"Is that... Miss Bavanzi?"
Seeing the new Servant rushing here, Fujimaru Ritsuka's eyes widened in surprise.
However, compared to that, Da Vinci was even more shocked by something else:
"No, wait a second—did she just call that red-haired Archer… Tristan? Tristan of the Round Table? But how… that legendary hero shouldn't be an executioner who targets civilians… no."
More importantly, if Tristan is a Servant from the Holy Capital, then the Lion King he serves… could it be that legendary King Arthur?"
"What should we do now?" Fujimaru Ritsuka asked. "Since Miss Bavanzi is on our side, our odds should have improved quite a bit. In that case, we should go out and assist her—"
"Wait a moment."
At that moment, it was Guinevere who held back Fujimaru Ritsuka. Meeting his puzzled gaze, she said:
"Tristan's attention is fully on Bavanzi now, and the remaining civilians are safe, so there's no need for us to rush out.
Since Bavanzi wants to challenge Tristan, let her go first. I can roughly understand her reasons… but we should be ready to support her at any moment."
As for why Bavanzi would want to challenge Tristan, the answer was simple.
After all, the name she received as a Fairy Knight was Tristan. To Bavanzi, that name itself was a symbol of her mother's expectations. So, upon learning that Morgan was also involved in this Fate simulation, she naturally wanted to challenge Tristan to live up to Morgan's expectations.
While Guinevere was contemplating this, Bavanzi had already directly launched an attack toward Tristan.
For reasons unknown, Bavanzi did not immediately unleash her usual flood from the Scenic Sphere to overwhelm her opponent. Instead, she properly drew her bow, nocked an arrow, and condensed a massive crimson arrow of magical power, firing it straight at Tristan.
Yet Tristan didn't even move. He merely twitched his fingers, plucked the bowstring lightly, and a blade of sound immediately emerged, slicing the crimson magic arrow cleanly in two.
It was a rather standard strike—threatening but ultimately useless.
Hmph, why would Bavanzi attack like this? She should know this level of attack is ineffective.
Guinevere pondered.
Could it be that Bavanzi had finally learned to conceal her strength, and this attack was just a probe?
Indeed, it seemed Guinevere was correct. Bavanzi showed no surprise at her first strike being neutralized by Tristan's plucked string. She simply moved quickly while continuing to fire a dense rain of magical arrows at Tristan.
Of course, this attack, which even a blacksmith like Guinevere could break through, was useless against Tristan.
However, unlike the hurriedly dodging blacksmith Guinevere, Tristan's response was far more elegant. He stayed in place, plucking the bowstring, faster this time, and the dense blades of sound emanated from his bow, cutting down every arrow.
A perfectly conventional attack, completely harmless to me. Just a third-rate Archer trick. But since Miss Bavanzi, knowing my true name, still dared to come alone and challenge me, she must have some special ability, right? In other words…
Tristan's eyes suddenly opened slightly, killing intent shining:
"Are you just trying to test my abilities with these attacks? Honestly… you really underestimate me!"
As he spoke, the speed of his plucking escalated further, instantly overwhelming Bavanzi's attack frequency. Every magical arrow she fired was cut down mid-flight by invisible blades, which pressed toward her in dense waves, forcing her to flee desperately. Wherever she ran, Tristan's attacks followed.
What Bavanzi didn't know was that Tristan was still bound by the promise he had made to Hassan. Even now, he had never moved his feet from the original position, nor had he moved his right hand—attacking only with his left.
Even under such self-imposed limitations, Tristan faced all of Bavanzi's attacks head-on, and while she could attempt to dodge, he still easily suppressed her with superior skill.
Yet Bavanzi didn't notice this. From her perspective, Tristan's limitations appeared to be mere mockery and disdain toward her, which only made her grit her teeth harder as she dodged.
"Senpai Guinevere, shouldn't we go support Miss Bavanzi? She seems to be in danger!" Fujimaru whispered anxiously.
"No, there's no need," Guinevere said thoughtfully, gazing at the battlefield. "Bavanzi has her own rhythm… Let her follow it. If we intervene now, she'll only scold us."
"Eh? Really? But I clearly saw—"
Before Fujimaru could finish, Bavanzi's attack speed could no longer keep up with Tristan's. The dense blades of sound surged at her, overwhelming her instantly, blood exploding everywhere.
"Ah!" Fujimaru exclaimed.
"…With this level of skill, she dares to challenge me? I was foolishly hoping for a fair fight…"
Tristan shook his head lightly, sighing:
"It seems this young lady hasn't recognized the difference in our strength… Alas, how sad. I am truly sad, having to kill such a beautiful lady."
He glanced toward Fujimaru and continued sighing:
"It seems I will have to kill another beautiful lady next. Truly sorrowful."
Then, he reached his left hand toward the bowstring of the mystical bow in his right hand, aiming to cut down the exposed Fujimaru. Mashu immediately stepped in front of him.
But simultaneously, as Tristan's gaze shifted, he heard a voice:
"You were careless!"
The next moment, a spear of blood shot up from the ground straight at him.
Bavanzi, who should have been cut to pieces by Tristan's blades, had transformed into a pool of blood and then quickly returned to her original form.
Meanwhile, blood from the slain civilians had gathered nearby, becoming Bavanzi's perfect tool for attack.
She manipulated the blood into a long spear, launching a surprise strike at Tristan from the nearest position.
Even Tristan couldn't maintain his composure and had to jump back, raising his bow to block the spear, barely stopping the attack.
"…Did that fail?" Bavanzi exclaimed angrily.
Though she had attacked suddenly, Tristan's expression was far from relaxed; it had become extremely stern.
He had violated his promise with Hassan to defend against this strike.
"Turning entirely into blood… what an interesting skill. This young lady has been concealing her strength until now. Impressive… forcing me to break my vow… Alas, I am so sad, truly sad."
Shaking his head, Tristan continued:
"Since I've broken my vow, I have no face to stay here. That's it for today. I should report this failure to the King."
With that, he withdrew his killing intent and turned to run across the battlefield.
"Where are you going?! The fight isn't over yet!"
Bavanzi panicked and tried to pursue, but as soon as she stepped forward, Tristan plucked his bowstring, and a barrage of magical blades engulfed her again from dozens of meters away.
However, when she emerged from her blood form, she realized everything around her appeared larger—or rather, she had shrunk.
"I've understood your ability: you can use blood form to avoid slashing damage."
Tristan lowered his hand and said calmly:
"However, if the slash contains magical power, even if you avoid it, the magic consumes some of your blood. In other words, as long as the attacks continue and all your blood is exhausted, you can be killed."
"I advise you not to be foolish. Your ability is good, but I am not incapable of killing you, nor have I been defeated by you. If anything, I was defeated only by Hassan, who dared to risk his life decisively. Don't get it wrong."
After saying this, Tristan turned and walked in the direction he came, looking back once more:
"I suggest you don't pursue. If you dare, I will kill you."
At that moment, his eyes opened slightly, and his intense killing intent froze Bavanzi in place. She hesitated, realizing this man could truly kill her without restrictions.
"Miss Bavanzi! Don't be afraid of him!"
Guinevere's voice suddenly came from behind:
"Use the flood to wash him away! He can't handle it!"
"Ah?" Bavanzi blinked, looking to the side. "Guinevere? You're here too?"
"I've always been here!" Guinevere said quickly. "Forget that, just use the flood… Wait.
Thinking carefully, although this was a probe, with Bavanzi's personality, if she could have used the flood, would she have held back until now? No way." Guinevere's eye twitched slightly. "Did the water in your Scenic Sphere get emptied when you came in here?"