The banquet ended in the latter half of the night.
The heavily intoxicated knights either supported each other back to their quarters or simply slept on the streets. Soon, the town that had been extraordinarily noisy in the first half of the night quieted down.
Meanwhile, Souya and Artoria returned to the ground at Kay's call.
Although Kay expressed doubt and distrust towards this brat inexplicably running off to chat with his little sister on the city walls, he didn't probe further.
Not just Souya and Artoria; everyone here would undergo a transformation of the heart after tonight.
Because starting tomorrow, they would officially march on Londinium.
The Red Dragon's army had reached the doorstep of the White Dragon's throne.
Having fought their way to this point, everyone already had the resolve to become dragonslayers or be slaughtered by the dragon. After tonight, this resolve would fully awaken.
With this state of mind, Kay didn't want to interfere with Artoria any further.
After all, compared to Merlin, who merely called himself an older brother, Kay—who had watched Artoria grow up since childhood—truly cared for and loved this younger sister.
Now, although his sister had grown up and even showed a tendency to proactively seek out a pig to be rooted by, as long as Lily was happy, that was enough.
Anyway, that pig was an acquaintance. If he ever bullied his sister in the future, Kay could definitely seek him out and settle the score immediately.
Thus, harboring such thoughts, Kay took Lily and bid Souya goodnight. After washing up, the few of them either went to sleep or stayed awake pondering something.
But no matter what, they were all prepared to face the future.
[The first ray of morning sunlight pierced the clouds and fell upon this land, as if pulling back the final curtain on this play called the 'Clash of the Twin Dragons'.]
[And the reality was indeed so.]
[Having adequately relaxed and steeled their resolve, the morale of the Celtic army was unprecedentedly high. In merely two weeks, they captured the remaining three cities before Londinium in one fell swoop.]
[Although in these three battles you could clearly feel the Anglo-Saxons' resistance becoming particularly stubborn—even willing to sacrifice human lives to prevent the cities from being breached—against the united Celtic army, whether it was trading lives or playing tricks, it was all useless.]
[Where our King's sword points, our hearts follow.]
[It would not be an exaggeration to use this phrase to describe the Celtic army today.]
[However, what puzzled everyone was that even though his army was completely routed and the enemy forces were pressing upon his front lines, the figure of the Vile King Vortigern never appeared on the battlefield.]
[Regarding this solitary King who was not understood by ordinary people, and whose true thoughts were completely unknown, the majority still held awe and fear towards him.]
[After all, the tales of the Calamitous White Dragon had circulated in Britain for a long time, and by now had deeply rooted themselves in the people's hearts.]
[Therefore, due to Vortigern's abnormal, even bizarre behavior, Artoria deliberately slowed the advance on Londinium and summoned all the Knights of the Round Table to discuss the matter.]
[At that pure white Round Table, you listened as the knights expressed their opinions, offering various analyses of the Vile King's current, illogical actions.]
[But no matter what speculations they proposed, in your eyes, they were merely conjectures.]
[Vortigern's vision was far beyond all of theirs. What he sought was not victory in the war of the twin dragons, but victory against the Will of the World.]
[In Vortigern's eyes, the Anglo-Saxons were merely tools used to delay Artoria and her army. Even if all those barbarians died, he would not be moved in the slightest.]
[The land and resources promised to them were merely bait thrown out by this old man to drive the wolf pack.]
[Knowing this, you naturally understood that it was highly unlikely to see Vortigern before reaching Londinium.]
[The true final act would have to be in Londinium.]
[And all the various speculations Artoria and the others currently had about Vortigern were nothing more than a battle of wits with thin air.]
[It was even possible that Vortigern himself hoped to see this happen.]
[After all, what he lacked most right now was time.]
[But just as you were leisurely listening to the knights' discussion, an unexpected voice abruptly reached all your ears.]
[It was unmistakably the voice of the Magus of Flowers, the Great Sage Merlin.]
[He actually didn't hesitate to break his vow and connect Avalon with Britain?!]
[You realized that things had seemingly taken a turn, and the one bringing this turn of events was naturally the Knights of the Round Table's biggest cheat code: Merlin.]
[Sure enough, from Merlin's mouth, Artoria and the Knights of the Round Table quickly learned that the reason Vortigern hadn't appeared in these recent battles was not that he didn't want to, but because he was currently at a crucial juncture and couldn't break away.]
[And regarding this so-called crucial juncture, Merlin didn't keep them in suspense, explaining it completely and clearly to all of them.]
['A dragon. A true, unimaginably massive White Dragon.']
[Merlin said this, his tone heavier than ever before, as if he too hadn't expected Vortigern to go to such desperate lengths.]
[To defeat King Arthur, he didn't even hesitate to discard his human body and identity to transform into a monster.]
[If this information hadn't been too terrifying, Merlin wouldn't have risked the cost of damage to break his vow and contact Artoria.]
[Learning that what they were about to face was not a human but a monster, a giant dragon that only existed in fantasies and stories, all the knights felt shocked while their hearts inevitably sank.]
[So they asked Merlin what they should do.]
[And Merlin told them in his most serious tone that if they wanted to stop and defeat Vortigern now, they had to breach Londinium with the utmost speed, find his lair, and kill him.]
[Only then could they stop the descent of the Calamitous White Dragon.]
[Having received Merlin's instructions, Artoria no longer hesitated and immediately issued orders.]
[Rest and reorganize tonight. At dawn, lay siege to the city!]
[Witnessing all this, you finally realized that a flaw had appeared in Vortigern's plan. He had trusted Merlin too much, believing that this detestable incubus had long been sealed in the Inner Sea of the Planet and could not interfere with the reality of Britain.]
[Realizing this, you made a prompt and decisive move.]
[Late at night, you quietly left the Celtic army camp and sped towards Londinium at top speed.]
On the nighttime plains, Souya's figure advanced like a high-speed train towards the city hidden in the darkness in the distance.
At this moment, he had poured all his magical energy into the 'Queen's Fortress' he wore. This mecha, which had turned black and blue in Souya's hands, was operating at full capacity, carrying Souya away at a gallop.
From time to time, he would stomp fiercely on the ground, using the momentum to increase his speed even further.
I hope there's still time. Feeling a continuous supply of magical energy coming from the surrounding night and enhancing his speed, Souya silently prayed in his heart while also feeling a wave of emotion.
[Protection of Night Walking (A): As Morgan's knight, you have been granted the blessing of the night. During the night, you automatically gain the effects of Presence Concealment and True Name Concealment. Your stealth abilities are greatly enhanced, and you can draw magical energy from the night.]
This was the blessing Morgan had once bestowed upon him, which was strengthened after Morgan completely accepted him.
It was precisely by relying on the effect of the Protection of Night Walking that Souya could unknowingly bypass the Celtic soldiers' patrols and Merlin's perception, allowing him to head to Londinium to inform Vortigern of the unforeseen change.
You always give me support and power when I need it... Lady Morgan. Thinking this, Souya's eyes became resolute once again.
For Morgan, no matter what, he had to complete this plan to prolong the Age of Gods with Vortigern, ending the curse of the era with them, and leaving a solid foundation for his King.
Harboring this conviction, Souya's speed increased by another notch.
Soon, Souya passed through the walls of Londinium like a gust of wind, rushing straight into Vortigern's castle, and finally saw Vortigern, wrapped in white silk-like cocoons, on the black throne.