"I'd like to see you all again at Chaldea. I'd be a poor host if I didn't at least offer some medicinal herbs in return."
Hijikata, who had a notorious weakness for beauties—especially well-endowed ones—had officially certified Ea as a "betpin."
And so, the holiday passed peacefully—
"—Hmph."
...Or rather, it would have, if fate didn't have other plans. A small military force was charging straight toward the group.
"...An enemy attack?"
The King snapped his fingers, and Hijikata drew both his pistol and his sword.
"Those guys... Hah, a familiar face. It seems our cursed fate will be settled here."
Just as he said, the one leading the charge was...
"You Oda lot! It's the Oda crowd! I know it's you! Hand over your hearts!!"
Our favorite "Big Brother," Cu Chulainn, was charging in with a thunderous roar!
"Waaaaagh!!! My heart?! He's after my heart?!"
"Calm down, Nobbu! He hasn't even done anything yet!"
Rikka tried to soothe Nobbu, who was rolling around on the ground in a panic, while Mash arrived carrying a blood-spitting, half-dead Okita on her back.
"This is a Cu Chulainn-level emergency! We have to intercept him! Ah, Okita-san is excused!"
"Are you okay, Okita-san!?"
"I-I'm fine... It's just... a little painful to be alive... kofuh!"
"You can drop dead for all I care. But if you do, who do you think has to pick up your slack? Us. But go ahead, stay like that. You aren't much use anyway."
"Nobbu, I'm seriously going to remember this..."
"Big Bro is the enemy...? Wait, the Celts, everyone gather—huh?"
As the group braced for impact, Cu Chulainn made a bizarre move.
"—Ah, damn it. There's more of 'em than the scouts said. Guess I've got no choice but to fall back!"
He suddenly spun on his heel and began a full-speed retreat before the battle had even started. The group stood there, mouths agape—all except one.
"—The 'Tsurinobuse' maneuver, is it?"
The Tsurinobuse (Fishing Ambush). A tactic where a small force exposes itself to the enemy and immediately retreats to feign defeat, luring the pursuers into a kill zone. Once lured in, the enemy is wiped out by hidden flankers. It was the specialty of the "fighting race" from Japan's southernmost tip.
"Which means that hound possesses the 'Shimazu' factor. Based on the Sengoku era setting, he likely has one or two others backing him. Near the Shimazu territory... that would be the Chosokabe and the Mori. Chosokabe aside, the Mori would be that vixen... Hmph, nothing but familiar faces."
The moment the Hero King caught a glimpse of the scouts, he saw through everything. Not in wealth, nor in raw martial might, but in this breadth of vision—this clairvoyance—lay the true value of the King.
『Something is up! Something is definitely up! I can feel it, Hero King!』
Conla's voice rang out over the secret comms line.
『There's no way my father would turn his back and run unless something was going on! It's impossible for him to be a coward! My dad is the strongest!』
Conla, one of Meunier's "Big Three" favorite Servants, stood up for his father with dramatic speed-lines. The King laughed, accepting the boy's words.
—It's blatantly suspicious, but should we pursue? There's likely an ambush...
"Hmph, I care not. 'Nothing ventured, nothing gained.' Stepping on a landmine you can clearly see is the royal way. Let us fall for their little trick, just for the sport of it."
A Kingly style that finds joy even in a predicament. Normally, this would be the time for a stern warning, but Ea simply nodded. She believed that if he was the King, he wouldn't let a crisis go to waste. He surely had a plan two or three steps ahead.
"That's the spirit. If the 'Warlord Factors' applied to these Servants are accurate... then this battle will be a simple affair indeed."
Fortunately (or unfortunately), the Masters were also excitedly preparing for the chase.
"So annoying! Let's just trample them, Master!"
"We have to take Big Bro down before he gets serious! If he throws that spear, someone's gonna die!!"
『Really? He might just miss a bunch. Scathach-shisou never taught me how to pierce 'Plot Armor'...』
"Alright!! Follow me!!"
The group dashed off instantly. The King chuckled at how convenient it was and followed suit.
"Now, I wonder what kind of conclusion awaits—"
—Mini-Nobus, we don't know what's going to happen, so stay on standby for now!
『『『『Nobuuu...』』』』
The group chased after Cu Chulainn's back...!
"No, no, this is crazy, right?! That's a total decoy! There's no reason a Great Hero like Cu Chulainn would retreat without doing anything! Gil knows this, so why isn't he saying anything?! The Princess handles tactics and he handles strategy, right?!"
Ignoring the panicking Romani, Marie and Da Vinci worked on pinpointing the coordinates.
"It's only natural for a King to prioritize his own amusement. He's charging in on purpose."
"On purpose?! You mean... for 'Pleasure' (Yorokobi)?!"
"Indeed! It's quite impressive. No matter how reckless or bizarre it gets, there's a sense of security that 'the King will be fine' mixed with a resignation of 'here we go with the pleasure-seeking again.' As a fellow genius, I sympathize with the trouble he causes everyone else for his personal whims!"
"I see! Even if that's what Kings are like, I wish you would've believed in me, God!"
"Eh? Doing whatever he wants despite being a King? What a terrible ruler. Let's send a King like that to the Archives."
"King David, could you please just stay quiet?! You're despised as much as you are respected, you know! People say, 'Be a great man like David, but never be a man like David'!"
"Aw, you're making me blush. By the way, how many kids are you planning to have?"
"Sheba! Let's drive him away! You and I can do it!"
"Right-o ♥ Let's blow Father-in-law away with some riddles! ♥"
"Oh, is this a warm family gathering? It's much more bloodthirsty than I imagined!"
"Director, stop them!!"
"Calm down. Meunier, be a man and drink some coffee."
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