Night fell, and the Servants Gilgamesh had summoned returned. Koji wasn't familiar with those Servants, but Fujimaru Ritsuka quickly got along with them.
"Servant summoning looks pretty interesting. I want to try summoning one too," Eula said with great interest.
She was a little curious what kind of Heroic Spirit she would summon as her Servant.
"All right."
Koji had no objection. Eula had once been the Spindrift Knight of the Knights of Favonius in Mondstadt, so judging by affinity alone, she would probably summon a member of the Round Table from the Type-Moon world.
He was curious too. If a Knight of the Round Table really did appear, then Mash's expression would probably be quite a sight.
The ritual for summoning a Servant was easy enough to prepare. All that remained was to recite the summoning chant.
"Is this a spell?"
"Haa..." Eula took a deep breath and began to chant.
"I hereby announce..."
"Your body shall heed my command, and my fate shall be entrusted to your sword;"
...
"I am the one who shall accomplish all the good in the world. I am the one who shall strike down all the evil in the world."
"Crossing the wheel of restraint, appear before me, guardian of the balance!"
Whoosh—
The lines of the magic circle lit up, and a surging storm of mana burst forth, forcing everyone to shut their eyes against the wind.
Within the light, a figure appeared.
Merlin's expression instantly turned strange, because he recognized the Servant that had been summoned.
The golden-haired King of Knights stood there in heroic splendor. He had never expected to see her in this Singularity. Truly, not even Clairvoyance had shown him this.
"Servant Saber... are you my Master?"
This Servant had a head of beautiful golden hair, and her emerald-green eyes shone with unwavering resolve. Even without makeup, her features were exceptionally lovely. Her build was rather petite, yet alongside her heroic bearing, she also gave off a poised and graceful elegance.
The King of Knights of Britain, Artoria Pendragon, had descended here.
"Oh, yes, that's right. I summoned you. But you don't need to address me like that. Just call me Eula," Eula said with a nod. This outfit really did make her look every bit the knight.
Looking at this Master, Artoria's instincts as a knight told her that this woman was also a knight, though one she did not recognize.
"Yes, and... Merlin, why are you here?"
The moment Artoria saw the grinning Merlin, her mood instantly worsened.
She knew exactly how awful Merlin's personality was. He loved pranks, and he seriously lacked empathy...
"Lily, it's been so long, and that's the tone you greet me with? Big Brother Merlin is heartbroken~" Merlin said, clutching his chest and pretending to be wounded.
"Merlin, I really have no desire to see you," Artoria said flatly. She did not believe a word of it. Merlin was that kind of man.
Sympathize with him? She had no such thought whatsoever.
"Galahad..." Artoria looked at Mash, or rather, at her Saint Graph.
"My King!"
The moment she saw King Artoria, Mash practically moved on reflex and gave a perfect knightly salute.
Neither Fujimaru Ritsuka nor Mash was unfamiliar with the King of Knights.
They had seen her in Fuyuki City, and they had seen her in the previous Singularity as well. But this version of the King of Knights was their first time seeing one like this. She felt far more proper and serious.
"There's no need for such formality."
"Eula, what is it you require of me this time?"
"This doesn't seem like an ordinary place... the Age of Gods?"
Artoria could sense the unusual nature of the environment. The ether density here was absurdly high, completely unlike the modern world.
"Well... I was just curious whether Servant summoning could really bring forth a proper—" Eula scratched her head awkwardly.
Artoria: "..."
This was the first time she had ever heard such a frivolous reason, and a very strained expression appeared on her face.
Not for the Holy Grail. Not for any other purpose. Just because she was curious, so she summoned a Servant?
This was not her first time appearing in the world, but it was definitely her first time being called for such a casual reason.
Even back in the old days, an expression like this would have been rare to see on her face.
"Be quiet, Merlin," Artoria snapped. "Your laughter is grating."
"Eula, your reason really leaves me speechless."
Well, fine. If there was nothing else to do, then she might as well take this as a chance to stretch a little.
Same procedure. Same chant.
"?"
Artoria suddenly felt a familiar presence and was instantly filled with question marks. Merlin, meanwhile, looked delighted.
"Servant Saber..."
"How interesting. A male little knight," Merlin said with amused interest as he looked at the blond knight Koji had summoned.
He had observed this King Arthur before: a hero who was kind, steadfast in justice, and one who could truly be called an ally of justice—a wielder of the Holy Sword of the Stars.
Arthur's Noble Phantasm was also Excalibur, the Sword of Promised Victory. This mighty Noble Phantasm was bound by thirteen seals restricting its output, a radiant holy sword meant to save the planet, a golden blade forged to defeat foreign enemies that sought to destroy the world.
Artoria's expression turned extremely strange. She suspected Koji had done this on purpose. She, a King Arthur, was already right here, and yet he had gone and summoned another King Arthur of the opposite sex.
Koji stroked his chin. This Prince of Knights really did have the aura of a little sun. As expected of a righteous and kind King Arthur—he was really gentle.
"You can just call me Arthur."
At those words, Arthur looked toward Artoria, paused in surprise, then smiled in sudden understanding.
"Hello, King Arthur from a parallel world. My name is Arthur Pendragon," Arthur said with a warm smile, as refreshing as a spring breeze.
"Hello. My name is Artoria Pendragon," Artoria replied with a helpless smile.
What did it feel like to see a male version of herself? Her emotions were... complicated.
"So the Merlin on your side is male?"
Arthur looked toward Merlin. He could not mistake that familiar air about him. A troublesome person, without a doubt.
Still, compared to Merlin, this Merlin seemed much more normal.
"Male?"
"Could it be that the Merlin on your side is female?" Artoria asked in astonishment.
"Yes. Though calling her Lady Merlin probably suits her better. She's an incredibly nasty piece of work," Arthur said with a shrug and a helpless tone.
"Come to think of it, Merlin probably doesn't have a fixed sex at all. Or rather, he can choose one himself," Koji said thoughtfully. Merlin was not exactly a proper human being, after all.
"That's right. Though I do lean more toward being male," Merlin said with a nod.
He knew of the female Merlin, Lady Merlin. Compared with that woman, he felt he was actually fairly normal.
"Lady Merlin really exists?"
Romani's voice sounded excited. He had still been somewhat doubtful before, but now that even the upright King Arthur had admitted it, then it clearly wasn't a lie.
(End of Chapter)
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