Chapter 358
Have you all got the target wrong? She Li Pu, isn't your target! It's the Holy Grail! It's the Holy Grail! What's with all of you wanting to marry her Li Pu? Are you philosophers?
Li Pu turned his attention to Saber.
"I have no such thoughts!" Saber quickly clarified, "My goal remains the Holy Grail."
But honestly, it's not impossible to settle for Belldandy as a second choice, since she, like the Holy Grail, is an all-powerful wish-granting device.
'I don't feel at ease with any of you.' Li Pu didn't intend to say anything more.
'On the other hand, she would feel a little more at ease if Saber had the same thoughts.'
If she absolutely had to choose between Saber, Rider, and Archer, Li Pu would prefer Saber.
She doesn't want to fight with bayonets or get stabbed!
Absolutely not!
"It doesn't matter!" said the King of Conquerors. "Seizing the Holy Grail and conquering destiny are not contradictory."
"I don't mind having more treasures in my treasury," Golden Flash said arrogantly. "If a mere mortal can desire Goddess, how can I, with two-thirds divine blood, not do the same?"
That seems quite interesting. Besides, when facing true deities, a roundabout strategy is best. Wouldn't it be ideal to make the Goddess one's own? More importantly, there's fate! Justice! Fairness! Justice! Leaving aside fairness and justice for now, what king wouldn't want to control fate and justice?
Controlling the fate of others, the king is the law, the embodiment of justice and fairness—what king could refuse that?
As long as I can win over this Goddess, I'll be invincible! She must be mine!
'...' Li Pu was even more speechless. She then realized that these legendary kings seemed to be even more troublesome and infuriating than Kevin and the others.
At least when facing Kevin and the others, I can still try to persuade them.
But these guys all want to seduce him!
"Damn it! The Knight of the Lake! Where's the Knight of the Lake?" Li Pu cried out in his heart, "Hurry up and save the day! Otherwise, I don't know what to say!"
As if summoned by Li Pu, a black mist gathered not far to the left front of the group.
The next second, a warrior wearing armor emanating black energy appeared there.
The black mist, the aura like that of a wild beast.
'Honkai?!' Li Pu frowned involuntarily. She knew who this was and what it meant. But compared to the original, the power that drove Berserker into Mad Enhancement gave Li Pu a sense of familiarity. It was Honkai! This was the power of Honkai! And it seemed to be the kind of power that wasn't under the control of Herrscher, perhaps on par with a companion beast.
"Oh?" Golden Flash looked at the suddenly appearing Berserker with disdain and said, "This kind of scoundrel is also a participant in the Holy Grail?"
"What is that?" Waver exclaimed in shock as he looked at Berserker. "I can't see it at all! It's definitely Servant, but its attributes are completely invisible!"
Even if you look at the Goddess's attributes, you can still see them. Although a bunch of question marks are confusing, at least you can see them.
But Berserker's attributes are completely invisible.
"Is that so?" The King of Conquerors said unhurriedly, "Hey, my queen Belldandy, you should know who he is, right?"
"Hmph!" Li Pu snorted coldly and said, "I am not your queen yet! King of Conquerors! Even if I have a good temper, I cannot tolerate you like this! If you dare to talk nonsense again, I will not be polite to you."
Li Pu was really angry.
"Hahaha~" the King of Conquerors said, seemingly unconcerned, "As expected of the Goddess I'm here to conquer! I'm increasingly looking forward to you becoming my queen!"
'...' Li Pu gritted his teeth, trembling with rage. This guy was completely impervious to reason!
"Waaagh!" the giant iron man covered in black mist roared.
He stomped on the ground, intending to charge forward.
"Shut up!" Li Pu couldn't stand it anymore, and her command brought the Berserker to a sudden stop.
"This is divine pronouncements?" Saber exclaimed in surprise. "It even works on Berserker?"
She originally thought this thing would be very effective on ordinary people, but now it can actually stop Berserker, which means it's also effective on Heroic Spirit?
"I always feel like you guys are underestimating me," Li Pu said, feigning fierceness and anger. "It's really annoying."
"I know his name, and I know his past," Li Pu said, brandishing Belldandy's staff. "But if I were to reveal his past and his name, some people here would be saddened."
This staff of Belldandy isn't real; it was just something temporarily created using Belldandy's abilities.
It's Belldandy's one-second transformation technique. That technique doesn't just apply to clothes. It encompasses all substances, allowing you to transform and recombine them into anything you want.
The downside seems to be that it consumes a lot of energy, so you can only use it once a day at most.
If you're not afraid of collapsing on the spot, you can still use it.
"Oh?" Golden Flash looked at Berserker with interest and said, "Looks like he was someone's subordinate or comrade-in-arms. It's really a sad sight to see him like this."
'The Knight of the Lake, perhaps I can follow the path taken by other time travelers.'
'You can also try to see if you have the ability to challenge the rules of the Holy Grail War.'
Yes, as long as I can defy the rules of the Holy Grail War, my chances of winning in this war will increase exponentially! I don't need to be so hesitant to attack Golden Flash's Anti-God Armor.
"O you whose minds are disturbed by hatred and evil thoughts," Li Pu quickly began to pray.
"Open your eyes and see through this evil tyranny. Use your eyes to see and your heart to hear this voice from the gods."
"We will no longer be lost!"
Believe it or not, Belldandy's Divine Prayer is actually quite useful! As long as you're a little bit chuunibyou (a Japanese term for someone with delusions of grandeur), you can express your wishes in a rather chuunibyou way; there are no specific format or sentence requirements.
And the results are outstanding! This is truly a very practical skill!
Feeling the change in her power, she gently held the staff horizontally in front of her, and the next second her whole body was radiating silver light.
A beautiful, multicolored divine power gushed forth from her body.
This is a comforting and healing power that can make anyone feel warmth and healing.
As this power swept over the Iron Man, the ominous black mist melted away as quickly as ice and snow scorched by the blazing sun.
Iron Man finally revealed his true form.
"It feels like I've had a long dream."
The Iron Man knelt down and said, "Thank you, Goddess."
"And my king, I pray to you before the Goddess."
"Please punish me for my infidelity and betrayal."
Chapter 11 is so hard to choose!
'It can work out? That means we can choose one person?'
Li Pu didn't want to pay too much attention to the affair between the Knight of the Lake and King Arthur; she just wanted to see if she could directly challenge the rules upon which the Holy Grail stood.
While restoring Berserker to consciousness is a basic procedure in any Fate story, it's not easy to accomplish. There are two reasons why Berserker is in a state of chaos, reduced to mere fighting instincts. First, the rules of the Holy Grail War govern this situation. Restoring Berserker to consciousness is entirely different from the natives exploiting the rules to cheat; this is a direct challenge to the rules of the Holy Grail War. Don't attempt this without sufficient strength! Otherwise, you risk a backlash.
Li Pu may have seemed to be having a smooth ride, but he could actually sense the Holy Grail War's resistance to her attempts to rewrite the rules.
If it weren't for the overwhelming advantage that divine power had over other forces, that attack wouldn't have been so easy to succeed.
Secondly, it was the Knight of the Lake's own will; his Mad Enhancement was something he tacitly accepted. He didn't need the Holy Grail to undo any injustices; because of the guilt he felt about his affair with the Queen, he was solely focused on dying, wanting King Arthur to execute him personally, and had no other desires.
Therefore, he willingly fell into madness and violence, and it would be all in vain if the Knight of the Lake's inner turmoil could not be resolved.
Fortunately, Belldandy's power has the effect of calming the mind and healing emotional wounds. Li Pu can't untangle the Knight of the Lake's inner turmoil in a short time, but if he can temporarily heal this emotional wound, he can also temporarily calm the Berserker down from his rage.
"Saber~" Li Pu walked up behind Saber and said, "He is your Lancer."
Yes, Lancer's story does have many similarities to Berserker's. Both were once the strongest fighters under their lords, both had affairs with their lords' women, and both eloped with their lords' women. Of course, in the end, both reconciled with their lords through mediation, but the so-called reconciliation was basically just a superficial one.
Although the final results were not quite the same, they all ended in tragedy.
"Saber," Li Pu said, "My power can only temporarily restore Berserker's consciousness and calm. It is currently fading away. The feud between you is something you must resolve yourselves. I will not waste my power on this matter again."
Li Pu was not lying. Even if divine power has an overwhelming advantage over the power of other laws, it does not mean that the power of other laws will completely submit.
The power of the Holy Grail War resisted until it returned to its laws, and the effects of divine power would not last forever once its supply was cut off. Berserker did not remove his helmet, but a faint black mist had appeared around him.
His breathing gradually became heavier.
Saber never imagined that Berserker's true identity was actually Diarmuid, and she was so shocked that she couldn't say anything.
The scene didn't seem very harmonious, a strange silence hanging in the air, as if no one knew who should speak first. Li Pu, however, didn't want to get involved in these matters; her real focus was on Lancer on the other side—because she wanted to steal his Gordian Rose, making him her primary concern.
' The Servant certainly wouldn't want to hand over his Noble Phantasm,' Li Pu thought to himself, stroking his chin. 'It would be best if he willingly offered up the Gordian Rose.'
Directly robbing is bound to be a high-investment, low-return endeavor, but getting him to deliver it himself would be the best option.
Lancer shuddered under Li Pu's gaze. He instinctively thought, 'Even Goddess can't resist this allure?'
With a loud "Boom!", the eerie silence was finally broken! It was Berserker who shattered the tranquility once again, while Matou Kariya, standing behind him, couldn't bear the calm. If Berserker were lucid, he could reason with Matou Kariya, but now, in his Mad Enhancement, he was simply obeying orders.
Golden Flash is Matou's primary target.
Berserker rushed forward to save the lamppost, and the black mist quickly seeped into it, turning the lamppost into Berserker's weapon.
But Golden Flash didn't get angry like in the original story. He didn't even use his Noble Phantasm to attack Berserker. He just jumped down from the lamppost with a happy expression and said, "It was really a very interesting show. Suddenly I'm a little more looking forward to this boring game."
The Golden Flash figure vanished into thin air, and Berserker, having lost his target, stood there watching Saber without taking any action.
Perhaps due to his last shred of rationality, he refrained from attacking Saber, exchanging a brief glance with her before disappearing from the scene. As for Lancer, his Master, realizing that the possibility of quickly defeating a Servant had been lost, ordered Lancer to retreat.
The once bustling dock suddenly became deserted.
"It was quite an unsatisfying battle," Rider said, seemingly with great regret. "It wasn't as exhilarating as one might have hoped; it felt more like a grand gathering that reveals some conspiracy and political atmosphere."
Indeed, perhaps because of my presence, this duel, which originally began and ended in battle, turned into a sideline affair that was neither a strong start nor a weak finish. It seemed to have been marred by more subtle manipulation and hidden agendas that couldn't be openly discussed.
"War is a continuation of politics," Li Pu said. "And war itself is nothing more than a contest of wits. Isn't that normal, Rider?"
"Hahaha~" Rider burst into laughter, seemingly laughing at something inexplicably. It might be a sign of his carefree nature, or perhaps he was laughing at something else entirely. But perhaps it was simply a reflection of Rider's own personality! He laughed and brandished the reins in his hand, saying, "Belldandy, my Goddess! I look forward to fighting you! I look forward to the day you become my Goddess alone!"
"Hahaha~ Rider~" Rider drove the oxcart with the same exaggerated and unrestrained manner as when he came and went, just like when he arrived with lightning and thunder.
"Hmph..." Li Pu snorted coldly, not wanting to comment further on Rider.
"Saber," Li Pu simply said, "You take your wife and go first. I've discovered something interesting here."
"What is it?" Saber asked immediately.
"Lancer and his Master." Li Pu didn't try to hide anything; it seemed that the three-step process of 'inviting', 'beheading', and 'taking in as a dog' was a routine operation for Lancer and his Master. It could be said that because they knew Lancer's Master's sore spot, most transmigrators would try to bring Lancer under their command.
Aside from the possibility of the Lancer forum having its Master labeled as "hatred" and its overemphasis on knight duels, it has no other flaws.
Loyal and reliable, they will never go against their Master's will unless it violates the principles of chivalry. They completely regard their Master's cause as their own, their Master's will as their own, and their Master's goals as their own.
Is there a better dog in the world?
Yes! Diarmuid is pretty much a good dog, but the problem is that Saber is right there, and she's also his ally. Stealing someone else's man right there isn't necessarily a good thing. And more importantly, Saber has forgiven Diarmuid; the apparent reconciliation is just because the Knights of the Round Table under Saber's command don't approve.
Diarmuid, on the other hand, suffered betrayal from his lord.
In that case, it's much easier for you to poach the director's girlfriend than Saber's. Because that director has absolutely no chivalry.
"Lancer and his Master?" Saber asked, "What do you want to do?"
"Poaching." Li Pu said bluntly, "Lancer and his Master are not on the same side at all, so I want to bring Lancer to our side."
"Bring him to our side?" Saber shook her head and said, "Even if you, Foreigner, are the Goddess of Fate and know the destinies of others, I don't think Lancer would betray his Master to become our friend. I don't know Lancer, nor do I know his past like you do. But my intuition and this brief encounter make me think that Lancer should be an excellent knight."
"He would never betray his Master. Foreigner, if you force Lancer to join us, it is a contempt for Lancer and the principles he upholds. He will never submit to you."
"Haha~" Li Pu said casually, "How will you know if you don't try?"
If they really can't do it, they'll just resort to force. Anyway Li Pu is determined to Gordian Rose!
"That Foreigner," Saber said somewhat uncertainly, "I shouldn't have said this, but Lancer seems to possess the ability to charm women. You, as Goddess, wouldn't have been charmed by him too, would you?"
She is indeed Goddess, but she is still a woman... Could this foreigner have really been bewitched?
"..." Li Pu's face froze instantly.
"Could you be any more outrageous, Saber?!"
That's ridiculous!
Chapter Twelve: Seducing the Goddess
Academic school.
This might not be a very positive term, because the word "academic" is often associated with dogmatism, rigidity, inflexibility, arrogance, and a lack of adaptability. However, academics are not only flawed in these ways; they also possess many unique strengths.