—What?!
Surprise flashed through the hearts of everyone present. Logically speaking, the first to make a move should have been the most skilled youth. And in fact, that was exactly what Rin Aosaki was planning. Although it wasn't that difficult to deal with Lancelot, what he was considering was that they still knew too little about the Holy City. If they wanted to completely stop the Lion King's crazy actions, they had to know the intelligence inside the Holy City to make their subsequent actions smoother.
It was precisely for this reason that after the conversation just now, he hadn't immediately made a move, but was thinking about how to capture Lancelot alive.
However, before he could act, Mash had already charged out.
But compared to the surprise on their side, Lancelot, after subconsciously raising his holy sword to block the incoming giant shield, seemed to have discovered something, and a look of disbelief appeared on his face.
"Wait! This shield, this aura... could you be?!"
"Enough talk! [Holy Selection]? Holy Punishment? Facing a king who does such things, you still have the face to call yourself her knight! If you are a knight, then you should have stood up to stop her when she did such a thing, not blindly obey her!"
It was unknown where the strength came from, or if the Knight of the Lake had instinctively relaxed his movements after sensing the truth. Mash's blow directly sent Lancelot flying, and she pursued him without stopping. With a falling heavy blow, she smashed the still-dazed Lancelot into a deep pit, splashing countless rubble.
"...That state, could it be Sir Galahad?" Bedivere watched the shield-wielding girl "beat up" the Knight of the Lake and couldn't help but recall a scene from the past, muttering with uncertainty. Although when he first met Mash, he already knew which Servant had given the girl her power, he hadn't directly told her the name "Galahad," hoping she would discover it herself. But right now, the situation was clearly beyond his expectations.
"Lancelot's child..." Rin Aosaki blinked, a look of surprise on his face. Although he had once lived with the Round Table Knights in another dream, in the period he was in, that "Lancelot" had not yet had a child. And the only thing he knew about the knight named Galahad was from the "Arthurian Legends" of the real world.
But in any case, now was a chance. With this in mind, the youth began to act.
"That way of not treating your father as a father, and that hair that hides one eye... although I don't know why you've become like this, it's not your place to lecture me now!" After enduring several rounds of attacks, Lancelot finally began to counterattack. The black holy sword in his hand deflected the giant shield "Mash" swung at him, and he retorted with a complicated expression, "Is that so? To be called the Knight of the Lake, yet only know how to fawn over women. You bastard, not only are you a disgrace as a knight, you're not even worthy of being a father! Since you've fallen into such an evil path, then let me eliminate you!"
"Mash" angrily swung the giant shield, her attack against Lancelot carrying an unstoppable momentum. And at this moment, Lancelot seemed to have been hit a sore spot and got a bit serious. The blade of his sword slashed out at a speed several times faster than before!
But just then, a crisp snapping sound suddenly rang out. The ground under Lancelot's feet instantly shattered and turned into quicksand, causing the Knight of the Lake to lose his balance in an instant. Just as Lancelot sensed something was wrong and instinctively leaped upwards, the flowing sand suddenly solidified into stone ropes, binding his limbs.
At the same time, a youthful figure flashed behind the Knight of the Lake. The body of the golden spear in his hand swung towards the back of Lancelot's head with just the right amount of force, directly making him see stars and lose consciousness. He was left bound and suspended in mid-air.
That went smoother than expected...
Rin Aosaki breathed a slight sigh of relief. After all, trying to capture Lancelot alive head-on would have been far more difficult than defeating him. And due to the surprise with Mash, Lancelot's attention had been diverted, finally achieving this goal.
"What's this... Mr. Rei? Why is the enemy already taken care of?"
As if coming to her senses, Mash blinked blankly and looked at the somewhat pathetic-looking Knight of the Lake hanging in the air. A trace of satisfaction rose in her heart for some reason.
"Mmm... I think Bedivere can probably explain this to you. Because being able to capture Lancelot so smoothly was all thanks to you, Mash."
"Eh? Me?!" Not understanding what the youth was saying, Mash was a bit confused for a moment and subconsciously looked at Bedivere, whose face was a bit subtle.
And at this moment, seeing that the battle was over and Lancelot was perfectly bound, Manaka finally walked to Rin Aosaki's side and asked carefully with a hesitant expression, "Um, Rei, I think I heard this person say you were the 'King's foster brother' or something like that. What does that mean?"
Rin Aosaki was stunned for a moment, realizing he hadn't explained this to the girl yet. So, with nothing to hide, he truthfully told Manaka about his identity in the other dream, and the possible conclusion of "parallel worlds" that Bedivere had told him.
"S-so that's it. But I think it's most likely just another dream. You don't have to worry about it at all. But Rei wouldn't think that the Lion King of the Holy City is your... sister, right?" Although she said it as if she didn't care, Manaka's expression was a bit forced. She spat out the last few words as if gritting her teeth, and as if she were enduring something, her delicate brows would furrow from time to time.
"...I wouldn't think so. That person, whether in character or method of doing things, is completely different from the 'King Arthur' in my impression. She is an enemy that Bedivere and I must defeat." Rin Aosaki shook his head, for some reason seeming to hear a sigh of relief, and blinked in confusion.
"Is that so? In that case, let's work together to defeat that fake stray... ahem, no, I mean the Lion King! After all, we still have to go home together later, right?" Manaka took the youth's hand, as if feeling his body temperature, or as if worried that the person before her would be stolen away by someone. Her voice held a trace of tension that even she herself couldn't detect.
"Mhm." Rin Aosaki nodded and smiled. "Thank you, sister." Although he didn't know how many difficulties the girl had overcome to get here, he knew that this concern was very heavy, and his heart was very moved.
"No need to be so polite. Aren't we family? And it's only natural for an older sister to take care of her younger brother." Manaka's mouth held a gentle smile, but under her concerned eyes, a trace of gloom faintly appeared.
King Arthur? Parallel world? This time, I'll first deal with this fake stray cat here. After returning to Chaldea, I'll find your world and drag out this stray cat who has bewitched Rei!
Her teeth unconsciously clenched together under her lips. A strong sense of crisis rose in the girl's heart.
....
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