To become a king and a magician

Morgan curled his lip: "Unscathed? No wonder it's the strongest armor in Greek mythology. To penetrate that armor, one shot wouldn't be enough."

"You're really capable, Morgan. That's enough." Meryl came to Morgan's side and laughed. "If you keep fighting, their illusions won't hold up. The magic you're using is too powerful."

"Is this all the Grand Magician is capable of?"

"A substitute! He's a substitute! Besides, even a Grand Magician can't do everything! At least consider that there's almost no difference in strength between us. You're not much worse than me. Making me endure your onslaught without being allowed to retaliate is just bullying. No matter how tough you are, you can't take it."

Is it here?

Suddenly, at the same moment that Meryl's voice fell, a voice suddenly came from outside the illusion barrier.

Then, as if shattering glass, a crack suddenly appeared in one corner of the illusion barrier, and a hand reached in through the gap. Five fingers adorned with rings gripped the edge of the crack, and then pulled hard—

"Snap—!"

The illusion barrier shattered completely in an instant!

The group inside the barrier was immediately brought back to reality, where the prisoner who had broken through the barrier—King Solomon—was staring coldly at them.

"found it."

"Rider".

67. I escaped with my life.jpg

King Solomon?

Why is he here?

No, the important thing is what he just did: he forcibly dismantled Mary's illusion barrier with his bare hands!

"You mean magic is ineffective against you?" Mary looked at the ten rings on King Solomon's hand with a hint of helplessness. "But I remember that only magic systems established after the Common Era and magic used by humans are ineffective against you. My magic shouldn't be ineffective against you."

"If magic can only be nullified by the Ten Commandments, that would be somewhat inconvenient. In reality, it's not difficult to intervene in your magic. You haven't really put much effort into constructing a barrier, have you?"

"So... you directly interfered with my magic and forcibly disrupted it?"

Mary couldn't help but smile bitterly. Even if, as King Solomon said, she hadn't been using illusion magic very seriously, it had still interfered with and ruined her magic... As a magician, this was really quite disheartening.

"What brings you here, Caster?"

Upon landing, Morgan said to King Solomon with some displeasure, "If you're here to cause trouble for Rider, you'd better get in line. It's my turn to settle accounts with them."

"The lord of the island of Britain? A Servant who obtained a physical body and survived the last Holy Grail War, huh? So that's how the Holy Grail grants a second life?"

King Solomon's gaze fell upon Morgan as if he were examining a model work. He observed her very carefully, for Morgan was a very similar precedent to the wish he wanted to fulfill.

King Solomon quickly withdrew his gaze: "I have learned much, Lord of the British Isles. Thanks to this meeting, I am even more convinced of the wish I should make. Thank you."

"Huh?"

Morgan was taken aback by the sudden gratitude. Had she done something that would earn her King Solomon's thanks?

Just as Morgan was wondering, King Solomon turned his gaze back to Odysseus: "Alright, let's continue our battle, Rider. Last time you had no intention of fighting and kept probing from a relatively safe distance, which is why I was unable to eliminate you immediately."

"This time it won't happen again."

Magic emanated from King Solomon, and in the space behind him, three faintly visible human figures gradually took on physical form.

"The first pillar, the thirty-seventh pillar, the fortieth pillar—"

"Just a moment~"

Just as King Solomon was about to summon the three demon gods into the world, Meryl suddenly appeared between the two groups of people. At the same time, the demon gods behind King Solomon, who were not yet fully revealed, were instantly engulfed by countless flying flowers.

King Solomon frowned: "Will you stop me, Magician of Flowers?"

"No, no, no, I have absolutely no intention of interfering in the battle between Caster and Rider. It's just that I am now the supervisor of this Holy Grail War, and I can't stand idly by when something might break the rules of the Holy Grail War."

"There are two rules in the Holy Grail War: the Holy Grail War must be held at night, and the Holy Grail War must not affect the surface society."

“Caster, if you insist on fighting Rider here, you will be violating these two rules. According to the rules of the Holy Grail War, the Overseer has the right to summon the other participants to punish the party that violates the rules.”

"That certainly seems to be the case."

King Solomon waved his hand, causing the three spirits behind him to disappear from the mortal world.

"Without rules, there can be no order. Although it was the Master's request, I was a little rash and offended you this time."

The unexpectedly agreeable nature of the conversation relieved Aozaki Touko and Odysseus. They had just fought Morgan, and if they were to fight King Solomon immediately afterward, they would definitely be outmatched. At best, they could only escape by relying on Odysseus's Noble Phantasm.

The Trojan Horse, if summoned, would definitely cause a sensation throughout the world.

"It's okay, it's okay, I'm glad you understand. I just hope you don't hold a grudge because of my intervention. I was just following the rules."

“I understand your position, Flower Magician. There’s no need to worry about it—the Master has accepted this explanation as well. So, let you leave in peace this time, Rider. But please be prepared, I will come again after nightfall.”

"Regarding this—Caster, could you please postpone your battle with Rider until the night after tomorrow?"

Mary's sudden words made King Solomon and the others hesitate for a moment.

The night after tomorrow?

Why move it to that time?

"Give me an explanation, Flower Magician."

"It's very simple. Your Noble Phantasms are all the type that will cause a huge impact on the surrounding area. If you fight with all your might, Fuyuki City will definitely not be enough for you to cause trouble. At that time, the person in charge, as the temporary supervisor, will definitely be held accountable, and it will be a bit troublesome for them to run away later."

Meryl explained with a smile, "So, to prevent Fuyuki City from being demolished by you guys, they plan to spend two days creating a large illusion world. The two of you can fight in there—Morgan, you'll have to come and help out then."

To avoid being exposed, should they change battlefields?

[A very sound consideration. Indeed, with Rider as their opponent, even the King cannot defeat him without causing any damage. Letting them linger for a couple of days won't pose any problem.]

Marisbury's viewpoint revealed agreement; in his opinion, a day or two wouldn't have much impact on his plans.

King Solomon, who had a deep understanding of the current state of magic, did not think it was wrong to do so. Even though magic was extremely weak, it should be preserved as much as possible. Accelerating the demise of magic was not a good thing.

However, Your Majesty, please convey this message: since the other side has made a request, we also have our own requests.

"Flower Magician, we can grant your request, but in return, you must also grant our request. Is that acceptable?"

"Hmm, tell me about it."

"It's called a request, but actually it's just that I want you to pass on a message to that spirit user. Both my Master and I have something to say to him. I can say mine when we meet later, and my Master's message is—"

"Regarding the future you mentioned some time ago, after careful consideration, the Department of Astrophysics does not intend to abandon it. However, I am well aware that you will not stand idly by, so I hope to discuss this matter with you again in two days."

"—That's all. See you in two days, Rider."

After saying this, King Solomon slowly disappeared from the spot.

68. Is there anyone who feels sorry for Meryl?

"In conclusion, could you possibly do me a favor, Your Majesty?"

Not long after, at the stronghold where Xia Chuanhu and the others were located.

Meili clasped her hands together and made this request to Natsukawa Tora.

"Even with Morgan's help, it would be quite troublesome to build a super-large illusion world covering the entire city of Fuyuki in two days. In addition, the strength of the illusion world also needs to be able to withstand your bombardment. It's really impossible for just two people to do it!"

"I just overslept a little and had lunch, and you guys have to make such a fuss?"

Natsukawa Torato was also somewhat helpless. He could only say that after a period of rest, the Holy Grail War suddenly seemed to be heading towards the final battle. It was only the fourth day of the Holy Grail War, which was usually still in the probing phase. Even if two groups had been eliminated early, the situation shouldn't be like this...

Thinking of this, Natsukawa Tora glanced at the people huddled in this stronghold—Artoria, Scáthach, and Odysseus.

The remaining five Servants are divided into three groups. Because their Masters are too close, they are currently drinking tea and chatting peacefully. In addition, there is Okita Souji, who can be considered half a Servant of Natsukawa Torato, on Arcueid's side.

Solomon's group was completely isolated and helpless!

(It seems like it really is time for the final battle.)

"Your Majesty the King?"

"Well... I understand the situation. Helping to construct the barrier is fine, but how exactly do we do it? Should we set up magic circles as nodes throughout Fuyuki City?"

"That's roughly it. After that, I just need to connect those magic circles to myself and drag the entire Fuyuki City into the illusion realm. Miss Zero should know a lot about this, right? You've done something similar before."

Sajou Rei nodded, then smiled and said, "So, you still need my help? If Master has no problem, then I have no problem either."

"Then it's settled—that's great! We don't have to work overtime all day long anymore. With four people, each person only needs to work six hours a day."

"Huh?"

A casual remark by Merry made Natsukawa Toramaru, Morgan, and Sajou Rei all frown.

"Wait a minute, Meryl, you mean... if you work alone, you only need one whole day?"

"Yes, but that would be too tiring, running around non-stop for 24 hours. People can't handle that."

"So if you split it into two days, it'll only take twelve hours a day, right?" Morgan seemed to understand Meryl's thinking. "You want to slack off?"

"That's absolutely not true. Don't slander me."

Seeing that Mary had turned her gaze away, the group exchanged glances, took a deep breath, and simultaneously raised their fists.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The three consecutive blows to the head knocked Mary down.

With practiced ease, he conjured a rope and bound the lazy dream demon, who was trying to slack off, into a dumpling and hung it from the ceiling. Xia Chuanhu clapped his hands: "Let's finish constructing the barrier tomorrow. That way, we'll have an extra day to prepare."

"Yes, that's fine too."

"Protest! Protest against working overtime!"

"Alright, alright, Miss Meryl, please face this way."

With a smile, Sajou Rei sealed Merry's mouth shut with a roll of transparent tape as she turned her head.

"Waaaaaahh ...

Mary immediately began to shake wildly like a fish stranded on the beach. It was clear that she was quite resistant to this physical method of silencing people. Unfortunately, apart from the kind-hearted Grey, no one present was considerate of her. They just watched as she shook herself until she was exhausted.

After resolving Meryl's matter, Natsukawa Torara turned to look in the other direction—

"You really look sorry, Orange. You got beaten up so badly."

"You wouldn't be much better than me, would you, Aoko? If you're so capable, don't just stay by the boy's side."

"Sure, we'll see in two days. Anyway, all you do is mess around with your crappy dolls."