"Lia, what are you—?"
"My body can be replaced, but my true self on the Throne of Heroes... it no longer wishes to be alone."
Two days had passed since the King of Knights used the Holy Grail. In Babylon, Merlin had successfully summoned them after they merged into a single Throne of Heroes.
In Babylon, they were companion servants sharing the Saber Class.
But let's focus on what's happening here...
Despite the Holy Grail's use, this Great Holy Grail War didn't end as expected. According to Justeaze, the remaining servants could replenish the Greater Grail once more, allowing the war to continue.
"So, in the past two days, you've summoned me and gathered on this beach... all to wage a Holy Grail War that's less bloody than usual?"
In this Great Holy Grail War, the Black Faction had already lost Siegfried, Cu Chulainn, Vlad III, Chiron, Achilles, and Berserker Mordred. Counting the uncertain status of First Hassan, the Black Faction's servants were entirely eliminated.
The Red Faction had already lost the King of Conquerors and Gareth. However, Morgan had re-summoned Gareth.
"Well, we're all comrades here. To decide the final two servants who will fill the Holy Grail, we all agreed this method is the best."
Sunlight, sandy beaches, and cool swimsuits filled the coastline. Mordred, dressed in her swimsuit, rode a skateboard with a water gun in hand, chasing after Gareth, who was recklessly charging through the sea like a pig.
What about Morgan and the others? Morgan was playing Tic-Tac-Toe with Jeanne, probing her for details on how France had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat against Great Britain. She planned to share these hard-earned lessons with the Jeanne of a certain Lostbelt.
Speaking of which, Jeanne had spent most of the battle on the sidelines, witnessing the Guinevere family's first engagement and the chaotic clash in town between Kirei Kotomine and Kiritsugu Emiya.
"By the way, since Shiki Tohno and his group are here, does that mean...?"
"Exactly. They killed Roa's true body, using the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception to destroy him at the Root itself.
Though Kirei Kotomine escaped, he can no longer be considered a spare body for Roa. He's now a new True Ancestor, inheriting Roa's blood."
Still on the beach, it remained a mystery how Arcueid had regained her sanity during her hunt for Roa and developed such a strong affection for Shiki Tohno.
She now lay sprawled on a picnic blanket spread on the sand, letting Shiki Tohno shakily massage oil into her back.
Meanwhile, Guinevere, the famed Ciel the Bow, lay beside Arcueid, enjoying the attention of Shiki Tohno's other hand.
According to Ciel herself, she was under orders from the Church to supervise Arcueid until her return to the Throne of Heroes.
Archer of Red and Kiritsugu Emiya—father and son—along with the recently arrived Irisviel von Einzbern and Maiya Hisau, were playing mahjong as a family.
Water gun fights, surfing competitions, volleyball matches, mahjong tournaments... and countless other chaotic games made up the second half of this Great Holy Grail War.
The Master and Servant pair who accumulated the most points across all these events would be declared the victor, claiming the newly replenished Greater Grail.
"So, Lia, we're not participating?"
"You're already dead, killed by the Black Faction's Assassin. We're now part of the judging committee, taking the places of Amakusa and the Empress, who are growing increasingly obsessed with remaining alive in this world for another generation."
-
"Yay, Gareth, I won again!"
"Mordred, you have to call me 'Sister'!"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was born after you, but you're still stuck in your child form!"
Thanks to Guinevere's presence, Gareth in this world didn't die when she was executed by fire for her affair. In the original timeline, Lancelot had stormed Camelot City to rescue her during the execution.
However, the mystery remains: why, despite dying in her sixties, Gareth still manifests as a child.
Speaking of unsolved mysteries, Achilles was indeed defeated by a three-person tag team.
First, Gareth used her Noble Phantasm, the Ring of Transformation, to assume her adult form. Then, exploiting Achilles' inability to use Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē against a young girl, she unleashed her refined martial technique, the Rampaging Maiden Wolf, successfully suppressing him for a time.
Seizing the opportunity, Kiritsugu Emiya, who cared nothing for honor, assembled a sniper rifle and shattered Achilles' ankle with a single shot, neutralizing his immortality.
Then, Archer of Red dragged him into Unlimited Blade Works, further restricting his speed. There, Achilles was forced to face Mordred's Clarent in a direct clash, finally falling before its radiant, glorious strike.
It was this attack that temporarily disabled Achilles' shield, allowing Archer of Red's Caladbolg II and Broken Phantasm combination to succeed.
In the end, Achilles proved too formidable; Mordred and the others had no choice but to... cough, to resort to a team effort.
"Such a pity. If Merlin hadn't sent word from that other world, limiting us to just three or seven days, I wouldn't have had to give up this enjoyment."
"Guinevere, enough already! You talk like you could actually beat Achilles in a fair fight."
Guinevere stuck out her tongue and playfully tickled the King of Knights' waist. Beneath her innocent swimsuit, Guinevere's attacks were most effortlessly delivered.
"Lia, do you think it's possible you've gained a little weight? Look, I'm pinching—"
"Shut up!"
Servants' physiques were typically immutable, but ever since the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War, the King of Knights had gained a living body. Guinevere's playful suggestion that she could "fatten her up" seemed entirely plausible.
"Guinevere, let's go play beach volleyball with Lady Morgan and Jeanne! We'll be the referees—no interfering with the game!"
"But Lia, that would be the death of happiness for me! Playing with three Artoria faces! Wouldn't you be jealous?"
"I'll only get mad if you show affection to three Artoria faces! We're so different, even if outsiders can't tell. How can you not see it?
And about being jealous..."
With that, the King of Knights stood up, brushed the sea sand off her thigh, and said without looking back, "We're an old married couple. I know you wouldn't harbor any real feelings for them—maybe just some harmless flirting, nothing beyond what friends might do. Guinevere, you can't leave me.
I... I... I can't leave you either."
The King of Knights' last words fell as softly as a mosquito's buzz, heard only by Guinevere.
On the beach, Guinevere—the only one without an Artoria face—leapt to serve, while Morgan and Jeanne, their mature figures dazzling, relentlessly returned the ball.
As the game intensified, all four began using mana, displaying the stamina, attack power, and judgment befitting top-tier servants.
By then, the referee had lost his cool, leaving the other Lords and servants to fend for themselves.
Before long, chaos reigned across the beach.
"Lia, look! This time, victory is ours!"
No one kept score for their four-person beach volleyball game. The victory condition was simple: the first to collapse on the sand, Morgan, would lose.
As a living, breathing research subject Faerie, Morgan was far more accustomed to studying, daydreaming, and conducting research within her Magecraft Workshop.
"Lia, let's settle the score properly tonight!" she gasped, her voice laced with both fondness and the King of Knights' authority.
"Very well," Artoria replied.
-
Volume 4 end~