Before encountering the mysterious world, she was just an ordinary girl who was a bit prettier than others, an ordinary person who was no different from the millions of other people around her except for knowing a little bit of strange knowledge.

How could someone as ordinary as her possibly save the world?

Orpheus looked at Ritsuka, who did not answer, and fell silent for a moment. Then he sighed as if he had lost interest, and the tense atmosphere suddenly relaxed.

"So, Ritsuka is boring to me now."

As he said this, Orpheus turned around amidst the astonished and puzzled gazes of the crowd, and his body gradually decomposed into purple spiritual particles.

"Do you want the Holy Grail? In that case, I will hold the Holy Grail and wait for the moment when you make up your mind... If you want to save humanity, you can't do it without the resolve to face God."

As soon as he finished speaking, Orpheus's figure completely disappeared, and everyone present breathed a sigh of relief.

After two consecutive Excalibur attacks, everyone could see Artoria's fatigue, while Orpheus remained calm and composed, seemingly able to unleash his attack many more times.

The pressure from an opponent with such unknown HP and MP was immense. El-Melloi seriously doubted where Tokiomi Tohsaka got so much mana to supply Orpheus.

"Although I don't know what that person is thinking..."

After a long silence, El-Melloi finally broke the deadlock.

"Anyway, we're saved, right? Let's retreat for now and regroup."

No matter how powerful the opponent is, the remaining Servants must fight.

Although Lancer was abandoned by the one she was loyal to, she faithfully carried out the other's last orders. Although Saber did not have the desire to entrust the Holy Grail to her, she would not abandon her Master casually since she had already signed a contract with him.

Even the toughest battles are not a reason for these heroes to give up.

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"Everyone, welcome back... Did this... fail?"

Because they needed to get somewhere quickly, Saber and El-Melloi didn't bring Irisviel with them when they came out to provide support, which saved the innocent Irisviel from being caught in the crossfire.

Meanwhile, Irisviel was standing at the castle gate to welcome Artoria and the others back, but when she saw that everyone's expressions were not quite right, her heart sank.

"Let's wait until everyone is gathered before we talk about it."

El-Melloi sighed and said to Irisviel.

Moments later, the conference room at Einzbern Castle was filled with people, including Kiritsugu Emiya, who rarely appeared in public.

"Now we have good news and bad news."

Once everyone was seated, El-Melloi got straight to the point.

"The good news is that I have some clues about the opponent's special penetrating ability."

"Mr. Second Generation?! Is this true?"

Upon hearing this, Mashu asked in surprise.

Elmero nodded in agreement.

"Thanks to the data provided by Romani, we can make some inferences... The first attack today did have an effect, but we cannot confirm whether it was because my guess was correct or simply because the other side made a mistake... because the second test was forcibly destroyed by that sword."

Speaking of Ea, El-Melloi sighed again before continuing.

"I'll share my guesses later. Now for the bad news: the strength of the opponent—King Orpheus—far exceeds my previous predictions. I must apologize to everyone for this, as my miscalculation has put you all in grave danger. This is my responsibility."

“Since my master has commanded me to obey your orders, I will be at your disposal. No matter how powerful the enemy, I will not back down.”

"The situation on the battlefield is ever-changing, and besides, Archer... no one could have predicted that the King of Heroes would reach that level of strength, which is understandable."

Neither Lancer nor Saber blamed El-Melloi, and El-Melloi nodded and continued speaking.

"Although it was a crisis, this battle was not without its gains. Just the fact that we learned that the opponent's strength was beyond our expectations, instead of having to wait until the final battle, is already a great achievement. Not to mention, the opponent also revealed a lot of their abilities during this battle."

Opening his eyes, El-Melloi's eyes gleamed with shrewdness.

"Next, I will analyze the Hero King's abilities one by one with you all, so please listen carefully."

Chapter 151 A Dialogue Between the Past and the Future

"Ophis, the King of Heroes, is the first king recorded in human history and is also known as the King of All Heroes. As one of the kings of the Age of Gods, he possesses extremely powerful strength... I think you all have witnessed this."

Looking around at everyone, El-Melloi spoke seriously.

"Such strength is exceptional in the Holy Grail War, and its abilities are extremely strange, including that strange spiritualization, the ability to easily recover even when the body is almost completely destroyed, that strange book, and that powerful sword. Finally, although it is not as obvious as the above, it is equally threatening, a treasure trove that contains the prototypes of all the Noble Phantasms."

At this point, everyone fell silent, and even El-Melloi himself couldn't help but gasp in surprise.

The original King of Heroes only had the Treasury of Kings and Ea, and El-Melloi already had to rely on the opponent's arrogant personality to win consistently. This King of Heroes not only has an unpredictable personality, but his survival ability has also increased countless times. Even if he occasionally acts recklessly, he won't suffer a setback.

Moreover, there's that unfathomable magic...

"The King's Treasury comes from the legend of the Hero King collecting treasures from all over the world, while the Sword of Ea is proof of his status as the first king in human history. As for the book, its prototype was revealed thanks to Lancer's attack, and it is very likely the creation tablets from Babylonian mythology... In addition, at the end of the Hero King's legend, the king believed that humanity no longer needed his guidance, so he swallowed the elixir of immortality, transformed into a snake, shed his skin, and disappeared... Based on my speculation, her strange regeneration or resurrection ability should originate from this."

"That's amazing..."

Everyone was surprised to hear that El-Melloi had analyzed so much information in such a short time, and Mash exclaimed in admiration.

But the next second, Elmero poured cold water on everyone's hopes.

"However, even if my deduction is correct, I regret to say that I cannot find a way to break it."

El-Melloi sighed, his tone tinged with helplessness.

Even if we know it's just molting, who can know how many times she can molt?

"Of course, the magic required for such a recovery must be quite astonishing. I believe the King of Heroes probably can't use it many times either. As long as we can keep killing her, we will definitely be able to prevent her from resurrecting. Moreover, Lancer's gun... the Yellow Rose of Destruction with the power of curse, may also have an effect on her."

El-Melloi originally planned to use Lancer's Yellow Rose as his trump card, but after returning and thinking about it carefully, he realized that the Yellow Rose's ability was not anything particularly advanced, just a simple curse. If it had a very high magic resistance effect, it should be able to resist it. Even if it didn't, there might be a countermeasure in the King's Treasury, which was filled with countless items. In short, he couldn't rely on it completely.

Ultimately, El-Melloi opted for the safest approach, planning to switch strategies only if he found the yellow rose to be effective.

"As for the King's Treasury... although it is difficult to deal with, unfortunately, it is probably the easiest of the abilities possessed by the King of Heroes to counter. Moreover, I have already thought of a way to counterbalance the King's Treasury. It is important to note that although the King of Heroes cannot know the true name of the Noble Phantasm, he can use a Noble Phantasm that is effective against his opponent."

"And the Creation Tablets and the Sword of Ea, there's nothing more to say about that, we absolutely cannot let the King of Heroes have the chance to use them, absolutely not!"

"Finally, there's that most troublesome kind of penetrating ability..."

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On the castle balcony, a blonde girl in a white dress stood in the cold wind, gazing into the distance with a somewhat bewildered expression.

"What's wrong? What are you thinking about?"

"Ugh?"

Hearing that incredibly familiar yet more weathered voice, Lily snapped back to reality with a start.

“…Miss Artoria…”

Upon seeing the newcomer, Lily hesitated for a long time before finally uttering the incredibly incongruous title she was given.

Upon hearing this address, Artoria smiled gently.

“There’s no need to be so formal… Our relationship… Yes, it is indeed a bit delicate. In that case, just call me older sister. Now that I’m free from the identity of the king, I don’t need to continue living as a man anymore.”

"I-I understand, sister..."

Lily blushed, but still whispered the name.

Seeing that Lily was still not relaxed, Artoria looked away with amusement and gazed at the night sky beside her.

"To be able to see my past self... Is this the power of the Holy Grail War? It's quite a strange experience, even that past I had forgotten..."

Shaking her head, Artoria herself ended the conversation.

Compared to the past, the future still feels too heavy.

"You seem to be thinking about something. If you can, could you tell me?"

"This……"

Lily opened her mouth, but then realized that the other person was actually herself, and she became less reserved.

"I wasn't able to help at all in the previous battles."

Lily lowered her head in disappointment and sighed dejectedly.

Although King Arthur is already at the top among Servants, as his infant form, Lily's swordsmanship is only considered decent, and her Noble Phantasm, the Sword in the Stone, is not a particularly powerful weapon. In previous battles, she could only exchange a few blows with Orpheus when he wasn't taking things seriously, and later she had no chance to show her abilities.

Lily doesn't care about her own weakness, but hopes to help her Master.

"I see..."

Artoria nodded as expected.

Having been a queen for over a decade, Artoria had almost completely forgotten and abandoned her past self, but even so, she could still feel the emotions of her past self.

After all, the past is not something that can be easily severed.

"Don't worry, you just need to follow your heart."

With a slight smile, Artoria spoke to Lily.

"Ugh?"

After hearing what her future self said, Lily showed a somewhat subtle expression.

"Pfft..."

Seeing herself like this, Artoria couldn't help but laugh.

"These aren't just meaningless words."

Lily blushed again after Artoria exposed her thoughts.

She shook her head, as long-forgotten memories resurfaced in Artoria's mind.

Back then, I really was a mischievous girl with some quirky ideas...

"Just believe in yourself, because your future is King Arthur."

Chapter 152 Goddess and Father

"Is the matter resolved?"

As soon as Orpheus stepped into the Tohsaka residence, he heard Ishtar's greeting.

The goddess of Venus was reclining on the luxurious sofa in the Shichen family's house, elegantly holding a wine glass filled with red wine in her hand. Her red eyes lazily watched the ripples in the wine glass. Despite being only seven years old, she exuded an indescribable charm.

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