Chapter 90: Chapter 15. Someone Must Become Evil
I Will Eventually Embark on the Path of No Return Called a Hero [Arc2] - 15. Someone Must Become Evil
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I created life...
Gordes stared in silence at the homunculus lying on his bed.
"Ahhh! Damn it! What have I done!"
After a while, Gordes began furiously grabbing at his own hair, eventually collapsing into a chair, his head hanging in defeat.
It was just... a homunculus. They were not really human; they were mere tools cultivated from materials. Even if they committed suicide, they would do so expressionlessly. That's right! What he created was such an existence, but...
[Help me]
This had never happened before. The homunculi didn't even understand death, but this one was begging him for help. Those eyes were unmistakably human. Perhaps this homunculus was just an accident, but it also represented a possibility. Perhaps the past homunculi had simply lacked some factor or hadn't realized something yet.
He could no longer treat those homunculi as mere batteries or cannon fodder.
Timid, hesitant, blustering—now he truly appeared pathetic...
"Saber, do I look ridiculous right now?" Gordes croaked as he summoned Siegfried.
"No, Master is great now," Siegfried appeared beside Gordes, his upturned lips indicating his happiness.
"Great?" Gordes gave a crooked smile. "Saber, what is your wish?"
"I have no wish. I was summoned to fulfill Master's wish," Siegfried looked directly into Gordes's eyes, his gaze unwavering.
"Tch," facing Siegfried's eyes, Gordes reluctantly turned his head away. "That's why I don't want to believe you. You don't trust me at all."
Siegfried opened his mouth, now understanding why his Master had always spoken harshly to him.
"Master, I have a wish now..."
Siegfried knelt on one knee before Gordes, pressing his right hand to his heart.
"To fulfill your wish."
"Huh?" Gordes's eyes widened.
"I lived my life fulfilling others' wishes, whether they were for evil or good. As long as someone prayed to me, I would grant their wish," Siegfried spoke softly. "Even if that wish was for my own death."
"Are you an idiot?" Gordes impatiently tugged at his hair. "Don't you have any purpose in living?"
"Well, now I do. Master, I will fulfill your wish," Siegfried looked at the unconscious homunculus on the bed. "If you want to save him, I will clear all obstacles for you. You only need to move forward with your head held high."
"Who... who said I want to save him!" Gordes's face flushed. "I'm just considering that we'll have to fight Caster later. If his Noble Phantasm is fully completed, it will be troublesome for us!"
"Hmm, I understand," Siegfried smiled.
"Don't laugh!!!"
Gordes shouted in frustration.
...
"If you forcibly take that homunculus away, he will only return to your lord's embrace faster," Cyd patted Jeanne's head. "If you leave him to this guy, he could live longer. As long as he can survive the Holy Grail War, he will be able to live freely. Sometimes, a heart full of unplanned kindness can be more fatal than poison."
"That's really great... that child can survive," Jeanne clasped her hands and showed a beautiful smile, her clear eyes seeming to see through the door to the homunculus. "May the Lord bless him."
"Are you an idiot?" Cyd exaggeratedly placed a hand on his forehead. "Reflect a bit on how you nearly violated your duties as a Ruler and caused that homunculus's death."
"I'm sorry!"
Facing Jeanne's honest apology, Cyd felt as though she was hitting cotton.
"I'm going to tell Rider this good news right away!"
"Wait!"
Cyd grabbed Jeanne's face and rubbed it forcefully.
"That guy is losing his sanity. If you tell him this, it'll be exposed in less than five minutes."
"Please stop... it hurts... Rider won't..."
"A person who is always sorrowful suddenly starts smiling. It's definitely suspicious," Cyd let go of Jeanne.
"But Rider will continue to suffer," Jeanne lightly touched her swollen cheek, the sharp pain making her shiver.
"I think he would be willing to suffer for that homunculus," Cyd waved his hand. "Well, if you're worried, I can check the dungeon."
"Then I'll leave it to you." Jeanne bent at the waist.
"But! Put aside your previous position. You're not a saint or a follower of the Lord. You're just a judge who maintains fairness," Cyd flicked Jeanne's forehead with his fingers.
"I understand," Jeanne covered her reddened forehead and nodded seriously.
This girl doesn't understand at all.
Cyd scratched his head and headed toward the dungeon.
People don't change; only their goals do.
Evil parties will always be evil, and good people will always think of others, even if their methods change, their essence remains unchanged.
Jeanne is a Ruler now; she will definitely maintain fairness. This is not a lie. No one can lie in front of her. But Jeanne, like everyone feels, is like a clear spring, her heart always pure and admirable. However, in the Holy Grail War, this purity is wrong.
When faced with the homunculus begging for help, Jeanne instinctively wanted to assist, and when faced with Astolfo's plea, she instinctively wanted to help him, even though the homunculus was a tool created by the Black faction and Astolfo was a Black faction Servant whom she had repeatedly said she wouldn't help.
She didn't think she did anything wrong. Even her apology was only because she felt her actions might lead to the homunculus's death. She didn't think helping Astolfo take the homunculus, who would become Caster's Noble Phantasm core, was violating the rules.
Her instinctive goodness is above the rules of the Holy Grail War.
Therefore, Jeanne should not be a Ruler. Her heart retains goodness and stubbornly believes her goodness is without fault, making her the true anomaly affecting fairness.
Jeanne's goodness has tipped the scales, so evil is needed to balance it.
Watching Astolfo being favored by his Master, Cyd silently observed.
"Oh, isn't that a Ruler? Want to join our game?" Rider's Master, Celenike, licked her crimson lips, her greedy gaze openly scanning Cyd's white skin. "To mark my color on the Hero of Pure White, just thinking about it excites me!"
"Ah, it seems you've been targeted too," Astolfo, though covered in wounds, laughed nonchalantly.
"We're leaving soon, just the two of us," Cyd gave a cold glance at the Black faction's Rider and turned to leave.
"You're lying! You're lying!"
Astolfo's eyes narrowed sharply as he shouted at Cyd's retreating figure.
"You are clearly a hero who brings hope to everyone!"
"That look... that's right! I've always wanted to see that kind of look!" Celenike caressed Astolfo's face, a strange blush appearing on her own. "That look of despair!"
"Why! Your legend! You could go to Tartarus for people, why won't you help that child just because he's a homunculus!" Astolfo roared in agony.
"Because!" Celenike laughed loudly, pressing her face against Astolfo's chest. "That Hero of Pure White is already dead!"
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