Fate/ I Am Humanity Last Hope!?

The boy's eyes opened slowly. As his senses returned, his vision soon caught the white light dominating the enclosed space, where a thick layer of dust enveloped him entirely. He coughed heavily until he understood the situation.

He saw a large portion of crushed metal debris about to crush him. As he gradually regained consciousness, he began to recall the events that had led him to such an uncomfortable position.

He had been fighting for his revenge, trying to take the life of the man who had shown him something worse than hell itself. White flashes of recent memories were revived in his brain, how he had defeated the man who had taken away his free will and had done horrible things to him, he remembers satisfactorily the torture he inflicted, before that trash simply blew up the building in a mad attempt to kill him along with it...

Only then did he notice his own right hand raised against the grayish covering. If he was still alive, he should thank his recently mastered [Mugen] after a whole decade of intensive training and research. At the very least, he could say that this was a life or death situation similar to its first uses.

He was still far from being able to leave it permanently activated, but he could instinctively activate it when there was danger.

Fortunately, he didn't need any incantation; he translated this into hand signs—his personal Magecraft used mudras, something he had created based on some research from the past.

The word "mudra" originates from Sanskrit and means conductor seal, attitude, or key. Each mudra establishes a subtle connection with specific effects on the body, mind, and energy field, redirecting prana for various effects, functioning as the best substitute he had found for verbal incantations.

The incantations were known as [Aria], a necessary activity for activating Magecraft; they play the important role of self-hypnosis: putting the mage's mind in a state where they can effectively control their magical Circuits and emulating their magical energy outward in the form of spells...

His "mudras" had the same purpose. He had this idea through several mangas he had read in his past life, but it was only possible to create this magical system entirely from scratch thanks to his Origin guiding him and various tests and experiments to achieve the desired effect.

In any case, the boy survived the destruction of the building he had lived in all his life. He didn't know how much time he had lost lying there unconscious, however, he had no time to worry about it. He allowed the energy coursing through his body from his activated magic circuits to carefully dissipate. By that point, the ceiling wouldn't collapse, so he was able to channel all his efforts to escape the debris.

After dragging his injured torso to the outside, his eyebrows raised as he contemplated the scene.

Everything was destroyed, and the fire was consuming the surroundings arrogantly, but he did not pay attention to that...

He fell to his knees looking at the older man lying on the ground, crushed by rubble; he was just a disgusting mass of flesh at that moment.

Fraldeus Lugh lay dead before his eyes.

He had finally managed to kill this monster after ten years of suffering in his hands...

At that moment, heavy drops of water fell from the sky. He cared little about the dark clothes soaked by the incessant rain. A possible cold would be nothing compared to the emotion he felt at that moment.

The young man lifted his head and looked towards the sky filled with dark clouds that were sporadically predominated by bluish tones of distant lightning. The heavy hair covered his eyes where tears flowed, mixed with the falling particles.

"Finally..."

Ryusei cried, releasing all the bottled-up emotions from his chest over the past years. He let out a scream that echoed through the space like the cry of a wounded animal, before bursting into laughter while murmuring.

"Finally! Hahahaha, take that, you son of a bitch!"

He remembered the battle he had with his torturer with delight.

A week ago, he had finally made a breakthrough in his personal Magecraft, deeming himself strong enough for revenge. He waited the whole week for the perfect opportunity, and he succeeded, all thanks to the effort he had dedicated for years to his craft as a mage...

After years, he managed to materialize the element of space in the way he wanted, something made possible only due to his Origin; with his scientific knowledge about Space-Time, he successfully created it, following one of his favorite characters of all time, which he called [Limitless]. Such Magecraft brings the concept of "infinity" to reality, allowing the user to manipulate and distort space at will.

He had created only one form so far, which he called [Mugen], essentially the power to stop.

It worked based on the mystery of the fable of Achilles and the Tortoise, according to a theory explaining the motion of two objects. Achilles can never catch up to the tortoise; because by the time he reaches the point from where the tortoise started, it would have moved to another point; by the time he reaches that second point, it would have moved again; and so on for infinity.

He turned the mystery of this fable into reality.

When something attempts to hit him, the person or object in question reaches infinity between them and him, something created by the convergence of this fable. This happens because the spell takes the finite amount of space between the two objects and divides it an infinite amount of times; everything that approaches infinity slows down and never reaches the user.

Because of this spell, he managed to avoid being killed by Fraldeus, who was a monster in human form, and to attack him, he used two spells he had invented during the development of [Limitless], which had no basis in any school of Thaumaturgy.

The spells were [Dismantle], which manipulated magical energy and shaped powerful and completely invisible cuts made from his affinity with Ether (Void), also called the Fifth Imaginary Factor according to the teachings of the Mage's Association. It combines with any of the other four Elements to update the "Mysteries" of magic. This spell literally materializes within the world around a target to cut it, similar to [Mugen] that manipulated space, but through a different process. It worked on any type of inanimate object or anything without magical energy, and [Cleave], which worked on all individuals with magical energy, adjusting its cutting power to be stronger the more magical energy someone had...

The [Cleave] in particular utilized the maximum effect of the increase in mystery brought by his elemental affinity.

Having two powerful attack spells and one for almost absolute defense, along with his arsenal that grew over the years with Magecraft from various schools, he was able to defeat his captor, who was seeking to take his body for himself.

Ryusei fell backward while looking at the sky covered with clouds. As his heart screamed and cracked, the broken pieces that had fallen were now reconstituting over his desire for revenge that had been fulfilled.

As time passed, one thing was growing, holding onto him, it was like a muddy viscosity, a piece of heat, saying that it would not be satisfied just by killing, screaming that it was unforgivable...

He did not feel satisfied just killing the man who had tortured him his entire life. He wanted Fraldeus to experience the pain, the painful memories; he wanted to drown him in a toxic swamp of remorse and agony.

More, more, more; he needed him to suffer more...

However, he could not fulfill that desire. That man chose to explode the whole place rather than fall into his hands; it seemed that the heavens were helping him, it was frustrating, disgusting, and repulsive. Not even that worked out in his life...

"I am not satisfied with just this..."

A gaze filled with hatred like burning magma and a voice cold as a shining blade.

He could still feel the phantom pain of worms wriggling in his body, the memories of the inhuman experiments he had undergone were still in his mind. He had not managed to get revenge in the proper way to boot, which was repulsive to himself...

He let out a sigh and hammered those thoughts into his mind.

The void subdued his heart.

Now that everything was over, even if it was not in the way he imagined, what should he do?

Remove the Worms from within his body? He had already done that before fighting Fraldeus; he didn't want to risk him having any control over his rapists and killing him through them. With his magical knowledge about medicine, this proved to be a very easy task.

As easy as replacing his muscles with those of a Werewolf, one of the rarest magical beasts of the current era, which granted him inhuman physical strength, endurance, and agility. Because his blood had traits of that beast. Slowly, his hearing and sense of smell also became stronger, and he even developed a heightened [Instinct].

He also transplanted essential parts of a Hydra into himself, making his blood poisonous, within his marrow, the blood stem cells divide and mature to produce new blood cells filled with poison so deadly that just one drop would be enough to kill any human who touched it...

He was using magical energy to cover his skin and prevent direct contact with people; it was a method he developed out of caution. This spell also greatly increased his physical defense: [Blut Vene], as he ended up calling it. It is represented by a faint pattern tracing the veins beneath the surface of the user's skin, which is only visible in the affected area when struck.

This spell, in addition to helping him with his poisonous body, added an extra layer of protection, combined with his current regeneration; he was basically someone almost impossible to kill in the Modern Era, as he could regenerate from fatal injuries in just a few minutes.

Ironically, it was amusing to think about how little he cared for his life...

And also...

He had replaced his fangs with those of a Lamyros to suck the blood of others to replenish his magical energy or release his poison. A variation of the Phantasmal Species of a Vampire...

Phantasmal Species is the common term used to refer to all non-human creatures found in legends. Instead of a classification to separate classes of beasts, it encompasses everything from semi-humans like fairies and giants to monsters like dragons and oni. They differ from demons in that they are active creatures rather than passive existences. Just as mages acquire power through the accumulation of knowledge, members of spectral races become more powerful as they age.

Many of the Phantasmal Species fall into the category of magical beasts, which is the common designation for all creatures that do not fit within the normal biological classification of living beings and those that do not fit within the natural ecosystem.

The term "beast" refers to the thaumaturgical concept and does not necessarily mean it refers to four-legged mammals. They can be classified into three categories, which change according to the age of the creatures and their increasing power, transforming them into higher existences.

The lowest rank is called Monstrous Beasts, which then transform into Phantasmal Beasts and, finally, become those referred to as Divine Beasts; the last two are almost impossible to find in the current era...

It could be said that the modifications he made to his body greatly helped in his battles. That idiot Freldeus never thought that his treasure would be plundered by his experiment; he was so obsessed with his magical research and experiments that he didn't even realize—he had found various parts of beasts in his workshop over the years, obviously taking advantage of them to become stronger.

In the current Era, it was practically impossible to find parts of a Young Hydra, which essentially had immeasurable value; he suspected that old idiot had acquired it centuries ago.

In any case, that phase of his life was over.

What mattered now was what he would do next...

The boy got up from where he had been lying and began to walk in a random direction.

Leaving the rubble of what was once a building in the middle of a forest near a small town in India, he entered the woods as his mind contemplated his freedom.

He decided to travel the world to find any desire or purpose in his life. He could not take his own life due to the Magical Crest, and his Origin compelled him to want more power when he just wanted to cease to exist...

A strange glow appeared in his pupils as he walked in the direction he chose.

... ...

He spent six months in India, living in nature and enjoying the freedom he had acquired. He learned to hunt and cook during this time. He became quite proficient with a bow and a good fisherman; he would stay a few more months, but he met a group of cannibalistic Indians who tried to kill and devour him, all of whom he killed.

With his experience in nature ruined by this, he went to a big city. He sold some jewelry he had always kept with him, and with the money, he bought a ticket to Germany. He spent a few months exploring the country and learning more about Magecraft, entering the world of business and starting to work as a merchant.

His idea was to gather enough funds to not worry about money, and being a merchant seemed like a good thing.

He spent a year as a merchant and became well-versed and experienced in the art of trade.

Unfortunately, he gave up the idea after being captured by a Nazi mage and his family while passing through the country's border.

Although he never let his guard down for a moment, he ended up being affected by a special fragrance and odorless concoction made from some powerful creature, which left people unconscious. Even with his poisonous blood granting him the ability to resist several drugs and poisons that would kill or affect any mage of the current era, this special perfume was something abnormal...

It should have come from some higher-level Phantasmal Beast than the Hydra he had, perhaps, an Incubus. That was his best guess, which was shocking to say the least considering there had been none in this era, much less in the previous one. The only one he had heard of was Merlin, who was a half-incubus during the time of King Arthur.

It explained his state of sleep paralysis after they used this perfume on him, where he remained immobile and unable to use his magical energy.

He was tormented by one of the man's sons, who was envious of his appearance, saying that someone inferior like him should not be so handsome. That man was sick to do this to a thirteen-year-old child, but after all, that was how the world worked.

When they discovered his abnormal regeneration, he experienced tortures such as having his tendons cut, being one of the victims of what Vlad the Impaler did using a wooden stake, preferably not very sharp and soaked in oil, so as not to kill the victim outright, and then driving it into or staking it in some part of the victim; he experienced both.

In addition to being cut and burned, and then having salt thrown into his wounds...

Due to his immense pain tolerance, he managed to endure all this without breaking, but he came infinitely close, with the combination of this situation and his mind filled with dark thoughts...

He spent two months this way until the head of the family decided to purify his body and make him marry one of his daughters, who seemed like a deformed abomination.

A repugnant dinner occurred as a sort of celebration, where he was forced to eat human flesh, of a child no less. Then came the wedding, and then the wedding night; he was violated by that abomination who would be his wife...

But due to his poisonous body, that thing ended up dying. They were lucky not to have touched him during that time, or they would have died; all the intoxications were done with someone wearing special gloves or something like that. It had to do with the fact that they didn't want to dirty their hands with a disgusting being like him...

After the death of the abomination, that's when the opportunity for revenge arose. He waited a few hours for the effect of the drugs they had used on him to wear off, and by using Magecraft along with his inhuman body, he killed each of them in the cruelest way possible; in the most sadistic manner...

Their screams of pain were like music to his ears; this feeling couldn't be stopped... this feeling was too good.

The voice in his mind would not stop; it wanted to torment them to the point of death. If they fainted, he could just inflict more pain until they woke up again.

It was certainly hell for the Nazi mage family.

For him, this was paradise where all his desires became true.

It took him a whole week to be satisfied with the tortures before killing them. He took all the money and magical items from the family, along with their research and the [Magical Crest], before leaving that end of the world; he was indeed right about the Incubus, finding his preserved body in the family vault; he took it too...

He crossed the border and returned to Germany before catching a flight to Japan.

After everything he had been through, he wanted to spend some time in his homeland.

He wandered for six months through each of the cities in Japan while learning more about [Houjutsu] and [Onmyoudou]. He specialized more in the summoning of [Shikigami] but also became a master in both.

To learn about the three, he used the funds he had gathered throughout his journey in Germany, having managed to acquire several catalysts for certain rituals. Especially for those wanting to participate in the Holy Grail War, participants would be willing to pay a fortune for such objects.

-- Holy Grail War --

It was a phrase that appeared frequently in fairy tales and legends from times past.

Once upon a time - there was a battle.

The battle took place in an ordinary city in Japan, unbeknownst to its people.

However, this battle concealed a truly terrible secret. In fact, it was a war that generated the miracle known as the Holy Grail.

The Holy Grail.

It is an eternal miracle.

It is a legend.

It is a relic from the world of the gods.

It is an end.

It is hope - and therefore, searching for it is to admit despair.

The very identity of this object called the Holy Grail changes from time to time, from place to place, and from person to person. In this war, the Holy Grail was not exactly the "sacred relic" as it is often imagined.

There, it was said that the miracle called the Holy Grail appeared in the form of an omnipotent device that grants wishes.

But it was only said to be so, as at the moment the battle to claim the Grail began, the wish-granting device known as the Holy Grail did not exist.

Before the Grail itself appeared, seven spirits manifested.

From all the stories, traditions, magics, and fictions of this world – from each medium, "Heroes" were selected to be summoned to the present world as "Servants."

They formed the foundation of the Holy Grail War and were absolutely essential for the eventual summoning of the Holy Grail.

These spirits, beings immeasurably stronger than humans, were called to destroy each other.

The mages who summoned those Heroic Spirits were known as "Masters." In order to gain the Grail, a right that only one of them could have, they also killed each other. This carnage is precisely the Holy Grail War.

The spirits, once killed in battle, flowed into the vessel of the Holy Grail, and when that container was filled, the wish-granting device would be completed. This was the underlying system of the Holy Grail War.

That battlefield was perhaps the deadliest and most harmful place in the world.

The participating mages had to hide their existence from the rest of the world, as always, sneaking around at night, spreading the flames of battle while remaining invisible.

As part of its mission to oversee the objects described as the Holy Grail, the Church dispatched its own supervisor. The battlefields glimmered with blood as they were ravaged by those overwhelmingly powerful spirits.

This ritual had been happening for several years and so far there had been; Six Holy Grail Wars, with the last being the only one that had a winner with their wish fulfilled, that person was Marisbury Animusphere, who according to what he had heard, wished for money to conduct his research.

Normally, a cycle of 60 years is required for the Great Grail to accumulate enough mana to summon the servants and start the battle of individuals seeking their own desires. However, the last two were exceptions; the Fifth Holy Grail War took place ten years after the Fourth; in 2004, and something must have happened in that specific war since the period between it and the sixth was the shortest - 1 year.

The possibility that something happened in the Fifth Holy Grail War was certain, but he had discovered nothing, even after visiting the city that had been the center of that ritual...

In any case, with a winner having their wish fulfilled, the demand for catalysts to be used in the servant summoning ritual had become quite high in the market. He took advantage of that...

He even managed to obtain some beast parts, the rarest being the wings of a Pegasus. Having implanted them into his back, he acquired the ability to fly by his own means.

To keep hidden within his back, he had used one of the Magecrafts he had learned over time, that which was basically altering appearance by various means, its name was [Metamorphosis] - he had become quite proficient in that spell.

During those six months, he also learned to keep the magical circuits near his eyes active to make his [Rikugan] permanently active, which made it practically impossible to catch him off guard. He didn't want to go through a similar situation to the one he had experienced with the disgusting Nazis...

During his stay in Japan, he ended up having to deal with a certain organization that used children as soldiers; they conducted experiments on them since they were babies. The mage responsible was someone who aspired to dominate the world through this, a grand objective for a small and useless man.

The worst that happened was having to kill the children who attacked him.

Low, repulsive, and detestable... he felt disgusted with himself, one of his most traumatic experiences. Killing children, innocent people was something he had never thought he would do.

In redemption, which he knew would be insufficient, he killed all those who were part of that organization and stole everything they had for himself.

His journey in Japan ended in just eight months, then he continued his path traveling the world for two years. Learning more about Magecraft and giving even more back to those he had through studies and various experiments, as well as learning several martial arts, an area he had neglected quite a bit during those years, and obviously seeking even more beast parts to fuse into his body.

This journey was a walk alongside death. He went through various situations that no one could even imagine, witnessing so many things that made him understand how dark this world was...

It was when he turned sixteen that he completed his journey around the world and entered the Clock Tower in search of more knowledge and things to learn.

The Clock Tower.

For most, this term refers to a popular tourist spot in London.

For mages, however, it means something completely different.

It is the headquarters of the Association that brings together countless mages and, at the same time, is the best educational institution for the training of young mages.

It could very well be called the Vatican of magic. As old as England itself, it has produced many first-class mages, each of whom elevated the art of magic to a new level.