Fate: Question And Answer System of Traversing Heroic Spirits

[Regina: "As twins, we could communicate telepathically to some extent. However, before her death, Karina's consciousness was communicated to me..."]

["She said, save Maio."]

---

Tohsaka Rin: "...What kind of development is this?"

Sisigou: "Hahaha, this is what they call love."

Reika: "To dedicate everything to the one you love."

Leaticia: "Such efforts are meaningless."

---

[Regina: "Since he was little, Maio has only cared about Sister Diadra. Similarly, Carina also only cared about Maio, so we decided to protect Maio, that's all."]

[Is that so? Is it love?]

[However, what Maio saw was likely only the beauty of Diadra. That is why, when he heard about Carina's disguise, he was innocently happy for the rebirth of the Golden Princess.]

[Even so, did Carina admire him?]

[Love is something people cannot truly understand.]

[Aozaki Touko: "As expected, if you had asked her, she might have been willing to die."]

---

Waver: "It could have been resolved perfectly if they had just talked it out. But because of impulsiveness, it all ended like this."

Fiore: "Hmph, I think even if they did it again, the result would be the same."

---

["I would also like to ask Lord Valualeta something."]

[El-Melloi II spoke softly: "Let's put aside the matter of plastic surgery. You must have been aware of Iselma's modifications. At the very least, you knew that the Golden Princess at the debut party was a fake."]

["…Hehe, who knows?"]

[Inorai shrugged.]

["I figured as much. The Iselma family has performed well, but it would take generations to achieve their desired results. Since rumors suggested their research suddenly skipped several steps and bore fruit, and even my foolish disciple occasionally shows up, it's easy to imagine."]

[El-Melloi II: "So, you let Atrum act freely, hoping to gain leverage over Iselma."]

[Inorai: "Exactly."]

---

Illya: "I thought they were all on the same level, but it turns out each one of them is operating on a completely different plane."

Emiya Kiritsugu: "Never underestimate top-tier magus. Without sufficient resources and cunning, they'd be devoured long ago."

---

["I have a question, too."]

[Aozaki Touko looked at Inorai and said, "I've always wanted to ask, what were your thoughts when I was designated as a Sealing Target?"]

[Inorai: "I thought it was the right decision. You are one of the most suitable magus for sealing in modern times."]

["When everyone around me sought my opinion, I strongly recommended you. I said that Aozaki Touko and her magic circuits should be sealed away deep within the Arbitration Bureau forever. It was the only correct course of action."]

["I thought so."]

[Aozaki Touko shrugged, only to notice strange plant roots growing from Maio's chest.]

---

Tohsaka Rin: "Hmm? What's that?"

Sisigou: "Plants growing from her body, could it be?"

Kenneth: "Hmph, I underestimated this kid. He hid his cards well."

---

["Got you!"]

[Maio, now haggard and disheveled, appeared ecstatic, holding pills between his fingers.]

[Aozaki Touko: "Ah, is it that medicine?"]

[It seemed the memory-blocking drug she had ingested earlier had additional effects.]

[Likely, it was a plant seed that had grown rapidly within her body after being triggered by another drug dispersed into the air.]

["Hahaha!"]

[Maio laughed maniacally. "What's the point of being a Grand magus? It's meaningless! The only thing that matters is her! She's the culmination of my and Iselma's dreams! Isn't that right, Lord Byron?"]

["Maio…"]

[Byron, unable to keep up with the rapidly escalating situation, seemed genuinely confused.]

["Just recreate her, over and over again!"]

[Maio turned to face his two childhood friends, roaring, "For me, perform the surgery again! The same for the Silver Princess! The same for Regina! Cut them into pieces as much as you want!"]

[The kind and timid pharmacist was gone, leaving behind a madman lost to his delusions.]

---

Tohsaka Tokiomi: "Did he really believe he could control a crown with drugs?"

Gold: "It's possible he hadn't killed Karina yet, but..."

Kayneth: "Haha, this is the true nature of a magus."

Waver: "He hid it so well that I genuinely thought he was harmless."

Tohsaka Tokiomi: "But he doesn't seriously think he has the upper hand over Aozaki Touko, does he?"

Chihiro: "If the heavens wish to destroy someone, they first make him mad."

---

["Otherwise, I'll kill you, right?"]

[Despite the dire situation, Aozaki Touko remained unfazed.]

[Maio: "Yes! Those roots have connected to your heart and vital organs. If you try to remove the magic, I'll tear them out one by one. Even with your circuits, you'll die..."]

["That doesn't mean much to me. I don't have magic circuits, so I won't die easily."]

[Aozaki Touko casually carved something into the roots that had pierced her body.]

[The next moment, the roots crumbled away.]

[It was a rune.]

[However, the pierced area wasn't healed, leaving a fist-sized hole in her torso.]

---

Tohsaka Rin: "!!!"

Illya: "What?! She can survive that!?"

Kenneth: "Haha, I was fooled by her again."

Waver: "Teacher, what do you mean?"

Chihiro: "Haven't you realized yet? That isn't Aozaki Touko's real body. It's a puppet."

---

Tohsaka Rin: "She's... a puppet!?"

Fiore: "It's impossible to tell the difference."

Gordes: "This is the level of a top puppeteer."

Caules: "But the way she spoke, it seemed so..."

Kayneth: "Fool, that's a doppelganger."

Caules: "A doppelganger?"

Kayneth: "She transferred her consciousness into the puppet. Her real body is likely hidden far away."

---

["I see. It seems I was too lenient about forgetting things. Regardless, I think it's time to let this go. I'll simply enjoy the moment as much as possible."]

[Aozaki Touko murmured: "Honestly, even I think my personality is terrible. It's why this curtain call might feel a bit anticlimactic."]

["I don't hate Maio, but things have escalated to this point, and I can't stop it."]

["Even though my methods are known, no one from the Clock Tower dares to kill me anymore."]

["Oh, did I forget to mention that?"]

[Suddenly, a strange, unsettling sound filled the air.]

[It wasn't the vibration of air against the eardrum, it was a scraping sound that seemed to pierce directly into everyone's soul.]

["Excuse me, please hold onto this for me."]

[Aozaki Touko casually tossed her cigarette case to Inorai.]

[Inorai's expression shifted. "Touko, you..."]

[Aozaki Touko: "Haha, you really do understand, Teacher."]

[The eerie noise around them grew louder.]

[No one understood what the sound was—except Gray.]

[She knew. It was the same sound made by the creature that had once frozen her in the forest.]

---

Kayneth: "Although I suspected it before, I didn't expect this woman to carry that monster with her."

Sola-ui: "What monster?"

Kayneth: "I don't know. All I know is that it's a mysterious creature that she acquired somehow."

---

["I've reflected on my past experiences of being caught off guard, and now I'm leaving it here…"]

[Aozaki Touko murmured: "Oh, don't worry. I've set it to only counterattack. As long as no one meddles in other people's business, it shouldn't attack anyone except the offender, Maio."]

["I'll come retrieve the cigarettes later."]

["Crack!"]

[In an instant, Aozaki Touko's abdomen shattered and peeled away, like a statue crumbling into pieces.]

[The interior of the wound appeared to transform into some kind of "door," beyond which lay a pitch-black void.]

[It wasn't just a bottomless pit, it was something entirely alien, where distance itself seemed meaningless.]

---

Tohsaka Rin: "Ah! What is that!"

Waver: "The container was just a front. She's been hiding it inside her body all along."

Kenneth: "What an utterly insane woman."

---

[El-Melloi II: "Insane..."]

[He, too, had heard rumors of what was about to appear. It was a monster without a name, something that had been in Aozaki Touko's possession for years. No one had ever uncovered its true nature—not even Aozaki Touko herself, perhaps.]

[The only recorded fact about this creature was that it was immortal.]

["Ka-ka…"]

[From the unfathomable darkness that no magic could penetrate, two faint lights emerged.]

[They were eyes.]