Davidian's Holy Grail War

Without hesitation, he launched his ultimate attack from the sky, charging directly towards the swarm of sea monsters and the magician below. The eternal phoenix, wreathed in blazing flames, plummeted from the sky and crashed into the magician. This heavy blow caused a massive explosion, even slightly injuring Diarmuid and Artoria, who had been slightly delayed in disengaging from the battlefield.

However, using a deadly attack right from the start ensured the success of the surprise attack; David's strike indeed shattered the magician's spirit core at that moment. Gilles died without ever knowing what was going on with this charging phoenix, and ended up with a miserable exit in this Holy Grail War.

Then, while Diarmuid and Artoria were completely baffled, Davian rushed off in another direction. He had already located the Master Magus's position; to be honest, there wasn't much life in this forest. And that guy's aura was very peculiar, carrying a strong, bloody scent.

The nameless sword, carrying a ruthless aura, slashed down from behind, instantly cutting Yu Shenglong in two.

Davian smeared the blood from his sword on the ground before returning to Artoria and Diarmuid. Diarmuid and Artoria were somewhat disheveled; Davian's attack had been indiscriminate. Had they been caught in the crossfire, they would have been severely injured, not just lightly wounded.

"Two Servants defeated in one night; the Berserker and the Magician have both left the stage. Whew, it's been a long time since I've had any exercise." Davidian took a breath, letting himself relax a bit. His battles tonight had been quite intense, fighting two Servants in total. While the Magician's fight was relatively easy, Lancelot's still took a lot of effort.

"Have you... defeated Lancelot?" Artoria asked in a low voice. It had taken her quite a bit of effort to defeat Lancelot herself. She hadn't expected him to accomplish it so quickly.

“Berserker isn’t the most suitable class for him; swordsman is. Artoria, most of the Knights of the Round Table are best suited as swordsmen, with only a few as archers or spearmen. The fact that he was summoned as a berserker only shows that Lancelot was overwhelmed by his guilt.” David explained to Artoria. How to put it? Lancelot had problems, but Artoria certainly had her shortcomings as well.

Thinking this through, Davidian sighed and finally got to the heart of the matter: "I know you're a woman, so you understand the infidelity of the princess and Lancelot, and you think they're a perfect match. But you also need to consider the consequences of this. Did you forgive them without doing anything?"

“Shouldn’t it be like this? Guinevere… and Lancelot, they clearly had feelings for each other, but because of my existence, it became like this. Besides, given the circumstances at the time, Britain didn’t have the resources to wage war for a mere woman.” A bitter shadow fell over Artoria’s face, and Davidian sighed even more; he truly understood.

But he still said, "You still have to punish them both, even if it's just with a letter. Believe me, if you just write a letter to Lancelot, as long as you don't harm the Queen, simply ordering Lancelot to atone for his sins, he will absolutely atone without hesitation, even if it means death. It's because the punishment he deserves hasn't come that Lancelot harbors resentment. There's his own guilt involved, but also the pain of having to appear so noble in the face of reality, having to bear all of this. And the... indescribable anger he feels about it."

Chapter 172 She's Your Eldest Sister

David made it very clear: Lancelot wasn't angry at Artoria herself. He was angry at the era and Britain that had driven Artoria and Guinevere to such a state. Artoria and Guinevere's way of life wasn't a normal way of life.

"But what can I do? If I don't step forward, who will? If I don't sacrifice myself, who will?" Artoria sighed helplessly. Davidian had said something similar to Merlin before, so Davidian had no right to lecture him now.

“So Britain was destroyed. It’s that simple. It reached its limit, and it had to end.” Davidian left behind these chilling words, because he felt that anything more was nonsense. Britain had reached its limit, her people had reached their limit, and so the nation had reached its limit.

"You're not wrong, nobody's wrong. It's just that era reached its limit. Even without Mordred, Britain would still have faced its eventual destruction. Think carefully about what I'm saying, understand?" With that, Davidan flew into the sky, speaking to Diarmuid before departing:

“Go back to your Master, Diarmuid, if you still wish to protect his life. But if you wish to change your Master, you are welcome to come to me anytime.”

Without a word, Diarmuid rushed towards the Einzbern castle; he had just sensed the magical fluctuations as well. Artoria didn't stop him; out of a knight's pride, she wouldn't hinder Diarmuid.

And David's words did indeed have some impact on her, though not enough to free her from her current confusion and obsession. But she did begin to think...

"Are we all right...?" she lamented inwardly. Davidian was right, no one was wrong, but if she hadn't drawn that sword to become queen, would the ending have been at least much more peaceful?

Of course, Davidian wouldn't concern himself with these things for the time being. He knew Artoria was a stubborn person, so he still had doubts about whether he could pull her out of her current obsession. But even with doubts, he would still try his best, after all, it was Artoria.

That night, he went to the Tohsaka residence, not to sleep there, but to borrow money from Tokiomi Tohsaka… He was penniless, and even getting a decent meal in this modern society was a problem. Therefore, he had no choice but to come to Tokiomi to borrow money.

Of course, Tokiomi wouldn't care too much. After all, Devian had saved his daughter, which was a favor to the Tohsaka family. He could easily afford to pay back the meager amount. Besides, there was no need to repay it; what was there to repay?

Davidian was grateful for Tokiomi's magnanimity, but despite his gratitude, he didn't bring up the issue of his Servants and disciples. Well… discussing such matters with a magus so traditional to the extreme was probably pointless; Tokiomi wouldn't listen anyway. For instance, Davidian learned before leaving that Tokiomi would still send Sakura away, this time to the Edelfelt family—a prestigious magical family in Northern Europe, he knew about.

David's expression at that moment was somewhat similar to Tristan's when he led Isolde the White Hand to him. However, despite this expression, he could understand Tokiomi Tohsaka. After all, it seemed that he himself probably didn't know if he would survive the Holy Grail War, so arranging a future for his daughter was naturally something a father should do.

Of course, this had nothing to do with Davian anymore. Before dawn, he enjoyed a good breakfast and then found a place to sleep until dawn. During his sleep, news of the Berserker and the Magician's defeat had already reached the ears of the remaining Masters.

However, Diarmuid's Master is now gone, and Diarmuid is currently troubled by this matter. Of course, he has not considered abandoning Kenneth to go find Davidian. After all, for him, loyalty to his lord is far more important than pursuing the Holy Grail.

David slept until nightfall the next day. He got up from the grass and stretched. It was truly a rare, restful sleep. It was as if all the strife had left him, and he could accept that his fate was to fall into eternal darkness and never wake up again.

But he knew that was impossible; he still had things to do. Unless he died, he was determined to find that person.

Just as he was thinking this, a chariot carrying thunder arrived in front of him from the sky. David smiled; this guy really had quite the grand entrance. He himself didn't have such a cool chariot. As expected of a cavalry class, they had so many Noble Phantasms.

"Take your seats! Let's go find that young lady, the Knight King. I heard they have a nice castle there, a good place for a banquet. You know I've been holding back for so long. It's rare to have so many heroes here; it wouldn't be enough if we didn't have a good drink and a hearty chat about life and ideals."

“I understand the logic, but it’s better not to call her ‘little girl.’ You died at 33, but she was 37… ah, she should be 36 here. By age, you should call her ‘big sister.’” Davidian laughed as he jumped onto Iskandar’s chariot, simultaneously using the reality to tease the boisterous man.

This really put Iskandar in an awkward position. The other guy looked young, but that was because he was blessed by the Holy Sword and thus immortal. If you really judged by age, Iskandar was indeed older than him.

"Did you talk to the King of Heroes? That guy won't get lost, will he?" David asked as they sped through the air alongside the chariot. Although he thought it was impossible, he still managed to ask.

"I've already talked to him. That guy won't resist this kind of thing. In fact, I think he's looking forward to it quite a bit. Speaking of which, you know so many real names, but don't you know that golden one?"

Upon hearing his question, David Ann joked with him, "I know, but I don't want to say. I'm afraid I'll scare you to death if I do."

"Heh heh, so you probably have a general idea now. Me too, really... that guy's Master really went all out, to be able to summon such a character by name, he must have obtained an incredibly powerful artifact." Iskandar couldn't help but marvel at the effort. Waver, standing nearby, felt a pang of bitterness, after all, his own artifact was stolen from Kenneth-sensei...

Thanks to flight and the speed of the divine bull chariot, the time it took them to reach Einzbern Castle was truly negligible. Looking at the gate that had been completely blown away, David recalled how Artoria had destroyed the gates of Lentinium with a single Holy Sword Cannon shot.

Indeed, violent methods are often simple and brutal to use.

Chapter 173 Debate

Artoria and Irisviel were momentarily startled by Iskandar's sudden arrival. However, they calmed down after Iskandar explained his purpose. After all, they saw Davian sitting in the chariot; if it were a real fight, Davian wouldn't be sitting in a chariot.

The group then moved to the courtyard, to the center of it. David was suddenly overcome with emotion, looking at the flowers and soil in the flowerbed with a forlorn expression.

He thought of Gareth, the day he buried him with his own hands in the courtyard of Camelot Palace. In these fifteen hundred years, he thought countless times of his daughter, his child. She had barely come of age, yet her life was taken from her. Davidian had countless times wished to exchange his own life for hers; it was a father's desire, and also his regret.

The reason he was willing to help Tokiomi was because Tokiomi had said he would spare his daughter's life. Without that promise, Davidian would have dealt with the entire Matou family more quickly and violently. This is also why he didn't fight Zouken Matou to the death; his priority was protecting the little girl's life.

"Your back looks suddenly sad, is something on your mind?" A familiar male voice came from behind. David turned around. The King of Heroes had arrived; this guy was pretty fast.

“I thought of my daughter. She was one of my few regrets, because of my momentary mistake that caused her to die young.” David turned around and sat down on the ground. Seeing the three of them acting so casually, the King of Heroes didn’t seem to mind and sat down as well.

In no time, the four of them sat together, and if they had mahjong tiles, they could start a game right away.

"Don't be so sad! Here, the latecomer gets a drink as punishment, Gilgamesh!" Iskandar handed over a ladle for serving wine, which Gilgamesh took, smelled, and then showed a disdainful expression.

"What kind of cheap stuff is this? Do you really think this stuff can be used to measure a hero?" His words were quite arrogant, but David actually thought the wine was not bad. At least he could smell the aroma of the wine from quite a distance.

So before Iskandar could speak, he spoke first: "Then bring out some of your collection, the most ancient hero's, so we can have a look. It's been a long time since I've had a drink that I can appreciate."

Upon hearing his words, Gilgamesh raised an eyebrow, a smug look on his face, and stretched out his hand towards the ground. Amidst the golden spatial fluctuations, a golden vase landed smoothly, and then he took out four cups from that space.

"Since you've put it that way, I certainly won't be stingy with my collection. Enjoy it to the fullest. And remember, this is the true king's wine."

Iskandar unceremoniously picked up the vase and goblets and filled everyone's cups. Then the three of them took a sip of the fine wine. Iskandar couldn't help but exclaim, Artoria's face showed surprise, and Davian couldn't help but show his delight.

It truly lives up to its reputation as a collection of the King of Heroes; the quality is absolutely top-notch.

Seeing everyone's delighted expressions, Gilgamesh became even more smug: "Hmph, whether it's swords or wine, my collection is the best in the world. How about that? Now it's clear who has the higher status among kings."

Artoria glanced at him, secretly sensing something was off about him, while Iskandar shook his head, indicating that these were different matters and couldn't be so easily concluded. He needed to explain to them, at least, why the King of Heroes was pursuing the Holy Grail.

"You have no right to order me around, you bastard. And to be honest, the premise of pursuing the Holy Grail is wrong; it was originally mine." Gilgamesh calmly told them his thoughts, which he considered perfectly natural.

Iskandar became even more emboldened and pressed him for an answer, asking if he knew what the Holy Grail was. The answer was always the same: he didn't know.

“My treasures far exceed my comprehension, but since they are treasures, they must be mine. You dare to try to steal them from my treasury? You thief, you've got some nerve.”

If we didn't know who this guy was and what kind of attitude he had, a fight would probably have broken out right there after those few words, since everyone present was a man of some pride. Davidian didn't, but that's because Davidian's values ​​were fundamentally different from these guys.

"What you're saying is no different from the ravings of a magician. It seems he's not the only Servant who's mentally unstable." So Artoria retorted, and Gilgamesh's face immediately fell at her counterattack. If Merlin hadn't warned him beforehand, he probably would have already retorted.

Davidian quickly stepped in to smooth things over for Artoria: "Come on, calm down. I'm afraid you two might start fighting right here, that would be so foolish. But since you, King of Heroes, have said so, then wouldn't it be that as long as we get your consent, we can obtain the Holy Grail?"

"Of course, you are the one here who knows my strength best. If I'm willing to give it, that person will surely obtain the Holy Grail. How about it? Want to try bowing to me once? A mere cup or two, I can bestow them upon you at any time." Gilgamesh was very arrogant, but he had the right to be. Apart from the unseen Devian, he was confident that he could subdue everyone present with the powerful force of the Ea.

Davidian shook his head, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with the suggestion. His loyalty would only be given to two people, and clearly, Gilgamesh was not one of them. Although Gilgamesh was also a tyrant worthy of respect, he was not one to whom David would submit.

Iskandar, however, questioned the Hero King, and their discussion extended to the Hero King's motives for doing all this. Gilgamesh's answer was simple: "It's simple, it's the law, the law I, as king, promulgated."

If that's the case, then Davidian and Iskandar also acknowledged his way of being a king. Upholding his laws to the very end was indeed something commendable about a king of his time.

However, at this moment, Iskandar put down his empty wine glass and said to everyone with emotion, "But you know, I want the Holy Grail so badly. And since I want it, I'll go and plunder it. After all, I, Iskandar... am the King of Conquerors."

"Well, there's nothing I can do about that. You broke the law, so I'll punish you. There's no room for argument." The King of Heroes revealed a wild smile, as if he were even looking forward to Iskandar challenging him with all his might, which would surely be very interesting.

However, Davidian didn't want a fight to break out right now. He smiled and poured Iskandar a drink: "Well, before that, let's finish our drinks first. If we're going to fight, there will be plenty of opportunities later. After all, there are only five of you Servants left now, and tomorrow there will probably only be four. So for now, how about we enjoy the wine we have?"

“Of course, I only brought out my collection because you told me to. It would be a waste if I didn’t finish it. And wasting it means looking down on you. What? Do you look down on the fine wine I brought out?” Gilgamesh said, holding out his cup. David understood what he meant. He also knew that you can appease a stubborn mule, so he refilled his cup.

Seeing that Davian had politely filled his cup with wine, Gilgamesh couldn't help but burst into laughter: "Hahahaha! To have the opportunity to have a miracle like you personally pour wine for me, this trip has been worthwhile."

Chapter 174 Damn it

"Conqueror King, you acknowledge that the Holy Grail rightfully belongs to someone else, yet you still choose to seize it by force? What is your purpose in doing such a thing?" Artoria calmly voiced her doubts. This was blatant robbery, the act of a bandit. Yet Iskandar was still willing to do such a thing; what was his true aim?

Upon hearing the question, Iskandar paused for a moment, then took a sip of wine with a touch of shyness before uttering his answer: "To obtain a body."

"Huh?" Everyone present had the same reaction. Waver was so shocked that he rushed up and patted the Conqueror King on the back. What happened to conquering the world?

Of course, this only earned him a flick on the forehead from the King of Conquerors. Afterwards, everyone listened quietly to what the King of Conquerors was thinking. Obtaining a physical body was only the first step. Using the Holy Grail to conquer the world was a joke. Conquest was a long-cherished wish entrusted to him, and of course, he had to accomplish it all by himself.

Gilgamesh was quite pleased with his words, and he couldn't help but laugh, "I've decided, Iskandar, I'll kill you with my own hands."

The Conqueror King smiled and accepted Gilgamesh's murderous words. Davidan appropriately poured wine for the two men, and for a moment the atmosphere was one of clinking glasses and everyone enjoying themselves.

"This approach... is not the way of a king."

Artoria captured the attention of the three with a single sentence, and David couldn't help but wonder if the King Arthur of the parallel world could say something amazing that would earn the respect of both the conqueror and the hero.

"Then tell me what's on your mind." Iskandar was indeed intrigued and spoke up directly. He really wanted to hear what this Knight King, who looked like a girl but was actually an older sister, could say that would stir his heart.

"My wish is to save my homeland and use the power of the omnipotent wish-granting machine to change the fate of Britain's destruction," Artoria said, revealing her thoughts. Then, the three of them paused for two seconds.

Once he realized what was happening, Davidian's expression immediately betrayed him.

[She said it! She really said it! Holy crap! I thought you were going to say something amazing!] David's mind was racing with a million thoughts. She actually said it!

“King of Knights,” Iskandar put down his wine glass and asked with a hint of doubt, “you just said you wanted to change fate, did you mean you wanted to overturn history?”

Artoria straightened her back and answered earnestly, "Exactly. If the Holy Grail is truly omnipotent, then even wishes that cannot be fulfilled by miracles must be possible."

“Um… David, let me confirm, you are her subject. That country called Britain was destroyed in your time, wasn’t it? And it was destroyed under the rule of this Knight King, wasn’t it?” The Conqueror King chose to set Artoria aside for now and turned to ask David, who was from the same era as her. David nodded in response to his question.