"Ugh..."
Gordes clenched his teeth as he watched the deadly duel between the Black Saber and the Red Lancer. He couldn't find an opportunity to use magecraft, and the opposing Master seemed to be absent.
What frustrated him the most was that the Black Saber couldn't secure a victory. Siegfried, the valiant hero, was undoubtedly the strongest Saber. He was a hero who feared no attacks below B-rank.
Yet, even such a Saber couldn't completely fend off the Red Lancer's attacks.
No, he had to think of something—
Gordes wiped the sweat from his forehead, first looking at the standing Ruler, then at the Assassin sitting carelessly beside her.
He ultimately decided to speak to the Ruler: "Ruler, I am Gordes Musik Yggdmillennia, the Master of Black Saber in this Holy Grail War."
"Ruler, true name Jeanne d'Arc," Jeanne responded in a clear voice, maintaining a meticulous stance.
"Oh, it's the famous Saint Jeanne d'Arc. I apologize for my rudeness. Merciful and just saint, please follow the rules of the Holy Grail War and punish those who break them and attempt to murder you."
Gordes made his request with feigned humility. To him, it was extremely foolish for the Black Assassin to face the Red Lancer alone. With a privileged Ruler present, not making good use of her was downright stupid.
Of course, the Ruler should accept this proposal. No, anyone with a bit of sense wouldn't refuse—Gordes was certain of it.
Unexpectedly, the Ruler shot Gold a sharp glance.
"I refuse!"
"Huh?"
Before Gordes could react, Shinji suddenly stood up from the ground and slapped his forehead.
"Enough, fatso. Stop wasting your efforts. If Ruler were willing to help, I wouldn't have been fighting the Red Lancer for so long. I'm not as dumb as you think."
This answer completely caught Gordes off guard, to the extent that he ignored Shinji's "disrespectful" gesture.
"Wh-why? The Red Lancer is trying to kill her."
"She believes she must remain neutral and shouldn't affect either side. The Red Lancer is targeting her alone, unrelated to the Black faction, so she won't team up with us to harm the Red faction. If she does anything, it will probably be after our battle ends."
"Indeed, I swear on my dignity as a summoned Ruler that I will not intervene in their fight," Jeanne declared resolutely.
Hearing this, Gordes muttered under his breath. He couldn't understand the Ruler's values at all. Someone was trying to harm her, yet she would wait until the fight ended.
"I originally wanted to at least get the Red Lancer's true name—"
"You don't need to ask Ruler; I can tell you."
"Huh? What is it?"
"Karna, one of the greatest heroes in ancient Indian mythology."
A hint of mockery appeared on Shinji's lips, and his gaze towards Goldes turned contemptuous.
"Karna? The Red Lancer is Karna? How can this be?" Goldes' confidence was severely shaken, his face full of disbelief.
"There's nothing impossible about it. Your Saber is indeed very strong, practically invincible in his era, but among Heroic Spirits, he's only top-tier, far from invincible. At the very least, Karna is his equal, if not stronger."
Gordes gaped, wanting to say something but not knowing what, until he finally stammered, "Have you guessed Saber's true name?"
"Of course, Saber and Karna have distinct characteristics and are highly recognizable."
Shinji lowered his voice to a whisper that only the two of them could hear.
"A Western appearance with a great sword, superhuman swordsmanship, dragon attributes, a body tough enough to withstand Karna's fierce attacks with just surface wounds, and your reluctance to reveal his true name—it's quite obvious, isn't it? Norse mythology—do I need to go on?"
"No, that's enough." Gordes shook his head, his swelling confidence now battered and deflated like a punctured balloon.
"Then let's continue discussing this battle. After accomplishing that great feat, Saber obtained an almost invincible body, which is his capital for trading wounds for distance. Karna has a similar legend: his father, Surya, granted him golden armor and earrings to protect him, which he now wears. It is said that even the gods found it hard to destroy. Karna, clad in golden armor, was nearly invincible, and his death came only because Indra deceived him into giving up his armor. The term 'invincible' might be an exaggeration, but based on my observations, that golden armor reduces all damage to one-fifth, no, one-tenth. That's why I said we can't kill him today."
Noble Phantasm: Kavacha & Kundala, Rank A.
Integrated with Karna's body, this powerful defensive Noble Phantasm emits the radiance of the sun. It reduces all hostile interference (physical attacks, magic, curses, etc.) to one-tenth of the damage for Karna. In normal combat, any damage taken can be healed through self-recovery. Even a direct hit from an A+ rank Anti-Army Noble Phantasm won't hinder his actions.
Hearing the information Shinji disclosed, Gordes completely abandoned the idea of having Siegfried kill Karna. Only taking one-tenth of the damage—how unfair was that? In some ways, it was even more unfair than "Armor of Fafnir," which at least had a fatal weakness, whereas the golden armor did not.
The Mage's Association was indeed formidable, achieving this degree of protection within just a few days.
"Assassin, can you find the Master of the Red Lancer?"
"No sign of him. If I had found him, I would have eliminated him without you having to ask. He either didn't come or retreated immediately upon sensing the presence of the Black Saber."
This was said for Gordes's benefit; Shinji had no intention of seeking out Karna's Master. He was certain Karna was acting alone.
"So, fatty, what do you plan to do? Continue a battle that is unlikely to yield results, or call it a day and escort Ruler to retreat?"
I—
I—
I—
Despite the two Servants fighting, as a Master, he could do nothing—frozen by the overwhelming pressure from the two warriors. He felt a deep frustration towards his foolishness.
This sense of helplessness evoked long-forgotten feelings of shame and disgrace in Gordes.
Again, in this situation, again those look, just like the aloof nobles of the Mage's Association.
The Black Saber, the Red Lancer, even the Ruler hadn't looked at him once. The only one willing to speak was the Assassin, with nothing but sarcasm, devoid of any Servant's respect!
I must do something.
I must obtain the power to do something.
Yes, that power is in my hand.
Gordes looked at his right hand. There, indeed, was the mark of a Master. The Command Seals, a bond between Master and Servant etched with immense magical power—
That's right. By using this Command Seal, I can easily bring that Servant under control. A Servant is not a hero, but merely a puppet; this must not be forgotten.
Allowing the Servant to fight while standing by is unacceptable. As a Master, shouldn't I use magical means and calm judgment to guide this battle to victory?
Gordes' changing expression did not escape Shinji's notice, and he felt an urge to slap some sense into him.
'This guy still doesn't have a correct understanding of the Holy Grail War and the Master-Servant contract. He wants to use the Command Seal at the first sign of trouble—he needs a good education!'