Kariya Matou

Matou Kariya (間桐雁夜) is the Master of a Berserker class servant in the 4th Holy Grail War.

Appearance
Kariya is in his late 30's with darker brown hair,brown eyes, and tan complexion. He wears purple zipper jacket underneath is black turtleneck shirt, black pants, and navy shoes.

When he is implanted with Crests Worm into his body, Kariya's hair is white and the left side of his face dead with many other complications and leaving his left eye blank dark grey blue.

Personality
Kariya was peaceful. kind, caring, and understanding towards Aoi's children as well Tokiomi and accepted their engagement because she was happy even though he loves Aoi. After finding out about Tokiomi's decision to give Sakura to Zōken, Kariya was deteremned to save Sakura and had Crest Worms implanted on him in order to join the Holy Grail war and free Sakura. A whole year of excruciating pain made Kariya a cruel, and bitter person. He now harbors a deep hatred toward Tohsaka Tokiomi.

History
Matou Kariya is the uncle of Matou Shinji, though he has actually severed ties with the Matou family for about ten years out of disgust. Disappointed with the lack of sorceric potential in Shinji and his father, Byakuya, Zōken blames Kariya for allowing the Matō's magical lineage decline since Kariya is the first in many generations to be naturally capable of sorcery.

While he loved his childhood friend Zenjou Aoi, he peacefully gives up trying to pursue her affections because she seemed to be happy accepting her engagement to Tohsaka Tokiomi. Aoi would later have two daughters, Rin and Sakura, who both came to like Kariya a great deal.

Servant
Kariya's servant is a Berserker-class servant whose identity is known simply as the Black Knight (later believed to be one of the Knights of the Round Table, Lancelot.)

The black armoured knight appears to have a Noble Phantasm that allows him to use any weapon (even objects like telephone poles or the Noble Phantasms of other Epic Spirits) as his own Noble Phantasm, which gives him the power to defend himself against Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon and hold his own against Saber. However, this Noble Phantasm demands a higher level of mana from Kariya in order to materialize (several times higher than other Servants) and tends to be difficult to control because the Black Knight's presence is unstable as a result of Kariya's weakening body and the higher amount of mana required to materialize Berserker-class servants.

Role
One year before the Fourth War, Kariya discovered that Sakura, who possessed a greater potential to become a strong magus than Kariya and his brother Byakuya, had been handed over to the Matou family. Because Magi families traditionally raised only one child as an heir, Tokiomi had agreed to Zouken's request for his youngest daughter, supposedly for the intention of reviving the Matou family's stagnant bloodline.

Enraged at Tokiomi's treatment of his daughter and the grief that it caused Aoi, Kariya made a deal with Zouken: Kariya would participate in the 4th Holy Grail War and win the Holy Grail, which he knew to be Zouken's primary goal. In exchange, Sakura would be allowed to return to her family. However, because Kariya lacked any formal training as a Mage, Zouken insisted on implanting numerous Crest Worms into his body. The worms would literally eat away at their host, causing Kariya's health to progressively fail, in return for significantly expanding his magic circuits and magical potential. By the time of his summoning of a Servant, Kariya's hair is white and the left side of his face dead with many other complications. However, despite the Crest Worms and his own accelerated training, Kariya remained severely lacking as a Magus. At Zouken's behest, he compensated for this by summoning the most powerful of the seven Servant classes - the Servant of Mad Enhancement, Berserker.

During their first two battles, Kariya's hatred for Tohsaka Tokiomi leads to his focusing solely on dispatching Tokiomi's Servant, Archer. Both attempts end in failure, due largely in part to Berserker's obsession with Saber leading him to engage her against his Master's orders. Berserker is struck down from behind by Rider in the first instance, and Archer in the second. Kariya's attempt to engage Tokiomi directly also ends badly, when the former is thoroughly out-classed and left for dead. His problems are further compounded by his failing health and excruciating pain, due to the high mana requirement of manifesting a Berserker-class Servant.

Following the defeat of the rogue Caster, Kariya is approached by Kotomine Kirei. In return for kidnapping Irisviel von Einzbern using Berserker in the guise of Rider, he is promised victory and the Holy Grail. Kotomine's promise amuses Zouken, who sees through the priest's deceptions and reveals that he had never expected Kariya to win the War in the first place.

Kariya confronts Tohsaka Tokiomi, only to find him already dead, seconds before Aoi walks in on him. She misinterprets the situation, and in her grief blames him and the Matou family for taking away both Sakura and her husband. She accuses Kariya of never having loved anyone, completely oblivious to how he had always loved her. This breaks Kariya's heart and his resolve, causing him to blindly lash out and throttle her. It is later revealed that the entire event had been orchestrated by Kirei, whose sole intent was to derive amusement from it.

On the last day of the 4th Holy Grail War, Berserker faces off against Saber, culminating in a battle so ferocious that Berserker draws more mana than Kariya can provide. His Servant killed, Kariya survives long enough to make his way back to the Matou estate, where he is approached by Sakura. He tells her that he has come to rescue her, but collapses at her feet soon after. Kariya dies with a satisfied smile, comforted by dreams of escaping with Aoi, Sakura, and Rin and starting a family together.