War of Madness (II)

On that evening, in the Land of Shadows.

"This is completely different from what you said back then, Artorius."

Facing her most promising disciple, Scathach couldn't help but sigh.

"You used to say that as a leader, you should remain in the rear. But now, you decide to take the initiative to attack directly."

"Times change."

Artorius didn't want to waste time on such matters. After a simple response, he got to the crucial point.

"How is the spell preparation coming along?"

"It's in progress."

"Can it be faster?" Artorius raised an eyebrow.

"It's already as fast as it can be."

"..."

"What if I lend a hand?"

"It seems I haven't taught you well enough," Scathach said. "This spell requires precision, not just blindly infusing magical energy through the Third Magic to achieve miracles."

"No, I mean regarding my Origin." Artorius spoke up.

He was a rare individual who possessed dual Origins. Among those in the Fate series who had their Origins revealed, only Emiya Kiritsugu had dual Origins—Severing and Binding.

The magecraft bullets he created using the concept of Origins played a crucial role when facing the Clock Tower's Lord El-Melloi, Kenneth Archibald.

Severing and Binding, compared to Domination and Revolution, weren't just a small difference conceptually.

Emiya Kiritsugu, known as the Mage Killer, wasn't just slightly inferior to Artorius in terms of ability and strength. Therefore, the effects that Artorius's 'Origin' could achieve were naturally more terrifying and astonishing.

Usurping fate, from a certain perspective, could also be understood as domination.

Dominating fate.

Dominating enemies.

Dominating oneself.

Thus, if Artorius cooperated with the spell preparation, merely infusing the effect of his Origin into the spell would yield remarkable results.

"Yes, but you've enough on your plate."

Scathach naturally referred to the large-scale bounded field covering the entire Germanic region, resisting fate's influence. This massive bounded field that resisted fate utilized Artorius's 'Domination' Origin.

"Your burden will only increase further, Artorius."

Scathach calmly stated to him.

"But I won't die." Artorius was brimming with confidence.

Indeed, he possessed the Third Magic and Avalon. Even if he were crushed into tiny fragments, he could still revive. However, the pain involved in that...

"I can endure it."

"..."

Hearing Artorius say that, Scathach fell silent once again.

She earnestly looked at her disciple and once more sighed in admiration.

"You've truly become a good man."

"So what?" Artorius chuckled. "Are you captivated with me, Teacher?"

"Don't get too full of yourself, kid." Scathach extended a finger and hooked Artorius's chin.

"If you think you can flirt with me, it'll be a few hundred years too early."

"..."

"Hahahaha..."

Hearing her words, Artorius paused for a moment, then burst into a burst of genuine and joyful laughter. It made Scathach couldn't help but sigh.

"It will be painful." Scathach turned around and headed towards the magic workshop. "Don't blame me for not warning you."

As she said that, a beautiful silver-haired fairy happily rushed over.

"Artorius~"

It was Vivian.

"Are you here to see me? Ahh, I'm so happy~"

"Yes, yes, you're such a good girl."

Just like consoling Mordred, Artorius gently gave a headpat to Vivian, which made her burst into silly giggles.

'Seems like your methods of dealing with women have upgraded.' Watching this scene, Scathach thought to herself.

And then, in an instant, her mind wandered.

"..."

Surprised, followed by silence.

Because she sensed, when Vivian and Artorius were intimate, she felt a bit...

...a bit jealous.

===

Time passed to the next day.

"Is everything alright, big brother? You look so exhausted." Mordred gazed at Artorius with a worried expression.

"Even after bathing in the holy spring, why do you still look like this? What did Teacher Scathach and Vivian do to you?" Mordred asked with concern.

Today was a special day, and it was her turn to accompany Artorius. When she woke up in the morning, she saw her brother looking haggard, which made her unhappy.

"It's not important..." Artorius replied.

Usually, Artorius would take the time to comfort his adorable sister, but not now.

Despite his physical fatigue from the burden he bore after the 'battle' with Vivian, his spirits were unusually high and energetic.

"What matters is that we finally obtained the key to victory."

"The key to victory... Did you complete the spell to usurp fate?!" Mordred exclaimed in surprise. "Wasn't it supposed to take three months?"

"The longer we wait, the deeper the suffering of the people..." Artorius said as he stood up, donning his frost-silver armor and ice-blue cape.

After channeling some magical energy, the signs of fatigue and weakness disappeared. Once again, he became the fearsome Dragon King with boundless power and vitality.

"Spread the word..." Artorius calmly declared. "We will launch our attack tonight."

"Tonight?" Mordred was astonished. "Is there enough time for that? If we draw too many ships, won't the enemy catch on?"

"No, we won't use ships."

"Then how will we cross the Rhine River?"

Mordred's question was answered later that night.

At the banks of the Rhine River, Artorius raised Clarent borrowed from Mordred, and an unimaginable coldness emanated from the sword. With a swift motion, he froze the entire surface of the river. Then, with another swing, the once smooth ice shattered into countless tiny fragments, resembling powdery snow that wouldn't cause any slipping.

"My knights! My comrades! My warriors!" Artorius turned around and gave a speech to the eight thousand troops following him, "Tonight, we will make history!"

"Tonight, we will bring everlasting peace, prosperity, and tranquility to our nation!"

In response, there was no thunderous cheer as in the past. Instead, there was a unanimous "Hmm!" sound.

The knights and cavalrymen held branches in their mouths to remain silent while raising their swords and lances as a gesture of homage and response to their king.

Artorius then gave the command, "Cross the river. Our target is the head of the barbarian king, Clovis."

With the Dragon King's order, the cavalry formed their formation and galloped forward. The leather-wrapped horseshoes made a dull sound as they hit the ground. The accompanying mages waved their staves, creating illusions to shield the army and deal with the alarms and traps set by Clovis's mages.

With enough caution and vigilance, Artorius's cavalry remained unnoticed by the careless guards until they were less than fifty meters away from the enemy camp.

"Ehm... what's that?!"

In the next moment, the guard's terrified cry came to an abrupt end. An arrow shot by Tristan had entered his right eye and pierced through his head.

Following this was Artorius's furious roar and the resounding response.

"Anyone who dares to obstruct our righteous cause shall be killed!"