The light representing the King illuminated the entire world. When this light receded, whether it was the soldiers of the Army of the King, or Lancelot who fought a thousand, or even the simple-minded Mikus, all stopped. The entire world seemed to freeze at this moment, all eyes focused on a single point.
There was no need for the battle to continue, for the outcome of this battle had already been decided.
The two individuals who had become the focus of everyone's attention were also frozen like statues. Tohsaka Rin's right fist had broken through the King of Conquerors' cuirass, piercing through from his back. The King of Conquerors' war sword had pierced Tohsaka Rin's heart, sinking in all the way to where he gripped the hilt.
"Cough… cough cough… King of Conquerors, I won."
Tohsaka Rin and the King of Conquerors each took a step back, separating. Tohsaka Rin coughed up a mouthful of blood, then said with a smile, displaying her victory.
The King of Conquerors' heart was pierced, his spiritual core shattered, so his departure was inevitable. However, Tohsaka Rin looked even more disheveled at this moment, covered in wounds. Her excessively overdrawn cellular life activity could no longer rapidly heal her injuries, and the most fatal wound was the piercing of her heart. But even so, it did not change the fact that Tohsaka Rin had achieved victory.
The King of Conquerors' sword was, after all, a broken blade. After piercing Tohsaka Rin's chest, the fractured tip pressed tightly against Tohsaka Rin's heart, but it still failed to truly destroy it. Tohsaka Rin appeared severely wounded and on the verge of death, but in reality, her vital points remained unharmed.
But even though she had won the battle, Tohsaka Rin felt no joy of victory. Although she had no regrets about this kingly battle with the King of Conquerors, she truly liked this honest, straightforward, yet magnanimous giant. She couldn't help but sigh, her tone filled with regret.
"So, it ends like this."
"Ah ha ha ha, victory and defeat are common in war. Even my Army of the King did not have a smooth journey. There's no need to sigh, Tohsaka Rin, the Demon King of this era." His spiritual core shattered, his body pierced with a void, the King of Conquerors, on the verge of dissipating, laughed heartily, looking up at the sky, without a trace of disappointment from defeat. For him, everything was as usual.
"Victory and defeat are common in war. You are probably the only one who can say that with such sincerity and truthfulness. King of Conquerors, no matter what, you are a great king, and no one can deny that."
Even facing death and defeat, he could be so magnanimous. Rin couldn't help but admire the King's magnanimity; at least she couldn't do it.
Although his spiritual core was shattered, the massive amount of magical power from the three command spells still allowed the King of Conquerors to linger for a while. He used his authority over the Reality Marble to pull Waver Velvet back to his side. He already knew the outcome of this war. Waver kept his mouth shut, trying not to let tears flow, suppressing the sadness in his heart, and stood tall, looking at his King unwaveringly.
"Waver Velvet, do you remember my figure, and the way I and my soldiers fought for our dreams?!"
Facing the King's question, Waver suppressed the grief in his heart, raised his head and chest, and responded loudly:
"I remember!"
Looking at Waver at this moment, the King of Conquerors finally smiled with satisfaction.
"Very good. It is my duty as King to show where the dream lies, and it is your task as a subject to witness the end of the dream and pass it down through generations. Go, Waver, live on, and tell the people of this era how your King fought, and let everyone understand what magnificent ideals your King embraced!"
The tears in Waver's eyes finally could no longer be suppressed. He lowered his head, not wanting the King to see him cry. No more words were needed. From today until the end of time, the heroic figure of the King of Conquerors would guide Waver, and as a subject, he would remain loyal to this memory. Before such a vow, separation became meaningless. Under Iskandar's banner, the bond between King and subject had long transcended time and space, becoming eternal.
Seeing the King of Conquerors laughing so heartily and sincerely at this moment, Rin couldn't help but murmur:
"With high aspirations and a desire for conquest... What a pity, King of Conquerors, has your dream awakened?"
"No matter!"
The King of Conquerors waved his hand dismissively.
"The end of one dream is the beginning of the next! Glory lies beyond! Precisely because it is infinitely distant, it is worth challenging. To sing of the Way of the King, to display the Way of the King, this is my Way as the King of Conquerors!" Suddenly, the King of Conquerors cast aside his broken battle-sword, then spread his arms as if to embrace this heaven and earth.
"Oh Demon King of this era, you who obstructed my Way of the King! Have you ever seen that dream more lofty than heaven and earth!? Have you ever seen the magnificent scene at the end of the sky!? Conquest is my stride in pursuing dreams. What I seek is to chase the sea at the end of the world, to personally experience this vast world!"
"Ah, I see it, King of Conquerors, your boundless dream, more lofty than heaven and earth." Rin nodded with the utmost seriousness. It wasn't perfunctory; at this moment, she truly saw it—that dream belonging only to the King of Conquerors and his subjects and soldiers.
This tyrant.
This King who led his people to prosperity.
He was simply, step by step, exploring this unknown world, pursuing the sea at the end of the world in his dreams. His subjects yearned for it, following the King in pursuit. No one had ever seen it, not even the King had seen the sea at the end of the world, but they believed without a doubt, because... that was what was called a dream.
Towards that infinite shore, casting aside all distractions, leaving all the glory, land, and wealth already possessed behind, advancing, conquering, stepping towards his dream—this was Iskandar, the King of Conquerors!
Even with a dimensional gap, through the screen, he was still the great king admired in her previous life. It was only by truly interacting, communicating, and clashing with him in this life that Rin truly conceived the idea of becoming a king. She would no longer feel embarrassed or childish about this idea; she would tell everyone with dignity—
"I want to be King!"
Igniting the spark of kingship in people's hearts, Iskandar was such a miraculous king.
"Okeanos..." At this moment, even Rin couldn't help but be lost in thought, drawn by his dream, softly murmuring the name of the sea in the King of Conquerors' dream. But then she suddenly came back to her senses, saying wistfully:
"It's a pity I still couldn't see it..."
"No! I've already seen it..."
The King of Conquerors, gazing into the distance, suddenly spoke a sentence that made Rin momentarily stunned. Then, the sound of surging waves filled her ears!
"What!..."
Rin turned back in surprise. She didn't know when, but behind her, there was already an boundless expanse of vast, surging sea! The scent of the sea, blowing towards her, declared its reality, not an illusion. Surging waves rolled and crashed against the insteps of Rin's leather boots. The cool sensation was so real. The endless, vast ocean shrouded in a misty sea fog—wasn't this—
Rin was utterly shocked by the scene before her, unable to utter a single word. She could swear this was the most beautiful sea she had ever seen in her past and present lives... "Okeanos!... Okeanos!... Okeanos!!!..."
Cheers, like waves and tides, roared forth. Thousands of soldiers of the Army of the King cheered and ran towards them. These resolute and brave warriors had childlike, happy, and excited expressions on their faces. They gathered behind the King of Conquerors, looking at this sea they had pursued their entire lives, and continued to pursue for two millennia even after becoming Heroic Spirits—the sea at the end of the world: Okeanos!
"Ah ha ha ha ha...! So that's it, only this surging sound of the heart's tide is the sound of Okeanos's waves!"
The King of Conquerors laughed and cheered excitedly. Recalling the child in Asia Minor two thousand years ago, looking into the distance and asking, that first child's dream, had finally come true!
"King of Conquerors, your dream has come true."
Rin was genuinely happy for the King of Conquerors and said to him with a smile.
"Ah ha ha ha ha! I said, the end of one dream is just the beginning of the next. Whether it comes true or is shattered, there's no difference. Therefore, I am not satisfied!"
The magnanimous King of Conquerors did not stop his steps because of the excitement of seeing this boundless sea. He turned to Rin and said:
"Rin, would you be willing to be a friend of Iskandar, this former loser?"
"Of course!"
The influence and enlightenment from the King of Conquerors were enough to benefit Rin for a lifetime, serving as a guiding light on the dark path ahead in her life.
"Very good. Then will you reach the pinnacle of this era and hold this world in the palm of your hand?"
"Of course."
"Good! The world of this era belongs to you!"
Just then, the neigh of a warhorse rang out; a spirited, powerfully built, jet-black steed, its majesty no less than that of any Heroic Spirit.
"Long time no see, partner."
The King of Conquerors laughed like a child and hugged the horse's neck. It was clear that this was Bucephalus, the legendary steed later renowned as a famous horse, who fought alongside the King of Conquerors throughout his life of conquest across the world. Following the King of Conquerors, even his horse became a Heroic Spirit.
The King of Conquerors flipped onto the saddle and shouted to his cheering warriors:
"Warriors! We have seen Okeanos, so what lies beyond Okeanos?"
"We don't know!!!"
"Then what shall we do!?"
"Conquer! Conquer! Conquer!!!"
"Exactly! Glory lies on the other shore, and we shall conquer all! Forward!"
The King of Conquerors, riding his powerful warhorse, charged ahead towards the other side of Okeanos. Tens of thousands of warriors, without a moment's hesitation, followed the King's steps onto the sea, towards the other shore, towards glory, until the end of the sky and sea, until the endless star-sea universe, launching an eternal conquest!
Tohsaka Rin and Waver Velvet stood on the beach of that world's end, watching their receding figures until the last person's silhouette disappeared into the horizon where the sea and sky merged...
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