"Ding. Drawing now… drawing in progress."
"Congratulations to the host for obtaining the Saint Graph: Arthur Pendragon. Fuse it?"
Holy—?!
Did he just hit the jackpot?
Rowan hadn't dared hope for top-tier luck, but this time he'd really pulled a miracle.
Arthur Pendragon—there's no one who doesn't know that name.
The one and only King Arthur; in FGO, he's an exceedingly powerful Servant.
Especially his genderbent counterpart, Artoria Pendragon—Rowan's childhood goddess, okay?
Even if she's a goddess who's eternally never full.
In real life, anime, or games, the King Arthur archetype is always top tier.
Whether it's "Old Sword" Arthur Pendragon or Artoria Pendragon, both are blatantly overtuned.
To roll him—Rowan really went full blessed EU luck this time.
"Fuse!"
As Rowan's words fell, the Saint Graph in the system sank into his body,
quietly beginning its reconstruction.
The sub-healthy frame he'd built up after years of staying indoors started repairing itself.
His build and looks shifted under the surge of power.
Most of all—the magic within. The sensation of power—something he could never have felt in real life.
It was just… a little weak for now.
"Congratulations to the host on fusing Arthur Pendragon's Saint Graph. Skills acquired:"
"Instinct: The ability to instantly determine the optimal action in battle.
It can even verge on future prediction.
Allows forecasting trajectories from wind and intuition, evading firearms.
Halves interference to sight and hearing."
"Mana Burst: Reinforce one's armaments and body by releasing magical energy."
(In the source, the physically frail Artoria could clash head-on with a monster like Heracles because she massively boosted her body with mana.)
"Charisma: The caliber of leadership sufficient to govern a nation."
(Through this, Artoria can rouse the morale of the forces she leads.)
"Magic Resistance: Anti-magic that nullifies ritual arrays and instantaneous high-tier contract magecraft."
(Plainly: magic resistance—ignores most weak magecraft.)
"Riding: Grants riding proficiency; expertly handles various mounts, from ancient two-horse chariots to modern ground vehicles."
"Red Dragon's Heart: One's body needs no magic circuits—so long as blood circulates and you take a breath, mana is generated!"
"Passive: Greatly increases physical durability and magical potency; even without training, physique and total mana steadily rise over time until reaching an adult red dragon's level."
(This is why Artoria is hailed as the Red Dragon who guards Britain.)
"Beast Slayer: King Arthur fought and defeated the magic beasts that ravaged Britain.
Represents extensive experience battling enormous hostile creatures."
(Passive: Deals bonus damage to oversized foes, including—but not limited to—dragons, 'Gundam-scale' beings, etc.!)
"Paired Noble Phantasm 'Sword of Promised Victory' has been placed in the system space. Please check at your convenience."
"All rewards delivered. Newbie tutorial concluded. Have a nice day!"
Then the system went dead silent. Rowan stared, dumbfounded.
Wasn't that a little too hasty? He hadn't even asked what kind of system it was.
Why'd it run off—was he that scary?
"Uh… hey, what's wrong?"
"And your body—seems a bit different?"
By the time Rowan finally crawled out of the tragedy of a runaway system, Venti's voice piped up again.
"Different? I look the same as just now, don't I?"
Rowan answered on reflex—then looked at Venti again and felt something off about the height.
A moment ago they'd been eye to eye.
Now… he was looking slightly down? He lowered his head.
Well, great—his clothes and shoes had split.
His whole frame had been forcibly shot up quite a bit. So this was the Red Dragon's Heart at work?
Too cool.
People used to tease him for his height. Now look.
If he wasn't mistaken, he had to be at least around one-ninety (190 cm) now.
Whether he'd keep growing—no idea.
It was his first time undergoing a Saint Graph reconstruction, after all.
And it wasn't just height; his build had transformed.
The little paunch he used to have? Gone. He snuck a peek—solid muscle under the shirt.
Not a trace of flab. Before, any movement made his joints creak—his body had issues across the board.
Now? Never mind moving—he could probably jog five kilometers without breaking a sweat.
This fusion was absolutely worth it.
Eyeing his torn-up outfit, Rowan willed it—and
Arthur Pendragon's dashing silver-white light plate armor manifested over him,
covering the rags.
It was an outfit-shift unlocked with the Saint Graph—he could conjure any of King Arthur's full wardrobe.
If it wouldn't be too flashy, Rowan would've even pulled out the quilt Artoria's always wrapped in.
Kidding—that's a cloak.
Seeing this, something flickered in Venti's eyes.
If the earlier Rowan had looked like an ordinary person to him,
then the transformed Rowan now perfectly matched the image in his heart—someone who could lead Mondstadt to new glory.
Alice had once said she wanted to "renovate" Mondstadt; he'd missed that chance—well, also because Alice's methods were too… explosive. If it wasn't blowing up this side, it was blowing up that side.
Venti simply couldn't endorse her plan.
But now another candidate stood here—and he looked like a perfect fit for Mondstadt's needs. Whatever happened, Venti had to keep him.
"tsk… Didn't expect even my hair to go full blonde!"
Rowan didn't notice Venti's gaze. He walked to the brook behind the great tree and peered at his reflection.
The most striking change: his once jet-black hair had turned a brilliant gold.
Aside from the features leaning a bit Eastern, he was basically Arthur "Old Sword" come to life.
"Now I'm just missing a sword!"
"Want me to give you one?"
(End of Chapter)
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