Questions (II)

Upon understanding what Melusine meant, Arkhan narrowed his eyes slightly.

'Perishing together, huh...'

As far as he knew, although the Merlin he knew was a candidate for a Grand Servant, he rarely engaged in direct combat. His expertise lay more in support by using illusion, with his only combat skill likely being his extraordinary swordsmanship.

However, no matter how amazing his swordsmanship was, when facing a dragon of Melusine's caliber, his options were quite limited.

Could it be that this female version of Merlin was different from the Merlin he knew, like changing her focus and starting to study magecraft more aggressively?

Honestly, this wasn't entirely impossible.

With Merlin's talent, she could quickly master any form of magecraft, and the reason the Merlin from his world was unwilling to learn was mostly due to his laziness.

"Moreover, Merlin gives me a very dangerous feeling..."

Melusine continued, her eyes revealed a hint of uneasiness.

"Although she appears dignified and elegant every day, always smiling at everyone she meets, I feel like her smile isn't genuine. Every time I was near her, I felt uncomfortable all over, as if there was something even more sinister and terrifying hidden beneath her facade."

Hearing that somewhat creepy narration, Ritsuka couldn't help but swallow hard. Based on the description alone, she couldn't even imagine that Melusine was describing that legendary mage. She almost thought it was some horror story passed down from somewhere.

In truth, even though Merlin was currently an enemy, she still held great admiration for this mage, a figure steeped in the colorful history of Britain, and this feeling was shared by almost all young mages nowadays.

Meanwhile, Arkhan furrowed his brow slightly after hearing Melusine's narration. The version of Merlin described by her was completely different from the one in his memories. Just thinking about it, he couldn't connect the two at all.

"Alright, let's stop discussing Merlin for now." Arkhan shook his head, putting the matter aside for the time being. "What about the Lion King? What's your impression of him?"

"Very strong."

Melusine's expression instantly became serious, which somehow made her even more adorable.

"He doesn't appear often. Most of the time, he's alone in the deepest part of the royal palace. Besides Agravain and Merlin, hardly anyone sees him in person. Even I've only seen him once."

"But that one time made me certain that if we were to fight for real, even if I unleashed my dragon form and went all out, I wouldn't stand a chance against him. Though I wouldn't be completely crushed, in the end, I would be the one to die for sure."

With Melusine's narration about the Lion King, Ritsuka and Mash's mood unavoidably grew somber. Although they knew the Lion King was powerful, they never imagined he was so powerful.

They had witnessed Melusine's strength firsthand, still remembering the majestic figure of that black dragon. But if even she claimed she stood no chance against the Lion King, they couldn't fathom just how terrifying he must be.

In contrast to the unease and anxiety of the two girls, Arkhan remained remarkably composed. After all, he had descended this time in his complete Heroic Spirit state as a Grand Servant. If he didn't even have the confidence to arm wrestle the Lion King, he might as well just commit suicide.

"Because of that lance, Lion King's divinity has completely suppressed his humanity. Even in my memory, there are not many divine beings with such a high degree of divinity. He is probably not far from the realm of a true god." Melusine added with a serious expression.

"True god..." Arkhan pondered for a moment before asking another question. "Besides the Lion King and Merlin, are there any other notable figures on Camelot?"

"None," Melusine shook her head. "Apart from the Lion King and Merlin, the original members of Camelot were actually just me, Tristan, and Gawain. The rest of the Knights of the Round Table were Servants whose minds were forcibly altered by Merlin. In terms of strength, even if they were all combined, they wouldn't be a match for me."

Toward the end, her tone carried a hint of pride.

Ritsuka and Mash sighed in relief, finally hearing some useful and good information.

"Speaking of Tristan..." Arkhan furrowed his brows slightly. "I'm actually a bit curious... Is she truly a member of the Round Table?"

Tristan, a girl who loved wearing high-heel boots, had truly left a very deep impression on him.

At first, he thought she was indifferent to human life because she was affected by the Lion King's Gift. However, the following events proved that her cruelty and wickedness had nothing to do with any Gifts; it seemed to be her true nature.

Arkhan found it hard to believe that someone as cruel and wicked as her could become a Knight of the Round Table.

"Tristan..." Melusine fell silent for a moment before answering. "Actually, Tristan and I are similar. We're not originally part of the Round Table. We were both bestowed this status by Merlin."

"Just as I suspected, huh..." Arkhan nodded slightly. "So Tristan isn't the original Tristan either?"

"Um..." Melusine nodded. "Tristan's true identity is a fairy known as Baobhan Sith."

"Baobhan Sith?" Mash exclaimed. "Are you talking about that evil fairy from Scottish legend?"

"Yes, that's her." Melusine nodded.

"Um... Mash, what fairy are you guys talking about?" Ritsuka nudged Mash's elbow, fully exposing her ignorance.

Mash patiently explained.

"In Scottish legends, fairies are a kind of entity that can be both beneficial and harmful, but Baobhan Sith is an evil fairy with only harmful intentions. It's said that she appears at night, using her beauty to lure passersby and then sucking their blood until they're drained."

Upon hearing that, Ritsuka shivered all over.

"No wonder that girl's personality is so terrible..."

During her interactions with refugees, the names she heard most frequently were Tristan and Gawain.

She was well aware of the numerous atrocities committed by these two.

Initially, she thought there might be some hidden circumstances behind why they committed those atrocities, but she never expected one of them to be an evil fairy who posed as a Knight of the Round Table.