It wasn't Arthur.
The Arthur Naoki knew had been defeated by his own hands two years ago and had entered Avalon to slumber forever, unlikely to awaken easily.
Thus, the Arthur now appearing before Naoki was undoubtedly a fake.
But why?
Why was there a fake Arthur here?
Following the fake Arthur, Naoki's eyes locked sharply onto the silver-clad figure. His mind was slightly disordered. He had come for the special Ancestor, not expecting to encounter such an unforeseen situation.
"By the way… don't they notice?"
As he walked, Naoki also realized something strange.
Logically, a blonde young man in silver armor walking openly on the street should draw attention, whether for his appearance or his face.
Yet, along the way, the pedestrians seemed completely unaware of the fake Arthur. Instead, Naoki was the one attracting the attention of many young girls. A handsome blonde young man who looked no older than twenty naturally caught the eyes of high school or middle school girls in their puberty. Earlier, some had even mustered the courage to ask for his phone number.
"Should I start using a Mystic Code to hide my face when I go out?"
Naoki suddenly thought of this. Not because he found such attention troublesome, but because some women at home were extremely prone to jealousy—especially two certain Root Princesses.
However, compared to this trivial matter, Naoki's focus remained on the fake Arthur not far ahead.
And suddenly, as they passed an intersection, for some reason, the fake Arthur went from walking normally to sprinting at full speed. He didn't care at all that he was in the middle of a crowd, dashing recklessly through the sea of people!
But strangely, let alone colliding with anyone or causing a commotion, in Naoki's eyes, the fake Arthur passed straight through people's bodies without the slightest collision!
(Intangible… an illusion? Or a spirit? No, if it were a spirit, I'd be able to see it. So it's an illusion…)
Quickening his pace slightly, Naoki began to sense the fake Arthur's presence while thinking.
But just as he did—
"Ugh…"
A buzzing noise, like static snow on a TV screen, filled Naoki's mind. His usually sharp senses, which could receive clear feedback, now felt like they'd lost their signal, showing only chaotic snow.
His senses weren't working?
(No, they're being interfered with… and this interference isn't targeting me, but the environment? If so—)
Naoki hurriedly looked ahead. His eyes caught a glimpse of the fake Arthur turning a corner, and he immediately gave chase. Initially, he had planned to follow casually using his senses, perhaps even intercepting him. But now, he could only chase quickly to avoid losing track.
At the intersection, he turned left, continued straight past two small alleys, crossed the street, and entered a small alley on the right—the fake Arthur seemed extremely familiar with Misaki City's layout. During the chase, Naoki could clearly feel the crowd around him thinning.
(He's leading me to a secluded place? He's noticed I'm following him.)
If that was the case, Naoki no longer needed to hold back his speed. After all, there were hardly any people around now.
With a single burst, his speed peaked. Naoki, who had been maintaining a relatively steady distance from the fake Arthur, was now instantly in front of him!
As if not expecting Naoki's speed to be so fast, the fake Arthur looked slightly surprised. And in that moment of surprise, Naoki turned to face him and delivered a direct kick to his face!
*BAM!*
Raising a hand to block the kick and retreating a few meters, the fake Arthur waved his hand. His face showed a familiar, friendly smile that Naoki recognized. "You greet me so enthusiastically, Master. If possible, I'd prefer a more normal approach."
"That's if you were actually the person I know."
(Even the voice is exactly the same…)
Naoki's eyes grew colder. He stared at the fake Arthur. "Who are you? Why are you disguising yourself as Arthur?"
"Hmm, that's an interesting way to put it. You think I'm disguising myself as this person?"
The fake Arthur smiled meaningfully. "Well, though the timeline differs, our understanding of the current situation should be the same. This time, I'll lower my standards a bit."
"Judging by your reaction, the person I'm presenting must be very important to you. But I didn't intentionally take this form—it naturally formed this way."
"Like water without shape, when poured into a container, it takes the container's form. I became like this largely because I came to this city—"
The fake Arthur's words were cut off. Before he could finish, Naoki swiftly closed the distance and threw a punch straight at his head!
Dodging the punch at a dangerous angle, the fake Arthur patted his chest. "That was close. Interrupting someone's speech is quite rude, Master."
"Shut up." Naoki replied coldly. "You're pissing me off. If possible, could you change your disguise? If you keep using that person's form, I'll be very unhappy."
"Oh~~~ I see, I see. In that case, I should apologize. Sorry for unintentionally offending you—but I think this is also a stroke of luck for you, isn't it?"
The fake Arthur, as if fully embracing the role, spoke warmly to Naoki with that familiar smile. "Meeting you again in this way, I think it's a very fortunate thing, Master—"
*SWOOSH!*
A massive blade of wind suddenly sliced through the ground beside the fake Arthur. Accompanied by a sound like a roaring train, under the railway bridge beside Naoki, a powerful whirlwind suddenly erupted.
"You're really good at making people angry, impostor. Enough with this lousy imitation. Can you stop tarnishing their image? That person is my precious friend. If you say one more word in their form and voice, I'll have to get rough with you."
"How frightening…"
Looking at the crack near his feet, the fake Arthur gave a faint smile. "In that case—"
*THUD!*
One word—just one word. As that word left the fake Arthur's mouth, the whirlwind enveloping Naoki surged outward, and the ferocious vortex instantly engulfed and devoured the fake Arthur's entire body!
"I told you, don't say another word—"
*SHUA!*
A golden light suddenly flared within the wind, cutting off Naoki's voice.
Brandishing the sword in hand to cleave through the storm, the fake Arthur smiled at Naoki. "It seems, to calm you down, Master, I'll need a special approach—please forgive my boldness, Master."
"Damn it."