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Chapter 188 - Chapter 188: I am the bone of my sword.

[ As Shirou Emiya placed his hand on the long sword, fire burst from his right hand. He forcefully pulled out the only long sword in this desolate wilderness. The scene then continuously zoomed out! ]

[ The scene returned to reality. Archer looked at Shirou Emiya, who had been lying on the ground, in astonishment as he suddenly sat up on his knees! ]

[ Golden light began to flow from the wounds on Shirou Emiya's body. Archer frowned slightly at the sight, realizing something. "So that's it, Saber's scabbard..." ]

[ "To save your life, Kiritsugu Emiya buried it within you. The connection to Saber! It's a Holy Relic." ]

[ "It wasn't something summoned. Even though the contract is severed, the protective effect continues." ]

[ The scabbard buried within Shirou Emiya, Avalon, the ever-distant utopia... began to forcefully replenish the magic circuits in Shirou Emiya's body. ]

[ "I am!" ]

[ Shirou Emiya suddenly spoke. Golden light, along with a burst of green magic circuits, appeared in his wounds, turning into threads that stitched up the injured areas, rapidly restoring them to their original state. ]

[ "The bone of my sword!!" ]

(At this moment, the stirring BGM, Aimer's divine song "LAST STARDUST," played once again)

[ Archer also threw the twin blades in his hands, projecting them towards Shirou Emiya. ]

[ "I will never..." At this moment, Shirou Emiya's hands emitted a blue light, like lightning crackling around him. ]

[ "Lose to you!!" Shirou Emiya shouted his conviction firmly. The twin blades projected from his hands still glowed blue. With a fierce swing, he deflected the blades Archer had thrown far away. ]

[ Saber, in the distance, stared blankly at this scene. As the blue light from Shirou Emiya's hands faded, the familiar Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in his hands, continuously flashing with blue electric light. ]

[ Shirou Emiya looked at Archer with determined eyes and said in a firm tone, "I can lose to anyone, but... I absolutely cannot lose to myself." ]

[ "Have you finally grasped the knack..." Archer closed his eyes slightly at the sight, then reopened them. "But what does that matter? You should understand deeply. The difference in our strength!" ]

[ Shirou Emiya naturally understood, but... he still gave his answer, "My hands and feet can still fight. It's only my heart that surrendered. Because of the weakness in my heart, I accepted that you are correct." ]

[ Archer frowned slightly, looking at Shirou Emiya in confusion. "What?!" ]

[ Shirou Emiya continued, "Being right isn't everything." I don't care about that! ]

[ Saying this, Shirou Emiya held Kanshou and Bakuya, pointing them at Archer, his eyes incredibly firm. "I will become a hero of justice. Just as you deny me. I'll use every ounce of my strength to defeat the me that is you!" ]

[ .....]

~Projection of All Worlds~

"Archer saying 'Have you finally grasped the knack...' is just amazing!! So in the end, this was a teaching match!... But I have to say, the healing effect of this scabbard is really incredible."

"I am the bone of my sword, that line is just too cool. The quality and precision of the re-projected Kanshou and Bakuya have been greatly improved."

Everyone was impressed by Shirou Emiya. He was like a martyr who never tired, always chasing the stars! Even when he saw the end of his ideal, he wouldn't give up.

Archer despaired at the end of his ideal and tried to deny himself, while Shirou Emiya admitted the weakness in his heart and intended to deny his future self!

A noble ideal, carrying out this hypocrisy to the death, how is that not true goodness?

~Type-Moon World, Throne of Heroes~

"As expected of the King's scabbard, even severe injuries can be healed. This healing ability makes one almost immortal."

Gawain, the Knight of the Sun, also watched this young man, who seemed to have a deep connection with his King.

Ignorance is not bravery. Facing one's fears head-on, even if it is an unconquerable hell, that is true greatness.

"How... fitting. That boy's stubborn idealism resonates with His Majesty's lost scabbard— 'Avalon'."

Tristan's fingers stilled upon his harp strings as he observed the scene, his voice a melancholic murmur:

This lofty ideal, from simple affirmation to denial, and then to the denial of denial... From this moment on, the 'fake' named Shirou Emiya gradually moved towards becoming the genuine one!

~Type-Moon World, Fourth Holy Grail War Worldline~

"Heroic Spirit Emiya's personal example has transformed Shirou Emiya's ideal from simply 'inheriting someone else's ideal' into a truly heartfelt wish."

Gilgamesh was uncharacteristically not raving this time, nor did he utter any more insults.

"Making justice no longer bound by the past, but focused on the future. You really are something... Shirou Emiya!"

Even knowing everything about the future, he clumsily moved forward, even if it meant eternal damnation! He continuously chased that ideal that was inherited without being severed.

Such a person deserves my king's praise.

.....

On the other side, Kiritsugu Emiya stared blankly at the determined eyes of the young man on the screen.

"The ideal inherited from me, a man who was judged as unscrupulous and achieved nothing..."

However, this ideal, whether one calls it impractical or distorted! An almost impossible ideal has been passed down with the scabbard of King Arthur.

"Defeating the self that denies oneself is the most difficult thing..."

The child saved from that great fire in the future not only prevented this ideal from being extinguished, but at this moment, it bloomed with even more dazzling light than at any other time.

~Type-Moon World, Kaleid liner Prisma Illya Worldline~

"Have you finally recognized your true nature, Shirou Emiya....."

Emiya Kiritsugu also smiled at the sight.

Archer believed that he hadn't saved everyone and had always been killing, so he vehemently denied his past ideals!

But Shirou Emiya realized that his ideal was to satisfy himself in the process of saving people, so he admitted that Archer was correct and that he was indeed fragile and hypocritical!

However, precisely because of this, Shirou Emiya no longer denied Archer's correctness. All he wanted was that initial intention of becoming a hero of justice.

Regardless of the outcome, good or bad, he was himself! What he wanted to do, what he could do... was only to become a hero of justice.

~Type-Moon World, ██████ Worldline, Chaldea~

"Is this the exploration of the conflict between ideal and self..."

Fujimaru Ritsuka was also moved.

"The technique is a borrowed ideal, but there is also longing in the heart. Only by truly accepting this ideal in one's heart does one move forward for this ideal."

"Yes, Senpai!"

Mash Kyrielight nodded slightly beside her.

"Because it is recognized in the heart, what is important is achieving the ideal! Not why the ideal is achieved."

What Shirou Emiya probably wanted to say was that the outcome doesn't really matter, the process of pursuing it is enough... Even if the outcome is terrible?! That's not important, what's important is that he did his best in the process of pursuing it...

.....

[ "Bang, bang, bang——" ]

[ Archer and Shirou Emiya continuously swung their blades at each other on the sword hill. Unlike before, it was Archer's sword that was the first to crack! But... ]

[ "Boring... Boring, boring!!!" Archer became somewhat agitated. "I don't want to watch anymore, it's utterly foolish, Shirou Emiya!" ]

[ "Become a hero of justice? Just a simple correctness?! Since you have understood so thoroughly, why can't you perceive the error within it?" ]

[ "So-called justice is the manifestation of order... Saving everyone and saving individuals are different. The two can never coexist." ]

[ Saying this, Archer tightened his grip on his blade and said sternly, "The more you pursue correct salvation, the deeper you will sink into the mire of self-contradiction. In the end, you will only become a simple murderer." ]

[ "If you don't even understand this, then die. Shatter and scatter with that ideal of yours! Die like this, having achieved nothing." ]

[ Shirou Emiya did not answer, silently projecting blades again and rushing forward. ]

[ "The death match has begun." Saber saw this scene clearly. "If this continues, Shirou will eventually catch up to him, but..." ]

[ "Bang, bang, bang——" The sound of clashing blades continuously echoed in this Reality Marble. In the battle against Archer, Shirou Emiya continuously learned future techniques and began to fight with Archer on equal footing. ]

[ Archer was somewhat confused about himself at this moment, gritting his teeth and questioning himself, "Why am I stubbornly playing along with him? I could end the battle by taking a few steps back." ]

[ "But..." Archer looked at Shirou Emiya's determined eyes, "I have a premonition that if I take even one step back, I will be defeated in something decisive." ]

[ Then he kicked Shirou Emiya away. Archer looked at Shirou Emiya in the distance, who was still struggling to get up, his heart filled with conflict. ]

[ "Am I an idiot?! I just need to show him this ending a few more times, this guy won't stop. He won't reach his limit. That kind of thing... he has already surpassed it." ]

[ "If you ask why, what this guy wants to cut down is no longer me." ]

[ At this moment, Shirou's gear in the Reality Marble suddenly stopped turning. Archer recalled his experiences in the Middle East and looked at Shirou Emiya with gritted teeth. ]

[ Saber on the scene had already clearly seen what they were fighting. "What Shirou wants to cut down is... the self that obstructs him, to protect what he once believed in and will continue to believe in in the future." ]

[ "What Archer wants to destroy is the self that gave birth to him. To eliminate the regret that was born here and will endlessly cycle." ]

[ .....]

~Projection of All Worlds~

"Heroic Spirit Emiya is in conflict... He sees his past in this Shirou Emiya. After all, he hasn't completely denied that ideal."

After all, he is a product of Shirou Emiya's idealism. He is merely questioning and hoping to find an answer. He could have instantly defeated Shirou Emiya if he had just been a little serious.

But... Archer is still filled with conflict. He could just abandon that ideal, just take a few steps back... But the persistence in his heart prevents him from doing so.

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