Under the gaze of everyone, the massive White Dragon did not attack immediately. Instead, after circling a few times, it slowly landed on the defensive wall of Londinium, looking down at the humans below as if they were ants.
Thump, thump—
As if countless war drums were being beaten simultaneously in her chest, Artoria's heart, which shared the same origin as the White Dragon, beat wildly.
She stared intently at the White Dragon, which, despite its beautiful appearance, possessed a bizarrely twisted and ferocious posture.
That feeling of an inevitable encounter destined by fate left no doubt—the White Dragon before her was Vortigern.
"Are we still too late...?"
Artoria tightly gripped the Holy Sword of the Planet in her hand, adopting a battle-ready stance. Her mind instinctively recalled the emergency lesson on the White Dragon that Merlin had given her last night.
But... Merlin had said the White Dragon Vortigern transformed into would take the form of a giant dragon from legends. Why was the White Dragon before her standing upright, with its two front claws resembling human hands?
Even the color of its scales wasn't pure white; it bore cyan-black patterns.
Seemingly noticing the scrutiny of another "kin," the White Dragon transformed from Vortigern swept its torch-like gaze toward Artoria's direction. Soon, those massive dragon pupils focused on the 'boy' knight clad in silver-white armor.
"Arthur?"
The White Dragon slowly opened its mouth, spitting out two obscure and hoarse syllables.
"My King!!!"
At this moment, the Knights of the Round Table finally snapped out of their shock and instinctively rushed toward Artoria.
The first to arrive were the Knight of Radiance, Lamorak, and the Knight of the Sun, Gawain.
Having no time to respond to her knights, Artoria took a deep breath, enduring the Dragon Aura as she looked straight into the White Dragon's massive golden eyes.
"Yes, I am right here, Vortigern."
The young girl held her Holy Sword. Despite the massive disparity in their size and imposing presence, she spoke, neither haughty nor humble.
This display of remaining unfazed even with a flying dragon right in her face actually made Vortigern pause in acknowledgment.
But he quickly reacted, then gave a slight nod.
"Very well."
His gaze imperceptibly glanced at Souya, who stood in front of Artoria in a battle-ready stance. Then, without a shred of hesitation, the massive White Dragon spewed out a monstrous wave of dragon fire.
"Watch out!"
Seeing this, Artoria's pupils shrank, and her first instinct was to warn everyone around her to retreat quickly.
But faster than her reaction was Souya, who stood in front of her.
"Spiritual currents take myriad forms, strange waves shift endlessly."
Indigo water currents surfaced on the platinum long spear. As the spear danced, the water rapidly materialized, transforming into a layer of water shielding Artoria and the several Knights of the Round Table guarding her.
But the other soldiers were not so lucky.
The next moment, the dragon flame swept across the earth like a tidal wave, turning the once lush plain into a scorched, scorching wasteland. Scattered across this wasteland were countless Celtic soldiers who, before they could even cry out or flee, were devoured by the dragon flame and turned into charred corpses.
In an instant, a nauseating smell of roasted meat filled the air.
When Souya dispelled the water shield, this was the scene that met their eyes.
"Vortigern!!!"
Seeing the soldiers he had spent day and night with turned into human-shaped ashes, Gawain's eyes widened until they nearly tore. He wished he could immediately raise Galatine and slaughter Vortigern.
"Calm down, Sir Gawain!"
But Artoria, who was equally enraged by the tragic deaths of the soldiers who had followed her, forcefully compelled herself to calm down.
"Do not let the enemy's actions throw your mind into chaos. We must tie down Vortigern as quickly as possible to prevent further casualties."
The young girl's voice was cold and stern. Speaking rapidly, she quickly distributed responsibilities to everyone.
"Sir Gawain, Sir Lancelot, and Sir Percival, you will follow me to tie down the White Dragon Vortigern. Sir Tristan, Gareth, you are responsible for providing us with ranged support. Remember to protect yourselves."
"As for Sir Lamorak."
Artoria looked at Souya, her cyan eyes full of trust and hope for him.
"Your magical energy and Noble Phantasm are water-attributed. Please assist Sir Kay and Sir Agravain in evacuating the soldiers. The battle against the White Dragon is no longer something they can participate in. We cannot add any more unnecessary casualties."
"Yes!"
Everyone, including Souya, responded in unison, springing into action the next moment.
"Heh."
As if hearing their conversation, the White Dragon Vortigern sneered. He suddenly reared up and spewed dragon fire again at the soldiers retreating on the other side.
This time, he also flapped his wings, whipping up a violent gale that swept the scorching flames towards them.
Caught off guard, it resulted in countless more casualties.
"Damn it!"
Seeing this, the eyes of Gawain, Lancelot, and the others turned bloodshot. Brandishing their Holy Swords, they charged at Vortigern's figure perched on the city wall.
But just as Vortigern planned to repeat his trick and unleash another "Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame", a young girl's chanting shout suddenly rang out.
"Excalibur!!!"
The next moment, surging particles of light gathered and transformed into a massive river of light. Then, at Artoria's call, it turned into a gigantic pillar of light, crashing down upon the White Dragon's massive frame like a landslide and tsunami, interrupting his movements.
There were no groans of pain or anger, only a muffled grunt resembling thunder. Then, when the pillar of light dissipated, Vortigern's slightly scorched and twisted figure was revealed, along with the collapsed city wall.
At this moment, the destructive power of an Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasm was evident.
Seeing the White Dragon's gaze shift over, Artoria gave a cold snort and shouted loudly.
"Vortigern, hasn't your target always been me? Since that is the case, stop harming those innocent people."
"My King..."
Seeing Artoria's petite yet exceptionally upright figure standing in the breeze, her golden hair fluttering, Gawain and the others felt their eyes grow moist.
Their King was finally no longer that rice bucket who would lose all her strength if she didn't eat thirty bowls of rice. The King now was a powerhouse strong enough to stand against Vortigern in his White Dragon form!
"How laughable, Arthur. This pity you are showing these commoners now is simply because you are not strong enough yet."
As if deliberately trying to anger Artoria, Vortigern spoke in a tone of extreme mockery and disdain.
"If you were truly strong, you wouldn't care about the life or death of these ants at all, just as a person never remembers how many slices of bread they have eaten in their life."
"You bastard! What exactly do you treat human lives as!"
Hearing Vortigern actually compare human lives to bread, Artoria instantly flew into a rage.
Without the slightest hesitation, she channeled the magical energy within her body, surging it towards the Holy Sword of the Planet. The next moment, the Holy Sword emitted a dazzling light.
Following closely, Artoria, along with Gawain and Lancelot who had caught up, swung their Holy Swords and slashed at Vortigern.
"Heh."
Seeing this scene, Vortigern sneered once again.
Then, under the astonished gazes of everyone, a massive black longsword abruptly appeared in his right hand, which had already transformed into a dragon claw.