In Type-Moon, it all starts with adopting Sakura.

Perhaps it was because I suddenly thought of the stories in the Bible, specifically the Gospel of Matthew and Genesis, about how the Lord forgives your sins.

In this final moment, Kirei Kotomine still chose to make one last attempt, trying his best to grasp that fleeting redemption and pursue the answer in his heart.

Even though he was still confused and lost, his intuition told him to keep going. He just needed to find Kiritsugu Emiya and ask him in person what he was pursuing.

At that time, I will get the answer myself.

"Let's keep going..."

Kirei Kotomine looked down at his body, which had just been resurrected, stared at his hands, and couldn't help but sigh.

Human desires are beautiful.

It is baseless and even contradicts the facts at hand, yet it is filled with all sorts of beauty, and humans will instinctively pursue beauty.

Even someone like Kirei Kotomine, who yearns to explore malice, once pursued that fleeting beauty, only to find nothing in the end. This inevitably led him into confusion, causing him to begin exploring things he had never encountered before, namely the twisted side—evil.

Originally, his pursuit was merely a yearning and curiosity, but under the malicious influence of the King of Heroes, he mistook curiosity for his own inner desire. Even though Kirei Kotomine knew that doing so was wrong for the Proxy, he still did it in order to understand his true nature.

Human nature rarely exhibits truly pure evil or pure good; rather, it is inherently driven by a pursuit of beauty and a yearning for something better.

As someone with sound educational values, Kirei Kotomine only realized this simple truth after experiencing death, realizing that he seemed to have gone astray...

What the King of Heroes said to himself was not necessarily true.

Pleasure... Redemption...

He reaffirmed his own desires, realized what salvation meant, and sought his own salvation once again.

Compared to Kiritsugu Emiya's absurd desire to save all of humanity, Kirei Kotomine at this moment was only seeking redemption for his own life.

……

A great alchemist once said, "The essence of alchemy is equivalent exchange."

However, this principle is only reflected in alchemical magic.

Some wishes are so grand and absurd that no matter how much you sacrifice, you will not gain the satisfaction of fulfilling them, but only the pain of failure.

After all, the rules of this world are established by the world itself and the people within it, and the important rules within it are not limited to equivalent exchange alone, not to mention...

"Is this the choice you made? The Lesser Grail, no, it should be Einzbern..."

Looking at the pure white saint Irisviel lying on the altar, about to lose her life and transform into a small Holy Grail, Kirei Kotomine's face showed a complex expression.

'In the end, did Kiritsugu Emiya really make this choice?'

After killing his biological father and adoptive mother with his own hands, he is now going to sacrifice his wife for his own desires...

What desire sustained him, allowing him to make such a choice after losing so many precious things? What was the landscape in that man's heart?

Not long ago, Kirei Kotomine might have quietly watched this spectacle of sacrificing his wife to fulfill his own desires, but now he is even more eager to know the answer.

"To sacrifice for someone else's ideals... to give up your own life for it, what is it that you are pursuing? What is it that Kiritsugu Emiya is pursuing? What kind of goal could make that man drag his broken body to this point? What kind of wish could make you willingly give up your hard-won life for him? Please answer my questions, Einzbern." Gazing at the pure white saintess before him, Kirei Kotomine urgently asked the questions that had been troubling his heart.

"...Kiritsugu's life has been so tiring. He was born to be a savior, and he has always been steadfast in his goal: to save this tragic world and bring salvation to humanity."

"That man's wish... was actually to lead humanity back to Eden?"

Upon hearing Irisviel's answer, Kirei Kotomine looked somewhat taken aback.

But for a moment, he was not surprised at all by this unexpected yet reasonable answer.

Kirei Kotomine disagrees with Irisviel's statement that Kiritsugu Emiya wants to save all humanity and eradicate all evil and tragedy.

Because he knew that this wish was not a wish at all, but a delusion, merely the ravings of a madman, a delusion that could never be realized.

but--

At this moment, he finally understood what Kiritsugu Emiya truly desired and realized the biggest difference between him and himself.

There's a fundamental difference between myself and Kiritsugu Emiya in their pursuit of goals. While I may seem to pursue happiness, I actually value inner fulfillment and meaning more, even willing to sacrifice everything, including going astray, to achieve it. In contrast, Kiritsugu Emiya is willing to sacrifice everything for a supreme ideal, even if it means immense pain and sacrifice. Even if that path is fundamentally flawed from the start, it's precisely because of this that Kiritsugu Emiya remains oblivious.

He sought only his own redemption and happiness, while Kiritsugu Emiya viewed the happiness of others as his own. Both were willing to distort their own nature and go to extremes to achieve this goal, measuring the weight and right and wrong of happiness according to their own values. This difference in their definitions and pursuits of happiness, while sharing some similarities, also reveals a fundamental difference between them.

"Thank you for clearing up my doubts."

Hearing this, Kirei Kotomine seemed to have already figured out the answer in his heart...

Although he still couldn't agree with Kiritsugu Emiya's absurd actions and dreams, he could now confirm that the other was indeed pursuing beauty and redemption, always following his own will to do what he believed was right, which was the biggest difference between him and Kiritsugu Emiya.

'Go do what you believe is right, Kirei…'

His father's words still echoed in his ears, and for a moment Kirei Kotomine's eyes became much clearer. Finally, he looked solemnly at Irisviel, who was about to die, and continued to ask, "Is this worth it for you?"

"Yes, it's worth it."

Irisviel gently placed her hand on her heart, and the satisfied yet poignant smile on her face made Kirei Kotomine fall silent.

"Because I also want to fulfill Kiritsugu's wish."

"Even though fulfilling this wish involves your death?"

"There's nothing we can do about it... It's a necessary sacrifice, and it's also my mission..."

When Kirei Kotomine asked her a question, Irisviel lowered her eyes.

She could feel her life slipping away rapidly, and that she would soon be leaving this world forever.

That time is very close, it might just be the next second...

However, at this final moment, Kirei Kotomine still asked her the last crucial question of his trip.

"Did he... ever think about running away? Or did he regret it?"

'Do you regret it, and want to run away?'

Irisviel paused for a moment, then a scene from long ago flashed through her mind.

One night, Kiritsugu Emiya, a man who was strong throughout his life and always upheld his ideals, finally revealed the weakness in his heart in front of his wife.

He knelt before her, hugging her tightly, and pleaded in a pained voice, "Alice, let's run away together! Forget about the Holy Grail War! Maiya and I will figure something out for Illya! Just come with me..."

Having endured countless life-and-death separations and years of mental oppression and torment, Kiritsugu Emiya, on the verge of collapse, revealed a hidden side of himself to his most trusted wife: weakness, cowardice, and regret. He wanted to back down, to run away with his hard-won happiness. He wanted to forget the past, try to start a new life, and protect the happiness that belonged to him.

However, Irisviel rejected him and personally pushed this man onto a path of no return.

"...I see."

Although he didn't receive any definitive answer, Kirei Kotomine, upon witnessing this scene, already understood everything.

"Do you know? You pushed him to the brink of despair, Einzbern... While running away is shameful, sometimes it's a better choice than continuing down the wrong path."

Finally, he no longer maintained his usual expressionless face, but let out a soft sigh.

Having obtained all the answers he wanted to know, and after hearing firsthand about the life of that man, Kirei Kotomine, some of the shackles that had been troubling his heart were quietly unlocked.

He realized that Kiritsugu Emiya was actually a confused person, just like himself. However, he was not as cold-blooded as he appeared on the outside and in the files. On the contrary, the repeated killing of his closest relatives who sacrificed themselves and the repeated severing of those memories and happiness that were hard to let go of gradually made this man incredibly vulnerable.

So much so that he eventually did the same thing as himself, seeking his own salvation and choosing to escape.

However, Irisviel, as his wife, rejected him.

This forced the man to sever ties with the past once again, embarking once more on that doomed path of failure, continuing to indulge in his dream of bringing humanity back to Eden.

"I even feel a little sorry for him..." Kirei Kotomine smiled after getting the answer, but this smile was completely different from the joyful and crazy smile he had when he killed Tokiomi-sensei. This smile was a bitter smile, mixed with a bit of pity.

“Unlike me, I was confused because I could never find the right path for myself, but he was confused because he had to take the wrong path, which gradually made him become paranoid and crazy.”

Those involved are often confused, while bystanders see things clearly. At this moment, Kirei Kotomine, standing on the sidelines, saw things more clearly than anyone else. He slowly took out the Bible from his pocket and then offered Irisviel, the dying lady, his final end-of-life care.

"Do you think it was Kiritsugu Emiya who made the choice? Actually, that's not the case. He never made a choice. Do you understand, Einzbern? Although your self-sacrifice was great, you are not human, nor are you a good wife. You cut off that man's last escape route with your own hands, forcing him to take his own life."

"The salvation of all mankind? What a grand wish... but it is ultimately just a delusion. And how can a mere dream compare to one's own happiness? Humans are not holy spirits, nor are they perfect beings. It is only natural for them to have some selfishness in their hearts."

After finishing his final prayer and receiving the answer he wanted, Kirei Kotomine turned and left.

"What are you going to do?"

"To do what I believe is right, to seek my own salvation, and to offer a blessing to some lost sheep like me who are trapped in pain and obsession."

Kirei Kotomine didn't turn around, but calmly answered the question, "However, depending on the situation, it means... your husband will be killed by me, and then you will be truly free."

After saying that, Kirei Kotomine waved his hand, and once again he tightly gripped the two familiar black keys that gleamed with a cold light.

"Wait a minute!"

On the altar, Irisviel saw Kirei Kotomine preparing to kill Kiritsugu Emiya and shouted anxiously, but to no avail.

At this moment, she was about to be completely reduced to the Lesser Grail, unable to move at all, and could only watch helplessly as Kirei Kotomine did what he thought was right, until his figure completely disappeared.

……

—Da da da.

The sound of Kirei Kotomine's footsteps, which he made no attempt to conceal, echoed through the open area.

Finally, he followed the traces of magic all the way to the area where Kiritsugu Emiya was located, a special area prepared for him.

Irisviel's room was too small for him to fight, so he deliberately left his mark to wait for the enemy to come looking for him.

Because it hadn't been renovated, the entire area was incredibly spacious and empty, so much so that you could feel the boundaries at a glance, much like Kiritsugu Emiya's empty heart at that moment.

"Didn't you prepare any cover or other weapons? Choosing to fight in such an open area, does that mean you know you have no way out?" Kirei Kotomine gripped the black key tightly, looking around at the situation with suspicion.

Similarly, seeing Kiritsugu Emiya appear unharmed, he continued, "Since you're still alive, then your assistant must have been killed by Gilgamesh, right? And she died for you..."

"...Maimi, how dare you mention her in front of me? Isn't that all your fault?"

Kiritsugu Emiya changed the magazine in his hand without any expression, a hint of extreme anger appearing in his eyes.

"Our mistake... Yes, Gilgamesh killed her, and he's currently my partner. But she died because of you, didn't she? Gilgamesh said that Gungnir would only hit its designated targets. Since he killed your assistant, that means the person who personally launched the missile that night, killing me, that entire forest, and even all the innocent bystanders, was your assistant. That means..."

Ignoring Kiritsugu Emiya's unsightly expression, Kirei Kotomine continued calmly recounting the cruel truth.

"That lady actually shielded you from death, you coward who wouldn't even press the launch button yourself. That night, the one who should have died with me was actually you, Kiritsugu Emiya. It's just that we were both lucky enough to survive."

"Shut up! You have no right to mention her!!"

Kiritsugu Emiya angrily raised the gun in his hand.

"Are you still running away now that things have come to this? It seems you're really on the verge of complete madness..."

Facing the dark muzzle of the gun, Kirei Kotomine felt somewhat disappointed, but he still increased the force in his hand and looked at the man in front of him with a hint of pity.

"Not long ago, I too fell into depravity because of the devil's whispers, but thanks to the death you gave me, I was able to understand many things on my deathbed. And because of your wife's words just now, I finally know what the answer I've been searching for is. But you, who sacrificed others, seem to still not have found the right answer, Kiritsugu Emiya."

"What exactly are you trying to say? Are you trying to distract me with these meaningless lies?"