Mary Lil Fargo

is a magus of the Fargo family and former student of Lord El-Melloi II in Lord El-Melloi II Case Files.Lord El-Melloi II Case Files: Grace Note - Episode 2: "The Seven Stars and the Eternal Cage" As part of the El-Melloi Classroom, she is one of the many Masters of True Rider in the True and False Holy Grail Wars of Fate/strange Fake.
==Profile==
===Background===
Mary is the daughter of Ernest Fargo. Under Lord El-Melloi II, who taught her that a mage must keep their composure at all times, she also learned from him that the planets were not immutable since the , traditionally followed by astromancers, was overturned in the 17th century.
She knew of the abuse Claire suffered at the hands of her father, but was unable to do anything about it, since she was little more than her father's property. At some point, Mary was branded by Ernest with the astrological sign of Saturn to keep her imprisoned inside the mansion. She later discovered her father's experimental ritual, and figured it would end in failure.
===Appearance===
In Fate/strange Fake, set 5-6 years after her appearance in Lord El-Melloi II's Case Files, Mary now wears a ring on her left hand.Fate/strange Fake Volume 8 - Chapter 24: Day 5, Noon "Be Silent, ******"
===Personality===
Mary had no particular love for her father, as she willing to let him conduct his ritual knowing it would fail and likely ending with him losing his life. This could be seen as retribution for both making her a prisoner in her own home, and his abuse towards Claire. She was also a dilligent student since she still remembered El-Melloi II's lectures years later. She is particularly close to Claire.
==Role==
===Lord El-Melloi II Case Files===
Mary greets El-Melloi II after his arrival at the Fargo residence, expressing relief at his presence. El-Melloi reprimands her for her lack of composure, and also introduces her to his disciple, Gray. They are interrupted by Fernando Li and Alec Fargo, the latter accusing the former of murdering Ernest to obtain his research. Mary stops her cousin from hitting Claire when she reveals that he was arguing with Ernest about his financial debt on the day of the incident, but also scolds Claire for speaking out of line. Mary confirms with El-Melloi that she, Claire, Fernando and Alec were present on that day. The group proceeds to the central hall when El-Melloi wishes to see the crime scene. In private, El-Melloi mentions to Gray that Mary is a potential suspect since she would inherent her father's fortune and research following his death.
Later, Mary tells El-MElloi II about how Ernest was very healthy and youthful despite his heavy smoking and age. She continues her father would often say, "Life is too short to reach the Root", disregarding the notion that her father would commit suicide since, like all mages, he wanted to reach the Root. Cryptically, Mary says her father's research was in search of the "everlasting". She admits to having shared her father's beliefs until meeting El-Melloi II, reminding him of a lesson where he taught that the planets are not immutable, like people in ancient times had thought, as the traditionally followed by astromancers was overturned in the 17th Century.
Mary gathers with the others at the study after Claire discovers Alec's mutilated corpse. After Add reacts to traces in the room, El-Melloi II deduces the undead were summoned by the residual Saturn mana emanating from Ernest's hair and bones. He then takes everyone to the central hall, having solved the mystery. El-Melloi II explains the manner in which Ernest's body divided and placed follows the Seven Planets ritual, arranged in a matter following the . Mary and Fernando protest, as the Animusphere family (and hence the Fargo family) follow the Geocentric Model, but El-Melloi II reveals Ernest himself went against it.
He unveils the container holding Ernest's soul, placed in the position of its corresponding planet, Earth. Upon doing so, the ritual activates and the monstrous ghost of Ernest is revealed, to Mary's horror. He attempts to attack her to obtain her life-force, but Gray blocks it with Add's cage. Mary questions why her father has become like this. El-Melloi II explains that because the ritual was against the family tradition, it was imperfect since it was experimental and unstable. It was meant to grant Ernest immortality by making him one with the inner cosmos of the mansion, which serves a microcosm of the world, so he could reach the Root himself, instead of passing on his knowledge to and relying on future generations. When Gray prepares to fight Ernest alone, Mary shows concern, but El-Melloi assures her that they would only be getting in the way. The group bear witness to the destruction of her father's ghost.
Outside of the mansion, El-Melloi II tells Mary that the main family will take the care of the rest and she thanks him for his help. He wonders why Ernest ventured to perform such an incomplete ritual, to which Mary replies it was always her father's wish to attain immortality. El-Melloi gives his deduction that Mary knew her father's ritual would end in failure but did not prevent him from engaging in it, and questions her motives for doing so. Mary removes her right glove in unveil a brand of the symbol of Saturn, revealing that if her father attained immortality, she would have remained his prisoner for the rest of her life in the cage that is their mansion. She claims she merely taught her father that nothing was eternal, just as El-Melloi taught her. She thanks him again for his help and bids farewell, holding hands with Claire as they watch El-Melloi II and Gray drive away.
Kairi Sisigou and Luviagelita Edelfelt later approach Mary during their investigations into who stole Iskander's relic from Lord El-Melloi II, where she reveals that Trisha Fellows is an old friend of hers. She is saddened to hear about her death, and tells them that Trisha had stopped by at the Fargo household one month prior to the current events. Trisha had revealed to Mary that Marisbury Animusphere had a man without a heart investigate the Holy Grail War seven years ago, after which he had "abandoned" his daughter, Olga Marie.Lord El-Melloi II Case Files: Grace Note - Rail Zeppelin 4/6: "Mystic Eyes of Transience and an Awakening Detective"
===Fate/strange Fake===
Mary is one of the representatives of the El-Melloi Classroom who travel to Snowfield during the True and False Holy Grail Wars after the death of Flat Escardos and the emergence of Thia Escardos. She is one of the masters of Hippolyta along with the rest of the El-Melloi Classroom, having been granted a portion of a Command Spell by Verner.Fate/strange Fake Volume 7 - Bridge Chapter: "Beginning of the End" During the raid against the Neo Ishtar temple, she senses Thia Escardos watching the classroom from high up in the sky.
==Abilities==
Like the rest of her family, Mary is practitioner of Astromancy. She made magecraft simulations of the sea of stars and is very knowledgeable about the interior of the Earth. Mary is famous in the Department of Astromancy for building a new theory from scratch and completing it in her generation.Fate/strange Fake Volume 7 - Bridge Chapter: Messara Escardos When the El-Melloi Classroom fights Thia Escardos, she is able to foretell his position in the sky by seeing the picture through the stars' perspective with a divination-based application of Astromancy.Fate/strange Fake Volume 9 - Chapter 31: "Rhapsody of the Demigods II"
==Development==
Mary is an anime-original character created for {Rail Zeppelin} Grace note, and did not appear in the original Lord El-Melloi II's Case Files light novels. This makes her unique among the El-Melloi Classroom students featured in Fate/strange Fake, as all of Hippolyta's other Masters originate from light novels or visual novels.
==References==
Category:Clock Tower magi
Category:Humans
Category:Characters in Lord El-Melloi II Case Files
Category:Characters in Fate/strange Fake
Category:Clock Tower students
Category:Introduced in 2019
Category:Aristocratic Faction
Category:Masters
Category:El-Melloi Classroom
Category:Voice - Hisako Kanemoto
Category:Animusphere