[While you were unconscious, you had a dream that left you deeply unsettled.]
[You can't recall the exact content of the dream—only that it seemed vaguely similar to the time in Manchester when you defended Artoria against those fairies.]
[At the end of the dream, the dying you appeared to see a strange pattern, and you heard the odd word "Karksa."]
[You racked your brains, but with your limited knowledge you cannot discern what that word might mean.]
"Damn."
Seeing the personal attacks about yourself on the display, Gawain felt his fists clench involuntarily.
[However, more than recalling that dream, the news you just received dispelled every trace of drowsiness.]
[Nokhnarei's messenger brought word that Woodworth's army, which had gone out from Gloucester to confront the Great Calamity Bagster, was in ever greater peril and had begun to fall back in disorder. She believes time is extremely tight and urges you to regroup immediately after finishing the bell ritual.]
"Has Woodworth's 'Clan of the Fang' failed again?" On the other side, Artoria murmured softly upon hearing the news.
"Huh? Artoria, why 'again'?" Reedra asked curiously at her mutter.
"Isn't it obvious? Because I feel his soldiers never seem to win any battle when they follow him… Ah." Suddenly realizing, Artoria covered her mouth. In this simulation Woodworth hadn't yet lost, so she had misspoken. Previously, in earlier runs, Woodworth had never won, so the image of him as the perpetually defeated general had been deeply impressed on her.
Fortunately, her odd remark went unnoticed by the rest of the team.
"That makes things much more troublesome."
Grim frowned and shook his head. "The Beast Calamity appeared in the records of the previous Gawain as well: a monster that grows by devouring fairies continuously. If it flattens another city and devours all its fairies, both its size and magical power will increase dramatically, making our chances to quell it ever slimmer." He looked around the group. "Everyone, we must find a way to pass this trial here as quickly as possible."
"Easier said than done," Reedra said with a wry smile. "As we've seen, once we cease fighting, those Two Shadows recover all their wounds rapidly, right?"
"You said before that if we restrict Shadow Shen's Water Mirror magic we could win—but now Shadow Yuser can use Water Mirror too. How are we supposed to fight them?" Reedra continued.
"No, that's not right." Gawain shook his head gently. "Shadow Yuser doesn't actually use Water Mirror magic… He only uses some other means to return quickly to Shadow Shen's side."
"How do you know?" Reedra asked, astonished.
"Well…" Gawain paused, surprised at his own certainty. Why did he feel sure?
"Because except for that last time when he rushed back to protect Shadow Shen, he himself has never actively used Water Mirror, right?" Percival interjected: "If he could also use Water Mirror himself—integrating it into his own fighting style—he'd be many times harder to deal with, and Reedra and Gawain wouldn't have been able to suppress him so easily… You think the same, don't you, Lord Gawain?"
"Uh… yeah." Gawain replied somewhat vaguely, as if unsure how to articulate it.
"Wait, hold on—yes, that's it!" Grim suddenly brightened. "Apart from that final return to protect Shadow Shen, everyone, I think I've figured out how to defeat them!"
"Just like in that last part of the previous battle: whenever Shadow Shen is in danger, Shadow Yuser abandons any concern for his own safety and teleports to her side to protect her. At that moment, his fighting style becomes extremely aggressive." Grim's eyes shone as he continued: "If we keep targeting Shadow Shen, we can force Shadow Yuser repeatedly into defense, causing him to expose openings in rapid succession. In that state, he's far less troublesome than when acting alone—and he might even intercept some attacks aimed at Shen, giving us the chance to strike him down. Once Shadow Yuser is defeated, only Shadow Shen remains, and she's much easier to handle."
Hearing this, Gawain suddenly recalled that strange dream. In it, those demons had kept forcing the knight to rush back again and again to intercept their attacks, finally dragging him to his death. He pressed his hand to his forehead in distress. "Still… let's not do that."
"What are you talking about? Isn't that our best option now?" Grim was surprised. "You're not some high-morality hero who can't tolerate such underhanded tactics, are you?"
"No, it's not that…" Gawain pressed his hand to his head, shaking it slowly. "I just feel… uneasy about this plan."
Seeing his expression, Grim sighed and relented: "Fine. If there's some problem with the plan, point it out. If you can give me a valid reason to persuade me, I'll agree to change strategies."
Gawain fell silent, tongue-tied. What reason could he give to reject the proposal? That it disgusts him at heart? Or that he dreamed he was killed that way and feels disturbed? They're adults; such childish reasons seem inappropriate. "Disliking it" is not a sufficient reason not to do something. After a moment, he shook his head: "No… nothing. You're right; I have no proper objection to your strategy."
[Regarding Grim's plan, you instinctively feel uneasy but cannot yet pinpoint why, so on rational grounds you agree.]
But at that moment another voice rang out: "I oppose this plan!"
Everyone turned to look at the speaker.
"What? Is there something wrong with me opposing it?" Artoria drew in her shoulders, feeling uneasy under all those gazes.
"Fine—what's your reason?" Grim asked. "Give me a valid reason."
"Huh?" Artoria's mind went blank. She too had trouble articulating why she disliked the plan—because of déjà vu. Grim's proposal always reminded her of the fairies in the previous Manchester simulation. Now she fully understood why Gawain had lured her into attacking him and wounding him to draw a clear boundary with her: if she hadn't done so, once they realized they couldn't defeat Gawain, those fairies would certainly turn on her to restrain or affect Gawain. Gawain must not have been confident he could protect her well, so he resorted to that extreme measure. She hated it. She was the weaker one in need of protection—why should the stronger Gawain bear the cost? It felt unjust. So her aversion to Grim's plan was natural. But since she'd been abused that way in the simulation, she couldn't voice that reason. Instead, she chose a simpler one: "Why do I need a reason? I just don't like it."
"I'm serious: I simply don't like this plan, so I won't do it." Artoria said firmly.
"What are you talking about… young lady, are you mistaken?" Grim looked at her, exasperated.
"It's not about mistakes," Artoria replied, meeting his gaze. "Even if you say that, I can't accept your proposal."
"Come on… Is this the time for childish stubbornness? Do you realize what burden you bear? 'Don't like it' isn't a reason." Grim raised his voice. In reality, seeing his tone as if scolding a child, Artoria bristled. Who is this? I'm not Oberon—how dare he lecture me? And this is just a simulation; if I refuse based on dislike, what's wrong with that?
Thinking so, she crossed her arms and said: "If you find that reason unconvincing, then go ahead and face them yourself. I won't help! I insist on winning fairly!"
"What…" Gawain finally couldn't help but shake his head with a wry smile. "So that's allowed? Truly unpredictable, Artoria."
"Don't mock me!" Artoria glared at him. "At this point, are you opposing me? I'm doing this because—" She nearly voiced her deeper motive but caught herself, narrowing her eyes and glaring fiercely at Gawain.
"How could I oppose you?!" Gawain smiled wryly. "I'm always on your side."
"Um… to be honest, I side with Miss Artoria as well." Percival raised his hand. "Sorry, although I know Grim's plan is more rational, personally I can't accept such an unjust tactic."
"Ah… I knew teaming with these high-morality types would be troublesome." Reedra muttered as Percival and Gawain quickly sided with Artoria. Grim turned to Reedra last. "What about you?"
"Why me?" Reedra looked puzzled. "You know me: I'm pragmatic. I support whichever side has more people."
Grim, looking disgusted, sighed: "Fine, fine. Let's pretend I never said anything. Let's restart the battle meeting."
…
"Still, it's strange…" Gawain mused, stroking his chin as he stared at the brief text on the display. "I'm not such a saintly person—but why do I feel a deep aversion to this plan?" Though he'd felt disgusted by this approach in the last simulation, he normally had a flexible moral baseline: if others used such methods against him, it'd bother him, but using it to disgust others wouldn't trouble him. "Could it be related to that strange dream?" Although the dream's content was now mostly forgotten, when he saw the landscapes of Orkney on the display, a faint tremor stirred in his heart.
"Could I be that King Yuser? Perhaps I traveled here from hundreds or thousands of years ago but lost my memory, so I feel an inexplicable familiarity?" Gawain lightly slapped his head, entertaining wild thoughts: "That would be somewhat plausible—after all, a stranger from Elden Ring appearing in the Fate world is already abstract, but if that stranger were me, it's kinda fitting." He laughed at his own fanciful idea. "But that's too far-fetched: if I were King Yuser, even with amnesia I wouldn't be this weak." He recalled the fleeting vision of King Yuser's face seen through the thick black mist. Shaking his head, he thought, "Besides, I don't even resemble him."
…
"Although Woodworth's army has been defeated, he is the next-generation scion of Reinac—given his personal prowess, he should buy us some time… at least enough to come up with a new way to beat them."
"I already have an idea." In the next tactical discussion, Artoria spoke up again: "This is a trial, right? If so, I could challenge that previous 'Child of Prophecy' to single combat myself—she won't refuse, will she? Similarly, Gawain can challenge that 'ultimate knight' alone—since they're both knights, the opponent shouldn't decline a duel. If you say their coordination is troublesome—where one plus one is far greater than two—then we simply split them up so they can't cooperate, right?" She had just realized: though her bond with Gawain is strong, their shorter time together is a disadvantage. So why not approach differently? If she and Gawain each defeat those two inexplicable "couple" shadows in single combat, that still counts as victory for them. Rounding up, their bond would be stronger! Yes! Perfect plan!
[After resting, you and Gawain pass through the mist again and each seek out Shadow Shen and Shadow Yuser.]
[Before they launch their attacks, you preemptively challenge Shadow Shen to single combat.]
[At the same time, Gawain issues a duel challenge to Shadow Yuser.]
[Both duel requests are accepted.]
[Your duel with Shadow Shen begins.]
…
[Your duel with Shadow Yuser begins.]
[異界氣息 detected: due to the special challenge format, you trigger the simulator's hidden opportunity "Duel with the Otherworldly Shadow."]
[For some unknown reason, visitors not of this world have reached Fairy Britain and left remnants of otherworldly past shadows here.]
[To correct this world's original order, you must defeat this past shadow of the otherworldly visitor.]
[Since you gave up relying on others and chose to face this powerful otherworldly shadow with only your own strength, upon victory you will receive an extra reward.]
[When you defeat this past shadow in one-on-one combat, you will randomly obtain one of its Noble Phantasms or skills.]
"Holy—!" Gawain, who had just lain down, sat bolt upright upon seeing the hidden opportunity "Duel with the Otherworldly Shadow." Looking at Artoria already dueling Shadow Shen in the distance, he murmured: "Could she really be a genius?"