"Senpai, are we really just going to watch?"
"Mash, this is Ruler's [Command]. If we want to interfere, we'll have to oppose her."
Night had fallen imperceptibly. Standing on the fortress's modest walls, Ritsuka and the others watched as Guinevere walked alone toward the two hundred Enforcement Knights.
They were tense and worried, knowing that the Enforcement Knights were all Knight Heroic Spirits. A single ten-man squad of them would be more than Mash could handle alone.
But what they didn't know was that in Guinevere's eyes, these two hundred Enforcement Knights were nothing more than clay pigeons.
A group of knights and a Knight Order were vastly different in her view. If this had been a true Knight Order, she would never have charged them, even without Agravain's command.
"They barely have a formation, and their attack sequence is rudimentary at best. That's all there is to it."
The Replica Holy Sword gleamed in Guinevere's hand. This time, to ensure an easy victory, she unhesitatingly activated [Judgment], condemning the Enforcement Knights for the crime of insubordination.
The moment the Skill activated, many Enforcement Knights dropped their weapons and knelt before Guinevere in repentance. Even Agravain's resolve wavered.
But Agravain unleashed his mana, using his iron will to dispel the remorse in his heart. He immediately activated the Enforcement Knights' Madness Enhancement Blessing, freeing them from the grip of guilt.
Back then, the Round Table summoned by the Lion King had consisted of far more than just these few. Those whose desire to advise outweighed their loyalty had all been eliminated—Gareth herself had been killed by Agravain's own hand.
For the Enforcement Knights, who were merely knights, the Lion King's methods were even cruder. She had granted them the Madness Enhancement Blessing to ensure they would fight without hesitation when the time came.
"First Squad, advance!"
At the command, the Enforcement Knights surged forward, their bodies cloaked in mana. As fellow knights, they simply lacked the prowess of the Round Table Knights, but their swordsmanship...
Guinevere knew it well.
Because of this familiarity, she could defeat Tristan in three strikes and overwhelm Lancelot and Gawain despite being at a disadvantage in attributes. Now, facing the far weaker Enforcement Knights...
Guinevere needed only one knight, one sword.
"Sir Agravain, you wish to witness my power, but you must first be capable of forcing it out of me. I imagine you want to see me surpass the strength I displayed against Gawain and Lancelot at the gates of New Camelot."
Guinevere advanced with ease, each Enforcement Knight's weakness shining like a brilliant jewel in her eyes. Before long, a trail of corpses lay in her wake.
When they knelt in repentance under her Judgment, when they lost their will to Madness Enhancement, Guinevere granted them the release of death.
She had heard their unspoken pleas—they had never wanted to tarnish their pride as knights.
Soon, after cutting down two hundred Enforcement Knights, Guinevere stood close enough to Agravain. The man known as "Agravain of Iron," whose only flaw was his tendency to overwork, broke into a smile.
"My Queen," he said, "thank you for freeing those who never truly wished to serve. But now... now is when you must truly prove yourself."
Among the Round Table Knights, Agravain was the one Guinevere had fought the least. He was always busy—so busy he never even had time for sparring in the training grounds.
So, Guinevere truly didn't know what Agravain's full power looked like.
She swung her Holy Sword, severing the red mana chains that shot toward her.
As Morgan's son, Agravain also possessed some knowledge of magecraft.
Beyond the mana chains, he had infused his mana into the fallen Enforcement Knights, easily dyeing them black and manipulating them as puppets.
Should she charge the puppeteer, seeking his death before her strength gave out? If he were an enemy she had to kill, Guinevere would have chosen this more efficient path. But Agravain merely wanted proof, even if he hadn't yet revealed what he would do once he received it.
"I know," Guinevere declared. "Bathed in the Holy Lance's light, this world's Lia has become more akin to a god, her power far beyond what a mere Servant could ever hope to match. But fortunately, I too possess the power of a god.
"Sir Agravain, I dislike wars of attrition. So allow me to prove myself to you now!"
Her Second Noble Phantasm: [My Heart Knows No God, My Will Is God's Will]. This Noble Phantasm granted Guinevere Divinity, allowing her to briefly ascend into a god.
This Noble Phantasm consumed an immense amount of mana, and Guinevere was uncertain of the extent of its enhancement. Yet, this did not diminish her resolve.
After days of preparation, the mana she had stored within the Replica Holy Sword finally allowed her to briefly release this Noble Phantasm.
"I am the God who blasphemes God, the voice that speaks for God's Will."
In her mortal life, Guinevere had ruthlessly purged the churches of Great Britain under the banner of the Divine Purification Plan.
Back then, she acted as God's representative—whatever she declared, God was said to have declared. After all, God never contradicted her.
When this feat sublimated into a Noble Phantasm, the Divinity she gained was stolen from Him, a sliver of His power now hers to wield.
Wings unfurled from Guinevere's back, a pure white halo materialized above her head, and her eyes took on the detached indifference that should belong only to a god.
This power, accumulated over two millennia across countless parallel worlds by the monotheistic God, nearly seized Guinevere's will the moment it manifested.
However, this transformation originated from Guinevere herself, and her will was far from weak.
As she began to resist, striving to make this borrowed power her own, her Noble Phantasm truly began to take effect.
A second and then a third pair of wings unfurled as a tangible power began to truly coalesce in her grasp.
Perhaps because this was stolen power, it was no longer the omnipotent pure white. Instead, it began to transform, aligning with the nature of Guinevere's Noble Phantasm.
Ultimately, her Second Noble Phantasm granted Guinevere A-rank Divinity, seizing the power known as Judgment. Its true name was [Uriel].
"Tch..."
Guinevere clicked her tongue softly as she ascended into the sky, her angelic form leaving Agravain utterly speechless.
Legend held that Uriel was the Angel of God's Light, Flame, or Wisdom. He was responsible for spreading God's radiance and also for governing the fires of Hell. Typically, he wielded a flaming sword, inflicting torment upon the deeply sinful in Hell.
Another legend claimed that on the so-called Day of Final Judgment, it would be Uriel who opened the gates of Hell to bring destruction upon the world.
Beyond these legends, because Uriel was responsible for spreading God's light—which included True Magic, alchemy, and astrology—he was severely condemned by the Church during the 8th century AD.
"So, in the end, you became my power? Then..."
"Grant them rest, Hellfire."
The Replica Holy Sword was engulfed in golden flames, which then began to turn black. As Guinevere swung the blade at the puppet-like Enforcement Knights, a power born from the void—truly from another dimension—instantly devoured them.
When the Divine Halo faded, the golden light in her eyes receded, and the three pairs of wings dissolved into Spiritrons, Guinevere had undeniably proven her strength.
Even so, in Agravain's eyes, this power still paled in comparison to the Lion King wielding the Holy Lance.