How About You Find Another Savior Instead

Rarely, this burly giant of a man was left speechless by a single remark from Shio, and he smiled apologetically.

"That is truly a painfully severe rebuke." Iskandar lowered his head.

"Then issue an edict of self-reproach."

Shio continued to mock him, but did not press the matter further. After all, for someone to attempt holding such an event during the Holy Grail War, even someone as rough-hewn as the King of Conquerors must have had a deeper purpose.

"So? You came all the way to my house to mooch food and drinks. Did something good happen?" Shio asked.

Though Iskandar had not originally come for that reason, he readily went along with it and took the opportunity to boast about his Master's achievement.

"You do not know yet, do you? My Master managed to find Caster's workshop with nothing more than simple alchemy, so I went out and destroyed the place."

"Caster was defeated too?" Shio asked.

"No. He was not there, otherwise I would have executed him along with it." The King of Conquerors spoke without changing expression.

Waver folded his arms and bit into a sandwich. "It was just a crude method. Nothing worth bragging about."

"How so?" Shio raised a brow.

Iskandar then roughly explained how Waver had collected river water from different stretches of the Miyuen River and tested it for residual spells, thereby pinpointing Caster's workshop. The more he explained, the more embarrassed Waver became. In the eyes of a top-tier Magus like Shio, it surely was not worth mentioning.

"Not bad at all." Shio's assessment took Waver by surprise.

"Ha ha ha ha! See? What did I tell you!" Iskandar looked rather pleased with himself.

"Maguses are overly fixated on magecraft itself and neglect how to solve the problem. That is the real problem." Shio glanced at Waver. After some thought, he still did not mention that he had already taken out Kayneth's faction.

"Is that so?" Waver answered doubtfully, though he was secretly quite pleased.

The standards by which practical Maguses judged things were ultimately different.

"So then, King of Conquerors, what was your purpose in coming here today?" Shio decided to get to the point.

Iskandar had yet to start eating, nor had he poured wine into everyone's cups. Clearly, he was waiting for something.

"Of course, for a 'battle.' Not one fought with blades or Noble Phantasms, but one held over raised cups. I wish to ask Saber and Berserker—no, the King of Knights and Morgan—about each of your 'kingly bearing.'"

It seemed Iskandar already knew their true names. Whether he had deduced them himself or someone from another faction had deliberately leaked the information behind the scenes was impossible to tell.

After all, Assassin was still operating in secret. Even Shio could not guard against everything.

But that was secondary. The real issue lay elsewhere.

"I am indeed a king, but... how could Queen Sister..." Artoria knew that Morgan had never called herself a king from beginning to end.

"No, King of Knights. The person before us truly did become a king. Perhaps you simply did not know." Iskandar spoke seriously. He had considerable faith in his own eye and would never mistake such a thing.

Morgan merely smiled calmly. "I did indeed reign as the Winter Queen. I will not refuse the challenge you have offered, sir."

Winter Queen—another title absent from the legends.

Upon hearing that self-proclaimed title, Shio was slightly surprised, though his expression remained unchanged.

"In other words, you intend to begin with a contest of the heroes' respective breadth of character. If everyone acknowledges one another's caliber, the answer will naturally emerge. Is that it?" Shio quickly grasped the King of Conquerors' intent.

Iskandar was delighted. "You are truly quick-witted, sir. How about serving as the moderator for this 'Holy Grail debate'?"

"Huh?" Shio did not understand. "Why should I preside over something like—"

"There is no need for modesty, God Slayer." Accompanied by a dazzling golden light, Gilgamesh appeared in the courtyard. He was not wearing his golden armor, but a plain white shirt with snakeskin-patterned trousers and white shoes. The golden ornaments around his wrists and neck still exuded an air of luxury. "For one such as you to preside over this banquet, it may indeed be worth this king's time to sit and listen to the ravings of mongrels."

"..." Shio began to feel that things were taking a turn he could not comprehend.

Whether it was this "Holy Grail debate" or the way Gilgamesh addressed him.

The only thing certain was that no battle would break out in this courtyard tonight.

A Special Banquet

Still, Shio had not expected even Gilgamesh to be invited. He had no doubt this was yet another example of Iskandar doing whatever he pleased.

"I did not expect you to choose such a cramped, suffocating place for a 'Banquet of Kings.' Your limits are clear from that alone. Since you have troubled this king into coming here, how do you intend to atone?" Though Gilgamesh sat down, his crimson eyes stared arrogantly at the King of Conquerors.

Rider merely laughed loudly, dismissing those words with a laugh as he opened a barrel and poured wine into the goblets Shio had brought.

"Do not say such spoilsport things. You insisted on walking here yourself, and you arrived late, so naturally you must drink a cup first." He picked up a goblet and handed it to Gilgamesh.

Though the King of Heroes looked unfriendly from beginning to end, as though any random sentence might provoke him, he accepted the cup without hesitation and drained it in one gulp.

This was a "challenge." As a king, he could not possibly refuse that cup of wine.

Clearly, Gilgamesh acknowledged that as well and intended to stand above everyone else at this "banquet."

"...Tch. What is this inferior wine? Can one measure a hero's caliber with such stuff?"

As he spoke, the space beside Gilgamesh twisted and a golden gate appeared. Yet what emerged from it was not a weapon, but golden drinking vessels.

The vessels slowly descended to the ground. By then, Gilgamesh had already produced another five cups.

Having immediately understood his intention, the King of Conquerors poured a cup not only for the four Servants, but also for Shio, whose combat ability rivaled that of a Servant.

Gilgamesh's wine was both intense and refreshing, both mellow and bracing. Its overpowering taste smothered the sense of smell, even dulling sight and touch.

Shio had no choice but to pinch the bridge of his nose and use mana to steady his mind so he would not immediately collapse drunk—he never drank alcohol, and wine this potent was somewhat beyond his tolerance.

"Is there not any lighter wine?" Shio complained. "Uruk beer should be fairly mild."

Gilgamesh smiled leisurely. "This king's treasury contains only supreme treasures. Wine and blades alike are no exception. As for beer, a specialty produced under this king's rule, seek it yourself if you wish to drink it."

"..." Shio had underestimated Gilgamesh's unreasonable nature, so he changed the subject. "Fine. Since you want me as the moderator, I suppose no one else would satisfy you. Then I will reluctantly do it once."

He raised his cup and looked levelly at the four Servants over its rim.

"Then let me ask you all this: Those who answer a Master's summons to participate in the Holy Grail War must surely have a wish they place upon the Grail." As Shio said this, his gaze fell upon Morgan.

He felt this was an excellent opportunity to hear Morgan's true purpose and gain a glimpse of her real origins.

A witch of Britain... that sort of identity was probably not enough to explain the truth.

"You have mistaken the premise, God Slayer." Gilgamesh said. "To assume that this is a matter of 'contending for the Holy Grail' already violates reason."

Shio paused. Now that his true name had been exposed, Gilgamesh was indeed not simply talking nonsense.

"Is that so? But no matter how I look at it, this Holy Grail is not Uruk's great cup." Shio narrowed his eyes in accusation. "Then it surely does not exist within your treasury, King of Heroes."

"This planet is this king's courtyard, and everything within that courtyard belongs to this king." Gilgamesh offered only that response.

"Then there is nothing to discuss." Shio clicked his tongue.

At that moment, Iskandar cheerfully took over. "In other words, King of Heroes, anyone who wishes to obtain the Holy Grail must have your permission?"

"This king has no reason to bestow treasures upon mongrels such as you." Gilgamesh smiled, his crimson gaze sharp. "Only this king's subjects and citizens may receive this king's favor. If any of you wish to submit to this king, then granting you one or two such cups would not be impossible."

That was clearly impossible. Every Servant present was a king and could never submit to another.

"Then what is your purpose in joining the Holy Grail War, King of Heroes?" Shio asked.

"Of course, to punish the thieves who intend to steal this king's treasures." At that, the King of Heroes fixed his eyes firmly upon Shio. "But you are different, God Slayer. You are unlike the mongrels crawling all over this era. You possess value worth seeing. If you can pass this king's trial, even the Holy Grail may be bestowed upon you."

Shio frowned slightly. "You have been calling me 'God Slayer, God Slayer' since earlier, but I do not recall ever killing a god. I have a name too."

"Oh..." The King of Heroes revealed an amused smile, but clearly had no intention of changing his wording, much less explaining why. "Then this king shall call you the God Slayer King. Ha ha ha ha!"

Everyone else present found it equally strange and wanted to get to the bottom of it. A mortal who had slain gods and still lived in this era... he was practically a living Heroic Spirit.

Unfortunately, the person who knew the truth had no intention of revealing more, leaving them unable to pursue the matter.

Ignoring Gilgamesh's laughter, Shio turned away and handed the floor to the King of Conquerors.

Meeting his gaze, the normally bold Iskandar looked uncharacteristically embarrassed. "A body. What I want is to obtain a body."

The unexpected answer made even Waver cry out in shock as he rushed to Rider's side and demanded:

"Y-you-you! Did you not say your wish was to conquer the wor—Gah!"

Iskandar flicked Waver on the forehead, sending him rolling backward onto the grass.

"Obtain a body..." Shio was surprised that he did not find it strange, instead understanding Iskandar's purpose at once. "Rather than using the Holy Grail to fulfill your wish, you wish to use it to obtain the conditions necessary to fulfill it... is that it?"

"You understand well." Iskandar laughed and praised him.

Shio merely looked away and drank in silence.

He did not understand Iskandar, but he had indeed learned all manner of things beside a queen. Even though it had been a land of deathly silence, that person had never abandoned her position as a queen.

Simply by watching that person, Shio had come to fully understand what a "king" was.

"For such a reason, you intend to take this king's treasure?" Gilgamesh asked.

"Of course! To face heaven and earth with my head held high in my own one and only body—that is the act called 'conquest'... To set out like this, to take each step forward, to accomplish my goal, that is my kingly path! But right now, I do not even have my own body. Does that not mean I cannot even take the first step?"

Listening to Iskandar's declaration, the Servants each wore varying degrees of seriousness.

The King of Heroes looked at Iskandar with an exceptionally grave, murderous gaze. "This king has decided, Rider. This king shall personally execute you."

The King of Heroes, Take the Blame.JPG

Clearly, the King of Heroes had begun to regard Iskandar as his true enemy in this Holy Grail War.

Yet the King of Conquerors did not care in the slightest. Like the King of Heroes, he continued smiling and enjoying this ordinary banquet.

Shio intended to give the floor to Morgan, but before his gaze had even fully turned toward her, she spoke first:

"I have no wish to entrust to the Holy Grail."

"What?" Artoria was utterly shocked.

Iskandar and Gilgamesh showed varying degrees of surprise, while Waver and Irisviel found it even more unbelievable that a Servant could have no wish.

Unconcerned with what others thought, Morgan spoke ambiguously. "If I must say it, then I had already obtained what I wanted when I descended into this Holy Grail War. Pursuing the Holy Grail is merely my response to the efforts of the one who is both my Master and my husband."

Her words sounded full of contradictions, like a lie that could be punctured at any moment.

Yet no one questioned her.

Morgan had not clearly stated what she wanted, but neither had she lied.

"Ho ho... Could what you wanted have been to moderate tonight's banquet?" Iskandar joked.

Mysterious and unpredictable, he could not easily evaluate this witch. Only her bearing as a king was unquestionably genuine.

Morgan swirled her cup and took another sip. "You may think as you please, King of Conquerors."

She shifted her eyes and glanced at Artoria, who was quietly eating beside her.

"It seems you have always been curious about my purpose, but unfortunately. Now that my purpose has already been fulfilled, there is no need for me to reveal everything." Morgan watched Artoria mockingly. "In that case, will you still frankly tell the others your wish?"

Artoria set down the food in her hand. Though she appeared to be enjoying the delicacies at the banquet as well, her resolve had not wavered, nor had she forgotten the purpose of tonight.

"Then tell us?" Morgan spoke unhurriedly, clearly taking Shio's place as moderator.

Glad to be spared the trouble, Shio listened quietly.

"My wish is to save my homeland. I will use the omnipotent wish-granting machine to change Britain's fate of destruction."

Her righteous declaration plunged everyone present into silence.

"But Britain was destroyed during your reign, following the conclusion of your final battle." Shio raised a brow, breaking the silence as he questioned the King of Knights.

"That is why I regret it and wish to change that ending! It was all because of me..."

Before she could finish, Gilgamesh let out a distorted laugh. "Hey, did you hear that, Rider? She calls herself a king and was revered as one by her people, yet she feels regret! Ha ha ha ha!"

Rider remained solemn and offered no opinion. Artoria felt insulted, anger appearing on her face as she prepared to rebuke the King of Heroes' attitude, but someone else spoke before her.

"It is indeed worthy of ridicule, but do you truly have the standing to ridicule her, King of Heroes?"

Morgan suddenly spoke, abruptly turning the spearhead toward Gilgamesh. The golden king's laughter stopped short, replaced by displeased killing intent.

Gilgamesh, who acknowledged no one but himself, would never casually accept anyone's reproach. He looked coldly at Morgan.

"Since you dare say such words, you must have prepared a defense, Fairy of Paradise. Even if you are innocent, daring to point out this king's faults to his face is already a capital crime of the highest disrespect."

Facing killing intent like an army bearing down upon her, Morgan remained as steady as a mountain.

"Do not be so hasty. It is a somewhat long story. Listen patiently to the end before deciding whether that is truly the case, King of Heroes." Morgan put down her cup, her gaze sweeping across everyone present.

Artoria was the banquet guest most bewildered at that moment.

She had never expected Queen Sister to argue on her behalf, much less... to place responsibility for Britain's destruction upon the King of Heroes, whom Artoria had only heard of in legends before now.

"What exactly are you trying to say, Morgan...?" she tried to ask.