"Prepare to die, King Arthur!!"
Mordred's brilliant crimson blade slashed toward the stunned Saber like a bolt of lightning.
With her innate combat instincts, Saber barely managed to raise her invisible sword in time to parry. Sparks flew as the blades clashed, and their eyes met through Mordred's helmet visor.
"Mordred?!" Saber gasped. "You… you ungrateful child!!"
"Ungrateful? Even now, you still refuse to acknowledge me?" Mordred sneered, her laughter edging on madness. "Fine then—die, Father!!"
Her pressure intensified. Despite Saber's high stats and ability to channel magical energy to enhance her strength, her injured left arm rendered her unable to fight at full strength. And Mordred, now a full-fledged Servant, clearly had the upper hand.
From the sidelines, Jeanne and Kirie—her allies—instantly recognized the truth.
"She's holding back," Kirie remarked softly. "That girl talks big, but in front of her father, she just can't go all out…"
"Mmm. Mordred's a kind girl at heart," Jeanne agreed with a nod.
Meanwhile, hidden in the shadows, Kiritsugu Emiya watched the scene and sighed heavily.
While others might rejoice at having summoned one of the strongest Saber-class Servants—King Arthur herself—Kiritsugu felt only disappointment.
She might have top-tier stats across the board, but her personality was too naive, too rigid, too self-righteous, and—worst of all—she never listened to orders.
And she wasn't even the strongest in this war.
To Kiritsugu, both the red-haired man watching from his chariot and the golden-haired woman who'd just been summoned with a Command Seal could trounce her.
But what truly irritated him was how everyone wanted to pick a fight with her. It was like she had some kind of aggro magnet built into her armor.
"I can't carry this team."
Sighing, Kiritsugu issued a mental command to another of his Servants.
[Arash, stop wasting time with their Saber. I might need your long-range support soon.]
Arash, locked in a skirmish with Shirou, deflected his opponent with a sweeping strike and responded cheerfully:
[Got it, Master.]
Leaping backward, Arash soared to the edge of the battlefield.
Shirou tried to give chase—but an instant later, a hailstorm of arrows rained down from above.
Blocking the downpour with twin blades, Shirou watched helplessly as Arash reached the rooftop of a distant building.
"Farewell, Red Saber!" Arash waved with a sunny grin. "That was a fun duel! I'll leave you that sniping spot—see you later!"
With that, his figure leapt from rooftop to rooftop, vanishing into the darkened city night.
Under Mordred's relentless assault, Saber struggled to hold her ground—she was barely hanging on.
"What's the matter? Weren't you acting all high and mighty before?" Mordred swung her massive sword with wild fury at the "father" before her. "Where's that stern face of yours now? Go on—scold me! Punish me!"
"Silence!!" Saber gritted her teeth and shoved aside Mordred's blade. "You wretched child...!"
"Wretched child, wretched child, wretched child—" Mordred roared, her voice twisted with rage. "Is that the only thing you know how to say?!"
As Mordred shouted, the Black Knight finally re-entered the fray, letting out a deafening bellow that drew everyone's attention.
[Damn it!]
Both Kiritsugu and Saber sensed the looming danger at the exact same moment.
[Arash, have you shaken him off?]
[Yeah, I'm ready for support at any time.]
Arash stood atop a distant building, drawing his bow with calm precision.
But he wasn't alone. On the rooftop of the previous building, Heroic Spirit Emiya was already in position, a projected "pseudo-spiral sword" loaded onto his bowstring, aimed directly at the rampaging Black Knight.
"...Mord...red..."
The Black Knight growled, his voice hoarse and trembling.
"You are...?" Mordred squinted at him for a moment—and recognition flashed in her eyes. "Oh, it's you... Hah... what a joke, Lancelot. So you want revenge too? Fine, for once I'll make an exception—let's team up—"
"TRAITOR!!"
With a sudden howl, the Black Knight turned and charged straight at Mordred.
"Huh? My aggro's higher than hers?" Mordred dodged the incoming punch, looking genuinely baffled.
"RAHHHHHH!!"
The Black Knight ripped up a chunk of pavement with his bare hands and hurled it at her.
"Who the hell is this guy...?"
Saber, now gripping her invisible holy sword, lunged toward Mordred as well. "But first, you—you need to be disciplined, you impudent child!!"
"Hmph! Two-on-one now? How noble of you, Arthur." Mordred's grip tightened around the sword she'd stolen, and a surge of impossible magical energy burst from her. "But I'm not just a Servant now. I'm a Heroic Spirit! Two-on-one? Bring it on!!"
The three clashed violently, a whirlwind of blows and slashes.
Atop his chariot, Iskandar the Conqueror leisurely took out a bottle of wine and began to sip, watching the chaos unfold.
"Lancer, now's your chance. Kill Saber," Lord Keyneth El-Melloi ordered coldly.
"Master! You're asking me to strike her from behind? That... goes against the very essence of chivalry."
Lancer dropped to one knee, pleading with sincerity:
"Please forgive me. I, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne, swear upon my twin spears—next time, I shall take Saber's head in fair combat!"
But Lord El-Melloi, unmoved by sentiment, coldly replied:
"By Command Seal—I order you, Lancer. Kill Saber."
Lancer's body jerked involuntarily, his twin spears trembling as he raised them toward Saber's exposed back.
"I'm sorry..."
Diarmuid's voice was filled with pain.
And just then—Iskandar's voice boomed through the battlefield.
"Lancer's Master—wherever you're hiding and peeping from. To sully the knights' duel with such cowardice... You are not worthy to be called a mage."
His words not only shamed El-Melloi, but also alerted Saber.
Iskandar grinned fiercely. "Call Lancer off. If you continue to disgrace yourself here, I'll join Saber and crush your Servant. What say you?"
"Tch...!"
Lord El-Melloi let out a disgruntled noise.
"...Withdraw, Lancer. The battle is over for tonight."
The magical compulsion faded. Lancer nodded gratefully at Iskandar.
"My thanks!"
And with that, the knight of twin spears vanished in spirit form, leaving behind a devastated harbor.
Mordred swept her sword in a wide arc, forcing back both Saber and the Black Knight. But their power still shook her body, sending her stumbling backward—
—straight into someone behind her.
She turned her head and saw a familiar figure—Dracula, guitar in hand, having just returned.
Resting a hand on her shoulder, Dracula gave her a confused look.
"Hey, Lil' Mo... what are you guys even doing?"