Saber, Mordred
As the dreamlike murmur began, the girl took a step forward and gently placed her right hand on the emblem on Wang Xiaoming's heart.
The slightly cool touch sent shivers down Wang Xiaoming's spine.
"Caster..."
"Hey, Master..."
Sensing something amiss between the two, Wang Xiaoming was about to speak when Lily suddenly interrupted him.
"Master, the Servant you summoned during the last Holy Grail War was also 'me,' right?"
"..."
"Master, are you asking me how I know this?"
Lily, who could clearly feel the muscles in her right hand unconsciously tightening, raised her head. A wand materialized in her free left hand, and then she gently tapped the wand in mid-air:
"It's because of this..."
As Lily's voice faded, the magic flowing in the air seemed to be woven and constructed by an invisible yet skillful hand...
Soon, a badge similar to the one on Wang Xiaoming's chest appeared before the two of them.
Immediately afterwards, Lily gently waved her wand, and the emblem floating in mid-air slowly covered the one on Wang Xiaoming's chest.
Under such close comparison, Wang Xiaoming realized that the two emblems were exactly the same in style and shape, except that the light purple color, which was the same as Lily's own, was much lighter than the color of the emblem on Wang Xiaoming's chest.
"Although Master hid it very well before, it's just that..."
As a top-tier Magecraft of the Age of Gods, Lily was extremely sensitive to the aura of magic. The moment Wang Xiaoming released his Spirit Origin, Lily sensed the magical aura of "herself" emanating from him.
But when Lily subconsciously tried to investigate the source of the magic, she actually sensed a clear "resistance" from the wisp of magic wrapped around Wang Xiaoming.
Although she didn't try it again intentionally, the strangely familiar magic still fueled Lily's curiosity even more.
Is that her?
For some reason, Lily suddenly thought of the woman with the purple hood she had seen in Wang Xiaoming's dream.
Although they had only met once, the inexplicable sense of familiarity between Lily and the woman suddenly gave rise to a bold conjecture.
That's why Lily, who was becoming increasingly concerned, made that "impolite" request to Wang Xiaoming.
The moment the source of the magic was revealed to Lily, her suspicions were confirmed, and Lily felt a sudden pang of something missing, though she still managed a forced smile.
"This is Magecraft that's uniquely mine; I wouldn't mistake it for something else."
"That's really impressive."
Wang Xiaoming didn't show any particular emotion because of the truth Lily revealed; he was simply surprised by Lily's judgment.
As for Lily's claim of "concealment," that's a misrepresentation. Actually, sealing the Spirit Origin was Circe's idea in the first place, and she personally carried out the sealing. However, it's more accurate to call it Magecraft used to conceal one's presence rather than a true seal; after all, a seal that can be easily dispelled is hardly impressive...
It's unclear whether Circe did it intentionally or simply because the Magecraft effect was too good, but it also managed to conceal the aura of the emblem.
However, after Wang Xiaoming realized that he had made a mistake in summoning and summoned Lily to the real world, he did not deliberately try to break the seal.
However, since Lily guessed the truth this time, there was no need to hide it anymore; in fact, there was no need to hide it anyway.
"Ah, that's right. In the last Holy Grail War, the Servant fought alongside me was also 'you (Medea)'."
Really--
Upon seeing Wang Xiaoming, whose lips unconsciously curved into a slight smile when this was mentioned, Lily's body suddenly stiffened slightly, and she quietly lowered her head.
However, Wang Xiaoming seemed lost in memories of the past and didn't notice what was happening...
"So that's how it is..."
The girl's voice was filled with suppressed emotion; her long eyelashes drooped silently, and her breathing trembled. As her slender shoulders swayed, her smooth, long hair slipped down, obscuring her face, making Lily's expression impossible to discern.
Do I like my Master?
The answer is beyond doubt: from the moment of the summoning until now, Lily has kept every word and action of her Master in her heart.
As for Master's almost unreasonable pampering of her, Lily was puzzled, but she simply kept her doubts to herself.
Because that's my favorite Master, that reason alone is enough.
But now, the doubts in my heart have suddenly been answered.
The object Master wants to summon is "another version of himself," while he, like a thief, inexplicably enjoys Master's feelings for "another version of himself."
Even so...
Thoughts, like weeds suddenly sprouting, filled Lily reverie—
"Caster?"
Lily's strange behavior finally caught Wang Xiaoming's attention.
Seeing the girl's completely different demeanor and slightly gloomy expression, Wang Xiaoming felt a sense of surprise.
"Master..."
"W-what's wrong? I'm here."
Upon hearing Wang Xiaoming's voice, Lily looked up, her extremely aggrieved expression making Wang Xiaoming flustered. However, Lily's next words stunned him once again—
"Master, I love you!"
Yes, since her feelings for Master are undeniable, there's no reason not to fight for it. Besides, she is also a "Medea," so--
"Master, I will not lose to 'her'!"
After leaving behind this powerful declaration, Lily turned and left the room.
Watching Lily's figure disappear through the door, Wang Xiaoming, who had just come to his senses, suddenly had a thought that was both funny and exasperating:
"Could this child be jealous of themselves...?"
Writing this chapter nearly killed me, plus I've been working overtime, so a reliable second update is probably out of the question. I'm really sorry.
PS2: By the way, I recommend an Idolmaster fanfic.
Please, Producer
Synopsis: "Girl, I see you have a lot of talent. How about signing a contract with me and becoming an idol?"
Every girl has a dream in her heart, longing to become Cinderella in a fairy tale, standing center stage under the glow of True Magic.
However, True Magic always fades eventually.
When the clock strikes midnight, will the True Magic cast on Cinderella continue?
So...
"Please, producer, help me become the best idol!"
[Idolmaster fanfiction, Cinderella story at the beginning, planned to cross over into the main series midway through.]
Chapter 260. Saber, Mordred
When Wang Xiaoming returned to the restaurant, the first thing he saw was Lily had returned earlier.
Whether it was out of shyness or something else, the moment she saw Wang Xiaoming enter the room, she deliberately turned her head away, refusing to look him in the eye, as if she were being difficult.
Seeing the girl's reddened ear tips, Wang Xiaoming, who suddenly had a wicked thought, had only taken a few steps toward Lily when he was drawn to the sound of arguing coming from the other end of the room.
Turning his head, he saw that the people who should have been sitting around the table eating were now gathered together, surrounding Ruler in the center.
What happened?
Driven by this curiosity, Wang Xiaoming quietly stepped forward.
Half a minute ago--
"By the way, Ruler."
At the dining table, Mordred's Master, Kairi Shishigou, suddenly spoke to Ruler, who was sitting opposite him. However, Ruler seemed reluctant to respond.
"If there's something urgent, could you please wait a moment? I'm very busy right now."
"This is quite important, so could you please put down your fork first?"
Shishigou, willing to play the villain, clearly didn't give Ruler a chance to continue eating.
"... There's no other way."
Ruler's gaze darted back and forth between Shishigou's face and the food on the table. In the end, he could only reluctantly put down his cutlery and sit up straight, adopting a posture of attentive listening.
"Well, it's not really that difficult," I just hope you'll keep your promise as soon as possible.
"Ah, I almost forgot. Ruler, hurry up and give us the Command Spell!"
Upon hearing the topic raised by her Master, Mordred also looked up from her plate and urged Ruler to fulfill his promise.
"Um... you guys still remember that...?"
Ruler sighed helplessly, but just then, Rider, who had overheard the conversation, suddenly leaned over—
"Wait a minute, what are you talking about? What Command Spell?"
"After the battle against Avicebron, Ruler agreed to give me his help in exchange for a Command Spell."
Seeing Ruler's discomfitured expression, the in-between Mordred surprisingly spoke up to Rider to explain.
After hearing Saber's explanation, Rider turned to Ruler with some dissatisfaction and said:
"Then, logically speaking, Ruler should give each of us a Command Spell, right?"
"Huh?!"
Completely unable to grasp the situation, Ruler's eyes widened in surprise.
"He's right, Ruler."
Just then, Ruler heard a male voice in his ear.
"A... Archer...?"
Seeing Chiron, standing behind him in an apron and holding a spatula, looking down at him, Ruler, who had just finished a hearty meal, felt inexplicably guilty.
"Although you made a promise with Saber before, it doesn't align with Ruler's principle of fairness to only benefit specific Servant. So how about distributing Command Spell equally to everyone who participated in the battle against Avicebron?"
Seeing the crowd gradually gathering because of the argument, Ruler felt like a little rabbit surrounded by a pack of foxes.
Even so, the trembling little white rabbit still held firm to its bottom line:
"No, no! This is very important!"
"Ruler, you wouldn't expect us to help you, and then only pay Saber, would you?"
"No, but... but..."
"We know your mission as Ruler, but now, it is no longer possible for you to remain neutral in front of all your Servant."
Under the gentle persuasion of one of the "red foxes," the "little white rabbit" seemed to waver.
"What you said is true, but..."
"Command Spell are a very important tool, both strategically and tactically. And justice is on our side, so we hope you can make a reasonable judgment."
"..."
Under the expectant gazes of everyone, Ruler silently lowered his head.
She cannot break her promise to Mordred, but as Archer said, if she were to fulfill the promise alone, it would cause dissatisfaction among the other Master.
Although she has the responsibility of being the Ruler, she cannot ignore the upcoming battle with Amakusa Shirou. And if she fails, there will be no way to recover.
Then we can only...
In the end, Ruler compromised with everyone, so everyone present received a Command Spell. Although Gordes returned to the room with Siegfried, he would also receive a Command Spell later.
"Waaah... I'm the Ruler, you know..."
With tears welling in her eyes, Ruler reluctantly handed over the Command Spell to the Master present.