To become a king and a magician

"Clang clang clang clang clang——————!"

Suddenly, beams of light appeared throughout the Matou residence. Arcs of magical light, like chalk, quickly enveloped the entire Matou residence before splitting into countless beams that connected to the beams of light, instantly forming a massive magic circle.

Morgan arrived at the Matou residence five minutes before Arthur and Natsukawa Tora arrived. For her, five minutes was enough time to set up a ritual magic that could harm King Arthur.

This was originally a precautionary measure; if Artoria refused his proposal, Morgan would use this method to blow her up.

Without any hesitation, Arthur scooped up Natsukawa Torato and fled outside! He didn't care if he got injured, but Natsukawa Torato absolutely couldn't withstand the attack of this ritual magic!

"He ran away, huh? He values ​​his Master's life more than defeating me? As expected, you're the 'younger brother' from another world. But that's fine too. As our first meeting, I think we've already left a deep enough impression on each other."

Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Morgan smiled slightly. Although the situation was quite different from what she had expected, it actually made things more interesting. To be honest, if Saber really was her sister, Morgan would find it rather boring.

A male King Arthur from another world.

"It looks like we could play with this for a long time."

Just as Morgan was thinking this, the magical light that occupied the entire Matou residence expanded rapidly, and Natsukawa Torato and Arthur's figures disappeared from Morgan's sight in an instant.

But just before being completely engulfed by the light, Morgan's eyes caught a glimpse of something unusual.

It was a fleeting glimpse of sky blue.

next moment--

"BOOM——————————————————————!!"

24. The Return of Malice

In a building in Shinto, Fuyuki City.

"Um...uh..."

Lying on the sofa, Xia Chuanhu covered his eyes and let out a painful groan. The burning pain made his eyes feel like they were on fire, and tears streamed uncontrollably from his eyes.

Meanwhile, looking at Natsukawa Tora like this, Arthur couldn't help but sigh: "You really acted recklessly, Master. You actually broke the seal under those circumstances. If I had been any slower, you would have gone blind by now."

"I'm not... hiss... I'm not the kind of person who would stay silent if I suffered a loss."

"I'm in so much pain," Xia Chuanhu said, wincing in pain.

Hours earlier, before the Matou residence was destroyed by Morgan's ritual magic, Natsukawa Torato had removed the sealing cloth and glared fiercely at Morgan. Just as he himself had said, he wasn't one to willingly suffer a loss. Since he had almost been killed by Morgan, he naturally had to retaliate.

Spiritual corruption, being glared at by such a demonic eye, Morgan must be feeling terrible right now.

That is, assuming it really is Morgan.

“We’ve been completely fooled, Arthur,” Natsukawa Tora said, covering his eyes. “That wasn’t the real Morgan; it was a dummy.”

"dummy?"

"The scale of the soul is incorrect."

Although it was only a fleeting glimpse, Natsukawa Torato had indeed seen what a Servant's soul should look like. Whether it was Arthur or Diarmuid, their souls were like blazing flames, very intense. But the soul of Morgan that he had just seen, even though it resembled a flame, was as weak as a candle flickering in the wind, like a flame that could be blown out by the wind at any moment.

Natsukawa Torato can understand that there are differences between souls, but since they are all Heroic Spirits, the differences should not be this great.

The only explanation for this situation is that it wasn't the real Morgan.

"A substitute, a doll, an illusion... If it's Morgan, she should be able to do something similar, right? The one who appeared in the Matou family was that kind of being, otherwise there's no way to explain why her soul was so weak."

"A doll..."

Arthur fell silent upon hearing this. He wasn't a magician, and his understanding of magic wasn't deep. In the past, he had always entrusted matters related to magic to Merlin or his Master. Because Merlin and his two predecessors were both excellent magicians, Arthur had never encountered any major problems in this regard. But now...

(It was my oversight.)

Morgan must have anticipated that the two would go to the Matou residence, so she went there beforehand to set up a ritual magic and curse, leaving behind a substitute before leaving. This would explain why she appeared so brazenly before them. Even if a battle broke out then, it wouldn't have affected Morgan, since it was just a substitute after all.

(I was completely taken aback.)

Recalling the scene of his confrontation with Morgan, Arthur clenched his fists, and at the same time, he confirmed one thing again in his heart—even if it was not the same world, even if the experience was different, it was still Morgan after all, still the witch who indirectly destroyed Camelot, who could see into people's hearts and manipulate emotions... She was still the same as he remembered, without any change.

Are you blaming yourself, Arthur?

Natsukawa Tora's voice suddenly rang out.

"Master... I'm so sorry, I hurt you."

“There’s no need to apologize. You did a great job. The eye injury was my own doing and has nothing to do with you. If it weren’t for you, I would have been blown up long ago. I’m the one who should thank you. And I’m also the one who should apologize.”

Slightly opening his eyes, Xia Chuanhu looked at Arthur and said, "Arthur, I'm sorry, I'm the one who dragged you down."

Natsukawa Torato knew that everything Arthur did was to protect him. Because, as he had said before, his only goal in the Holy Grail War was to survive, which was why Arthur always prioritized protecting him. Otherwise, in that situation just now, with Arthur's magic resistance, even if he were injured, he could definitely have dealt with Morgan's substitute, although in the end, it wouldn't have affected anything.

Arthur is very strong; he is strong enough to contend with Gilgamesh even in a direct confrontation. As the wielder of the Star Sword, the Red Dragon of Britain, and the unparalleled King of Knights, he should be the one most likely to obtain the Holy Grail and become the victor in the Holy Grail War.

But his master is such a useless guy like himself.

"Although I didn't want to lose to your previous two Masters, and I thought that with these Mystic Eyes and the magic circuits opened, I should be able to help you at least a little, but it's still like this..."

"Arthur, let me ask you this: if you had replaced me with either of your previous two Masters, you probably wouldn't have..."

"This is a pointless question, Master."

Before Natsukawa Tora could finish speaking, Arthur squatted down and took Natsukawa Tora's hand. "Indeed, if it were Aika, it would be an easy victory for me. And if it were Ayaka, she wouldn't be in such a passive position now."

"But reality has no 'what ifs.' At this moment, in this Holy Grail War, my Master is only you, Natsukawa Torato."

“Master, you said that what you need from me is not victory, but protection. You want me to protect you, so no matter how many difficulties and obstacles lie ahead, I will respond to your wish and protect you until the very last moment.”

Having lost his desire to save Britain and no longer clinging to the past, Arthur now has only two things he wants to do—to fulfill his Master's wish and to defeat Ayaka Sajou.

Looking at Arthur kneeling before him, swearing a knightly oath, Natsukawa Torama gave a wry smile: "I can't even imagine how much pain I'll suffer when the curse strikes again. Besides, you really dare to say that. I suggest you say those words to Sajō Aika next time, and you'll guarantee victory without a fight."

"Between Aigo and me... I don't think it will be easy to resolve. I have moved on from the past, but she is still trapped by my past self."

"..."

Xia Chuanhu closed his eyes again and lay down face up. He sighed, "Forget it, let's not talk about this now. I'll leave the guard duty to you. I'm going to rest for a while. After being bombed twice, my head is still a little dizzy."

"Yes, Master, take a good rest."

——————————————————————————————

Meanwhile, inside the large underground cavity of Yuanzang Mountain.

"——————"

As if a hole had been carved out of space itself, a black gap quietly appeared above the large void, and then, like a waterfall, some kind of black substance gushed out from the gap.

25. Matou Kariya is exceptionally brave.

The Holy Grail War, Day Three.

Xia Chuanhu woke up on the sofa.

"Good morning, Master," Arthur, fully armed, greeted, appearing immediately beside Natsukawa Tora.

"Good morning, Arthur. Did anything happen after I fell asleep last night?"

"Berserker has left the stage."

"Oh...what?!"

Natsukawa Tora, who was still a little dazed, instantly snapped back to reality and jumped up from the sofa: "What happened? Berserker left the stage? Who did it? Which side was fighting last night?"

“It’s Archer.”

Ah, Gilgamesh?

That's fine.

Sitting back down on the sofa, Xia Chuanhu rubbed his temples, his head aching.

He really didn't expect Lancelot to leave so early. Could it be that Matou Kariya was so eager for revenge that he went and stormed the Tohsaka family alone? How could he be so brave! Although Tohsaka Tokiomi and Gilgamesh's combination is not compatible, Gilgamesh is just too strong. Even Lancelot, who can grab the earth upside down, can't defeat him.

"Sigh, really. First, there was the hotel explosion and the Matou residence bombing in the first half of the night, and then the Tohsaka family in the second half of the night. Fuyuki City is really quite peaceful."

Because of the presence of Kiritsugu Emiya and Morgan, Natsukawa Torara originally intended to remain hidden for a while, waiting for everyone to show themselves and confirm their movements before moving to a location far away from the crowd. This was a survival tactic he used in PUBG: staying on the outermost edge when everyone else was moving inwards, and surviving to the end meant victory. Although he wasn't sure how effective this method would be in practice, he decided to play it safe for now.

But what no one expected was that Matou Kariya would actually go and fight Gilgamesh head-on?

Even if Matou Kariya was ignorant, he should know that it was impossible to defeat Tokiomi Tohsaka by going for revenge without any preparation. Could it be that he targeted the time when Gilgamesh was not at the Tohsaka residence and launched a sneak attack?

"Arthur, did you witness the entire battle last night?"

“No, I just glanced at them from a distance after noticing the magical fluctuations.” As he said this, Arthur’s expression turned somewhat strange. “Actually, I was a little surprised. I didn’t expect that Berserker and Archer were actually people I knew… no, they should be counterparts from different worlds.”

"Can you tell their real names?"

"Because they are all familiar faces I've fought several times. Although they are somewhat different in personality from the one I know, Archer is undoubtedly Gilgamesh, the oldest hero-king in human history, and an exceptional Servant who possesses all the original texts of Noble Phantasms."

"What about Berserker?"

“It’s Lord Lancelot.” Arthur scratched his face. “But… Lord Lancelot actually has Berserker class adaptability? She’s an exceptionally skilled knight; even I wouldn’t dare say I could absolutely defeat her.”

Upon hearing this, Xia Chuanhu paused for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Arthur, you and Lancelot on your side are very close? The legends on both sides should be similar, right? She stole your queen and you can still be on good terms with her?"

"Ah, that... well, how should I put it... let's talk about it another time, Master. That's all."

I can't bring myself to say it.

Even Arthur found it difficult to talk about his embarrassing romantic history, and he couldn't imagine how his Master would laugh if he heard about the love triangle between his subordinate and his wife.

Not to mention that Merlin later had to go to great lengths to spread another version of the rumor in order to maintain his image.

Seeing Arthur remain silent, Natsukawa Tiger, as a seasoned gossip enthusiast, instinctively felt that there was definitely a big juicy story to be told.

(Using a Command Spell—no, no, no, that would be too extravagant, and besides, it might create a rift with Arthur. Let's do it another time if there's a chance.)

Banishing the absurd thoughts from his mind, Xia Chuanhu stepped off the sofa: "I'm going to wash up. Let's go out for a bit later."

"Are you going to find Lancer's team?"

"No, let's go eat. I'm hungry."

————————————————————————

On the streets of Fuyuki City's new capital.

Although they knew that it was during the Holy Grail War and that they might encounter other Servants or Masters wandering around, neither Arthur nor Natsukawa Torato expected that they would run into an acquaintance as soon as they stepped out of the back door of the building.

"Long time no see—well, not that long, right? Did you sleep well last night? My adorable [little brother], and my equally adorable little Master."