C446

Gil observed Shirou's departing figure with a grin before finally making his way over to Artoria. Casting his gaze over Gray, Arcueid, and Attila, he turned to them with a smile. "Everyone, may I have a private conversation with the King of Knights?"

"Well..." Gray glanced at Artoria.

She nodded.

While Gray and Arcueid departed, Attila remained in place.

Gil asked with a pout, "Aren't you leaving too, Giant God?"

Attila ignored him.

"Ah, forget it," Gil sighed, a small smile playing on his lips as he turned to Artoria. "Quite the tragedy, isn't it, King of Knights?"

"You can laugh if you want, Gilgamesh. But..." She asked, "Why did you speak up for me back there?"

"I wasn't really helping you; I was enjoying the show. Although, from your perspective, it might indeed seem like I was helping you."

Pausing for a moment, Gil asked with a smile, "Have you ever wondered why Eternal King decided that Morgan would be the king? Have you thought about why, regardless of your achievements, the throne will ultimately be handed over to Morgan and not to you?"

She shook her head and replied, "I don't know, and I don't want to know."

Gil couldn't help but chuckle, saying, "That won't do. Let me tell you. It's because you are a clown. Your fate was originally to draw Caliburn, become King Arthur, the ideal king as perceived by Uther. You were meant to draw Excalibur, take down Vortigern, and save the day."

"That's impossible! If it were me, I couldn't possibly have defeated Vortigern in that situation! Only the King... Only the King could have defeated Vortigern in such dire circumstances!"

"You're wrong. It's not because of the Eternal King that you can defeat Vortigern, but because of the Eternal King that you would end up in such dire circumstances."

He continued, "Your destiny was to bring down Vortigern, rally the Knights of the Round Table, and unite with kingdoms and nobles to rebuild Camelot. You were to stand as the undefeated King Arthur. However, in the end, you are drugged by your jealous sister Morgan, giving birth to Mordred. Well, this Mordred is more of a rebellious knight than king material. Yet, in your final moments – the Battle of Camlan – Mordred destroys your kingdom, and she's also the one who takes you down."

After a pause, Gil added, "That is your fate. Across countless worlds, regardless of gender, whichever version of yourself it might be, they all share the same fate. You're engraved into the Pan-Human History as a clown, the very foundation of human order. It's your destiny to become King Arthur, only to meet your end at Mordred's hand. And the Eternal King is well aware of this. He poured all his efforts into nurturing Morgan, transforming her into a better person. All of it, just to alter your destiny, to break free from the scripted tragedy that's been recorded for you. But alas, he didn't succeed. You still end up as King Arthur, and the Battle of Camlan remains inevitable. He... changed nothing."

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked, her voice tinged with anguish.

He laughed. "Because I find pleasure in your suffering. I told you, you're an exceptional clown. Whether it's the version of you that understands compassion, the one oblivious to human feelings, or even the male King Arthur, they all excel at being clowns. Like fireworks, their true brilliance shines only at the moment of ignition. That's why the older me wanted to collect you, to savor the sight of you drowning in despair."

After a pause, Gil maintained his grin. "But it's oddly amusing. You, who struggle to comprehend human emotions, yearn for a compassionate heart. Meanwhile, the you with a compassionate heart wishes to remain ignorant of human emotions, ultimately leading to this miserable outcome. If I were in your shoes, I'd kill that True Ancestor who used Mystic Eyes on you without your consent."

"Arcueid isn't wrong. She just wanted to help a friend... wanted to help the me who was suffering at that time. She's not wrong. It's me who's wrong."

"Heh. You guys are really good at hurting yourselves... You're all of the same ilk." Gil chortled, a touch of irony lingering in his smile. He then motioned toward the distant Arcueid and remarked, "I do wonder, how would that True Ancestor react if she found out that her misuse of Mystic Eyes played a part in her good friend ending up like this? Would she feel pain, blame herself, be consumed by guilt, or maybe even think about suicide?"

"But whatever, I'm not all that interested in getting involved any further. It's just that your conclusion seems pretty ironic to me. Across countless worlds, it's always Mordred who brings it to an end. The only difference is in one world, she's the rebellious knight twisted by Morgan's influence, while in the other, she's King Mordred twisted by your manipulation of Eternal King."

Artoria's expression became even more anguished.

Attila lifted the Sword of Mars, pointing it at Gil with a clear hostility in her eyes. She questioned, "Are you trying to steal my prey?"

"Oh, hold on now, Giant God, you've got the wrong idea," Gil said with a wave of his hand and a smile. "I'm a bit different from my older self. I'm not keen on wrecking good things for others."

Attila's gaze grew colder, and she enunciated each word, "Keep your hands off my prey! Or else, I'll get angry!"

"Heh, don't worry, I've lost interest in her."

Gil chuckled before turning his attention to Artoria. He remarked, "You know, I've been wondering all along whether the Eternal King, who's fully aware of the truth, might just decide to do away with you. It could've been quite the issue if you were sent back into the gaps of time and space. Because, you see, the only thing that could fish someone like you out from there would be the Holy Grail."

"But in the end, Eternal King made this choice. Is it cruelty or is it compassion? He wiped out Merlin and the whole Round Table bunch, but he spared you. He relieved Merlin and the Knights of the Round Table from their duties, yet he denied you that release. Though, well, maybe this could be for the best..."

Gil opened his treasury, retrieved a card from within, and handed it to her. He spoke with a grin, "This one's for you, King of Knights."

She accepted the card, only to find it completely blank.

Baffled, she couldn't help but ask, "A blank... Class Card?"

"Absolutely right. This card was pretty hard to get back in the days when I was still a Class Card. I had to influence Angelica quite a bit to obtain it from the Ainsworth," Gil explained with a grin.

She shot him a quick look and questioned, "If you had a blank card all along, why didn't you reveal it earlier? Chloe could really use this!"

"Ah, but there's someone else who needs it even more," Gil chuckled, then turned his gaze toward her with a brilliant smile on his face. "Take it; you'll thank me for it."

With that sunny grin, Gil turned and took his leave.

She lowered her gaze to the blank card resting in her palm.

Gray walked up to her, a note of worry in her voice, "Your Highness...?"

She shook her head slightly and reassured, "I'm alright, Gray."

Arcueid stepped closer, her concern evident as she asked, "Are you sure you're okay?"

Meeting her gaze, she managed a small smile and responded, "I'm fine."

Still, her fingers tightened around the blank card.

Gil strolled over to where Shirou and the rest were gathered, noticing that Shirou seemed to be waiting for him.

"Were you waiting for me, Eternal King?"

"What did you say to her?"

Gil chuckled and responded, "Oh, nothing much. Just had a little chat about a certain woman on the brink of despair. I may have dropped a few words about her fate as well."

Shirou frowned, "You're hardly one who empathizes with others, so don't meddle in other people affairs."

...

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