Artoria.
On that day, the girl who had just passed her coming-of-age ceremony was called by that name by the people of her country; their faces overflowed with happy smiles, for they believed that as the prophesied king, she would surely lead them to a life of happiness.
It was an era of war and chaos.
The beginning of the chaos was the fall of an empire.
The empire, which should have been invincible, awaited its demise under the invasion of numerous Heathens.
To fight the Heathens, the empire withdrew the military forces that had originally protected an island nation.
That was the start of it all; her country lost the empire's protection, and unable to maintain independence, it quickly split into many small kingdoms.
The Heathens' invasion.
The internal strife between tribes, which could be described as suicidal behavior.
Afterward came the long years of constant warfare known as the 'days as dark as night.'
It was at this time that she was born as the successor to the King.
It was a long era of war and chaos.
The King believed in the Magician's prophecy and looked forward to an excellent successor, but the child born was not the person the King expected.
That child was not a boy.
Even if one bore the destiny of a king, if they were not a boy, they could not inherit the throne; this was the rule since ancient times.
Thus, the girl was fostered by one of the King's vassals and grew up as the son of a knight.
Although the King was disappointed that the successor was not a boy, the Magician was somehow very satisfied.
The Magician believed that gender originally had nothing to do with becoming a king.
More importantly, the Magician believed that the fact that the girl had to leave the castle before the day of prophecy was the true proof of a king.
In the home of a simple and wise old knight, the girl grew up as his successor.
This was not because the old knight believed in the Magician's prophecy, but because the old knight felt the same qualities in the girl as in his lord, and thus believed he must raise her to be a knight, looking forward to her growth.
But without even needing expectations, the girl trained day after day to be stronger than anyone else.
If only a king could save this country stepping toward death, then without needing others to say a word, the girl swore to swing her sword for that purpose.
Then, the day of prophecy arrived.
On this day, to select the next king, the original King gathered the lords and knights of the country.
Everyone was guessing the conditions for becoming the king; since the most excellent person was to be chosen as king, it would surely be a mounted battle.
But when all the lords and knights gathered by the King's side, only a sword thrust into a stone was prepared at the meeting place—the sword in the stone.
On the hilt, there was a golden inscription.
"Whoso pulleth out this sword from this stone and anvil, is rightwise King born of all Britain—"
Many knights followed the inscription and grasped the hilt of this sword, yet not a single one could pull it out. Disappointed by this, the knights began to select the king through mounted combat as originally planned.
Not far from the many knights, there was a girl.
At that time, the girl was only a knight candidate and did not have the qualification for mounted combat. She did not look at the many knights fighting on horseback, but instead approached the rock where no one else was and reached for the hilt without hesitation.
"Oh dear, oh dear. Before you grasp that thing, you had better think carefully."
The girl turned her head and saw the most revered and feared Magician in the country—the Court Magician, Merlin.
The Magician said, "If you pull that out, in the end, you will no longer be human."
To the Magician's words, the girl simply nodded; to become a king, one must cease to be human.
Such a resolution was something she had since she was born; after all, she was born for this purpose.
"A king is one who, in order to protect the people, must be the existence that kills the most people."
This was something she had known since childhood. Back then, while still young, she thought about this every night, trembling until dawn; there was not a day she was not afraid.
But the girl said, "The fear ends today."
The sword was pulled out as if it were only natural, and the surroundings were enveloped in light. The distant knights were pale with shock because they never expected that the one who could pull out the sword would actually be a knight candidate.
At that same moment, she was no longer human.
Immediately following, doubts about the girl surged like a tide. The girl did not care about these; to verify whether the girl truly possessed the qualities of a king, a crowd of knights one after another challenged the girl, a mere knight candidate, to duels.
Just as the Magician thought, kingship had nothing to do with gender. As long as one had the function of a king, no one would care, and no one would pay attention to their appearance.
Not to the Magician's surprise, the girl successfully defeated everyone and gained the following of the crowd of knights.
Even if someone noticed that the noble king was a woman, as long as she was an excellent king, there should be no problem.
Because of the sword's magical power, her growth also stopped; her body forever remained in the appearance of a fifteen-year-old. Although some knights felt uncomfortable and afraid, the majority of the knights praised their lord's mysterious immortality.
After that.
The era of the King, which would be called a legend by later generations, began!
The newly crowned King participated in wars as if a God of War had descended upon the world; as the King, she often stood on the front lines.
All her enemies were utterly defeated at the mere sight of her.
War God Artoria!
The King, praised as the incarnation of a dragon, could not be defeated!
Ten years on the battlefield, twelve great battles, all concluded with her victory.
For the current Artoria, those must have been days spent focusing on galloping forward in her identity as the King.
In those days, she never once looked back, and never once was she wounded.
She grew as the King and carried out her duties.
However, Artoria, who was watching everything, did not think so. When her own country was destroyed, her own knights died, and her own Round Table collapsed, she, as the King, looked back behind her for the first time.
A boundless expanse of corpses, blood soaking into the soil, soldiers killing each other—the hellish scenery was deeply imprinted in her pupils.
Even if not acting as the King, her soul would still be on the battlefield, as the guardian deity of Britain.
Before dawn, under the blue sky, she let the breeze blow against her body, simply gazing into the distance.
The sky was high, and the clouds moved very fast.
In the clear air, she held the sword in her hand and looked at the great army she was supposed to intercept.
"Do you really intend to change all of this?"
Holding the sword in the stone, Artoria's gaze seemed to pierce through time and space to see the Artoria clad in pitch-black armor.
The pitch-black Artoria looked at the sword in the stone she held in her hand.
She and that sword were of one heart and body.
The sword in the stone that selected the King.
At the same time, the sword that decided Artoria's fate shimmered with radiance; that radiance was so dazzling yet gentle.
(The above text is adapted from the scene Shirou Emiya dreams of while acting as Saber's Master in Fate/stay night.)
-------------------------------
Hope you enjoy this fanfiction if you do and would like to read the next 30 chapters in advance, pls do check out my Patreon.
patreon.com/TLScarlet
Also don't forget to give me a Power Stone if you do like this fiction. Your support really motivates me to continue doing my best in translating, Thanks!!