February 4th, Sunday.
The broadcast day of episode 5 of 'Fate/Zero'.
By this point, the Xia Nation audience had a fairly clear understanding of the show.
The main storyline revolved around the Holy Grail.
And the plot focused on the clashes and battles between seven Masters and seven Servants—fourteen core characters in total—while also introducing several supporting characters through the Masters' families, friends, and social connections.
For example, Tohsaka Tokiomi's daughter Tohsaka Rin, Matou Sakura, his wife, and another Master, Matou Kariya, who was in love with his wife.
Then there was the male lead Emiya Kiritsugu's wife Irisviel, daughter Illya, and his assistant Maiya…
Even though only four episodes had aired so far, there were already twenty to thirty named characters with dialogue.
Yet every single one of them was well-developed—far from the kind of shallow characters whose names you forget minutes after seeing them.
Viewers in the Xia Nation found it enjoyable and easy to follow, with thrilling, straightforward action scenes that were simply satisfying to watch.
But industry professionals were studying it.
Even though Su Yan was hard to surpass, quite a few screenwriters and directors had found success over the past few years by imitating him.
Basically, every time one of his works became a hit, copycat productions would appear a few months later.
Like Aozora TV's original drama 'Magic Boy A Bing'.
And others, such as 'Cyberpunk: Killing Battlefield', 'Journey Through Time', and 'The Truth of July'—just from the titles alone, you could tell they were inspired by Su Yan's works. Still, his fans enjoyed digging through them in search of hidden gems.
Although these days the entire film and television industry is being flooded with promotions for the upcoming Spring Festival releases,
On Sundays—when 'Fate/Zero' aired—even those heavily promoted films struggled to surpass its popularity.
On major entertainment forums, the number of discussion threads about Spring Festival movies and 'Fate/Zero' was roughly equal.
["Tonight, let's go!"]
["Last week's episode ended way too abruptly! Kiritsugu vs. Kayneth just cut off like that—I've been suffering all week."]
["Watching 'Fate/Zero' today, and in six days heading to the cinema for 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie'… Ah, Spring Festival, I love you!"]
["Is the plot just going to be Kiritsugu taking out one enemy every one or two episodes until it ends? Wouldn't that get a bit repetitive?"]
["What else would it be? It's a battle series."]
["Not exactly… it just feels very different from the old thief's previous style. Even 'Cyberpunk: Edgerunners' focused more on story, with fights as a byproduct of character conflict. 'Fate' doesn't hit me as hard in terms of character depth."]
["It's only been four weeks—what are you expecting? In episode 4 of 'Cyberpunk: Edgerunners', the protagonist was still flirting! Just keep watching. Questioning it this early is risky—you'll probably get proven wrong."]
["I think something's wrong with me. I used to feel miserable watching the old sadist's tragic dramas, but now with this pure battle series, I actually feel a bit uncomfortable!"]
["No need to doubt yourself—you're just being picky!"]
As 8 PM approached, Dong Ran finally looked away from the forums.
Scrolling was fun, but 'Fate/Zero' was about to start.
Already on holiday for the Spring Festival, he was enjoying a carefree life at home—barbecue snacks and drinks prepared in advance, paired with tonight's battle-heavy episode. Perfect.
Soon, the TV screen flickered, and the opening theme of 'Fate/Zero' began.
Even though it was his fifth time hearing it, the visuals still left him amazed.
["The old sadist's productions really spare no expense."]
Every second, money was radiated.
Episode 5 picked up directly from the end of episode 4—Emiya Kiritsugu launching a surprise attack on Kayneth.
As Artoria and Lancer Diarmuid fought, they encountered the Caster-class Servant, Gilles de Rais.
In life, he had been a ruthless marshal of an empire. To revive his beloved Jeanne d'Arc, he had become a mad killer.
And coincidentally, the female lead Artoria looked exactly like the goddess he adored—Jeanne.
Thus, the plot unfolded as he and his Master, Uryuu Ryuunosuke, intervened in the duel between Artoria and Diarmuid…
Dong Ran didn't fully understand terms like "Caster," "Berserker," "Saber," "Archer," and "Lancer."
But he could vaguely tell that Su Yan included these detailed settings to pave the way for future game adaptations if 'Fate' became popular.
Even if he couldn't grasp every detail, the constantly shifting perspectives across multiple battlefields—Kiritsugu vs. Kayneth, Artoria vs. Diarmuid and Gilles, Irisviel and Maiya vs. Kotomine Kirei—left him dazzled.
The plot was also highly dramatic. Kayneth, driven into rage by Kiritsugu's underhanded tactics, was struck by a bullet made from Kiritsugu's own rib, destroying his magic circuits—essentially crippling him.
Kotomine Kirei killed Irisviel and Maiya before leaving.
As he departed, he wondered—
Why someone like Kiritsugu, whom he saw as similar to himself and fundamentally misunderstood by others, could have someone like Irisviel willing to fight and die for him.
Meanwhile, Irisviel survived thanks to Kiritsugu having implanted Saber's scabbard into her body beforehand, granting her regenerative abilities.
The plot was a bit complex for Dong Ran, but still understandable.
And even if he didn't fully get it on the first watch, he could always check forum posts later for explanations.
But what came next was… something else entirely.
Kayneth, severely injured by Kiritsugu, was rescued by Diarmuid. If not for Diarmuid's respect for Artoria's knightly honor—and his unwillingness to kill her Master through such means—Kiritsugu might have been killed on the spot.
However, after being rescued, Kayneth lost his ability to be a mage due to his destroyed circuits. Under pressure from his wife Sola, he was forced to transfer his Command Seals—the means of controlling his Servant—to her…
And then—
Sola, with joy and affection in her eyes, looked at Diarmuid.
Diarmuid gazed back at her with sorrow.
This had happened before in his life—
His lord's wife had fallen in love with him, leading to the collapse of loyalty and order.
And now, history was repeating itself.
This development completely stunned Dong Ran.
Kayneth had been so impressive in episode one, mocking Waver's weak lineage and indirectly setting off the chain of events that led Waver to steal his relic and join the Holy Grail War.
And now?
Just a few episodes in—
He was crippled, his wife had effectively betrayed him, taken his Command Seals, and even fallen for the Servant he summoned.
["Old sadist… You really know how to play."]
Dong Ran almost wanted to stamp the word "tragic" across Kayneth's face.
But the highlight of the episode wasn't even that.
Because of the Servants' battles, Fuyuki City had suffered massive civilian casualties.
The long-inactive Rider, Alexander the Great—the King of Conquerors—finally took action.
Summoning his chariot, he drove through streets filled with victims, carrying his Master Waver…
Flames burned, and the music turned solemn and grand.
The contrast between Waver's pained expression at the suffering of ordinary people and Alexander's weathered yet resolute demeanor was striking.
That scene—Alexander riding his chariot with Waver—became, in Dong Ran's mind, the first truly iconic moment of 'Fate/Zero'.
There was little dialogue, yet the emotions, atmosphere, and meaning were fully conveyed through performance alone.
A sense of tragedy and awe lingered in his heart.
The ending theme began.
Only then did Dong Ran snap back to reality.
That image of the King of Conquerors and Waver standing on the chariot… it almost looked like a king and his queen surveying the world.
Although the show constantly emphasized Alexander as a solitary king of history, Dong Ran hadn't really grasped it before.
But in those brief thirty seconds, he found himself beginning to admire this fictional character.
Maybe… this is what a king should be like.
It was over.
["The old sadist's character writing is seriously strong."]
Dong Ran felt a hint of emptiness—he had been too immersed.
Another week of waiting.
But now, what he looked forward to most wasn't Artoria anymore.
It was Alexander.
Opening his computer, Dong Ran went to Dimensional Pictures' official website to check the character profile for the King of Conquerors.
"Are these really fictional?" he sighed after a long while.
Just how did Su Yan come up with characters like these?