As Mash's voice fell, the audiences across the infinite multiverse were instantly galvanized.
Previously, there had been much discussion among the viewers about the identity of the Heroic Spirit fused with Mash, but no conclusion had ever been reached. Although there were some guesses, they were all refuted. As the footage progressed, the viewers outside the screen stopped paying attention to it. After all, Mash wasn't the protagonist, so it was normal for the focus on her to be much less than on Guinaifen.
---o---
[Light Curtain Commentary]
Detective Conan: "It's quite obvious that Mash herself would not act so impulsively. In other words, the one in control right now is the Heroic Spirit fused with her."
Mash's personality is that of a naturally sweet and obedient girl; it's impossible for her to be so impulsive. Therefore, the one responsible for these actions must be the Heroic Spirit hidden within her.
It seems that although it is a fusion, if it wishes, that Heroic Spirit can easily take over Mash's body and act freely. It's just that out of chivalry and his own noble character, he has not chosen to manifest in the world in such an inhumane way.
L: "Is it only against Lancelot, or is it any knight with a shield? Almost every Knight of the Round Table recognizes her. Virtuous and noble. Looking at it this way, it seems there's only one candidate."
Otto Apocalypse: "To think it would be him… That Saintly Knight."
All Riejuu Should Explode: "…Hey, can you guys stop being so cryptic? I don't think I've figured out who it is yet…"
Madara Uchiha: "…Whatever. If this were the history of our world, I might be able to guess, but unfortunately, it is not."
Eriri Spencer Sawamura: "Tsk, why do smart people always like to talk in riddles? Can't you just give us the answer directly…?"
---o---
[On the light curtain, Mash's voice was filled with anger, and a trace of sorrow she could not conceal.]
What was even more surprising was Lancelot's reaction. From the moment Mash began to attack him, he seemed completely out of it. He had instantly forgotten all about his earlier defeat. The current Lancelot stared at the charging Mash with an expression of utter shock and disbelief.
"Wait, you… why!"
Lancelot desperately wanted to explain something, but Mash gave him no chance to speak, directly delivering a shield bash that forced him to raise his sword to defend.
Beside them, Ritsuka silently gulped. A fierce Mash was truly terrifying.
Li Sushang, on the other hand, had an expression of someone watching a good show. By now, even a fool could see that the relationship between Lancelot and Mash was by no means simple.
After knocking Lancelot away, Mash gave him no opportunity to argue, continuing her reprimand, "There is no need for further explanation, Sir Lancelot!"
"I once again invite you to a duel!"
Mash held her shield with one hand, her magical energy surging. Her combat power was now more than double what it had been before.
Facing Lancelot, Mash's strength grew exponentially.
Without waiting for Lancelot's reply, Mash began to fight him.
Although Lancelot had been knocked to the ground by Li Sushang's Shenyun and couldn't even get up, the Shenyun was not a physical attack in essence. Coupled with Li Sushang's lack of killing intent, even though Lancelot had been defeated, his actual strength had not been diminished by much.
In contrast, a Demi-Servant like Mash, who couldn't even match a third-rate Heroic Spirit, should have been no match for Lancelot under normal circumstances.
Even if this Lancelot wasn't at his peak.
However, for some unknown reason, Mash attacked relentlessly, but Lancelot showed no will to fight. Instead, he was being completely suppressed. Every time he tried to open his mouth to explain, he was smashed into the sand by Mash's shield bash.
"BOOM!!"
The Snowflake Shield collided with Lancelot's sword, knocking him back as Mash's voice followed, "Why? Why are you so obstinate!"
"This shield!"
"This armor!"
"And my heart!!"
"They are all crying out!" As her voice fell, Mash actually threw her shield directly, aiming to smash Lancelot to death.
Faced with such an emotional attack, Lancelot, who could have easily defended himself instinctively, showed a look of panic. Not only did he fail to make a reflexive counter, but he instead raised his sword and let the shield smash into it, creating a deafening roar as he was knocked to the ground.
"Because… Because…"
Catching the Snowflake Shield that had ricocheted back through the air, Mash held it against her body and landed beside Lancelot.
"Because my name is Mash Kyrielight!"
"The Heroic Spirit name I have been granted is… Galahad!!"
"I wager my Spirit Origin! This time, it is time to purge the impurity of the Round Table!"
Galahad!!!
As Mash's voice fell, all the viewers who knew the history of the Round Table, including Ritsuka Fujimaru, the Doctor, and the Hassans in the footage, all showed expressions of utter shock.
"Gala… Galahad??" Hearing this name, Ritsuka was thunderstruck and spoke in disbelief.
Although her knowledge of the history of the Round Table was not as detailed as Mash's or the Doctor's, she still knew who Galahad was.
He was one of the preeminent knights of the Round Table, a man of noble character and immense strength, known as the perfect knight. And more importantly, Galahad… wasn't he Lancelot's son?!
Looking at Mash on the battlefield, then at the Lancelot being thrashed by Mash, Ritsuka's mind went into a dizzying spin. So… they were actually father and son? No wait, father and daughter?
"Galahad… who's that?"
Beside Ritsuka, Guinaifen heard the name and asked cautiously. She actually knew the name Galahad, but she didn't know the specifics of this world's Galahad.
Hearing Guinaifen's question, the usually silent Bedivere spoke up. "The most virtuous knight of the Round Table. The Saintly Knight who achieved the Grail Quest alone. And… he is also Sir Lancelot's son."
"I see. Guardian Heroic Spirit No. 2 is actually that legendary Saintly Knight. No wonder Mash's expression was so off whenever she saw a Knight of the Round Table. It seems the thoughts of that noble knight within her body have been indirectly influencing her," Da Vinci said, holding her bizarrely shaped magnifying glass as she watched the battle unfold.
At the same time, on the battlefield, Lancelot was completely stunned. As Mash's voice fell, in his eyes, Mash's figure had faintly overlapped with that of another Knight of the Round Table.
"Galahad…"
Without a doubt, at this very moment, Lancelot felt the illusion of being beaten up by his own son.
Of course, in a sense, he was being beaten up by his daughter.
He could fight back if his son beat him, but being beaten up by his daughter, Lancelot was completely heartbroken and powerless to retaliate.
And as the stunned Lancelot was being verbally thrashed, Mash attacked again, forcing the strongest Knight of the Round Table, whose heart was now completely shaken, to be unable to fight back, only able to continuously retreat and dodge.
"If you have doubts about the King's actions, then go and question her!"
"If the King makes a mistake, then contend with her!"
"Is this not the chivalry you uphold?"
Hearing the words "chivalry," Lancelot gritted his teeth and finally began to fight back, swinging the sword in his hand in a sharp slash. "The King has made a decision for the salvation of the people! No matter how cruel that decision is, we have no other choice!"
Mash charged forward with her shield. "Is that choice to massacre the innocent? Do you truly believe that is correct?"
Hearing this, the image of the massacre once again surfaced in Lancelot's mind. He thought of Gareth, driven mad by the slaughter of civilians, and how he himself couldn't bring himself to strike her down, letting her die at Gawain's hands.
He thought of how Tristan had gouged out his own eyes, completely abandoning his humanity to become a true, pure weapon of war.
Finally, the flashback of his memories settled on the Lion King's cold and indifferent expression.
Those pupils held no emotion, not a trace of humanity. They were a world apart from the king he once knew.
Then, Lancelot gritted his teeth and said, "This is no longer a matter of personal feelings! The Lion King's choice has surpassed our ideals! It is the only way to continue the future…"
Before he could finish, Mash cut him off with an attack.
The enraged Mash attacked relentlessly. What surfaced in her mind was the memory Galahad had given her, the image of King Arthur, deeply engraved in his heart, and also engraved in the minds of all the Knights of the Round Table.
Recalling the image of King Arthur, Mash couldn't help but let out a roar. "A knight who, for the sake of his ideal, wanted to protect every single person until the very end! You should know of him, should you not?"
"Even if that ideal is so ethereal and vague, to grit your teeth and wager everything on it—is that not the one and only king you so revered?"
Hearing this, Lancelot's eyes widened, his pupils contracting. It wasn't just him; Bedivere and Agravain, who had been silently watching from the side, both showed the same expression as Lancelot.
Mash's words brought the image of the King to their minds.
Not the cold and ruthless Lion King, but the one who remained in their memories, the ideal king who belonged to Britain, to Camelot.
The one and only king in the hearts of all the Knights of the Round Table.
King Arthur!
In this moment of distraction, Lancelot was knocked back once again. He flew back thirty or forty meters before landing on his feet, staring blankly at the valiant and spirited young knight in the desert before him.
Mash looked directly at Lancelot and declared loudly, "The so-called knight should be honored to protect the country and serve the people."
Then, Mash strode towards the stunned Lancelot, continuing her verbal assault. "A person like you, as a knight, as a father, do you not feel shame?"
With this final roar, Mash's shield finally smashed towards Lancelot.
Lancelot watched the approaching shield. He could dodge it, he could block it, and his body reflexively wanted to do so.
But then there was a loud boom. The ground exploded, kicking up a cloud of dust. Lancelot had not retreated a single step, allowing the shield to strike him.
A moment later, as the dust settled, the people saw Mash, holding her shield, standing at the edge of a large crater, looking down at Lancelot who lay within it.
Mash's voice was no longer so agitated, but it was still stern and cold. "Have you come to your senses, Sir Lancelot?"
Lancelot looked up at the sky and gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Being beaten by that shield… of course I've come to my senses."
As his voice fell, he looked up at Mash. "That shield is our Round Table itself."
"And at the same time, it is my son's shield."
At this point, the Lancelot of this moment had been awakened. He had let go of his obsession with the Lion King.
At the same time, the Spirit Origin within Mash's body gradually calmed, revealing a sense of relief and peace.
In an instant, the magical energy in Mash's body returned to normal, and that sharp aura vanished.
Then, Mash planted her shield in the ground and took a small step forward to crouch before Lancelot, a lovely smile on her face.
"That's how it should be, Father~~"
"Clang~!!"
As Mash's voice fell, Arondight, which Lancelot had been holding in his hand until now, fell with a clang… onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
In that instant, a look of shock that was hard to describe in words appeared on Lancelot's face. His mouth opened slightly, wanting to say something, but the words wouldn't come out.
Finally, after a long daze, it turned into a trembling voice.
"That's, not… I'm sorry."
"That way of calling me… it's bad for my heart…"
Mash froze. "Um, I-I shouldn't call you that?"
Lancelot immediately stood up. "No, that's not it either… In fact, you should call me that!"
"B-but, didn't you say it's bad for your heart…?"
Mash looked at Lancelot's body with concern, her earlier anger completely gone.
Lancelot patted the dust off his body, his eyes darting around as he said, "It's fine to feel my heart stop once in a while. I'm a Heroic Spirit, I can't die anyway…"
"But…" Mash wanted to say more, but she was cut off by Lancelot.
"Let's not get hung up on this issue. I can handle any name you call me. The most important thing right now is how to save this world, how to save… the King…"
As his voice fell, right there, under the watchful eyes of a crowd of Purified Knights and Heroic Spirit Servants, the Knight of the Lake, Lancelot…
defected on the spot.]
---o---