The day continued. Due to the Holy Grail War's principle of secrecy, no one came to trouble them at this time.
After Saber-chan had changed into the small party dress, Guinevere gave her some ordinary clothes to wear.
"What exactly are you trying to do?"
During the time between wearing the party dress and changing into the casual clothes, Guinevere had only taken a few photos of Saber, saying it was for a souvenir.
There was no further humiliation; on the contrary, she had become much more formal, as if she had suddenly become remorseful toward Saber.
"Saber, I just felt that if I kept teasing you, you would become a version of yourself that I could never accept. The King of Knights I know would never admit defeat."
"But my wish is the result of my choice to admit defeat."
Under the sunlight, the two in casual clothes sat on the temple veranda. The temple's owner had taken his car to drive Medea and Kirei Kotomine to register their marriage. Issei Ryudou was still at school. Now, only the two of them were left in the temple.
"So, don't lose your confidence!"
"Hmph."
Saber remained silent, and Guinevere did not agree to the deal she had proposed earlier.
When it came to verbal arguments, Guinevere was actually not very good at it. After the three-plank-axe of plot-driven dialogue had passed, she temporarily did not know how to change Saber's mind.
Her Lia? That relied on actions accumulated over a long period of time.
"Saber, you have memories of the Fourth Holy Grail War, so you should know that the Holy Grail has already been corrupted, right? And even if it weren't, it still couldn't reverse time."
"But can I have any other hope? Even if it's truly impossible, I still want to try first."
When a person's obsession is deep, how could it be easy to untie the knot in their heart? In the original story, Guinevere didn't even understand how Saber suddenly gave up. Was it because she fell in love with Shirou Emiya?
Or was it because she learned about the justice of the Holy Grail's wrong-wish fulfillment?
Probably, it was both?
But speaking of which, Guinevere was really unwilling to use sleep-persuasion now.
"Saber-chan, don't you want to know my wish? My wish is to make this world become the beautiful place I hope for."
"The sight of you now, fleeing in disgrace, is truly the last thing I ever wanted to see. My King may not be the strongest, she may be oblivious to human hearts, but she can never be a coward."
Guinevere's gray-white hair was tied in a ponytail. Her black dress bloomed like a rose. Her forearms and calves were firm and fair as jade, the posture of one long accustomed to being the center of attention.
As Guinevere tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, she found herself wondering if these words, spoken from the heart, would have any effect at all.
"In other words, I do not object to you returning to the moment you drew the sword. But I object to you wanting to hand that right over to someone else. Artoria Pendragon, you are the daughter of Merlin's prophecy, the Fated King of Great Britain."
"But... I failed."
Impenetrable and unyielding, her heart was like stone. This was Saber's state at this moment.
Seeing her like this, Guinevere couldn't help but grow even more frustrated.
"Get up! I will show you that you can do it!"
If she had lost her confidence, then she had to find it again. And at this moment, Guinevere was truly ready to spank her.
An ordinary broom, but reinforced by Caster, after the broom head was stripped off, the two wooden sticks fell into the hands of Guinevere and Saber respectively.
"Saber, in the name of Guinevere Pendragon, I challenge you. We will only compete in swordsmanship! If you win, I will help you obtain the Holy Grail."
There was no will to fight, because of repeated defeats, but due to the temptation of the Holy Grail, Saber-chan still held the 'sword' with both hands, subconsciously taking up an offensive stance.
Seeing this, the corners of Guinevere's mouth curved slightly. It was an attack rather than a defense, which meant Saber had not completely given up on winning.
Therefore, she also took up the same offensive stance, and after counting to three in her heart, she rushed forward at almost the same speed.
"Bang", "Bang", "Bang"...
In the courtyard, the two met attack with attack. In the situation where Guinevere deliberately did not attack Saber's weaknesses, the two seemed to be dancing a round dance.
In a daze, Guinevere even recalled their first meeting, in the dance hall, when her Lia opened her mouth to propose to her.
"Saber-chan, how did you and your Guinevere meet?"
As their blades clashed, Saber knew Guinevere was holding back. In this "even match," only her own attacks were more fierce, as if she were the one being led in a dance.
She caught her breath and adjusted her offensive rhythm, gradually bringing herself into a steady, unhurried pace.
"That was in the Cathedral of Camelot City, when the Archbishop was officiating our wedding."
Her tone was solemn but carried a clear hint of apology, for her Guinevere was indeed the fragile daughter of a Vassal King. Their first meeting had already been their wedding, and this marriage was indeed a political alliance.
"Assassin, from this question, you are indeed not the Guinevere I know."
The change from calling her Guinevere to using her Class was prompted by the "you and your" in Guinevere's question, which immediately made Saber realize something.
Guided by this, Guinevere and Saber continued their conversation within this round dance.
"Then, let me first tell you about the first meeting between me and my Lia..."
From their first meeting to their marriage, the conversation covered their sparring sessions and Guinevere's desire for a sword that could rival the Holy Sword. Naturally, Tristan, Lancelot, and others also appeared in Guinevere's story.
Saber understood perfectly. The worldlines of the two sides had diverged completely the moment their respective King and Queen met.
Afterward, Guinevere spoke of their victory over the Rebel King, of protecting Camelot City from the Holy Church, and of their subjugation of all Europe.
Naturally, she also mentioned her Lia's feigned death at the Battle of Camlann, and how she entrusted the Kingdom to Mordred.
"How did Sir Mordred do?"
Since Guinevere began her story, Saber had been listening more than speaking. As they were only competing in swordsmanship, their round dance continued for over three hours, until Guinevere reached the part after Camlann.
"So, Camelot still fell?"
"Yes, but that's not Little Mordred's fault. She has already done enough."
"But, Camelot..."
"Saber, you aren't trying to establish an Eternal Kingdom, are you?"
"No, I never thought that. It's just that my judgment is correct: Mordred truly cannot become a qualified King."
Smack!
Guinevere's wooden stick actually struck Saber's backside.
"I won't allow you to criticize my Little Mordred! Besides, did you ever even care for your own Little Mordred? You're an irresponsible and nitpicking bastard of a father! You never properly raised or taught her, so what right do you have to make such a judgment about your Little Mordred!"
If we're talking about being moved, Saber was certainly moved by Guinevere's story, because aside from the parts where the two of them cuddled, it was all the kind of development Saber had fantasized about.
But the part that moved her the most was this last angry scolding.
So, would she be inspired, or...
"You're right. I am indeed a bastard father, and even less qualified to be King."
"You idiot! Couldn't you at least say that if you had another chance, you would definitely do better!"
After their three-hour-long round dance, even Guinevere was truly exhausted. And not only was she tired, she was genuinely angry.
On top of that, since she couldn't beat Saber into submission in bed, she could only continue to spank her like an elder.
Smack!
The wooden stick struck again.
"Saber-chan, you're not a child anymore. Stop throwing tantrums like one!"