Artoria Pendragon's answer was undeniably correct, and it was exactly how she had lived her life.
"Heavy," Ludwig muttered under his breath.
"To you, it must indeed seem quite heavy. I am well aware of that myself." Artoria offered a faint smile, shaking her head. "I don't expect my words to provide the answer you're looking for. After all, I am plagued by my own regrets—seeking the Holy Grail only so I can do it all over again."
"Heavy is one thing, but I never said I was disagreeing with you." Ludwig raised his hand and gave her a candid grin. "So, let's steer the conversation back to more... personal matters."
"Pardon?" Artoria looked perplexed.
"I've read your legends, and there are so many different versions; every one of them has different details," Ludwig said, counting them off on his fingers. "For example, some say Lancelot was a French knight. But in reality, the concept of 'France' didn't even exist until after Charlemagne's death, when the Frankish Kingdom split into three. Lancelot would have been Gaulish, wouldn't he?"
"I didn't expect you to be so interested in my legend, Ludwig." Artoria couldn't help but chuckle. "As the person in question, I can certainly answer most of your questions. As for whether you choose to believe me, that is entirely up to you."
"It's not so much interest as it is surprise. I mean, King Arthur being a woman and all..." Ludwig remarked.
"So it's simple curiosity, then." Artoria understood completely. Ludwig hadn't lost that specific curiosity and thirst for knowledge typical of a young man.
"And I'm really curious—how did you convince yourself to marry Guinevere?" Ludwig raised a finger. "While it's not uncommon in this era, in your time, a union between two women—even a marriage in name only—must have been scandalous, right?"
"I was raised as a man. In almost every aspect of my daily life, I regulated myself according to male standards. Even the name I presented to the world was the masculine 'Artorius'."
Since becoming the King of Britain, Artoria had never spoken of her past to anyone. She had almost forgotten her life before the age of fifteen. She had discarded her existence as "Artoria" to become the mechanism known as "The King." Consequently, she felt a slight sense of guilt when she found herself unable to clearly describe certain details.
"...So, in truth, your foster father Ector and your foster brother Kay didn't want you to become King? They even tried to stall for time on the day you pulled the Sword from the Stone, or tried to hint that you should turn back?"
Ludwig asked many questions about Artoria's life before her reign, and he recorded every word she said.
"Yes. I could feel that they didn't want it to happen, but I went through with it regardless," Artoria nodded. "By the way... what are you doing?"
She gestured toward the strange device in Ludwig's hand. It looked thousands of times more advanced than any mechanical equipment of this era, and he had been operating it continuously.
"Nothing, just recording it," Ludwig said. "I'm not much of a writer. If I try to write it down later from memory, I'm afraid I'll get the details wrong. I was actually going to record your voice, but I didn't ask first, so I held off."
"Then record it. I don't mind," Artoria said with a smile, giving her permission.
"Then let's talk about the experience of pulling the Sword from the Stone—"
As he spoke, the sudden glow of nearby lights made them both pause. They realized the streetlights had flickered on, illuminating the city streets, though they still failed to fully dispel the darkness.
"It's dark," Artoria noted.
Ludwig finished saving the file and tucked away his personal terminal. "Let's stop here for now. We can handle the rest later."
The arrival of night was the signal that the Holy Grail War was resuming once more.
"Ludwig, do you know how to get in touch with Berserker's Master? If you've met him before, surely you have a way?" Artoria dropped her relaxed expression and asked with professional gravity.
"Unfortunately, I don't," Ludwig said, spreading his hands. "But it's not a big deal. He sought me out before. As long as we leave this area and start moving through the shadows of the streets, we should run into him."
"That sounds incredibly unreliable." Artoria closed her eyes, feeling a slight headache coming on.
Ludwig placed a foot on the rooftop railing and pushed off. "Don't be so picky. We definitely can't stay here. Let's go."
Without waiting for her reply, he leaped from the roof, landing on the top of another building over a dozen meters away.
The sight made Artoria chuckle. For a boy to be this agile made her feel like the Master was the one with the Servant-level mobility. The Knight King, who was actually quite competitive, immediately vaulted over the railing to catch up with the already-leaping Ludwig.
The two moved swiftly through the city's shadows, searching for Berserker's Master while keeping an eye out for other Master-Servant pairs. For instance, Caster, who might still be kidnapping children in the dark.
But it soon became apparent that this "headless chicken" style of searching was yielding no results.
Having bought a hot coffee from a vending machine, Ludwig walked back toward Artoria, grumbling to himself. If they had spent this time heading straight for the Tohsaka manor to attack Archer's faction, they might have actually accomplished something.
"It seems Berserker's Master isn't just wandering around aimlessly," Artoria said, taking the hot canned coffee and preparing to open it.
"I know that. You don't have to keep reminding me; I'm already feeling frustrated enough," Ludwig huffed.
"What if we ask Merlin? I suspect she might know," Artoria suggested tentatively.
"And what if she doesn't? If she uses her Clairvoyance again and makes things worse by dragging Gilgamesh back here, our whole plan falls apart," Ludwig remarked casually.
However, he was seriously considering the necessity of that option. He already owed Merlin a favor he hadn't repaid; if he kept racking them up, paying her back was going to be an ordeal.
"Then, once we've finished resting, let us continue—" Artoria cut herself off, suddenly springing up from the bench and assuming a defensive stance toward the shadows of the roadside park.
Ludwig merely patted her shoulder. "Looks like my luck holds out. You really did come looking for us, Kariya Matou."
"It would be difficult not to see you when you're moving through the city with such fanfare." Dragging his hobbled left leg, Kariya emerged from the darkness, greeting Ludwig in a strained, weary voice. "It seems you did indeed obtain Saber."
"Don't use that tone, like a Servant is just some tool. It's called forming a contract," Ludwig said nonchalantly. "We don't need a backup plan. Let's stick to the first one."
"I have no objections—" Kariya started, but his face suddenly contorted in agony.
Berserker materialized from his spiritual state, letting out a maddened roar.
"AAAArrrrrr——!!!!"
Then, just like that night at the harbor, he snapped a nearby lamppost, swinging it in his hands as he charged straight for Saber.
Realizing the same situation was playing out again, Saber immediately entered her combat stance, ready to counterattack.
The heavy lamppost swung down with crushing force. For Artoria, who now had the full use of her left hand, this would have been no problem at all.
But before the lamppost could reach her, it was caught and held firm by Ludwig's casually raised arm.
"What is the meaning of this, Kariya Matou?"
"No... it's not..."
Kariya, having a massive amount of prana drained by the Mad Warrior, had already collapsed to his knees, clutching his chest in pain.
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Type-Moon: The A-Ray Knight's Holy Grail Journey
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