"This..."
Olga Marie was confused, watching Artoria, who had just been intent on killing Ian, now weeping.
"What's going on?" she wondered aloud, her brow furrowed in bewilderment.
The young Director had just prepared to get up when she heard Mashu, who had become the Shielding Heroic Spirit (Shielder), call out to stop her.
"Director!" Mashu exclaimed, her voice firm.
"Please don't come over here, it's dangerous right now!" she warned, her gaze fixed on Artoria.
After successfully deploying her Noble Phantasm, Mashu's sensitivity to magical energy had also increased significantly.
This was a physical upgrade brought about by the transition from "Demi-Servant" to "Servant."
Mashu could sense that the Artoria before her was resisting the shackles placed upon her with her will.
This was something only a Heroic Spirit of her caliber could do!
However—
Mashu gripped the round shield in her hand, her expression somewhat complicated.
She had a feeling...
His relationship with Artoria wasn't that simple.
On the other side.
Even though the Artoria before him had broken free from her physical restraints, Ian found that the situation seemed to be getting even worse.
She was still struggling.
Her pain had not yet been relieved.
"Artoria!" Ian exclaimed, embracing her tightly.
"What's wrong?! Tell me... what exactly is wrong?!" he pleaded, his voice filled with concern.
"It's nothing," Artoria replied, her voice already becoming weak.
But she still forced a smile, trying to look at the man before her in the best possible state.
"It's just... resisting the Command Spells."
Sabers usually possessed extremely high Magic Resistance.
And as one of the best among them, Artoria's performance in this regard was naturally even stronger.
She could not only resist magic that harmed her, but could also resist the Master's Command Spells to a certain extent.
However—
This resistance came at a cost.
The stronger the magic she had to resist, the more magical energy Artoria would consume.
But this wasn't right!
The Holy Grail should have enough magical energy to allow Artoria to maintain her state, so why was it like this?
As if seeing through Ian's thoughts, the weakened Artoria's lips trembled slightly, and then she began to explain:
"I... didn't use the Holy Grail's magical energy."
"Why?!" Ian's eyes widened in surprise and concern. "Why didn't you use it?!"
"Because..."
Artoria looked at the pillar of light behind her.
"I feel like there's something wrong with it," she confessed, her voice barely a whisper.
"Absolutely... absolutely no one can be allowed to touch it," she insisted, her grip tightening on Ian's arm.
"Otherwise... the future will be destroyed," she warned, her eyes filled with a grave determination.
Ian realized it in an instant.
People would never do something without a reason, and the same was true for Heroic Spirits.
As the first "Servant" to come into contact with the Holy Grail, Artoria had discovered its abnormality.
She realized that it was definitely not something that could be wished upon.
Therefore—
She couldn't allow anyone in this Holy Grail War to touch it.
To this end, Artoria had unleashed her full power and swept through the Holy Grail War in half a day.
Her goal was to prevent the Holy Grail from granting any wish before the possibility of quelling everything arrived.
This was not her tyranny.
But her unwavering belief in protecting the future.
This was not a dead end either.
But the doomsday she had woven to continue the preservation of human history.
The swordsman guarding the Holy Grail was also a messenger waiting for hope to arrive.
This obsession of carrying everything on her shoulders had turned her into someone completely different from who she originally was—until the appearance of her beloved, which resolved everything.
"Artoria, you..."
Ian held the knight girl tightly in his arms, his embrace filled with affection and concern.
"Why are you always thinking about others?!" he exclaimed, his voice laced with worry.
"Think about yourself more!" he urged, his grip tightening slightly.
"Because... Sir Ian said I was a king," Artoria replied softly, her voice filled with a gentle affection.
The blackness of the armor on Artoria's body gradually faded away—a sign of a significant loss of magical energy.
Having already fought continuously for a long time, she had also consumed a large amount of magical energy resisting the absolute command to "win the Holy Grail War," and was already overwhelmed.
"A king cannot be selfish," she stated, her gaze unwavering.
"So I couldn't ignore all of this," she explained, her voice filled with a quiet determination.
"However—"
The girl looked up at the man before her, small tears glistening in her golden eyes.
"Sir Ian... may I ask you a slightly selfish question as an exception?" she inquired, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Yes, of course you can!" Ian replied immediately, his voice firm.
"You can ask me anything!" he insisted, his eyes filled with warmth.
"Then—"
The girl reached out and gently touched the man's face.
She had made this gesture countless times, but each time she still felt a surge of emotion.
"Sir Ian... have you ever loved me?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.
"..."
Without any words, Ian lowered his head and kissed the petite Artoria tenderly.
Memories of the past flashed back in the man's mind one after another.
He longed to ravage her as he had done in the past.
But that possibility had been completely erased here in Singularity F.
The two kissed deeply, until the lack of air forced them apart.
"That's wonderful..."
Artoria collapsed into Ian's arms, a serene smile on her face.
"So... Sir Ian did love me," she murmured softly.
"Then—"
"I'll leave the rest to you," she said, her voice fading slightly.
"My hero."
"No! Artoria! Don't go!" Ian cried out, desperately trying to hold onto Artoria, but she vanished like sand flowing through his fingers.
In the end, nothing was left.
The man knelt on the ground, as still as a stone statue.
"..."
Watching Artoria disappear before his eyes, Mashu hesitated for a moment, then walked over to Ian's side.
"Senpai... are you alright?" she asked softly, her voice filled with concern.
Mashu had thought that her words wouldn't be answered—after all, he looked very distraught.
But she didn't expect the opposite to happen.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, standing up, his voice hoarse.
"Let's go, we need to retrieve the Holy Grail."
"And... let's end all of this," he added, his tone quiet but firm.
Although his tone sounded calm, Mashu knew that Ian was just trying to make her feel a little better.
Even she could see through this clumsy disguise at a glance.
However—
There was no need to expose it.
If he felt this was appropriate, then so be it.
"Yes," Mashu nodded, her gaze determined.
"Senpai, let's go retrieve the Holy Grail!"
Artoria hadn't hidden the Holy Grail too far away from herself.
Or rather, even if she wanted to hide it, it wouldn't have made any sense.
The Holy Grail in Singularity F was constantly shooting a beam of light towards the sky.
If it weren't for Artoria guarding it, it probably would have been swarmed by people already.
Looking at the pillar of light reaching the heavens before her, Mashu was troubled.
"How are we going to retrieve it?" she wondered aloud, a hint of uncertainty in her voice.
She had been so focused on agreeing with Ian that she hadn't thought about the fact that this was also her first time doing something like this.
As expected, she would still have to go back and ask Director!
Just as Mashu turned around, preparing to ask Olga Marie, who was taking care of Fujimaru Ritsuka who had fainted due to a sudden surge of magical energy output, she saw a figure.
"No need to ask," a voice said, approaching them.
"As long as a 'Servant' like you touches the Holy Grail, it'll be fine—it was originally just a source of magical energy prepared for us."
It was Cu Chulainn.
However, he was missing an arm, and blood was constantly flowing from the wound, making it look quite gruesome.
Even though they hadn't interacted much, Mashu still clearly remembered his decisiveness in choosing to fight the white-haired man at the mountainside to buy time for everyone.
This was—
Definitely a friend!
"Mr. Cu Chulainn, your arm..." Mashu said, her voice filled with concern as she noticed his injury.
"Oh."
Cu Chulainn glanced at his empty sleeve, a nonchalant smile on his face.
"After all, I wasn't using a spear, so fighting that guy was a bit of a struggle," he admitted, shrugging slightly.
"But—"
"Even as a Caster, this old man isn't that easy to mess with!" he declared, a hint of pride in his voice.
It seemed that before Ian "dealt" with Artoria, Cu Chulainn had already defeated the dual-wielding Servant whose name was unknown.
Although—
The price was an arm.
"Mr. Cu Chulainn..." Mashu, also a "Servant," was somewhat moved by this heroic spirit.
She recalled something.
"Wait!"
"If it's a source of magical energy, wouldn't it be better if Mr. Cu Chulainn, as a 'Servant,' touched it?!" she suggested, her eyes widening with realization.
"That way, you could also materialize and obtain a real body!"
"No," Cu Chulainn shook his head.
"I don't want to touch the Holy Grail in my current state—I prefer myself wielding a long spear," he stated firmly.
"Besides—"
Cu Chulainn looked at Mashu before him.
"If I'm not mistaken."
"You... because you wanted to protect others, successfully deployed your Noble Phantasm and resisted Excalibur Morgan," he observed, a look of admiration in his eyes.
"Then, according to the rules of the Holy Grail War, you are the true victor."
"So the person who should rightfully obtain the Holy Grail should be you," he concluded, his gaze filled with respect.
"Go."
Cu Chulainn's eyes were full of approval.
"Take back that Holy Grail as the victor."
"Eh?!" Mashu exclaimed, surprised by his words.
Being acknowledged by the historical hero Cu Chulainn, Mashu's heart was filled with excitement.
Although she didn't want to make any wish, she also realized that this was something she had to retrieve.
"Senpai, then I..." Mashu looked at Ian, her gaze seeking his approval.
Even though she hadn't become his Servant, the girl still placed him in a position equal to that of a Master.
"Yeah, Mashu, go ahead," Ian said, forcing a smile.
"Go bring back the Holy Grail and end all of this."
"But... please don't make any wish during this time, okay?" he added, his voice filled with a gentle concern.
"Yes! I understand!" Mashu replied with a determined nod.
With Ian's permission, Mashu no longer had any fear.
"Noble Phantasm, deploy!"
The girl held the round shield and entered the pillar of light.
And Ian, watching her figure, felt a mix of emotions for a moment.
Just then, he felt a tap on his shoulder.
The man turned his head and saw Cu Chulainn doing so with his only remaining arm.
"You..." Ian's expression turned heavy.
"I'm sorry for making you lose an arm," he apologized sincerely.
"Hahahaha!" Cu Chulainn laughed heartily. "Ian Pendragon, are you pitying me?"
"There's no need for that."
"Because—"
"I'm about to leave too," he revealed, a hint of finality in his voice.
"What?!" Ian finally realized something.
Just like Artoria, Cu Chulainn was also a Servant who only appeared because of this Holy Grail War.
The moment Mashu obtained the Holy Grail, he also met his defeat.
"Cu Chulainn, don't you want to win?" Ian asked, his voice filled with a hint of desperation.
"Of course I want to win," Cu Chulainn replied, his gaze fixed on the pillar of light before him, a thoughtful look in his eyes.
"But I think that since it wasn't me who defeated Artoria, I naturally don't have the right to claim victory," he explained, his tone honest.
"This old man isn't the kind of person who's that shameless."
"...I see."
"It's good that you understand," Cu Chulainn said, turning his gaze back to Ian beside him.
"By the way... you should know that the few girls who appeared here with you all like you, right?" he asked, a knowing smirk on his lips.
Ian hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"Yeah, I know," he admitted, a faint blush appearing on his cheeks.
"Then take responsibility!"
Cu Chulainn pushed Ian with his only remaining arm.
"Promise me, marry them all!" he exclaimed, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
"Eh, what?" This sudden turn of events almost choked Ian.
"You..."
"What!" Cu Chulainn interrupted Ian.
"Are you no good in that department?" he teased, raising an eyebrow.
"Of course not!" Ian retorted, a bit flustered.
"Then take responsibility for me!" Cu Chulainn insisted, his voice firm.
"This old man doesn't want the opponent I finally found to be a useless, unfaithful man."
"Otherwise, I'll only find you disgusting next time we meet," he declared, a hint of threat in his tone.
"Next time?" Ian muttered the word, then suddenly smiled.
"That's right... there will be a next time," he said, his gaze filled with determination.
"Cu Chulainn, I understand."
"I... will do as you say," Ian promised, nodding resolutely.
"That's the spirit!" Cu Chulainn showed the same approving smile he had when he first fought Ian to a draw.
"See ya," he said, turning around and waving his hand as he disappeared from Ian's sight, like friends parting ways.
Mashu also successfully retrieved the Holy Grail.
"Senpai~ I did it!" she exclaimed, holding the glowing chalice in her hands.
"Yeah," Ian nodded, a gentle smile on his face. "Thank you for your hard work, Mashu."
"It's nothing, I..." Mashu had just wanted to say something when she felt a warmth on her lips.
It took her a while to realize that Ian had kissed her.
Their lips parted.
"Senpai, what was that..." Mashu asked, covering her mouth with her hand, her face flushed red.
"It's nothing," Ian smiled slightly. "I just wanted to say that you don't have to be my 'tool' anymore."
"Eh?!" Mashu was instantly excited.
"Senpai, do you not want me anymore?!" she asked, her voice filled with anxiety.
"Is it because of my contract with Ritsuka?! I... I'll find a way to undo it!" she offered hastily.
"That's not it," Ian shook his head gently.
"I just want to give you a different identity."
"A different identity?" Mashu tilted her head in confusion.
"Yeah."
Ian leaned closer to Mashu's ear and whispered gently.
"How about girlfriend?"
"Eh—?!" Mashu couldn't believe what she had just heard.
"I... can I be Senpai's girlfriend?" she asked, her voice trembling with disbelief and joy.
"Yeah," Ian replied, gently stroking Mashu's head.
"However—"
"I might not have only one girlfriend, Mashu, can you accept that?" he asked, his gaze filled with sincerity.
"..."
Mashu was silent for a moment, then nodded, her face completely red.
"Yes... I can," she whispered, her voice barely audible.
"Being with Senpai is enough for me."
"Then—"
Ian looked at the Holy Grail, a hint of determination in his eyes.
"Let's go back and find Director."
"And then... let's leave Singularity F together!"