Seeing that Ritsuka had already made her decision, Arthur turned his attention to the knight standing nearby, who seemed excited to finally have a proper battle.
Richard was practically radiating enthusiasm. His eyes sparkled as he looked out across the battlefield ahead, like a child who had finally been given permission to play after a long wait.
"Richard, D'Eon is in your hands now, alright?" Arthur said after patting him on the back.
"With pleasure!!"
Richard immediately nodded while clenching his fist in excitement.
His response came without the slightest hesitation.
For someone who loved battles, adventures, and the simple act of crossing swords with powerful opponents, this was an opportunity that was difficult to refuse.
"Ah, before I forget..."
Arthur suddenly paused as an amused smile appeared on his face.
Immediately afterward, he changed into the outfit Da Vinci had prepared for him before they arrived in this Singularity.
To be honest, he hadn't really felt like wearing it before.
But he had changed his mind.
The outfit was predominantly black, with golden details spread along the edges of the clothing and armor pieces attached to his body. A long red sash hung from his waist, contrasting with the rest of the attire and swaying along with his movements, while dark gloves and reinforced boots completed the look.
The outfit was elegant without being excessively flashy.
It still maintained his usual pompous appearance, but in a much more modern way than the Caster robes he normally wore.
Despite everything, Arthur had to admit that Da Vinci possessed surprisingly acceptable taste.
That didn't mean he intended to praise her out loud, but neither did he have any reason to complain about the outfit.
"I want Jeanne Alter alive."
He spoke, completely ignoring how eye-catching his sudden wardrobe change had been.
His comment caused several nearby people to give him strange looks.
The Heroic Spirits whose names had not been called made no move and simply remained close to Arthur and Ritsuka, most of them wearing faintly helpless expressions.
None of them seemed particularly surprised by his sudden decision.
In fact, some looked as though they had already expected something similar.
"Arthur, don't tell me you..."
Mash blushed as she spoke.
His last words had completely caught her off guard.
The young Shielder clearly tried to find a rational explanation for the request, but Arthur's amused expression wasn't helping in the slightest.
"It really does sound like something he'd say..."
Ishtar shrugged before smiling.
"But having a Master like this is pretty nice too, isn't it? That's exactly how I like it. Once you decide you want something, you have to get it."
Tamamo was also narrowing her eyes, looking rather helpless.
"Is that woman really that appealing? She's practically radiating hatred. You already have so many strange women around you and you still want more."
Upon hearing them, Ritsuka could only give an awkward smile, unsure of what to say.
She briefly considered defending Arthur but almost immediately gave up.
Regardless of what his true intentions were, the situation simply looked far too suspicious for any explanation to sound convincing.
Besides, Tamamo's comment wasn't exactly wrong.
Ritsuka herself had already met eight of that man's wives.
And that wasn't even counting Olga, Rin, Sakura, or any of those so-called "adoptive sisters."
She had known for a long time that there was absolutely nothing sibling-like about those relationships.
---
Meanwhile, Richard was completely dominating his battle against D'Eon.
The difference between them was obvious.
D'Eon was skilled and possessed refined technique, but Richard simply operated on an entirely different level.
His attacks were incredibly fast, unpredictable, and constantly forced his opponent onto the defensive.
With every exchange of blows, he seemed to enjoy himself even more.
Meanwhile, the rest of the group watched the battle unfold.
"Answer me something, Arthur."
Ishtar suddenly spoke.
"The reason you want that woman alive—does it have something to do with this Singularity? Or do you just want another woman for your collection?"
"Our mission is to correct the abnormalities caused by the Singularity and find or destroy the Holy Grail. Therefore, Jeanne Alter is currently one of our targets."
Ritsuka continued the line of reasoning.
She crossed her arms while speaking.
From a mission standpoint, capturing Jeanne Alter alive genuinely made sense.
After all, she was the primary cause behind the events of this Singularity and likely possessed valuable information.
After hearing them, Arthur merely sighed.
"I'd say it's a little bit of both..."
"...You're serious?" Ishtar frowned.
Arthur ignored her.
His eyes remained fixed on Jeanne Alter, who was currently engaged in combat at a distance.
He didn't particularly care if everyone misunderstood him.
To be fair, his objective in capturing Jeanne Alter wasn't that simple.
First: Jeanne Alter possessed the Holy Grail.
Second: the mastermind behind everything was Gilles de Rais of the Caster class.
In that case, things would become very interesting if they managed to capture this dark Jeanne who possessed the Holy Grail.
After all, that would mean depriving the enemy faction not only of its primary combatant, but also of the very power source sustaining the entire Singularity.
Furthermore, he knew Gilles de Rais better than he would have liked.
He knew exactly how that obsessive fanatic thought.
And he knew very well how he would react after losing something so important.
To be honest, Arthur was somewhat looking forward to killing Gilles one more time.
---
After finishing his own affairs, Gilles decided to use his crystal ball to check on Jeanne Alter's situation.
Ever since summoning her, he had constantly watched her, keeping his attention focused on her every action.
The moment the image appeared before him, his eyes widened.
Because there were two Jeanne d'Arcs!?
And why were they fighting each other!?
His gaze constantly shifted between the two figures battling on the battlefield.
For several moments, Gilles simply stared at them, trying to understand what he was seeing.
While he was still processing it all, Arthur's words reached his ears.
The moment he heard them, Gilles nearly crushed the crystal ball in his hands from sheer nervousness.
Anyone else might not have understood.
But he knew the truth.
The Holy Grail was with Jeanne Alter.
How could he possibly fail to understand the true reason Arthur wanted to capture her alive?
His gaze immediately returned to the image reflected within the artifact.
The longer he observed the battle, the more obvious the danger became.
Jeanne Alter was powerful, but she was facing multiple enemies simultaneously.
Still, it was rather admirable that Jeanne d'Arc had managed to bravely advance against such a formidable opponent.
Then suddenly, Arthur's crimson eyes turned toward him through the crystal ball.
The action itself naturally caught Gilles's attention.
But what truly caught it came afterward.
"She. Will. Be. Mine."
Arthur mouthed those words directly at him.
The message instantly ignited Gilles's fury.
After remaining silent for several moments, Gilles finally made a decision.
He gathered his belongings, stored away the crystal ball, and left the Castle of Orléans.
He could not allow this to continue.
Otherwise, his Jeanne might truly end up being captured.
He immediately departed to rescue her.
---
Meanwhile, the battle continued.
D'Eon was confronting Richard directly, but appeared to be struggling considerably.
Is Chevalier d'Eon a weak Heroic Spirit?
No.
Quite the opposite.
Although it isn't immediately apparent, D'Eon possesses highly respectable capabilities as a Servant.
His Rank A Strength, combined with Rank B Agility and Endurance, grants him an extremely solid foundation for direct combat against most Servants.
When pushed to his limits, D'Eon is capable of facing opponents far beyond what his appearance would lead people to believe.
Furthermore, his experience as a knight, his keen intuition, and his courage when facing powerful enemies make him an exceptionally competent combatant.
In terms of technique, D'Eon does not fall behind Richard.
If one analyzes only those factors, it would be easy to conclude that both could engage in a balanced battle.
However, that is precisely where the problem lies.
Richard's Agility was superior.
His Mana was superior.
His Noble Phantasm, "Excalibur: Sword of Promised Victory and Eternal Distance," was also superior to D'Eon's "Dance of the Fallen Lilies."
These advantages allowed Richard to maintain the initiative throughout the battle and constantly pressure D'Eon.
Even when D'Eon responded with comparable skill, Richard still possessed superior attributes to sustain the offensive.
Even so, the mere fact that D'Eon continued fighting Richard head-on already demonstrated his strength as a Heroic Spirit.
Even against Richard, D'Eon was still capable of fighting him.
(End of Chapter)
A/N: When I found out that Fate had collaborated with Honkai Starrail, the collab was already over. I didn't even have the opportunity to play the Fate characters that were in it.