章節 263: Chapter 21. The King is Not the King, the Subject is Not the Subject

[Arc4] - 21. The King is Not the King, the Subject is Not the Subject

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"It's truly unfortunate," Cyd said as he picked up [Reforged Pandora], the Rider class card slowly floating down onto El-Melloi II's head.

"We've won."

[It's I who lost; I've already taken off the paper note.]

Zhuge Liang fanned himself and returned to his wheelchair.

[The king and his subjects are one; he is not my king, nor am I his subject.]

"That king... is quite willful," El-Melloi II said with a slight smile, removing the class card from his head. "To ensure we wouldn't be lost, he always... always walks in front."

[If you want to catch up to him, you're still far from it.]

Zhuge Liang's blunt tone made El-Melloi II smile bitterly.

"After all, he is our king."

[So, go use my power.]

Zhuge Liang lifted his fan and pointed it at El-Melloi II.

[With your abilities, you will surely unleash my power; then use this power to stand beside your king.]

[Do not worry; my power exists to assist the king. That position... should belong to you!]

"Crack—"

A crack appeared on the fan.

How could he, who had followed the King of Conquerors through a sandstorm, have come away unscathed?

More cracks appeared on his body.

[This is the price of following this king. Are you ready?]

Once you step onto the king's chariot, you are destined to face it together; when the king shatters, as his subject, you will also be shattered, but...

"Isn't this only natural!" El-Melloi II grinned.

Indeed, it was an unnecessary question...

[Then I will entrust my power to you; you must walk with your king until the end.]

Zhuge Liang lowered his fan and leaned back in his wheelchair.

The king and his subjects are one; when the king leaves, what can the subjects do? Go along with the king, or inherit the king's wishes to fulfill his desires, or...

Do nothing at all.

The Caster class card slowly fell to the ground.

"The remaining class cards," Cyd bent down to pick up the Caster class card and handed it to El-Melloi II.

"There are still two left," El-Melloi II took the Caster class card, stacking it with the Rider class card and placing them into his inner pocket.

What would happen when seven class cards gathered? No one knew, but he was already unafraid because the king was by his side.

Gray's eyes widened slightly, reflecting an incredible scene.

The tall king laughed heartily, standing behind El-Melloi II, and seemed to notice Gray's gaze, giving her a thumbs-up with a big smile.

An illusion?

Gray rubbed her eyes vigorously; the laughing king vanished, leaving only El-Melloi II looking up at the sky.

"Let's go, Gray," Cyd said with a gentle smile, patting Gray on the shoulder.

The spell unfolded; the world transformed from day back to night due to the King of Conquerors, and then they saw Tohsaka Rin stomping on a piece of paper labeled 'poor' and Illya, who tried to stop her but couldn't at all.

"Let's go back; the battle is over," Cyd patted Miyu's head.

"Seriously, we ran a pointless errand," Tohsaka Rin muttered in discontent.

"Luckily, the paper note was removed," Illya patted her chest and then pouted in dissatisfaction. "What does that dunce even mean!"

"Illya is a fool... that's what it means," Miyu explained in a very calm manner.

"How rude! Wait... what does Rin's poor..."

"Illya~ some things can't be dug too deep~" Tohsaka Rin leaned in closer to Illya, wearing a sinister smile.

"Okay... okay!" Illya nodded with tearful eyes.

"Honestly... don't think that just because you got another class card, you've won," Tohsaka Rin sighed, hands on her hips, pointing her left hand at Cyd's nose.

"It's two cards."

"W-We'll take the remaining two class cards!"

Rin Tohsaka's finger curled, her tone losing some confidence.

"Saber and Berserker; are you sure?"

At this point, Tohsaka Rin's finger completely drooped.

It seems... winning was already impossible...

…

"Now we have collected five class cards," El-Melloi II placed the class cards on the table one by one.

Sitting beside him, Luvia and Tohsaka Rin displayed complex expressions.

Confidently, they held the magic costumes given by that one, yet they had achieved nothing, while El-Melloi II, whom they initially thought would never succeed, had easily obtained five class cards.

Illya blinked.

"The remaining two class cards won't be so easy to take; they are the highest-ranked Saber and the crazed Berserker," El-Melloi II glanced at the ley line map he had recently drawn, feeling a sense of incongruity, perhaps due to fatigue.

Cyd and Miyu synchronously took a sip of tea, wearing expressions that suggested this topic had nothing to do with them.

"Ah... no way, even if Illya can become a magical girl, facing Saber and Berserker is still too much," Tohsaka Rin leaned softly on the table. "I might die, too."

"Eh! Am I going to die! Is being a magical girl really that dangerous?" Illya, who had initially appeared indifferent, suddenly stood up.

"Being a magical girl has always been a high-risk job," Cyd waved his hand. "It's not like in the anime where I give you a magical wand, and you become overpowered; that kind of thing can't happen."

"It's strange if you're not in danger after being hit by such an attack," Miyu bluntly pointed out, dismissing Illya's magical girl pitch.

"If we could just get one or two class cards..." Tohsaka Rin discreetly glanced at the five class cards on the table.

"It's not impossible to fight," Luvia's eyes began to shine.

El-Melloi II's corner of the eye twitched, and he directly stacked the Caster and Rider class cards together and placed them into his inner pocket.

"If you can get them from us," Cyd stacked the remaining three cards together and pressed down with his teacup.

"Then we can rent them, right?" The wealthy Luvia snapped her fingers, and a stout butler appeared behind her, placing three suitcases on the table.

El-Melloi II's mouth twitched.

As expected, it was the same old routine as before.

Three sparkling gem-filled boxes; Tohsaka Rin's mouth seemed ready to drool. They were probably some top-grade gems, although compared to his debts, they were insignificant.

Yet the reward for this mission also seemed... insignificant in front of these three boxes of jewels.

The same tactic couldn't possibly work a second time, but alas, the opponent was using a super cannon; there was no other way except to take it head-on.

"I have conditions," El-Melloi II quietly turned his head away. "The Rider and Caster class cards cannot be rented to you. The remaining three can be lent to you, but we must be present during battles with the Servants. If you sneak off to challenge them, even if I these three boxes of jewels… No, I will take back the class cards from your hands."

"Okay, no problem!" Tohsaka Rin jumped up and directly grabbed Illya. "Illya, you have a tough training session tomorrow! You must master these class cards!"

"Eh... eh eh eh! But tomorrow is the weekend!"