37

Gilles de Rais, Caster, found his last refuge in the ruined throne room, where until recently the Witch had fought and met her death along with Jeanne d'Arc.

The room itself was now completely destroyed - the walls were broken in many places, the roof fell almost completely, the columns were fragmented and randomly spread out, because of which the floor of the hall was now completely covered with dust and concrete chips.

The carpet was torn and now lay in parts in different corners of the hall, illuminated by the bright daytime sun rising above the remains of the ruined city, because of which the ruins of the throne room were now flooded with light. However, not completely.

The only thing that survived in the entire hall was the bulky stone throne. Empty, abandoned, it seemed that it was not even scratched during the battles that occurred, while continuing to stand motionless. The small remains of the masonry and the roof that still remained cast a dark shadow on the Witch's throne.

It was in this shadow that Gilles de Rais was located.

He continued to look at nowhere. Dropping his head, he held in his hands a goblet - the Holy Grail - which he held with no greater reverence than a traveler dying of hunger and thirst holding gold and diamonds in his hands. Yes, they are valuable - but not in their power to give him salvation.

That is what Ainz saw in him.

Slowly, he entered through the hinged doors, which swayed sideways but survived the collapse of the hall, after which he looked at Caster.

That's all.

Ainz sighed.

The last goal in this place. The last person with whose death will end the Singularity.

Ainz moved slowly toward his goal, but Caster, hearing the sound of the mage's footsteps, only looked up at him, and then hung his head again.

"Do not waste your time on me, mage," Gilles said, "I am already dead anyway."

Ainz said nothing in response, only slowly continuing to move toward his goal.

"Your... Your Servant - this Assassin..." Caster continued, "Her poison ... While Jeanne was alive, I did not need to worry about it, but now... Do not worry about me, mage, I will be dead in a few minutes.

Ainz, however, only continued to move towards Caster, after which, going up to that of an arm's length, he stopped. Gilles, hidden by the shadow, slowly raised his gaze to Ainz, whose figure was lit by the midday sun, and then closed his eyes.

"So it was you," Ainz said calmly, after which he looked at Caster.

"Yes," Gilles slowly opened his eyes, after which he looked at the goblet still clasped in his hands, "It was me."

There were a lot of questions in Ainz's head that he wanted to ask, but only one interest him the most.

"Why?" Ainz looked at Caster, forcing him to look at him.

"Why?" Caster just sighed. "Why did I do all this?"

Ainz nodded slowly.

"Because it was the only way," - Gilles sighed, - "Tell me, mage... Is there anything in the world that you want most? Something that will make you to overcome all obstacles in your path? Something for which you are willing to sacrifice something more than your own life, your glory, your mind?"

Ainz stopped.

Ainz Ooal Gown. His friends. His family. His real life.

"Yes," Ainz nodded slowly.

"Then do not believe the Holy Grail," Caster smiled sadly. "It does not fulfill our wishes. It only makes us suffer."

Ainz stopped, looking at Gilles.

"There was such a thing in my life," Gilles closed his eyes, "Jeanne. My whole life has been devoted to Jeanne, everything that I breathed, everything that I thought about. My whole existence was built around Jeanne and... One day she died."

Ainz looked at the Grail in Caster's hands.

"Yes, you understood correctly," Caster grinned sadly, not allowing his laugh to reach his eyes, full of pain, "The Holy Grail. What would you do if you got a thing in your hands that can fulfill your every desire? What would you wish if you once got the opportunity to turn the whole world, change history, return to the past and do the impossible?"

Ainz just silently looked at the Grail.

"I made a wish to the Grail," Caster grinned, "So that he brings my Jeanne back to life again.

"But I loved Jeanne, I loved her more than my own life," Caster smiled sadly at his thoughts, "And therefore I did not want Jeanne to die again, to be betrayed again, to be slandered and executed again. And so I desired another Jeanne from the Grail. Jeanne, who would be strong. Jeanne, who would not indulge the whims of other people. Jeanne, who would not be blind to human filth and abomination. Jeanne, who would not allow herself to die because of her ideals. Jeanne, who would remember her betrayal and would not let this happen again."

Ainz sighed. Gilles nodded at this.

"So the Holy Grail summoned my Jeanne — the one you call the Dragon Witch," Gilles closed his eyes, "The Power of the Holy Grail surpassess that of Servants and people, powerful and invincible. But…"

"The Grail does not fulfill wishes," Gilles only grinned, after which he raised the goblet to his face. "It was created as a mockery to our miserable desires and silly dreams. And so it corrupted my desire."

"Dragon Witch," Gilles closed his eyes, "The Creature of the Holy Grail. Strong, powerful and... Forever crippled."

"I wanted to create a strong Jeanne — however, instead of strength, she got only weakness," Gilles said it calmly, "I wanted her to remember the betrayal, and the Grail perverted my desire. All her thoughts, all her memories were just about that. She spent every moment of her life in endless agony, remembering her betrayal. Every moment of her life, the Grail tormented her, forcing her to feel the fire burning her again and again. Every moment of her life she went through it again and again - despair, bitterness, pain and death. Every second of her life, the Grail returned her to the flames of that fire - and never let her forget about it."

"I wished that Jeanne would not let herself be killed, would not allow people to dispose of her life again, would not put other people's ideals above her life," Gilles slowly smiled sadly, "And the Grail fulfilled my desire. That Jeanne that was born was deprived of this. Her emotions - kindness, joy, love... All of them were strangled. All that remained of her was rage and revenge, anger and pain. Infinitely nourished by her memory, again and again returning to her betrayal. There was nothing human in Jeanne - only hatred and pain. She could not see the good and could not feel the kindness, did not know pity and did not see ideals. All that led her was only endless pain and bitterness from the betrayal. All she wanted was to make this pain disappear. Destroying France, killing Jeanne, subjugating the Servants... But the Grail did not allow her to do this - each time, she only had to do an act - and it only showed her visions of her death, reminded her of her pain, made the fire devour her faster. And she fought, trying to throw out her pain, realizing that she would never be able to do it."

"I wished to return my Jeanne, Jeanne, that would not allow herself to be killed," Gilles weighed the Grail on his hand, as if a useless thing whose only use is to decorate a distant dusty shelf, "And instead, the Grail created Jeanne that wanted to be killed. Rushing into attacks, fighting the whole world, experiencing pain, she strove for death - and did not receive it. She won battle after battle, even meeting her death - the Grail returned her to life again and again, not allowing her to break the vicious circle. Time after time, she strove to free herself - and my desire bound her, making her suffer in eternal agony. She wanted to throw out her pain - but the Grail did not let her die. She sought liberation - and could not afford to kill herself. She sought liberation - but was forced to return again and again. My desire, by which I wanted to save her, cursed her to eternal suffering."

"Tell me, mage," Gilles took his hand with the goblet to the side, "If the Holy Grail was created only to mock our desires... If God is really so cruel that his reward is a punishment... What is the meaning of the Grail?"

After that, Caster let go of the Grail, which loudly hit the stone floor and slowly rolled to the side. Gilles looked up at Ainz.

"Jeanne was a Master for all the other Servants," Gilles looked at the magician carefully, "And I was the one who summoned the Jeanne. But she was not a Servant - my desire only supported her existence. I wanted to serve Jeanne - and the Grail did not let me die. Jeanne was called by me - and I did not allow her to plunge into the depths of madness. However, then, in that battle... Saber, that Gilles de Rais, attacked Jeanne."

"Nobody wanted to fight for Jeanne. Crazy tyrant, annihilator, whose goal is to bring pain and suffering to people," - Gilles covered his face with his hands, - "Who will fight for this? The fear of death was what made people and monsters obey her. Her madness destroyed the mind of her Servants, as rust destroys steel, penetrating into their essence. But I loved her. Loved her as a parent loves his crippled child. I served her, defended her, corrected her mistakes. I was the only one who did not refuse her - and Jeanne could no longer cling to anything in this world except me. But Saber took part in that battle. That one me that did not accept the new Jeanne, the one that did not find my despair and did not fall as low as me. But still he was me, the distant past of me. And Jeanne saw me in him."

"The Grail was created only for our suffering," Caster smiled weakly, "And Jeanne remembered everything. She remembered how I had not saved her from captivity, how I had betrayed her then. And now she saw my betrayal again. Betrayal from the only person who fought for her."

Gilles interrupted, and then slowly brought his hand to his heart.

"My body is getting weaker," he smiled, "I have so little left... Good..."

After that, Caster leaned back in his throne.

"In that battle, Jeanne lost control," Gilles sighed, "And I lost my connection with Jeanne. The Grail subdued her mind - and her insanity swept over her. Her pain turned her into a monster - into the monster which she was called. a Dragon Witch."

"You know what happened next, mage," Gilles sighed and his sigh came out a little hoarsely, due to his slowly collapsing lungs, "And Jeanne... She stopped her torment. She left this world."

"Maybe... Truly... This is my punishment and a lesson... About humility," - it became harder and harder for Caster to speak, - "I was... So afraid... To let Jeanne go... But the only way... To release her... From torment… Was... To allow her die... Again…"

Gilles coughed, feeling the visions in his eyes darkening.

"Tell me... Mage," Gilles looked at Ainz with a barely seeing gaze, "God... Is cruel... He does not forgive sins... And I will go down to hell again... But Jeanne... My compassionate Jeanne... Will she forgive me?"

Ainz continued to look at Caster, silently.

"I... I thought so..." Caster grinned sadly, "Then..."

"Yes," Ainz said calmly.

Ainz did not know if his answer was a lie or not. Ainz did not know if Jeanne could forgive Gilles for creating a monster with her name. Ainz did not know if the Witch could forgive Caster for the torment and pain she had suffered.

Ainz knew none of this. But…

"Yes," Ainz said firmly and confidently, "She will forgive you."

Gilles fell silent for a second, after which he grinned.

"If this... Had been said by the holiest of the Saints - Caster sighed intermittently, - "I would not have believed him... But if it… You... The Devil... Even if it is a lie... Then I will believe you…"

After this, Caster, Gilles de Rais, the cause of the First Singularity, the last opponent of Ainz Ooal Gown and Chaldeas, closed his eyes forever.

A second later, Ainz felt how slowly reality began to distort around him, and the crumbling Singularity unravel at the seams, after which he looked at the fallen Holy Grail goblet.

After that, Ainz looked up at the sky, watching a ripple ran through the sky, slowly beginning to distort, but the distant black sun in the sky continued to shine down with a gold rim.

There were many questions in his head. Much more than it was originally.

"Chaldea is in touch!" Came the chief's joyful voice.

"Get us out of here," Ainz said, continuing to stare at the slowly collapsing sky.

"Urgent evacuation?!" came Roman's voice nearby.

"No, we did everything that was necessary" - Ainz said this, after which he looked at Caster, whose body began to crumble to mana.

"Wow!" - Roman was surprised - "How so?! Have you killed all the Servants?! What about the Holy Grail?!"

"Roman, shut up!" - it was heard as the chef with his elbow pushed the guy away from the microphone - "One moment!"

Ainz felt his connection with Chaldea slowly growing stronger, after which he turned his gaze to Caster's body.

After a second, he took a step and picked up the Grail, which had previously been on the floor, after which he looked at the Grail.

The golden goblet continued to shimmer in the sun with glare. Ainz, glancing at the goblet, only put it in his inventory.

"Hello!" - Olga-Marie's joyful voice was heard right away, as soon as Ainz took a step a second after his transfer, "Welcome to Chaldea! Damn it, you quickly beat the Singularity!"

Ainz just nodded at this, after which he glanced at the Servant left behind.

Kiyohime was not a Servant of Ainz, so she could not return with them to Chaldea. Archer still had a slight limp. Cu Chulainn leaned on his staff. Mashu was holding on to her right side. Medusa only powerlessly took a step forward, almost tripping over her own legs.

All who remained.

All other Servants perished.

"That's less then we sent," - Olga-Marie immediately thought about the same fact, taking a look at Ainz and the remnants of his servants.

Ainz only nodded slowly.

"Apparently, we will have to re-summon them," Olga-Marie sighed. "It is good that the Servants called by Chaldea do not remain dead ."

Ainz blinked several times, straying even from his past thoughts, "What?"

"I say that they will have to be called back," Olga-Marie immediately glanced at the magician, "Otherwise the banquet table will look empty."

Ainz paused for a few seconds, waiting for what would happen next.

"Okay, let Roman do it for now," the chief immediately turned to the exit from the room, "Roman!"

"Yes, yes," the guy immediately leaned out of the aisle.

"Re-summon the dead Servants", - Olga-Marie immediately gave the order, and then turned to Ainz, - "But you…"

"I should change clothes and go to the shower," Ainz said immediately, after which, having waited for a confirmative nod in response, he went to his room.

Roman punched a few numbers he knew into the control panel, after which he glanced at the light slowly beginning to appear. After a second, several rings located in the central part of the machine twisted and a sharp flash of light blinded him for a second, causing the man to blink.

"I have come as bidden by the summons..." - a second later, however, the cold voice broke off, "I recognize this place..."

"Arthuria," Roman immediately smiled at the newly called-up Saber, "You are right on time!"

"Ah..." the girl immediately turned to the guy, "You... Roman?"

"That's right," Akkiman smiled at her. "Are the memories coming back?"

"Yes," Arthuria frowned, "I was summoned here... By Ainz... Then we went to Singularity... There were several battles... Lancelot... Marie Antoinette... And then I died... The Phantom of the Opera."

At this moment, suddenly Saber's hand twitched, as if from a spasm, but the girl immediately squeezed this hand with her second.

"Is everything all right?" Roman looked at Arthuria a little worried.

"Yes, everything is in order, I remembered everything," Arthuria only nodded. "Summon the others."

"Good," Roman nodded, after which he returned to the console.

Arthuria's hand twitched one more time, after which she squeezed it harder and took a step from the place of her call.

Ainz continued to look in the mirror, feeling how slowly, drops from the shower water flows down his hair.

The Dragon Witch brought a lot of suffering to people. Gilles de Rais was responsible for creating the Dragon Witch. On their hands was the blood of thousands, maybe even millions of people. Trying to defend them would be hypocritical.

However, this was the crux of the problem.

Ainz was a hypocrite.

Most people agree that people's lives are equal and valuable in and of themselves - therefore they do not allow themselves to kill, to commit genocide, or to terrorize people. However, if a choice is presented to a person - whether to let one random person whom they never met die, or the person they care about - their spouse, child, or parent - few would agonize over their choice.

Many people would not consider their choice hypocritical - but Ainz considered it to be just that. And considered himself to be a hypocrite.

Ainz considered himself a hypocrite, a real hypocrite, for whom the suffering of people on the other side of the earth is always insignificant compared to the fact that he poured coffee on himself today or crashed into a door at work, gaining a large bruise on his shoulder. For him, the suffering of one person before him was much more important than the suffering of hundreds in the distance.

So now he was looking in the mirror.

Dragon Witch. Defective Jeanne d'Arc.

A lonely and abandoned girl, locked inside her own mind and inside her own painful memories, each time forced to experience the worst moments in her life and the moment of her own execution, her own execution and betrayal. One abandoned person who was simply afraid to stay alone inside his own mind forever, alone with pain and loneliness.

Mad Caster of the Witch. Gilles de Rais.

A lonely man, forever deprived of the meaning of his life, in the pursuit of a miracle dooming himself, the one for which he made a wish, and thousands of people to suffer. Damned madman, that he simply wished to regain what he had lived his whole life for.

Ainz did not know.

If he knew that only one person was responsible for the closure of Yggdrasil, if he found out that if he died, Yggdrasil would survive, if he knew that with the death of this man his whole Ainz Ooal Gown would return to him... What would he do?

Ainz did not know.

Human life is valuable in itself. But people are hypocritical.

And Ainz was a hypocrite.

The Holy Grail.

Ainz recalled his first singularity, where he ended up with Mashu, Cu Chulainn, Olga-Marie. Where he first met Lev.

In that Singularity, everything that happened was the result of an outbreak of the Holy Grail War. War for the Holy Grail, a wish-fulfiller with unlimited power.

The change in ritual that has taken place and the many things that have happened have led to the Holy Grail War not happening correctly. But it still remained a war for the Holy Grail.

In the Holy Grail War, the rules are simple. Kill all Masters, kill all Servants, kill your Servant - and you will receive the promised Holy Grail.

Ainz did just that. He killed all the Servants. All Masters died without his participation. His Servant - Mashu - was not part of the summoning of the Holy Grail - therefore, her death was not needed in the end.

Ainz won that war.

And he took the prize.

Then Ainz took the Holy Grail for himself, not understanding what he wants to do with it. It was just a trophy, a well-deserved reward for the quest. Ainz took it with him, throwing it in his inventory as an honorary prize, and then forgot about it. Ainz collected a lot of data crystals at that time, in which he was much more interested in, and then discovered that he could call Servants with their help - and the Grail simply ceased to be necessary for him. He did not even think that the Grail could fulfill his wish.

Revive Ainz Ooal Gown.

Forty of his friends, true friends, his family. If he wished, the Grail would recreate them next to him. If he wished, he would return to his world. If he wished, the Grail would give him a world in which Yggdrasil never closed, his friends never left the game. Where his joy would be eternal.

However, now, looking at the Dragon Witch, at Gilles de Rais, at their words, Ainz did not know.

Ainz knew nothing.

If he wished to return to his world - what would he find there? An empty apartment, daily grinding work, a gray world - and death in the next forty years.

If he wanted an endless Yggdrasil - what would happen then? An endless game, perverted by the Grail, in which he was forced to watch forever as his friends from Ainz Ooal Gown, locked inside, try to escape from the captivity of the game. How they try to leave the game in order to return to their lives - to work, to friends, to families. He would have forever locked his friends in a game without a way out, looking at how slowly they burning from the inside.

If he wanted to bring his friends from Ainz Ooal Gown - what would he create? He remembered HeroHero, an old friend, always tired of his job and a guy suffering from many medical problems due to overwork. Would he recreate it? He would have received an eternally suffering person, slowly crumbling to pieces, experiencing suffering, and unable to die.

Ulbert? A lonely and embittered man without achievements in life - what would he get?A crazy maniac tormented by anger and unfulfilled ambitions, locked inside his own mind alone with its complexes and weaknesses?

Touch Me? Noble and merciful guardian of order and justice - what would happen then? A punitive and intolerant of other views, obsessed with the idea of establishing a "world order" and eradicating "evil" - and all that he considers evil?

Yamaiko? A level-headed and cheerful mother and teacher - what would have come out of her? A being incapable of making decisions, locked in the circle of observing the hatred that is happening in the world, endlessly mourning the evil done in this world?

The Grail does not fulfill wishes.

Ainz understood this.

The Grail does not fulfill wishes.

It was created only to make us suffer.

The words of Gilles de Rais floated in his mind.

The Grail does not fulfill wishes.

Ainz closed his eyes.

"Hey!" Someone tugged at his sleeve and Ainz opened his eyes to look at Olga-Marie sitting next to him.

Blinking several times, Ainz looked around.

He is sat at a huge table full of various dishes - delicacies, snacks, alcohol, fruits...

'I have never seen such a variety, except in Yggdrasil' - Ainz blinked again.

He was plunged into his thoughts so deeply that he missed everything. How he changed clothes, how he went down to the banquet, how he took his place at the head of the table...

Slowly Ainz looked at those at the table.

Archer - he looked better now. Apparently, he chose not to drink alcohol today - in his hand was a glass full of orange juice.

On his right sat Hassan. In his hand was a glass with a little wine - he did not want to drink, but did so out of politeness, as befits etiquette.

Cu Chulainn was sitting on his left - judging by the abundance of toothpicks, decency rules did not particularly concern him and he managed to fill himself with a dozen canapes, continuing to reach for a new one even now, while holding a wine glass filled to the brim with red wine.

Arthuria sat behind Cu Chulainn - also holding a wine glass on her outstretched hand, in which a little wine was poured - but apparently, unlike Hassan, she nevertheless decided to celebrate today's event.

Opposite to Saber, Medusa was sitting - she was also raising a glass, but Ainz could hardly make out what was poured into it - apparently, white wine, with just one sip worth of it.

Mashu was next to Medusa - apparently she also wanted to drink something alcoholic , but Roman didn't allow her, so now the girl was raising a glass full of grape juice.

Next to her was Roman himself - smiling, he also preferred this time to do without alcohol.

The closest one to Ainz and the chief was Serenity - carefully looking at Ainz, she tried not to touch anything on the table, just in case, so as not to poison the other Servants.

Ainz blinked, after which he looked at the chief sitting next to him.

Olga Marie carefully looked at him, raising a glass of white wine. Roman also tried to forbid her to drink today, but was sent away with his recommendations.

"Well, what are you waiting for?!" The chief could not wait, "Say something already!"

Ainz looked up.

He will not forgive himself if his friends from Ainz Ooal Gown are cursed because of his desires. He will not allow it.

So Ainz looked at himself and his glass of red wine, after which he lifted it into the air.

"For Chaldea."

Yggdrasil: (E-) (Case)

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