"In terms of appearance, she's essentially a grown-up version of you," Xia Yu said, glancing at the other's chest. "After all, she's lost the shackles of the Holy Sword."
"You really do know me very well," Artoria said, taking a deep breath. "So, I wish to ask a question."
"I shall tell you everything I know," Xia Yu said, spreading her hands.
"...What is your wish for participating in the Holy Grail War?" she asked.
Hearing this, Xia Yu thought for a moment, then directly activated Sam's power without fully summoning it. Several trails of fluorescent green light extended from her neck to her jaw.
"It's simple. It's so I can live."
Hearing this, Sella, who was standing by, pricked up her ears.
"To live?" Artoria couldn't quite understand that statement.
"You know, I'm actually like you—I can't perform Spiritualization either," Xia Yu smiled. "I was also summoned in my physical body."
"In my point in time, I'm still alive. My condition is a bit better than yours; I'm not on the verge of death, but I don't have much time left either."
"Do you see these erosions? Once they cover my face, Entropy Loss Syndrome will completely consume my existence, causing me to vanish silently from this universe."
"Is this... a disease?" Artoria stared blankly at those deceptively beautiful marks.
"It's a disease, and also a lock," Xia Yu said, looking as if she were lost in a memory. "You've probably racked your brains trying to figure out my origin, but it's actually not that complicated, Artoria. I said we are friends. As a friend, if you ask, I will answer."
"So, do you want to hear my story?"
"I do," Artoria nodded without hesitation.
"Then, I'll tell you now." Xia Yu nodded and began her narration.
"How does a typical story start? Right, 'Long, long ago.' No, for me it should be 'Long, long in the future,' when Human footprints have already spread across the starfield."
"But vast territories also divided humanity into countless factions, large and small. Humans are always like that, aren't they?"
"The Republic of Glamoth was a powerful nation spanning tens of thousands of light-years. At least, that's how it seemed to the surrounding powers."
"But the universe is so vast, accidents always happen. Even a powerful Glamoth had its day of failure."
"They encountered The Swarm."
"It was just a small branch remaining from the Swarm Disaster that once swept through two-thirds of the known universe, but it was enough to plunge Glamoth, which spanned tens of thousands of light-years, into the fires of war."
"Under the relentless assault of The Swarm, the Republic of Glamoth initiated a plan: to use the power of the swarm to fight the swarm. Later, the results of this plan were known as the Iron Cavalry of Glamoth."
"At our peak, the number of Iron Cavalry like me was enough to blot out the sky, capable of grinding down The Swarm in a war of attrition. After all, as a Homunculus, as long as there were enough resources, they could have as many as they wanted."
"But, humans are such creatures—while they created us, they also feared the power of Propagation. So, they placed a 'lock' on all the Iron Cavalry."
Xia Yu said softly: "They created an Empress and erased the Republic of Glamoth from the Iron Cavalry's memories, replacing it with the Glamoth Empire represented by Empress Titania."
"They also implanted Entropy Loss Syndrome into the Iron Cavalry's genes to prevent them from slipping out of control."
"The so-called Entropy Loss Syndrome refers to a state of chronic temporal-spatial disorder where different parts of the patient's body experience different rates of time flow. Simultaneously, the sensory system experiences a cognitive rift, like 'the left eye sees an apple while the right eye sees the swarm'."
"This is accompanied by irreversible dissociation of the physical structure, manifesting as retained motor functions but a continuous fading of one's traces, eventually leading to a mutual forgetting of one's existence by both oneself and the outside world."
"To put it simply, after it fully erupts, I will disappear from this world, along with the world's memory of me."
"Normally, such methods would only invite rebellion," Artoria said, looking into Xia Yu's eyes. "Did you overthrow Glamoth?"
"No, quite the opposite," Xia Yu shook her head, a trace of sorrow in her eyes. "The Iron Cavalry were consumables. Generally, the vast majority of Iron Cavalry wouldn't live long enough for their hair to reach their shoulders. Veterans like me are very rare."
"As for Glamoth... before we even had the consciousness to rebel, it was already destroyed. The mighty Glamoth couldn't survive the onslaught of The Swarm. In the end, only us homunculi were left, still carrying out a meaningless resistance."
"It was one battle after another with no end in sight. Finally, during an operation involving space-based weapons to clear out a swarm mother, I was the only Iron Cavalry left..."
"Now, I can call myself Empress Titania, as the last remnant of the Glamoth Empire."
"Is the so-called Swarm... truly that terrifying?" Artoria found it hard to fathom.
"Yes, very terrifying," Xia Yu said softly. "At the peak of the Swarm Disaster, wherever the swarm passed, they would consume all resources, leaving planet after planet as lonely, dead stars."
"The power of Propagation affected any planet they were on. When the seeds sown matured, what grew were bugs. What was born after ten months of pregnancy were also bugs. Even on factory assembly lines, what came off were bugs..."
"If Glamoth had encountered the peak Swarm at the beginning, they wouldn't have lasted long enough for the Iron Cavalry to see the light of day."
"So, can it be avoided?" Artoria frowned deeply. She felt a chill all over just thinking about such a catastrophe. As a ruler, she understood better than anyone; under such a disaster, no Dominion could survive.
"It can't be done," Xia Yu shook her head. "Even though I've returned to the present, I've never thought of such a fantastical thing. The Aeon of Propagation, Tayzzyronth, was just an ordinary bug before ascension."
"The trajectory of fate is set. Even if you find it among hundreds of millions of bugs and kill it, another bug will ascend to godhood. Once He carved His own path into the universe, everything was anchored."
"Can a so-called god truly do such a thing?" Artoria's brow furrowed. She truly couldn't imagine the concept of a god she knew being capable of such horrors.
"It's just that the gods of this era, on this planet, cannot do it," Xia Yu shook her head. "Don't compare the gods of the Interstellar Era, whose faith spans the entire Sea of Stars, with the gods of this age."
"Artoria, in terms of strength, on this planet, I could fully claim to be a god myself. If the people of this era wanted to wage a crusade against me, they'd at least have to bring out the lineup that once defeated the Velber."
"But in my time, I'm just a slightly stronger Pathstrider. I'm not even an Emanator... the universe is very magnificent."
"What is an Emanator?" Sella, holding her tray, asked curiously.
"They are Pathstriders recognized by an Aeon, the existences closest to them, the strongest below the Aeons," Xia Yu explained. "To put it in a way that might not be intuitive, let me give you an example."
"Take Miss Acheron, whom I met on the planet of festivities, Penacony. If she got serious and swung her blade from outside the Solar System, the eight planets lined up wouldn't be able to block it. Even the sun would be sliced in half."
"And Miss Acheron is considered strong even among Emanators."
"As for another example—also from Penacony—member #79 of the Genius Society, Calderon Chadwick. His invention, the 'Imaginary Collapsing Pulse,' could completely annihilate the Solar System within one microsecond—that is, one-millionth of a second."
"And that's despite him being a genius whose personal combat power isn't particularly outstanding; his research results alone are that terrifying."
"That's how the Genius Society is. As geniuses glanced upon by the Aeon of Erudition, every one of their representative research projects is enough to shake the foundations of the entire universe."
"So as I said, the universe is truly magnificent."
"But even in such a magnificent universe, your illness still cannot be cured?" Sella asked.
"It's not that it's incurable; it's that I cannot afford the price," Xia Yu shook her head. "For instance, member #81 of the Genius Society, Ruan Mei. As a genius in the field of life sciences, she can even nurture sentient planets. Curing me wouldn't be a difficult task for her."
"The problem is, I can't afford the price. No, I don't even have a price that would make her act," Xia Yu said self-deprecatingly. "As a genius, she fits the stereotype: extremely antisocial, only acting on things that interest her. Although Entropy Loss Syndrome is troublesome for others, it's nothing to her."
"Precisely because it's nothing, I can't even attract her gaze. Doesn't that sound hilarious?"
"As for other methods, it's not like I haven't looked. But everything has a price. Again, a person all alone like me can't do it. The Third Magic that the Holy Grail can realize might be of some use to me, so I came."
Xia Yu wasn't saying all this for Artoria.
She was saying it for the two people eavesdropping behind the scenes.
"Truly grand and magnificent," Artoria nodded upon hearing this, her emerald eyes fixed on Xia Yu. "However, I also have a wish. I cannot simply hand over the Holy Grail."
"Do you think I'm the type to play the pity card to get you to show mercy?" Xia Yu rested her chin on her hand. "No, I'm just making small talk with you."
"The so-called Holy Grail is already in my pocket. Artoria, I'm sorry, but this time, you too will return in failure."
"Are you truly that confident?" Artoria keenly sensed something slightly off. "If your life is in imminent danger, you could simply defeat us one by one. Wouldn't that be more secure?"
"That involves another matter," Xia Yu sighed. "The stupid thing that fool Acht did. Say, Artoria, aren't you curious why Emiya Kiritsugu, that fanatic, would order you to use your Noble Phantasm on the Holy Grail when it was within reach?"
In the outskirts of Fuyuki, atop a wasteland where not a blade of grass grew.
"Ow, ow, ow!" The orange-haired Young Girl rubbed the back of her head. "Why did I appear in the sky this time?!"