At the doorway.
Mordred stared at the two in shock: "You! You?"
As a dignified Servant, why did watching these two stir such inexplicable irritation within her?
An irritation so intense she wanted to rush forward and run them both through with her sword?
Mordred's emotions were profoundly complex at this moment.
It felt as if she'd regressed to the mindset she had before the Battle of Camlann, preparing for that decisive confrontation.
These were two complete strangers—there shouldn't be any reason for such bizarre impulses.
So why was this happening?
"Is there something you need?" Artoria asked with perfect calm, looking at the other girl.
Kissing the very person this so-called "throne-rejecting, Nameless-stealing" rebellious knight wanted to take, right in front of her, while she could do nothing about it.
Nothing more satisfying than watching you seethe with rage while having to maintain polite composure!
Admittedly, this feeling was truly exhilarating!
Mordred, who wanted to appear approachable, now wore an extremely unpleasant expression: "You weren't in a confirmed relationship before this, were you? How could you do such a thing?"
This food-stealing rival of hers had launched a preemptive strike precisely when Roya wasn't present.
Despicable!
Absolutely despicable!
Her little bestie Roya was clearly the one who came first—how could this interloper succeed with such underhanded tactics?
Ah yes—it must be concern for Roya's feelings that was causing this inexplicable irritation!
Artoria raised an eyebrow slightly: "That shouldn't concern you, should it?"
"True, it's none of my business. But do mind the setting," Mordred replied, growing increasingly agitated.
This golden-haired girl gave her the inexplicable sensation of facing her father-king.
Yet,
there was no way this girl could be a Servant.
How bizarre!
Souma cleared his throat: "Ahem, let's all calm down."
The Lion King was getting increasingly reckless in front of the rebellious knight.
If their true identities were exposed, it could instantly trigger a father-child bonding moment that would send the knight into full berserk mode!
If that happened, peaceful Fuyuki City might be reduced to rubble by battling Servants.
Not just that.
If these two started fighting and disturbed the seals on Roya, unleashing that world-ending brat...
Humanity would be doomed!
And all this stemming from a simple meal at his house!
This made Souma wonder—had the Lion King's memories affected Artoria too deeply, pushing her toward another mental breakdown?
If that happened, and she teamed up with the unsealed brat, they could absolutely bring calamity upon the entire world!
Artoria's expression remained calm as her fair little hand grasped his and placed it against her forehead, gently rubbing against it. "Mmm, goodnight."
Souma, your first kiss wasn't with Mordred—it was with me, King Arthur!
Having said that, she turned away cheerfully and left without hesitation.
Just after she stepped out.
Roya had already packed her things and came downstairs, saying somewhat apologetically, "Sorry to keep you waiting, Mordred."
She handed over the packed items, which meant she no longer needed to accompany the other girl to the hotel.
If there was anything unclear, they could always video call.
"Mmm, thanks."
Mordred took the items, looking at her with complicated emotions.
Poor little bestie, if you had seen what just happened, you'd definitely have a meltdown!
She knew full well that her best friend considered this ordinary high school boy before her as the most important person in her life, already prepared to spend the rest of her days with him.
But now.
Someone had swooped in out of nowhere to steal him away, even kissing this high schooler right in his own home.
Her poor best friend was truly suffering.
They say childhood friends can't beat sudden newcomers—even though she was here first—
Wait!
That golden-haired girl seemed to be Souma's childhood friend, likely having known him even before Roya did.
The two were probably childhood sweethearts who had been separated for a long time before reuniting.
Oh ho, a sudden-reunion childhood friend? With that double buff, how could she possibly lose?
"What's wrong?" Roya looked at the other party in confusion.
Why did the gaze of this powerful heroic spirit seem so strange?
It was as if she was looking at a pitiful—
Loser?
Wait, what exactly happened earlier?
"Nothing, good night~"
Mordred didn't say anything more.
Her best friend was still too young. Being constantly treated as a child by the high schooler in front of her, there was no way any special feelings could develop.
In fact, if special feelings did develop, someone should be thrown in jail.
Minimum five years, and execution wouldn't be unjust!
She also turned and left, stepping out of the house.
Witnessing the earlier scene made Mordred increasingly feel that the two were really alike.
Could they have truly been sisters in a past life?
After she left.
Roya gave the otaku beside her a scrutinizing look: "Did you do something inappropriate earlier?"
"I'm just an ordinary shut-in otaku. I get nervous just standing next to a heroic spirit—how could I possibly do anything inappropriate?" Souma spread his hands helplessly.
"Oh, that makes sense."
Roya decided she must have seen wrong.
After living together for so many years, she knew everything about him down to the last hair. He simply wasn't that kind of person.
An ordinary otaku pursuing a lazy, carefree life, paired with her—a shut-in girl also seeking to laze around—they were practically a match made in heaven.
Perhaps this was destiny from a past life!
In their previous lives, they were probably the kind of couple who grew old together and faced life's end side by side!
At the residential complex entrance.
Artoria looked up at the streetlight above: "What do you want?"
In her line of sight, a dazzling golden figure stood atop the streetlight.
His crimson eyes gazed down at her with keen interest.
It was the King of Heroes!
"Nothing, just passing by." Gilgamesh smiled in reply.
How peculiar.
With both father and son present, why hadn't they fought?
One had to admit, that bastard of a best friend's charm was truly formidable—even he, the mighty King of Heroes, felt slightly swayed.
If he were a girl, perhaps he too might have become one of those fighting over him?
Fortunately, he wasn't.
Only this way could he remain an uninvolved spectator enjoying the show.
Artoria frowned slightly, scanned the surroundings, then walked past him calmly.
After he left.
From the corner she had scanned, a burly sun knight emerged.
Gawain sighed helplessly: "As expected, I couldn't hide from my king."
He had wanted to conceal himself completely.
Alas, King Arthur's intuition was too terrifying—there was simply no evading her gaze.
If only that French saint had possessed Artoria's intuition, she wouldn't have repeatedly missed encountering Nameless.
Not even God could carry that saint!
So what exactly happened earlier in the complex?
He had faintly sensed Mordred's magical energy fluctuations earlier, as if she had fallen into a frenzy.
Yet strangely, it calmed down without any actual fighting occurring.
This show was rather unsatisfactory.
Why didn't they fight?
No—it was fortunate they didn't fight! All for the sake of rebuilding Britain's glorious future!
At that moment.
Mordred also emerged from the complex.
Standing at the entrance, she swept her puzzled gaze around before continuing forward with light steps.
Gawain looked on sympathetically: "Poor Mordred. As expected, she still can't recognize anything."
King Arthur ranks among the top heroic spirits, practically a Grand-class existence.
Compared to her, Mordred was at least a tier weaker.
Moreover, King Arthur had now officially obtained the Grand Saber Saint Graph, making her even more formidable.
Even if King Arthur brazenly indulged with Nameless right in front of Mordred—the very person Mordred wanted to snatch away—she wouldn't even recognize it!
Poor, poor Mordred!
"Good thing they didn't end up fighting!" Gilgamesh gazed down at Mordred's retreating figure.
The terrifying aura emanating from that world-ending brat his dear friend was guarding was becoming increasingly difficult to suppress.
Clearly, the time when it would break free of its restraints was drawing ever closer.
If that day truly came, even he, the mighty King of Heroes, wouldn't know how to defeat it!
God cannot create a stone so heavy that He cannot lift it.
Likewise, humanity cannot defeat the very world they live in!
Just then—
Gawain, staring at his phone, exclaimed in surprise, "Huh? Can a Beast of Humanity become a Servant?"
"What?" Gilgamesh asked, puzzled.
"Look at this post on my phone—Alaya just updated her status."
Gawain turned the screen toward the King of Heroes.
Alaya, an uploader who usually only posted videos, had unexpectedly shared a status update—
[Alaya: Would you like Tiamat to manifest as a Servant and protect you?]
"A Beast of Humanity… becoming a Servant?" Gilgamesh was equally astonished.
After all, the very purpose of Servants was to protect humanity.
Yet the Beasts of Humanity were born from the desire to destroy it.
Under such circumstances, the moment a Beast manifested in reality, it would inevitably become the enemy of all Servants.
But now, Alaya—the collective self-defense mechanism of humanity—actually wanted a Beast of Humanity to become a Servant!
Gilgamesh felt a twinge of unease.
Let's not forget—
Back in the Singularity Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia, it was he who had personally unleashed Enuma Elish, shattering Tiamat's body and banishing her origin to the Imaginary Number Space.
Thousands of years had passed since then.
If she really became a Servant, he'd have to interact with her constantly from now on.
What if, on a bad day, she decided to blame everything on him? Wouldn't that be instant game over?
But ordinary people didn't care—they were flooding the comments with excitement—
[Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! Tiamat, I love you!]
[Back off, she's MY mom—don't you dare steal her!]
[In front of Tiamat, even if you're twenty or thirty, you're still a little baby in need of love!]
[Praise Alaya! Hurry up and bring Tiamat to us!]
[Once Tiamat becomes a Servant, she HAS to hold a concert—her voice is heavenly!]