Abnormality In Type-Moon: Madness Of Animeverse

The Aozaki residence had a basement.

It was a forbidden place, serving as the Aozaki family's magical workshop. Unless Aoko allowed it, neither Utaha Kasumigaoka nor Ai Hayasaka were permitted to enter. When Touko was away, only Roy had access to it.

The basement stored an array of magical items, including stacks of grimoires, enchanted tools Roy had crafted, rune papers, and other mystical objects that littered every corner of the room.

This was where Roy regularly practiced his magic.

The room was pitch-black, with no trace of sunlight. The only illumination came from a few dim wall lamps, their dull glow lending the place an air of an ancient crypt, barely illuminating the surroundings.

Upon closer inspection, several bodies lay scattered across the floor.

Their limbs and torsos looked unmistakably human, every detail exactly as it should be—except for the faces, which were blank, like the featureless masks of puppets, sending chills down one's spine.

The atmosphere was so eerie that anyone with a weaker resolve might have fainted on the spot.

And it wasn't just one body. The basement was littered with them, each sprawled out under the dim lights, giving the space a haunting, morgue-like stillness.

Touko Aozaki opened the door to the basement.

Without a second glance at the ominous scene, she stepped inside, scanning the corpses strewn across the floor. Selecting one, she leaned down and detached an arm from the lifeless body.

A moment later, she returned to the mansion's living room, carrying the severed limb.

It was the dead of night, yet everyone in the house was gathered here, faces painted with unease.

And for good reason.

Roy, the heart of the household, sat at the table with his right arm severed clean from the shoulder. The smooth stump showed his exposed muscle fibers and marrow, a sight that would make anyone wince.

Even Hayasaka looked pale. The Nakano sisters were so shaken that they couldn't speak. Only Illya remained expressionless.

Utaha sat beside Roy, her hands trembling as she carefully applied medicine to the gaping wound.

"This is from one of your backup bodies," Touko said, placing the severed arm on the table.

She gestured for Utaha to step aside so she could take over the procedure.

"It should be an exact fit. The muscle fibers in this arm are more refined than your original right arm, so you might need some time to adjust to the extra strength."

Touko began the transplant operation on the spot.

"If anyone's feeling squeamish, now's the time to leave."

Ichika Nakano shot a glance at Miku, who was visibly trembling, and helped her out of the room.

Hayasaka headed to the kitchen, leaving only Utaha and Illya to stay behind.

"Master, do you have a moment to talk?"

"Taigong Wang? What is it?"

Through a mental link, Taigong Wang addressed Roy directly.

"Miss Touko mentioned your backup bodies—are they a failsafe for you? Even if you died out there, could you revive using a spare?"

"No, that's a skill only Touko can use, not applicable to anyone else. The backup body she prepared for me was meant to be swapped in after the Holy Grail War."

"I see."

Taigong Wang's voice fell silent for a moment. But it wasn't the end of the conversation; it was more as though he was carefully considering his next words.

"Today's battle was quite a success in the end. We took down several Servants."

"But that's only looking at the results. You were fortunate. The Magician returned unexpectedly, forcing King Arthur to retreat. If she hadn't come back and you couldn't rely on a backup body, what choice would you have made?"

"Master, I'll be direct—you embody a great contradiction."

"In you, there is both love and hatred for humanity. I suspect you're aware of this contradiction yourself, which is why you use those glasses to divide these sides of yourself. When you wear them, you're exceptionally civil, as if you've gathered all your goodwill into that version of you. When you take them off, it's as though all your malice surfaces, clouding your view of everyone around you. My guess isn't wrong, is it?"

"…No, you're right."

Roy admitted Taigong Wang's observation in silence.

With the glasses on, Roy was almost too easygoing.

Even facing magi he despised, he could greet them with a sincere smile.

Without the glasses, however, a corrosive malice filled his heart, and he could barely stop himself from feeling a murderous impulse toward anyone.

Perhaps part of this was due to the curses building within him over the past three years without release. But at its core, it stemmed from a dark desire for destruction lurking in the depths of his heart.

"When you faced Chiyoemon, you took off your glasses. In that state, you should have been completely unrestrained, yet Miss Tohsaka managed to calm you down and make you put them back on. Have you noticed this conflict?"

"…"

"Master, good and evil are two sides of the same coin. Both are facets of human emotion and cannot be completely separated. The opposing forces within you—much like a spiral—are the very essence of human nature."

"The fact that you allowed Miss Tohsaka to guide you, and even hesitated tonight over her safety, shows that you haven't fully split your two sides. And I must say, that is a great relief to me. It means you're aware of your contradiction. If you had become like a machine, driven only by the roles of the glasses, embracing sin with them on and harboring no qualms about killing loved ones without them, I would have pitied your fate and left it at that."

There was a tone of profound relief in Taigong Wang's voice.

He genuinely worried about Roy's state of mind.

And for good reason. This world of magi was filled with people who wore the shells of humanity, yet whose spirits had long since become monstrous.

Taigong Wang admired Roy's noble aspirations and was deeply averse to seeing him become a mental abomination.

"My purpose in saying all this is simple."

"If you're brave enough to risk your life for your ideals, perhaps you could also have the courage to evolve—to become a person who doesn't need to sever good and evil but can instead unify them."

"When this Holy Grail War ends, if you're still alive, that will only be the first step toward your dream. By then, you'll need help from many. If you remain as you are, you'll only drive those closest to you further away."

"So, after all that, are you saying I should have let you take Tohsaka and me out of there together?"

"Hahaha, I'd be inclined toward that option, yes!"

Taigong Wang's hearty laugh filled the mental link.

"Come on, if you'd died, it'd be up to me to realize your dream, and I can't even guarantee I'd succeed. Plus, that would be an immense bother for me, you know? It could easily cost me hundreds or even thousands of years of effort!"

Roy was left speechless.

So you were just worried about the hassle!

"Thanks, though. What you said makes a lot of sense. I'll give it some thought."

"I'm glad if it's given you some insight."

Taigong Wang let out a subtle sigh of relief.

Inwardly, he nodded, feeling deeply reassured.

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