You call this a projection?

There was no hesitation.

Nor were there any lingering thoughts of pity.

Perhaps in the very beginning, Emiya Shirou truly felt that way. But now, realizing what this lovestruck girl, Caster, would do for the sake of her romance, he acted. Standing beside Shirou, [Pseudo-The World] pierced through Caster’s Spiritual Core without a moment’s delay.

One second passed.

Then, there was Kuzuki Souichirou, who was also frozen in time.

A murderer. An assassin.

According to the theories of justice, someone with those identities like Kuzuki Souichirou was clearly the type who wouldn’t be mourned even if he were killed. Having already struck down Caster, whether as an enemy Master or simply a participant in the Holy Grail War, Shirou had no reason to spare him.

However, in the end, Shirou stayed his hand.

He did not let [Pseudo-The World] continue its momentum to pierce through Kuzuki Souichirou’s heart as well.

”There is a saying—man cannot choose his birth, but he can change his fate.

I don’t know why you defected from that assassination group, Kuzuki-sensei. You were raised by them, and your values were molded to have no concept of human good or evil, knowing only how to follow orders.

Why did you think you were wrong? Why did you want to atone?”

In this world of stopped time where no one but Shirou remained conscious, he spoke these words—destined to go unheard—and questioned Kuzuki Souichirou.

If a person wants to do something, they usually need a role model, don’t they? Much like Shirou himself; he didn’t start out wanting to be a Hero of Justice. It was only after being saved by Kiritsugu Emiya in the great fire of the Fourth Holy Grail War ten years ago, and seeing the heartfelt smile on Kiritsugu’s face, that he wanted to become someone like him.

That is the influence of environment on a person. Even those with the firmest will—take a country with lofty ideals like the Soviet Union—couldn’t escape the value exports of the United States, eventually disintegrating automatically without a single shot being fired.

How did Kuzuki Souichirou manage to suddenly betray all the information he had been fed his entire life? One couldn’t simply say that the will of this single assassin was firmer than the

collective will of millions who died in WWII yet kept charging forward for their country and human liberation.

Even if Kuzuki had been subjected to the value exports of an assassin’s creed, did he still believe in the truth, goodness, and beauty of humanity in his heart?

This was the part that the Emiya Shirou with past-life memories found most baffling. It was also the part of Kuzuki Souichirou he envied most. If he could be as steadfast as Kuzuki, perhaps he wouldn’t be like he is now—knowing full well he can’t become a Hero of Justice, yet unable to let go of the dream in a constant state of anxiety.

”So, I’m sorry, Kuzuki-sensei. Though I know that for you, Caster represents your current everything—the ’everything’ for someone who once lost everything.

If given the choice, you would surely choose to die with Caster.”

After all, since betraying the assassination group and choosing to live as an ordinary person to atone for his past sins, Kuzuki Souichirou had also lost his purpose. Training, killing... those were the things he did in the group. But after realizing killing was wrong, what else could he do?

He could do nothing. Even becoming a ”normal person” and contributing to society was quite difficult for him.

Until he met Caster...

No one understood this kind of emotion better than Emiya Shirou. In a sense, he was that kind of person, and he had met that kind of person.

”But this won’t do. Because of Caster’s ’love-brain,’ she didn’t want you to know she was actually a bad woman. Therefore, you were almost entirely ignorant of the things she did.

Though even if you did know, you would probably just support her blindly.

But I cannot judge your crimes based on things that haven’t happened. Similarly, regarding that one and only killing mission you performed before leaving the group—while you did kill someone, you were a victim of brainwashing at the time.

In a way, you should be considered a victim yourself.”

Indeed, even though Kuzuki Souichirou was someone with the ”Murderous Demon” trait in his profile, in practice, that referred more to his killing techniques than a genuine bloodlust. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have questioned his existence and his education immediately after his first kill.

Thus, even accounting for his past, Shirou couldn’t bring himself to kill him. If he did, wouldn’t he become the very thing he hated? Wouldn’t he become like Archer?

Therefore, the Stand appearing beside Shirou now was [Pseudo-Whitesnake].

”You no longer need to bear the burden of your past killings and sins, nor do you need to remember Caster and continue in this Holy Grail War for her sake.

Just be an ordinary person, Kuzuki-sensei, as if you had never met her.”

One, two seconds passed. Time began to flow again.

”I think this is also what Caster would have wanted to see.”

Finally liberated from the shackles of stopped time, Kuzuki Souichirou moved to act, but a burly purple-and-white humanoid figure—visible only to a Stand User—reached out from an angle he couldn’t perceive and brushed across his face.

A white DISC was pulled from Kuzuki’s brain and caught in Shirou’s hand.

”Am I right, Caster?”

”Cough... Souichirou-sama!? ...Saber’s Master, what on earth have you done?!”

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