Bab 358: 358: The Grander Scheme (1)
Chapter 358: The Grander Scheme (1)
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Had it been a millennium and a half?
She did not know.
No, it would be more accurate to say she didn't want to know. The desire to know who she was in the past and actually, the emotion of desire as a whole was missing from within her.
Artoria Pendragon, along with another name, was too foggy in her mind.
Those two identities did not matter to her any longer. Now she went by the name Lion King, where a few also called her the Goddess Rhongomyniad.
In the last 1,500 years that she has been wandering since, Rhongomyniad didn't have any purpose behind her existence. At least, when she started wandering, she was trying to look for a purpose. But at one point, she forgot to even keep searching.
At one point, she just wandered.
Her most vivid memories were from before she started wandering. At this point, the most she remembered was seeing the back of a white-haired young man as a magic circle lit around her and a bright light blinded her.
After that, she appeared on a battlefield. In the Battle of Camlann, she recalled playing the role of Artoria in that battle… yet, at the same time, she recalled a solid feeling that told her she was someone different. It's as if a person suddenly began to possess two people's memories.
What was that…?
"They have passed Sir Gawain."
Rhongomyniad's lost mind returned to the center after hearing the comment from Agravain beside her.
She didn't show any movement at his words and gently swept her perception over the area. It was as Agravain said, the attackers had passed Knight Gawain and were moving closer to the throne room.
The enemies… The forces who wanted to bring Tiamat to this world in the hope to bring humanity to its ruins.
After forgetting to even keep searching for her reasons to live, she wandered upon this world and finally found a purpose. She was a King, a Leader. In this broken world, she was needed to save humanity – even if it meant letting most die, while only keeping the purest of souls.
If she still had emotions, she may have regretted the death of all humans who didn't get chosen by the Holy Selection. However, to the current her it just seemed something that was necessary to exist – like breathing, for example.
Necessary – until somehow the dimension was fixed.
Teleported into a world entirely different, and healthy, this realm was not facing certain apocalypse. Humanity could continue living.
However, then a variable came to play. The white-haired young man who looked almost familiar, going by the title Gilgamesh, was leading his country, summoning foreign Goddesses, to sacrifice them and awaken Beast II, Tiamat.
In her 1,500 years of wandering, Rhongomyniad has come across a few Beasts. She knew the threat those creatures possessed. While she wasn't sure she would lose to Beast II, she was sure the side-effect of their skirmish would take a lot of lives—and might cause the end of this continent as a whole.
So, she rather decided to erase the small country of Uruk.
Yet, Gilgamesh stood opposing her.
"Why is he… like that…?"
"Ah, yes? Did you say something?"
Bedivere quickly asked, worried that he may have missed her orders. She was mumbling to herself, so he hadn't heard properly. He didn't have her perception, so he couldn't know what he meant by her words – directed to Gilgamesh who was harassing two girls in a dark room.
Rhongomyniad turned her eyes to lock on Bedivere. This Knight of hers whom she had forgotten about, emerged two days ago and returned her Excalibur. However, she didn't accept it – knowing that he would perish if Excalibur was extracted from his body.
Rhongomyniad didn't want this person to die. Because he reminded her of someone she couldn't remember anymore. Bedivere's emergence caused a bit of her mind to become clear, she recalled the scene where she was supposed to die – but didn't, and became a wanderer. Along with that, she also recalled something else. It was someone very important to her… someone whose face she didn't quite remember. Only his back was left in her memory, and the flash of light afterward didn't help.
"It is nothing."
Rhongomyniad replied gently, turning her eyes forward again.
In the last millennium and a half, it's not as if she hadn't seen anything shocking. She had also seen things more silly than that, too. Yet, whatever the reason may be, it felt somewhat different seeing Gilgamesh do it. Was it… amusement? Funny? No, what were these emotions? Why was she even feeling emotions?
Then, one of the doors opened. The man she had seen two weeks ago and killed, walked in and paused. Two weeks ago, she didn't feel anything from him. Today, something was different. Was it because her memories from back then were a bit clearer now, after seeing Excalibur?
While Bedivere had the single similarity with that dream-like figure, that being the hair, this person over here was a little different. Gilgamesh was super tall, standing at a stunning 6"5, unlike the boy from her vision, even so, there were some characteristics that she couldn't shake off.
"Neji!"
The King in silver and blue stared at her until abrupt footsteps came from far, and another door opened to let two muscular women and two teenage girls run in. After a single second, a light flashed and a magic circle teleported a white-haired witch.
While Gilgamesh and the dark-skinned rabbit-woman paused in their spots and stared at Rhongomyniad's way, her eyes focused on the white-haired witch. She recognized that person – it was Merlin, wasn't it? Why was she-
"Ryukyu."
Rhongomyniad froze. Her head gently turned to look at the dark-skinned woman. Looking back, it was the same name Gilgamesh called her a week ago, but back then she didn't even think about it. But now, with the bunny here, it felt a little different.
Rhongomyniad's eyes focused on the woman, a strange trembling began in her calm golden pupils. Familiar… While-haired people weren't that uncommon, this bunny right here was quite the exotic creature. Yet, why did she appear familiar?
"Say something, Ryukyu? Don't you recognize Rumi?"
This time, Gilgamesh urged. Rumi. That was a name that made Rhongomyniad's eyelids twitch involuntarily. Seeing her expression, Agravain frowned and nudged at Bedivere.
"They're irritating the King. Take care of them."
"Yes."
"Wait, both of you."
As Bedivere was about to attack the group with Excalibur, Rhongomyniad called him back. For once, her tone was not calm. The room trembled as both of the Knights flinched at the subtle tone of anger in her tone.
"Do not attack them."
A tone of confusion was well fused with her anger, but that wasn't the issue for the rabbit and Gilgamesh. They failed to hold back their lips from forming a smile.
The two of them began to speak, but at that moment, a subtle twist in space-time alerted Rhongomyniad.
"…?!"
The two of them said something, but Rhongomyniad's attention was not at all directed at this place. A… higher being had just brushed their existence against this world. Her ears ignored the voice in the room and her perception tried to look for what was wrong. What was that just now?
Suddenly, Rhongomyniad noted a shift in reality that started in Uruk, caused by a being of incomprehensible depth and origin – even for her. She stood up abruptly from her throne, and the lance, Rhongomyniad appeared in her hand as she prepared to jump to that location.
"…Looks like it didn't work."
"No choice but to beat her up, then."
However, the enemies in the room mistook her actions as a sign of battle. She did not have any intention to explain anything to them, however, so when the group rushed at her with the intent to break bones, she didn't shy away.
'I have to finish them fast. I need to stop whatever thing is trying to descend into this world before it's too late.'
So, as Gilgamesh and Rumi dashed at her with cold expressions, the Dragon Goddess Rhongomyniad swung her lance.
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