Fate: How About a New Savior?

In the end, Mari never showed up in person. The moment Scáthach's Magecraft ensnared her, Lady Avalon, the court magus of Uruk, dissolved into a swirl of petals and vanished.

It hadn't been her real body—just an illusion.

"That really was an impressive illusion. Even I didn't realize it wasn't her true form at first," Shiomi remarked on the way to Ur.

"More like, a succubus who'd throw out a dumb idea like that probably knows full well she can only have fun safely if she doesn't expose herself," Scáthach said, her tone laced with regret.

Clearly, she thought it was a shame they hadn't managed to team up with Morgan to trap Mari.

"That succubus claims to be Merlin's sister. What do you think, Artoria?" Morgan asked.

"Well... she certainly resembles Merlin, but I can tell now that she's even further removed from humanity than he is," Artoria replied, slowly analyzing. "Merlin still concerns himself with the bigger picture, but she... she seems to care about it only insofar as it doesn't get in the way of what she finds entertaining. She doesn't worry, she doesn't grieve—she knows exactly how different she is from humans."

That was why she kept appearing with schemes that seemed dangerous, but ultimately never jeopardized the larger picture.

That was the kind of fun Lady Avalon, who called herself Mari, sought.

"Would Merlin even be troubled by something like that?" Shiomi asked, surprised.

"Who knows? Maybe he would," Artoria admitted.

"Even though he was my teacher and molded me into Britain's king, I never really understood him," she added matter-of-factly. "Before my final expedition, I advised him to stop messing around with women. He told me that was his purpose in life—without flowers, what's the point of living?"

And everything after that unfolded just like in the legends: Merlin vanished into the Prison Tower, and when King Arthur returned from the campaign, the greatest rebellion awaited.

The details may have differed slightly, but Artoria's experience wasn't far off.

"...Heh..." Shiomi let out an awkward laugh.

Artoria had merely been recounting events, but her words struck like invisible arrows, hitting him square in the gut.

"If my dear disciple ever ends up hiding away like that Flower Magus, just return to the Land of Shadows," Scáthach said, finding it perfectly reasonable and offering the suggestion.

"Comparing my husband to Merlin—is that your poor judgment as a teacher?" Morgan retorted, unimpressed.

"Don't worry, Master. You're nothing like Merlin—I can guarantee that," Artoria added.

"...You know, the more you try to comfort me, the guiltier I feel..." Shiomi muttered, head drooping.

But the three of them simply shared a round of soft laughter, brushing the matter off with the same lighthearted mood.

Up ahead stretched a rugged mountain path.

Although Ur lay to the south of Uruk, they had followed Hakuno Kishinami's advice and entered the southern forest from the plateau to the west of the city.

After all, the southern plains were too exposed—any approach would immediately draw the attention of the enemies who had already taken down Amakusa Shirou and Fūma Kotarō.

Fortunately, everyone in the group was far from ordinary when it came to stamina, so the hike wasn't all that difficult.

Still, a question had been nagging at Shiomi. He turned to Artoria.

"Why aren't we riding? I remember your warhorse can handle terrain like this without any issue."

"My Master chose to walk. How could I, as your knight, be content to ride?" Artoria answered calmly. "I may be a king, but right now, I am your knight. Sharing in your hardships is my duty."

As she said that, her clear gaze met Shiomi's.

"Sharing hardships? That's the obligation of a wife," Morgan said flatly, standing atop a slope and looking down at Artoria, who was at the rear of the group. "That's not something you need to do in my place."

"There's no point in nitpicking words. This Singularity is full of unknowns. Besides—" Artoria continued walking as she spoke.

She had just passed Morgan and now stood slightly behind her, watching Shiomi ahead. She was about to say more when a sudden alert chimed from the communicator on her wrist.

The moment she answered it, Romani's voice came through in a rush.

"Watch out! There's a massive surge of Mana—on the same level as the one from the Absolute Demonic Front! Get ready for combat—"

Even as he spoke, a green Magical Beast with a flat, scorpion-stinger tail and a body larger than a giant crocodile came crawling down from the mountainside. It let out a roar and leapt toward Shiomi and the others.

But the creature never made it to the ground. It froze in midair.

Nearly ten blue chains shot out from the void, wrapping around the beast and pulling tight. Its armor was so tough that not even blades or axes could pierce it, and the sound of the tension echoed in the air.

The instant Morgan clenched her raised hand, the chains contracted all at once, crushing the beast into gory chunks still attached to bits of bone. Dark purple blood sprayed everywhere.

Shiomi quickly raised a barrier to shield them, blocking the splatter.

"—Get ready..." Romani's voice trailed off. The Mana reading vanished in an instant. He figured he'd be better off worrying about the others back in Uruk, handling administrative work.

"Clean kill. Nicely done," Artoria said as she let go of her invisible sword and offered Morgan a smile of thanks.

"Next time, though, maybe don't scatter it so much. It's all over the road," Scáthach said as she nimbly stepped over the remains.

Shiomi took a longer path around, eyeing the spreading blood and unmoving corpse. "Yeah, figures. The moment we leave Uruk, we run into a Magical Beast. So they're not just limited to the northern front."

He prodded the beast's green exoskeleton with his red spear. The tip punctured the shell, and dark green venom oozed from the wound.

"Be careful. This one's venom is on par with the Hydra's from Greek mythology," Romani's voice chimed in again. "According to intel from Miss Mari, this type of Magical Beast is called Mušḫuššu. It's one of the eleven beasts born from the primordial goddess Tiamat. Also known as the Dragon of Babylon."

"The primordial goddess... Tiamat." Shiomi retracted his spear and caught up with the others.

"There's also the Mystery-born Laḫmu, and the Giant Lion Ugallu..." Romani continued cheerfully, like a kid excitedly sharing candy. He relayed what Mari had told him using Chaldea's comm system.

Even if he was a little too enthusiastic, Shiomi figured it wasn't a bad way to pass the time on the road ahead.