Chapter 1086: Garden of Lost Will
"Let me remind you—these Mors were temporarily created by me using the refugees from this mansion as materials! Ahahahaha...!"
"You despicable cur!"
Tristan's bow-hand trembled violently as he stared at Beryl with shock and fury.
Muramasa and Da Vinci's expressions also turned grim, their movements becoming hesitant and restrained.
"Now that there's no one to interfere, come with me, Mash!"
After blocking several Servants, Beryl immediately activated the "Garden" without another word!
An irresistible force instantly seized Mash.
Even power at the level of a Fairy Knight proved utterly insignificant in this moment, as Mash's body was pulled inexorably toward the barrier without any resistance.
"Mash!"
In the face of this calamity, Fujimaru Ritsuka instinctively grabbed Mash's hand.
Artoria's expression changed, and she simultaneously pulled Ritsuka back.
In the blink of an eye.
The malevolent barrier swallowed all three of them.
"Hahaha! I thought this would take much more effort, but it turned out far simpler than expected!"
Beryl was momentarily overjoyed.
These people were far too righteous—if they were merely enemies, it wouldn't matter, but faced with innocent, suffering refugees, they absolutely wouldn't dare to kill!
"No more games with you. Mirror, mirror, show my reflection!"
Beryl softly chanted the incantation to the mirror.
His figure vanished from the mansion in an instant.
...
"This is bad."
Standing in a boundless, pitch-black space, Artoria let out a troubled sigh.
"This is neither the present world nor the Inner Sea of the Planet. It feels like somewhere between the two... These characteristics belong to Morgan's 'Garden,' don't they?"
As a fellow Fairy of Paradise, no one understood the power of the "Garden" better than her!
Everything around was engulfed in darkness—above, below, and as far as the eye could see. It resembled the starry cosmos, no, it was even more terrifying than that. It was like a black hole, where all light ceased to exist, and even the very concept of space grew faint and tenuous!
Fortunately, Fujimaru Ritsuka lay nearby, seemingly still unconscious, so she could fully attend to her.
However, Ritsuka was the only one with her.
Mash was nowhere to be found.
There was no trace of anyone else here.
"I wonder which Garden this is."
Artoria was deeply worried, though the current situation left no room for concern about others.
"If it's the Garden of Pure Fantasy or the Garden of the Innocent, that would be manageable. With Beryl's magical energy, he couldn't imprison us for long, and we'd escape soon. But if it's the Garden of Unlight or the Garden of Lost Will... then we're in trouble..."
Back when they were returning from Edinburgh to Norwich, Okita Souji had shattered one of the Gardens, though none of them knew which one it was.
It was a pity they hadn't kept Baobhan Sith behind to question her.
Just then.
Abruptly, an image materialized before her.
"A luxurious wooden ship has drifted ashore by the sea, laden with gold, silver, and jewels!"
"The Child of Prophecy—the legend is true!"
"Let's take her in. If we raise her, this ship of treasures should rightfully belong to us!"
The provincial fairies, who had never seen the world, fought disgracefully over the treasures on the ship.
After dividing the spoils, they collectively decided to toss the Child of Prophecy to the weakest female fairy in the village, entrusting her with the task of raising and caring for the child, then dusted off their hands and left without a shred of responsibility.
"Damn, it's the Hall of Sorrow."
Artoria looked at the images appearing before her and tugged weakly at the corner of her mouth.
The Hall of Sorrow would strip away the most humiliating memories from the depths of a visitor's heart, doing everything in its power to weaken and erase their inner self. The visions wouldn't stop until the heart had completely surrendered.
And once the heart fully yielded, the visitor would vanish without a trace.
Literally, both body and soul would be dissolved by the "Hall," leaving not even a remnant behind!
"Artoria, has your fairy pattern grown? At this rate, with such little progress, people will start to doubt you."
"You must grow up quickly, you must help us, you must be of use to us—that's what makes a proper Child of Prophecy. Remember that!"
The woman who could barely be called her mother appeared, muttering and brainwashing her.
She, too, had a hard time in the village, receiving even fewer treasures than the other fairies who bore no responsibility for raising the child. She was also eagerly waiting for Artoria to grow up quickly, hoping to gain more wealth from her.
A lower-class fairy couldn't survive without wealth.
Without wealth, it meant they couldn't buy oak trees and wouldn't survive after paying the Queen's annual survival tax.
"Well, it can't be helped. There's no choice but to live up to such expectations."
Artoria murmured softly.
In the vision, the scene shifted.
"To be honest, a fairy like you who can grow makes me a bit sick. You know me—I'm just straightforward like that."
"Everyone in the village treats you as the Child of Prophecy, being extra careful around you, but I think they're overdoing it. I'm the kind of fairy who treats you for who you are, no pretenses!"
"After all, a slave is just a slave, right?"
The girl who could barely be considered a childhood friend appeared.
Even as she cheerfully greeted Artoria, she would unceremoniously snatch away the branch Artoria was playing with, even though it was the only bit of fun she had just found.
"..."
Artoria had nothing to say.
The scene shifted again.
An old man appeared in the vision.
"Artoria, all your accessories and the jewels from the ship have been sold off. There's nothing left to sell this year. When winter comes and the Queen ruthlessly drains our lives, everyone might end up selling you. I hope you understand—it's for survival."
Understand what?
Artoria clenched her teeth.
For sixteen years, I've been exploited like a slave. The slightest unusual movement was met with surveillance, any free time was filled with commands, any small joy was taken away, any hint of affection was erased... I've grown up like a puppet, living up to your "expectations"!
And in the end, you're going to sell me to the Queen's army, hoping to trade my life for your treasures?
"...No, the more I watch, the angrier I get. I can't keep watching. I'll cut off the emotional connection here."
Artoria took a few deep breaths, struggling to suppress the turmoil of her emotions.
Fortunately, she had been accustomed to greeting others with a smile since childhood—facing any reasonable or unreasonable demands from the villagers, failing to wear a smile might have cost her life under their fear of the queen's wrath—so she was quite skilled at regulating her emotions.
"Hmm..."
On the ground, Fujimaru Ritsuka suddenly let out a pained groan.
"This is bad. Ritsuka is nearing her limit too. I must disconnect her from the circuit as well."
Artoria crouched down and placed her hand on Ritsuka's furrowed brow.