Fuyuki City, Zenjou Residence.
Lancelot watched King Arthur, who was immersed in her own ideals. Lancelot extremely rudely interrupted King Arthur's recounting, and with a firm expression, issued an invitation to King Arthur!
"My King, we, sovereign and subject, have reunited after a thousand years. So, as the Holy Grail War draws to a close, this subject implores the King to engage in a duel of knights with me as the opening!"
King Arthur's eyes showed a hint of nostalgia, her expression returned to calm, and she gladly agreed!
"Sir Lancelot, then let us demonstrate true chivalry for everyone present!"
As she spoke, she summoned Excalibur, gripping it tightly in one hand, and faced Lancelot.
Beside them, Gilgamesh curled his lips into a smile and snapped his fingers. A golden ripple appeared behind him, and swish, a gleaming sword shot down beside Lancelot's feet, embedding itself deeply into the ground.
"Since you, this mad dog, are still my guard for the time being, then this King will not be stingy with rewards. Come, guard, display your heroic form. However, if you dare to reveal that mad dog posture again, then this King will surely bring judgment upon you!"
Lancelot ignored Gilgamesh's words, firmly pulled out the sword embedded in the ground, gripped it with both hands, and launched an attack towards King Arthur.
The crisp sound of weapons clashing instantly appeared in this remote residence.
Lancelot and King Arthur's superb martial arts instantly captivated the Servants present, while the Magi could only barely watch the battle of the ancient heroes using eyes enhanced by magical power.
"Truly superb martial arts. Even in my peerless army, I fear one could not find anyone who could compare to these two in martial arts." After finishing, the King of Conquerors picked up the red wine on the table and drank it in one gulp; the bulging muscles on his body showed this king's eagerness to try.
"Truly superb martial arts!" Lancer exclaimed with a hint of admiration!
Sola looked at Lancer, somewhat surprised, and said in disbelief.
"Lancer, are they actually stronger than you? Impossible, Lancer, you are the strongest, right?"
Lancer first glanced at his sovereign, Kayneth. Kayneth glared with sore eyes and waved his hand helplessly, signaling Lancer not to mind him, thinking, 'Anyway, the Holy Grail War seems like it will end tonight. Regardless, Lancer will disappear tonight. Once Lancer disappears, Sola will surely have a change of heart.'
Lancer first bowed respectfully to Sola before speaking to explain.
"Miss Sola, the two currently engaged in battle are indeed above me in terms of martial arts. However, battle is not merely a contest of martial arts; I have the confidence to fight these two."
"Is that so? As expected, Lancer, you are the best."
Hearing Sola's childish words, a wry smile appeared on both Kayneth's and Lancer's faces.
At this moment, the two sides engaged in battle, having finished their warm-up, escalated their fierce fight once more.
King Arthur, who had not been able to fight someone so satisfyingly for a long time, let go of the distracting thoughts in her heart and devoted herself entirely to this knight's battle.
When King Arthur devoted herself entirely to the battle, she finally felt the will transmitted from Lancelot's sword on the opposite side—a sword intent filled with desolation, anticipation, longing, and trepidation!
King Arthur felt the will transmitted from the sword in Lancelot's hand and was puzzled. 'Why would Sir Lancelot imbue such a will into his sword to convey it to me?' Suddenly recalling Sir Lancelot's earlier words, "Arthur, you truly do not understand the human heart," King Arthur realized in a flash.
King Arthur shouted, infused her own will into her sword, and struck down with a single blow.
With a crisp sound, the C-rank Noble Phantasm in Lancelot's hand could no longer withstand this devastation and snapped in response. At the same time, King Arthur's will was transmitted to Lancelot's heart. Smiling, Lancelot took the blow on his shoulder, ignored the pain in his shoulder, shook his head at Sakura who was preparing to use magical power to heal him, and looked at King Arthur before him with anticipation.
King Arthur, leaning on Excalibur, looked at Lancelot with a serious expression.
"Lancelot, do you know your fault?"
Lancelot, filled with joy, knelt on one knee.
"My sovereign, your sinful subject Lancelot, after a thousand years, accepts the punishment I was originally due."
"Then, Lancelot..."
At this point, Tohsaka Rin was having none of it. Since King Arthur was no longer going to be corrupted, there was no need for her to let her own Servant punish her enemy.
"Wait, King Arthur, Lancelot is my sister's Servant now, right? In what position are you punishing my sister's Servant?"
King Arthur looked at Lancelot, who was preparing to retort, raised her hand to stop him, and smiled slightly.
"Indeed, in the Holy Grail War, I have no standing to punish Sir Lancelot right now."
Then, she turned her head to look at Lancelot.
"Thank you, Sir Lancelot. It was your sword intent that made me understand what I had done wrong, and made me realize that my beautiful wish was actually a tragic one. You were right; King Arthur does not understand the human heart. I truly committed a great mistake. While denying myself, I completely failed to consider you all who followed me, admired me, and struggled for our ideals. I was merely immersed in my own ideals. That tragic wish was even an attempt to deny your pasts and experiences of struggling for our country and ideals through the Holy Grail. Rest assured, Sir Lancelot, I will not do that now. However, if I have the chance, I still want to obtain the Holy Grail. Sir Lancelot, are you willing to walk the path of the past once more with a King who understands the human heart?"
"This subject will wait in any era to once again become the King's subject."
"King of Conquerors, you are already impatient, aren't you? I can feel your surging battle intent clearly. Then, dare you fight against me and Sir Lancelot?"
"Hahaha, I, Iskandar, have nothing I dare not conquer. However, my Master—could I entrust him to you, Little Miss?"
Having completely understood King Arthur's plan, Tohsaka Rin nodded, signaling the King of Conquerors to rest assured. It seemed King Arthur intended to take Lancelot to fight the King of Conquerors, allowing Lancelot to seek redemption in this battle. Regardless of who failed, Tohsaka Rin's side would benefit, so Tohsaka Rin had absolutely no reason to refuse.
At this moment, Kiritsugu Emiya came to King Arthur's side and stared at her earnestly.
King Arthur smiled at Kiritsugu Emiya.
"Kiritsugu, I have actually always disliked you, but earlier, when Miss Tohsaka Rin explained the Holy Grail, I already understood your wish. I did not expect that someone like you would actually possess such a noble wish. However, Kiritsugu, give it up, otherwise, you will end up just like I once was, drowning in your own ideals."
Kiritsugu Emiya, facing the persuasion of this Servant who was completely incompatible with him, was not shaken in the slightest. He extended his hand bearing the command spells, seemingly intending to stop King Arthur's actions, but suddenly his body stiffened. A purple mist floated around him, and his body, completely beyond his control, stood frozen in place.
Tohsaka Rin nodded with satisfaction to the Assassin, the Queen of Ancient Assyria, Semiramis. She looked at Irisviel, who had nervously arrived beside the frozen Kiritsugu Emiya, and Maiya Hisau, who was guardedly raising her gun, and said.
"Rest assured, I only had Assassin paralyze him with poison. Now, King Arthur, King of Conquerors, you may begin."
King Arthur looked at Lancelot.
"Sir Lancelot, I punish you to fight against this King of Conquerors with me. In this battle, you must fight to the death without retreating, and secure victory for me."
"This subject obeys!"
On the other side, Waver held up his hand bearing the command spells and looked earnestly at the King of Conquerors.
"The next stage is the battlefield of the strong, isn't it? My Servant, Waver Velvet, by the command of the command spells, you must win to the end. By the command of the command spells again, you must achieve victory. By the final command of the command spells, you must conquer the whole world. Failure is not allowed. Alright, from now on, I am no longer your Master. Please allow me to witness the rest as a subject."
"Hahaha, I permit it. Come, King Arthur. However, I have one last question. King Arthur, must a king be aloof?"
King Arthur said decisively.
"A king ought to be aloof, dedicating oneself to the happiness of the country, the people, and the subjects. All rights and wrongs must be borne by the king, shouldered by the king, and decided by the king."
"Oh, King Arthur, is this your conclusion? How about you two over there?"
Gilgamesh crossed his arms and curled his lip.
"Boring question, mongrel."
Semiramis also smiled with contempt.
"For me, who is regarded by my subjects as the incarnation of the goddess Ishtar, is it not a matter of course!"
The King of Conquerors shook his head, magical power surging, and a strong magical hurricane began to radiate from the center of the King of Conquerors.
"This won't do. It seems you all do not understand. For you who do not understand, I must demonstrate the true posture of a king here."
In an instant, a scene of yellow sand filling the sky replaced the Zenjou Residence from before, and amidst the vast sea of sand, a massive army was marching in unison.
Tohsaka Rin surveyed the surrounding environment, took out several gems engraved with Runic runes from her hand, threw them casually on the ground, and then said with a bit of affectation.
"Oh! This is truly extraordinary. It is actually an Inherent Reality."
Sakura looked at her sister with a hint of confusion and asked.
"Sister, what is an Inherent Reality?"
"Sakura, so-called Inherent Reality is a type of magecraft that manifests one's inner landscape, known as the magecraft closest to true Magic. Oh!"
At this moment, Kayneth also nodded on the side.
"Correct. However, theoretically, this type of magecraft is not something humans can perform. Tohsaka Rin, those few gems of yours, you are preparing to analyze this Inherent Reality, aren't you? Don't waste your effort, hmph."
At this moment, the King of Conquerors turned his back to the crowd and spoke.
"This is the land where my great army galloped; it is the scenery that remains forever in the hearts of the soldiers who shared my joys and sorrows. This world, this landscape, can form because it is the heartscape of all of us. Look! My peerless army, their bodies destroyed, their souls summoned by the world as Heroic Spirits, yet they remain warriors loyal to me. My bond with them is my greatest treasure, my Way of Kings."
Then he turned around to face everyone, spreading his arms and shouting proudly.
"This is my, Iskandar's, strongest Noble Phantasm, Army of the King!"
As the King of Conquerors finished speaking, tens of thousands of soldiers shouted in unison!
Lancer cried out in shock.
"These tens of thousands of soldiers... they're all Servants!"
The King of Conquerors then lowered his arms, puffed out his chest, and shouted.
"A King is one who lives more brilliantly than anyone else, one who captivates all."
"Indeed! Indeed! Indeed!" the tens of thousands of soldiers responded.
"Only one who gathers the envy of all warriors upon themselves and becomes the direction in which they advance is a King. Therefore, a King is not solitary; their great ambition is the sum of the ambitions of all their subjects."
"Indeed! Indeed! Indeed!"
"Then let us begin, King Arthur, Lancelot."
Gilgamesh, showing a hint of nostalgia, said solemnly.
"You truly are an interesting piece of mongrel. If you can survive this, then I, this King, shall personally see you off."
King Arthur leaned on her sword and smiled.
"A truly dazzling Way of Kings, but our paths are different, King of Conquerors! Come!"
Rin quickly stopped both sides who were preparing to act and spoke up.
"Wait, at least wait until we leave the center of the battlefield before starting. And Lancer, you stay behind to lend the King of Conquerors a hand. Kayneth, you won't refuse, will you?"
Kayneth looked at the three other Servants of Rin's besides Lancer, gave a cold snort, and turned his head away. 'In this situation, can I even refuse?'
Irisviel stepped forward excitedly and said,
"Could it be that even in this situation, Tohsaka Rin, you are still not at ease? Are you still playing your schemes just to reduce the number of enemies?"
Tohsaka Rin rolled her eyes at Irisviel and said irritably,
"Einzbern, I forgot to mention earlier—the Holy Grail being polluted was precisely caused by you Einzberns after you were eliminated in the Third Holy Grail War. You Einzberns have no right to say that. Besides, Lancer is also eager to join this battle. Rather than ending in tragedy, let Lancer fight heartily here for his lord and for himself."
Irisviel, who didn't know the truth, processed the news in her mind with shock. As someone produced to be the lesser grail, she was only 9 years old and knew nothing of the Third Holy Grail War. Upon learning that her own family was the culprit behind the pollution of the Grail and that her family had ruined Kiritsugu's dream, she looked at Kiritsugu sadly and whispered,
"I'm sorry, Kiritsugu. I really didn't know."
Kiritsugu Emiya held Irisviel and spoke calmly.
"No, Iri, it's not your fault. There's no need to apologize. Right now, this is just Tohsaka's side of the story. And even if it's true, the Grail might not be unpurifiable. Even if it doesn't work this time, we can participate in the next one."
Rin looked at Kiritsugu Emiya and shook her head helplessly. 'I really don't know where this guy gets such a big heart, trying to save the world at every turn. My god, when did the world ever ask you to save her?' Thinking that she was also one of those being represented, her heart felt a chill.
At this moment, Sola, who had been shocked since the Inherent Reality appeared, finally reacted to Rin's words and glared at Rin with a distorted face.
"No way! What right do you have to make Lancer join this fight? No! Kayneth, tell her I'm right. Lancer, you won't go, right?"
Rin shook her head and snapped her fingers at Semiramis behind her.
As Rin's fingers snapped, a cloud of purple poison mist instantly paralyzed Sola.
Kayneth hurriedly stepped forward to support Sola, then turned and stared at Lancer. 'Damn Holy Grail War, damn Servants.'
"Kayneth, don't worry, I just had Assassin paralyze Miss Sola. Lancer, what is your decision?"
Lancer looked at his lord who was staring at him, helplessly touched the beauty mark under his eye, knelt on one knee toward Kayneth, and said,
"Lord, please allow me to participate in this battle."
Kayneth, supporting Sola with one hand, raised his left hand with the command spells and used the remaining two strokes as if finding release.
"Lancer, go. By the power of my command spells: Lancer, strengthen your body. Lancer, strengthen your magical energy."
"Orders received!"
Although the outcome wasn't perfect, it was much better than the original development. Lancer shook his head somewhat helplessly, then thought, 'At least in the end, my Lord didn't give up on me. This counts as a decent ending for myself.' Lifting his twin spears, he walked slowly to the King of Conquerors' side.
"Rider, it seems we'll be fighting side by side this time."
"Hahaha! A warrior like you, Lancer, is more than welcome to join my side. Then come, King Arthur!"
Watching Rin's group move away from the battlefield, King Arthur pulled the Excalibur from the ground, glanced at Lancelot who was ready beside her, and shouted,
"Come, King of Conquerors! Knights of the Round Table, march!"
"Via Expugnatio!"
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