A mysterious creature suddenly appeared.
A colossal being destroying the city.
A dangerous entity that human military forces couldn't possibly defeat.
A monster.
The moment Naoki stepped out of the house, the moment he looked toward the source of the explosion, such a description clearly formed in his mind.
"That direction… the Mion River?"
[Tonight, a monster will appear at the Mion River.]
Suddenly, Artoria's words from earlier that day flashed into Naoki's mind. He quickly turned to Artoria, who had followed him out, and grabbed her shoulders. "You weren't lying to me?"
"Yes, I would never lie to you, Master." Artoria nodded. "Though the nature is different, if explained in a way you can understand now, it is indeed a Monster."
"Really?"
Looking back toward the Mion River, amidst towering flames and thick smoke, Naoki's eyes immediately spotted the massive figure there.
It was a monster resembling a giant dragon, but its body was far too large to be a dragon. Its swollen legs and overly long neck made it hard to comprehend how it stood steadily. A large hump protruded from its back, with numerous sharp horns growing from it.
"GGGAAAAAAA—!"
A deafening roar echoed through the chaotic Fuyuki City. Each time the monster advanced, the city visibly trembled. Power poles near the Mion River had long since snapped, and the Fuyuki Bridge had collapsed into ruins. Fireballs continuously spewed from the monster's mouth, relentlessly striking every corner of Fuyuki City!
Nights in Fuyuki City were always calm. The New City might be different, but Miyama-chou was always peaceful. Yet, due to this massive disturbance, the once-quiet residential area was now in complete panic. People emerged from their homes one by one, and upon witnessing the situation, they either fled back inside in terror or collapsed to the ground, overwhelmed, as if their worldview had shattered.
No, it wasn't just "as if."
In reality, including Naoki, everyone's worldview might have truly collapsed. For a monster like this to suddenly appear in the peaceful Fuyuki City, effortlessly destroying everything in its reach—someone whose worldview didn't collapse would be the odd one out.
But…
"Go there… I have to go there…"
As if his soul had left him, mumbling incoherent words, Naoki took step after step toward the monster. He knew what he was doing. This was clearly marching toward death.
Yet he felt he had to go there.
His heart was pounding rapidly. The lack of motivation he always felt seemed to activate when he looked at the monster, surging uncontrollably!
"I have to go there… Right, Pendragon?"
"Yes." Artoria nodded. "You must go there, and I'll go with you. That's why I came, Master."
"I don't get it. When you talk like that, my brain's getting all messed up. Can you explain first?"
"Of course, but right now, stopping that city-destroying monster is more important, isn't it?"
Stopping the city-destroying monster—those words made Naoki's heart beat even faster. His body couldn't resist running toward it, wanting to defeat the monster.
No, he was already walking there, his steps never stopping.
"Naoki!"
A sudden shout came from behind.
Abruptly halting his forward march, Naoki turned around. At the entrance of the Sajyou house next to his, Manaka stood, staring at him. "Where are you going? Naoki, isn't it dangerous over there?!"
"Manaka… Sorry, I have to go there for a bit."
"Why?"
"I… I don't know myself. My body just keeps telling me to go! Sorry, Manaka, go back home, and don't come out—let's go, Lia!"
As if in a great hurry, unable to resist his body's urge, Naoki left those words for Manaka and ran off!
After pausing briefly beside Manaka, Artoria said, "Don't worry, Sajyou. I'll keep an eye on Natsukawa to make sure he doesn't act recklessly. Go home and stay safe."
"Huh… Huh?"
The flood of sudden information left Manaka momentarily unable to process what was happening. Watching the two run toward the monster, a heavy feeling suddenly enveloped her heart.
(Naoki, what's wrong with you?)
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
His body felt light, as if his strength would never run out.
Running at full speed toward the Mion River, Naoki couldn't believe how his body felt. He wasn't someone who enjoyed sports. Though he'd joined sports clubs before, that didn't mean his stamina was good. His training was never serious.
But now, he felt his body brimming with power, as if he could run forever without tiring.
"Master!"
Artoria closely followed.
"Watch your stamina consumption. We still have to defeat the monster later. If you exhaust yourself now, you won't have energy to fight!"
"It's fine! Right now, I feel like my strength is endless!" Naoki shouted while running. "By the way, defeating the monster—how exactly do we do that? I was too excited earlier and didn't think much before running here. Now that I'm calmer, it hit me—how can the two of us take down a monster that huge?!"
The monster was over sixty meters tall. No matter how you looked at it, it wasn't something human bodies could defeat. Naoki figured his punches wouldn't even make it flinch.
"I don't know!"
"What?!"
His running momentum screeched to a halt. Naoki stared at Artoria in disbelief. "You don't know?!"
"Yes, I don't know."
"Then why did you say we have to defeat the monster?!"
"Because it's something only we can do—there's no doubt about that. No, more precisely, only you, Master, can do it. I came to this world to assist you. I just don't know the specific method."
[We don't know either. After all, our intervention is limited to daily things like sending Lia and forging identities. In combat, we're completely powerless.]
Merry also raised the white flag.
"Then what do we do?!"
"Anyway—Master! Watch out! Behind you!"
Before Artoria could finish, an intense heat suddenly assaulted Naoki's back. A fireball spewed from the monster's mouth—whether intentionally or not—among dozens of fireballs, one was flying straight toward them!
(No way, we can't dodge!)
Its speed was too fast. Even if they avoided a direct hit, the shockwave would be enough to engulf them in a sea of flames!
"If only I had the Holy Sword—"
"If only I had the Holy Sword—"
As the fireball rapidly approached, bringing them closer to death, Naoki and Artoria instinctively shouted the same words in unison. And the moment their words ended…
*ZING!*
A brilliant golden light suddenly shot into the sky from a distance. Then, like a meteor, it hurtled toward them at incredible speed!
*SWOOSH!*
The golden meteor descending from the sky instantly sliced the fireball in two, crashing hard into the ground in front of them!
The blinding light forced Naoki to raise his hand to shield his eyes. But when he saw the true form of the light, he froze.
"The Holy Sword… King Arthur?"
It was the golden sword gathering dust in the corner of his room, sent by his parents from England, supposedly King Arthur's Holy Sword. Now, it stood embedded in the ground before Naoki and Artoria, like Excalibur in the legend, waiting to be drawn.
"Master! Pull the sword!"
"Huh? Pull it?"
"I think that's how we can fight the monster—maybe!"
"Maybe?!"
Say something more responsible!
But in this situation, there was only one option: pull the sword. If he didn't, they could only wait to be killed by the monster.
Nervously, Naoki grasped the sword's hilt and took a deep breath. "If we're going to die either way, I'll take the gamble. I hope this sword of yours is really a useful Holy Sword!"
[Summoning element confirmed, initiating backup ritual—commencing summoning ritual construction.]
[Summoning target—King Arthur.]
*CLANG!*
The Holy Sword was easily pulled out by Naoki. The moment it was drawn, a blinding light instantly enveloped Naoki and Artoria!
The next second, a massive pillar of light shot skyward, appearing in the middle of the city, now a sea of flames and ruins!
*BOOM!*
Accompanied by a deafening roar that shook the earth and thick dust rising like an earthquake, a radiant golden giant emerged from the pillar of light and landed in the center of the city.