Unexpected Truth

After counting the number of villagers and making sure no one was left behind, Arkhan, Ritsuka, and Mash walked out of the canyon with them, meeting up with the soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire outside.

Worried that Camelot's reinforcements might catch up, they didn't waste any time. After a quick rest, they set out on the road back to the Holy Roman Empire as soon as possible.

In the blink of an eye, dusk fell, the setting sun casting its golden light.

Finding a suitable camping spot, they made sure there were no enemies nearby before setting up their tents and starting a fire to cook.

Led by the village chief, some villagers brought their own cooked food to share with the soldiers. Sitting together, chatting, and eating, the initially tense atmosphere quickly warmed up, with both sides becoming more enthusiastic.

"That old man is really impressive..." Mash couldn't help but be impressed.

"Well, as the old saying goes, the older the ginger, the spicier it gets, the wiser it becomes. Leading over a hundred people in this dangerous world, he must have some tricks up his sleeve." Arkhan responded, chuckling lightly.

Mash nodded in understanding.

"Oh, by the way, Arkhan, since you're a Servant, what class are you?" Ritsuka asked curiously.

With strength comparable to a Berserker and mastery in magecraft like a Caster, she couldn't help but wonder what class this King Arthur belonged to.

"Strictly speaking, I don't have any class right now..." Arkhan smiled. "Unlike those Servants you're familiar with, this manifestation isn't just one aspect of me, but the entirety of me as I sit upon the Throne of Heroes."

"Wa-Wait a minute!"

A virtual screen suddenly unfolded beside Ritsuka, with Romani's face appearing, filled with unmistakable surprise and shock.

"Are you saying you're actually a Grand Servant?!"

"Well, you could say that." Arkhan nodded, smiling faintly.

*Gulp*

Ritsuka and Mash exchanged a glance, swallowing nervously.

They had heard about the legend of Grand Servants before, but they never thought they would actually meet one.

No wonder the scale of his Saint Graph was so vast like a Divine Spirit.

"Grand Servant..." Romani murmured softly, shaking his head with a wry smile. "Although I had some guesses before, hearing you admit it still caught me off guard..."

"Being a Grand Servant isn't that big of a deal, just slightly stronger than your average Servant." Arkhan looked at Romani with a smirk. "Wouldn't you agree, Doctor Romani?"

Romani's face instantly stiffened, awkwardly smiling.

"W-Well, uhh, I remember Grand Servants are rarely seen in the world. Were you sent down by the Counter Force?" Romani asked nervously.

After taking a sip of wine passed by one of the soldiers, Arkhan wiped his mouth before answering casually.

"No, I was summoned by this world. The Counter Force tried to stop me, but failed."

Even the Counter Force couldn't stop him?

Upon hearing Arkhan's answer, Ritsuka's lips twitched, elevating the awesomeness of this black-haired man to a whole new level in her mind.

She couldn't help but feel relieved that he was on their side.

On the other hand, Romani was left speechless by Arkhan's answer, only able to smile wryly and end the communication.

"But why did you accept the summoning?" Mash asked curiously. "Was there something in this world that attracted you?"

Arkhan fell silent for a moment before smiling and answering.

"That's one way to put it, but there are deeper reasons that I can't tell you for now."

"Ohh, sorry, I didn't mean to pry into your secrets..." Mash said hastily, feeling a bit flustered.

"Nah, it's okay..." Arkhan shook his head. "But now that your questions are done, it's my turn to ask, right?"

"No problem!" Ritsuka immediately sat up straight, her expression serious. "Feel free to ask whatever you want!"

Having received so many benefits from this big shot, Ritsuka couldn't help but feel a bit guilty if she didn't reciprocate.

Arkhan pondered for a moment before speaking up.

"So... you've joined forces with the Holy Roman Empire, am I right?"

"Yep."

Ritsuka nodded, recounting briefly how they had encountered Camelot's army upon arriving in this Singularity, clashed with them due to their cruel actions, and later joined forces with the Holy Roman Empire after being discovered by passing soldiers.

"So... the Holy Roman Empire has been gathering refugees?" Arkhan raised an eyebrow.

"That's right, we're here for the same reason..." Ritsuka nodded, then sighed. "Camelot's army is too tough, especially those Knights of the Round Table. The people of this world stand no chance against them at all, so we have to gather more people and unite everyone if we want to have any chance of winning."

"If I'm not mistaken, the leader of this Holy Roman Empire should be Nero Claudius, right?" Arkhan asked, rubbing his chin.

"Eh? You know Her Majesty Nero?" Ritsuka looked surprised.

Arkhan shook his head.

"I don't know her personally, but I've heard of her. I must say though, I do admire her. Creating a country single-handedly in this messy world is quite an achievement, truly befitting the title of the Emperor of Rome."

"Um, about that..." Mash's face flushed with a hint of embarrassment. "Actually, Her Majesty mentioned that she initially just wanted to capture some people to listen to her singing..."

"..."

Arkhan instantly fell silent, speechless.

"Ahem, well, the reason doesn't matter as long as the outcome is good..." Arkhan cleared his throat, quickly changing the subject. "So, apart from Nero, have you managed to contact any other Servants?"

Mash and Ritsuka exchanged glances, then fell into silence.

"What's wrong?" Arkhan asked, puzzled.

"Actually... the only Servants we met so far are only Mr. Arkhan and Her Majesty Nero..." Mash said helplessly.

Upon hearing that, Arkhan was somewhat surprised.

"Don't tell me you haven't tried summoning other Servants?"

"We've tried, but it didn't work out..." Ritsuka said with a wry smile.

"So, if I understand correctly... before you arrived, there was only Nero fighting against the entire Camelot?" Arkhan frowned slightly. 

"Actually... at the beginning, it wasn't like this... Before we arrived, several Servants had already descended upon this Singularity..." Ritsuka sighed. "But later on, they were all defeated by the Knights of the Round Table and then got converted..."

"Converted? What do you mean by converted?" Arkhan blinked in surprise.

Ritsuka fell silent for a moment before answering.

"It means erasing their memories, altering their minds, and turning them into the Knights of the Round Table... In short, they got brainwashed."

"Huh?"

Hearing that ridiculous truth, Arkhan's eyes widened instantly, dumbfounded.

He didn't expect such a thing at all!

Even with the mind manipulation ability of Fenghuang Down, modifying the minds of Servants wasn't an easy task.

"Was it the Lion King who did this?" Arkhan asked, furrowing his brow slightly. 

"No..."

Ritsuka shook her head, turning her head toward the gradually darkening sky.

"The Lion King wasn't involved in this at all... The one responsible for brainwashing them was Camelot's court mage, the mentor of King Arthur—"

"Merlin."