Fiore "stood" up—standing upright with both feet on the ground.
Don't misunderstand; she hasn't cured her leg condition. She can stand thanks to a metal support arm extending from her back. This arm keeps her body firmly fixed, more stable than human legs. Caules is the same; without another metal arm extending from his sister's back to support him, he would have fallen off the clock tower—or rather, he wouldn't have been able to climb up in the first place.
Chiron chose the observation point on the clock tower, a landmark building of Sighișoara, with a height of 64 meters, the tallest spot in the city. From there, he could overlook the entire city, but it also made him visible from any location in the city.
The group stood even higher than the highest balcony—at the very tip of the tower's spire, a narrow spot barely serving as a foothold.
Not mentioning Shinji, for whom, in his spiritual form, it was all the same. Fiore and Caules relied on special metal support arms, while Chiron stood purely on his own feet and balance.
"Let's start the operation," Fiore said, retracting the supporting metal arm, causing the siblings to fall toward the ground due to gravity.
"I'm off too. Black Lancer is very strong, please be careful, teacher." Shinji phased through the building, heading downward.
"Ah, I know she's very strong."
Even from such a distance, Chiron could feel the fierce and majestic fighting spirit, stirring a burning excitement deep within him.
He felt a strong urge to abandon everything and fight to his heart's content, surprising himself with this impulse.
It seems I am still not mature enough, or perhaps it's because I have manifested in a youthful form?
The great sage who had taught countless warriors couldn't help but smile wryly.
Using the metal arm to move through the air, Fiore had already caught the attention of Red Saber and Black Lancer, who both shifted their gaze simultaneously. But at that moment, Chiron's powerful, magic-laden arrows came face to face with Black Lancer's spear, resulting in a dazzling burst of sparks.
It was an unspoken declaration: Your opponent is me; do not get distracted.
Seeing her opponent switch from targeting both of them to focusing on herself alone, Black Lancer made her decision. She no longer looked at the falling Forvedge siblings or Red Saber rushing toward their landing point and directly attacked Archer.
◇◇◇
By the time Mordred recovered from Black Archer's strike, five seconds had passed. She quickly rushed to Kairi's side, not bothering to express her anger at the enemy.
"Master, are you alright?"
"Ugh, I'm fine." Kairi coughed twice, stretching his sore back from Artoria's hit. "Thanks, Black Lancer."
"No need to thank me—a duel between knights should not be interrupted." Artoria used the broad surface of her spear as a shield, deflecting the follow-up arrows.
Mordred, dissatisfied, smacked away a few tricky arrows with her sword. "Tch, I knew you would say that. You haven't changed a bit."
"I think you've changed a lot; you're more lively than before and less like a knight."
"Hmph, that's because you never paid attention to me or understood me."
"Yes, you're right." Artoria did not deny it. "I'm sorry. I didn't understand you and had no right to judge."
Such a candid apology left Mordred at a loss, stammering, "N-no, it's fine. I-I forgive you."
Kairi couldn't help but find Mordred's strong yet awkward attitude amusing, causing her to become indignant. Unable to unleash her iron fist/palm punishment due to the falling arrows, her anger towards Archer grew even stronger.
"Master, what should we do now?"
"Don't you already have an answer?"
Seeing Mordred's agitation, Kairi could only look on helplessly. However, he understood Mordred's feelings, as he felt the same way.
"Hey, Black Lancer, let's call a truce. We'll take care of the troublemakers first and then settle our fight."
"I have no objections."
Even though she could sense her Master in the clock tower, Artoria agreed to the alliance. Her Master had only given a warning and said nothing more, likely leaving the decision up to her. Thus, she acted according to her judgment.
"Then let's see who can capture Archer first!" Mordred was full of fighting spirit.
"You are injured," Artoria stated calmly.
"But I have two people on my side."
As she spoke, Mordred pulled out the arrow lodged in her arm, and Kairi immediately cast a healing spell.
"If you insist," Artoria said no more, and the "Invisible Air" flowed beneath her feet.
"Alright, let's have a long-overdue joint sortie, Father!" Red lightning enveloped Mordred's body, pushing her physical capabilities to a new height.
"What, Father? Black Lancer is... King Arthur?" Kairi was stunned.
"You didn't know?"
"You never mentioned it," Kairi replied instinctively.
However, it wasn't without any signs.
He had seen that spear in dreams. And earlier, Mordred had said, "I will become the King of Britain." "Whatever you can do, I can do too." And those unusual actions.
Besides the father she had been obsessed with all her life, no one else could have made her act this way.
Wait a minute, Father? But that voice isn't male…
He almost forgot that Mordred was also a woman. It wasn't surprising that King Arthur was a woman.
"Enough of that, let's deal with the enemy first. Go, Saber!"
"Okay!"
Hearing Kairi's words, Mordred immediately surged forward. She was like a human-shaped cannonball, flying toward the distant Archer.
Artoria also stepped forward. Though not as wild as Mordred, her speed was no less.
At that moment, Artoria and Mordred spotted two figures descending from above.
The father-daughter (or mother-daughter) pair exchanged a glance. Artoria naturally made a hand gesture, one that brought Mordred back to the days of following King Arthur into battle—a battlefield signal understood by all the Knights of the Round Table.
Fine, it's a rare opportunity; let's be a loyal knight for once.
After a brief hesitation, Mordred chose to follow her father's command, turning at the next intersection and charging toward the Forvedge siblings.
With her in action was Kairi, who had been dragged along by Mordred.