The Case Files of Lord El-Melloi II - Fate

The Files of Lord El-Melloi II

Preview

The Files of Lord El-Melloi II is a light novel series set in the vast Destiny universe written by Makoto Sanda and illustrated by Mineji Sakamoto. The series is published by Type-Moon Books and has also received several adaptations, including a manga by Makoto Sanda with illustrations by To Azuma, an anime produced by Troyca that adapts the chapter "Rail Zeppelin," and a stage play based on the chapter "Adra Castle Separation."

Plot

The Files of Lord El-Melloi II takes place in the United Kingdom and is located in a parallel world to the world of Fate/Stay Night , which also shares similarities with the world of Fate/Zero. The series follows Waver Velvet, a participant in the Fourth Holy Grail War who now goes by the name Lord El-Melloi II, who is in charge of the Modern Magic Department at the Clock Tower. Along with his apprentice Gray, he investigates and solves mysteries related to thaumaturgy and hidden conspiracies within the Mages' Association.

Development

The Files of Lord El-Melloi II is written by Makoto Sanda and illustrated by Mineji Sakamoto. The series began as a story for Type-Moon Fest in July 2012, which series creator Kinoko Nasu asked Makoto to write. The series would later be published by Type-Moon Books, with the first volume released at Comiket 87 on December 30, 2014. The series consists of 10 novels in total, with the final novel released on May 17, 2019.

A sequel to the novel titled The Adventures of Lord El-Melloi II was also announced in December 2019. The novel is scheduled for release in late 2020.

Characters

Lord El-Melloi II (Voiced by: Daisuke Namikawa)
Formerly Waver Velvet, Lord El-Melloi II took the name El-Melloi after the death of the first Lord El-Melloi during the events of Fate/Zero in order to help the true heir of the family, Reines El-Melloi Archisorte, restore the family name until she was old enough to take over. He is one of the 12 Lords of the Clock Tower and is a professor in the Department of Modern Magic.

Gray (Voiced by: Reina Ueda)
Gray, the apprentice of Lord El-Melloi II, originally lived as a villager, but it was revealed that she was altered at birth to become the vessel for the second coming of Artoria Pendragon. As a result, her features change to resemble Artoria's, so she must keep her face hidden to avoid revealing her true identity.

Add (Voice of: Daisuke Ono)
Add is Gray's mystical code, passed down through his family. It takes the form of a cube to hide its true form: the sacred spear Rhongomyniad. It can transform into a scythe so Gray can use it in combat.

Archisort Queens El-Melloi (Voice of: Inori Minase)
The true heir to the El-Melloi family, she asks Waver Velvet to take the El-Melloi name and lead the family in her place until she is old and experienced enough to take over. Her mystic code is called Trimmau and also serves as her handmaiden.

Flat Snails (Voiced by: Yoshitsugu Matsuoka)
A brilliant and gifted student of Lord El-Melloi II. Although a genius in magic, he is considered a problem child at the Clock Tower. He has a carefree and affable personality.

Svin Glass (Voiced by: Seiichiro Yamashita)
Svin, one of Lord El-Melloi II's best students, shares first place in the class with Flat. He specializes in beast magic, which Flat mocks by calling him The Hound.

Caules Forvedge (Voiced by: Yusuke Kobayashi)
Caules, one of Lord El-Melloi II's students, is the head of the Forvedge family and was recently transferred to the Clock Tower.

Melvin Weins (Voiced by: Daisuke Hirakawa)
Melvin is an old friend of Lord El-Melloi II and teaches at the Clock Tower in the Department of Creation. He helped finance Waver's trip to Japan to participate in the Fourth Holy Grail War and is also renowned for his ability to adjust magical emblems.

Doctor Heartless (Voiced by: Jun Fukuyama)
Formerly head of the Modern Magical Theory Department at the Clock Tower, Doctor Heartless is Faker's master and is named "Heartless" after his heart was stolen by fairies.

Forger (Voiced by: Yo Taichi)
Doctor Heartless's servant, Faker, was summoned as Hephaestion, but his true identity is his twin sister, the Shadow of Iskandar.

Other media

Manga
The series received a manga adaptation written by Makoto Sanda and illustrated by To Azuma. It began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten's Jeune Ace magazine on October 4, 2017. Five collected tankobon volumes have been published to date, and the manga is currently being serialized.

Anime
An anime adaptation of the series was first announced during the 2019 Fate Project television special. Titled Files of Lord El-Melloi II: Rail Zeppelin Grace Note , the anime adapts the "Rail Zeppelin" chapter of the light novel. The anime is produced by Troyca and directed by Makoto Kato with series composition by Ukyo Kodachi, character designs by Jun Nakai, and music by Yuki Kajiura. The anime aired in Japan on Tokyo MX and other channels from July 6 to September 28, 2019. The anime has been licensed internationally by Aniplex of America, Crunchyroll, Funimation, and AnimeLab. The anime ran for 14 episodes.

Play
A stage play adapting the "Separation of Adra Castle" chapter of the original work was released in Japan in January 2020. The play features voice actors from the anime cast reprising their roles, including Daisuke Ono as Add and Takumi Yamazaki as Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald.