Chapter 23: Heroic Spirit Summoning

Words : 1241 Updated : Sep 12th, 2025

It was 1994, a year etched deeply in my memory. A fire broke out in Fuyuki City.@@@@ The Fuyuki City Civic Hall, with an investment of more than 8 billion yen, collapsed overnight. A destructive black torrent descended from the sky, pouring down like a waterfall, and engulfing everything in its path. And thus, the slaughter began. At this time, people were enjoying a peaceful sleep. The black Death mud, sensing their life force, turned into a searing curse and attacked them. Homes were burned down, gardens were destroyed. Whether they were sleeping or trying to escape upon waking, everyone was burned to the point that not even bones remained. The death toll exceeded five hundred, and 134 buildings were destroyed. The feast of death turned the night sky into a fiery red, lingering for a long time. Amid this unparalleled destruction, the only survivor lay on the ground, eyes wide open with no light in them, deeply imprinting the horrors before him into his mind. Although he was a survivor, he knew that this title would soon be a thing of the past. Next, I will be burned by the flames, drowned in black mud, or suffocated by the thick smoke, right? The pain was beyond imagination. Even staying alive was a torment. I even felt that dying might be easier. But a dishevelled man found me. ...I still remember the expression on his face. Tears filled his eyes, genuinely happy from the bottom of his heart to find a living person. —Because his expression was so full of joy. I thought that I was the one being saved, but it turned out that the person saved wasn't me, but himself. However, that feeling, that emotion, was so real, and it was passed on to me. Ah... It was decided. I would carry this man's expectations and live as a survivor, living for those who perished. My life is for others, it is to be lived for them. The red figure flashed in the silvery light, and by now, it was hard to distinguish if it was the memory of a traveller or fragments that had come from distant times. Only that obsession was incredibly real, engraved deeply in the young man's mind. If I could, if I could go back to before that disaster— I would, absolutely, absolutely... absolutely stop it! *** Magecraft, which transcends common sense, refers to the phenomena where things that can be done under common sense are achieved in ways that defy it. But magecraft does not include "things that humans cannot achieve." The ability to perform such things is called "sorcery." In the end, Magecraft is both human wisdom and the world. Sorcery is not included; it is a loneliness suspended beyond the heavens. The first one began everything. The second one acknowledged countless things. The third one showed the future. The fourth one hid its figure after beginning. And the fifth one, which ended, had long lost its meaning. The only remaining magecraft in the world, except for the second and fifth, remains like the fruit of Eden, awaiting mankind's picking. The Third Magic—soul materialization—relies on the infinite energy of the ever-moving soul and uses the immortal soul as a template to create a perfectly matched body. It depicts a brand-new possibility for humanity's future. During the dormant time, Sakatsuki gradually absorbed fragments of the Third Magic and finally began to see some of its true nature. As long as the soul does not perish, the energy possessed is infinite. The so-called immortal soul is sustained by emotions—emotions become the power, the soul creates miracles, and those who have lost their seven emotions and six desires are unqualified to complete the Third Magic and are mere walking corpses. Therefore, as a homunculus, the Saintess of Winter cannot grasp the Third Magic, and even Einzbern, secluded in the snow, could never achieve his long-cherished wish. Even with the Holy Grail. "...You have a familiar aura." If his guess was correct, this Holy Grail War would be even more troublesome than he had anticipated. "It's starting, Iri." He murmured quietly. *** "Let's begin, Sakura, stand back." In the hidden basement, Kariya Matou drew the magic circle and signalled the purple-haired girl to move away. Seeing the worried expression on the girl's face, Kariya couldn't help but smile. "If Sakatsuki comes back and sees you like this, he might get quite a shock." "Is this the time to say that, Uncle Kariya?" Sakura reminded him. "To summon a berserk heroic spirit, we must be serious." "Mm, you're right." Kariya slapped his cheeks, refocused himself, and said. "Now, let me see who will respond to my call." *** In a corner of a Mountain Town, deep in a thicket of trees, dripping blood formed an incredibly precise magic circle, looking almost like a cult ritual site, but the body of a chicken discarded nearby explained where the blood came from. "Great, now it's complete." The boy who had come from the foreign clock tower wiped the sweat off his face, carrying his passion for magecraft and unwavering will toward his goal as he began chanting a mysterious incantation. The boy named "Waver Velvet" aimed to prove to his teacher and to the old clock tower that, even without noble blood, he could achieve great accomplishments! "—Proclaim!" With his youthful determination and recklessness, Waver began his chant. "You who hear my call, my fate is entrusted to your sword!" "If you wish to reside within the Holy Grail, accept this will and follow this law!" The sensation of magic surrounding him, an unavoidable chill and pain caused by the cycle of magical circuits inside his body, was something any magus would experience. Yet, this pain, in Emiya Kiritsugu's eyes, was merely a necessary means to an end. Now—speak the true thoughts in his heart! "I swear here that I will perform all the good deeds in the world, and I will suppress all the evil deeds in the world!" Biting his teeth, Kariya's low growl echoed through the basement. "You shall blind your eyes with chaos and serve me!" Compared to others, Kariya's chant had two more lines, and the suffering he endured doubled as well— but this time, it was Kariya's own choice. To defeat that person, he was willing. Under Sakura's worried gaze, Kariya gritted his teeth, full of determination in his voice. "You, the one trapped in the prison of madness, I, the one holding the chains!" "Now, come, the berserker who will trample that person underfoot!" Sakatsuki, fascinated by the allure of magic and the thrilling chant, didn't realize that a smile of excitement curled at the corner of his mouth. "You are bound by the three great words of seven days, arriving from the wheel of self-restraint—Guardian of the balance!" In the coincidental, miraculous shared chant, different figures descended to the world in a dazzling light. Some shone goldenly, some were pure and solemn, some were mighty and imposing, and others were surrounded by black mist. And standing before the young man with golden eyes was one who shone like the stars—clear, beautiful, and so very familiar. Then— A cold question echoed through the forest, the hidden basement, the grand hall, and under the vast void of night. "Answer me, are you the master who called me?"

Chapter 23: Heroic Spirit Summoning

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