Shirou, who returned from the Fairy Kingdom

She longed to hear her father's praise, a longing she couldn't resist.

"I understand."

The red-haired boy knelt down and gently embraced Mordred.

"From now on, please continue to be my sword and continue to protect my back."

"—Mordred, you are the daughter I am so proud of."

"ah………………"

Mordred felt her chest fill with happiness, squinted her eyes, and still couldn't stop the tears from flowing.

Oh... so that's how it is...

It's such a simple truth, yet I didn't realize it at all. I'm such an idiot...

My wish... is to gain my father's approval...

He is a glorious and perfect king, and it is not easy to truly gain his approval.

Therefore, I put countless shackles on myself...

I arrogantly believed that as long as I worked hard, I could gain my father's approval.

However, that is impossible—

Because no matter what I do, my father will always approve of me.

"Mordred's wish was fulfilled the moment she became this man's daughter."

"Waaaaaah... Waaaaaah... Waaaaaahhhhhh...!!"

The girl burst into tears and couldn't stop.

I really do love my father the most.

……

……

Since then, Britain has experienced all sorts of things.

Although Mordred accepted the royal sword Clarent, she refused to accept the title of her successor.

"I have no interest in the throne, so I'll just give it to Artoria."

That's what Mordred said.

That's right, we don't need that kind of thing at all.

All she wanted was her father's approval.

Mordred wouldn't care how low her status was, as long as her father was willing to acknowledge and praise her.

Mordred only wanted to be the king's sharpest sword, to fight alongside her father, forever—

After figuring everything out, I was very happy every day after that.

Many things happened.

We encountered a lot of trouble.

Enemies even more powerful than King Voodoo were constantly emerging.

However, Mordred still felt that was the happiest time of her life.

The girl sincerely hoped that such times could last forever.

however--

"Artoria, what did you just say...?"

"My father and His Majesty Morgan have disappeared."

"They left Britain and went together to the secluded fairy land—that's what Master Merlin said."

One day, Mordred made an appearance in her father's office as usual.

But the king was nowhere to be found.

The girl searched every corner of Camelot, thinking he might be somewhere else, but King Arthur was nowhere to be found.

He vanished without a trace, like a phantom.

Even when asked, the men at the Round Table seemed to be searching for the King, but none of them knew where he was.

Even so, Mordred did not give up the search when she received a message from her sister ordering them to gather at the Round Table.

Then, the announcement was heard.

"Don't joke around, Artoria...! How could the King... Father leave without a word—"

Please deny this matter quickly.

Please tell me quickly that this is a joke.

However, Artoria wore a sorrowful yet resolute expression.

"Sister Mordred, Lord Di, and the Knights of the Round Table."

I repeat what I just said—the King and Queen have left Britain and gone to the distant Star Sea.

After this, the British throne will be vacant.

According to the decree left by my father, I, Artoria Lily, will inherit my father's throne.

That's all I wanted to say.

The Knights of the Round Table around Mordred seemed to be shouting something, but Mordred didn't hear a word they said.

A suffocating feeling, as if the air in my lungs had been sucked out, washed over me, and my mind went blank.

The girl walked out of the round table hall unconsciously, and when she came to her senses, she was already standing in her father's office.

Even though I knew there was no one there, my body still acted on its own.

At this time, my father would usually jump up from his chair, completely lacking the majesty of a king.

But today, no one is in that chair.

The room, now devoid of its owner, was shrouded in a suffocating desolation.

My father and mother have become beings beyond human comprehension; they cannot stay by my side forever.

Therefore, I was already mentally prepared.

Clearly already—

My chest hurts so much.

As if she had lost something extremely important, the girl felt a heart-wrenching sense of loss.

"What a joke... just disappearing without a word... at least... say something to me before you do it—!"

...Would I be able to accept that?

Separation from my father...

In a corner of her heart, the girl always firmly believed that her father was still in Britain.

My father had long ago bequeathed everything (after his death) to my mother; I know this better than anyone…

Clearly... he received so much...

But... it still wasn't enough...

Mordred didn't hate the witch who took her father away, but—

She couldn't help but start imagining.

If I perform even better...

If I had said I wanted to inherit the throne, would my father have been willing to stay?

Didn't you say... no matter what choice I make, you won't abandon me?

Six months later, Artoria held her coronation ceremony in Camelot and became the new Queen of Britain.

Not long after, Mordred led his men away from Camelot, ignoring the advice of his colleagues.

Since the king left, the sisters have spoken very little to each other.

Mordred established his base in Lentinion.

Although she had left the Knights of the Round Table, her life was no different from when she was in Camelot.

Visit villages, hunt monsters, and fight off barbarian remnants.

Mordred threw herself into her work even more tirelessly than before, spending almost all her time working and fighting except for sleeping and eating.

Even so, the kingdom gradually declined.

This is not the Queen's fault.

Lily has done everything she could.

She truly deserves to be King Arthur's chosen successor.

In some ways, he even surpassed his father.

However, the tide of time and the decline of the divine age could not be stopped.

Lily may be a great queen, but she is not a savior like her father who can turn the tide and create miracles.

During his journey, Mordred heard the voices of the people.

"This generation's queen is far inferior to King Arthur."

"Britain is beyond saving."

"This country's story has come to an end."

I miss King Arthur so much.

You idiots! You have no idea how hard Artoria works!

Mordred thought angrily.

However, despite his anger, Mordred understood that he and his sister could never replace their father.

Britain will perish in our hands...in the hands of our father's most beloved daughters.

In that case——

I'll be the one to destroy it.

The legacy our father left us...

Before the earthly kingdom created and protected by King Arthur completely decays—let me destroy it with my own hands.

Thinking this, the girl drew the royal sword Clarent, which was hanging at her waist.

She pointed her sword at Camelot, the distant chalk city.

Ten years after King Arthur and Morgan left, Mordred launched a rebellion.

Mordred was not only the only daughter of King Arthur and the Fairy Queen, but also the "Red Lightning Knight" who made great contributions on the battlefield and whose fame resounded throughout the island.

Therefore, when she launched her rebellion, she quickly received the response and support of many nobles and knights.

Many ordinary people who could not accept the gap between reality and expectations also joined Mordred's camp, and soon a force of 100,000 was gathered.

A full-scale civil war broke out.

The rebels and the regular army clashed countless times, with both sides suffering heavy casualties.

The war has progressed to this point where there can no longer be any victors.

Mordred's true purpose—the destruction of Britain—has been achieved.

However, there was one last thing she had to do.

She wanted to prove to her deceased father that she was his best daughter.

The final battle took place on a hill called Camran.

Artoria's "Sword of Choice," a gift from her father, was damaged in a previous battle, so she retrieved the Holy Lance Rungomniad from the treasury to fight.