A mix of charred wood, dust, and a killing intent so strong it could freeze one's soul, permeated the air.
In these ruins, conjured by Steve himself, an eerie silence enveloped the place, as if both sides had been rendered motionless.
He slowly ceased the flow of magic into Sakura; the soft starlight faded away.
Rising to his feet, he ignored the berserker rampaging in destruction and turned instead towards the man on the verge of physical and mental collapse, Matou Kariya.
With that, Steve gave him a gentle, non-hostile smile.
Amidst the tension, that smile seemed impossibly serene, undeniably calming in the midst of chaos.
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Matou Kariya."
His voice was calm and clear, cutting through the monstrous Berserker's magical roar, reaching Kariya's ears precisely.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am the Caster of this Holy Grail War; my true name is Steve Weis."
"As you can see, I am not a hero of this era, but a hero summoned from a parallel world in the future—the year 2077 AD."
To Kariya, whose mind was already in utter turmoil, this barrage of information could only seem fantastical.
The future? Parallel worlds?
Such concepts were far beyond his comprehension of the Holy Grail War, and for a moment, even his all-consuming rage subsided.
Steve gave him no time to think before continuing:
"I did not come here to fight other participants for the already corrupted Holy Grail—I am here for a new ending, where every Master and Servant, every participant, can see their wishes fulfilled to the greatest extent possible."
"You... want to fulfill everyone's wishes?"
Kariya spat out the words through gritted teeth, his eyes filled with skepticism and ridicule.
Having suffered the deepest malice of this world, he could no longer bring himself to believe in such fairy-tale rhetoric.
"I know you do not trust me," Steve observed, reading his emotions as if they were an open book, "so, I must show you my sincerity."
"And you—Matou Kariya—your wish to save Matou Sakura, that is where I will show my sincerity first."
Those words struck Kariya's heart like a heavy hammer.
He jerked his head up, staring at Steve with bloodshot eyes, disbelief written deeply within.
"I am here tonight not to weaken an enemy, but specifically to destroy the old worm who calls himself Matou Zouken—so that I can grant your wish and free this child from her hell."
Steve's tone held no room for doubt, spoken with the certainty of a fait accompli.
"That is the proof of my sincerity."
Kariya trembled violently.
He looked at Steve, then at Sakura—breathing calmly in Archer's arms—and recalled the moment of annihilating, effortless "purification" earlier...
It was not an indiscriminate attack, but a "rescue" planned especially for him and Sakura.
This complete reversal shook his perception.
Even his overwhelming hatred for Tohsaka Tokiomi faded for the moment.
Steve pressed his advantage, offering a truce that could not be refused.
"This place is filthy and unsuitable for further treatment. Matou Kariya, you and your Servant are invited to Ryuudou Temple, my territory."
He paused, eyes dropping to Kariya's arm—swollen with crest worms, oozing pus and blood.
"Also... about your body, ravaged by those old worms... I'm not entirely powerless."
"If you wish, I can slow the spread of the crest worms. I may even be able to eliminate them entirely and restore your life span to that of a normal human."
Restore my lifespan...?
For someone who knew their own life was ebbing away, poisoned from within, those words were indescribably alluring.
Kariya's breath quickened as he looked at his own hand—for the first time, he glimpsed a longing for life in his eyes.
"Come to my temple," Steve made a final invitation. "There, Sakura can receive proper healing and you can find hope."
Silence.
A long, drawn-out silence.
With his head down, Matou Kariya kept his face hidden.
Within, the scales of his heart shook violently: on one side, deep-rooted distrust and hatred for all magi; on the other, an overwhelming strength and undeniable goodwill from the man before him, and... the miraculous hope of saving both Sakura and even himself.
Can I trust him? Or is this an even more insidious trap?
Kariya glanced up, looking once more at the girl in the boy's arms.
Sakura's pain seemed to have ebbed away, her face settling into a rare calm.
The boy holding her had sharp eyes but carried her with the gentleness of guarding a precious treasure.
In the end, the instinct to protect Sakura overcame all doubt.
"...Berserker."
With a barely audible, hoarse voice, Kariya managed to say,
"...stand down from your combat stance."
The black knight, radiating bloodlust and on the verge of madness, heard his master's order and, for an instant, a light flashed in those scarlet eyes.
The tangible black magical mist began to retreat into his armor; the iron pillar, gripped tightly, sagged down.
"…Very well."
Kariya looked at Steve with a complicated expression.
"I'll go with you."
He had made his choice: he would believe in this incredible light shining into his dark life.
Steve nodded in satisfaction.
The first stage of the plan—success.
He lifted the starlight barrier surrounding the Matou family, letting the cool moonlight bathe the ruins once more.
Thus, on the ground that had witnessed the end of evil, an exceedingly strange team was formed.
The hero from the future, in a child's body, led the way, cautiously carrying a sleeping girl.
Steve walked alongside a physically and mentally exhausted man, hope rekindled in the latter's gaze.
Behind them, the Berserker, donned in heavy black armor, flowed like an invisible shadow, silently following his master, all heading toward the mountain's summit—Ryuudou Temple, the Holy Grail War's epicenter.
Passing through the towering gates of Ryuudou Temple felt like stepping into another world.
The commotion, battles, and conspiracies of the outside were severed by the ancient solemnity of this sanctuary.
Repurposed by Steve, the temple teemed with a pure and vast starlight aura, rejuvenating the weary Matou Kariya and even dulling the agony inflicted by the crest worms.
His young master, Ken, already awaited them inside.
Ken keenly observed the new guests—especially the man exuding an ominous aura, yet looking utterly exhausted.
Archer cast a glance at Sakura, swaddled in white cloth.
Seeing her safe, Archer subtly nodded to confirm all was well.
Steve wasted no time.
To turn a temporary ally into a true partner, one must immediately fulfill their promises.
"Archer, Ken—please help Mr. Kariya sit down," he said, gently taking the still-unconscious Sakura from Archer.
"Bring him to the guest room to rest. We must promptly treat Sakura."
He carefully carried the small, almost weightless body into the temple's inner sanctum.
Clean and filled with tranquilizing magic, this was where hope began.
Steve gently laid Sakura on the futon, seated himself cross-legged, and placed his hands above her body.
"Let's begin."
He closed his eyes and unleashed his cosmic magecraft.
Brilliant starlight burst from his palms.
But this time, the light was not destructive, but as thin as strands of hair, each particle guided by intentional will.
They quietly entered Sakura's body, commencing a meticulous "surgery" to unravel the curse that had persisted for nearly two years.
Through Steve's magical sight, Sakura's insides were a nightmarish sight:
Countless crest worms coiled around her nerves, blood vessels, and even magic circuits, forming a grotesque, malignant symbiotic system.
They were leeching her vitality, altering her body, and attempting to warp her innate virtual attribute to better match the Matou family's water element.
For ordinary magi, such bodily modification would be a curse carved to their very core.
Yet to Steve, this advanced-level Magecraft was nothing but a crude, primitive "hack" devised on a resource-starved world by ancient magi.
Starlight particles transformed into invisible scalpels and tweezers, separating the crest worms from Sakura's tissues with a precision beyond human comprehension.
Each isolated piece was instantly enveloped in pure energy and decomposed, leaving nothing behind.
This process was extremely complex, requiring godlike understanding of human biology and magic circuits.
Yet for Steve, it was merely a well-organized "cleanup mission."
Outside the door, peering through a shoji gap, Matou Kariya—who claimed only to be resting—watched the whole scene.
He saw black, foul-smelling threads of mist being drawn from Sakura's body, erased by the holy starlight in mid-air.
He watched her pallid face regain its color visibly by the second.
He felt the nauseating magical aura in the room rapidly dissipate, replaced by purity and calm.
He clenched his fists so hard his nails dug deep into his palms, his body quaking with excitement.
At that moment, he realized his gamble had been right.
The man before him wrought miracles he never dared hope for.
Hours passed. At dawn, when the first rays shone through the meditation chamber window, Steve slowly withdrew his hands.
The operation was complete.
Sakura's body, thoroughly purged of crest worms, had her damaged organs and magic circuits restored fully—her health rewound to its state before she ever entered the Matou home.
Yet a frown still creased her brow, as though nightmares of the past two years still haunted her.
Steve stood, went outside, and found Kariya already waiting.
"Her physical treatment is complete," he stated coldly. "But her true trauma lies within her soul."
"Those memories will cast a shadow over her for life."
"However, it's possible to erase all memories of her time imprisoned in the worm storeroom, using a spell. She'll awaken as if from a nightmare, remembering none of it."
On hearing this, a light flared in Kariya's eyes—then faded, replaced by pain and torment.
Steve, observing him, added:
"But... there's something I must ask."
"When she was cast into the worm storeroom for modifications, you entered alongside her—to ease her pain, to comfort her spirit."
"For Sakura, these memories might be the only light in endless darkness.
If all is erased, she'll never recall the sacrifices you made for her."
Would you still do this?
This was, without a doubt, a test of the self.
Kariya's face turned deathly pale, his lips trembling.
That would mean all the suffering endured—all pain for her sake—would become meaningless, in Sakura's world.
He would no longer be "Uncle Kariya" who protected her for two years, but just… a distant acquaintance.
Kariya closed his eyes in agony, Sakura's vacant, lifeless stare surfacing in his mind.
He remembered her, numbed by pain, even forgetting how to cry as the worms feasted upon her.
Wasn't everything done, in hopes Sakura could one day smile again?
But if being "remembered" means branding her innocent soul with hellish scars...
What then does it mean to protect her at all?
After a while, he opened his eyes.
The hatred and suffering within had been washed away, replaced with incredulous clarity and resolve.
"...Please help me."
Matou Kariya bowed low to Steve, his hoarse voice filled with unprecedented determination.
"Please… erase it all. Let Sakura awaken from the nightmare—completely!"
He chose to sacrifice his right to be remembered, in exchange for Sakura's perfect new life.
"Understood." Steve nodded in respect of the decision.
Returning to the meditation chamber, he gently placed a hand on Sakura's brow.
This time, he chanted a lullaby-like spell.
The starlight transformed into gentle energy, enveloping the girl's soul, tenderly peeling away fragments of dark, painful memories one by one, sealing and dissolving them into nothingness.
When the incantation ended, Sakura's brow visibly relaxed.
Her breathing calmed; the corners of her mouth lifted as if she dreamt a sweet dream.
After finishing all this, Steve turned his attention to Kariya.
"Now, let's discuss your situation."
He looked at him and spoke:
"To be brief, your body's current state—tormented by crest worms and Berserker's enormous magical drain—you have, at most, three months left to live."
Kariya showed neither surprise nor complaint, forcing a wry smile.
"If I can endure until the war ends and see Sakura rescued, that's enough for me."
No, that's not enough.
Steve shook his head.
"There is another way. If you are willing, I can prepare a doll's body—identical to your living form—into which your soul can be transplanted. You could live on."
Kariya's pupils instantly contracted.
"However, this comes with a cost."
"That body cannot house magic circuits. Afterwards, you'd be unable to wield magecraft, living as an ordinary human."
"Would you accept that?"
Astonished at first, Matou Kariya then suddenly laughed—a laugh filled with relief, exhilaration, and joy, persisting until tears rolled down his cheeks.
"...Cost?"
He wiped his tears, gazing at Steve—smiling from the heart for the first time in over a decade.
"Caster—no... Mr. Steve—this isn't a cost to me; it's the greatest reward I've ever dreamed of!"
Without hesitation, he accepted the offer.
"However," Kariya added, "let me finish this war before you transplant me. I want to see with my own eyes the ending you envision—one where everyone finds happiness."
"Of course." Steve nodded his agreement.
Thus, the night's commotion finally came to an end.
…
As the first sunlight shone on the temple in the dawn, the avenger, once devoured by hatred and despair, vanished—leaving behind a guardian with eyes once more glowing with hope, quietly watching over the girl ready to embark on a new life from her sweet dreams.
Steve Weis had established the most reliable foundation for his peace plan.
…
PS: Bonus chapter at 500 PS