29 [29] Screw Your Fate

Facing the legendary magus of flowers, a sage revered by everyone in Britannia, Reinhard, now named Alvin, had no flattering thoughts. Instead, his attitude appeared unusually indifferent. After all, his time with Artoria had made Alvin acutely aware of the girl's tumultuous background. The twisted moral perspective was undoubtedly the result of someone's misguided teachings.

Therefore, Alvin harbored no goodwill towards Merlin, the half-incubus.

Uther and Merlin, were indeed two precious individuals. Alvin felt that they bore a significant responsibility for Artoria's warped personality. Things that were not human were playing with human emotions. Such actions were nauseating.

"Oh dear, are you angry? Don't be mad, Alvin. I won't ask..."

The magus chuckled with narrowed eyes.

"After all, during this time, my lovely Lily has been under your care. You haven't harmed her, so naturally, I have no reason to harm you either."

With these words, the magus then put on an expression that seemed like a regretful sigh.

"But, as Lily's teacher, I can't let you continue staying by her side. I hope you won't be too saddened by this. I just came here to inform you of this."

"I see, well..."

Hearing this, Alvin couldn't help but smile. The curve at the corner of his mouth was filled with sarcasm, and his ash-gray eyes were brimming with mockery.

"So, you can be afraid too, Merlin... I thought incubus's heart didn't understand what fear meant."

"Oh?"

Merlin tilted his head, intrigued, and asked, "I didn't even realize it myself. So, tell me, Alvin, what am I afraid of?"

"You're afraid that I'll continue to let Artoria learn more truths, see through your hypocritical rhetoric, and further question the necessity of becoming a king."

Alvin sneered...

"After all, this thing called 'king' originally has no meaningful existence. It's just a lie fabricated by people hoping someone would step up to shoulder everything."

"Tsk~ That's not how you should put it..." Merlin shook his head disapprovingly, "Becoming a king and then saving Britannia is Lily's destined fate."

The casually spoken words faded away.

...As if the wind also subsided along with them.

Looking at Merlin's smiling face.

Alvin remained silent for a long time before repeating those two words, somewhat incredulous, skeptical, and softly spoken.

"Fate...? In your eyes, Merlin... This is, 'fate'...?"

Before encountering Merlin.

The former Alvin believed that perhaps the limitations of the times led to Artoria's tragedy. The narrow perspective of the heroic view only focused on the outcome of winning or losing. After all, it was the Middle Ages, so even the great sage Merlin might not understand that a suitable political system and doctrine were the true essentials for leading people forward.

Wanting to obtain an 'ideal king.'

In the eyes of the people of this era, it was only natural.

However, at this moment.

Knowing that Merlin, like himself, possessed the miraculous Clairvoyance.

The half-incubus uttered this word.

Finally, Alvin felt the long-lost anger.

Fate.

Only you, Merlin...

Only you, the one Artoria trusts the most, is the least qualified to utter these two words...

"Hey hey... You can see it, right, Merlin..."

Staring at this figure, the great magus of Britannia, known as the sage.

Alvin spoke word by word, his voice low.

Looking at the silver-haired young man with an expression as calm as an deep of oceans well but with flames surging beneath the ice surface. Merlin's gaze gradually became solemn. The magus seemed to sense something, something he couldn't comprehend, slowly emanating from the young man's body.

"To be crowned as a king..."

"To be betrayed and die..."

"To spend a lifetime chasing elusive hopes, attempting to save this dying kingdom."

"But never receiving any understanding or redemption throughout her life. The only thing left with her until death was... endless loneliness."

"Hey hey, did you see that, Merlin..."

"As her teacher, possessing Clairvoyance, you must have seen it long ago..."

"Saw her, persisting even when faced with everyone's misunderstanding, everyone's hostility and prejudice. Not understood by friends, and not loved by the people."

"Even so..."

"Artoria, she still persevered."

"Did you see it?"

"She still, persevered..."

"And you dare to call this... 'fate.'"

Unable to restrain the suppressed anger in his chest any longer, Alvin suddenly roared. The hidden gaps in the dense forest seemed to sway with the young man's loud voice.

"Screw your fate! Sacrificing everything for a girl to save a country, are you worthy to be her teacher?"

However.

Until the roar subsided.

The lingering echoes faded away.

Alvin kept staring at the expression on the sage's face.

However, he was disappointed...

Faced with such questioning.

Faced with this torrent of inquiries.

Merlin's expression did not change at all.

Because he was not human.

Merlin liked women only because, in his eyes, women were beautiful and lovely things. Like collecting insect specimens, he appreciated the beauty of humans while feeding on interesting nightmares and dreams.

As an incubus, Merlin hoped that humanity could achieve a Happy Ending, but he did not love humans in reality. To achieve the so-called happy ending, he had consumed countless lives like insects until now, with no sense of good or evil, let alone any consciousness of guilt.

Uther was once the king he supported and lifted to power on a whim. Just wanting to help humanity, he started cultivating a new vessel named Artoria, the so-called king.

In the end, Merlin believed that he had no responsibility for how this country would turn out and did not feel any guilt. He just thought... it was interesting.

Interesting things should bring joy, right?

So...

As an Incubus, he couldn't understand Alvin's anger.

"This is Lily's own choice."

The magus just continued to smile as usual and softly said, "I'm just guiding her in the right direction."

"Anyone can say that, but only you don't deserve it... You're not human..."

Never before had there been such anger.

Never before had there been such a desire to crush someone into dust.

Symbolizing tyranny, the crimson color slowly spread in the iron-gray lake.

The existence called the ultimate life form, for the first time in this life, exerted its full power.

The heartbeat thumped with a loud drumming sound.

With the violent release of violence contained within this body, rising and soaring wildly, ten thousand, one hundred thousand, one million...

In this most exciting drumbeat.

Alvin's hand gently gripped his sword.

In an instant.

Silence fell over the earth.

...As if instinctively sensing something.

The birds suddenly let out a mournful cry, and the creatures within a thousand yards began to panic, scattering and fleeing from this place.

The silent darkness gathered, swallowing even the moonlight. Thick shadows almost solidified around the silver-haired youth, flowing slowly like mercury.

The thin and almost invisible dark sword light spread inch by inch on the edge of Alvin's blade. With his icy and penetrating voice, it slowly rippled through this deep forest.

"Artoria, I'm going to see her."

"If you want to stop me, you can die."