimes increasing or decreasing abruptly—utterly abnormal compared to the fixed circuits of other magi.
Moreover, Amakusa's face no longer wore its former gentle, harmless smile. Instead, he gazed at the world with an absolute, indifferent calm.
Yet within his eyes burned a blazing, fervent conviction—
A single-minded drive toward the path he had chosen, indifferent to all obstacles before him.
Such fiery determination was enough to make anyone tremble in awe.
If one's resolve faltered even slightly beneath that gaze, they'd crumble instantly, unable to confront this saint head-on.
"If you'd arrived even a moment later, perhaps I would've already met the legendary Holy Maiden of Winter face-to-face, and my wish would have been realized."
Despite Amakusa's relentless efforts, Shirou Emiya had still managed to reach this place at the very last moment.
Before Amakusa could even react, he'd sensed the ripple in this space signaling someone else's arrival.
Without even using his [Revelation] skill, he knew instinctively it had to be Shirou Emiya, here to stop him.
If asked how he knew, Amakusa would say it was because he'd glimpsed in Shirou Emiya the very shadow of miracles.
Shirou Emiya was someone like himself—someone capable of creating miracles.
What did it matter if Shirou was merely an ordinary magus? Amakusa had never underestimated him as many Heroic Spirits might have.
Indeed, he'd always considered Shirou Emiya his final, greatest adversary.
And Shirou Emiya had proven himself worthy.
With great effort, Shirou rose slowly, meeting Amakusa's gaze directly.
In Shirou's eyes burned a conviction every bit as intense as his opponent's.
Faced with such resolve, Amakusa merely sighed gently in disappointment.
"Why? We're clearly the same kind of person. Why can't you understand me?"
This wasn't insight from his Revelation skill nor mere intuition. It was absolute certainty—Shirou Emiya was indeed someone who wished to save humanity.
"Both you and I are looking toward humanity's future," Amakusa murmured softly, gazing at the distant Holy Maiden of Winter.
"But humanity's future doesn't need saving!"
Shirou Emiya stared resolutely at the distant Holy Maiden of Winter, answering Amakusa without hesitation.
"Why?" Amakusa demanded. "War, crime, greed—all these things are destroying humanity!"
For Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, his deepest wish—his obsession—was humanity's ultimate salvation.
To grant mankind eternal youth and immortality, allowing peaceful coexistence forever—this was his ideal.
A world without desires, where all were equal, free from war and crime. How perfect such a world would be.
"Individual humans do need saving," Shirou acknowledged firmly, "Whether caught in disasters or embroiled in war, if possible, I'd willingly sacrifice everything I have to save them."
"But humanity as a whole doesn't need saving. Humanity still has infinite potential ahead of it. Flaws and imperfections—they're essential to what makes humanity human. We should embrace these imperfections, not purge them."
Amakusa despised humanity deeply, yet loved it equally intensely.
These two extremes, normally irreconcilable, miraculously coexisted within him.
But the reality wasn't quite so simple.
Amakusa hated individual human beings—the criminals, corrupt politicians, heartless magi who disregarded life—yet he loved the abstract ideal of "humanity" itself fiercely. No matter how much contempt he held for individuals, he unconditionally adored humanity as a whole.
But Shirou Emiya was different. He loved humanity, yes—not only as an abstract collective, but as individuals as well. Be it criminal or commoner, he would extend his hand, saving whoever he could with all his strength.
To Shirou Emiya, humanity's imperfections were precisely what made it genuinely human.
And that was the greatest difference between Shirou Emiya and Amakusa Shirou Tokisada.