Fate: Question And Answer System of Traversing Heroic Spirits

[With the children's annihilation, they were erased from the cycle of reincarnation. No matter the era or the Holy Grail War, they would never again manifest as "Jack the Ripper."]

[It looked like salvation, but it was not.]

Atalanta: "Jeanne, you...!"

Amakusa Shirou: "Atalanta, this was the only path."

Reika: "So... Jack..."

Chihiro: "No. Jack will still exist as a Heroic Spirit but the collective of vengeful children has been purged."

Chihiro: "From now on, Jack will no longer be defined by resentment. She will exist as an independent spirit—Jack the Ripper."

Jack: "I'm... myself now?"

Chihiro: "To you, it may feel no different."

Reika: "I see... that's good."

[In the lingering darkness, one last girl remained. She stood there, gazing at Jeanne with innocent eyes.]

["Are we... going to disappear?"]

["Yes," Jeanne replied softly. "That is how it should be."]

["I see... so that's it."]

["We had nowhere to go. We kept wandering in circles, always lost..."]

[The girl smiled faintly. "Doesn't that make you sad?"]

[Jeanne d'Arc closed her eyes. "...No. You're simply returning to where you belong. There's no sadness in that."]

["That's why you're not crying."]

[Jeanne's expression didn't waver as she completed her final chant.]

["——May the departed souls rest in peace ."]

["You're so pitiful."]

[With those last words, the girl dissolved into nothingness. The nightmare ended, and the group returned to reality.]

Waver: "It's over... I know there's no afterlife, but... I still wish those children could be reborn into happier lives."

Irisviel: "Yes..."

Atalanta: "Damn it..."

[Atalanta: "Ruler. You killed them, didn't you?"]

[Jeanne d'Arc: "...Yes. I killed them."]

["I see."]

["You killed them. Those children wanted nothing more than to live... and you crushed that hope beneath your feet."]

[Atalanta's voice trembled with rage as she staggered to her feet. Tears streamed down her face, mixing with the murderous intent that radiated from her.]

[In that moment, she no longer saw Jeanne as a Servant on the opposing side. She saw an enemy.]

["They could have been saved."]

[With a feral roar, Atalanta slammed her fist into a nearby wall, shattering the stone into dust.]

["They could have been saved!"]

["Even if my power isn't enough... the Holy Grail could save them!"]

Atalanta: "The Grail... yes... the Grail can save them!"

Achilles: "Big sis..."

Chihiro: "Stop it!"

Chihiro: "Even if you got your hands on the Grail, what then?"

"Do you think Amakusa Shirou will just hand it over to you?"

"Have you forgotten? The Grail grants only one wish."

Atalanta's breath caught in her throat. Her mind raced, yet deep down, she already knew the truth.

Achilles: "Sigh..."

[Atalanta, consumed by rage, drew her bow and aimed directly at Jeanne d'Arc. But with the fog now dispersed, she was exposed to Chiron's line of sight.]

[Three arrows shot through the air, their magical energy surging with lethal intent. If even one struck her, death would be inevitable.]

[But Atalanta, a master huntress, evaded the attacks with instinctive grace and unparalleled skill.]

[Her focus never wavered from Jeanne.]

["I will never forgive you, hypocritical saint!"]

["If you want the Grail... come and take it!"]

["I'll shoot every last one of you through the heart!"]

[With that venomous declaration, Atalanta turned and fled.]

[It seemed she hadn't completely lost herself to madness, she was still choosing her battles.]

[At last, Jeanne was free to tend to Sieg.]

[But the trauma Sieg endured was no less severe than Atalanta's.]

["That... that was done by ordinary humans? Not magi, but ordinary people... created that kind of hell?"]

[Sieg hadn't expected humanity to be purely good but the sins of London's abandoned children shattered the fragile worldview he'd built over the past few days.]

["Sieg, calm down!"]

[Jeanne knelt beside him, her voice soft yet firm.]

["I don't have an answer to your question..."]

["Humans are capable of immense cruelty, and they often mask it behind countless justifications. But even knowing that..."]

["Please, don't give up."]

[Sieg: "...You haven't given up?"]

[Jeanne: "Never."]

Sieg: "..."

Waver: "People say magi are inherently twisted... but ordinary humans aren't much better. We're all the same in the end. Darkness knows no distinction."

Chihiro: "You've gained some wisdom."

Bluebeard: "Yes, indeed! Such kindness! Such purity! This is the saint I revere!"

Bluebeard: "But you must be angry! Those who betrayed you, don't you hate them?!"

Jeanne: "Gilles... I hold no resentment toward anyone."

Bluebeard: "Ah... so kind. So very kind..."

[The next morning, Yggdmillennia's forces gathered for their final push.]

[Fiore had pinpointed the Red Faction's location. The plane was ready for takeoff.]

[The operation was set for the following day. The team would travel to Bucharest, then launch an aerial assault on the Hanging Garden of Babylon.]

[Fiore initially ordered Caules and Gordes to remain at the fortress, but Caules adamantly refused. The resulting argument ended in Fiore's reluctant agreement to let him accompany them.]

[Meanwhile, Sieg and Astolfo arrived in Bucharest ahead of the others, where they unexpectedly ran into Mordred.]

[It turned out that Mordred had stormed off after Sisigou mentioned that the Mage's Association planned to intervene in the Grail War. Displeased with the news, she wandered the city instead.]

Mordred: "What the hell?! If we win the Grail, it's ours. Why should those bastards get involved?"

Sisigou: "Hey, I'm just the hired muscle. It's out of my hands."

Chihiro: "Amakusa Shirou betrayed them and stole the Grail. Obviously, the Mage's Association won't sit idly by."

Waver: "I get that, but why do I have to be dragged into it in that world too?"

Chihiro: "Maybe you have debts you don't know about."

[The three of them decided to share a meal.]

[After some casual conversation, they parted ways. Mordred lingered in the park until dusk before returning to her hotel.]

[Later that evening, Sisigou sensed her agitation and comforted her with the patience of a weary father. Peace was restored temporarily.]

[Meanwhile, Jeanne regrouped with Sieg and Astolfo at their hideout.]

[Fiore and Caules arrived in Bucharest after nightfall to assist Gordes with the homunculus security contract.]

[For added safety, Fiore transferred 80% of the Command Seals to Caules. She even postponed the operation by a day to give him time to adjust.]

Caules: "Sis... I..."

Fiore: "Don't be silly. With your abilities, there's no way I'd leave you behind."

Fiore: "Besides, you're taking on most of the mana burden. I should be thanking you."

Caules: "Yeah..."

[Two days later, on a tense, windless evening, the strike team boarded their plane.]

[Meanwhile, Sisigou arrived at the Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Force Base using his connections with the Mage's Association.]

[As the plane neared the Hanging Garden, Astolfo summoned his Hippogriff, a creature with a griffin's front half and a mare's hindquarters.]

[Astolfo volunteered to lead the aerial assault, taking Sieg with him to disrupt the Hanging Garden's magical defenses.]

[The garden was heavily fortified with wards; an ordinary plane couldn't break through without someone opening a passage from within.]

[Astolfo willingly took on the mission.]

[Meanwhile, inside the Hanging Garden, Amakusa Shirou sensed the approaching enemy.]

[He stood before the Holy Grail, his upper body bare, his expression serene as he prepared to realize his long-cherished wish.]

[Why did he wait all these days? Because the Grail remained incomplete, lacking the mana of a single Servant.]

[He couldn't bring himself to sacrifice one of his own Servants for that purpose.]

[Instead, he was risking his life to enter the Grail's core and rewrite its functions from within, forcing it to manifest the miracle he sought.]

[The defense of the Hanging Garden now rested entirely in Semiramis's hands.]

[The final battle had begun.]

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