Full title: "5.5 - Naraka Mandala, Heian-kyo [Thunderous Flash]".
After Chaldea returns from the Atlantic Lostbelt, a Singularity in AD 1008 that heralds the end of mankind, an impossibility in a world where the Earth has been blanked and human history does not exist anymore, is suddenly discovered. After Rayshifting, they find the once beautiful capital city of Heian Japan has been transformed into a realm of evil spirits, and the Emperor is hosting a twisted copy of the Holy Grail War in which warriors hunt the heads of Heroic Spirits.
What is the purpose of this ritual, and what does it have to do with the rogue disciple of the Foreign God, Ashiya Douman, who fled here after the destruction of the Atlantic Lostbelt? Who are these warriors chosen by the Emperor? Who will stand up to the land that has fallen into darkness? The Beautiful Carnivore's final scheme is about to unfold.
This episode serves as episode 5.5, serving as an interquel between Olympus and Avalon le Fae.
Watch the trailer here
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Tropes in this episode
- All for Nothing: This Singularity/Lostbelt pretty much sums up all of Ashiya Douman's efforts as this. He willingly sided with U-Olga Marie in her desire to erase Proper Human History and replace it, which condemned countless to erasure, and gleefully took part in or masterminded the torment and slaughter of countless more innocents and Heroic Spirits across time and space himself, all in the hopes of gaining the power necessary to prove himself better than his hated rival Abe-no-Seimei once and for all. And yet in the end, Seimei doesn't even bother to physically show up despite Douman becoming as powerful as he ever has been, simply trusting to Chaldea to deal with him and only providing indirect support in the form of advice and a few boons. Douman fails in his plan to become a Beast, and doesn't even get the satisfaction of destroying those whom Seimei put his faith into, ultimately proving that yes, he is still behind his rival after all this time.
- Bond Villain Stupidity: Douman saves Chaldea from Ibuki because he wants them to see him achieve Beasthood from the front row seats. His plan inevitably fails, and Chaldea is now in the best position to kick his ass.
- Botanical Abomination: Pseudo/Subspecies Trees of Emptiness Naraka Mandala and its predecessor Onriedo Castle are noted to be distinct from the regular seven. Rather than being a creation of the Foreign God, these two are artificial copies created by Douman with an enormous amount of mana, the souls of Heroic Spirits, and many humans, which is why the two have such different appearances. When the citizens of Heian-Kyo gaze up at Naraka Mandala, they are overwhelmed with terror.
- Breather Episode: After the drama of the previous Lostbelts, this chapter, while challenging in its own right, is a lighter story than previous ones. Hell, the singularity isn't even wiped out, rather, it seems like an Alternate Universe where the protagonist helped out a bit.
- Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: Ashiya Douman's downfall in the episode is his constantly screwing over his own allies and minions to gather power, absorbing Ibuki while weakened and betraying the Emperor's Minister of the Left. In the end, he's all alone, and his rival Abe-no-Seimei never even shows up to stop him.
- Climax Boss: Ibuki-Douji serves as the episode's Grand Battle, with her defeat triggering the last phase of the chapter.
- Crapsack World: It's a Singularity/Lostbelt hybrid world created by Ashiya Douman; a twisted version of Heian period Japan plagued with evil spirits, in which the Emperor's Minster of the Left is hosting a twisted copy of the Holy Grail War in which warriors hunt the heads of Heroic Spirits.
- Crazy-Prepared:
- When the Imperial Holy Grail War becomes called off by the Minister of the Left after Kintoki and the protagonist successfully convince Raikou and the Genji to oppose it, despite only four of the seven Casters being slain, Douman proceeds to Plan B: Subdue the Minister and summon the Pseudo-Tree of Emptiness Naraka Mandala right now before bringing forth his new sacrifices in the eight corrupted Heroic Spirits bearing the names of the Hasshoujin.
- When four of said Hasshoujin end up defeated by the heroes, the captive Minister mocks Douman for how his plan even now is going off the rails. Douman acknowledges the difficulty, but then reveals the Plan C: Using himself and two of the Divine Spirits he long ago devoured to attain High Servant status as the remaining sacrifices to make Naraka Mandala bloom properly.
- A Day in the Limelight:
- Kintoki is made the hero of the story, appearing early and quickly joins for most of the story.
- Ashiya Douman by contrast is the villain, as the chapter explores his past and why he's such a sadistic monster and became Abe-no-Seimei's rival.
- Double-Meaning Title: Section 11 and 12 are titled "Genji Killer". The Ambiguous Syntax of it would make it seem like it is about either someone who murders Minamoto Clan members or a killer who works for the Minamoto Clan. The two chapters are about Taira no Kagekiyo, who has an unending hatred towards the Genji and possesses Minamoto no Yoshitsune, who served her brother with utmost loyalty until he decided to betray her.
- Entertainingly Wrong:
- Chaldea notices that the Foreign God has left the Atlantic Lostbelt to stay in the South American Lostbelt and has not moved since. Ergo, it's safe to assume she must be staying there because she's recovering from Wodime's last attack as otherwise she would have launched another attack to finish Chaldea once and for all. Of course, Kotomine stated in the denouement of Olympus that she is perfectly unharmed, and is in South America to steal the body of the Ultimate One of the Oort Cloud for even more power.
- When Watanabe no Tsuna first encounters the protagonist and Danzo, he thought that they were participants of the Imperial Holy Grail War like himself and Medea Lily. Specifically, he assumes that Danzo is the Master and the protagonist is the foreign Caster servant, due to the latter's unusual clothing. He is surprised to discover that the protagonist is the Master and Danzo is an Assassin servant.
- The cast regularly confuses the protagonist for Kintoki's Caster, to their quick denial.
- Epic Fail: Oh, Douman. You almost feel sorry for how he fumbles his master plan three times in a row.
- The first failure: He seeks to gain the power to ascend to Beasthood so that he can challenge Abe-no-Seimei. While this is certainly a threat, it's not enough of a threat to actually make Seimei do anything but provide indirect help the Protagonist. Incensed, Douman looks like he's going to pull off the transformation with no one able to stop him...
- The second failure: ...but then Douman's transformation just fizzles out without ceremony. The Protagonist points out that Douman forgot the defining nature of a Beast: that they both hate and love humanity, and he lacks the latter. That's why Seimei didn't see fit to directly stop Douman from becoming a Beast: he could never become a Beast from the start. Douman is so dumbfounded at his own oversight that the he spends several text boxes lamenting his stupidity.
- The third failure: Humiliated and angered, Douman basically throws the tattered remains of his plan at the Protagonist in an attempt to kill them, hoping to salvage something from this mess. He doesn't even get the dignity of a last request as the Protagonist and all the people he wronged in the Singularity soundly defeat him once and for all.
- Every Episode Ending: Subverted, since this isn't a proper singularity or a Lostbelt. The finish card for Naraka Mandala is a Kintoki-esque 'Golden Finish' rather than the usual 'Foundation Restored' or 'Cosmos Denial'.
- Final Boss: It's the Tree of Emptiness Naraka Mandala fused with Ashiya Douman himself, with your party getting support via Kintoki's Humongous Mecha.
- The Force Is Strong with This One: When Ibuki-Douji exerts pressure to make everyone bow to her, the protagonist notes it has an imposing presence on par with Lostbelt Zeus. Danzo notes beforehand that Chaldea considers her to be on par with the Olympians of the Atlantic Lostbelt.
- Foreshadowing: Holmes and Da Vinci talk in the prologue about how they've already found a weapon that could hurt the Foreign God. Actually procuring it though is another matter entirely.
- Humongous Mecha: Kintoki's Golden Bear makes a return, and is hinted to originate from Greece.
- Hunting the Most Dangerous Game: This twisted Holy Grail War has corrupted warriors similar to the Seven Heroic Spirit Swordmasters hunt down other Heroic Spirits to fuel Ashiya Douman's plan of challenging Abe-no-Seimei.
- Irony: A situational kind, as Douman deliberately pitches his version of the Holy Grail War to Fujiwara no Michinaga as having seven Japanese warriors in command of seven Western mage Servants who'll sacrifice themselves to empower the Grail as an off-kilter version of normal Holy Grail Wars where mages are the ones in command.
- Last Villain Stand: The entire chapter is Ashiya Douman's last plan. With the Crypters' defunct, the notion of the Lostbelt completion brushed aside, and Ashiya Out of Continues, it's the Alter Ego's last plan to wipe everything out, having created a blood-soaked realm similar to Shimousa to fuel his Tree of Emptiness and challenge his rival, Abe-no-Seimei.
- Light Is Not Good: When Ashiya's Tree of Emptiness begins to bloom, an otherworldly light shines across the entire world like the event horizon of a black hole as weird ash/snow and Seeds of Emptiness fall.
- Meaningful Name: Turns out that Naraka Mandala didn't just refer to the Lostbelt that chapter takes place in; it's also the name of his Subspecies Tree of Emptiness.
- Not as You Know Them: Most of the cast features living counterparts to Servants the protagonists have already met such as Kintoki, Shuten, Murasaki, and Sei Shōnagon. As a consequence, they err on being more even-tempered and inhibited than the phantoms created by the Throne of Heroes. Raikou in particular is a stern yet warm commander for the Genji whose motherly doting towards Kintoki is never depicted as anything but wholesome, a shocking contrast to her Berserker and Lancer selves who have been warped by Madness Enhancement.
- Not Quite Dead: The living Douman is revealed to have survived Limbo's possession, and after the events of the chapter, fearful that he'll become like his Servant self, tries to kill himself until he's saved by Abe-no-Seimei.
- Off Screen Moment Of Awesome: The other two members of Raikou's Four Heavenly Kings, Urabe Suetake and Usui Sadamitsu, became Masters as well, but were defeated before Chaldea arrived by Watanabe and Medea Lily.
- Opt Out: Neither Murasaki nor Raikou have any desire in actually participating in the false Holy Grail War and did everything in their power to avoid fighting before Chaldea arrived, with the former concealing her status as a Master and her Servant Babbage honoring her wishes while the latter holed up inside of her home with Nursery Rhyme taking the form of a young Japanese girl to hide her Servant identity.
- Quirky Miniboss Squad: To help in his goal, Ashiya has corrupted several Heroic Spirits into existences very much like the Seven Heroic Spirit Swordmasters of Shimousa. Among their numbers are Suzuka Gozen, Tawara Touta, and an Avenger version of Ushiwakamaru who is actually Taira no Kagekiyo possessing her corpse.
- The Reveal:
- The blanking of the Earth started at Area 51, directly tying Subject E to the Foreign God's invasion.
- Ashiya's reason for why he did everything is revealed; he sought power to surpass his life-long rival Abe-no-Seimei, and as such, willingly sided with the Foreign God in her desire to erase Proper Human History and replace it, which condemned countless to erasure, and gleefully took part in or masterminded the torment and slaughter of countless more innocents and Heroic Spirits across time and space himself, hoping to become a Beast by using his own Pseudo Tree of Emptiness Naraka Mandala and the power of Ibuki-Douji.
- The black dot in between the buttons for Olympus and the 6th Lostbelt is merely a placeholder for this chapter. With its release, the dot becomes a full button itself. Also, the button turns to dust upon completion (Free Quests relating to this chapter are still available from the Main Interlude menu, however).
- The 6th Lostbelt's full title is revealed: Fairy Realm of the Round Table, Avalon le Fae.
- Russian Reversal: In a standard Holy Grail War, magi summon Servants that they empower to fight their battles. In Douman's version of it, warriors summon Caster Servants who use their magic to empower their Masters for their battles.
- "Shaggy Dog" Story: Ashiya Douman worked tirelessly across several time periods to amass great power to defeat Abe-no-Seimei once and for all. Abe-no-Seimei, while still alive in Heian-kyo is busy somewhere else, and in spite of Douman's efforts, he doesn't even bother to show up to stop him, and instead remotely sends out advice and a few boons Chaldea's way because he's confident they can handle his one-time foe.
- Status Quo Is God: Once Ashiya Douman is defeated, the Singularity is returned to normal and everyone from it forgets what happened eventually. This includes the still living Douman, troubled by his future self's villainy, being convinced to live on by Seimei, and slowly succumbing to his envy towards him...
- Stealth Sequel: To Shimousa. The information gathered through the journey in the Lostbelts providing new context causes Holmes to change Shimousa's designation from Pseudo Parallel World to Pseudo Lostbelt and Onriedo is labelled a Pseudo/Subspecies Tree of Emptiness in turn. Ashiya Douman returns as the main antagonist and repeats his schemes with Curse of Annihilation and sacrificing Heroic Spirits to create a second Onriedo Castle, now called Naraka Mandala.
- Surveillance as the Plot Demands: Abe-no-Seimei's Bounded Field lets him know everything of relevance in Heian-Kyo. Everything. The protagonist compares his ability to that of Lostbelt Zeus, who could listen to all ten million citizens of Olympus at once.
- Takes One to Kill One: When Ibuki-Douji arrives and goes on the attack, the only reason the heroes are even able to stand up to her is because of the presence of Shuten-Douji, as they're both each other's Alternate Self, which allows Shuten to help counteract her crushing aura as well as pierce her defenses.
- Talking Is a Free Action: Subverted twice.
- The fact that a Servants Noble Phantasm must include an activation chant even if the ability didn't require one while they were alive is vital to the defeat of a possessed Tawara and Suzuka, as stopping to channel their Noble Phantasm provides a critical moment of vulnerability.
- Seeing he's about to lose the final battle, Douman tries pulling an I Surrender, Suckers on the Protagonist by bartering information regarding his fellow Apostles of the Foreign God. Fortunately the Protagonist doesn't fall for it and has Danzo finish him off mid-rant, and though Holmes laments the missed opportunity for information, it's pointed out that Douman's track record would make any words out of his mouth untrustworthy.
- Thematic Theme Tune: "The Golden Path" is a very concise summation of Kintoki's character arc in this story, as he overcomes his doubts to embrace the path of being a hero for the people of Japan.
- The Time of Myths: The Texture of Heian Japan is compared to the isle of Britain, a land where Mystery is still prominent, which would make it something approaching the Age of Gods if not a remaining holdout. To put it another way, this is a place and time where the normal power dynamics of a Holy Grail War are reversed, with seven diverse and superpowered Masters being supported by seven fairly weak Caster Servants.
- The Unreveal: Kintoki never finds out who his Caster is, or if he even has one at all. He just decides the protagonist is his Servant based on his personal feelings.
I stopped my sword.
I finished the blood battle without taking that head. The morning sun stings my wound awfully.
This pain will continue on for eternity, and I have to bear with it.
Because it is the way of life of men who chose to live in a world where Oni exists—
I finished the blood battle without taking that head. The morning sun stings my wound awfully.
This pain will continue on for eternity, and I have to bear with it.
Because it is the way of life of men who chose to live in a world where Oni exists—
(From "And Finally, At Mount Ōe")
