Interlude.
…
Mordred woke up in a perfectly white and bright room.
As he looked down, he felt a little bit relieved because he still had the body of Mordred Kingdragon.
He recalled what happened.
Right, it was the Mana Calamity. It descended much sooner than he anticipated.
But no matter the reason, it happened.
So, is this the Void World?
Mordred thought this inwardly and focused on guarding his mind.
However, as he blinked he saw a person in front of him, and it was not Hitogami.
Sitting in a relaxed manner on a chair, his legs crossed, was an elderly-looking black man in a perfectly white suit.
'Morgan Freeman?...'
Mordred was stunned.
Instead of Hitogami, he once again had met with the God which reincarnated him in the world of Mushoku. One that he personally called - Morgan.
Or was it an illusion that Hitogami prepared based on his memories? Some kind of trick?
"Oh, no, son. It is not an illusion. I am the same god who reincarnated you," said Morgan.
Instantly, Mordred fully believed this without a shadow of doubt.
Morgan stood up from the chair and said with a plain smile, "You were quite enjoying your new life, weren't you? It's too bad things ended this soon. Seeing how you're dead and all."
Wh-what?...
Wasn't he supposed to be just teleported?
"I'm... dead?"
Morgan waved his hand dismissively. "Ah, nah, I'm just messing with you."
Mordred glared at him. This was not funny.
"Ahahahaha!" But this made Morgan only laugh even harder.
"Yes, very funny. But why did you suddenly appear here? I mean, no… First, thank you so much for this chance! You're the greatest god there is! The only one I'll believe in my life! The True God Morgan Freeman!" Mordred bowed his head low, praising and thanking the guy first. After all, it was thanks to him that he could reincarnate and have such a wonderful life.
Morgan chuckled. "Okay, you can stop now. I reincarnated you randomly just because I was bored. However, you are not much of a hero, are you? You didn't even attempt to stop the Mana Disaster, allowing countless people to die. You only cared about yourself and a few others close to you."
Mordred felt a faint pain in his heart when this was pointed out. It was as if God was chastising him. He gathered his words, then said, "Yeah… I'm not some perfect hero. What was I supposed to do anyway? Just taking care of myself and a few others is difficult enough… Is that wrong?"
Morgan gave him a faint smile. "... Not at all. It's perfectly normal to have priorities. It is human nature. I respect free will, so I have no opinion on what you do. This is the point, after all. Throwing you into this world and seeing what happens."
'Then why point it out?… Is he just enjoying playing the role of God Almighty?' Mordred thought.
Morgan continued, "As the Creator, I normally don't like to interfere in my stories, but I brought you here because I had something fun in mind. It will only make things more interesting."
Mordred frowned. After hearing something like that, like 'something fun' and 'making things more interesting', he began to have a bad premonition.
His life being toyed with by an Omnipotent Being was not something he considered fun. Gods are often like this in fiction, aren't they? Toying with human lives, enjoying seeing them struggle.
He was doing just fine, so couldn't he just be left alone?
Or was he doing too well? Was that it?
Is he also someone like Hitogami?
Letting him enjoy his new life to the fullest for a while before throwing him into pits of despair. That would be too cruel…
Mordred loved his new life too much, so he couldn't help but worry that it all might end like a dream.
"You don't need to worry. What I want to offer you is an opportunity."
"... An opportunity?" Mordred asked as he became slightly interested.
"One shot, one opportunity. Will you capture it or just let it slip?" Morgan rapped.
Mordred stared at him speechlessly.
"Quite catchy, isn't it?" Morgan chuckled. "Anyway. What I want to offer you is an opportunity to fight the original Saber Mordred! If you can win, you would earn her sword, armor and helmet, inheriting Mordred's entire legacy. Of course, if you lose… You will die."
'Fight Saber Mordred?' Mordred was surprised.
That did sound interesting.
And the rewards were surely enticing.
However, he didn't get carried away. He was just nine years old… He was strong in the world of Mushoku, but wasn't it too much to make him fight a real Servant when he's still just 9? And especially a strong Servant like Mordred?
It was impossible to say how he compared to a Servant. After all, he never fought one…
"I wouldn't make you face anything you couldn't handle. But of course, life is a gamble," said God.
Mordred was silent.
The first thing he thought of were the rewards.
If he could defeat Saber Mordred, he would most importantly earn her sword – he would earn a powerful Noble Phantasm magical sword that should be above whatever he could acquire in the Mushoku Tensei world! At least, it was a sword that actually complemented his abilities well and would be extremely useful to have, especially now that he still had not reached his prime, but will likely have to deal with Hitogami's schemes and pawns.
Additionally, possessing Mordred's armor would be incredibly handy, putting aside how cool it was.
So far he only wore light training clothes and didn't plan to change into anything more than some light armor in the future because putting on an entire suit of full-plate armor was too much trouble while it couldn't protect him from Longsword of Light anyway. Additionally, depending on the armor, it might reduce his agility.
But if he had magical armor that he could instantly put on at any moment, and it was also comfortable to fight in, then that would be something very useful!
It was tempting.
In particular, protecting his head was the most important!
In this world, most injuries could be instantly healed with Healing Magic, so he only needed to stay on guard to not get his brain destroyed. A full-head helmet of Mordred would be perfect here.
Thinking of the helmet, Mordred asked, "Can Mordred's helmet protect my mind from Hitogami?"
"Yes and no."
"... What does it mean?"
"It cannot protect your thoughts from being read because it doesn't work this way. But there is something it can do."
"Hm? What is it?" Mordred asked curiously.
"Mordred's helmet, the Secret of Pedigree, is a conceptual Noble Phantasm attached to the helmet that forms Mordred's armor. It conceals the user's true name and lineage while it is attached to the armor suit, hiding the person's identity from abilities that could read it. It doesn't have much use outside a Holy Grail War, but since it conceals the user's identity, it can hide you from Hitogami's sight as long as it's on."
'!!!'
So it couldn't protect his mind from being read.
'But that's okay. I practiced how to hide my inner thoughts with Albion, but if it doesn't work, I will be able to just cut off Hitogami like with Orsted's bracelet. I need to get this helmet!'
Mordred grew more interested in fighting Saber Mordred by the minute.
As he thought about this, even in case his specs ended up being lower, he still had strong trump cards of his own that he could use to win this fight.
One shot, one opportunity. Will you capture it or just let it slip?
Recalling Morgan's casually said words, and seeing his current face as he observed him, Mordred smirked.
He'll agree!
He couldn't miss this chance.
But before that, he should take some time to consider the strategies and moves he could use against Saber Mordred…
Morgan said, "You have ten seconds to make your decision."
'Ten seconds?...'
If it was just ten seconds… Then he might as well agree already; in such a stressful situation he couldn't make any good plans. He'll just execute one of his usual strategies.
Mordred let out a sigh. "Fine! I agree. I'll fight Mordred."
Morgan smiled. "Excellent!"
"... You already knew I would do this."
"Of course, but I still wanted to hear you say it. Well, then. Good luck."
After saying this much, Morgan clapped twice.
The world blurred in front of Mordred's eyes.
***
Name: Mordred Kingdragon (human)
Titles/nicknames: 16th Prince of Kingdragon, Miko, Youngest Sword Saint
Age: 9
Height: 137 cm
Weight: 33 kg
Strength: C
Endurance: B
Agility: B (C)
Mana: A+
Luck: ???
[Instinct A]
[Mana Burst A]
[Magic Resistance (resistance) B]
[Dragon Reactor Core A+]
[Riding E++]
[Railgun A+]
[Gravity Magic: Presence of the Demon God A]
[Longsword of Light A+]
[Longsword of Light (Mana Burst) A++]
[Flow D]
[Demon Sword Ascalon]
...................
Name: Mordred Pendragon (Saber)
Titles/nicknames: Knight of Treachery, Mordred the Silent, Guerilla Knight
Age: 16 (physically)
Height: 154 cm
Weight: 42 kg
Strength: B+
Endurance: A
Agility: B
Mana: B
Luck: D
[Instinct B]
[Mana Burst A]
[Magic Resistance (cancelation) B]
[Battle Continuation B]
[Riding B]
[Charisma C-]
[Secret of Pedigree C]
[Sword Clarent C (sealed)]
[Clarent Blood Arthur A+]
***
Mordred found himself sitting on top of a large throne, in a spacious circular throne room.
Below him were long and narrow stairs leading to the throne.
He was surprised.
'Isn't this Semiramis's throne room from Fate/Apocrypha?'
Bam!
At this moment, the door in front in the distance burst open and someone came in.
"So you're the bastard that wants to be king?"
Mordred heard a rough voice of an armored female knight with blonde hair and bulky armor that he clearly recognized to be Saber Mordred from Fate.
Saber-Mordred clicked her tongue disdainfully. "Tsk. A fake like you sitting on this throne pisses me off!"
Mordred raised his eyebrows. 'What was that set up?...'
As he was thinking this, he also secretly created two Stone Cannons behind the throne's backrest and began to harden and charge them while staying seated on the throne.
Saber-Mordred brandished her sword, saying, "You wanted my sword, eh? I'm going to give it to you, but it might be more than you can handle. I'll use it to grind you to dust, you fake!!!"
After saying those words hatefully, Saber-Mordred shot out from her spot and began to rush toward Mordred at the throne while a full-sized helmet formed all over her head in an instant.
Using Mana Burst, Saber-Mordred periodically seemed to transform into streams of red lightning as she blitzed toward the throne at a high speed.
Mordred suddenly stood up.
As he pointed his hands forward, his previously prepared projectiles floated to the front and he began to overload them with Magic Power at close range, using Mana Burst.
A few moments later, he shot out both spells simultaneously.
Railgun!
Boom!
With an explosion of crimson lightning, two bullets shot out. They tore through the air at a speed several times greater than a regular gun's bullet.
Within the blink of an eye, the two stone bullets reached Saber-Mordred while she barely covered ⅓ of the distance to the throne. She couldn't avoid it.
Bang!
One of the bullets missed due to Saber blitzing around, but the other struck her chestplate and pierced right through.
Saber paused as she looked up while covering her wound with her palm, still wearing her helmet. She began to bleed from her chest.
'It worked?' Mordred was surprised.
He knew that Saber Mordred had the Magic Resistance skills, but it seemed that his full-power Railgun could bypass it!
He didn't attempt aiming at the head earlier only because Mordred was dashing around too quickly, so the chance of hitting a small target like the head was too low while for a Servant piercing their heart should be just as effective.
Saber-Mordred said, "You can get through my Magic Resistance? Whatever! It's but a scratch!"
Secretly, she seemed to have done something to close up her wound and slightly heal it while speaking.
Lightning Arrow: Hadoken!
Mordred brought both his hands forward and began to create a ball of lightning,
The speed of Lightning Arrow was superior to Lightning Explosion. Although it was slower than Railgun, it had a much larger area of effect than his typical piercing-type railgun needle. Even if it missed the heart, it would cause some major damage.
Most importantly, just like Lightning Explosion, it was a spell that he could charge extremely rapidly with both hands using just Mana Burst. He could cast it faster than Railgun.
Seeing him cast, red electricity bursted out around Saber-Mordred as she once again gave the illusion of turning into a red string of lightning as she charged ahead.
In less than half a second, Mordred's red lightning ball reached its maximum intensity.
He then waited a bit.
When he felt it was the right moment, a red lightning arrow shot out from his hands.
As if preparing for it beforehand, a dense red aura bursted around Saber as Mordred released his spell. She brought her sword in front for defense.
But she couldn't react to the lightning arrow.
The lightning arrow struck her upper right arm, facing the protection of chainmail underneath the cloth, Mana Burst and Saber-Mordred's Magic Resistance.
"Aarrgh!!!"
Saber's arm was still ripped out right there and then behind the elbow joint, the flesh around it charred black.
Seeing this, Mordred formed a cold smile.
Was this still but a scratch?
With this, Saber Mordred won't be able to use Clarent Blood Arthur!
Cling-clang!
Saber-Mordred's head was revealed and she spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Damn it! You didn't aim for my heart!" Saber-Mordred cursed and glared at him with hate.
It was only natural that to neutralize her Fake Saber would aim for her heart – her Spirit Core, just like he did before.
Protecting her heart and head was the absolute priority, so she focused on blocking any attacks should they come at her heart and perhaps ignore them otherwise.
She adapted a defensive stance to protect her two vital points.
Unfortunately, that spell was aimed at her arm instead! And because of the stance she had, her arms were especially exposed. This made her unable to react.
While cursing, Saber-Mordred used Magical Energy to close off the wound on her right arm to stop the bleeding.
Although she was a Servant, she still took on the form of a human, so she bled and couldn't ignore her injuries. Regenerating a full arm was also possible, but it would require time – the time that she apparently didn't have.
In the meantime, Mordred on the throne already began charging two more Railgun projectiles.
Seeing this, Saber-Mordred clicked her tongue and shot out from her spot in spite of her injuries. There was no time to re-attach her arm. She knew she couldn't give her opponent any more time to cast!
With a burst of red lightning, she began to fly straight at him to reach him on top of the throne.
Mordred frowned.
He followed his instinct, canceling one of the spells and focusing all his energy into a single Railgun while drawing out his sword with his free hand.
If he didn't do that, he might not have enough time to finish his cast.
He focused his aim, relying on his Instinct.
Then just as Saber-Mordred was about to reach him, he released his railgun straight at Saber's heart.
Boom!
With a dull sound, the railgun then struck something hard and only pushed Saber back slightly.
Mordred frowned. He saw that his bullet struck the flat of Clarent that Saber-Mordred used to preemptively shield her heart and head the moment she heard the explosion… What good combat instincts!
But it was alright. With one of her arms missing, she was half the threat, so he was fine with her getting close.
Mordred readied his sword, ready to meet Saber-Mordred's strike.
"Aaaah!" After recovering her balance, Saber-Mordred let out a roar as her sword blazed with red thunder several meters long. She sent it out in a wild swing with a single arm.
Flow!
Mordred didn't have enough Magic Power prepared yet to respond with a similarly powerful strike, but his Battle Aura was at the ready.
Saber-Mordred's giant sword of thunder met his sword.
Even with a single arm, that sword strike was still immensely powerful, but Mordred had no problems in receiving it. An opponent using a single arm to fight turned out to be trivially easy to control, and Saber-Mordred's strike was just a wild swing that made things even easier.
Using Flow at his full ability, he borrowed the force of Saber-Mordred's downwards strike and simply pushed it aside, then brought his sword around and immediately counter-attacked.
Red Magic Power bursted out from Mordred's arms to assist him in instant acceleration as he slashed out.
Longsword of Light: Mana Burst!