In this crossover anime, Yoshikage Kira longs for a peaceful life.

"Kira-sensei, please hold on to my waist, or I'll be thrown off."

Yoshikage Kira obediently embraced the girl's slender waist, but felt a pang of regret in his heart; in truth, he would have preferred to hold those hands.

After letting the horses walk along the road for a while, Artoria remembered the most important question:

"Um, where are we going?"

Yoshikage Kira thought for a moment, pointed in one of the directions, and instructed:

"Hey, full speed ahead, we need to be back before evening."

Artoria identified the road and immediately nudged the horse's belly with her heel, causing the warhorse to accelerate.

travel.

This was also an unfamiliar term to Artoria.

Although she patrols the territory of Hector on horseback every day, her activities are limited to this territory.

He would only occasionally accompany his adoptive father and brother to town to purchase essential daily necessities.

Even the children of serfs would occasionally yearn for travel and long for the knights who traveled everywhere as described by bards.

But Artoria did not.

She never even dreamed of traveling, nor did she have any expectations.

It's not that she's not interested in traveling, but that she doesn't have time to dream about it.

For ten years, she spent most of her day receiving instruction as a queen, sleeping only three hours a day. But even during those three hours of sleep, she had no freedom to dream.

Because an unnamed dream magician would instill the king's teachings in her in her dreams.

So she had no time to dream, or even to think.

She was merely receiving an education to become the person her adoptive father and the nightmare wanted her to be.

Artoria once thought she would never have such a dream in her life, but when she actually embarked on the journey, the girl's eyes were still drawn to the scenery along the way.

Warhorses gallop across the grasslands and roam between the fields.

Sunlight pierced through the clouds, making the vast wheat fields shimmer with a golden hue. A gentle breeze blew across the fields, causing the wheat ears to sway and rustle softly.

Artoria sighed softly:

"This year is a good year!"

"Is the harvest quite good?"

Yoshikage Kira looked at the serfs and free people working in the fields, their faces filled with the joy of a bountiful harvest.

"Ah."

Artoria nodded and explained earnestly:

"Britain was never a fertile land to begin with, and since King Uther's death, grain production has been declining. Even though Hector was very lenient with his people and didn't set high taxes, the people of Hector's territory could barely support themselves in previous years."

"But this year, production will probably be one-third higher than last year."

As they were talking, the girl's gaze fell upon the distant forest, and her expression turned serious:

"Kira-sensei, we might have to take a longer route."

Kira Yoshikage noticed something was wrong and asked:

"Is that forest dangerous?"

"Yes, several months ago, some foreign tribes started to occupy that forest. It would be very dangerous if we went straight through the forest."

Artoria suddenly felt a pang of regret. They had left in such a rush, without any prior preparation. They hadn't brought armor, not even swords; they were completely unarmed. If they encountered any foreign tribes occupying the forest, they could very well lose their lives.

"Then let's just go through the forest."

Yoshikage Kira, unperturbed, calmly gave the order.

"Huh? But..."

"It's alright. We can take care of these people while we're at it, before we get down to business."

Artoria was taken aback by Kira Yoshikage's explanation. Serious business? What serious business? Weren't they here on a trip?

After much deliberation, Artoria finally decided to trust Yoshikage Kira's judgment.

Although they were unarmed, Yoshikage Kira had killed several bandits with his bare hands just yesterday, which showed his strength.

Since he intends to force his way into the forest, he must be confident that he can deal with those bandits.

Therefore, as a student, she shouldn't question her teacher's decision; it's a matter of respect. Artoria immediately abandoned her plan to take the path around the forest and headed straight for the trail within.

The initial road was relatively smooth, although occasionally tree branches would extend into the sky and block the way, but they could be easily avoided by simply looking down.

But as they went deeper, their path was suddenly blocked by a large tree!

Wow!!

Artoria's heart tightened, and she quickly pulled on the reins to make the horse stop.

The girl looked warily around at the woods, and sure enough, many figures hidden in the woods were surging toward them from all directions.

"HILALALALA!!!"

The foreign tribes, with excited and cruel smiles on their faces, charged towards them, shouting war cries.

"Saxons! How can there be so many?"

Artoria's mood instantly plummeted. Having undergone Sir Hector's training for a long time, Artoria was confident that she could handle three to five armed enemies even when unarmed.

With her teacher also involved, it wouldn't be difficult for the two of them to deal with more than a dozen enemies.

But she never expected there to be so many people—at least a hundred, right? Had they accidentally stumbled into the barbarians' stronghold?

Have you ever killed anyone?

The girl heard the man's calm voice.

"No."

Artoria hesitated and shook her head.

Although the girl's skills became increasingly refined through long-term training, even the most powerful knight in the territory of Ector was no match for her.

But that was only part of the training; killing was not included in it.

"Then I'll save two for you."

Kira Yoshikage nodded slightly.

"Huh?"

Artoria looked up in astonishment. "Teacher, are you confident you can handle so many people?"

"why?"

The question popped into the girl's mind.

Ta-da!

The pink cat stretched out its palm, and the skull on its arm was instantly launched.

Transforming into clanging war chariots, they raced through the forest at speeds imperceptible to the naked eye, searching for enemies radiating heat.

"こっちを见ろ!"

BOOM!

The bomb car roared and crashed into a Saxon who was caught off guard and was being surrounded by horses, blowing him to smithereens in a silent explosion.

But to the other Saxons around them, this scene appeared as their companions suddenly disappearing from sight.

This unexpected turn of events, lacking the graphic violence and gore of a massacre, prevented them from reacting immediately; instead, they remained frozen in place.

Until the bomb car crashed into the Saxon who was closest to the target again!

BOOM!

rustle!

A gentle breeze rustled the delicate branches and leaves high up.

The animals and birds in the forest had long since been frightened away by the Saxons lying in ambush, and the forest was now completely silent. Only the Saxons, who were constantly moving towards the center of the road, and the Saxons who were 'disappearing' one after another in just a few seconds, could be heard.

They couldn't hear the explosion or see the smoke.

Even though their companions disappeared without a sound, no one except the person closest to them noticed.

But those who do notice will be hit by the bomb car before a warning can be issued.

All of this happened quietly, almost unnoticed by anyone.

Artoria gaped, completely unable to comprehend what was happening.

In her line of sight, all she could see were the Saxons disappearing one by one, silently.

In the end, only the three Saxons who were closest to the group survived.

Clearly, this is not because they are particularly strong, nor because they are particularly lucky.

Simply because Yoshikage Kira wanted to let them go.

The pink cat found a sharp longsword, and Yoshikage Kira handed it to the girl in front of him, softly encouraging her:

"Go, Artoria, kill them."

Artoria gripped her sword, her blank gaze gradually hardening, and the girl dismounted.

Taking advantage of the panic that gripped the three Saxons as they finally realized something was wrong, he thrust his sword into the neck of one of them. The Saxon was wearing at least two layers of leather armor, and apparently chainmail underneath. A direct stab to the heart might have caused him to choke; a stab to the neck was the best option at that moment.

puff!

Everything unfolded as the girl had predicted. The longsword pierced the man's vulnerable neck, and blood gushed out under the pressure, splattering onto the girl's face, who was caught off guard by her first murder.

But the girl was not greatly affected and quickly drew her longsword and charged at the other two Saxons.

Years of rigorous training made her extremely swift, and before the two men could react, she slit one of their throats again.

In the end, only one Saxon remained.

He had the opportunity to launch a sneak attack on Artoria, but he seemed to be frozen in place by the death of his comrade.