---
On the screen appeared a silver-haired man clad in the armor of an ancient Chinese general. Tall and well-built, his long silver hair was tied high behind him, giving him a handsome, elegant bearing steeped in Eastern tradition. His features leaned toward refined beauty, yet the chilling aura of slaughter emanating from him made it impossible for anyone to underestimate him.
Holding a silver spear, the silver-haired Heroic Spirit pointed it directly at the Saber who had appeared before him and smiled calmly.
"You've come at just the right time. I've spent the entire day wandering this remote, barbaric city, yet every hero who should have been renowned throughout history chose to hide like turtles in their shells. You're the only fierce warrior to answer my challenge... or perhaps you're like me, longing for a battle that can truly be fought to the heart's content?"
"What clear and noble magical energy. It seems you are indeed of the Saber class."
Staring at the screen, Kamiyā Yuu deliberately matched Zhao Yun's lip movements as he spoke with a confident chuckle. In truth, voice acting didn't require such precision. Even if his delivery didn't match the lip flaps perfectly, the audio department would later adjust the timing.
As soon as Kamiyā Yuu finished, Tōgi Yūko, standing beside him, also looked at the screen and replied in a heroic, resolute voice.
"Correct. And judging from your appearance... You must be Lancer?"
"My name is Zhao Yun. I was once a modestly renowned general during China's Three Kingdoms era. Never did I imagine I would one day take part in a war that transcends geography, time, and history itself. Let me see whether this Holy Grail War is even more exhilarating than the battles of the Three Kingdoms. State your name, Saber."
The animated Saber first looked surprised before glancing back at Irisviel with a frown. Seizing the timing, Tōgi Yūko voiced her regret with a regretful tone.
"You are an opponent worthy of respect. Were this a proper duel, I would naturally return your courtesy as a knight. But as you yourself have said, this is a war. To recklessly reveal one's name to the enemy and expose information that could determine the course of battle can only be called rash."
Saber's internal question was likewise voiced by Tōgi Yūko.
"Irisviel, although the Holy Grail has granted me considerable knowledge of the modern world, and I know of the nation called China... who exactly is Zhao Yun?"
Without needing to match Irisviel's lip movements, Amamiya Kae answered directly.
"As he said, he was a military general during China's Three Kingdoms period. Historical records describe him as an extraordinarily formidable warrior. He once fought his way in and out of an army numbering in the hundreds of thousands seven times to rescue his lord's son. Coupled with the weight of China's history and legends as a great Eastern nation, such an enemy has become far more powerful than one would expect."
Keeping his eyes fixed on the screen, Kamiyā Yuu took over Zhao Yun's lines through the microphone.
"I see. To me, that is simply proper etiquette on the battlefield. The victor's name should forever be remembered by the defeated. Come, Saber—let us enjoy this battle to the fullest!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Heroic Spirit Zhao Yun twirled his spear in a dazzling flourish. Overwhelming fighting spirit erupted from his body, and beneath his refined features, his confident gaze already seemed convinced of his own victory.
The Saber, dressed in a black suit, narrowed her eyes. Enormous magical power gathered around her, forming a raging blue storm. The faint glow of mana illuminated most of the deserted harbor. As the surging magical energy dispersed, standing before Heroic Spirit Zhao Yun was a valiant young woman clad in blue armor and wielding an invisible sword, utterly fearless despite the life-and-death battle about to begin.
At that moment, Amamiya Kae faced the third microphone and solemnly voiced,
"Please be careful, Saber. Even among Heroic Spirits, his parameters are highly abnormal. I can support you from behind with healing magecraft... but that is all I can do."
Without even glancing at her script, Tōgi Yūko answered seriously,
"I'll leave Lancer to myself. However, I'm more concerned that his Master isn't by his side. He may be employing some sort of strategy. Please pay close attention to anything unusual around us."
"Irisviel, I'm leaving my back to you."
Watching the screen, Amamiya Kae replied urgently yet carefully,
"I understand. Please bring us victory."
"Cut!"
Just after Amamiya Kae finished voicing Irisviel, Shindō Tsukasa's decisive voice came over the studio speakers.
"Your tone was a little too rushed. Please repeat that line."
Amamiya Kae smiled apologetically toward the other voice actors. The veteran seiyuu all understood the situation and responded with encouraging looks. Taking a deep breath to gather herself, she spoke into the microphone once more.
"I understand. Please bring us victory!"
"Okay. Continue."
...
"Thank you for your hard work, everyone."
"Thank you for your hard work."
With the recording complete, the male and female voice actors in the studio all bowed to one another.
Closing his script, Kamiyā Yuu noticed nearly every voice actor's gaze had gathered on him. Smiling, he said,
"I still have other matters to attend to, so I won't be staying any longer. I'll be relying on everyone's continued support for this anime."
The male voice actor portraying the "Princess" Waver Velvet respectfully replied,
"The honor is ours. It's a privilege to voice this anime."
"We look forward to your guidance as well, Director Kamiyā."
"Thank you for your hard work, Director Kamiyā."
Kamiyā Yuu nodded with a smile before leaving the recording studio. Although he had participated as the director, he had made no deliberate effort to blend into the group. Remaining any longer would only make everyone uncomfortable.
Not long after he left, a wave of gossip immediately swept through the studio.
The voice actress for Maiya Hisau in 'Fate/Zero' bowed toward Tōgi Yūko before asking curiously,
"Senpai Tōgi, that was Mr. Kamiyā Yuu, the director of 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica,' wasn't it? It's my first time seeing him in person! He feels so young. Well... even though he's young, he's composed and commanding. It feels like he's on a completely different level from us. His voice acting was amazing too—probably at a professional level, right?"
She then turned toward Amamiya Kae with a teasing snort.
"Kae, be honest. What's your relationship with Director Kamiyā? I remember you also voiced a role in 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica.'"
Having finished recording, Amamiya Kae stretched lazily before waving her hand helplessly.
"Eh? That was just a nameless passerby who couldn't even be considered a supporting character."
"But now you're already one of the main cast. Next time you'll probably become the heroine," Tōgi Yūko added with a smile.
"Eh...!"
The voice actress playing Maiya Hisau exaggerated her surprise.
"What were we talking about again?" Amamiya Kae asked blankly.
"Kae, did you watch the first episode of 'Fate/Zero' last night?"
Amamiya Kae shook her head.
"Shouldn't people already be asleep at that hour?"
"How sneaky! You appeared in the very first episode, yet you weren't excited at all? It's a late-night anime that almost broke ten percent ratings—and that's just the first episode!"
"I mean... even if you put it that way..."
The male voice actors weren't nearly as fond of gossip as the women. They quietly studied the scripts for the upcoming recording instead. More accurately, they simply couldn't fit into the women's social circle. Besides, the actors voicing the elderly priest Risei Kotomine and Kiritsugu Emiya were all famous veterans, and the difference in seniority made conversation among the male cast rather difficult.
...
Kamiyā Yuu arrived at another recording studio and opened the door.
"Shindō, when are we recording Episode Four?"
Hearing Kamiyā Yuu's voice, Shindō Tsukasa removed his headphones and pondered for a moment.
"The sound adjustments for Episode Three should be finished by the day after tomorrow. After that, you can decide on the schedule. You're busier than I am, but don't delay it for too long."
Leaning against the doorframe, Kamiyā Yuu thought for a moment.
"Then let's schedule it for the morning after that. If I can't make it, go ahead and record the voice actors first. If there's nothing else, I'll be heading back. The workload for Episode Six is already keeping me more than busy."
"That works. Oh, and one more thing—I never expected you to have the potential to become a voice actor, Kamiyā. Actually... I'd say you're a remarkably capable one."
Shindō Tsukasa laughed as he praised him.
When he had first heard that Kamiyā Yuu intended to voice one of the anime's characters himself, he had been extremely surprised. That surprise had gradually transformed into numb astonishment after witnessing Kamiyā Yuu's outstanding performance. His emotional expression was practically flawless.
Kamiyā Yuu was already highly accomplished in music, so being good at voice acting no longer seemed unbelievable. His clear, refreshing voice suited Zhao Yun perfectly. After an entire recording session, even when Shindō Tsukasa deliberately scrutinized his performance, he couldn't find a single flaw. He was far better than quite a few well-known male voice actors in the industry.
Closing the studio door, Kamiyā Yuu smiled.
"Thanks for the compliment."
Zhao Yun was a character he had personally created, making Kamiyā Yuu the person who understood Zhao Yun's characterization better than anyone else in the world. Combined with the assistance of his consciousness space, his powerful mind could easily reproduce the mentality Zhao Yun ought to possess. Every line he delivered came only after completely immersing himself in Zhao Yun's perspective within his mind before speaking it aloud.
What Kamiyā Yuu possessed was, in fact, one of the two talents every voice actor dreamed of having—a powerful ability to immerse oneself in a character.
The second was a unique and captivating voice.
A strong sense of character immersion allowed a voice actor to accurately grasp a character's identity and easily replicate the emotions behind their dialogue. As long as the voice itself suited the role, actors with exceptional immersion rarely delivered poor performances.
Such immersion could also be cultivated through training. Experienced voice actors constantly consider every line from the character's point of view, gradually strengthening their ability to become the role.
...
After returning to Yosuganosora Animation Studio, Kamiyā Yuu buried himself in drawing the key animation storyboards for Episode Six.
The studio had now encountered one of the situations every animation company dreaded: the production speed had become bottlenecked by the director personally drawing the key animation storyboards.
Although Kamiyā Yuu had already planned everything as carefully as possible, the schedule remained stretched to its absolute limit, leaving many people secretly sweating with anxiety.
The storyboards for 'Fate/Zero' were exceptionally complicated. A major reason was the battles between Heroic Spirits, which required large amounts of high-frame-count animation to achieve fluid action.
More high-frame animation meant more production work.
Kamiyā Yuu was personally responsible for designing every combat movement and drawing all the action storyboards. Fortunately, starting from Episode Four, the production pace slowed somewhat, giving him sufficient preparation time.
"Storyboards, novels, voice acting... my life as an anime director really is colorful."
Kamiyā Yuu laughed at himself while continuing to draw.
Although work kept him extremely busy, everything was still barely within his control. Otherwise, he never would have ventured into the voice recording himself.
"Come to think of it... I still haven't checked the detailed results after the first episode of 'Fate/Zero' aired."
After thinking it over, Kamiyā Yuu put down his animation pencil and switched on the computer in his office.
Seeing audiences praise the works he had recreated had become one of his indispensable ways to relax. He wondered what kind of impression the anime from his previous world had left on viewers in this one.
After visiting several well-known anime discussion websites in Japan, he received exactly the answer he had hoped for.
Just as expected, the first episode had been met with overwhelming praise. The two-million-character side-story novel had clearly not been written in vain.
Another major topic of discussion was the scene where the Heroic Spirits made their entrances, which astonished anime fans around the world.
One famous anime website had even conducted a special investigation into the languages spoken by the Heroic Spirits during their summoning scenes. They confirmed the use of Old English for England, Ancient Greek, and an as-yet-unverified language supposedly belonging to ancient Sumerian mythology. Their analysis became a trending thread that sparked countless replies.
[Are the foreign languages spoken by the Heroic Spirits in 'Fate/Zero' real, or are they just made up? Views: 602,938, Replies: 52,718]
"Such conscientious production! From now on, animation studios are going to need a brand-new profession: linguists! — Ama-no-Murakumo"
"Is this the animated version of 'The Lord of the Rings'? Every verifiable language turned out to be accurate. Now, can someone explain whether the language the King of Heroes spoke is actually Sumerian? — Anonymous"
"So it's not Japanese-style nonsense? — Anonymous"
"The voice actors are monsters, and now even the animation staff have become monsters. — Sakai-san"
"I showed Gilgamesh's lines to the linguistics professor at my university. It took him an entire week before he finally gave me an answer... — Sakurahana"
...
Kamiyā Yuu also briefly browsed audience reviews on the overseas 'Fakebook' website.
To his surprise, 'Fate/Zero' had achieved an unexpectedly perfect start. The first episode earned a comprehensive media score of 97, one point higher than the final score of 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica.'
Although 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica's' rating had naturally dropped somewhat after its conclusion due to the large influx of user reviews, for an anime from Japan to debut with a score of '97' was virtually unprecedented. Even among major Western animated productions over the past five years, none had achieved such a result.
Much of that success came from the freshness of 'Fate/Zero's' premise.
The Arthurian legend was one of the world's most famous classic myths, and the setting of "King Arthur couldn't possibly be a girl" left many Western viewers astonished.
After that, the most discussed topics became the individual Heroic Spirits and the many different languages they spoke during their introductions. This painstaking attention to detail earned widespread recognition from audiences across Europe and America.