Chapter 206: Medusa Lily.
[While you were still talking, an ownerless Servant unexpectedly leapt out of the bushes!]
[When traveling through the wilds, please be cautious of sudden attacks from ownerless Servants. They often carry hostility, especially toward Servants who already have a Master.]
A purple-haired girl's silhouette sprang out from the dense grass.
In just an instant, the chain-wrapped scythe in her hand suddenly swung straight toward Eikou's side.
Artoria Lancer truly lived up to being the Knight King who had survived countless battles. The moment the purple-haired girl jumped out of the bushes, she immediately reacted, swiftly turning her wrist and lifting the massive Holy Lance, blocking between the two of them.
Keng!
A sharp, piercing metallic clash echoed through the forest. The shockwave was so strong that grass bent down, birds flew up in panic, and Eikou's eardrums buzzed violently.
The scythe and the Holy Lance collided, their steel edges grinding and spraying bright sparks.
"Who are you, to dare perform such a despicable sneak attack?"
Artoria raised the Holy Lance, coldly demanding.
Reflected in her green eyes was the petite, skinny figure of a young girl wearing an oversized black cat-eared cloak. Her adorable face was half-hidden under the hood, yet her purple eyes radiated an ominous chill that made one instinctively wary.
The purple-haired girl did not respond to Artoria's question. She simply stepped back lightly, then immediately tightened her grip on the chain-wrapped scythe and launched a second attack.
She flipped her grip on the scythe, pulling the chain taut, while the purple eyes under the hood suddenly flashed with a sharp light.
Even without knowing the enemy's combat style, Artoria's battle-honed instincts instantly warned her that something was wrong.
Those eerie purple eyes… they were like Mystic Eyes?!
"Eikou, be careful, she may be preparing to activate her Noble Phantasm—"
Artoria quickly warned.
Compared to her own frontline danger, she was even more concerned about the Master standing behind her.
"It's fine."
Eikou suddenly said.
[You activate Fae Vampirism.]
[The enemy Lancer possesses a magic resistance skill. Please perform an oppose check.]
A die rolled before his eyes.
[Result is C, oppose check successful.]
[Through Fae Vampirism, you successfully drain the opponent's mana and vitality, forcibly interrupting this attack.]
[Enemy Lancer cannot release Noble Phantasm True Name.]
Immediately after, Eikou raised his hand and focused his mana.
Protection of the Lake, Dreamlike Charisma…
He didn't hesitate at all and used these skills right away, boosting Artoria's strength.
Even though both his and Artoria's power were being suppressed by the Singularity, a skinny camel was still bigger than a horse—these skills could still exert some effect.
Furthermore, according to Master GO's design, in the early exploration phase, one shouldn't encounter ownerless Servants that were too strong anyway.
Feeling her mana reinforced by Eikou's skills, Artoria's gaze grew determined and sharp. She gripped her lance tightly, leveled it, and then urged her horse forward, charging straight at the purple-haired girl with a full-power strike.
"Tch..."
Eikou heard the hooded girl click her tongue softly, as if finding the situation extremely troublesome.
But the purple-haired girl still forced herself to counterattack, raising her scythe for a retaliatory strike.
In the next fleeting moment, he heard the vibration of hooves crushing grass, the neigh of the horse, the clanging of chains, the sound of the lance's tip slicing through the air, and the fierce shouts of the two as they went all out. Those violent sounds rushed past him, blowing back the front strands of his hair.
As the weapons clashed, fierce sparks burst out. The lance tip pressed hard against the chain-wrapped scythe, the two gritting their teeth as they struggled, pouring their mana into suppressing each other's weapon.
Boom!
A loud explosion rang out. The purple-haired girl was still one step weaker; her scythe was knocked out of her exhausted hand, flying into the forest behind her.
"Good, you've lost."
Artoria, sitting atop the warhorse Dun Stallion, pointed the Holy Lance downward at the girl and calmly declared her victory.
"Hmph..."
A soft, unwilling grunt came from beneath the hood. The purple-haired girl didn't want to give up, but she no longer had any way to fight back.
"How should we deal with her, Eikou?"
Artoria tilted her head and asked.
"Alright, next is my turn..."
Eikou quickly stepped forward. "I want to recruit her."
"Recruit?"
Artoria froze for a moment, confused.
"But we don't have the Book of the False Attendant."
"Didn't Miss Medb already say it? The Book of the False Attendant is just a convenient tool that skips the communication stage and directly confirms the Master–Servant relationship."
Eikou said, "But in the end, we can still use the normal method to recruit an unowned Servant and form a temporary contract with her."
"Saying that is one thing..."
Artoria blinked her beautiful eyes, her long lashes trembling slightly, as if unsure about his next action.
She glanced at the purple-haired girl who seemed full of hostility.
"... but can you really pull her to our side just with words?"
"Leave it to me."
"Alright then, be careful."
Saying that, Artoria used her spear to flick up the cat-eared hood in front of the girl's forehead, revealing the true face of the purple-haired girl.
"Ah!"
The other party let out a small startled cry, instinctively trying to pull down her hood to hide her face.
Completely different from her gloomy and unreadable aura, the face hidden under the hood was incredibly adorable and endearing. A small soft face, smooth and thick purple hair tied with a cute ribbon, and warm purple eyes that flickered with a strange brilliance.
Just as expected from the beginning, the other party was indeed Medusa Lily—the Medusa who retained the appearance of a young girl due to Athena's curse.
Seeing that she was just a little girl, Eikou let out a small sigh of relief; this time, the odds were much better.
If it had been the adult form, he would have needed to use Disaster With Women to pull her to his side, which would have increased the risk.
But if it was a little girl, then using the special attack of My Love is Eternal would give him an advantage in the check!
[Facing the highly cautious unowned Servant, Medusa Lily, you wish to use words to draw her to your side.]
[You activate My Love is Eternal C and High-Speed Divine Words C]
[Because your Trainer Level is too low, your skill levels are also reduced accordingly.]
Not good, with the skills lowered this much, the chance of failure was high if he got even a little unlucky.
Would he succeed?
Two dice fell before his eyes.
[My Love is Eternal, check great success!]
[High-Speed Divine Words, check great success!]
"???"
Eikou rubbed his eyes in disbelief.
Two great success?!
…