Chapter 70

“Yeah! But right now…right now…I need to win against you! So I can remain being who I am! And most importantly, for your sake!” “Then try…if you can!” Once again, Sir Gawain and Sir Lancelot began their fight. Watching the two knights from afar, Mr. Kujou turned back to Felicia. “…It’s ironic, Felicia Ferald.” “What’s ironic?” “Can’t you see? …We’re the winners. You’re the losers.” “What?!” “In the past, Sir Gawain was defeated by Sir Lancelot. In the past, you were defeated by me… Isn’t it ironic how we’re matched up this way? You’re both losers.” When he pointed out the simple truth, Felicia seemed to lose her ability to speak. “Did you already forget? You used to genuinely fear me. You were the one surrendered, but you tried to butter me up and form a fake alliance to pretend you had done neither of those things… Remember?” Felicia was silent. It confirmed he was right. “And now, you’ve come this far to become sacrifices for Luna’s group. You’re trying to get on the good side of the losing team. With your repeated concessions and compromising, you’re living like a loser… You won’t obtain anything like that. You’ll never become king.” “…” “Only those who sacrifice other people to obtain their goal will get their wish granted. Those are the people who will always come out on top.” “So…people like you?” “!” Mr. Kujou was the one to go silent this time. “I don’t think that way… There is someone I think is befitting to be king. That ruler and her vassals aren’t necessarily always coming out on top. They’re getting spit in the face, wounded, but they had the strength to crawl back up every time they go down.” Felicia was thinking of Luna, with her mysterious self-confidence and smile, and Rintarou, standing next to her, seeming exasperated. “When I see them, I think…they’re breathtaking. They’re the ones I admire.” “…” “The type of king that wins by sacrificing something will give up after a single loss. But the king with their face in the mud will always make another comeback. The issue is whether they stand up again… I think I’d like to be a king who stands up, persistent, even from the mud.” Felicia elegantly pointed her sword at Mr. Kujou. “It’s go time! I’m Felicia! Felicia Ferald! I aim to become a righteous king, even after I’ve been smeared in mud!” “Royal Road—Sword of Waving War Flags!” Misha ran up a building, firing at random below her using her Excalibur shaped like an assault gun. Bullets peppered the feet of the raging Questing Beast. But mana particles gathered near the bullets, forming an Aura…which began to take shape. When there was enough mana, something manifested in this world. Knights. Knights sitting astride war horses, equipped in full suits of armor. Knights in formation and charging at the Questing Beast. “Go! Surround the Questing Beast and keep attacking to hold it back!” Several dozen knights had already appeared around the beast, attacking it from all directions. The monster flailed and stomped on the knights, mowing them down. Squished fighters turned into puffs of mana. They barely even managed to slow the beast down. “Royal Road—Sword of Waving War Flags!” Misha fired off more bullets, summoning reinforcements for the side the beast had defeated. Even though they outnumbered the monster, they couldn’t even dull its movements. “Cough?! Cough!” Suddenly, Misha started hacking up blood. “…You’re being reckless.” Sir Palamedes leaped down to stand next to her. “Your Excalibur is strong—the strongest when it comes to suppressing others. But it’s physically taxing to use. If you don’t handle it right, you might shorten your lifespan. So you should only use it when you know you’re going to win… Wasn’t that the plan?” “…Shut up.” “But you’re giving it your all here, even though we don’t know if we’ll win… At this pace, you won’t last long,” Sir Palamedes said. “But I’m upset…!” Misha gripped her gun and gritted her teeth. “She’s calm and composed, even when facing King Arthur and the Questing Beast… She’s even overcome the quest of the Holy Grail… I hate to admit that Luna has outclassed me…!” “…Misha.” “I can’t let it end like this… I just can’t…! I feel like cursing my earlier self for being intimidated by a stronger opponent…! I want to become stronger…like Luna…!” “…Of course.” Sir Palamedes looked down at the raging Questing Beast. “Then…we’ll have to hold this beast back, even if we can’t win against it. To exact your revenge.” “Right! Please, Sir Palamedes! Lend me your strength!” “All of it,” he declared. Sir Palamedes leaped. “Now, I will fulfill my destiny from my past life! Let’s do this, Questing Beast!” High in the air, aiming for the top of the beast’s head, Sir Palamedes slashed his sword. They had finally started each of their final battles, fighting for their nonnegotiable demands, exchanging blows as passionately as ever. No one could tell if one side was stronger than the other. A fierce match. A close one. The terrified people of the town had gradually come out of their hiding spots to witness those battles, stealthily watching from their windows. There was a little glimmer of hope, even in this state of despair. Meanwhile— — —Deep, deep at the bottom of the ocean. It was darker than shadows down there. Not a single sound was produced in this motionless world. Not a single ray of light ever penetrated this place… There stood a single boy. “Ah… I guess it’s nice that I beat you up, but…I have no clue how to get out of here,” he murmured, shrugging to himself. “…Makes sense, I guess. I’m deep in Fomorian territory here… It’s completely cut off from the material world… Guess there’s no way for me to get home… Not that this is news…” He didn’t seem like he was in distress, even though his situation seemed despairing. He carefully cradled a hawthorn Celtic cross in his hand. “…Somehow, I know she’s fighting somewhere… I can feel her light—bright and straightforward like a true king… Though we’re hopelessly far away, she’s trying to show me—tell me—that, shining her light in the dark…” No light was in the dark abyss, but he swore he could feel it. The cross in his hand guided him to its presence. He couldn’t perceive anything around him. All five senses—and his consciousness itself—would melt into the dark depths if he let it. The boy started to walk slowly. “…She’s waiting for me… I need to get back to her. I promised I would…” …He marched through the dark, trudging forward. “Yeah, I think it’ll be okay. Her light is on the other side of this darkness… If I don’t lose sight of it, I’ll be able to get back. I’ll get there… Just you wait… Luna…” The boy walked for eternity…to get back to the side of the girl he was meant to be with. He continued to walk—simply and earnestly.