"Master"
"..."
"Please stand up. Everything that has happened can't be undone anymore. Now we can only move forward."
"..."
Even though they were surrounded by a peaceful atmosphere — a gentle grassy field and refreshing breezes — it did nothing to help the person who had just suffered the most terrifying shock of his life because of his own mistake.
A murderer. He was a murderer.
He had killed 1,099 people.
He hadn't changed. He had still let others die, and that made him feel like a hypocrite.
Because if he couldn't even save the lives of those underage children, then everything he had told himself before was nothing more than self-comfort rather than a real decision.
He. Was. A. Murderer.
"Master"
"..."
Saber watched Robert standing frozen in place, tormented by a sin he wasn't truly responsible for.
She felt it was her fault for not telling Robert about this beforehand. But even if she had told him, would he have accepted it?
Being an ally of justice, stubbornness and recklessness had always been part of their nature. Therefore, there was a high chance Robert would have tried to save them anyway.
He might have felt even more guilty for failing to save them and tormented himself even worse.
'Right now, trying to persuade or comfort him is useless. He'll only sink deeper into negativity...'
If that was the case, there was only one way left...
"Master, if you keep tormenting yourself like this, more lives will die."
"...It's useless. Even if I move forward, people will still die in the future. It would be better if I just died."
"So you're abandoning those who died because of you?"
"...No."
"Then stand up. Are you really going to keep running away just because you can't face those who have died? What if they're waiting for you to avenge them? Or are you trying to betray their trust?"
"Human lives are so easily taken. No matter what you do, people will still die for countless reasons. So it's better to keep moving forward than to stand still. Saving as many lives as possible is better than standing by and watching everything disappear."
Better to be a hypocrite than to have morals but be too cowardly to act.
"..."
Seeing Robert sitting motionless, Saber swallowed hard.
She knew this was an extremely toxic way to motivate someone.
Instead of criticizing or suggesting a change in approach, she was encouraging his old methods to the point of extremism — making him believe that if no one else saw a problem with it, then he didn't need to change.
Yes, Saber knew. Robert would definitely become worse if he accepted this.
"..."
Robert stared at the grassy field, at the arm of that student. His eyes were lifeless, without a single spark.
"Ugh..."
He scratched his head, gritted his teeth, his expression shifting rapidly.
"...Saber."
"Yes, Master?"
"...That Holy Grail. It can grant any wish if I win, right?"
"Yes."
"...Alright. I think I've changed my wish."
World peace and people not killing each other? Looking back, it sounded truly ridiculous because of how naive it was.
It sounded like a dream. He wished he could truly believe it would work.
He wanted to believe it...
But if things continued like this... it wouldn't work at all.
He needed something... something more effective.
This war... had to be stopped.
And to stop it, what did he need to do?
...Power.
He needed power.
He needed power to save everyone.
Power to prevent death.
Power to fight against murderers.
Power to stop those who commit crimes.
This would be his driving force. He had to become the strongest, so no one could do evil, so the innocent could be saved, so no more meaningless wars like this would occur.
To atone for all his mistakes, to fulfill his desires, to keep his promises.
It was fine to be a hypocrite. It was fine to become the villain.
As long as... as long as justice was carried out.
"Master..." Saber saw Robert gradually changing.
She had predicted this. She only hoped he wouldn't turn into a madman or something.
"Saber, let's go. I really shouldn't let their deaths be in vain."
He looked at the arm, then began clawing at the ground with his hand.
"This will be my mistake. I may repeat it in the future."
After clawing for a while, he made a small hole and placed the arm inside it.
"And every time something like this happens, I will torment myself for my weakness and push myself forward with this motivation."
His hand was covered in dirt. His previously lifeless eyes now held a faint light, though not much.
"Even if I end up as an empty shell, as long as the goal is achieved."
He looked at Saber. His current appearance no longer resembled the upright police officer seeking justice.
Instead, he looked like a madman thirsting for power to carry out justice and atone for his sins.
He had already become a murderer, so he would accept it. He no longer complained, because he deserved it.
And he would definitely not give up until the goal was reached.
"..." Saber narrowed her eyes at Robert, then sighed.
No matter what happened to her Master... she would still follow him.
"Let's go, Saber."
"Master."
"?" He turned his head to look at her.
"You're not alone."
"...Thank you."
And so the two stood together, looking forward.
A dark castle, very much like the kind of place a villain would reside in.
Then suddenly, a princess appeared, speaking in some kind of accent, only to be kicked by someone and fall from the castle, dying on the spot.
"..."
What the fuck? Right after I finished my character development monologue, someone dies right in front of me? Are you kidding? Do you want to destroy the character development this badly?
Then a figure emerged from the castle, holding the hero's head in his hand with a smile.
"...Wait, is that a Shadow Servant?" Robert asked, confused.
Meanwhile, Saber broke into a cold sweat, because the person in front of them...
"Oh dear, I've been waiting quite a while so I went a bit too hard. Looks like you two have finally arrived."
Shadow Servants would never speak.
"I took care of the Shadow Servant here too. Strangely enough, I ended up replacing him. How funny."
"Well then, who's next?"
A Rogue Servant.
D'Artagnan, the fourth of the Three Musketeers.
The youngest, the most talented, taught everything by the three seniors before him so he could be worthy of being the protagonist of the book.
Unfortunately, looking at the silver-white hair, pale golden eyes, and black attire, it was easy to guess what kind of Servant he was.
Alter.
D'Artagnan Alter.