inzbern Castle.
Arthur Pendragon.
The name everyone in Britannia knew. It would be hard to describe how much influence such a simple name had on an entire society. From being the hero of kids to having the entire military dreaming of joining Knights of The Round. Even the capital was named after him. And of course, the Royal Family did everything in its power to claim itself as descendants of a famous warrior-king, even if it wasn't true. Anyone outside of Britannia knew that the Royal family was replaced many times and that there was no way Pendragon's blood could continue for a millennium.
'As a child, I was told stories about King Arthur. Probably some of them inspired my fascination about chivalry at that time.' Knowing how later it played well with the aesthetics for the Black Knights almost made Lelouch chuckle but the seriousness of this situation stopped him. A famous hero, a servant called from history, stood before him claiming to be the famous hero from his childhood and Lelouch believed her. 'I don't know why but something inside me screams that she is indeed Arthur Pendragon...or Artoria as she called herself.'
He felt something strange inside him when he looked at the blonde servant. Lelouch couldn't describe this feeling but the closest thing he could think of is respect. If he learned about her real name a week earlier the former emperor wouldn't have believed this woman to be the famous King who pulled Caliburn but Lelouch had Avenger, someone who should historically be a man but turned out to be a woman. So he kept an open mind about a Servant's true gender.
"...So," Rider broke the silence that started to become uncomfortable. "This boy is your descendant, Saber?"
"No." The King of Knights immediately answered. "I didn't have any children when I was alive." Or at least, those she acknowledged, Lelouch thought to himself.
"Eh? Really? And here I thought we'd have a happy family meeting...well, as happy as it could get with the two of you being enemies...Hm, now I'm curious if any one of my descendants survived in the modern age." Iskandar scratched the back of his head.
"Come on, Rider. There's no way any of your bastards could survive for too long." Avenger remarked with a smile as the male servant sighed.
"True, my time wasn't known for its hospitality or kindness."
Lelouch and Saber continued to stare at each other, not saying a word. Deciding it was too much, Lelouch was first to speak.
"I was told many stories about you. I remember reading tales about you and the other knights of the round. It was inspiring. The Great King Arthur." Artoria looked away with shame on her face.
"Great? There was nothing great about me other than my failure..." She whispered the last part.
"So you are a prince from the same place Saber came from but what are you doing here?" Rider inquired.
"Same as all masters, King Iskandar. Fighting to win the Holy Grail and make my wish." Lelouch said with a fake smile, hoping that answer was enough to Rider.
"And that wish is?"
The Master of Avenger thought about it for a second before speaking. No matter the world his wish stayed the same. "Protect the people I care about and make them happy."
Artoria looked at him with a melancholic smile while Rider laughed.
"Huh, not a bad wish for a prince."
"..." Avenger didn't say a word but Lelouch could tell that she was thinking about what his true intentions could be.
"By the way, Lelouch. I can see from here that my master still can't get over the fact that you are a prince from his country." Violet eyes turned to Waver who froze before quickly looking away. "It would appear to me that he nor the master of Saber have heard about you before."
Lelouch said nothing, right now he needed to learn more about his enemies. Avenger made an unexpected move. She showed him in front of others that she knew about his past. Both Rider and Saber might have been surprised by the sudden revival of his heritage but it was merely a quick surprise and nothing too serious to them. Of course to their masters, it might have been a different matter entirely. Fighting and even killing a member of the Royal Family is a serious crime. From what Kayneth told him, Waver was from a pretty young magi family and didn't have a lot of influence. Of course, trusting so easily words from someone like Kayneth wouldn't be the wisest decision.
'Still, I'm not related to this world's British Royalty in any way but they can't know that for sure. At best they might think that I'm an illegitimate child who was hidden away from the public.' Lelouch being Royalty won't matter in this war beyond a surprise effect that will be short-lived.
Avenger was the one who answered Rider's question. "Rider, this might be the modern age but humans stay the same no matter what. Royals going around and making bastards is still a thing."
"Hmm, I suppose that's true and I think we're getting off-topic here," commented Rider. The older man pulled out the barrel that he brought with him and crudely opened it by breaking the top off. Avenger's eyes immediately sparked with interest while Lelouch just rolled his. "What kind of banquet is this if we don't have anything to drink?" he said and offered some of the wine to both servants and one master.
Lelouch politely declined. Getting wasted was the last thing on his mind tonight. Both Saber and Avenger took the offer, his servant more eager than the blonde one. Lelouch almost felt embarrassed at how his servant was eager to taste wine, compared to the blonde woman who elegantly took a couple of sips before returning it to its owner.
"Not bad, Rider. And here I was afraid that I will have to drink sake the entire night...then again that doesn't seem too bad either." Avenger laughed while her master narrowed his eyes. Why was his servant an alcoholic?!
'Wait, can servants even get drunk?' Looking back at Rider, Lelouch noticed a pinkish shade and drunk smile. Well, here is his answer.
"Okay, that was a good start. Now, who wants to start firs-"
"You already met Caster, Avenger?" asked Saber, ignoring Rider.
"Yup and tried to kill him...sadly, the ugly bastard is persistent when it comes to surviving. We exchanged a few words, mostly honest insults from my side and crazy rambling from his. He did address you as Holy Maiden."
Artoria frowned. "That Caster, I swear..."
"Coming here tonight I thought I would meet Jeanne D'Arc but instead I met your majesty," Lelouch said in the last part with respect but noticed how Saber winced at his words.
"It has been some time since I was called like that," she said with a melancholic smile. "Master of Avenger, while I appreciate how you regard me with great respect I would be pleased if you stopped." Lelouch blinked before Saber cleared his confusion. "You and I are enemies in this war. Besides, I'm satisfied with my role as a knight rather than King this time… Still, I wouldn't allow my title to be questioned, especially by someone who believes in a suspicious individual." Her gaze fell on the redhead woman who simply rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah I made a mistake but to be fair Caster spoke so zealously of you, it was pretty believable at that time."
Artoria shocked her head. "Don't remind me. The Caster of this war is a true madman."
"Ladies, I think we getting off-topic here, again-"
"Mongrels!"
Before Rider could finish, a sudden voice caught everyone off guard as they looked at another side of the garden. Among beautiful flowers, a familiar figure materialised from golden light. Lelouch's eyes went wide for a moment while Avenger clenched her teeth upon seeing another blonde servant, however, unlike Saber, this one was irritating.
Rider laughed. "Well, you took your sweet time coming here, Archer!" The blonde male said nothing as he made his way towards them, only stopping when he noticed Lelouch.
"And this is?" He asked with the distant tone, something Avenger didn't like.
"My master. He has Royal blood in his veins and has the right to sit with us," she said proudly. Archer sent her an annoyed look before looking at the raven-haired boy before him again. Upon closer look, he raised an eyebrow.
"...there is something wrong about you."
Both Avenger and Lelouch froze, both for the same reason. There were many things wrong with Lelouch but only one of them could have gained the attention of a servant. Not wasting a moment, the Demon Emperor slightly lowered his head before Archer.
"While I do not know your true name, I can see that just like everyone else here you are, King, too, your highness." There was a long silence as everyone, including the other two masters, stared at the scene waiting for a reaction.
"..HA-HA-HA!" Loud laughter was the last thing Lelouch expected from Archer. Golden Archer laughed for a good minute before calming down.
"My, my, just having someone bow to me is enough to make me laugh. Just how boring is this world." Archer said to himself before returning to Lelouch. "I suppose for showing me respect, as you obviously should, I should tolerate your presence here, Master of Barbarian. Be proud!" he smiled.
Lelouch felt that correcting Archer now would have destroyed his good mood. Avenger on the other hand didn't feel so.
"Hey, blondie. I'm Avenger unless you already forget." She sent the man a death glare but Archer just smirked.
"I don't care what class you might be as long as you behave as a Barbarian." Archer's red eyes turned to a broken barrel that Iskandar brought. "Then again you aren't the only Barbarian here."
Rider laughed. "Heh, Thanks!"
"That wasn't a compliment." Both Avenger and Archer said in unison while Saber sighed. Lelouch looked at this entire situation and couldn't help but feel how normal it all seemed? They were all heroic spirits, kings and knights from across time but right now they were simply drinking and bickering among themselves like normal people. It felt almost comedic.
'Then again, when Avenger is not serious she will spend her time learning about the modern age and try to have fun.' Were other servants like his? Part of Lelouch was now a little curious about the servant's daily life outside of the Grail War.
When Rider offered Archer some of his wine, the blonde male looked at him as if Rider was offering piss in a cup. Clicking his teeth, Archer snapped his fingers and a small golden portal opened next to his arms. He pulled some sort of jug with glasses. He offered to Rider, Saber and surprisingly Lelouch but not Avenger.
"Your master seems decent enough to drink some of the finest drinks in my treasury." The golden servant laughed. "Unsurprisingly, you on the other hand can't have this honour." Avenger glared at him but stayed silent but there was something more important than her ego right now. Her eyes turned to Lelouch who took a sip.
"T-this is incredible!" Violet eyes went wide while Archer nodded proudly. Lelouch never was a heavy drinker. However, near the end of Zero Requiem, the Demon Emperor allowed himself to relax and enjoy some of the drinks in his last days.
Rider took a glance at the drink before drinking it all in one gulp. "Doesn't seem to be poisoned." he smiled happily.
"This is good." Saber said calmly. A smug smile appeared on Archer's face as he gained praises while Avenger tried to set him on fire with her gaze.
"At least all of you can appreciate a good drink. Now," his gaze turned to Rider. "You said that this meeting will amuse me. I'm waiting."
Iskandar placed his cup on the ground before speaking. "Today after meeting Avenger and Lelouch, we also ran into Archer. And I thought that someone like him should be at our banquet. Now, as I tried to say before, I gathered all of you here to learn about your wishes and reasons to fight in this war."
"I had nothing else to entertain me tonight and decided to give this banquet of yours a shot...Still, I suppose I share Rider's interest and curiosity to learn why you all fight over my Grail." Both female servants narrowed their eyes at the last statement.
Lelouch decided to speak before any of them, namely Avenger, made any rude comment. "Your highness, does this mean that the Holy Grail was once in your possession?" Lelouch heard a short story of the creation of the Grail but was it possible that Archer is somehow related to this?
"Hmm, child, I will have you know that every treasury in this world belongs to me. I have so many of them that I already lost count. In the end, this Grail is nothing but just another part of my Gate of Babylon."
"Oh? So this is the name of your portals. That gives me enough information to know who I'm drinking with." Rider smirked but Avenger, on the other hand, stopped with a thoughtful expression on her face.
"Babylon? But that's the ability of-"