"Exactly! Lady Lancelot has already met with the Sword King, and the battle's already begun!"
"I don't know where they are right now either! You know how my clairvoyance works, Uncle, better than anyone!"
"I've already sent a message to Deacon Rivera, but there's been no reply!"
"I know! But right now, the most urgent thing should be figuring out how to stop this fight between Lady Lancelot and the Sword King!"
The golden-haired girl clutched the phone her maid had handed her, her face etched with anxiety.
On the other end of the line was Paolo Blandelli, the man who commanded the entire Copper-Black Cross, arguably the most influential great knight in Eastern Europe outside of the Devil Kings themselves.
As the head of their order, he possessed insight and connections far beyond ordinary men, but even he wasn't omnipotent.
Erica was like a daughter to him, but she'd called too recently.
Even if he mobilized resources immediately, he couldn't give her an answer just yet.
"I'm already trying to contact witches with sufficient Spirit Vision abilities, but that takes time. Same goes for establishing communication with the Sword King's camp."
Erica knew this was the limit of what her uncle could do. Though worry still gnawed at her, she could only wait patiently.
That was her thought, anyway.
But then came the sound of something tearing through the sky above. She didn't even need to look to know who was landing right in front of her.
"Lady Lancelot?" Seeing the very subject of their discussion appear before her, Erica hung up without hesitation and rushed over, concern written all over her face.
"Lady Lancelot! Are you injured?"
"To wound me, one would at least need to keep pace with me first." Melusine's expression wasn't exactly pleasant.
And it wasn't just because of the post-nap crankiness from being disturbed while resting peacefully.
No, what soured her mood more came from Doni.
She hadn't hesitated when she struck him down, but the thought of her first act upon waking being killing someone... well, that wasn't exactly the kind of thing that put anyone in a good headspace.
Erica carefully examined Melusine from head to toe.
Even the unfamiliar dress from their first meeting remained pristine, which told her the recent battle hadn't affected the other woman much at all.
Just a symbolic fight, then.
Maybe Deacon Rivera hadn't been ignoring her messages, but had gone directly to confront the Sword King himself?
Thinking this, Erica breathed a sigh of relief.
"As long as you're unhurt, that's what matters. The Sword King slipped out on his own this time without telling Deacon Rivera..." Erica suddenly bowed deeply.
"Lady Lancelot, please forgive my presumption. If my communication with Deacon Rivera goes smoothly, I hope you'll consider not resorting to force first when you next meet the Sword King."
Her demeanor had become solemn once more, reminiscent of when they first met.
Melusine understood. This gesture meant Erica wished to use the "reward" she'd mentioned back then.
At that time, Erica had wanted to trade that reward for a single question, but was refused, though the offer remained on the table.
Still... it seemed this reward would go unused once again.
"There won't be a next meeting." Melusine didn't feel like being cryptic.
"The Sword King has been slain by my hand. His body has perished, and all his power has flowed back into the ley lines."
"...Huh?"
Slain... as in, killed the Sword King?
A Heretic God had killed a God-Slayer? In under two minutes?
For a split second, Erica's mind went completely blank.
When she finally processed the staggering implications of those words, her entire body began trembling uncontrollably.
The complexity of emotions she felt in that moment defied description. Fear? Shock? Relief? Something else entirely?
But without question, positive emotions dominated, because she'd just realized just how terrifyingly powerful the patron she'd hitched herself to really was.
Not just an expert at fighting other Heretic Gods, but at fighting God-Slayers too.
Yet after that brief surge of exhilaration came an eerily quick calm.
Because the situation mirrored what happened last time. Being slightly stronger didn't draw much attention, but being this much stronger would attract eyes from everywhere.
Killing a God-Slayer in two minutes would inevitably draw the attention of other God-Slayers.
Worse, it might provoke them into launching a coordinated assault against Lady Lancelot, this "Campione Killer."
If that happened, things would spiral into the worst possible scenario!
The thought made Erica's blood run cold, her earlier excitement doused like water on embers.
--+--
Back at the Wizengamot, Alice had raised this very suggestion.
"If the God-Slayers can cooperate, even a Heretic God would find it difficult to escape their fate of falling."
Her words, however, made Alexander frown, followed by a sigh.
"For even you to lose your composure... this situation truly is something rare."
The two had worked together before, thwarting Guinevere's schemes and slaying the Heretic Arthurian King.
That had transformed their relationship from merely a Devil King and a member of the Assembly into mutual appreciation—a long-term partnership that might even be called friendship, depending on how you defined it.
He had always acknowledged Alice's wisdom, considering her intellect a match for his own.
What Alice had just proposed, while amusing enough for him to point out her loss of composure, wasn't actually her fault.
Under such unbelievable circumstances, searching for the optimal solution was simply human nature.
The main difference between them was that he wasn't human at all, but a God-Slayer.
Did Alice not know her impulsive suggestion was practically impossible to realize? Of course she did. But it remained the best solution available, and was worth voicing even just to try.
Alexander understood better than she did why this was impossible. He grasped the nature of God-Slayers more deeply than Alice ever could.
"John Pluto Smith might be open to alliance, but the Balkan's King and the Martial King? Those two would never consider cooperating."
Alexander was stating the obvious, something both he and Alice already knew, but he continued anyway, perhaps to ease the tension.
"They'll each prepare themselves thoroughly, then seek out this Lancelot alone."
"Even if we tried to intervene, it would just devolve into a chaotic free-for-all."
"But... if that happens..." Worry clouded Alice's features.
Alexander's own expression darkened.
He was already trying to pinpoint where his thinking had gone wrong.
He'd been trying desperately to separate Lancelot from the Last King—after all, if even King Arthur wasn't the strongest king, the strongest steel, how could Lancelot possibly be?
But who's to say this so-called 'Lancelot' wasn't the true identity hiding behind King Arthur, using him as a decoy?
After all, anyone could see this Lancelot had virtually nothing to do with the Lancelot of Arthurian legend.
At most, they shared a weapon name.
So, had Guinevere succeeded? Right under his nose? How?
No... ultimately, this all rested on the premise that she really was the Last King.
For now, this Lancelot showed no signs of actively hunting God-Slayers. Instead, she seemed more like an ordinary Dragon-Serpent, content to coil around her chosen territory (the ley lines). And there'd been no sign of the calamities typically accompanying the Last King's arrival—the ley lines were perfectly normal.
Alexander clenched his fist.
Guinevere... what exactly have you done? And what are you planning?
Could it be that all of this is unfolding according to your designs? Was I the fool being led by the nose this entire time?
"Uncle! We need to go completely underground for now!" Guinevere's voice trembled.
"That 'Lancelot' is definitely wrong! We need to figure out her true nature and weaknesses first, before we make any other moves!"
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.