Despite the minor interruption, neither Ludwig nor Artoria were the type of people whose appetites would be dampened by such a trivial spat. After Lancer and Sola-Ui departed, the two continued to eat for another hour before finally stepping out of the restaurant, thoroughly satisfied.
"Master, why did you inform Lancer and the others of our actions tonight?" Artoria asked.
"We're going to fight anyway. Rather than spending time searching for the other factions, it's better to lure them out to us," Ludwig said, casually flipping a coin in his hand. "We can settle everything in one go and save ourselves the trouble."
"So you are intentionally using tonight's operation as bait?" Artoria nodded, walking alongside Ludwig down the road leading toward the Fuyuki Bridge.
"Not just that. The Rider faction will likely barge in as well, much like they did back at the docks," Ludwig added. "It might just turn into a complete free-for-all."
"I have a feeling, Master, that you are deliberately trying to make the battlefield as chaotic as possible," Artoria observed.
"Perhaps a little," Ludwig admitted. "If every Servant shows up on the battlefield, can Caster—who has been hiding in the shadows all this time—really afford to stay put?"
Artoria immediately recalled the situation. "Now that you mention it, Caster has indeed been silent ever since Merlin drove him away in the Einzbern forest."
Truthfully, she was still concerned about Caster. That mentally unstable man, who insisted on mistaking her for Joan of Arc, was likely still working in the shadows with his Master, kidnapping innocent children. Such a villain needed to be dealt with as soon as possible.
"The real question is... how do we actually lure Caster out?" Ludwig looked troubled.
"Did Merlin say anything about it?" Artoria asked.
Ludwig shook his head. "Hardly anything. She just mentioned that Caster has no real foundation in magecraft; his 'spells' are just gimmicks made possible through his Noble Phantasm."
"Even Merlin calls them gimmicks?" Artoria seemed surprised.
"Is it possible that both the Merlin by my side and the one who served you are synonymous with 'gimmicks' and 'opportunism'?" Ludwig asked, sounding genuinely interested.
"Rather than opportunistic, I would call him a... formidable individual. Though I respect him, he was also the source of various disasters. If he could only fix his habit of playing pranks, I might have been able to create a more decent era under his guidance," Artoria complained, her tone unusually sharp.
"It sounds like you actually have quite a few grievances against him," Ludwig noted.
"I do. Despite being the Court Magus, he was always reckless in his relationships and prone to saying the most nonsensical things," Artoria said, a helpless smile breaking through. "Even during my final naval expedition, he used his flighty way of speaking to hint at my ultimate end."
"Oh?" Ludwig toyed with the coin, gesturing for her to continue.
"He said, 'This country will perish sooner or later. Even if it holds on for another few hundred years, it won't have much impact on the history of this island. In fact, it has already perished. Britain ends here... If I said that, what would you do?' Artoria stopped on the sidewalk of the bridge, leaning against the railing to gaze out over the Mion River. "Looking back, that was a genuine prophecy, but I mistakenly took it for a cruel joke."
"Even up until that final expedition, as the reigning King, you were the literal Ever-Victorious King. Even if you didn't mean to be arrogant, you still believed everything was moving toward a better future. The matter with Lancelot, the issues with the Knights of the Round Table... perhaps you saw them as mere ripples, right?" Ludwig shook his head.
"You are right. My original plan was to subdue Rome first, sign a treaty, and return to Britain with the spoils of war before slowly dealing with those internal matters," Artoria nodded.
To return with the momentum and prestige of a great victory and use that chance to implement a series of domestic policies to suppress growing conflicts was a classic move used by many powerful monarchs in history. During Artoria's ten-year reign, the stability of her throne relied heavily on the fact that she was a peerless warrior—her "fists" were simply strong enough.
The problem was that no one can win forever.
King Arthur lost only once, but that single loss cost the entire fate of Britain.
"You did the best you could, but the world doesn't bend to one person's wishes that easily," Ludwig said, pressing his lips together.
"That is why I seek power beyond the norm—the omnipotent wish-granter—to save Britain," Artoria said.
"And then what?" Ludwig asked. "You get the Grail, make your wish, and as you desire, a more suitable heir is chosen to save Britain. But what happens to you? You, who were born to be a King, but never became one?"
"...That is a sharp question. I find I haven't actually thought about it," Artoria smiled gently. "If the wish truly comes true, I think I would like to live as a simple farm girl, looking up at the brilliance of the new King while spending the rest of my days in peace and quiet."
"So you really haven't thought it through," Ludwig laughed.
Artoria simply shook her head. "Then what about you, Lud? If you obtain the Grail and return to that desolate era—full of despair yet not lacking in hope—is that enough for you?"
"Can I really expect a single Holy Grail to save a dead planet?" Ludwig countered, shaking his head.
"I suppose not," Artoria sighed, feeling a sense of shared empathy.
If Ludwig chose that path, his burden would be thousands of times heavier than hers.
"By the way, why is Merlin by your side?" she asked, a different question coming to mind. "Is she trying to groom you into a King who will lead the planet in the future?"
"I don't think so," Ludwig chuckled. "She claims to be an Observer dispatched by the planet itself, with the purpose of monitoring my actions."
"An... Observer of the planet?" Artoria was stunned for a moment.
"Yes. In a literal sense, for those of us living in that era, we are no different from maggots parasitizing a corpse. Those lifeforms descending from the sky—the 'Aristoteles'—they all came to wipe us out," Ludwig explained.
Artoria's brow furrowed deeply.
"If the planet is already hostile toward you, how can you still smile and say you want to save it?" She felt a wave of inexplicable sorrow.
"There isn't really a 'why.' If the planet were still alive, none of this would be happening... Or perhaps, it's just because I am also a lifeform born on this planet, and I simply want to do it."
When he spoke those words, his smile was genuine, brilliant, and pure.
Artoria found she couldn't look away.
The Ever-Victorious King, the King who held the Holy Sword of the Planet, had saved many lives and killed many more on the battlefield.
But this one before her... she could not save him, and she could never bear to kill him.
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Type-Moon: The A-Ray Knight's Holy Grail Journey(80 Chapter - Ongoing)
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