章 86: 86 Heroic Spirit
In the dream world.
"Merlin, is the item I asked for ready?"
After a month, Roy visited again.
"Oh? You're here to pick it up this quickly? Much sooner than I expected. Though it's still in the testing phase, it's indeed finished."
Inside the tall tower, Merlin sensed Roy's arrival and slowly opened his eyes.
"Testing phase?" Roy asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Yes, it's still in the testing phase. After all, crafting a mystic code capable of restraining the magical power within you is no small feat. I've been working on it for a while and only managed to come up with a prototype. Many of the steps were done with the help of outside experts, so I'm still not entirely sure what this item can truly do."
Merlin rummaged through his sleeve for a moment before pulling out a pale pendant.
"You outsourced it? Didn't you say it was a piece of cake?" Roy said, surprised.
"Hehe, I just didn't want to embarrass myself in front of you."
"When I actually got to work, I found it much harder than I expected." Merlin scratched his head, trying to play it off cutely.
"Alright, so who were these outside experts?"
"It was the Lady of the Lake in Avalon. Even Vivian chipped in a bit. I designed the concept, and she handled the forging."
"The Lady of the Lake?"
Hearing Merlin's words, an uneasy image flashed through Roy's mind.
Cautiously, he asked, "Are you sure there's nothing wrong with this item?"
"No, no, I've checked it at least a hundred times before you arrived. There's no trace of any tampering, no matter how closely I looked."
Merlin, of course, understood Roy's concerns, so he had already thoroughly examined the item.
In the entire world, there were few who surpassed him in magical expertise. Even Morgan le Fay couldn't leave any traces in a mystic code that he couldn't detect.
Merlin was about to thump his chest and guarantee it, but Roy responded quicker.
Roy put the pendant around his neck and said, "I trust you, my friend."
"Eh? You're not going to check it one more time?"
His decisiveness surprised Merlin.
"No need. I trust you."
Seeing Roy still standing firm, Merlin sighed softly and smiled, "Thank you for your trust, my friend."
In that moment, Merlin felt the faintest stir in his heart, which hadn't been touched in so long.
Aside from Artoria at the very beginning, no one had ever regarded him as a friend before. This feeling was nostalgic, like a return to the old days.
He looked over at Roy...
"Roy, can I ask a favor?" Merlin suddenly said.
"Huh? A favor? Of course." Roy answered calmly.
"Great, I knew you wouldn't refuse."
"As long as it doesn't go against my principles, I'll help you. After all, we're friends, Merlin."
"Then, I'm counting on you, my friend."
Merlin smiled brightly, then said, "Do you remember when I asked you during the Holy Grail War if you were interested in Artoria?"
Roy thought back and nodded, "I remember. I refused at the time, saying I couldn't afford to take care of her."
"So, what you're asking me to do now, it has to do with Artoria?"
Merlin nodded, "That's right, my friend. This time, I want to entrust Artoria to you, as her mentor."
"Entrust her to me? Hasn't she already accepted everything? She's returned to the Throne of Heroes, so why speak of entrusting her now?"
"Sigh…"
"Although Artoria has come to terms with Britain's fate, my own sins remain unwashed. I still carry guilt for Artoria. That's why I want to give Artoria a new life, a chance to live again. This time, I want her to live happily, a life free from burden."
Merlin looked directly into Roy's eyes and seriously asked, "So, my friend, will you help me?"
Roy was somewhat surprised by Merlin's words, but he didn't refuse. Instead, he nodded in agreement.
He replied, "What exactly do you want me to do? Simply summoning a Servant doesn't count as living again."
"Of course, I know that. So, hear me out. We just need to…"
Flowers floated in the dream world, and in the tranquility, soft whispers filled the white tower.
...
Glastonbury
A few weeks later.
A fine drizzle began to fall under the gray, misty sky, and the gentle wind carried a slight chill.
Since that day's discussion with Eulyphis in the restricted area of the Department of Spiritual Evocation, Roy's whereabouts had become somewhat erratic. He often lingered in the department's experimental grounds or the Grand Library, and even Waver rarely saw him anymore.
With a Lord from the Department of Spiritual Evocation personally tutoring him and full access to all the department's relevant texts, Roy no longer needed to attend regular lectures.
He had also been quite busy during this time. Whether it was the transplanting of Mystic Eyes or discussing the next steps with Merlin, both tasks took a considerable amount of his time.
Even Eulyphis found it hard to see Roy regularly, as he was either secluded in a magical workshop or on his way to seclusion, making him difficult to track.
Those who had been following him were quickly dealt with by Eulyphis using sharp methods. Even Waver, also a disciple of Kayneth, had been thoroughly investigated. After confirming there were no issues, Eulyphis finally felt reassured about this mediocre magus he had little respect for.
However, after investigating Waver's background, Eulyphis wasn't in the best mood.
Waver turned out to be a third-generation magus with a shallow lineage, and his family's magical legacy only began because his mother had been a lover of a magus. Such lowly origins disgusted Eulyphis, a staunch aristocrat.
Yet, he refrained from doing anything reckless. Despite his aristocratic disdain for Waver's inferior background, he noticed that Roy treated Waver as an equal, interacting with him as a friend. Thus, Eulyphis dared not act rashly.
Though Waver's lineage was humble if he was recognized as a friend by the Magician of the Third Magic... that made him, in effect, a member of the new magical aristocracy faction.
Thus, Eulyphis said nothing further. Bloodline issues would resolve with time, and as for status, perhaps integrating Waver into the Eulyphis family and grooming him later wouldn't be out of the question.
That could even earn him more favor from the esteemed Magician of the Third Magic... something he certainly wouldn't mind.
Today, Eulyphis had brought only two trusted magical attendants, and he and Roy discreetly avoided the prying eyes of other Lords as they arrived at this place.
Though Eulyphis didn't know the exact reason, since it was Roy's command, he complied.
Walking along the old stone-paved path, Roy gazed out at the vast Somerset plain, a faint glimmer reflecting in his eyes.
"Traces of spirits are everywhere. This is truly an ideal place for a spiritualist."
For spiritual magecraft, cemeteries and burial grounds were the best locations for conducting rituals, especially a cemetery like this, conveniently situated on a leyline.
The leyline beneath the ground, coupled with the souls of the deceased, made this a perfect spiritualist's paradise.
With the influence of the leyline below, the souls of the dead, especially those with lingering attachments, would more easily become spirits... ghosts, evil spirits, and even malevolent entities would linger near their burial sites, unable to pass on easily. Thus, this place was an ideal site for conducting spiritual summoning rituals.
For beginners of spiritual summoning, as long as the ritual was correct, spirits could easily be summoned here.
However, Roy was not interested in these scattered spirits. His eyes could see more, and his immense magical power could summon much more. If he wished, he could easily resurrect all the spirits in the cemetery.
Eulyphis, who had witnessed Roy perform miracles before, was certain of this.
It was precisely because of these miracles that Eulyphis had become even more determined in his decision to follow him.
"Is it over there?"
Roy's gaze passed through the many timeworn stone structures, landing on a distant monastery.
Eulyphis, holding a black umbrella over Roy, respectfully answered, "Yes... what you seek is there."
"Is everything I requested prepared?"
"Of course... The Department of Spiritual Evocation has arranged everything."
"Thank you for your efforts."
Roy nodded, "Let's head there quickly. I want to see if she's truly resting here, and I'm curious whether my magecraft can indeed awaken her."
"Certainly... according to your will..."
As he watched the respectful figure ahead, holding the umbrella, the two attendants from the Department of Spiritual Evocation behind them were bewildered.
Who was this young man? Why did the Lord treat him with such deference?
Having a senior and highly respected Lord from the Clock Tower's Department of Spiritual Evocation holding an umbrella and bowing... this behavior was beyond mere respect.
Their dynamic, if they had to describe it, resembled that of a lord and a servant.
Although deeply curious, the two attendants, long seasoned in their service, were well aware of Eulyphis' dark and ruthless nature. They kept silent, knowing better than to ask questions. In a place like the Clock Tower, sometimes the less you knew, the safer you were.
A youth who commanded such respect from the Lord was not someone they could afford to question. All they needed to do was follow quietly and stay alert, though they doubted the Lord needed any protection.
After walking a short distance, they stepped onto the stone path leading into the ancient monastery. Despite its age, the place was well-maintained and didn't look dilapidated.
After another brief walk, they stopped.
"It's been a while, Saber. I'm sorry that we can only meet again like this."
Standing in the center of the courtyard surrounded by grass, Roy halted, gazing at a gravestone inscribed with,
[Here lies Arthur, king once, and king to be.]
For a king, this burial site wasn't just simple... it was downright meager.
However, Roy didn't mind. This wasn't the true resting place of King Arthur; no one truly knew where the king had been buried. Even the original texts offered no clear answer.
Some legends claimed Bedivere took him away, others that Merlin led him into Avalon, or perhaps he was resting in his original manor.
But none of that mattered. Roy only needed a conceptual place... an Arthur's resting place. It didn't have to be the actual grave; it merely needed to be a site that most people believed to be Arthur's grave.
Without saying much, Roy glanced at the ritual setup around the gravestone, nodded slightly, and then slowly raised his arm, preparing to begin the summoning ritual.
Seeing this, Eulyphis wisely stepped back.
"Sacrifice the soul, the body the soul."
As Eulyphis watched, Roy's arm suddenly emitted a blinding light, and countless magic circuits lit up on his body like veins.
Thousands of circuits activated at once, and in rhythm, a vast amount of magical power pulsed from his body, rippling outward like waves across the water.
The magic circle, pre-arranged at this site, began to materialize under Roy's influence, slowly rising and emitting a brilliant white light.
"This is...?!" The two attendants behind him widened their eyes in shock.
Even though Eulyphis had mentally prepared himself after learning about Roy's power beforehand, witnessing such a stunning scene with his own eyes still moved him deeply.
"Truly remarkable... The power of Magician... To so easily perform magecraft on this scale... He must rival the legendary King of Magecraft."
At this moment, Eulyphis had already equated Roy with the King of Magecraft in his heart.
However, Roy, who was overseeing the ritual, frowned slightly, murmuring quietly, "Still not enough..."
"As expected, if I want to directly pierce through that place, this level of magical energy output is still insufficient... In that case, I might as well borrow some power from the London ley lines."
The more magical power Roy outputted, the more he could sense the gap. No matter how much he released, it was still just short of what he needed.
Even after removing all restrictions and allowing his body's full array of magic circuits to work at maximum capacity, it only brought him close to his goal. Just as Merlin had said, attempting to connect to the Throne of Heroes in such a reckless manner indeed required a bit of external help.
This was the first time Roy, since becoming a Magician, felt a limit to his strength.
It turned out that even after becoming a Magician, he wasn't omnipotent. There were still too many things in this world that he couldn't accomplish on his own.
If that was the case… then being a little more reckless wouldn't hurt.
Soon, the flow of Roy's magical power changed.
He withdrew his magical power and began to follow the method Merlin had taught him, attempting to link with the ley lines, controlling and guiding more magical power to merge with his own and flow into the giant summoning ritual.
As the surging magical power continued to pour forth, the rippling waves it created spread faster and in greater numbers.
The magical energy ripples Roy was releasing became impossible to capture with the naked eye. Instead, a three-dimensional projection-like pure white magic circle rose beneath his feet, spinning rapidly.
"The Realm of the Dead - Spirit Summoning Field."
At least that's what Roy called it.
He had seen information about the Holy Grail War. After the war, he had taken a great deal of magic information from Matou Zouken, including many records on the Holy Grail War and Heroic Spirit summoning.
But those records weren't complete. He later obtained information about the Third Magic from the Einzberns, and from Eulyphis, he found notes left by the pre-corruption Makiri Zolgen at the Clock Tower. Eulyphis had called those notes on the Heroic Spirit Summoning ritual fanciful. After much analysis, Roy had successfully grasped many of its mysteries.
On top of that, in the dream world, he and Merlin had continually refined and improved the ritual. They finally had a perfected summoning ceremony.
Heroic Spirit summoning was essentially spirit summoning, though the conditions were far more stringent. Only at the right time, in the right place, with the right person, and a proper catalyst could the suppression of the Counter Force be overcome, allowing a successful summoning.
By combining spirit summoning magecraft with his own magical properties, Roy had developed numerous ideas. The conditions could largely be met with his possession of the Third Magic, and now was the perfect moment to put it all into practice.
The ritual continued. The dazzling white light rising from the magic circle made it impossible for the three nearby individuals to open their eyes.
Eulyphis observed the miracle unfolding before him.
Even though he had anticipated the uniqueness of Roy's magecraft, the scene before him exceeded his wildest expectations.
The two attendants behind him, too, were left speechless by the spectacle.
They were among the elite in the Department of Spiritual Evocation, which was why Eulyphis had chosen them as attendants and magical assistants.
They had witnessed Eulyphis perform grand-scale spirit summoning rituals before, and those scenes had been awe-inspiring. But compared to the spirit summoning being conducted before their eyes, the magecraft they had practiced and studied now seemed like nothing more than childish scribbles.
This enormous magical power had even drawn in the ley lines... no, it had already taken control of the entire ley line running beneath the cemetery.
Could such a feat truly be accomplished by a human?
The sheer magnitude of the magic ritual, calculated and controlled with such precision, had exceeded the boundaries of spirit summoning magecraft. It would be more fitting to call this spirit summoning magic.
Without paying any attention to the shock behind him, Roy began chanting a familiar incantation.
"Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Let each be turned over five times, simply breaking asunder the fulfilled time. "
"I shall declare here. Your body shall serve under me. My fate shall be with your sword."
"Submit to the beckoning of the Holy Grail. If you will submit to this will and this reason... then answer!"
"I shall attain all virtues of all of Heaven. I shall have dominion over all evils of all of Hell!"
"From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three great words of power, come forth from the ring of restraint."
"Protector of the Balance!"
Within the constructed ritual circle, Roy's body began to glow with magical power, channeling into the ley lines.
The ley lines and Roy's own immense magical power clashed, fully activating the awe-inspiring ritual. The blinding white light gathered towards the sky, successfully breaching the entrance to the Throne of Heroes. With the necessary connections in place, the designated summoning could now proceed.
"The conceptual tomb of King Arthur, the bond I once forged with the King Arthur during the Fourth Holy Grail War, and lastly... this."
Avalon.
He reached into his chest, where a faint golden light responded, gradually merging into the magic circle.
Magical power, ritual, Third Magic, connection, and catalyst.
All the necessary elements were in place.
Now then...
A brilliant white light burst forth as if a meteor had crashed into the earth, exploding outwards.
The nearby villagers and pedestrians in London halted in their tracks, watching as the pillar of white light suddenly burst into the sky.
Even in broad daylight, the light was so bright that it pierced through the clouds, standing tall between heaven and earth.
The Clock Tower was in an uproar. The magus responsible for monitoring the London ley lines saw the numbers on their instruments begin to fluctuate wildly and panicked.
"How is this possible? A massive magical energy source is drawing in several of London's ley lines! The location is on Glastonbury."
The magus hurriedly opened a communication device to report the anomaly to the lords.
"The exact location is in the eastern part of Glastonbury."
"Hmm, we all saw the white light that just erupted."
"What about the exact amount of magical power?"
Upon hearing the lord's question, the magus looked back down at the instrument.
"…"
Receiving no answer, the lord on the other side of the communicator impatiently demanded, "What's going on? Answer me now! Exactly how much magical power is involved?"
At this moment, the magus stared, dumbfounded, at the wildly imbalanced gauge.
"The amount of magical energy... it's approximately five times that of all the ley lines in London. If fully released, it could blow seven cities the size of London straight into the sky."
"…"
The other side of the communicator fell into stunned silence.
...
"Artoria Pendragon has responded to your call. Tell me, are you my Master?"
Emerging from the light was a familiar figure, one Roy had seen just a few months prior.
A petite frame, long golden hair, paired with green eyes brimming with determination, and a voice full of vigor. Most notably, at her waist hung the Excalibur.
A powerful aura radiated from the center of the magic circle.
"My class is Sab... No, wait, the scale of this saint graph?! I've been summoned as a Heroic Spirit, not a Servant?"
Noticing the drastic difference in her condition, Artoria seemed a bit surprised.
However, when she saw who had summoned her, a smile appeared on her face.
"It's been a long time, Master."
The last time she had appeared, it was as the Saver of the Earth, fighting alongside Roy before departing after the battle with the False Angel.
Seeing this comrade with whom he had once fought side by side, Roy shook his head and smiled knowingly.
"Yes, it's been a while, Miss Artoria."
"I'm glad to see you, Master. Although the passage of time has no meaning for those of us in the Throne of Heroes, I'm still happy to meet you again."
"I'm grateful for your guidance last time. I am no longer lost, and this time I will be your sword, clearing all obstacles in your path."
Artoria gripped her holy sword firmly as she spoke with determination.
"Hahahaha, that's a great relief. After all, having King Arthur as protection, especially here in England, is quite reassuring."
Roy felt entirely confident in Artoria's abilities.
Responding to her words with a smile, Roy couldn't help but feel a deep sense of joy.
He had succeeded.
The ritual he and Merlin had designed had proven to be effective.
With his mastery of the Third Magic, he could serve as the ritual's central mechanism in place of the Holy Grail. By leveraging his unique abilities and magical energy output to control the ley lines, and meeting the necessary conditions for summoning a Heroic Spirit, he could perform a targeted summoning.
The existence of the Holy Grail was a crucial element... specifically, the Third Magic, Heaven's Feel, which allowed the realization of immortality and eternal life, the origin of the Grail's power as an omnipotent wish-granting device.
Next, the summoning required land and items linked to the summoned Heroic Spirit, such as the country they lived in during life or their resting place in death, along with symbolic relics like Avalon. The summoner also needed a sufficient connection with the Heroic Spirit being called, and finally, an immense amount of magical energy capable of linking to the Throne of Heroes to complete the specific summoning.
Looking at Artoria standing before him once again, Roy felt a surge of happiness.
But it wasn't just about his joy for Merlin and Artoria.
"If that's the case..."
He placed his hand over the invisible flame burning in his chest and muttered softly.
"I believe we'll be seeing each other again soon, my accomplice."
----
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