I don't want to be a heroic spirit

"Ugh……"

Suddenly, Mordred's eyes widened in disbelief.

The one who sighed was naturally Altria.

Then, a warm, faint golden light emanated from Altria's body and sprinkled on Mordred.

It was also at this time that Mordred saw the emotions in Altria's eyes.

There is no burning anger, no pervasive resentment, only clarity and calmness like the water of a lake on a summer night.

why?

"I told you, I never resented you."

As if she had heard Mordred's thoughts, Altria spoke softly.

"Whether you're a rebellious knight or the daughter of the princess, I never cared... I've always considered you my most capable knight."

You are talking nonsense!

Mordred tried to protest, but ended up coughing up more blood.

"I'm not lying, Mordred. I've already said it." Looking down at Mordred, Altria calmly repeated the words that had been like a nightmare to Mordred. "The reason I didn't pass the throne to you is for no other reason than... you don't have the talent to be a king."

"!!!"

Lying on the ground, Mordred's body began to tremble slightly.

Blood oozed from the corner of her mouth...not just the blood she coughed up, but also the blood that flowed out from when she bit her own lip.

"A... Se...!!"

How long are you going to humiliate me?!

Kill me!

If you hate me so much, just... chop off my head and hang it on the city gate!

Stop humiliating me like this!!

That's right, in Mordred's opinion, Altria was humiliating her.

He had clearly beaten her severely, but he didn't kill her immediately. He held back at every turn, just to humiliate her with words at this moment, to trample on her dignity, everything she had, along with her blood and dirt.

Just like when Mordred destroyed Altria's country, Altria wanted to take revenge on her in the same way.

However, even though Mordred's vicious eyes stared at her and her skin was licked by the resentful flames, Altria remained calm.

But her next words made Mordred completely forget his struggle and anger, and his brain went blank as if struck by lightning.

Artoria looked up at the sky, then lowered her eyes slightly, and complex emotions finally emerged in her tone. The beautiful sound, like wind chimes played by the breeze, seemed to come from where the wind blew, and was carried by the wind to a place farther than time.

"And I, like you, perhaps... lack the talent (magnanimity) to be a king."

The wind seemed to be silent at this moment.

The night sky was quiet. The thick clouds had long been blown away by the strong wind caused by the battle between the two men, revealing the bright stars.

Chapter 197: Longing is the emotion farthest from understanding

Mordred lay on the ground, his brain in a state of paralysis.

I couldn't even feel the pain in my body.

Who am I? Where am I? What did my father just say?

Obviously, the amount of information in Altria's words just now was too much, and Mordred's little head was directly overloaded.

Although Mordred was a rebellious knight, he was the direct cause of the destruction of Great Britain.

But in fact, she respected and loved King Arthur immensely. If someone dared to speak ill of King Arthur, King Arthur himself might not do anything, but Modred would definitely make you regret being born into this world.

What's the saying? There are only Wang chefs and twisted Wang chefs in this world.

Some people even think that Morgan is also a royal chef. The reason why she goes against Artoria is not because Morgan thinks Artoria has taken away the power that should belong to her, but because she, like Merlin, has seen the end of Artoria, so she plans to "break" Artoria and then force her to stay by her side to protect her.

If anyone else said, "King Arthur has no talent to be a king," Mordred would definitely fight to the death with that person.

However, the person who said this was Altria herself, so Mordred didn't know what to do for a moment.

However, Mordred's distraction also made it easier for Altria to continue her story.

"I believe that the king's duty is to carry the aspirations of all the people, to lead the country towards prosperity and peace, and to guide the people towards that ideal vision."

"But...I didn't fulfill that duty."

Those beautiful emerald eyes were covered with sadness as Artoria spoke softly.

"The moment I drew the sword of the Kingchooser, Merlin told me... This country is doomed to destruction. This is the fate of this country and it cannot be changed."

"I chose to become king after knowing my fate clearly. Since fate cannot be changed, I can only choose to accept it."

"As a king, I accept the fate of my country and my own destruction... Because I am the king, and as long as the flame of my life is not extinguished, I have the duty and obligation to protect it."

"But you are different, Mordred..."

Mordred's eyes widened, his gaze filled with uncertainty.

She saw her own reflection in Altria's eyes.

"You, Gawain, Lancelot, Agrawen... you are not kings. You don't need to bear the responsibilities of a king, and you don't need to perish with this country. You can have your own future and choose your own path."

"Whether it's adventuring in a place I've never been, or finding a wiser monarch to serve, or even just finding an ordinary partner, working hard for life, growing old, and dying, it's not bad..."

At this moment, Mordred was so shocked by what Altria said that he was completely speechless.

"Of course, if you possess the talent to be a king, abilities that surpass mine, and can lead this country to true prosperity and avoid destruction... I will hand over the throne to you without hesitation."

"However, unfortunately... you didn't."

"That's why I can't pass the throne to you, because you don't have the qualities to be a king."

Again.

The words, her obsession, that had been seared into her soul, her being, like a nightmare for countless years past.

However, when I heard it again at this moment, I felt that everything was different.

Because at this moment, Mordred finally understood the true meaning of this sentence.

Her beloved father, the king, never resented her or looked down on her because of her identity.

On the contrary, she has always been concerned about herself and her future.

Being stared at by those beautiful eyes, Mordred actually felt like crying.

Ah...such beautiful, such gentle eyes.

why why……

Why...I haven't noticed the tenderness in it for so long...

Mordred had always been furious that Altria had never looked her in the face.

However, perhaps the person who really didn't look the other person in the eye was Mordred himself.

Even though I have always been closest to the other person, I still have never understood his or her true intentions.

If only she could see it clearly earlier.

Will fate...will it change?

…………

Seeing that the place had calmed down, the Lion Jie Jie Li, who had been hiding for a long time, finally came out.

"That was close, I thought I was going to die..."

Lion Jiejieli's face was filled with lingering fear.

It would be fine if he died on the battlefield, but this... seems like a family dispute, right?

Although a family dispute that can destroy a city in an instant is also outrageous.

It was still easy to see Altria and the others. After all, the surrounding areas were razed to the ground, and there was almost nothing left except the obvious huge pit in the center.

Those who were buried here before can only say that they were unlucky, as they are still restless after death.

Since Lion Jie Jieli can see Artoria, then Artoria naturally saw him earlier than him.

Moreover, if Altria had not told Lion Jie Jie Li that the matter had been resolved, Lion Jie Jie Li might have continued to hide for a while.

This cannot be blamed on him. The battle broke out so suddenly. If he did not have a strong sense of crisis, he might have followed in the footsteps of the corpses buried here.

"Ah, is it resolved?"

"It should be... resolved, right? At least the misunderstanding between Mordred and I is resolved."

Altria's tone was very calm, which made Shizijieli feel very rare.

After all, it seemed that none of the servants he had met were easy to get along with... although he had not met that many servants.

Mordred counts as one, and the Assassin from the priest counts as another.

"I'm sorry that the matter between Mordred and I has caused you a lot of trouble."

"No, no, I am Saber's Master after all. I can't stay out of this."

Altria's politeness made Lion Jiejieli a little difficult to deal with, especially since the identity of the person in front of him was very unusual, which made him a little flattered.

"But..." Shishi Jiejie looked around and asked in confusion, "Why are you alone? Where's Saber? Where did she go?"

"..."

This should have been a very normal question, at least that's what Lion Jie Jieli thought, but after hearing this question, Artoria showed a troubled expression.

This expression shocked Lion Jiejieli and he had a bad guess in his mind.

"Could it be that……"

"No, Mordred is fine. You should still be able to feel the connection with her, right? She hasn't left yet." Artoria explained, "Although she was injured, Mordred is a Servant. For a Servant, those injuries can be recovered quickly as long as there is enough magic power."

"But she's not here right now because...she doesn't know how to face me yet."

Chapter 198 Give Each Other Some Time to Accept Each Other (19/31)

Although the misunderstanding was resolved, the relationship between Mordred and Altria at this moment was...how should I put it, it was awkward.

Although Artoria said that she had never resented Mordred, and that the destruction of Great Britain was caused by many factors, no matter what, Mordred was the direct cause of the destruction of Great Britain.

Artoria's tolerance towards Mordred made it even more unacceptable to Mordred himself, just like Lancelot.

If Artoria had punished Lancelot back then, Lancelot might have felt better, but Artoria chose to forgive him, which caused Lancelot to continue to be tormented by guilt. This is how Lancelot of the Berserker class was born.

Moreover, Modred regards the destruction of King Arthur as her mission and is known to the world as the "Rebellious Knight". Her purpose in participating in this Holy Grail War is to use the Holy Grail to return to Artoria before she pulls out the Sword of the King, and become king in her place.

But now, after the misunderstanding was resolved... it seemed that those things were no longer important, and she suddenly didn't know what to do.

Similarly, Artoria didn't know how to get along with Mordred.

God have mercy on me. The reason why Mordred felt that he was not valued by his father was actually because of Artoria.

Although Artoria was already married, Guinevere, whom she married, was also a woman. The nature of her marriage to Guinevere was more of a political marriage, and they had no sexual intercourse at all.

After all, two girls shouldn't be able to experience sex, right? Wait a minute? So Mordred is her and Sister Morgan's child? I wonder how Morgan managed it.

In short, when Mordred later admitted that he was actually the descendant of King Arthur, Artoria was immediately confused.

It wasn't that she had any grudge against Mordred's identity as "Morgan's child", she was just... a little at a loss.

You can't blame her for this, right? If a child who looks exactly like you suddenly runs up to you and claims she's your child, anyone would be terrified, right?

For a while, Altria actually avoided Mordred because she had not yet figured out how to get along with her so-called "only child"... and he was such a grown-up child.

Even if it was a little baby, at least it could establish the identity of "mother" or "father" during the process of raising. But you are so big when you got it, which caught me off guard!

Later, a conflict broke out, and Mordred and Altria became enemies. In the end, they both died in the Battle of Camlan. This misunderstanding was not resolved until the death of both of them.

Now that the misunderstanding has been resolved, the problem that was originally forgotten has reappeared.

But this time, Artoria could no longer escape. After all, the series of problems caused by the last escape were too serious.

The last time she escaped, she had lost Great Britain. This time, she couldn't let Chaldea die again, could she?