Hello everyone, It's Brave of the Blue back with a new chapter and the climax of the Camelot Arc. This chapter has mostly been done for quite a bit, but I've been planning ahead for a future arc, which has kept me from actually just finishing the chapter. This chapter ended up being longer than expected, but hey I guess that's what happens when you put on some music and just let yourself write. Oh yeah, I do wanna talk a bit about the new arc coming up but I'll leave that for later. I've kept you waiting long enough so enjoy!
Prologue Finale: The Beginning of a New Journey.
"...What in the world did you say?" Ragna said.
"You're kidding…." Ritsuka said. "So you're saying that we've been fighting someone else.."
"Then will that mean that someone else was responsible for sending the light of judgment on the village…" Bedivere said.
"No, I'm pretty sure she was mostly in control of her actions. Am I correct in that assumption?" Ragna asked.
"You are correct, there is some truth to everything that has been said and done. I take full responsibility for the 'Holy Selection' and the plan that I had shared with you is still correct." The Lion King said. "...All the information concerning this outsider, different worlds, the one-eyed lotus, and this mysterious knight named Bedivere came from someone else. I was only told to say these things, I have no idea what this information meant."
"Then you don't know how exactly I got into the 'Holy City' then?" Ragna said.
"I don't even remember allowing you into the city at all." The Lion King said. "...I just heard about you being found outside the walls…"
"...ok, then how about that necklace, when did you receive it?" Gudako said. "And when did you put in on."
"It's this…necklace that is responsible for my change…but why can't I remember ever putting it on…" The Lion King said as she then reached for the necklace with her hand only for it to be pushed back by a barrier. "I'm also unable to take it off…"
"Well, do you at least remember who gave it to you?" Ritsuka said.
"Yes…the person who gave this necklace to me is very close to where we are right now…"
Outside on the rooftops of the castle, away from the group's eyesight, was an unknown figure who seemed to be enjoying the current events as she watched the Lion King give her explanation.
"Not bad….not bad at all…however this is not enough to confirm my intuition about him being the Man of the Azure." The unknown voice said. "Not what I wanted to do, but I'll have to get a bit more 'hands-on' on things."
"Romani, can you get a reading on everyone that is currently in the castle right now."
"Already ahead of you…let's see…I only see your readings, the Lion Kings, Bedivere's, the servants, and Ragna's readings."
"Are you trying to say that it's one of us that did this?" Emiya said.
"But that's not possible…none of us have gotten inside the Holy City…" Bedivere said. "So there's a good chance that this person doing something to mask their reading."
"Well, then you can tell us who is it or what they looked like," Scathath said. "We can then go from there and figure out if there was anyone that seemed to match the description."
"Ah…yes…it was one of the [REDACTED] in the castle…saying that [REDACTED] wanted my opinion on it...?!"
"What in the..?!" Jeanne Alter said.
"Language Control Magic?!" Da Vinci said. "Are they trying to censor all information that could lead to us finding out who they are?"
"Why can't I say [REDACTED]...have I wasted too much time…" The Lion King said. "We're running out of time, I'll lower my magic energy to as low as it can go. Masters of Chaldea, Outsider, I need you all to destroy me using your strongest attacks."
The group stood in silence causing the Lion King to get visibly annoyed.
"What's wrong, why aren't you saying anything…We don't have time to waste on hesitating about this…If you don't hurry, I'll be back to being nothing but a pawn to whatever schemes [REDACTED] is planning." Lion King said.
"...I-I can't.." Bedivere said. "..How could I bring myself to kill my King…"
"..I felt like burning her, but knowing what we know puts a bad taste in my mouth." Jeanne Alter said.
"..This is…what should we do?" Gudako said as she looked toward her brother.
"...Scathath, unleash your noble phantasm," Ritsuka said as he grasped his fist trying to control his emotions. "Let us put this King out of her misery."
"...Understood," Scathath said as she summoned her to lance. She then charged towards the Lion King sending an attack with her lance that left the Lion King in suspended in the air unable to move.
"Brother..."
"Master of Chaldea...thank you, you truly have a kind heart..."
"Stab and Penetrate...Thrust and drill! Gae Bolg Alt-." Scathath was interrupted by Ragna taking away the Gae Bolg that she was about to throw, ending the Noble Phantasma early. This interruption to the Noble Phastma, lead the Lion King to fall back down to the ground, now able to move and everyone was completely speechless until Ritsuka spoke up.
"What the hell are you doing?! Why did you interfere!" Ritsuka said.
"I don't know dumbass, maybe you misremembered or something, but I remember saying that this fight wasn't over," Ragna said. "If I let you kill her like this, that's admitting that I couldn't win. I ain't a sore loser, but I sure as shit ain't gonna let dumbshit like this be the reason why I couldn't 'save' her."
Ragna then tossed the Gae Bolg Alternative back into the air for Scathath to easily catch, as she glared at him for interrupting her Noble Phantasm. Ragna ignored her glares then walked closer to the Lion King and said.
"You should thank them for giving me some more time to think, but sorry King, that is one request I'm not gonna let happen."
"What in the world…have you truly lost your mind…are you willing to let me be a pawn…possibly become a threat to humanity…just to satisfy your want for continuing this fight.."
"Do I look like I care about all that bullcrap? I ain't no hero joining the good fight to save humanity, just a wanderer. Anyway, I'm done talking to 'you', just let me 'save' you real quick so I can be on my way."
"Save…her?" Bedivere said, confused.
"Have you lost your mind!" Gudako said as she walked up to him, dragging his left arm, trying to drag him back. "You need to get out of the way! None of us is a match for her! I have no idea what you mean by 'saving' her when you aren't on the same level as her."
Ragna turned around to Gudako, showing a serious look on his face.
"Trust me...I've survived far worse odds than this." Ragna said as he proceeded to turn towards the Lion King. Ragna brought up his right arm as the red shell began to open up.
"If you honestly thought that that was my best, then you don't know me. Blood Kain Idea Engine Linked!" Ragna said as he began to be surrounded by a purple aura. "Hey, whoever the hell you are! I know that your dumbass can hear me! Bring your ass back here, I've got a score to settle."
"N-no…you….idiot…this..is…not…the..time..fo-" Lion King then stopped before her necklace began to shine again as she began to 'shut' down for a moment before resummoning her lance.
"Time's up, Mitsuyoshi." 'Lion King' said. "Just because you got lucky before, doesn't mean you should be boasting or will I have to show you why I'm called a king once mor-huh?!."
Ragna completely disappeared from everyone's field of view, only for him to reappear landing a hard right punch to the Lion King's right cheek, sending her crashing into the ground until she crashed into the throne.
"Wow, there what are these readings?!" Romani said. "I'm not sure what exactly happened, but the readings I'm getting show an insane jump!"
"I don't care if you're some kind of king or a god, I'm gonna kick your ass the same," Ragna said.
"Oh, just because you got one punch, you think you can beat me?" The Lion King said as got up from the ground, wiping off the blood that came from her mouth, before her lance shined brighter than it did before.
The Lion King then charged toward Ragna with Ragna doing the same as his sword and her lance clashed once more, both knowing that this was going to be the beginning of the end. As the Lion King used more force, gaining ground as she began to push back Ragna. Ragna smirked as he proceeded to catch the Lion King off guard by headbutting her and then following up with hopping into the air, delivering a fierce, downward strike with his right swinging slam of darkness towards the Lion King.
"Gauntlet…!"
Ragna then followed up with a back-spinning kick aimed upwards which seemed to create a Beast-like paw Aura.
"Hades!"
This follow-up launched the Lion King into the air as it seemed like she was about to crash into the castle walls. Ragna jumps again, this time bringing his sword from above his leaning shoulder and behind the back of the Lion King. Ragna then used both hands to push the sword down as it began to be surrounded by darkness as the two accelerated downwards to the ground.
"Nightmare Edge!"
As Ragna and the Lion King landed, the attack created a crater in the ground, which the Lion King backflipped away.
"Is that all you have?" The Lion King said. "I will admit you are faster and stronger than you were before…but that's still not enough to defeat me. I thought you were something special, but it seems like I was truly mistaken."
"I hate to admit it, but the gap between these two is still pretty wide," Romani said.
"Even after all of that…" Ritsuka said.
"Seems like the regular isn't going to be enough for you, huh?" Ragna said. "Then how about I turn things up a notch."
"Turn things up a notch?" Mashu said confused.
"...?" The Lion King had a confused look on her face.
" I still got one more trick up my sleeve….I didn't want to have to do this, but at this rate, I'm left with no choice." Ragna said as he brought his right hand up, showing the shell on Ragna's right arm that began to open once more and the core began to glow purple.
"Restriction 666 unleashed…"
"Restriction 666?" Jeanne Alter said.
"Dimensional interface field deployed... IDEA Engine linked...BlazBlue...!"
The ground beneath everyone began to shake, causing everyone to shock at the amount of power coming out of Ragna.
"Blazblue…?" Scathath questioned.
"ACTIVATE!" Ragna yelled as a dark aura began to surround him. "Get ready!"
In what appeared to be an instant, the Lion King found herself crashing out of the castle walls with only a right punch from Ragna.
"What the-?!" The Lion King said as she just realized that she was falling. The Lion King landed on a bridge of the castle before being forced to block Ragna's punch who was heading towards her like a supersonic missile.
"Ughh…" The Lion King was struggling to push back the oncoming punch, which led to the bridge beneath beginning to collapse.
"No way…." Gudako said. "Did he just do that?!"
"What power, it's like he's a completely different person!" Da Vinci said.
"This might be our chance…." Bedivere said as he jumped down to where the fight was taking place.
"Sir Bedivere!" Mashu said.
"He read my mind, I don't know for how long this new power of his will lasts, but this could be our chance, Master," Scathath said,
"...I say we take it," Ritsuka said. "Shishou, Archer, and Jeanne please back up Ragna."
"Roger." The three servants said as they proceeded to head down toward where the fight was taking place.
"Sis you head down there with Mashu."
"What about you?"
"I'll be on my way there, I'll start looking for the person that the Lion King was talking about," Ritsuka said.
"I'll be going with you." Da Vinci said.
"Understood," Mashu said as she proceeded to princess carry Gudako.
"Be careful out there, bro."
"Will do," Ritsuka said as he brought out his fist, to which Gudako responded by bringing out her fist and bumping it against his.
"Annoying!" The Lion King said as she summoned several projectiles from her lance. Ragna dodged them all easily, only to be caught by surprise as they all proceeded to change their direction back to his current location.
"Tsk. You got homing projectiles." Ragna began to jump off the bridge and towards a castle rooftop. Ragna then stood there and waited until the projectiles were only inches away from his before jumping away to another rooftop, causing the projectiles to crash into the building.
"Heh," Ragna smirked until he realized that the projectiles were active and still aiming at him.
"Don't bother trying to send them to me, my own projectiles can't damage me."
Before he could even do anything, he saw the Lion King charging towards him and had no choice but to go inside the castle floor through the openings of the rooftop. As Ragna landed, he looked up and saw the projectiles still coming toward him.
"You've got to be shitting me!" Ragna said as he ran away from the projectiles but quickly ran into a dead end in the form of a castle wall. "Not ideal, but I'll just have to break it down."
However, before he could, the Lion King broke down the wall appearing in front of Ragna. As her lance glows brighter as she was seemingly preparing to charge an attack toward Ragna.
"I've caught you, you nuisance."
"Not if we have anything to say about it," Emiya said.
The projectiles chasing Ragna, proceeded to collide with several Gae Bolgs, stopping them from reaching Ragna. The Lion King was about to finish charging her attack until Bedivere, coming from the hole in the wall that the Lion King created, attacked the Lion King causing her to dodge backward.
"...I thought you all were with the others," Ragna said as he turned his eyes to the top left, seeing Scathath.
"I was simply impressed by your 'Blazblue' to push the Lion King back this much by yourself, that I had to join," Scathath said. "Of course, we had permission from Master to back you up…"
"Even after what I had done…" Ragna said.
This was unexpected, to say the least, people usually try to kill me….
"Do whatever you all please, just don't get in my way."
"Understood," Scathath said as she summoned more Gae Bolgs and threw them at the Lion King who easily threw them aside using her lance. However, she was also forced to block Ragna's darkness-filled punch, which had enough force to send her back a few feet. The Lion King heard a noise coming from above and then saw a myriad of arrows coming her way. The Lion King retreated towards the hole that she created to dodge the onslaught of arrows.
"Where the hell do you think you're going!"
The Lion King looked down to see Ragna right beneath her, but before she was able to do anything she was met with a darkness-filled punch to the face, as she crashed toward another castle rooftop. Ragna rushed towards the collapsed rooftop before he stopped seeing a giant beam of light coming from the rooftop.
"...Why? Why do you care so much about this world that you don't even exist in?!" The Lion King said as her Lance began to turn full-on gold. As she charged towards Ragna, Ragna was able to react in time to block the attack with his sword, however, the force behind the strike was enough to send him crashing toward the walls of the castle.
Ragna quickly got up from the floor, as the Lion King was only feet away from him, and two's lance and sword clashed once more, destroying the part of the castle that they were in. As the castle collapsed, the Lion King landed on her feet but found that Ragna was nowhere to be seen.
"...Where could you be?" The Lion King said as she began walking around trying to find out where Ragna disappeared to. The Lion King deflected the Gae Bolg that was heading towards her direction, before having to block a jump attack from Bedivere.
"King Arthur..I know that you're still in there, please fight against this fake!" Bedivere said.
"Fake? I am very real Bedivere." The Lion King said as she charged towards Bedivere. Bedivere parried the oncoming attack from the Lion King's lance and charged after to take the opportunity of the opening, but the initial attack pushed him too far back so he was unable to get a solid clean hit, only managing to bruise the Lion King's Arm. "Hmph…only a scratch, you do know Bedivere if you keep on using 'that', you'll only end up killing yourself."
"...So you know about Switch On - Airgetlám."
"Merlin…what a nuisance…" The Lion King said as she continued walking forward. "But do you honestly think a 'fake' like that can defeat me?"
"You're right, it wouldn't lose to the real King, but it's more than enough for a fake," Bedivere said as he charged forth to face the Lion King. The Lion King and Bedivere clashed several times, not only between swords but between ideals.
"Both you and the Lion King are wrong! What you plan on doing is not something the King Arthur of old would ever consider to be right."
"You mean the King that let their Kingdom fall?!" The Lion King said as she shot several projectiles toward Bedivere. Bedivere dodged all of the before, the Lion King appeared right in front of him. Bedivere was able to block the piercing blow from the Lion King's lance. However, the Lion King unleashed an onslaught of attacks, which forced Bedivere to block them all.
"The King that watched everything die right before her unable to do anything due to being all 'Better than thou!'. I would rather be a tyrant than let anything like that happen ever again! I'll 'save' humanity from the King of Mages."
"Ugh…."
"Didn't you tell me to pay attention," Ragna said.
The Lion King said as looked to her right to see Jeanne Alter, who was not the source of the voice.
"Let's go, Jeanne!"
"Whatever!"
"Hell!"
Ragna said as he used his right hand to surround Darkness and sent a punch to her gut. However, the Lion King was stopped from being sent flying by Jeanne Alter, who held her in place with her right arm.
"Fire!"
A pillar of flames appeared where the three were standing that seemingly engulfed everything around the three, the flame then started black-like color.
"AGGGHHHHHH!"
After what felt like an eternity, the fire pillar disappeared, leaving only the smoke.
"God…*cough*...damn…*cough*...Jeanee." Ragna said as he came out of the smoke with the parts of his jacket clearly feeling the effect of Jeanee's attack.
If it wasn't for an ArsMagus barrier that I created at the last moment, the damn flame pillar might have burned me too.
"Aww~, little Mitsuyoshi couldn't take a little heat." Jeanne Alter said as she elbowed him lightly.
"What about the King?" Bedivere said
"That wasn't enough to kill her, but I doubt she's walking out of that taking no damage," Ragna said.
"Hey, Mitsuyoshi!"
Ragna looked up to see Mashu princess carrying Gudako, the two landed right in front of the group.
"What took you so long?" Jeanne Alter asked.
"Sorry, had to go slow because of Senpai," Mashu said. "Doesn't help that all of you were going all over the castle."
"Damn, not gonna lie, we messed this castle up," Ragna said as he looked at the destruction caused and whistled.
"Yeah, you say tha-." Mashu then noticed at the location where the Lion King is supposed to be, there was a green bright light shining.
"I see….his strength isn't bad for a novice, but I'm still looking for a certain thing…looks like I'm going to need the extras to leave the stage." The Unknown Voice said snapping her fingers. "Sorry, Goddess Rhonogomynaid, I'm gonna have to use you for a tiny bit longer."
Out of seemingly nowhere Jeanne Alter and Mashu have been pierced by a projectile coming from where the Lion King was supposed to be.
"What in the-?!" Bedivere said as he suddenly found himself unable to move as the smoke revealed the Lion King, injured but not down for the good. However, this time she had a black cloak and her left eye started to turn yellow.
"Her Divinity is off the charts! You need to get out of th-."
"Shut up." The Lion King said as she pointed the lance directly at the source of Romani's voice, Gudako. Ragna saw this and quickly grabbed her, moving her out of the way of the oncoming attack.
"You Bastard!" Emiya said as he was prepared to shoot at the Lion King, alongside Scathath showing serious killing intent, preparing her noble phantasm until Ragna spoke up.
"Don't shoot!" Ragna yelled. "Get Gudako and the others out of here! Leave the rest of this to me."
"..." Emiya and Scathath looked at each other, struggling to not do what they were about to do, but seeing that even if they were to fire, they probably wouldn't do much, decided to heed Ragna's words. Emiya appeared and grabbed the unconscious Mashu and Jeanne, while Scathath grabbed Gudako.
"You had better win this," Emiya said.
"Don't worry, I've been through worse," Ragna said. "Gonna need you all to get back, 'cause things are gonna get a bit rough."
"Please…'save'...her." Bedivere pleaded.
"Was planning to do that anyway," Ragna said as everyone left, leaving only the Lion King and Ragna alone.
"Now we are back to where we are from the start." Lion King said with a smile. "It's quite funny how fate works."
"Why did you attack Gudako?"
"Hmmm? They are an enemy, so why wouldn't I attack her?"
"Attack her when there are other targets including me?! Whoever the hell you are, you're playing one hell of a sick game and I'm starting to get really sick of it!"
"Sick of it? That's plenty rich from the person who has no ties to this world." Lion King said. "I am the King of the Storms, if you plan on 'saving' me, I plan on 'saving' humanity by making sure their lives lose no value. I don't care if I look like some kind of Tyrant to you…I won't let what happened to Camelot…happen ever again."
"..."
"Before we start, you still haven't answered my question, why do you care so much about this world that you don't even exist in? You could have been by my side working together to create a 'utopia' where humanity's lives never lose value. You have lived in my city and you have seen that all the humans in the city have achieved happiness, this is something the old 'me' would have never been able to achieve." Lion King said as she walked towards Ragna, she stopped a foot away before bringing out her hand. "Come join me, I may even rethink how I will deal with Chaldea."
Ragna sighed before slapping the Lion King's hand away, surprising the Lion King.
"Your plan is nothing but a farce that could be achieved by murdering an uncountable amount of innocent people and taking away the freedom of your so-called 'chosen'. No one ever wanted this, this whole place is nothing but a joke." Ragna said. "I've had several idiots talk to me about order or justice, but even they weren't stupid enough to think that a plan like this would ever work."
"Hahahahaha…I see, well it has been fun, but let's end this once and for all." Lion King said as her lance began to glow.
"Took the words out of my mouth," Ragna said as he charged towards the Lion King with the Lion King responding in kind. Ragna's sword and the Lion King's lance clashed once more, as the pair sent a flurry of attacks towards each other. Ragna decided to disengage, backing away from the Lion King as she pointed her Lance toward him, shooting several projectiles toward him. Ragna smirked and he threw the sword behind him.
"Carnage…!" Ragna said as he quickly speed up, moving past all of the projectiles that are heading towards him and appears right in front of the Lion King. Before the Lion King could move away, Ragna reveres the grip that he has on his sword and slams it down to the ground, catching the Lion King in it.
"Scissors!" Ragna then released two crossing spikes of dark energy from slashing the ground with his sword still in a reverse grip, this sent the Lion King flying towards one of the walls of the castle. Ragna then recovered and then jumped to where the Lion King was, trying to get an attack in before she recovered, but was forced to block as a projectile came out of nowhere.
"Is that all you have? You can't defeat with only that!" Lion King said as she raised herself from the rubble and brung her to lance up to the sky. Sky began to change as what appeared to be a shower of projectiles began to come into the sky, landing all over the castle.
"This is getting real old!" Ragna said as he dodged all of the oncoming projectiles, jumping up onto a castle rooftop that was across from where the Lion King was. The Lion King then jumped into the sky, creating more distance between her and Ragna as her lance started to glow even brighter than before. The sky started to change color as the Lion King was preparing for a huge attack.
"I've also grown tired of these games Mitsuyoshi, I will end this here!"
"Wait…what is she planning on doing?!" Romani noticed. "Her Magic Reading is increasing exponentially! You can't tell me she's planning on using the Light of Judgement!"
"Wait…if she fires the Light of Judgement with that much energy that'll destroy the whole Holy City?!" Da Vinci said in a panic
"EH?!"
"This city doesn't matter anymore…I can repeat this plan in another 'world'..I'll make sure that it happens again and that 'humanity' can be saved!" Lion King said
"You ain't 'saving' shit, all you're doing is taking their freedom! What's the point of being alive if you can't live to your heart's content!"
"Hearts?! All the people in this era aren't even 'real' just a part of the singularity, why should I care about them? Are you gonna tell me that they have hearts? That they deserve to have their own freedom even if it means the end of their existence?!" Lion King said as she raised her lance to the sky.
"He's not gonna be able to reach the Lion King with his sword in time!" Ritsuka said. "Shisou, can you throw your Gae Bolg Alternative to stop her?!"
"...It wouldn't matter since it wouldn't be able to reach her in time even if I did…none of us could.."
"I've heard enough from your mouth, disappear from my sight Mitsuyosh-..?!"
The distance between the Lion King and Ragna was close, but simply too far for a strike from his sword to reach her in time….or at least that would be the case if Ragna had a regular sword. Ragna grabbed the hilt of his sword as it began to transform into a weapon with more length than a regular sword, a scythe. Ragna swung his scythe, managing to land a direct attack on the Lion King, causing her to lose concentration and preparation for the Light of Judgement to be stopped.
"W-what?!"
"Of course. I don't care if they are real or not, everyone has a heart and they sure as hell have to right to decide their own fate" Ragna said as he proceeded to put away his scythe and jump above the Lion King with a fist filled with darkness. "I ain't letting anyone take away mine or anyone's right to choose how they live!"
"..!" Lion King looked genuinely surprised by that statement, before receiving a punch from Ragna. She proceeded to fall straight down like a meteor to the castle, the impact of which destroyed a large portion of the castle.
"...He really said those words that man used to say…" The Unknown Voice said. "This is most indeed of importance to my Master. Thank you for your services, Lion King."
"*cough* What the hell was that?!" Ritsuka said until he suddenly saw Ragna land down to the sky. "...Is he really even human?"
"Hmmm?" Ragna said as he looked back to Ritsuka. He saw that Ritsuka and Da Vinci were with Gudako and the others. "How are they doing down there."
"I'm not sure, when I saw what happened to Mashu and Jeanne…I…." Ritsuka said. "Almost wanted to go down there and give this 'Lion King' a piece of my mind, you know."
"Already did so you don't gotta worry about that," Ragna said. "Well, we're all back to the throne room it seems, funny how things end up working ou-"
Everyone then blinked and felt like something had lifted off their shoulders, Emiya was the first one to speak about the strange feeling that everyone felt.
"What was with that weird feeling just now?" Emiya said.
"I feel like I'm seeing things much clearer now," Bedivere said.
"Ugh…" Mashu said as he began to regain consciousness "...Uhhh….Senpai..What happened to the Lion King?"
"Just leave that to Ragna…Mashu, you get some…rest?" Gudako said as she suddenly saw that there was no actual injury.
"What in the world are you all yapping on about…" Jeanne Alter said as she seemingly began to gain consciousness.
"...Black Witch, you were shot by the lance of the Lion King, correct," Emiya said
"Yeah, I remember it like it was.." Jeanne Alter said as she looked down to where she should have been pierced and saw that there was no injury there. "yesterday…OK, what the hell is going on? Cause I clearly remember getting pierced in the gut!"
"EH?! What do you mean there is no wound?" Romani said to Da Vinci.
"Exactly what I said, there is no sign of any injury." Da Vinci said.
"Which is odd, since I saw the two get pierced and my eyes wouldn't have lied to me," Scathath said.
"...What's going on over there?" Ragna said as both he and Ritsuka started to head toward where the others were. Ritsuka saw Mashu awakening and rushed over, hugging her tightly.
"...Oh thank god, you're safe!"
"Senpai, I'm fine."
"It's ok Mashu, just get some rest. We took care of the Lion King."
"No really, she's fine brother," Gudako said as she pointed to where the injury was supposed to be.
"...Eh?!"
"So you're saying that no one got injured…." Ragna said until he remembered what the Lion King said earlier.
It's quite funny how fate works
"...I have the strangest feeling that we've all been duped…" Ragna said as he proceeded to facepalm.
"I also agree with you, outsider."
Ragna then turned around to see the Lion King getting up from the ground, however, her coat went back to the pure white color. She was also holding the necklace in by the chain as she threw it to Ragna.
"Looks like you're back to normal…" Ragna said as he caught the necklace and looked back down at it, to see that the emerald color had dimmed to black. "When did you break out of their control?"
"I didn't, I was merely 'let go' from what the voice told me. Sadly that also meant all memories of what the person looked like are also gone." Lion King said. "But I do remember them telling me, to give you this necklace, as a 'Thanks for playing'."
"Damn, they covered their tracks well and played us for fools.." Romani said. "Oh, Ritsuka, how did the search go?"
"No good. We searched everywhere, but couldn't find any other reading." Da Vinci said. "I'm not sure what their goal is, but I doubt they are with the King of Mages.."
"...Well, regardless, you're sure it's ok to give this to me?"
"I imagine that you'll have a better use than I would or at least that's what I was 'told'. " The Lion King said.
Ragna shrugged his shoulders as he put the necklace into his pocket until he saw Bedivere proceed to walk past him toward the King.
"...What are you doing, Sir Bedivere," Mashu asked
"It's ok, Lady Mash, I'm doing something I should have done a long time ago.."
"..Sir Bedivere, why are walking so calmly up to the King….wait. Hold on, that body of yours.."
"Lady Mash, some words of advice, the white walls of Camelot answer their wielder's heart. Doubt and Impurities will cause cracks and the walls will be crushed. However, if you have no hesitation, the walls will never fall. You are not a knight that defeats the enemy. You were chosen by the Round Table to show that good heart of yours...never forget that."
"...Who are you? You look like a knight…"
"W-wait you don't actually know him? He's one of your most cherished knights of the round table!" Ritsuka asked.
"Guess he really was right about the Lion King not knowing who Bedivere is…" Jeanne Alter said.
"What are you saying? I don't remember any knight by that name...I was only saying his name because of the necklace…"
"...of course, but you should remember after seeing this," Bedivere said. "Switch On Airgetlám…"
"...Wait, I know that light…just who are you? Why do I…!"
"Ritsuka, Gudako, and Mitsuyoshi, I was able to get this far thanks to you three. I thank you for all of your kindness. ..And I would like to offer up an apology. I have been hiding something from you. I know why the Lion King has changed. I have known and have not said anything. Please forgive me for that…"
"Bedivere?"
"His body is breaking down?!"
"..."
"It can't be. What's going on? Why has this been malfunctioning this whole time!? Is Sir Bedivere there real? The observation results are off! There's no Spirit Origin signature at all! The Magical Circuits are on a level of a human's…He's just a regular human! He's not a servant at all! He's human like you!"
Everyone stayed silent in complete shock at the statement Romani said before Gudako spoke up after what felt like an eternity.
"But…why?"
"No, Doctor, your analysis is correct. I am not a servant. I have fooled everyone with Magecraft. Airgetlám is here is the same. This is…"
"...Excalibur. That arm is the sacred sword, Excalibur." Da Vinci said.
"So we had two people fooling us, eh?" Ragna said.
"...Excalibur…Bedivere…I remember that name..It cannot be…you.."
"Yes, I have committed a great sin. A completely foolish sin was born because I didn't want to lose the king. I hesitated to carry out your order in the forest. You would have truly died if the sacred sword was returned to the lake. I was afraid of that…and could not return the sword even after the third try. When I returned to the forest, the king was gone…it was then that I realized by not returning the sword, the King was unable to die. The King kept the sacred lance and became the King of the Dead that wanders this land. To make up for this sin, I looked for you..this whole time, trying to find an invisible shadow."
"Impossible! That's like 1,500 years! You're saying that you've been looking for King Arthur for 1,500 years?! A human can't live that long! Sure, Excalibur stops its owner from aging! But that's just the body! The mind can't last forever! You were alone this whole time? Continuing your journey of atonement?! Nothing that tragic could actually happen! That's just way too cruel!"
"Thank you, Doctor Romani. However, it was not that tough. Plus I was given this last chance, thanks to all of you. The night of the Holy Selection, if you two weren't there I wouldn't have been able to make it this far."
"...I can't remember. I know the name Bedivere. But I have no memories of you. Are you really Sir Bedivere?..Very well. In that case, return to me. Throw away that sword. I do not require it. If you really are my knight, obey my words! Return to my Round Table, Bedivere!"
"No, I cannot do that, Lion King, an avatar of the sacred lance. I have the duty of stopping you! I tell you this as one of the knights of the round table serving under the King of Knights! As someone who is righteous, I must end your tyranny, as you are evil!"
"...No. What are you saying, Bedivere? You are mine..you were mine.."
"Now, Masters of Chaldea, give me your final orders. Please give me a fourth chance. The sacred sword is to be given to the right person by someone whose heart is good. I no longer have that right.."
"...This is one crazy story that you've just dumped on us, but at the same time, I think I've had enough fighting for one day," Ragna said as he proceed to walk towards where Bedivere was.
"If that's what you want, then who are we not to comply," Ritsuka said.
"There are so many questions I want to ask, but at the same time I'm so tired…so let's get this over with already!" Gudako said.
"I'm glad. Mash, please accompany me. Please help my weak self."
"...Yes, I will do anything to help you Sir Bedivere," Mashu said as she proceed to walk by Bedivere's side, helping him get closer to the Lion King.
"No…Sir Bedivere throw that sword aw-." Lion King was then interrupted by Ragna appearing and easily kicking the Lance away from her hands. The Lion King tried to head towards there, only to see that it was guarded by Emiya, Scathath, and Jeanne Alter.
"Give it up already, I already know you know you're much weaker than before." Jeanne Alter said. "Even if we weren't fighting 'you', they were still using your power and they burned a large chuck of it during that whole fight."
"Ugh…why.."
"It's time for you for you to be saved, Lion King," Emiya said.
"'Saved'...I don't need your…salvation…I need…" Lion King said as Bedivere proceeded to get closer and closer. With Ragna behind her and the three servants guarding her lance, it seemed like the Lion King had no means of escaping her current situation. "..Please..don't use it…if you do…you'll.."
"On behalf of the Knights of the Round Table, thank you. We made you carry the burden of that dark era all by yourself. You alone weren't part of the Round Table's joy. Brave King of Britain, you are the one who saved Britain. You were my shining star. My King, my Liege, now…no, it is time for me to return this sword to you." Bedivere said as he handed out the sacred sword Excalibur to the Lion King. The Lion King hesitated on grabbing it, before being helped with the thanks of Ragna.
"..It's alright now, all it just takes is the first step.." Ragna said. "
"...I see. I remember now. That forest. That hill. The face of the crying knight who watched over me to the end. Did you wander all these years out of regret for what happened?..Well done, you are my last and most loyal knight. The sacred sword has been returned. Be proud, Bedivere. You have truly… fulfilled the order to your king."
Bedivere smiled after hearing those words as he disappeared into the wind. The sacred lance began to glow a golden light before also disappearing.
"He's gone huh?" Ragna said.
"And the sacred sword has returned to its rightful owner," Mashu said.
"...I can see the singularity collapsing from here. The gravity fluctuations trying to swallow the era have gone. The loss of the sacred lance is causing the holy city to disappear as well..the disturbance in that era is completely gone."
"..." Lion King said as she prepared to get into an offensive stance with her sword.
"Oh, you want to fight more? You got the sword back, so that sacred lance binds you no longer. Even if you have the strength, you have no reason to fight us, do you?"
"I have no reason to let those who opposed the king return alive. And I have the sacred sword. I will not let you go to say you defeated me when I have yet to use it."
"Well, you guys got this. I'll be in the back cheering for your victory." Ragna said.
"I don't ever remember saying that our fight was over, outsider."
"Don't matter, I still won against 'you' while they were overclocking you," Ragna said as he shrugged his shoulders. "Them the rules."
"That doesn't sound like any rule in battling I've ever heard of," Scathath said.
"You still want to fight us?"
"That's right. If you are to challenge me, I must give you my all..even if you are the restorers of humanity. My pride as king insists…but it seems like I won't be able to get that chance."
"Hey Romani! I'm disappearing! What's going on here?"
"Me too..! And Senpai..!"
"That's right the grail…you already recovered the Holy Grail! The sacred lance that disturbed the Foundation of Humanity is gone, so the restoration is speeding up! Since the Holy City is impossible in that era, the restorative power is many times faster than usual! Anything that is not part of this era is being forced back where it belongs! But that doesn't mean that you will disappear, you will all just be sent back to Chaldea, so don't worry."
…wait, what does that mean for me, I ain't even a part of this world!
"...There goes our chance for a third battle. A shame. I feel like you're running away with your victory."
"The Lion King…no, King Arthur is going back to her throne…Isn't she going to leave?!"
"She's not a heroic spirit. She wasn't summoned into this era. She's a divinity that made it here on her power. When the sacred lance vanished, that was the end. The Lion King ends "here"." Da Vinci said. "Even if you meet another King Arthur who's wielding the sacred lance, it will not be the same person. The Lion King and her sacred lance will end along with this holy city."
"Then wouldn't that mean that Bedivere did this for no reason.." Mashu said.
"It didn't go to waste. Just as he hoped, I was released. And the mistake that was my existence had a purpose as well. There was a truth that I could only learn after I became the King of Storm."
"A truth that only the Lion King could know…?"
"..Yes. I acquired the same perspective as the King of Mages. I understood his ideal and purpose. The King of Mages, Solomon. The temple where he resides is outside the proper flow of time. Only the seventh Grail can show you his location. It is the only one he sent into the past himself."
"In other words, the Seventh Grail is further into the past than Solomon himself. I had thought before his death, Solomon was able to see which eras would be important to the foundation of humanity. And so he then left the Grails behind so eventually they would manifest in those eras."
"You are correct. Six Grails, six messengers speaking of the names of the Demon Gods. Perhaps they were mages, let loose upon the world as the King of Mages's descendants until the hour of their awakening. They lived on from the era of the King of Mages and stayed a part of human history until the year 2018. But the seventh grail alone was sent to the past by the King of Mages himself."
"And that…was the first step towards the Incineration of Humanity. A move that shatters the very foundation of human history. Remember what he said? If you reach the seventh Grail, he might consider you a threat. He wasn't simply talking about acquiring the grail. The seventh grail is what makes the King of Mages confident. As long as it's not restored, human history will be incinerated."
"Sounds like you Chaldea folks got it pretty rough," Ragna said while sort of listening.
"I can go over everything again. If I know that much, I can observe the Seventh Singularity! Thank you, Lion King! Next time we meet, let me give you a thank you kiss!"
"Heh. If we ever do meet again, yeah."
"You can laugh? Didn't think of a goddess like you who would be able t- " Ragna said until he was met with an iron fist on top of his head.
"Even I laugh when I find something amusing. Perhaps not in the past, but as you can see, I have grown now." the Lion King said as Ritsuka looked at Ragna crying in pain, knowing that if he tried to help there is a good chance that he would be next.
"Indeed..Lion King." Ritsuka said
"Masters of Chaldea…Outsider…I do not apologize for this battle. I still think what I did was right. What it takes to protect humanity is different than what an individual requires. That's why you must follow the path that you feel is the best. You have reached the point where you can see the King of Mages' temple." The Lion King said. "At the last grail, the last singularity lies an "evil" that you cannot even imagine. A great demon who surpasses the King of Mages himself. The original sin of mankind…."
Ragna was listening to what the Lion King was saying until he heard a mysterious voice call out to him.
Congratulations on completing your first mission!
Huh?
Ragna turned around to look around but didn't see anyone else but those from Chaldea, himself, and the Lion King.
Where the hell did that voice come from?
"Hey, Mitsuyoshi." Ragna then turned to the source of the voice, which was revealed to Da Vinci. "If you don't have anywhere in particular to go, how about you go with us? I'm also curious about the Blazblue that you mentioned."
….And that's why I didn't want to activate the Azure Grimoire.
"He would be a great asset," Scathath said. "Especially with some training."
"Hmph. He wouldn't be too bad to have around." Jeanne Alter said
"An extra hand in the kitchen would be pretty helpful," Emiya said.
"Seems like you've managed to get our servants in your favor," Gudako said.
"So how about it, Mitsuyoshi?" Ritsuka said.
"Thank you for the offer, but that 'humanity'-saving stuff that you guys do isn't my kind of thing. I'm just a wanderer, nothing more nothing less." Ragna said.
"Oh well, we tried," Romani said. "But don't you dare forget about us, Mitsuyoshi!"
"I won't! You kids take care and stay safe. One day, we'll meet again! Also…my name ain't Mitsuyoshi!"
"Sayanora!...Wait wh-" Everyone from Chaldea said towards the Lion King and Ragna as they began to return to Chaldea.
"...So what do you plan on doing now?" Lion King said.
"Not sure, to be honest. Although I'm not too sure how I even got here." Ragna said until he realized that he was going to be stuck here with only the Lion King. "CRAP! WHY DIDN'T I GO WITH THEM?! I'M STUCK IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!"
"...Actually, I have something to tell you."
"Huh?"
"That necklace that you took from me, I had received from one of my knights, or that's whom they portrayed themselves as."
"You're telling me that someone got into the castle and pretended to be one of your knights," Ragna said. "...With the necklace messing with you, I'm guessing that you didn't notice anything wrong."
"Yes…however, they also knew information that they shouldn't have known without someone telling them, not only about me but about the masters of Chaldea and you.."
"I got a fanclub, huh?"
But that is bothering me….whoever this person knows about my existence even if they don't know my name. I erased all memory of myself…so where would they get this information from, more importantly, how did they even know that I was even here.
"Beware, outsider." Lion King said. "I sense that something is coming…something that is more dangerous than even the King of Mages."
"And you think that I have something to do with it?" Ragna said. "As I said before I'm just a wanderer, but I'll keep what you said in mind."
"Thank you." Lion King said. "If you're going to be stuck here, then I guess I can get my third round-."
"No thanks. I've had enough fighting for one day, I already came here to do what I needed to do. So now I'm just gonna kick back and rel-."
There's no time for relaxing, Ragna, you've got a job to do.
That voice again? Either I'm going crazy or I'm starting to hear things
You're not going crazy and unless you want to be stuck in this disappearing singularity, come outside.
Ragna not wanting to take a chance of being stuck here then got up from where he lay down and prepared to head outside as the voice instructed.
"I take that you are leaving. Where are you going?"
"Who knows, I guess wherever my feet take me…" Ragna said.
"Before you go, may I ask for your real name."
"...The name's Ragna," Ragna said. "Wouldn't be surprised if you forget it."
"...No, I will never forget the name of the man who saved me from the darkness despite our differences in ideals."
"It was not a big deal, I just felt like doing it," Ragna said as he proceeded to head outside. "Later."
"Ok, I'm outside, now whoever you are show yourself," Ragna said.
Well, I would show myself, but considering that the will of the 'Azure' has no physical form, that would be pretty hard to do.
"Enough play-wait so I'm talking to the will of the Azure?" Ragna said. "I thought I was done with this whole Azure business after I made my wish. "
Not quite, my friend. However congratulations on your first successful mission, you obtained an important necklace that shouldn't have been here without me having to give you any details. As expected you have the instincts worthy of your title.
"So you're responsible for why I arrived at this world, wait for a minut-."
I know you may have a lot of questions, but things are quite dire so as of now are you now the Guardian of the Azure..in training.
"So you're telling me that this whole dumping me into this singularity was just "training"."
You pick up quite quickly. Don't worry it's not just some fancy title, you'll get new powers that I've come up with myself. Unlike this mission, as the need arises, you will be supplied with information for your cases. I hope that you're ready.
"Wait!" Ragna said as he suddenly found himself back at the Gates of the Azure, looking at the pure whiteness that surrounded him. Ragna sighed as he looked down in regret before saying. "Well, there goes my vacation."
That is the finale of the Camelot Arc, sorry it took so long to post this chapter. Anyway, the next couple of chapters should be not a lot of action and focused on other aspects. Although that doesn't mean things won't get crazy one way or another, since we know our favorite Grim Reaper always finds ways to get into trouble. On the topic of trouble, Ragna will be seeing similar faces in a way that he might not expect...but I won't spoil anymore, take it as a gift for taking so long to finish this chapter ;).
Now then, it's time for me to go. This is Brave the Blue and I hope you enjoyed this chapter, see you all later!