The Great Battle of Pendragons (II)

"The results are surprisingly good."

Artorius exclaimed as he observed the battlefield.

"Even though she's a Saber Alter, she's surprisingly pure-hearted huh..."

As he marveled, he soon engaged in another fierce fight with the newly arrived Artoria Species.

"Mother looks so beautiful." Artorius casually remarked during the fight.

"Wha—?!"

"Opening!"

As expected, he emerged victorious once again.

"Could it be..." Artorius muttered as he realized something interesting.

The next moment, he looked affectionately at an Artoria Species with angelic wings who was advancing toward him.

"Mother, you're so gorgeous with those wings."

"Huh?!"

"Opening!"

Victory was his again.

"So that's how it is... Hahaha..."

Artorius had found the key to having an easy win.

At this moment, within the bounded field, the battle for supremacy had reached a fever pitch.

Thanks to everyone's relentless efforts, the bounded field had eliminated more than half of the contenders.

Those lacking in strength, experience, or just plain unlucky, like the Mordreds, were among the large group of contenders who had been expelled from the bounded field and were now sobbing.

Only around a hundred contenders remained on the battlefield.

Among these hundred, there were Artorius and the three leaders of the Artoria Species, as well as XX and X. Surprisingly, even this world's Artoria had managed to hold her own. Despite her relatively 'newbie' status among the Artoria Species.

Apart from the elites at the pinnacle, there were a dozen or so Heroine Subspecies, making up the highest survival rate among the Artoria Species. Truly, they were the experts in internal strife, the nemesis of every Artoria Species.

Following these, there were slightly over a hundred Artorias who were relatively evenly matched.

The Order of Avalon numbered over fifty, while the Dark Rounds had a similar number.

These two organizations of Artoria Species had chosen to stick together, forming a formation.

Artorias with long swords and defensive weapons took the outermost positions, followed by those with lances, staffs, or even broomsticks as their long-handled weapons. Artorias with laser guns, water guns, slingshots, and other ranged weapons formed the innermost circle.

At first glance, they all really looked like Artoria. But aside from the same face, everything was different.

The semi-military organization of the Order of Avalon appeared as highly qualified knights of justice and order, while the Dark Rounds were composed of delinquent girls dressed in black and red, which made them look like villains.

What's amusing is that none of the members from these two organizations fought alongside their leaders, Space Lion King and Ex.

As the battle raged on, these relatively average Artorias understood who their true enemies were.

It wasn't the members of the Order of Avalon or the Dark Rounds; instead, it was the three god-level leaders of the three organizations—Space Lion King, Ex, and Z, along with XX and X, the two Heroine Subspecies who had spent the most time with Artorius. Naturally, this encompassed the rest of the Heroine Subspecies, given their greater strength and status as the nemesis of the Artoria Species and Saber.

'Ordinary Artorias banding together, with around a hundred of them united, even the god-level Artorias can't hold them off easily. So, what should be the next move?' Artorius pondered.

As the battle progressed, the situation had strangely quieted down, with the formations and powerful individuals engaged in a delicate standoff.

If both the Order of Avalon and the Dark Rounds could launch an attack together, they could easily eliminate several top-tier contenders. However, without a leader, the two couldn't decide to attack, so they could only defend.

The situation had reached a standstill. Everyone was wary of each other, reluctant to make the first move, fearing a backlash and the chaotic fights that had previously led to other contenders being eliminated.

The strategy of staying silent, yet secretly provoking a fight and eliminating through backstabbing had lost its effectiveness.

The battle had entered a new phase.

'Next, what should I do? Wait a minute...'

At this point, Artorius started to ponder seriously as he had a sudden bold idea.

Meanwhile...

"How about teaming up?" Space Lion King looked at XX and offered cooperation.

As expected of the mature big sister figure among Artoria Species, it was Space Lion King who came up with a solution right away.

"Continuing this standoff isn't good for any of us, right?"

"Can you play by the rules?" XX furrowed her brows and asked.

"I promise in the name of a knight."

"..."

While XX was still contemplating the offer, cooperation between Ex and X was being established.

"Give me a hand, Ecchan."

"If it's X-san, then sure."

The childhood friends and besties reluctantly reached an agreement.

At the same time, Artorius also looked at his true mother, Artoria, who nodded slightly. Thus, except for Z, everyone had found allies.

However, attacking a group of Artorias with more than 50 individuals was still quite a challenge.

'Should we form an alliance with X's group or with Artorius's group... Or maybe try to win over some Heroines as well?'

Space Lion King contemplated that question. Her gaze around was imposing, making it impossible to discern what she was really thinking.

But in the next moment—

"Let's ally!"

Artorius took action, grabbing everyone's attention.

And the target of Artorius's alliance was—

The Dark Rounds?!

"Without a leader right now, things must be pretty tough, right? You can't use all your strength. So, how about you let me step in as the temporary commander? What do you say?"

Artorius spoke calmly as he gazed at the Artorias from the Dark Rounds.

"That..."

Every Artoria Species from the Dark Rounds exchanged glances.

"If it's Artorius, then maybe..."

"That is indeed a good plan, but it's not enough."

As everyone from the Dark Rounds began to consider, Space Lion King watched the spectacle and began to ponder.

'Artorius joining will significantly strengthen the Dark Rounds's combat power. But in that case, they'll become the top targets since they would become the most threatening group, and everyone will attack them together as soon as I stir the pot a little.'

However...

"Let's team up! Mothers from the Order of Avalon!"

While Space Lion King calculated the best way to maximize her interests, Artorius spoke to another fifty or so Artoria Species from the Order of Avalon.

"Let's form an alliance first and defeat the strongest ones. That way, we can maximize our chances of winning!"

"???"

Space Lion King was surprised as she miscalculated and underestimated Artorius's intention.