Outside Trifas City. Following Assassin's back, Mordred closely trailed behind him. Blown by the night breeze, Mordred was much more clear-headed now, which made her feelings towards the enemy in front of her complicated.
"Hey, you, who exactly are you? Are you a knight from my era?" Could it be that Father secretly kept other men outside? So envious... No, wrong, it should be so angry.
This guy's existence defiled Father's glorious image.
"No, not at all!"
"My name is Shirou, a Heroic Spirit from the future."
"I had the fortune to be summoned as a Saber in the Fifth Holy Grail War, and form a bond with Artoria."
"In her dreams, I saw you, Mordred!" Although a bit far-fetched, what Shirou said was true. As for whether he had seen Mordred in Artoria's dreams, that was definitely a must. Although this Shirou hadn't seen it with his own eyes, his other selves must have. After all, King Arthur's end was piercing Mordred at the very end.
How could he not have seen that scene!
"Father, was she also summoned by the Holy Grail?"
Hearing this news, Mordred was both surprised and regretful. Surprised that she might have a chance to meet her father again. And regretful that she hadn't seen her in this Holy Grail War.
"She wasn't just summoned; she was a participant in two consecutive Holy Grail Wars."
"Just to realize that impossible wish!"
"Her wish?" That king, who seemed to have no desires, actually had a wish? Mordred couldn't imagine what kind of wish she would make. So, she directly asked the question.
"What was her wish?"
"She wanted to save her destroyed country. She wanted
to go back before she pulled out the Sword of Selection, to find a new king!"
"..."
"What kind of bullsh*t wish is that!"
"Is that so? Is the treasure I want just something she can casually throw away?"
"What did she even take me for!" Hearing her father's wish, Mordred couldn't help but go berserk. Although she destroyed that country and hated that person immensely, deep down, she was also admiring that glorious king. In her eyes, the only king capable of leading them was herself. But she actually wanted to find someone else?
What kind of nonsense was this! Was their loyalty to her just trash that could be casually discarded!
"See? You also think her wish is nonsensical, right?"
"But don't worry, I've already persuaded her to come back. Now, she has calmly accepted that fact."
"Afterwards, I even bid her farewell as her lover."
"Ah, what a youthful time!"
"Speaking of which, Mordred, you still have to call me 'Dad'!" As the saying goes, Dad's husband is still Dad!
"..."
"I'll kill you!"
"I absolutely have to kill you!" Nothing else mattered anymore. Mordred only knew that her holy king, in her heart, had been defiled by this guy in front of her. Now, she just wanted to hack this guy to death.
"Die!" Ignoring that they were on their way to another battlefield, Mordred charged at the traveling Shirou and slashed at him. But the scene that followed greatly shocked Mordred. Her sword was actually caught in the opponent's hand.
"It seems you're already very impatient. Then let's fight here!" With that, Shirou directly kicked Mordred away.
The reason Shirou could hold Mordred's sword was not his skill, but his Noble Phantasm. At this moment, the armor he wore was Siegfried's Noble Phantasm, Armor of Fafnir. Shirou, strengthened by Divine Grace, could now project Noble Phantasms beyond just swords. Whether it was blades, spears, swords, halberds, axes, hooks, or even armor and shields, he could project them.
However, in terms of rank, it was still one rank lower than Siegfried's Noble Phantasm. Therefore, Shirou could only nullify attacks of C-rank and below. But combined with his own defensive power, in a sense, his defensive power was now comparable to Siegfried's.
"Tsk, immortality, huh?" After sliding on the ground for a moment, Mordred said unhappily. Kairi Sisigou, who had been following Mordred not far away, quickly told her through telepathy.
"There are many heroes in the world referred to as immortal. However, truly immortal heroes are not that many. All immortal legends should have a 'but there are
exceptions' kind of limiting condition."
"Oh? So, what's that guy's weakness?"
"You'll have to work hard and explore that yourself!"
"Damn it, that's true though!"
"However, I, as Master, have a proposal for my Servant. Limited to the battle against Black Assassin, how about I strengthen you with a Command Spell?" This proposal from Kairi Sisigou was slightly off from the original intended use of a Command Spell. A Command Spell was originally meant to be used in more specific situations.
For example, spatial jump akin to magic, or a precise sniper shot at an extremely tiny point that would otherwise be almost impossible. If not for such specific uses, the Command Spell's binding power would be weakened. If used in the way Sisigou proposed, although Mordred's overall strength would be boosted, that would be all it accomplished.
"Oh, that's a really good idea, Master. In that case, I will forcefully break through his defense with my slashes, I swear it on my name as Saber!" Mordred's intuition told her so. The previous slash wasn't ineffective or blocked by some other power. It was simply because the target was too tough. In that case, as long as she continuously unleashed even more violent slashes than before, she was confident she could break through it. With the support of the Command Spell, as long as it was limited to the battle against Black Assassin on this battlefield, it was by no means a foolish strategy.
"Is that so? Then I believe you, Saber."
"I believe you" just hearing those words, Mordred's anger, which had been ignited by Shirou's words, instantly extinguished. What surged in her heart was an intense feeling of invigoration. Although she herself felt helpless about her simple nature, the feeling right now was indeed very comfortable.
"Aaah! I understand, Master!"
"With a Command Spell, I command my swordsman, to defeat Black Assassin on this battlefield, exert your utmost!" A huge amount of magic power flowed through the causal link into the girl, the terminal, and circulated throughout her entire body via her magic circuits.
"I hear your wish! In the name of Red Saber Mordred, I shall defeat Black Assassin here!" Instantly, Mordred began to release magic power. Her stance was like a steam engine in human form. While violently gushing steam named magic, the girl raised her treasured sword.
There was no fear on her face, only pure, unadulterated fighting spirit.
"Reinforcement from a Command Spell, huh?"
"It seems you're already well-prepared!" Wielding his longsword, the blazing flames were fully ignited. Under the effect of Magic Emission (Fire), Shirou, enveloped in flames, said seriously, "Let the battle begin!"
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