Kamen Rider Date A Live

It was Shido who suddenly uttered these words out of the blue, interrupting Saber's reverie.

This statement also attracted the attention of everyone present, and for a moment everyone's eyes were once again focused on Shido.

Shido calmly accepted these gazes, and spoke in a very serious tone.

"It was Lancelot who said those words. I don't know why, or what happened. Before I came here, I asked Kariya to call out Berserker so I could see what Lancelot looked like. But the moment I touched Lancelot's body, Lancelot's longing, grief, and fragments of his memories were transmitted to my heart."

"Your Majesty, she is not wrong. This is what Lancelot has been shouting all along. Lia, you are not wrong. Your wish for Lancelot and Guinevere to be happy is correct. And what you did after the world learned about Lancelot and Guinevere was not wrong either, because people can be easily changed by unfounded rumors. Words are the sharpest double-edged sword in the world."

“Lancelot was not wrong to go to the execution ground, because he did it to save the one he loved. Lia, you were not wrong to send people to chase after him, because it was a matter of the king’s face.”

“You are all right, but it is precisely because these right things are mixed together that tragedy has occurred—but the root cause of the final situation is that Lia, your subjects, and your people are all at fault.”

“From Lancelot’s memories, I learned about the general situation of your time. Lia, you were only focused on redeeming the people and had no patience to lead them. Rumors circulated in the country that ‘King Arthur had no heart and did not understand human emotions,’ and there were also rumors among the higher-ups that the king had abandoned the lost people and wanted to be a saint on his own.”

"Lia, few of your subjects and people truly understand you, but what they say is undeniable fact. After you pulled the sword from the stone, you stopped seeing yourself as human and became a machine with the name of a king. Don't you agree, Lia?"

With a warm smile, Shido looked at Saber and waited for her reply.

"...If one has a human heart, one cannot protect the country as a king."

When asked by Shido, Saber answered softly after a long pause, and her answer made Shido sigh helplessly.

"How could this be the answer? But it's quite in line with your style. However, Lia, don't you really understand what I'm saying? Don't you understand what you truly want?"

"As a king who hides his true heart, you are unable to do what you really want because of your kingly facade, but only in that moment can you truly be yourself."

"..."

Shido's words made Saber fall into an awkward silence, her eyes dimmed, and her ahoge (cowlick) seemed to lose its energy and lie flat on her hair.

"That's right, Saber, the moment you chose to become a Heroic Spirit, you regretted it. You regretted it like a normal person. You regretted not being a king, but a girl named Artoria. You wanted to undo everything. Saving your country was just a pretext. What you really wanted was to be the real you, a king with feelings, wasn't it?"

"If back then, you hadn't concealed your gender to become king, hadn't let the sword in the stone break, hadn't lost the scabbard, hadn't fought the Battle of Lancelot... if you had just been a king while also being a girl named Artoria, wouldn't that have been your true wish?"

"Lia, your mistake was simply not truly understanding yourself and closing off your heart and emotions. But it was precisely these mistakes that led to the tragedy that followed. Even if you were always thinking of the people and your subjects back then, your image of being too aloof and holy at the time only made people admire you from afar and dare not touch you, or rather, doubt whether the person in front of them was even human."

"The fault of your subjects and people is that they have never tried to understand you, placed the burden of the country on your shoulders, and blindly followed you. When you make a mistake, they distrust the cowardly behavior of you."

"Hey, Lia, do you know what Lancelot's wish is? His wish is simply for you to punish him personally, to confront him because of his own anger, to be punished by you, to be asked to make amends, to believe in you as atonement, and to die at your hands as a loyal knight."

“Lans…Lot…”

As if a fishbone were stuck in her throat, Saber spoke one word at a time, and at the same time, tears welled up in her emerald-like eyes—tears, one by one, fell to the ground.

She wanted to tell him, "You are a loyal knight. No one knows better than me the sincerity you have shown to your country and to the king."

So there's no need to blame yourself anymore. Even if it was a mistake you shouldn't have made. Your character can't be ruined by such a small mistake.

I don't want to humiliate you, I don't want to lose you. It is precisely because I have this desire that I can sincerely deny the so-called sins you have committed.

This was Artoria's true thought, but—the knight was still bound by the rampaging curse and unable to sense Saber's true feelings. However, Kariya sensed Berserker's unusual state—an emotion called redemption that Berserker could never possess.

"Ah...that's amazing. Shido's eloquence is truly incredible. If our army had someone with Shido's eloquence before, we might have been able to fight fewer battles."

"Hmph! Now we've lost one of our fun toys, you troublesome lackey."

Compared to Rider, who stared in astonishment and admiration at the situation, Archer clicked his tongue in displeasure and lowered his head to drink.

After crying her heart out, Saber took the handkerchief Shido handed her and wiped her red and swollen eyes. After wiping away her tears, Saber's eyes regained their haughtiness, but something was added to them, and something was missing.

Seeing all this, Shido chuckled and said with a smile.

"Speaking of which, Lia, although there is a faint trace of aura in your body that only the living possess. If I'm not mistaken, you made some kind of contract with the world when you were about to die, and as a price for that, you became a Heroic Spirit after death, right?"

"The so-called heroic spirits are beings formed by the gathering of faith after death. However, even if they do not actually exist, heroes in myths and legends are also born by gathering faith."

"So somewhere in Valhalla, there must be such a heroic spirit—King Arthur, who became a perfect king because of people's word of mouth, a perfect King Arthur who was both a king and a human being. That is undoubtedly another reflection of you, Lia."

Shido's words startled Saber, but then, Ria smiled and said softly.

"Hmm... a flawless King Arthur... that sounds quite nice."

Unbeknownst to anyone, as Lia spoke these calm, smiling words, a beam of white light emanated from the Hall of Heroes where Lia's true form resided, and the previously somber Hall of Heroes regained its color...

Chapter 162: Water and Ice—

Chapter 162: The Ultimate Overlord of Water and Ice! (Part 1)

"It seems you've let go a little, that's good. Don't always put so much burden on yourself, Lia, you'll never be alone forever. Even so, don't you have a loyal retainer like Lancelot?"

Shido gave a peaceful smile, which made Saber involuntarily smile back. Because Shido was right, even in this state, Lancelot remained loyal to her.

"Tch—enemy of women...she's just good at deceiving girls...she was all sweet talk to me the day before yesterday..."

Jeanne d'Arc, who was almost forgotten due to her role in the soy sauce game, can finally show her presence and assert her status as the heroine of this volume (really!?).

Seeing Shido exchanging glances with Saber since earlier (in his own opinion), even though he was advising her, what's with unconsciously trying to win her over while giving her advice?! Don't think I can't see it, King Arthur! What's with that slightly blushing look you're giving Shido?! (Flips table!) Don't think I didn't see it, you idiot!!

He said those things to me just the day before yesterday! What a super enemy of women!! A heartbreaker!!!

Joan of Arc, harboring resentment, stared at Shido with the look typically reserved for abandoned, bitter women. However, her movements were discreet, and she had spoken very softly, so only Joan of Arc herself could hear her.

"Ah, ah, ah-chi!!"

Shido, the person directly involved in Jeanne d'Arc's resentment, sneezed violently, a chill running down his spine. For some reason, he had just felt an immense surge of resentment, so strong it sent shivers down his spine...

Just as Shido was about to search for the source of this resentment, a murderous aura so thick it made the air feel strange suddenly appeared.

Strange white objects emerged in the moonlit courtyard. One after another, pale faces appeared in the courtyard like blooming flowers. That paleness was the color of cold, withered bones.

Skull masks and black robes. The deserted courtyard was gradually filled with this strange group.

Without a doubt, this group of people are the Assassins who faked their deaths! The Assassin isn't just the one killed at the Tohsaka Mansion. In fact, multiple Assassins participated in this Holy Grail War, but the number is abnormally high. They all wear masks and black robes, and their physiques vary greatly. There are giants, emaciated figures, childlike short people, and even women.

"...You did this, didn't you, Archer?"

Archer shrugged innocently.

"Who knows, I don't need to understand what those bastards are thinking."

Since so many assassins have been mobilized, it must not be Kirei Kotomine's order alone. It must be the intention of his teacher, Tokiomi Tohsaka.

Because Tokiomi had shown the respect due to a subject to the King of Heroes, Archer acknowledged him as his master. However, Tokiomi's actions only fueled Archer's growing dissatisfaction with him.

Although the banquet was initiated by the Rider, it was the Archer who provided the wine. What exactly is Tokiomi's intention in sending assassins to such a banquet? This is tantamount to smearing the face of the Hero King; does he even realize it?

"Hmm...it's a complete mess."

As the enemy drew ever closer, Waver let out a sigh that was almost a scream. This was incomprehensible; it completely exceeded the rules and restrictions of the Holy Grail War.

"What's going on?! Why are there assassins one after another... Aren't there only one servant per class?!"

Seeing their prey's pathetic state, the Assassins couldn't help but smirk wickedly.

"—You're right, we are servants who are the whole, and the individual members are merely shadows of the whole."

"Could it be... that we've been being watched by these guys all along?"

Irisviel murmured in anguish, and Saber couldn't help but shudder. Although their opponents weren't particularly powerful, their ability to approach stealthily and their sheer numbers posed a considerable threat, even to her, as the strongest Servant.

Moreover, these individuals, who usually stalk their targets like shadows, have now abandoned their ability to cut off their presence. Seeing them approach without fear means…

"They're getting serious now."

Saber found herself in an unexpected crisis, and she gritted her teeth in hatred.

A motley crew that relies on sheer numbers. Saber would never lose in a head-on attack, but this only applies if Saber is the only one facing the enemy.

Saber is now forced to protect Irisviel. No matter how weak the Assassins may be, they pose a considerable threat to humanity. Even Irisviel, a homunculus of the Einzbern Empire capable of wielding top-tier magic, cannot stop the Assassins with magic alone. It's simply impossible for her to protect herself on her own.

Therefore, in order to protect their comrades while fighting, the large number of enemies becomes a very urgent problem.

How many Assassins could Saber stop with a single strike? — No, it's not a question of how many she could stop. Even if she missed just one, that one person could potentially inflict serious damage on Irisviel.

Therefore, the question now is not "whether they can be stopped," but "whether they can be eliminated with a single blow." And the number of assassins surrounding them is despairingly high.

From the Assassins' perspective, they also have a final resort.

Even in group combat, the group is still composed of a limited number of people. The method of sacrificing the majority to achieve victory with the survival of a small number of survivors is tantamount to suicide, so this is a trump card that is only used in the final battle.

Assassins are Servants summoned for the purpose of the Holy Grail. They should not be able to tolerate being used as pawns of Tokiomi and Archer—but they also cannot disobey the Command Spells.

For tonight's operation, Kirei Kotomine used a Command Spell, commanding them to "win at all costs." Command Spells are absolute commands to Servants, leaving them no choice but to obey.

Furthermore, in order to achieve absolute victory, Kirei Kotomine also used a Command Spell to greatly enhance the Assassins' abilities, raising their stats by two levels, determined to eliminate Waver and his group, who were the most unpredictable group.

Yes, this battle can be said to be the greatest crisis for Shido, and the Assassins' killing intent is also being directed at Waver and his group without any mercy.

However—whether it's Shido, Rider, or Jeanne d'Arc, they are all still leisurely drinking and eating meat.

“...ri—Rider, Shido, hey, hey…”

Even as Webber anxiously shouted, Rider He Shilai remained motionless. They glanced at the assassins around them, their expressions still calm and composed.

"Hey, little master, don't be so embarrassed. It's just that there are guests at the banquet, you can still drink the wine."

"Don't worry too much, Master. I'm also very good at group battles."

"Rider! How do they look like guests!?"

Rider sighed with a wry smile, then faced the Assassins surrounding him and greeted them with a foolishly indifferent expression:

"Gentlemen, could you please tone down your murderous aura? My friend is terrified."

Saber thought she had misheard, and even Archer frowned.

"Do you intend to invite them to the table, King Conqueror?"

"Of course, the king's speech should be heard by all the people. Since someone has come specifically to listen, it doesn't matter whether they are an enemy or a friend."

Rider spoke calmly, scooping out the red wine from his glass and extending it to the Assassins.

"Come, don't be shy. If you want to drink together, help yourself to the cup. This wine is in your blood."

Whoosh—a sound piercing the air answered the rider.

Only the handle remained in Rider's hand; the spoon itself had fallen to the ground. This was the work of one of the Assassins, and the wine from the spoon was scattered across the courtyard floor.

"..."

Rider looked down speechlessly at the wine scattered on the ground. The skull masks seemed to laugh as if mocking him.

"—Don't say I didn't warn you."

Rider's tone remained calm, but it was clear that the feeling within it had changed. Only the two men who had been drinking with him earlier noticed this change.

“I told you, this wine is your blood—right? Since you just let it spill on the ground, then I’ll…”