Nobody knows how to be a villain better than me.

Immediately, before Samael could refuse, the silver-haired beauty took the initiative to speak and offered her a stake.

"Of course, I know what revealing one's true name and origins means for a Heroic Spirit. So, as compensation, I'm willing to exchange this."

As she spoke, Irisviel stole a glance at the Knight King guarding the carriage on the shore, and carefully spread out her fair palm, revealing a gleaming teardrop-shaped gold crystal in the silver-haired beauty's hand.

Samael stared in astonishment at the drop of the Holy Grail before him and at Irisviel's serious expression.

"Did I hear that right? You want to use the Holy Grail for a mere answer?"

"It's only a one in seven chance of obtaining the Holy Grail."

Irisviel smiled slightly and corrected her softly.

Samael remained silent for a moment, calming himself slightly, but his brows were still furrowed. His deep eyes gazed at the silver-haired beauty who had made an unexpected choice, and he spoke to offer a reminder.

"I remember the Einzbern family's long-cherished wish was to achieve the salvation of all mankind. For a shadow that has long since died, you are willing to consume the Holy Grail Drop that you obtained with great difficulty. Aren't you afraid that Ahad will hold you accountable?"

"Since it's about saving all of humanity, then we shouldn't easily abandon any one of them!"

Irisviel's expression turned serious as she answered earnestly.

"If we can't even save one person who needs help right now, how can we talk about saving all of humanity?"

“Alice, you are indeed qualified to inherit the name of the Winter Saintess, for you are a true saint.”

Samael scrutinized the silver-haired beauty before him for a moment, a smile of approval appearing on his face as he nodded in satisfaction.

"It seems that Artoria has drawn a good Master."

"You agree!"

Irisviel was overjoyed to hear the change in those words.

However, as soon as the words were raised a few notes, the silver-haired beauty instinctively shrank her neck, quickly covered her mouth, and furtively glanced at Artoria on the shore, looking like she had done something wrong, afraid that her little actions would be caught red-handed by her own servant.

This charming, endearing, and humane reaction made Samael unable to suppress a smile.

But faced with Irisviel's hopeful and expectant gaze, the ancient serpent could only temporarily suppress its playful thoughts, ponder for a moment, and then offer a vague "revelation".

"I can only tell you that the real King Arthur is still alive, but it is neither me nor her."

The unexpected answer left Irisviel both surprised and confused.

Samael then hesitated for a moment, looked up at Artoria on the shore who was completely unaware of this dirty deal, and a helpless sigh appeared on his face.

"A person who has vanished has no need to be attached to a kingdom that has vanished. Even if one were to obtain it, it would not be a good thing, for she is not a savior queen, but rather Britain's... [calamity]!"

"...!"

When the close, whispered words exploded like thunder in her mind, Irisviel's pupils contracted, her face filled with disbelief.

Chapter 174 The Cunning Wife Teases Me Online (4.6k)

At this moment, Samael glanced at Artoria, who remained faithfully guarding the surroundings on the shore, completely unaware of what was happening. A faint sigh escaped her lips as she parted slightly.

In fact, back when they first met during the hijacking incident, the ancient snake had a vague feeling that this so-called Knight King was a fake.

Because no one knew better than him where Artoria and the Knights of the Round Table had gone; those Camelot elites had long been lured into Avalon by him.

As the burial ground of the gods, the isolation barrier of the Starry Sea is not so easy to break through.

Otherwise, the ground would have been in chaos long ago.

Therefore, she could not possibly be the Lion King she knew, nor the savior who held Britain together.

The truth is quite the opposite.

The embodiment of calamity in Britain, sweeping across the northern border of Britain, ultimately forcing the Lion King Artoria to lead the Knights of the Round Table in a personal campaign against the King of Storms and the Lord of the Wild Hunt!

This is her true identity.

That's why, when Samael faced the hordes of Shadow Servants in the alley and brandished the Holy Lance Rungomminiad, the King of Storms reacted so violently, regarding him as a mortal enemy.

Because this King of Storms has always led a vast army of the Wild Hunt, fighting against the Lion King who personally led the expedition in the North.

The weapon held by "Arthur Pendragon," who wore a lion-mane helmet and whose gender was indiscernible, was none other than the holy spear Rungomminiad.

Therefore, she naturally regarded Samael as her former mortal enemy.

Of course, it's not wrong for her to be called "Artoria Pendragon".

Because, in a sense, she should indeed have the surname "Pendragon".

It must be admitted that both King Uther and Vortigern were unparalleled geniuses in that land under the setting sun.

King Uther, with his own bloodline and the dragon's essence, created the perfect heir, Artoria.

Vortigern, who was severely injured by the Lion King, also realized the power of this god and used him as a template to create Artoria's reflection in the mirror, another successor to herself.

That is, the Storm King who possesses the Dragon Factor, is born of calamity, and can control the Wild Hunt.

In addition, there are the three fairy knights born from the Dragon Plague, Beast Plague, and Insect Plague: Melusin, Bagst, and Bavanshi.

This army, born from calamity and having consumed all of King Vortigern's energy, may well have the strength to rival Camelot.

However, man proposes, God disposes.

Samael and Morgan's intervention successively resolved the insect plague and the beast plague, and they eventually conquered the dragon's nest in the Misty Swamp.

As a result, Vortigern, who had secretly plotted and schemed, was not only prematurely sent to meet his long-dead brother, King Uther, but even his three carefully crafted goblin knights were successfully turned against him and became Morgan's adopted daughters.

Similarly, the Storm King, having lost its support, was also reduced to dust by the combined forces of the Lion King and the Knights of the Round Table.

However, even after being defeated, that resentment and unwillingness were ultimately preserved on that land, which gave birth to the "Artoria" we see today.

Of course, it's also correct to call her "Artoria".

Because, in essence, the King of Storms is merely a machine intent on unifying Britain and carrying out orders to restore the kingdom.

But at some point, that resentment of defeat seeped into the Lion King's mind after he abandoned his divinity and returned to humanity, rejecting certain "impurities" and weaving a false set of emotions and a false life.

Merlin! Meryl!

Sure enough, you can't believe a word the nightmare says!

Samael, after sorting out his thoughts once more, realized the crux of the problem. His eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he snorted coldly in displeasure.

Clearly, the twisted and obsessive divine avatar atop the tower in the dream created by these two nightmare demons may not be merely a void, but rather a spiritual entity separated from the consciousness of the divine Lion King through a dream.

Although Samael and his young apprentice eventually succeeded in destroying the distorted divine incarnation, these "impurities" expelled from the body clearly found a more suitable host in that land, and rebuilt Britain into their ideal country.

Ironically, a king who dreamed of restoring his kingdom was actually a non-existent person.

There is not even a past, nor a self.

In a sense, the Artoria before us and Samael himself have many similarities.

They were all King Arthur in another sense, but they had no land and no subjects.

In that era, they were all just empty shadows.

They were both trying to destroy Britain and trying to save it.

A nation without a home, people without a home.

I never imagined that this persistence from a thousand years ago could continue to this day.

Samael's thoughts returned, and he looked up at Artoria, who was on guard on the shore, a trace of pity appearing in his eyes.

A gentle sea breeze blew, and the moonlight was as cool as water. Standing on the beach, Irisviel was deeply moved by this unexpected answer and remained unsettled for a long time.

"Hey, what did you do to Alice?!"

As her patrolling gaze fell upon her Master's inexplicably pale face, Artoria on the shore frowned and snorted coldly, looking at the only suspect at the scene with an unfriendly expression.

"No, I'm fine. It's just that I was a bit too active today, so I might be a little overwhelmed."

Before Artoria could step forward to interrogate the suspect, Irisviel waved her hands repeatedly.

Upon hearing this, Artoria couldn't help but look suspicious.

"Really?"

"real!"

Irisviel nodded seriously, then turned to look at Samael beside her, before turning back to Artoria with a hint of reproach on her face.

“Saber, Mr. Arthur is a very good person. Have you forgotten that during the last attack, it was he who helped us so that we could safely return to the castle? If he wanted to harm us, he could have just stood by and watched. Why wait until now?”

"..."

Upon hearing this, Artoria felt utterly speechless.

"Therefore, you are not allowed to make unfounded speculations in the future, nor should you be so hostile. That is very impolite."

"Well, that's fine."

Under her Master's earnest advice, Artoria gritted her teeth and nodded helplessly, but her arrogance and hidden displeasure still made her add a polite remark.

"Hey, don't think I'll trust you just because you helped me! Don't let me catch you red-handed, or I'll make sure you regret it!"

Artoria snorted coldly, turned her head to the side, and got into the car to wait, lest she see that face too much and accidentally get itchy and rush up to fight him.

Faced with such a unique Servant, Irisviel could only offer an apologetic smile, feeling rather helpless.

Samael, who had maintained a calm and collected demeanor throughout, glanced at the Mercedes parked by the roadside and asked a question.

"What, you finally found out the truth, aren't you going to tell her?"

"Some truths, once known, are not necessarily a good thing; it's better not to say them."

Irisviel sighed softly and shook her head helplessly.

Samael gently patted the silver-haired beauty's shoulder to comfort her, while winking with a smile and a hint of approval in his eyes.

"It seems you've learned a lot during your time in Fuyuki City."

"Lies count too?"

"That's called benevolent concealment, restraining the urge to confide, and enduring the torment of the secret alone—it's a rare and precious quality."

"That makes a lot of sense. I feel much less guilty now. It seems you're quite good at charming girls..."

Suddenly, those ruby-like eyes, clear and bright, gazed intently at Samael, their tone full of meaning.

"Cough cough..."

Under Irisviel's gaze, Samael subconsciously coughed and turned his head away, avoiding the gaze that made him feel inexplicably guilty.

"Oh, I almost forgot, as agreed, this is for you."

Fortunately, Irisviel broke the somewhat eerie atmosphere by smilingly opening her pale palm and handing the precious drop of the Holy Grail to Samael.

The ancient snake lowered its head and stared at the prize for a moment, but did not take it. It frowned slightly and asked the question that had been bothering it.

"You handed it to me so easily, don't you have any desire for the Holy Grail?"

"A wish?"

Irisviel rested her chin on her slender, pale fingertips, looked up at the glittering Milky Way under the night sky, thought for a moment, then lowered her head and looked at the figure in the Mercedes who was climbing over the back seat and fiddling with something, a bright smile on her face.

"One has been achieved tonight."

To trace Artoria's past and help her find her homeland was a promise I once made.

I originally thought that I would need to obtain the complete Holy Grail to achieve perfection, but I never expected that there would be a Heroic Spirit who was familiar with Artoria hidden in this Holy Grail War.

Therefore, using a single drop of the Holy Grail to unravel the mystery surrounding Artoria should be considered a profitable outcome.

However, the answer was somewhat unexpected.

"Okay, let's not talk about that anymore. Thank you for taking the time to come with me to the beach tonight."

Immediately, Irisviel, gathering her thoughts, placed the drop of the Holy Grail in Samael's hand without a word, spread her arms, and twirled and danced on the beach, a bright smile on her delicate face as she relaxed and enjoyed herself.

"I had a very pleasant trip and I'm very happy."

"Me too."

Samael casually stuffed the Holy Grail drop, which was extremely precious in the eyes of outsiders, into his pocket, then looked up at the sea breeze, the surrounding waves, the moonlight, and the beautiful scenery, his eyes showing contentment.

Irisviel seemed quite encouraged by these words, and then looked up at Samael with sincerity and fervor.

"Then, let's continue our journey together tomorrow."

"Okay!"