Just how powerful were Heroic Spirits? It was utterly beyond the realm of ordinary imagination.
Rider's chariot swept forth amid thunder and Bucephalus's roars. Each time it sped past like the wind, its arcing electricity and fierce slashes effortlessly severed the Sea Monster's seven- or eight-meter-thick tentacles, as though those massive limbs were nothing more than brittle straw.
The strikes of Saber's holy sword and Lancelot's Demon Sword were even more powerful than the thunder. With a single slash, the Sea Monster's thick tentacles were cleanly split in two, their severed ends smooth and even.
Naturally, the Sea Monster was unwilling to be outdone and launched a frenzied counterattack.
Yet to the nimble Heroic Spirits, its seemingly devastating, battering-ram-like attacks moved as slowly as a replay, riddled with openings and utterly harmless.
The Heroic Spirits skillfully exploited the gaps between the Sea Monster's attacks, using the force of their blades to easily sever its tentacles and leave one horrifying wound after another across its massive body.
What gave them a headache, however, was the Sea Monster's nearly unnatural regenerative ability. The wounds inflicted by the Heroic Spirits rapidly healed at a visible rate, as if they had never been struck at all.
"My King, watch out!"
After unleashing a magical slash, Lancelot sharply noticed that Saber had been caught by the Sea Monster's tentacles. Without hesitation, he leaped forward, swung his sword backhandedly, and precisely severed the other tentacles attacking her, successfully rescuing Saber.
He then quickly retreated with Saber for some distance.
Lancelot looked worriedly at Saber's left hand and asked, "My King, your hand?"
Saber instinctively gripped her sword with both hands, only to feel a wave of weakness. Only then did she realize her condition was far from ideal, but the injury did not diminish her fighting spirit. "It is fine. I was wounded earlier by the Spear of Curse, and the wound has not healed."
"So that was it. Lancer, then." Lancelot suddenly understood.
When he had first appeared, Saber's battle with Lancer had already temporarily ended, so he knew nothing of what had happened before that.
Besides, he had been in a frenzied state of madness at the time. Even if he had retained those memories, they would likely have been swallowed up by his insanity.
Since Saber's right hand was impaired, it was no wonder she had been caught by the tentacles earlier.
"My King, please stand behind me. Now, your knight shall charge forward! Ha!!"
Lancelot roared as black magical energy rapidly gathered upon his Demon Sword. He swung his hand fiercely, sending forth an astonishingly powerful magical slash. Its immense force even cleaved the river below in two, leaving a gigantic, shocking wound upon the Sea Monster's huge body.
Lancelot fought the Sea Monster with unmatched bravery and ferocity. Each of his thunderous roars crashed straight into the depths of Saber's heart like rolling thunder.
"Sir Lancelot!"
Distant memories surged into Saber's heart like a tide.
Once, it had been this very same bravery. Again and again, Lancelot had stood firmly before her and fought while bathed in blood; again and again, he had remained by her side like a shadow.
A feeling too difficult to describe slowly welled up from the deepest part of Saber's heart. It was as though emotions once forgotten in the corners of time had returned, stirring layer upon layer of ripples within her.
Even the injury to her left hand could not stop Saber's passion to fight alongside Lancelot.
"My knight, my friend! How could a lord possibly stand behind her vassal!"
Saber cried out.
Without a heart steadfast in battle, without fearless courage to press onward, without sincerity toward her retainers, how could the King of Knights have forged the legend of fighting for over a decade without ever suffering defeat?
The holy sword in Saber's hands seemed to sense her surging passion as well. Amid the howling gale, Saber resolutely released the Noble Phantasm Wind King Barrier. In an instant, the holy sword's golden true form was revealed before everyone.
The power of the Noble Phantasm Wind King Barrier was certainly formidable, but at this moment, Saber felt no need to rely on such concealed power.
When Lancelot was fighting desperately before her, continuing to hide the holy sword's true appearance would have been a desecration of her vassal.
The petite King of Knights raised her holy sword high, a brilliant smile blooming across her face—one rarely seen during this Holy Grail War.
"My sword, my shield, my warhorse, my unyielding walls. Come forth, glorious King of Knights, Artoria Pendragon! Raise once more that sword of salvation and shine upon this world! Acknowledge me, my loyal knights! Acknowledge me, my friends who fight beside me! Acknowledge me, my mentors who guide me onward! Acknowledge me, my unwavering will! Acknowledge me, the chivalric path I sing of and defend!!!"
The holy sword burst forth with unprecedented radiance. Bathed in that light, Saber seemed to regain the emotions and convictions she had once possessed.
She was no longer the little girl whom the King of Conquerors had criticized into worthlessness at the Banquet of Kings, nor the lost soul who had been influenced by the King of Conquerors's Reality Marble and had even temporarily lost her mind.
At that moment, Saber remembered that she, too, had once known times when all stood united as one.
What did failure even matter? Why should her unwavering resolve to save her homeland and nation require the recognition or approval of other kings?
The people were the foundation of her kingly path, the embodiment of her will.
Now, the loneliness in her heart dissipated. Even if this feeling of fighting alongside an old friend could last only for a moment, it was enough to let Saber recover her former passion and fighting spirit.
The dejection caused by being influenced earlier vanished without a trace. An uplifting strength echoed within her heart, just like the radiant holy sword in her hand.
Yet reality was always cruel.
Though Saber possessed lofty ideals and unwavering conviction, the injury to her left hand still affected her, preventing the holy sword's brilliance from fully blooming.
Still, that dazzling radiance successfully drew the Sea Monster's attention. The enormous creature no longer advanced toward the city, but slowly turned and pressed toward Saber.
A gigantic tentacle lashed in from the side like lightning, bringing with it a fierce hurricane that twisted the surrounding air.
The sudden turn of events alarmed Rider. He immediately shouted, "Saber, move!!!"
Saber reacted swiftly, twisting aside and leaping lightly more than twenty meters into the air, narrowly evading the massive tentacle as tall as a building.
When she landed upon the water's surface, Rider's chariot came racing in from the side. Electricity raged everywhere it passed, scorching the tentacle black and instantly robbing it of movement.
But before Rider could make another move, the Sea Monster's unnatural regenerative ability took effect again. In the blink of an eye, the tentacle was completely restored.
Just then, a black magical slash came whistling through and precisely cleaved the enormous tentacle in two. The severed halves crashed into the river with a splash.
Rider drove his chariot to Saber's side and said gravely, "Saber, no matter how many attacks like that we make, they will be useless against the Sea Monster. We need a wider-ranging, stronger attack—one decisive blow to kill it."
Saber smiled confidently. "King of Conquerors, of course I know. Only my Noble Phantasm can completely destroy the Sea Monster."
Saber's unusual aura of confidence made Rider pause slightly. Then he burst into laughter and could not resist smacking Waver beside him hard enough to make Waver grimace in pain.
Rider called out, "Saber—no, King of Knights—you have changed. The you who has regained her confidence is the true king! Before, you were merely a little girl. Now, you are the renowned King of Knights."
"There is no need to say that, King of Conquerors. Let us first find a way to deal with this monster. You are the fastest, so return to the shore and explain our current predicament to Lancer. Have him lift his curse from me. So long as the holy sword's radiance can bloom completely, an enemy like this will surely be reduced to ashes."
Saber's expression was firm, and her words brimmed with the bearing of a king.
Inspired by Saber's confidence and presence, Rider burst into laughter once again.
"Well said, King of Knights! This time, I acknowledge that dealing with such a monster truly requires your power. Then I shall return first. Ha!!"
With that, Rider drove Bucephalus onward, and the chariot thundered away like an arrow loosed from its bow, leaving Saber standing quietly in place as she awaited good news.
"Sir Lancelot, I remember now. In the past, you were the same—you always bought time for us, always gave us the chance to claim final victory." Saber spoke softly. Deep within her emerald eyes, a blazing fire burned as a powerful presence slowly rose from her body.
Facing another enormous tentacle rushing toward her, Saber did not panic in the slightest, for she knew deep in her heart that someone would surely appear before her in time to shield her from danger.
Sure enough, Lancelot, clad in black armor, charged over like a bolt of black lightning. Wielding his Demon Sword with mountain-toppling force, he violently knocked the tentacle away.
Bang! The sheer force shook the air itself. Violent currents of wind swept in all directions like raging waves, even pressing the water below into a depression.
Then, using that force, Lancelot quickly arrived beside Saber. He lowered his head slightly and apologized in a low voice, "Forgive me, my King. Your knight failed in his duty and allowed the enemy's attack through."
"It is all right, Sir Lancelot."
Saber's voice was filled with confidence and resolve.
Hearing such a confident voice, Lancelot's body trembled slightly.
He looked toward Saber's face. That familiar expression, that steadfast will, that confident bearing made him feel as though he were seeing the radiant King of Knights from long ago.
His heart was filled with both excitement and melancholy. My King, you have finally returned. Your dream should continue onward. No matter who stands behind you, you must advance with unwavering resolve. Perhaps stopping now and then is a choice, but so long as you do not give up, there is still a chance to set everything right. Perhaps this Holy Grail War will be the turning point of your fate.
My King, Lancelot of the Knights of the Round Table will forever stand firmly before you and cut down every enemy that blocks your path!
Lancelot silently swore this vow in his heart.
It was both his oath to Saber and the wish and ideal he had always held.
Only, he would fulfill that oath and ideal in another unique way—after defeating every other enemy.
Before you continue