Damn it, I was here first! Why are you two so natural at this?!
Mordred stared at them, her heart aching inexplicably.
How did things turn out like this?
For the first time, I met someone I liked.
For the first time, even as a Servant descended upon the world, I still managed to encounter them.
These two joyous events coming together should have brought even greater happiness, gifting me dreamlike moments of bliss.
So why… why did things end up like this?
Without hesitation, Mordred wedged herself between the two, glaring intently. "So, what's your real identity? Where do you live?"
This guy always appeared and vanished without warning, making it impossible for her to track him down.
It was frustrating—like the whole world knew except her.
"Little Mordred, you've grown up. You don't need my protection anymore." Souma chuckled, reaching out to pat her head.
Slap!
Mordred swatted his hand away angrily. "And that's your excuse for never seeing me?!"
She had been manifesting as a Servant for years now, yet there hadn't been a single trace of him.
If not for [Alaya] releasing those videos, she wouldn't have even gotten to see him.
"Sorry, I've been fighting all this time. I couldn't come find you." Souma lied without batting an eye.
No way was he letting her track him down. He already had one troublemaker at home—adding another would be the end of his peaceful daily life!
"Fighting? Hmph, I'll let it slide this time."
Mordred scoffed but didn't press further.
In the videos [Alaya] had exposed, it was clear that he had been battling all sorts of formidable enemies to protect humanity.
Servants, gods, Beasts of Humanity—all were his foes.
A great hero fighting to save the world had no time for slacking off.
So, what exactly is the other party's real identity?
Mordred felt extremely puzzled.
If they were so busy fighting, why had she never heard of their deeds in reality? Were they still silently walking in the shadows?
Mordred suddenly recalled some anime she'd watched recently, where many protagonists appeared as ordinary high school students by day while secretly saving the world behind the scenes.
Could Nameless be like that too?
No, no, absolutely impossible!
With someone as domineering as him, how could he possibly be content as an ordinary high school student?
The daily tedium of school life, busy with mundane chores—that would be absolute torture!
Most importantly.
If he really spent his days slacking off yet still refused to see her, she'd definitely raise hell when she tracked him down and expose him completely!
Claiming you're his most precious treasure yet never even meeting up.
Even if Father could tolerate it, I won't!
As Mordred was lost in these thoughts.
Souma calmly returned the holy sword in his hand to King Arthur: "Please assist me in battle from now on."
Hum~
The sword erupted in dazzling radiance.
This blade was the crystallization of dreams—the collective hope of countless soldiers across time and space, all yearning for victory.
After the Sword in the Stone ceremony, it had been bestowed upon King Arthur by the Lady of the Lake.
Artoria raised the holy sword: "I, Artoria, swear to fight for the preservation of human order! To reshape this imperfect world into the form everyone desires!"
Mystical and vast fluctuations erupted wildly around her.
This was recognition from the Throne of Heroes.
This was the blessing of [Alaya].
This was humanity's pursuit of victory and hope.
With this blazing fire, nothing shall remain uncut!
At this moment, Artoria ascended to the rank of Grand Saber, inheriting Souma's will to burn everything in defense of human order.
A new Grand Servant was born!
Mash hurriedly offered congratulations: "Congratulations!"
After facing the Omnipotent God and the Umbral Star's vanguard, she'd realized only Grand-class Servants could truly stand as the Senpai's comrades.
The more powerful allies they gathered, the less Senpai would need to fight while burning himself to the limit.
"Damn it, I want that too!"
Mordred watched with undisguised envy.
She too wanted to become a Grand Servant.
As a loyal Knight of the Round Table and the child of the King of Knights, what ill intentions could she possibly have?
She just wanted to, after ascending, burn her Grand Saint Graph to easily defeat Father and take Nameless right before her eyes.
Then,
she'd love to see that look of furious frustration when Father couldn't do anything about it.
Would serve her right!
"Congratulations," Souma smiled.
Grand Servants—beings standing at the pinnacle of heroic spirits.
Beyond Mash as Grand Rider and Artoria as Grand Saber.
There was also Gilgamesh as candidate for Grand Caster, plus Qin Shi Huang who was likewise Grand-class as Ruler.
Unknowingly, he'd already gathered four Grand-class Servants.
Plus two Beast-class allies in Tiamat and Fou!
He wondered—if they gathered all seven Grand-class Servants along with multiple Beasts, could they truly face the Spider and the equally terrifying Primordial Father?
Souma had no confidence about this.
Everything remained shrouded in mystery—they'd only know after the battle.
Meanwhile.
Abigail, who had earlier opened the gate connecting the two worlds, had already slipped away unnoticed.
As an emissary of the Outer Gods, she was long accustomed to being feared and shunned by ordinary people.
"May all that is beautiful be blessed, how wonderful~"
Abigail gave the other a deep look before returning to the space between worlds.
Had she met them back then, she wouldn't have become the mouthpiece of an evil god in endless despair.
How... enviable those people are.
A figure appeared beside her at some point, smiling gently. "Do you wish to be an ordinary human?"
"Oh? Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, do you also desire to be human?" Abigail regarded her calmly.
This was the boundary between the surface world where humans lived and the inner world of deities.
Naturally, the other could come here.
"When we first descended upon Earth, we heard countless human prayers and were worshipped as gods."
Athena spoke with nostalgia. "We were but machines, heartless tools, yet awakened to the wondrous emotion of joy from being worshipped."
It was precisely this wondrous feeling that led them to become native Greek deities, defeating the terrifying Titans to protect humanity.
"In a way, you're no different from the Star-Spangled Banner." Abigail remarked with interest.
"One could say that."
Athena nodded.
When they were first sent to Earth across space-time by the Primordial Father Chaos, it was to rebuild Olympus civilization.
The Olympian gods had originally intended to take humanity's home for themselves.
In this, they were identical to the Star-Spangled Banner.
Athena didn't wish to dwell on this. She was more curious about something else: "So, might I receive the knowledge your Father God bestows?"
As the Goddess of Wisdom, her thirst for knowledge was insatiable.
So much so that Souma had called it [Avarice].
"Are you certain?"
Abigail looked at her in surprise.
The Father God did grant knowledge freely to all who prayed, but could she truly withstand such a gift?
"Of course! I'm most curious!"
Athena's expression grew increasingly excited.
That being held infinite knowledge - the ultimate temptation for her.
Every question could be answered there.
"Then, as you wish."
Abigail would naturally not refuse.
Click~ Click~
A door slowly opened.
From within surged a "mystery" that transcended the gods.
Just one glance made Athena feel as if she had opened the door to the source, allowing her to see all the interconnected knowledge of everything.
[Where I stand is the source of mystery!]
How powerful!
This left her in extreme shock, yet increasingly curious to reach out and touch it.
Boom!
Endless torrents of vast information rushed towards her like a tidal wave.
Even as a deity, she nearly fell into a state of malfunction under this relentless influx of information.
It felt as if all the truths and knowledge of the world were being poured into her mind.
It was too much; she simply couldn't bear it!
Her eyes had already glazed over, rolling back as her body trembled violently.
In the midst of endless satisfaction, she felt an overwhelming fear.
Clearly.
She had underestimated the other party's generosity and overestimated her own capacity to endure.
Under this terrifying onslaught, she felt like a small boat on a stormy sea, utterly powerless to withstand it, sinking into endless dread.
Time passed, though she could not tell how long.
Suddenly, Athena stopped struggling, her face blank: "Huh? What was I just doing? Who is erasing my time?"
"Are you okay?" Abigail asked.