"If the other side has multiple Servants, they can retreat at any time under the cover of their Servants. If no results are achieved at the very first moment, then any follow up battle is meaningless."
"I see. That is also one of the possibilities I had imagined. It is not worth being surprised… it is just a bit of a pity. If we could have attacked earlier and killed him, this Holy Grail War would have practically been over."
Lancer's expression carried a hint of amusement. "And you did fail, did you not?"
"…I do not deny it."
After a moment of silence, Rider still chose to speak honestly. "The Red side Lancer's spear technique is the finest I have ever seen in my life."
"His destructive power, willpower, and judgment are also outstanding. Under the condition that neither side released their Noble Phantasm, even I could not defeat him."
"The Red side Lancer… how nostalgic."
"Hmm?"
"Do not mind it. I was just speaking from feeling."
Vlad III did not hide anything and said directly, "In a certain timeline, I once fought him. He was indeed an extremely troublesome hero."
"In a one on one fair duel, among the figures I am familiar with, there is no hero who could defeat him."
"That level of technique has already surpassed the limits of a single weapon. Even if he used blades or fought barehanded, he would probably still reach a realm beyond humanity… among my knights, only one or two could compare to such a warrior."
Rider acknowledged the enemy's excellence, but she did not grow discouraged because of it. Instead, there was a faint excitement hidden in her calm tone.
"He is a challenging opponent. I originally thought this Holy Grail War would be without suspense, but now I have become interested!"
"It seems you are quite satisfied. That is very good."
Vlad III promised, "I will arrange a stage for your duel. This Holy Grail War will certainly be our victory. On that premise, I will fully satisfy your desire for battle and never cover up your glory!"
The Black Knight King slightly raised her head, as if moved. "Thank you, Son of the Dragon of Romania."
"This is simply the awareness that a 'king' should have."
Vlad III narrowed his eyes, as if recalling something unpleasant.
"A so called hero should sing of victory in the Holy Grail War, display their most valiant side, clash with the strongest enemies, and greet the end without regret… any act that stains a hero's dignity, I will never allow!"
"Your upright chivalry is admirable. If we lived in the same era, I would have invited you to join Camelot and discuss matters at the Round Table together." There was even a trace of a smile in Black Rider's words.
"Hmph! Do not think too highly of yourself!"
Vlad III slightly lifted his chin and looked down proudly at Black Rider. "I am the King of Wallachia, the eternal guardian of this land. I am not anyone's knight, nor will I obey the orders of foreign barbarians!"
"Rider, you are not a king who stands above all right now. You are merely a general under my command."
"A true king has the heart to embrace all rivers. Under my command, even foreign knights can be put to great use and fully display their talents."
Black Rider stretched out her hand, as if grasping something unreal and clenching it tightly.
"To seize all usable power in one's hand, to equally trample, conquer, and rule everything, that is the path of the King of Britain."
"This Holy Grail War is the same. Although I will accept your commission as an ally, I will act according to my own will."
"However, even your Master listens to my orders."
Vlad III showed a provocative, even smug smile. "All the Masters have acknowledged my authority. As a Servant bound by contract, whether you agree or not, in fact you are my subordinate."
"You may be the Master of my Master, but you are not my Master." Black Rider responded sharply.
"…"
The two looked at each other for a long time, one above and one below. In the end, Vlad III was the first to laugh out loud, and it was an open and hearty laugh, which was quite rare for someone as melancholic as him.
"It has been a long time since I felt this sensation of confronting a beast. As warriors, as generals, as kings, neither you nor I will bow to the other."
"This is not a bad thing. A king's dignity is never to be offended!"
"O Knight King of Britain, you and I will have a duel sooner or later, but not now."
"I am the King of Romania. Whether in life or now, my wish has only ever been to protect this land. As long as it benefits this cause, whatever you demand, I can tolerate."
"After defeating the villains who invade my homeland, you and I will decide the ownership of the Holy Grail with the weapons in our hands!"
"As it should be." Black Rider had no objection.
In European history, it was very common for kings to accept employment as allies and fight wars for others. Arthur himself grew up in chaotic times and had seen plenty of such things.
"At least before we eliminate all enemies, as the Black side's Rider, I will absolutely not betray my companions."
"But after that, when this camp falls apart and we must slaughter each other to determine the final victor, I will not hesitate to trample everything!"
"Then it is agreed." Vlad III nodded in satisfaction.
There was no need to sign a formal contract. For two kings, even a verbal agreement would be properly honored.
'What a pity. If she had been summoned not as a king, but simply as a knight…'
There was a trace of regret in Vlad III's gaze as he looked at Black Rider.
Rider was an extremely outstanding Servant, possessing powerful strength and rational thinking.
She had no compatibility requirements for her Master, because in her eyes they were all about the same. She would only seriously execute orders, but would never open her heart to anyone.
If an ordinary Master had summoned her in the Holy Grail War, it would almost be a declaration of victory.
But for Vlad III, it was somewhat awkward…
Just as Black Rider had said earlier, "The Master of my Master is not my Master!"
Vlad III had in turn controlled his Master, Darnic, and indirectly taken control of Yggdmillennia, making the magi here bow to him. Even Celenike was no exception.
However, Rider would not accept this hierarchy.
Her obedience to her Master's orders was merely following the rules of the contract.
Even though her personality had darkened, her knightly spirit had not changed. She would never betray on her own initiative.
But this "loyalty" was limited only to her Master, Celenike. Aside from that, she acknowledged no one's command.
In her eyes, Vlad III ruling Yggdmillennia was actually a kind of provocation, because she could not accept being ridden over by another Servant. If Yggdmillennia must have a king, why could it not be her?
In short, Vlad III was very happy to have summoned such a powerful Servant as Black Rider.
It was just that the Black Knight King overlapped with him in position and had a very troublesome personality, giving him an extra competitor.
It did not matter. As long as it was on this land, even if he had to confront King Arthur, he would absolutely not lose.
At that time, he would prove to all magi and Servants who the true King of Romania was.
"You have worked hard in this operation. Go and rest, Rider."
After confirming Rider's thoughts, Vlad III already knew that before defeating the Red side, there was no need to worry about Rider causing trouble. One considerable concern was resolved, and his mental state relaxed a lot.
He waved his hand, signaling that Rider and Celenike could leave.
Celenike respectfully bowed to Vlad III in farewell, while Rider turned around without saying a word, replying only with the metallic sound of her armor.
"Right! There is still one important matter that has not been resolved!"
Just as she was about to walk out the door, she suddenly remembered something and sharply stared at Celenike. That intimidating presence made the female magus choke up.
"Before the troops move, provisions must go first… where is your cafeteria located?"
Do Servants also need to eat?
The answer is "they can," but it is not necessary.
Servants can freely switch between spirit form and physical form, but in essence their bodies are constructed from extremely high purity magical energy, what is called a "spiritual foundation."
They rely on magical energy to maintain their existence, and the consumption is enormous.
Strictly speaking, they can replenish a small amount of magical energy through eating. After all, food that enters a Servant's stomach is still digested, and life force itself can be converted into magical energy. However, this method is extremely inefficient and has very little effect.
Of course, it also depends on what is eaten. As everyone knows, in the Type Moon world, a magus's bodily fluids can be used like mana potions…
The massive amount of magical energy consumed by Servants when they act in the present world cannot be supplied by the Master alone.
Even a genius magus like Rin Tohsaka cannot do it. The main source of magical energy has always been the Greater Grail.
Only non human beings such as spirits or Dead Apostles can support a Servant by themselves.
To sum up, under normal circumstances Servants do not need to eat, and eating has no positive effect.
So Sella was somewhat confused.
As a Servant, Aizen Iori's appetite was simply too strong.
Right now she was walking side by side with Iori along the main street of a certain small town. At this time there were not many people on the street. Even those who were there looked lazy, like cats basking in warmth.
The afternoon sunlight was warm and comfortable. A gentle breeze blew from the lake beside the town, making people feel refreshed.
In such beautiful weather, quietly enjoying an afternoon tea was more important than anything else. The whole town seemed to be under a slow motion spell, filled with a peaceful and lazy atmosphere.
On a day like this, Iori did not want to deal with the Holy Grail War at all. Unfortunately, he had already made an appointment to meet someone, so he could only stroll unwillingly toward the meeting place.
Still, he did not treat himself badly. Whenever he saw something tasty along the way, he would stop and buy a portion.
After walking less than three hundred meters, the snacks in his hands had already changed four or five times.
Sella did not understand. Servants clearly lived on magical energy, and the quality of her supply was definitely above the passing line. So why was the one she contracted with so greedy?
And his attitude was far too relaxed. It was completely different from his previous energetic behavior.
"Are we not going to meet an ally? Being late would seem very impolite, would it not?"
"Magi do not care about punctuality, and there is still plenty of time. Do not be anxious, Master."
Iori used a toothpick to pick up a small piece of hard candy mixed with nuts. "Want a piece?"
"…"
Sella hesitated for a moment, slightly lowered her head to brush aside her hair, and opened her small mouth to accept it.
"Mm… thank you. It is very tasty. I like it very much."
The silver haired girl had no expression. Although she said so, she did not seem to particularly like sweets.
Iori, however, glanced at her meaningfully. He knew it was not that she disliked it, but that she could not taste much of anything.
Homunculi generally did not have long lifespans. Most only had a few years. Some were even fast grown consumables, like artificially raised animals.
Sella was the last remaining homunculus of the Einzbern family. In every aspect her performance was excellent, but she was originally only a "spare." By accident, she became the final inheritor.
Her mind stored a massive amount of magical knowledge, and many magecraft techniques in the Type Moon world are directly written into circuits and crests.
This caused her to bear a significant "load," and her body was even weaker than that of ordinary homunculi.
Although efforts had been made to extend her lifespan, she had already reached her limit, especially after the battle in London…
Even though she acted as if nothing was wrong, those beautiful red eyes only had vision on one side.
Her right eye could almost no longer see anything. Her sense of taste, balance, spatial awareness, and touch had all become much duller.
The nervous system is more sensitive than muscle tissue, and also more fragile.
Whether Iori's Master could even last until the end of the Holy Grail War was a question. She was like a narcissus formed from thin ice, beautiful yet fragile.
Even so, Sella insisted on maintaining a "normal" state in front of Iori. She would admit to her vision loss and loss of taste, but would never admit the fact that she could no longer perform intense physical activity, and that her magic circuits were gradually declining.
She had to persist as a Master until the very end. She could not let her Servant lose confidence in her.
Even if Iori swore that he would not betray her, Sella would still choose to endure stubbornly.
He had once tried to use "Kaido" to heal Sella. Although this recovery type Kido targeted spiritual bodies, there were indeed techniques that could affect the physical body.
However, Sella's main problems lay in her nervous system and magic circuits. Iori's level could not reach that level of precision.
After all, in his priorities, Kaido ranked below Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kido.
"Right now we are in the middle of a war. I think it would be better to stay tense. Are you not being too relaxed like this, Iori?"
"Life is not just about fighting. It is precisely by fully enjoying life that we gain enough motivation to protect these beautiful things."
Iori smiled freely. "You live too seriously."
"…Life is too short. There is no time to waste." Sella replied without expression.
"That is why efficiency must be pursued. Whether resting, eating, or researching, only by making full use of time can life become meaningful."
"That is only for you."
Iori said bluntly, "A cicada larva hides underground for its whole life. After transforming into an adult, it can only live for one summer, so it is the most hurried, chirping nonstop the entire season."
"Short lived beings are like this. Everything they do is spent in 'acceleration.' They do not even have the chance to stop and enjoy life."
"They cannot even clearly see what this world truly looks like, and then they die casually."
"The meaning of their birth is only to complete a fixed program, like machines… no, like a natural phenomenon. So their life and death are not cared about by anyone, nor will anyone remember them."
"What do you think?"
"After you die, will anyone remember you, Master?"
"…"
"As long as you make a wish to the Holy Grail, everything can change."
Iori tossed a piece of candy into his mouth, easily biting through the hard shell and slowly savoring the nuts and soft candy hidden inside.
"With the power of the Greater Grail, healing your body would not be difficult."
"What do you mean…"
"Just a small portion is enough. It would not consume much magical energy. Compared to the amount accumulated by the Greater Grail, it is insignificant. But your life would continue. Your future would be filled with possibilities!"
A faint smile rested at the corner of Iori's lips as his deep eyes stared at Sella.
"All of this only requires you to slightly change your way of thinking."