"Bang!"
The giant's palm collided with the girl's sword, instantly producing a dull, heavy thud.
Before Souya could react, he felt a soft body crash into his chest, pushed by immense force, sending them both flying backward.
Seeing that his back was about to intimately acquaint itself with the trees behind him, Souya immediately took action.
His left arm wrapped around the soft waist of the girl in his embrace. Focusing the strength in his entire body, he forcefully twisted his posture mid-air.
Souya's feet slammed heavily against a large tree behind him. Utilizing the counter-force, his backward momentum instantly halted, and he landed steadily on the ground.
"Are you alright?"
After landing, Souya looked down at the girl in his arms with a somewhat helpless expression.
Actually, she really didn't need to throw herself at him to block the giant's swat.
In fact, the moment the girl shouted her warning, he had already anticipated what the giant was going to do and had prepared countermeasures.
Souya was very confident that with his physical attributes, which could be considered absurd in this era of Britain, even if he stood perfectly still and let the giant hit him, it would be difficult for the giant to truly harm him.
That scene just now only looked dangerous. To Souya, there was absolutely no danger at all.
But naturally, this girl couldn't have known how strong Souya was. She had simply followed the sounds of fighting and arrived just in time to see the giant about to smash him.
In her moment of panic, she didn't have time to think. In a split second, she instinctively threw herself forward.
Now, realizing that she should have been the one asking that question, but was instead unexpectedly saved by the other party, the girl's face instantly turned bright red.
She didn't even notice Souya's hand resting on her waist.
"S-sorry to cause you trouble!"
The girl hurriedly stood up from Souya's embrace, showing an apologetic expression.
"Ah, don't worry about it."
Souya examined the pure and beautiful white-clad female knight before him, his expression suddenly turning peculiar.
No way. No way, right?
I've only been out for a few days and I've already encountered the future final boss of the opposing faction?
Does the plot really have to be this cliché?!
Souya felt the urge to complain becoming uncontrollable. He desperately wanted to have a good rant session with the Trash System.
But clearly, someone wasn't willing to give him a chance to relax.
"ROAR!"
Sensing that its attack hadn't caused much damage, the giant clearly became even more agitated and furious.
Roaring, it leaped up again, aiming another "War Stomp"-like attack in the direction Souya had retreated.
"Let's talk later. Let's finish off this giant together first."
Noticing the giant's renewed assault, Souya stopped worrying about the girl's identity.
Calling out for her to attack together, he simultaneously thrust his spear toward the giant's chest.
"Understood!"
The female knight clearly knew that the current situation allowed no further delay. She immediately picked up her fallen golden sword and joined Souya in confronting the giant.
Already exhausted from wildly attacking in blindness and rage, combined with the deep wound Souya had inflicted earlier that couldn't quickly regenerate, the giant grew increasingly helpless against the combined assault of Souya and the female knight.
In no time, the giant's entire body was covered in wounds of varying sizes.
Only now did it finally sense the threat of death and hastily tried to flee.
"Trying to run?"
Noticing the giant's intention, Souya's eyes turned cold. He swept his spear in a wide arc, instantly slashing deep, bloody gashes into both of the giant's feet.
"ROAR!"
Howling in pain and losing its balance, the giant crashed heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Seeing that the giant had lost its ability to run and exposed an opening, the female knight immediately sprang forward.
"Ha!"
With a light shout from the girl, the golden sword she raised high erupted with a brilliant golden radiance. As the blade fell, the Mountain Giant's massive head was sent flying.
Accompanied by green blood spurting into the sky, the massive body fell completely still.
"Phew."
Seeing that the giant was no longer moving, the female knight couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief.
Clearly, that final strike that directly bypassed the Mountain Giant's defenses had taken quite a toll on her.
Meanwhile, Souya's expression as he looked at her grew even more peculiar.
With his clear Fairy Eyes capable of seeing through martial arts and the flow of magical energy, he naturally saw through the secret of the girl's final strike.
What surprised Souya wasn't the golden radiance. That was, at best, merely an innate ability of the golden sword itself, increasing its sharpness and power at most.
What truly allowed the girl to instantly decapitate the giant wasn't the radiance, but her martial technique.
Focusing the strength of her entire body into that single move, resonating her body with her weapon to ensure not a single ounce of energy was wasted, achieving a theoretical one hundred percent power output.
This was exactly the technique he had taught to the underage Child of the Red Dragon back when he was still a Water Fairy.
Thus, the identity of this female knight was self-evident.
It was none other than the Child of Prophecy, the Red Dragon of Britain, the future King Arthur, currently likely going by the name 'Lily'—Artoris, which is to say, Artoria.
But is this kid's talent really that high?
My theory back then was really just theoretical!
Souya didn't have the conditions to test it out back then. Even now, with a body, he had been busy killing people and helping Morgan handle the affairs of the newborn Camelot, only briefly familiarizing himself with it.
Yet he never expected to see this technique completely mastered by Lily.
Thinking of this, Souya felt an inexplicable sense of admiration, realizing the student had surpassed the master.
It seems Morgan and I both underestimated this little Red Dragon's talent. I must say, she truly lives up to being the 'Perfect King' created by Merlin and Uther.
At this moment, the female knight going by the alias 'Lily' also regained her senses. She looked hesitantly at Souya, her eyes revealing a questioning look.
After a moment's thought, she asked nervously, "Um, have we met somewhere before?"
?
What kind of cliché, classic pick-up line is this?
Souya's soul of mockery was reignited. Just as he was about to answer, he heard an unfamiliar male voice ring out from behind him.
"Oh my, to think you resolved the Mountain Giant so quickly. You two truly surprise me."
"Who's there?!"
Souya's eyes instantly sharpened. His combat instincts erupted in a flash as he spun around, swiftly reaching for the speaker's throat.
It felt like grabbing air. Souya only felt a strange sensation slip through his fingers, accompanied by a pleasant floral scent passing through his body.
Souya turned his head back and saw a white-haired man, coalescing from petals, gradually appearing beside the previously alone Lily.
Magus of Flowers? Merlin?
Souya raised an eyebrow, instantly recognizing this incredibly familiar figure.
Thinking about it, it made sense. Lily was clearly still in her traveling phase; it was only right for Merlin to be following her.
Then the trash-talking guy he saved earlier must be the prototype for "Add," the Mystic Code holding the sealed Holy Lance later wielded by Gray—one of the Twelve Knights of the Round Table, the sharp-tongued Kay, right?
Turns out I've run into the Red Dragon Trio!
Souya's expression couldn't help but turn strange again.
"Merlin! I told you, could you please stop appearing and disappearing like a ghost? What if you scare someone?!"
Seeing Merlin suddenly appear and interrupt her, Lily was instantly annoyed, puffing out her cheeks angrily.
"Oh my, you'll get used to it eventually, Lily."
Merlin dismissively patted her small head, completely ignoring her murderous glare as he smiled casually at Souya.
"Besides, this young man didn't hold back against me just now. If I hadn't dodged, I probably would have suffered a bit."
"Who told you to suddenly appear behind me? What if you were an accomplice of the giant?"
Souya shrugged, firing back without hesitation.
"Besides, you're fine, aren't you? As a magus, it would actually be a bit abnormal if I caught you that easily."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. What a sharp-tongued young man. Your attitude reminds me of a certain companion of mine."
Merlin clicked his tongue at Souya, then smiled at the somewhat angry Lily beside him.
"Speaking of which, Lily, did you find Kay? He hasn't been eaten by the giant as a meat skewer, has he?"
"Ah!"
Hearing Merlin's words, Lily was instantly stunned, then replied in a panic, "I don't know! I only heard the sounds of fighting and rushed over, and then I saw this knight fighting the giant. In my haste, I joined in and didn't notice where Kay was..."
At this point, Lily's expression became noticeably tense, clearly very worried about her foster brother.
Seeing Lily like this, Souya sighed slightly, then turned and dragged a figure out from the nearby bushes.
"If the Kay you're talking about is this guy, then rest assured, he was merely roughed up by the giant and passed out."
"Ah!"
Seeing that although the person's face was swollen like a pig's head, his clothing indeed matched Kay's, Lily finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She then said to Souya with gratitude, "Thank you very much for saving my foster brother. We will definitely give you the reward you deserve."
Souya simply waved his hand and replied, "It's nothing. I was only tracking down this giant and saved him in passing."
"But..."
Lily clearly didn't want to just accept Souya's help for free. Just as she was about to speak, Merlin interrupted her.
"Alright, Lily. This young man clearly looks like a good-hearted person dedicated to doing good deeds. He surely wouldn't care about a bit of money, so don't make things difficult for him."
With that, Merlin looked at Souya with a grin.
"Right, young man? Come to think of it, we still haven't asked your name. Care to introduce yourself?"
"Lamorak."
Feeling Merlin's scrutinizing gaze, Souya felt an inexplicable sense of being seen through. This feeling made him very uncomfortable.
Even when facing Morgan, Souya hadn't felt such discomfort. One must remember that Morgan incorporated the traits of the three Goddesses of Fate and could briefly peer into destiny.
This situation could only mean that Merlin's 'Clairvoyance' was far superior to Morgan's Goddess of Fate traits.
Tch, as expected of the Type-Moon universe.
No matter how incredible your background lore is, if it hasn't been converted into a passive skill listed on your stat sheet, it's never as concrete or reliable as someone having an actual skill or Noble Phantasm.
For instance, as long as you have even a sliver of Divinity, even if it's rank E, you'll still be tied up tight by Enkidu's Chains of Heaven and then blasted to death by Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon.
Damn the anti-divine multiplier. Damn the absolute type advantage. Special attack multipliers are ridiculous.
This universe is just too broken.
Souya felt that if he stayed under Merlin's gaze for a few more minutes, the guy might even see through the color of his and the System's underwear. He hurriedly offered his farewells.
"Since the giant is already dead, and my horse is completely gone, let us part ways here. Farewell, everyone."
Hearing Souya's words, Lily froze for a moment and hurriedly said, "Wait, Lamorak, I still have some questions I want to ask you!"
Souya frowned, his tone carrying a distant refusal as he said, "Miss, this is our first time meeting, isn't it? It seems we have nothing further to discuss."
"But, but..."
Hearing this, Lily's small face turned a bit pale. She stammered, wanting to speak again but afraid of annoying Souya.
His voice sounds so similar, his techniques are exactly the same as mine... so why is he ignoring me? Did he forget his friend...?
Clearly, having only recently started traveling, still retaining a young girl's mindset and prone to overthinking, Lily didn't realize that back then, she was still presenting herself as a young boy named Artoris.
Logically, under Merlin's Magecraft, Souya shouldn't have been able to recognize her.
But in truth, Souya had recognized her long ago. He just couldn't easily acknowledge her with Merlin present.
Hmm... it seems it was Merlin who drove me away from Lily back then too, right?
That evil Magus of Flowers.
But the culprit currently had absolutely zero self-awareness. His face still carried that gentle, handsome, yet inexplicably scummy smile.
"Oh my, you're leaving already, young man Lamorak? This is a giant you and Lily killed together. Don't you want your share of the spoils?"
"No need, deal with it yourselves."
Souya waved his hand dismissively.
Although a giant's bodily materials and magic core were highly sought after by many magi and craftsmen and could be sold for a high price, Souya found dealing with it too troublesome.
Was money really that hard to earn?
Just killing a few nobles and bandits would provide plenty.
And so, Souya's spear-wielding figure disappeared into the jungle under Merlin's unreadable gaze and Lily's heartbroken stare.
Watching Souya leave, Merlin looked somewhat helplessly at the girl beside him, whose head was lowered.
"Alright, Lily, you have to understand that not everyone is as warm and generous as the knights you've met before."
"There are all kinds of people in this world with all sorts of personalities. You must learn to accept and deal with them. Only then can you learn the true art of being a King."
"But... he said we were friends forever..."
Lily replied softly, her tone very dejected.
She didn't have many friends to begin with. Aside from Kay and Merlin, there was only that 'Mr. Fairy'.
"Is there a possibility that back then you were still Artoris, and now you are Lily, which is why he didn't recognize you?"
Merlin smiled wickedly.
"Oh! Right!"
Merlin's words struck the girl like lightning, instantly snapping her out of her gloom. A bright smile bloomed on her face.
"As long as I use the identity of Artoris next time we meet, he'll definitely remember me, his friend!"
"Besides, Lamorak is so strong, and he has such a noble spirit that treats money like dirt. If we can get him to join us, our path to defeating the Vile King and saving Britain will definitely be much smoother!"
"That's right, that's right. You've finally learned how to recruit talent, Lily."
Listening to Lily's words, Merlin revealed a gratified expression.
"As for now..."
He looked down and kicked Kay, whose face was swollen like a pig's head and who was out cold like a dead pig.
"How about we just let him stay unconscious and find a rope to drag him along?"
"After all, this guy Kay doesn't know how to do anything except spend money on women. He's totally useless."
Are you sure you aren't talking about yourself?
Looking at Merlin's smug face, Lily silently grumbled in her heart.