This Is My Holy Grail War

Clutching his convulsing left arm, Kariya Matou hobbled down the damp concrete alleyway. In this filthy backstreet, only the eerie sound of the wind echoed around him.

Everywhere he looked, piles of rotting garbage lined the path. This place… it was the foulest corner of the city.

Kariya trembled as he pulled a small locket from his tattered clothes. His entire body was in shambles, like a rat dragged out of a sewer, but the locket was meticulously polished, gleaming with care.

He flipped open the locket's cover to reveal a photo of Sakura—no, Matou Sakura now.

The image of the black-haired girl smiling sweetly brought memories flooding back. Joy and sorrow intertwined in his mind. This photo had been taken on a breezy summer day in the park, capturing the girl's innocence in a single, perfect moment.

Everything had been so beautiful back then. Kariya had sworn to protect this child forever.

Now, however, Sakura's surname had changed from Tohsaka to Matou, and her jet-black hair had turned an unnatural, eerie shade of purple.

Sakura had been cast into hell, pushed into the abyss by a man named Tokiomi Tohsaka. And to save her, Kariya had willingly followed her into that infernal pit.

Closing the locket gently, he carefully tucked it away, forcing himself to abandon those fleeting moments of happiness. He turned his focus to the present.

The cold night air carried the alley's filth and decay. Yet his decaying body no longer felt temperature or pain.

Tokiomi… Tokiomi…

"It's all your fault!" Kariya screamed into the night sky, his voice filled with a fury born of despair.

Everything—everything—was because Tokiomi Tohsaka had given his daughter to the Matou family, condemning an innocent girl to unimaginable torment.

Kariya only wanted to save her. He was willing to sacrifice everything, even his humanity, and descend into hell for her sake.

Who is Tokiomi Tohsaka's Servant, I wonder?

A dry, rasping laugh escaped his lips, his half-rotted mouth twisting grotesquely as he spat blood along with a writhing, wormlike creature.

The grotesque sight only made his laughter more maniacal. After all, he had given this body as payment to summon a powerful Servant—Berserker.

Tonight, through Berserker's eyes, Kariya was scouring Fuyuki City, searching for the other participants in the Holy Grail War.

The deafening explosion at the library drew his attention. Rider, Archer, and Assassin all appeared one after the other, visible through Berserker's vision.

Who among them could be Tokiomi's Servant?

Kariya scrutinized each Servant carefully. His hatred for Tokiomi burned like acid in his veins. Tokiomi had to pay for what he had done.

The torment Kariya endured had not only destroyed his body but twisted his mind.

While festering in the swarm of Matou familiars, his loathing for Tokiomi grew insurmountable, eclipsing even his original goal of winning the Holy Grail.

Due to Assassin's activity in the war, few Masters had exposed themselves openly. Kariya could only speculate as to which Servant belonged to Tokiomi.

Someone as arrogant as you wouldn't summon Assassin, would you?

Kariya's one functioning eye scanned the battlefield, its vision blurred and unreliable.

He knew that Servants could be summoned using specific rituals. Berserker had been called forth in this way, and Assassin was no exception. But Kariya was certain Tokiomi wouldn't summon a Servant associated with subterfuge.

Rider's Master is down there, and Saber's Master revealed herself yesterday—Einzbern's homunculus.

"Not Rider… not Saber… Archer seems the most likely!" Kariya laughed bitterly. Still, he held back, refraining from issuing an order to Berserker.

Then Archer spoke as he left.

"You dare, Tokiomi?"

Hearing Tokiomi's name was like a dagger piercing Kariya's heart. His expression twisted with madness.

Berserker, retreat and follow Archer! Kariya barked the command mentally, but the dark figure refused to move.

Berserker?! Kariya froze, realizing his Servant wasn't obeying. Instead, Berserker's gaze was fixed unerringly on Assassin.

"Berserker, chase him! Now!" Kariya bellowed, his voice raw with desperation. Still, Berserker remained unmoving.

Archer is leaving! You'll lose him! Move, damn you!

But Berserker's unyielding focus stayed locked on Assassin, showing no sign of relenting.

"You worthless Servant! I'm the one who gives you mana! I'm the one who brought you into this world! I am your Master! I command you—kill Archer!" Kariya's furious roar echoed through the desolate alley.

At last, Berserker snapped.

"AAAAAH… ARTHUR!"

Materializing into his corporeal form, Berserker let out a deafening cry and charged at Assassin, who was just beginning to lower her guard.

Ripping a decorative column from the ruins of the library, Berserker's crimson-veined arms imbued it with a cursed, wrathful energy.

Ignoring Kariya's orders entirely, the berserk Servant surged forward like an unstoppable force, his maddened rage aimed squarely at the fatigued Assassin.

Under the watchful eyes of onlookers, Berserker launched his frenzied assault against a Servant he had never encountered before.

The massive column, wildly unsuited as a weapon, became a deadly implement in Berserker's hands. He swung it with terrifying strength, the air howling with each motion.

The clash was imminent.

Berserker's overwhelming, chaotic power bore down on Assassin's nimble and agile form.