When planning the surprise attack on the Lion King, Guinevere had hoped Gawain and the others would hold back, allowing Bedivere, Mash, and Da Vinci-chan to tie up an equal number of Round Table Knights.
But if their opponents fought seriously, even if only Gawain and Lancelot attacked, Bedivere's group of three wouldn't be able to hold them off for long.
Bedivere was weak—at least among the Round Table Knights. Even with his Silver Arm, he couldn't defeat any of the Twelve Round Table Knights.
And Mash? She still didn't know the True Name of the Servant who had granted her power, limiting her output. In game terms, her Break Power was insufficient, and her stats were too low.
Da Vinci-chan? She wasn't a combat-type Servant. In a one-on-one fight, she couldn't even handle a single Sphinx.
Just as expected, when Gawain and Lancelot joined forces, the well-rested Bedivere charged forward to meet them. He was instantly sent flying by a single strike from Gawain, his ordinary knight's sword shattering into two pieces.
Gawain had truly held back just now.
Mash, too, was knocked away by a single sword strike from Lancelot. Afterward, Lancelot's gaze fixed on Guinevere; he hadn't even recognized the one he'd just sent flying as his "daughter."
Da Vinci-chan began providing support to Bedivere. At Guinevere's signal, Mash suppressed the rage boiling within her and rushed to Bedivere's side.
She still didn't understand the source of her own fury.
"I miscalculated. The power balance between our sides doesn't support a direct confrontation with the Lion King yet."
As Lancelot closed in, Guinevere gripped her sword with resolve. On the city walls, the Lion King had already begun the Holy Selection. Among the thousand refugees, only two were bathed in brilliant golden light, signifying they had been chosen.
Enforcement Knights began to appear in the city. The refugees, knowing the consequences of not being chosen, started to flee.
After their fragile hope was shattered, some refugees still cherished the chance to live even a few more days, despite knowing escape would only grant them a brief reprieve.
Blood, screams, and mournful cries filled the air as the Enforcement Knights moved like puppets, following the Lion King's orders.
Having traveled with Tristan and his Enforcement Knights, Guinevere knew they were still alive, still possessed their own thoughts.
And yet... they had chosen to abandon their knightly honor, all for the sake of the loyalty they had sworn to the Lion King.
"Lia... this version of you truly no longer deserves the title of King of Knights! You've become the very tyrant you despised."
Now only three meters from Lancelot, Guinevere's muttered words reached his ears. Lancelot frowned but remained silent, unable to defend the Lion King.
He knew the King's ideals, her nobility, her desire to guide humanity through the apocalypse. But he couldn't deny that the King treated human lives as disposable, completely violating their knightly oaths.
"Lancelot, are you really going to attack the fleeing elderly, women, and children?"
Lancelot lowered his head in shame, but when he looked up again, he spoke:
"Miss Ruler, if you don't want me to violate my knightly code any further, then do your best to stop me. Fighting you doesn't violate any knightly principles, and you are not my lord."
Lancelot actually knew Guinevere's true name. But for him, a man from the 'correct' timeline, Guinevere represented his greatest mistake—especially this Guinevere, who wore the face of the King of Knights.
Every time their eyes met, his heart twisted in agony. The longer he looked at her, the more his sanity threatened to shatter.
After speaking, he deliberately closed his eyes, calmly awaiting Guinevere's attack. He was supremely confident in his martial prowess.
He didn't know that, in terms of pure swordsmanship, the Guinevere before him was slightly superior and could quickly force him onto the defensive.
"Mash, hold off Sir Gawain on your own! Bedivere, Da Vinci-chan, go stop the Enforcement Knights! Those refugees want to live, so let's save them! We need to retreat!
Young Ritsuka, I'm sorry. The opportunity to ambush the Lion King is gone."
Guinevere didn't actually need to apologize to Ritsuka. Ritsuka had wanted to say the same thing but had hesitated, worried about endangering Guinevere, Mash, and the others. She wanted to save the refugees, but she didn't want to put her own team at risk to do it.
CLANG!
Guinevere's sword clashed with Lancelot's. In that single, careless moment, Lancelot's gauntlet was shattered, and he nearly lost two fingers. Such an injury would have guaranteed his defeat. But at the last critical instant, his skill, Eternal Arms Mastery, activated, allowing him to evade the humiliating fate of a one-strike loss.
After that close call, Lancelot became completely serious, once again displaying his flawless swordsmanship.
"Mash!"
"Senpai! I know! Leave it to me! I'll hold him off with everything I've got!"
Their exchange happened in a flash. Only ten seconds had passed since the Enforcement Knights began their slaughter. As Mash desperately held her ground, Bedivere and Da Vinci-chan began intercepting the Enforcement Knights, allowing more refugees to survive and flee toward the wilderness far from New Camelot.
But just then, Tristan appeared from the side, leading a small contingent of Enforcement Knights. He had emerged from a side gate, crashing directly into the stream of fleeing people.
His Noble Phantasm was a harp-bow, his arrows sound itself. Tristan was a Knight who excelled at wide-area slaughter.
With just a single note from his harp-bow, dozens of refugees were decapitated. His killing efficiency was terrifyingly high.
At this moment, his eyes were closed, his face expressionless, his heart filled with shame. But because of the Lion King's blessing and his loyalty to her, he could only pluck the strings with an expression overflowing with sorrow, playing a dirge steeped in profound grief.
Could Guinevere stop him? Though her martial skill surpassed Lancelot's, her base stats were still inferior to his current state. Defeating him would not be a quick affair.
Mash? Bedivere? Da Vinci-chan?
Mash was barely holding on, relying entirely on her shield. Her internal organs were already damaged from the concussive force. This was despite Gawain recognizing her shield and, while claiming to fight at full strength, only focusing his attacks on the shield itself. He didn't even try to maneuver around it, as if he'd become obsessed with striking it.
Bedivere and Da Vinci-chan?
The Lion King's Enforcement Knights were far from weak. They were battle-hardened Heroic Spirit Knights who wielded Mana. Faced with their numbers, Bedivere and Da Vinci-chan, neither of whom were primarily combatants, could do little more than delay them.
"At this rate..."
Standing just behind Guinevere, only Ritsuka had a full view of the battlefield. She saw the Lion King turn and depart once more. She saw what looked like a fire breaking out somewhere within New Camelot.
At the same time, she noticed the battle turning against them—and that something was happening near Sir Tristan...
Suddenly, several dozen black-robed, skull-faced Assassins appeared.
Ninety-nine percent of these Assassins were the Hundred Faces they had repelled before. The only exception was the Hassan of Intoxicated Smoke, whom they had encountered on their way here...
At that time, the Hassan of Intoxicated Smoke was escorting hundreds of refugees to a safe location. She had mistaken Mash for a Knight of New Camelot, leading to a fight between them.
"By the power of a Command Spell, I order you, Ruler! Unleash your Noble Phantasm!"
This Command Spell was issued by Guinevere through their Master-Servant contract. She needed to instantly replenish her Mana to create an opening in the current stalemate.
She had also noticed the Lion King's departure and the unnatural fire raging within New Camelot City.
This was something that had never happened in her memories. A moment's thought about the fire's cause led Guinevere straight to Mordred.
If not her, it couldn't possibly be Agravain, right? He's the King's most fanatical supporter, agreeing with everything the King does.
"Lancelot, are you ready to receive this blow?"
Under the Command Spell's effect, Guinevere's Mana was fully restored. Her sword began to glow with a crimson, raging light.