Chapter 58: The Journey of Flowers

My name is Alaya, and Kiritsugu is dreaming.

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Rumor has it that King Arthur possessed hair as dazzling as the sun, a voice more crisp and melodious than that of a troubadour, and emerald-green eyes. With a clean, delicate appearance, her fair countenance could easily captivate any woman.

Though one might easily picture a dashing, handsome man from these descriptions, these exact traits fit a young woman just as well—such as the blonde-haired, green-eyed girl in a coarse cloth dress currently walking ahead of Emiya Kiritsugu.

"Hurry up~ Master Merlin! You were the one who suggested sneaking out, so why are you walking so slowly?"

Judging by her voice, she was undoubtedly Saber Lily, summoned by his own wife, Artoria before she had claimed her kingship. That meant he was undoubtedly dreaming at this very moment.

The Einzbern family records contained notes on this phenomenon: as the time spent together grew, a Master and their summoned Servant could potentially enter each other's memories in their dreams, presenting a prime opportunity to deepen their bond.

If it were the darker version of her, it might be manageable, but if this white-dressed version were to witness his past, things would likely become extremely troublesome.

Kiritsugu observed his surroundings. As expected, everything in sight consisted of ancient-style buildings and streets, while the bustling amphitheater not far away must have been the place Artoria had just slipped away from.

Yet, it seemed she had called out for Merlin? There didn't appear to be anyone else nearby, though—

"Hurry up, Merlin—" To Kiritsugu's surprise, the petite girl named Artoria turned around impatiently, grabbed his sleeve, and pulled him forward. "I know you can change your appearance at will, but what's with this bearded guy in an old coat? Is this going to be the new trend?"

"Where are we going?" Despite having numerous questions that needed answering, Kiritsugu asked the most crucial one at the moment.

"To pull the sword, of course," Artoria replied as she dragged Kiritsugu into the cemetery behind a church. "You told me to pull the Sword in the Stone to shock those boors holding the tournament, have you forgotten?"

"Of course not. That sword was originally meant for you, but since none of them could pull it out, they planned to decide the king through a tournament while deeming you unqualified to participate." Kiritsugu's mind raced through historical records of King Arthur's life, casting himself in the role of Merlin before finally speaking.

Although this was presumably just Saber's memory where nothing he did would have any real impact, since he was somehow able to personally participate, there was no harm in trying.

"The one who pulls this Sword in the Stone shall be the King of England... Um, do you really think I can do it?" Arriving before the Sword in the Stone, Artoria hesitated once more. "After all, I'm still immature. My swordsmanship is only just on par with Brother Kay, and I can't ride a horse at all..."

She seemed to completely overlook her greatest disadvantage—being female... Kiritsugu was speechless for a moment before commanding in a resolute tone, "Pull it out, immediately."

"Eek!" Artoria seemed deeply intimidated by Kiritsugu's tone, instantly pulling the Sword in the Stone and striking a defensive pose. "Don't suddenly hit me with magic again!"

Very well, that was indeed the sword. Kiritsugu inspected the longsword with its golden blade and blue enamel decorations, confirming it to be Saber Lily's [Golden Sword of Assured Victory]. He nodded slightly, brushing off the trivial matter of why he would have suddenly hit Artoria with magic.

Influenced by Kiritsugu's action, Artoria shifted her attention back to the Sword in the Stone in her hand and froze. "Um, I wasn't even ready yet..."

Having waited for a moment without waking from the dream, Kiritsugu frowned.

If time flowed synchronously, his physical self in the real world had been in an undefended state for nearly half an hour. Although it should be midnight in reality and all factions were in a state of truce, if he couldn't wake up, he would be forced to—

"Haha, congratulations, Kay." "It would be even more perfect if you pulled the Sword in the Stone as well." "Perhaps victory in this tournament is also one of the conditions for pulling the sword?" "We have to try, don't we?" "Huh? Is someone there?" "Isn't that your foster sister?"

A group of helmeted and armored knights was escorting a man whose build was much sturdier and taller than theirs as they walked over.

"Um... Brother Kay?" Artoria attempted to hide the Sword in the Stone behind her back, but her slender figure was completely incapable of concealing such a large weapon.

"Heh." The knight addressed as Brother Kay lifted his helmet's visor, revealing a mature and steady face. He looked at the Sword in the Stone and Kiritsugu standing nearby, then suddenly dropped to one knee before Artoria. "Where the king's sword points, our hearts shall follow."

"This..." The knights following Kay, who had just regarded him as their king, clearly struggled to accept this development, standing there in a daze.

"Boom!" A violent explosion rang out, and the stone that had held the Sword in the Stone shattered into pieces. Startled, the knights turned their gazes to the smoking, strange magical staff in Merlin's hand, and finally, one by one, they dropped to one knee following Kay.

"Where the king's sword points, our hearts shall follow—"

Playing along with them wasn't entirely out of the question. Kiritsugu withdrew his gaze from Artoria, who was flusteredly trying to help the knights back up, and turned to look at the "magic staff" in his hand.

After all, reality didn't offer many chances to fire a Barrett M82A1 single-handedly.

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Because Artoria did not consider herself a qualified king, and because lords across Britannia would not easily submit to a ruler whose only achievement was pulling a Sword in the Stone, the future monarch thus embarked on a journey of cultivation.

Though it was billed as a journey to learn the Way of Kings, given Artoria's uncanny ability to easily perceive the emotions of others, she ended up embroiled in countless unrelated troubles along the way.

It usually began with her meddling in matters that were none of her business, followed by Merlin firing his gun to escalate the situation, and finally forcing Kay to call upon other knights for backup in order to resolve it.

Emiya Kiritsugu was completely unfazed by the transition from pulling the Sword in the Stone a moment ago to suddenly appearing inside a traveling carriage. If anything, had this dream truly progressed second by second, he would have taken measures to forcibly break out of it.

The Artoria before him wore white armor and a skirt very similar to the one she wore when summoned. Her temperament was no longer as naive and green as it had been when she drew the sword; the light of contemplation and determination was beginning to surface in her eyes, yet she still radiated a profound sense of hope for the future.

"That person needs help!" Spotting something, she suddenly lifted the hem of her skirt and hopped down, leaving Kay, who was driving the carriage, with no choice but to pull the horses to a helpless halt.

By the roadside where the carriage stopped stood a small, exquisite castle. Judging by its scale and location, it possessed zero military capacity or strategic defensive value. However, its decorations were so lavish and its materials so exquisite that even the drawing rooms of certain major nobles could not compare. All in all, it was built purely for the enjoyment of some wealthy third-rate aristocrat.

And right now, the chubby, worried-looking fellow standing before the castle gates matched that description entirely.

His expression was fake, his posture awkward, and his darting eyes clearly indicated he was plotting something.

Even within a dream, Kiritsugu's professional instincts allowed him to quickly deduce that this person had ulterior motives in approaching Artoria. Given the girl's meddlesome personality, he merely needed to stand by the roadside wearing a distressed expression.

"Hello~ My name is Artoria. You look like you need help. Would you mind telling us about it?" See? The meddlesome would-be king had just waltzed right over.

"H-Hello, respected King of Britain. It is an honor to meet you. My name is Anor, a lowly lord of this region." The chubby middle-aged man rubbed his hands together. "Though I do have a small territorial issue, how could I possibly dare to burden you with it?"

Very shrewd. He had casually brought up an issue concerning his "territory"—an element no true monarch would ever ignore—while deliberately striking an expression of eager anticipation for aid combined with a fearful reluctance to speak of it. Coupled with the exaggerated respect he paid Artoria when most nobles ignored this nominal King of England, he was undoubtedly a practiced swindler.

"It's fine, just tell me! If it's truly something I can't resolve, I won't bite off more than I can chew!" Artoria took the bait just as expected, patting her empty breastplate and making a sweeping guarantee.

In truth, if her abilities proved insufficient to handle the matter, wouldn't it be time for Kiritsugu and Kay to step in?

"Well, you must have seen this castle. It's just a toy built by a man of modest wealth like myself, possessing no military value or threat whatsoever. Yet the King of Bolinova nearby claims my castle threatens his security, and has ordered me to either hand it over or prepare for war against his army," the self-proclaimed minor lord wailed with a mournful expression. "But I'm a merchant lord; I don't have an army under my command at all."

"I see, I see..." Artoria thought for a moment before suddenly clapping her hands. "He's simply trying to seize your castle!"

Kiritsugu felt an urge to sigh. The outermost layer of this scam was barely concealed; if she was to become a qualified king, she still had a long way to go.

"Y-Yes," Anor's expression twisted for a fraction of a second before he instantly recovered, "and he said today is the deadline for his final ultimatum. If I refuse, he'll attack immediately. So, you see..."

"I'll negotiate with him. If all else fails, I'll stop him through a duel!" Artoria declared with unshakeable resolve.

"Then I leave it in your capable hands, My King." Anor stepped back with a hint of triumph. "Now, please allow me to act as a proper host..."

Even the scammer probably hadn't expected things to go so smoothly, and since his plot genuinely required Artoria's martial prowess to assist him, it had successfully bypassed her infallible intuition.

Clop, clop, clop—the sound of hooves echoed as several knights came galloping from the direction ahead of the carriage. Dressed in silver armor and helmets with silver spears strapped to their backs, the leader's voice arrived before the riders themselves:

"King Arthur! Even if you pulled the Sword in the Stone, that doesn't mean you have the right to meddle in the territory of my King of Bolinova!"

Ah, so that was it. This Anor fellow must have had a prior territorial dispute with the King of Bolinova, and upon receiving intelligence that Artoria would be passing through, he intended to exploit the information gap between the two parties to instigate a conflict.

What he likely told the opposing king was some lie about King Arthur being displeased with this non-standard castle and demanding its reconstruction or demolition—and casually interfering in the territorial construction of another lord was generally an act local nobility would never tolerate.

Kiritsugu tilted his head, and Kay happened to cast his gaze toward him. Their eyes met, and they nodded in mutual consensus—since they both understood the nature of this misunderstanding, the solution was remarkably simple.

"You two, please listen to me first—" "Bang!!"

Just as Kay opened his mouth to halt the impending duel, the NTW-20 in Kiritsugu's hand fired, striking Anor squarely in the forehead. The swindler spun through the air and crashed straight into the castle he had used as a prop for his deception, moments before the sound of something shattering completely and scattering stuffing everywhere echoed out.

Absolute silence descended upon the scene.

"You! Even if you are Merlin! I demand a duel with you!" Snapping out of his shock, the King of Bolinova unhooked the silver spear from his back and pointed it directly at Kiritsugu.

"Oh? Very well, come on." Kiritsugu shifted the rifle from his left hand to his right. The high-powered, single-shot NTW-20 rippled like a reflection on water, transforming into the rapid-firing QBU-10.

"Don't do it!" "King of Bolinova! Please calm down! You'll die!"

Supposedly, King Arthur had snapped the Sword in the Stone precisely because of a rigged duel like this. In that case... Never mind, it was just a dream anyway.

Ignoring the King of Bolinova shouting for a duel over there, Kiritsugu expressionlessly pulled out a cigarette.

99:45:11

"Hmm? Did Kiritsugu dream of something pleasant? Even his perpetually furrowed brows have smoothed out."

Irisviel lay on her side beside Emiya Kiritsugu, a trace of curiosity on her face as she gently touched his forehead.