"I have created life..."
Goredolf stared in silence at the artificial human lying on his bed.
"Ahhhh! Damn it! What have I done?"
After a while, Goredolf began to pull at his hair in frustration, finally collapsing into a chair, his head hanging limply.
It was just an artificial human, not a true human being. They were tools, cultivated from materials, showing no emotion even in the face of death. Yes, that's what he had created. But...
Save me.
This had never happened before. Artificial humans didn't understand death, but this one had pleaded for help. Those eyes were undeniably human. Maybe this artificial human was an anomaly, but it also represented a possibility. Perhaps the previous artificial humans hadn't achieved some crucial factor or hadn't realized they had the desire to live.
He could no longer see them as mere batteries or cannon fodder.
Cowardly, indecisive, pretentious—he looked pathetic right now.
"Saber, do I look ridiculous right now?" Goredolf called out hoarsely to Siegfried.
"No, Master, you are very noble," Siegfried appeared beside him, a small smile on his face.
"Noble?" Goredolf scoffed. "Saber, what is your wish?"
"I have no wish. I was summoned to fulfill my Master's wish." Siegfried looked Goredolf straight in the eyes, his gaze sincere.
"Cut it out," Goredolf turned his head away, unwilling to meet Siegfried's eyes. "That's why I can't trust you. You don't really believe in me."
Siegfried opened his mouth to speak but then understood why his Master had always spoken harshly to him.
"Master, now I have a wish..."
Siegfried knelt on one knee, pressing his right hand to his heart.
"To fulfill your wish."
"What?" Goredolf's eyes widened.
"In life, I always lived to fulfill others' wishes, be they good or evil. As long as they prayed to me, I would grant their wishes," Siegfried said softly. "Even if it meant my death."
"Are you an idiot?" Goredolf gripped his hair in frustration. "Don't you have any purpose of your own?"
"Now I do. Master, I will fulfill your wish," Siegfried glanced at the sleeping artificial human on the bed. "If you want to save him, I will clear all obstacles for you. You just need to stand tall and move forward."
"Who... who said I want to save him!" Goredolf's face turned red. "I'm just thinking ahead about fighting Caster. If his Noble Phantasm is completed, we'll be in big trouble!"
"Understood," Siegfried smiled.
"Don't laugh!!!" Goredolf yelled, exasperated.
"If you forcibly take that artificial human away, he will quickly return to his master," Cyd patted Jeanne on the head. "If you leave him with this guy, he can live longer. If he survives the Holy Grail War, he can live freely. Unplanned kindness can be more deadly than poison."
"It's wonderful... that child can live," Jeanne clasped her hands together, a beautiful smile on her face. Her clear eyes seemed to see the artificial human through the door. "May God bless him."
"Are you an idiot?" Cyd exaggeratedly held his forehead. "Reflect a little on how you almost violated the Ruler's duties and endangered that artificial human."
"Sorry!"
Jeanne's earnest apology made Cyd feel like he was punching a pillow.
"I'm going to tell Rider the good news!"
"Wait!" Cyd grabbed Jeanne's face and pinched her cheeks. "That guy talks a lot. If you tell him, he'll give it away in less than five minutes."
"Please stop... Rider wouldn't..."
"A guy who was gloomy suddenly starts laughing. How could that not be suspicious?"
"But Rider will continue to suffer," Jeanne touched her red cheeks, the pain making her shiver.
"I think he would prefer to suffer for that artificial human," Cyd said. "Well, if you're so worried, I'll check the dungeon."
"Thank you." Jeanne bowed.
"But remember! Don't forget we aren't here to interfere but to maintain order. You are neither a saint nor a follower of God. You are just a judge maintaining justice," Cyd flicked Jeanne's forehead.
"Understood," Jeanne held her reddened forehead and nodded seriously.
She doesn't get it at all.
Cyd scratched his head and walked towards the dungeon.
People don't change. Only their goals do.
Villains remain villains, and good people will always think of others. Even if their methods change, their essence does not.
Jeanne is now a Ruler. She will maintain justice, not because it's a lie. In his presence, no one can lie. But Jeanne is like a clear spring, her heart always pure and admirable. In the Holy Grail War, this purity is a mistake.
When faced with an artificial human asking for help, Jeanne instinctively wanted to aid him. When Astolfo begged her, she instinctively wanted to help, even though the artificial human was a tool created by the Black Faction and Astolfo was a Black Faction Servant she claimed she wouldn't help.
She didn't see anything wrong with her actions. Even her apology was because she thought her actions might lead to the artificial human's death. She didn't realize that helping Astolfo take the artificial human, who was destined to become Caster's Noble Phantasm core, was against the rules.
Her inherent goodness overrode the rules of the Holy Grail War.
Jeanne shouldn't be a Ruler. Her unwavering belief in her goodness is what truly disrupts fairness.
Jeanne's goodness tipped the scales, so evil is needed to balance them.
Watching Astolfo being violated by his Master, Cyd remained silent, observing.
"Oh my~ Isn't this the Ruler? Do you want to join our game?" Rider's Master, Celenike, licked her red lips, her greedy eyes sweeping over Cyd's pale skin. "Marking the pure white hero with my colors, just thinking about it excites me!"
"Seems like you've caught her eye too," Astolfo, covered in wounds, still smiled nonchalantly.
"We'll be leaving soon, just the two of us," Cyd gave a cold glance at the Black Faction Rider duo before turning to leave.
"Wait, what about the boy? You can't just let him die!"
Astolfo's eyes widened, screaming at Cyd's back.
"You are the hero who brought hope to everyone!"
"That look... Yes! I've always wanted to see that look!" Celenike caressed Astolfo's face, a strange blush appearing. "That expression of despair!"
"Why! In your legend, you went to Tartarus for people. Why won't you help that child just because he's an artificial human?" Astolfo screamed in agony.
"It's simple!" Celenike laughed, pressing her face against Astolfo's chest. "That hero of purity is a servant, a ruler at that; he follows the Grail's rules!"