Sun King Ramesses II, True Name Ozymandias, the most famous pharaoh of ancient Egypt.
Legend held that he surpassed most gods and could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Ra, the supreme sun god of ancient Egypt.
When summoned, his domain is summoned along with him. He possesses multiple Noble Phantasms, the Imperial Privilege skill, and the claim that all structures on earth are his creations, making him an exceptionally powerful Servant.
The Sphinx that had previously overwhelmed Mash and Da Vinci-chan, only to be defeated by Bedivere's silver arm, was a product of one of the Sun King's Noble Phantasms—and he could produce multiple such Sphinxes.
In terms of power scaling within the FGO universe, he is known as one of the "Three Golden Kings," placing him on the same level as the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh, and the Hero of Charity, Karna.
So...
"Miss Ruler, are we really not going with them? That Sun King..."
"I know. He would be a valuable ally if we want to defeat my other self. But how should I put this... do you want me to go kill him right now, or be killed by him?"
"Miss Ruler, are you saying you two would fight the moment you met?"
"Knowing that Sun King, he'd look down on us all, wouldn't he? He'd demand we kneel and bow upon our first meeting, wouldn't he? Bedivere, tell me, should I kneel?"
As Guinevere recalled, the Sun King's power was comparable to the King of Heroes', and their personalities were much the same—both looked down on everyone equally.
Moreover, he was even more lecherous than the King of Heroes. Historically, he had married numerous beauties and fathered over a thousand children. Guinevere remembered that upon first meeting Da Vinci-chan, he had immediately declared his intention to make her his concubine.
Of course, if he were in a good mood and took a liking to someone, he would also bestow rewards without hesitation.
"Then, Miss Ruler, what should we do now...?"
"We head toward Jerusalem, of course."
Meeting Chaldea's group had another significant advantage: they had confirmed their location from Nitocris and learned the direction to Jerusalem.
As they continued their journey under their cloaks, the sun, now approaching its zenith, grew even hotter.
Behind them, in the same desert, Nitocris was being carried on Ritsuka's back, her expression unreadable as she guided the Chaldea party.
For a Pharaoh, a Servant, and an incarnation of the Sky God Horus, it was unbelievable that her feet, clad only in thin sandals, had been burned by the hot sand.
"Tch, this Singularity's timeline is truly chaotic."
Nitocris's claim that she would need protection once the sandstorm subsided proved to be true.
The sandstorm had isolated this desert from the outside world, preventing external demonic beasts from entering. The moment it stopped, Guinevere ventured a little further and was immediately confronted by anemone-shaped Sea Demons.
Sea Demons appearing in a desert was strange enough.
But Hassans in black robes and skull masks appearing in the desert was surely just as strange, wasn't it?
"They're surprisingly weak. A single Hassan can't even defeat a Sea Demon."
Atop a sand dune, Guinevere remarked with a sigh as she watched a Hassan struggling with a Sea Demon in the distance.
Help? Or not?
Faced with another choice, Guinevere didn't hesitate this time. She and Bedivere advanced directly. With a snap of her fingers, golden flames erupted on the dozen or so man-sized Sea Demons, swiftly incinerating them to ash.
"I must say," she began, "for beings of your caliber, it's astonishing you managed to successfully steal someone from the Sun King's Temple."
They had been saved, but they also knew their saviors were companions of the Chaldea group they had previously attacked. After being forced to abandon Nitocris, the Hassans who shared the name of Hundred Faces hadn't retreated far. Some remained nearby, observing from a distance.
They had appeared on Guinevere and her companion's path with the clear intention of ambushing them.
The Sea Demon attack, however, was a complete accident. They never imagined a Sea Demon would spawn right in their faces.
"You... who exactly are you?"
Saved, yet looked down upon. Even the frail Hundred-Faced Hassans felt a surge of anger. But recalling the Sea Demon's inexplicable "self-immolation" and knowing they were no match for these two, their regret over the failed ambush mingled with a desire for more information.
They were not fighting for themselves.
Long, long ago, back when Chaldea was still conquering the first few Singularities, this one had already begun to change. First, the defeated Crusaders inexplicably obtained the Holy Grail and successfully summoned the Sun King.
Then, the Crusaders suffered a devastating blow. Not only did the Sun King seize the Holy Grail from them, but their entire force was annihilated.
Logically, the Sun King should have been the true anomaly of this Singularity. The problem was, the Lion King then appeared. She destroyed Jerusalem, repelled the Sun King, and established New Camelot City on Jerusalem's ruins.
Building on this, the annihilated Crusaders were outsiders, as were the subsequent Sun King and Lion King. Only they, the Mountain People, were the true natives.
At the same time, among the three factions in this Singularity, they were ostensibly the weakest.
Just as Guinevere had said, with the Hundred-Faced Hassans' level of skill, they should never have been able to abduct someone from the Sun King's Temple. Within this desert, within the Sun King's domain, they should have been under constant surveillance, subject to attacks from multiple Sphinxes at any moment.
As they faced off, Guinevere read the unease in the Hundred Faces' eyes and guessed they had no idea how they had succeeded in their abduction.
"Tch."
With a soft click of her tongue, Guinevere refrained from attacking them. She knew the real reason the Hundred Faces had succeeded: the "King" of the Hassans had intervened.
That Grand Assassin had infiltrated the Sun King's Composite Temple and beheaded him in a single strike. Although the Sun King clung to life through the power of his temple, he could no longer leave it, and his consciousness had briefly lapsed into confusion.
"Listen. I am Artoria Pendragon, the other side of the Lion King you know. I answered a certain summons for the sole purpose of personally resolving the tragedy of my other self.
"Therefore, we are not enemies. We can be allies."
This was her second self-introduction in a short time, and just as with Nitocris, the Hundred Faces didn't believe Guinevere's claim.
This was simply because the self-proclaimed King of Knights was vastly different from the one they knew.
However, the Hundred Faces could confirm one thing: based on their Assassin senses, Guinevere truly bore no ill will.
They met her gaze, then retreated—neither approaching nor engaging further. The Hundred Faces decided to observe first. Only after confirming the truth of her words and her genuine desire for an alliance would they reveal themselves again.
Moreover, they planned to report the appearance of another King of Knights to the current Hassan Overseer.
They weren't the only Hassans summoned in this era.
"Hm?"
Meanwhile, Guinevere had no idea what the retreating figures were thinking. She only saw them suddenly pause, their auras flaring with fervent energy as they stared into the desert's depths before retreating even faster.
Soon, even with her Ruler-class perception, she could no longer find them.