"This man was recognized by Siegfried as his heir, so as his former Master, I should be the one to provide him with mana!"
Fiore slightly furrowed her brows and reminded him, "Not his Master, but his mana provider... This isn't exactly pleasant work, Uncle Gordes."
"Whatever. I have to be the one to do it, anyway." The fat, middle-aged magus spoke without hesitation.
Pseudo Mana Supply was not a particularly mature technique. If something went wrong, it could burn out the Magic Circuits or even endanger the user's life. There had once been an Artificial Lifeform who had been drained of so much mana that she became crippled.
Gordes could not possibly have been unaware of this.
Even so, he had strongly insisted on becoming Saber's battery.
"There's no need for Lord Gordes to sacrifice himself. Please rest assured... You can leave the task of providing mana to Lord Saber to us."
"You're...!"
Gordes glared furiously toward the doorway, but in the next second, his expression became somewhat timid.
The third faction living in this castle—
The Artificial Lifeforms made a dazzling entrance.
Dur led more than a dozen Artificial Lifeforms through the Meeting Room as though no one else was there. Fiore was left dumbfounded. Was she in charge of the Thousandth Tree Clan, or were they?
Dur came before Shirou. "Lord Saber, these children are all willing to provide you with mana."
"It would be our honor to become Lord Saber's strength!"
An apparently lively Artificial Lifeform girl approached with flushed cheeks.
"Oh, I see... Thank you, everyone."
Shirou nodded gratefully, somewhat overwhelmed by the attention.
"So, what have you decided?"
Fiore looked somewhat displeased. Pouting, she asked coldly, "You're certainly popular, Mr. Saber. Who do you want to provide your mana?"
"------"
The atmosphere in the