The clouds drifted as the light of the Nightless Sun spilled across the sky.
Shiomi looked up, surprised to see Morgan's face softened by a gentle smile.
"I came to pick you up, just as promised, my husband." She reached out her hand.
Shiomi instinctively moved to take it, but the next moment, his wrist—bound in golden shackles—was seized by a hand clad in silver armor.
"I told you, there's no need for you to go back." The Lion King hadn't left. Her merciless voice rang out through her helmet.
After completing the ritual, the Lion King had left Shiomi behind. But the moment he heard screams, he cut his palm and let his blood flow.
The shackles suppressed his Mana but couldn't restrain his Authority.
Even knowing full well what it meant to invoke that power, Shiomi didn't hesitate. He had to stop the senseless slaughter—the atrocities led by the Knights of the Round Table.
As the blood hit the ground, it responded to Shiomi's will, transforming into seeds that took root and grew into trees and vines, shielding the refugees and obstructing the Enforcement Knights.
"Using your Authority without my permission to obstruct the 'Holy Punishment'..." The Lion King ignored Morgan entirely, her cold voice passing judgment on Shiomi. "You must be punished accordingly."
The Lion King's strength was overwhelming. With his magic suppressed, Shiomi could barely struggle.
"Punish my husband? And who exactly gave you that right, Artoria?"
Morgan's voice bristled with anger as she thrust her magic spear at the Lion King's wrist, only for it to be blocked by the other hand.
But Morgan's attacks were never so straightforward.
Chains glowing with ghostly blue light shot forth and bound the Lion King's body. Above Morgan's head, a vortex opened, and from it descended a pale blue magic spear.
The flawless, indestructible tower trembled under the blast. Cracks ran across the ground and walls in an instant.
"Seriously... maybe spare a thought for the hostage's safety?" Shiomi joked with a smile.
"If I hadn't done that, there'd be no way to take you back," Morgan replied.
The impact of her strike forced the Lion King to release her grip. Morgan seized Shiomi's hand and pulled him aside, retreating from the blast.
"What's with these shackles? And the clothes are hideous..." Morgan frowned.
"The Lion King changed my clothes on her own," Shiomi said, raising his hand. "As for the shackles—"
"They're part of the Holy Lance. Even if you take her hand, where can you run?"
As the smoke cleared, the Lion King emerged. Her armor and cape still trailed wisps of smoke.
Helmet off, she fixed Shiomi and Morgan with a cold, unfeeling stare.
"You've really taken a twisted turn, Artoria," Morgan sneered. "Looks like the Holy Lance has thoroughly corrupted you—if this is what you've become."
"That man is my Master—my prisoner. Naturally, he must be treated as such."
A storm swirled around Artoria's hand, revealing the true form of the Holy Lance.
"Let him go. He will become a new god and walk with me to the end. Your journey ends here."
Morgan remained unbothered. "It's just a shackle made from the Holy Lance. You really think you're the only one who can deal with it?"
She lifted Shiomi's wrist with hers and continued,
"Unfortunately for you, there's someone here who understands the Holy Lance even better." Her voice dropped. "Don't move, my husband."
"Mm." Shiomi responded without hesitation.
Golden light, the same as the miniature Holy Lance the Lion King used earlier on Mordred, hovered around his limbs and neck.
The Holy Lance, seemingly ready to pierce Shiomi's body, instead struck only the shackles. The opposing forces neutralized one another instantly, scattering into golden stardust beneath the night sky.
"As expected of Morgan—able to reproduce the Holy Lance through Magecraft."
The Lion King said no more and lunged at Morgan with the Holy Lance.
Morgan released Shiomi's hand and raised her spear to meet the strike.
White Holy Lance and black Magic Lance clashed fiercely atop the tower.
Shiomi flexed his wrist and reactivated his Magic Circuits.
The familiar sensation flowed back into him. Glancing at the surrounding walls, he saw the Enforcement Knights had noticed them. They'd drawn their bows but hadn't fired.
Clearly, the Lion King wasn't allowing anyone to interfere in her battle.
Just what he wanted.
Shiomi clenched his hand slightly, and the crimson spear returned to his grip. As Morgan forced the Lion King back with her Holy Lance, he seized the opening that appeared. With no hesitation, he stepped forward and spun his spear, launching an attack.
Bang!
Caught off guard, the Lion King wasn't injured thanks to her armor, but the impact still sent her flying.
She flipped midair and landed steadily, slowly raising her head to look at Shiomi.
"Are you truly choosing to stand against me, Master—my prisoner?"
"Then give me at least one reason not to."
Shiomi glanced at Morgan, their hands joined as they prepared to retreat from the Holy City using Magecraft.
The Lion King quietly raised her right hand toward him. Through the gauntlet, the glow of a Command Spell shone.
"By Command Spell, I order my Master—my prisoner—to return to the royal palace and await judgment."
A Command Spell vanished. A Servant commanding their Master—an act that, even for a divine being, defied all logic.
But—
Morgan's expression shifted. She tried to interfere with the Command Spell's activation, but she was half a beat too slow.
"Artoria..."
As she watched Shiomi get pulled back into the city under the force of the Command Spell, Morgan realized just how far the contract had been overwritten. Her hand now empty, rage overtook her.
"The moment you stepped into my city, you became an enemy that cannot be ignored."
The Lion King lowered her hand and turned to walk back into the city.
"Running away, are we?"
Morgan raised her hand, chanting a spell in an instant and unleashing it toward the Lion King.
The Lion King didn't look back—not because she wasn't prepared, but because someone else blocked it for her.
"My king, I've come late."
Tristan and Agravain appeared together, intercepting Morgan's spell.
"Your opponent is Morgan. If you can kill her, do it. If not, drive her out." The Lion King, for once, gave a broad command. "Do not let her set foot in this city again."
Truthfully, Morgan had no intention of staying.
The rescue had been progressing smoothly—they'd already forced the Lion King into retreat and were preparing to fall back and regroup.
But none of them expected her to suddenly use a Command Spell to snatch Shiomi away.
Outside the city, three lights of different colors shot into the sky, glowing brightly.
It was Caren and the others' retreat signal.
"Your chalk-white city... I will personally see it reduced to ruins."
Though furious, Morgan wouldn't foolishly charge in alone. If the Command Spell forced Shiomi to fight against her again, she wouldn't be able to give it her all.
Leaving only that declaration behind, Morgan unleashed a blinding burst of Magecraft.
When the explosion cleared, her presence had vanished from the white city.
...
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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