Chapter 20 - Inheritors and Progenitors

Chapter 20 – Inheritors and Progenitors

"Sensei?"

An awkward silence echoed across the battlefield, but it was soon broken by a hearty laugh.

"HAHAHA! You never cease to amaze me Issei! You called her sensei, so I should assume you just summoned your own teacher here." Even tears started to form in his eyes.

His subordinates also started to grin, but didn't really make too much of a noise.

"Issei? What's the meaning of this?"

(Rule number three of Ciel's deceitful techniques, feign ignorance and go from there...)

Needless to say, she has corrupted her personality. For the better or worse it was still to be decided.

"Uh. Sensei I can explain-"

"HAHA! Issei, is that what you want? Do you wish for me to kill her and anger you to the point of powering up. I didn't know you had this kind of thought. I must praise you, well done!"

"Issei?"

"No, Sensei, it really isn't like that." He pleaded desperately, and was on the brink of tears.

"Issei, although I applaud you for your interesting battle plans, I can only confess that it was only teasing. My real praise for you is bringing someone-"

Suddenly, his spear extended in the blink of an eye and went straight towards her head to which she just tipped her head to the right.

The blow only hit air.

Issei was completely and utterly shocked by the change in temperament.

"-interesting." Secretly on guard, he smiled and looked at the new figure deeply.

He expected her to be somewhat alarmed and surprised by this sudden provocation, at least on the inside, since real warriors don't let their emotions show on their face.

He was actually right, for Artoria was panicking inside, but not for the reasons Cao Cao thought.

(What do I do?... They're not leaving me alone like I thought they would. Now I have to fight back for my pride but I don't want to mess in things I shouldn't. Arghhh...)

"Siegfried."

"I was waiting for the call." A happy and elated looking Siegfried jumped forward, still wielding 6 swords.

At a speed incomprehensible to an average human's eye, he dashed forward right in front of Artoria.

"Sorry girl but it will be over soon."

To his complete shock, for some reason the strike was blocked.

(A shield? No, it doesn't feel like it. Maybe a weapon...)

Figuring it out, he didn't have a choice but to put two swords forward and block according his instincts, and it indeed saved him. The force blew Siegfried back multiple steps.

After stabilizing himself, he squinted his eyes at her, "you're more trouble than I thought huh. My name's Siegfried. This beloved sword in my hand is Gram, otherwise known as the Demonic Emperor Sword. This one is Durandal, and Balmung, Nothung, Tyrfing and Dainsleif." He began introducing himself and his swords, which would only be done to worthy opponents, at least in his eyes.

However, he soon frowned when the reply he was expecting did not happen. "Are you truly a knight? It is etiquette to return the name."

"Oh... I apologise." The truth was, she was pondering about what to do. Causing trouble basically meant more clean up work to do. Without taking her sight of Siegfried, her senses focused on Issei for a second, and after realising he was in an idiotic daze she then began to concentrate her stance. However, her clothes were rather informal for this occasion. A black hoodie, joggers and trainers. Probably not suitable.

(Hmmm... What would they do? Oh wait, I almost forgot for a second that those two are literal Gods, after all they did rewind time and manipulate some people's memories. Especially after those four weirdos who came for a fight that day. I'll just deal with the current situation and ask either to fix it. That ability sure is convenient...)

Relying on others... perhaps this was the final mental barrier that she placed upon herself.

"I apologise for my previous misconduct. My name is Artoria Pendragon."

Silent gasps were made across the people there.

"Artoria Pendragon? The Pendragon family? Are you related to them?"

"I thought questioning identities was not part of the knight code. But I will still answer your question. My name is indeed Artoria Pendragon, the king of the British empire. The ones you see now are merely copies that have inherited my bloodline."

Her aura then turned serious.

"Although I am glad that my bloodline survived until this day, I can't help but feel annoyed. What happened? Why are all things different now? Your sword Gram, it was a divine mystic code created by the fairies of the lake to balance good and evil, yet the one you wield is so much weaker than the original.

And you, I can confidently tell you that the real true Siegfried would never stoop so low as to join some illegal human syndicate. Your names don't match to your legend, and it disgusts me to an extent."

"Oh really? Are you saying that you are the one from centuries ago, and you weren't a male but female? How is that possible?"

"I do not have to answer that."

"I will make you then."

"Try it."

It had been a while since Siegfried had been insulted like this, and he didn't like it. Still having enough composure left, after taking a quick glance at Cao Cao who was just standing there obviously refusing to help, he once again rushed towards Artoria.

But instead of just intending to use one sword, all six were prepared.

Having been trained in the art of swordsmanship, his technique can be considered quite accurate and precise.

Each swings drew arcs in the air, as the swords rained down upon Artoria, who was still standing in the exact same place.

She defended against the onslaught by simply... swinging her own sword with one hand.

Much to everyone's shock for the nth time today, compared to the maniac like behaviour and attacks of Siegfried, Artoria successfully defended against every one of his tricks calmly. All the while unmoving from her place. It didn't even require her to use her other arm and wield with both hands.

Just one was enough.

One might think that they were acting, apart from the fact that there were constantly indents being left into the solid ground, just from the sheer immense condensed strength of the shockwave.

She swung her invisible sword at a godly speed and parried everything.

He got increasingly annoyed and impatient, until after a full minute, he finally snapped.

His eyes turned blood red, and his technique became more wild.

He was now becoming more like a wild beast, struggling with all it's strength, but to no use.

(Sigh. Even though I expected this, I still didn't want it to happen.) She thought to herself.

He suddenly stopped, before all six of his arms were severed. Pausing from the bombardment he was giving, he gave a look of fear as he looked at Artoria, who looked like she didn't even move. If it wasn't for the fact that he could recognize one drop of his fresh blood on her face.

"You are not him, you were never him, and you will never be him. After all, the Siegfried I knew would never lose composure. As I thought, the times have really changed. I was naïve to think that perhaps my old friends would have survived after all."

He only heard the first half of her sentence, before the blood lost from the two fresh cuts exceeded his tolerance level, and he collapsed onto the floor.

Artoria then stomped onto the ground a couple metres in front of the body, and a wave a earth gently carried the body to Cao Cao, who stood there motionless.

The body stopped in front of him, but not the earth. It continued to travel in the directions of his other subordinates.

It then formed a formidable wall of material, and even though they tried their absolute best to destroy it, it was of no use and they soon fell, defeated by a stomp of the foot by the opponent.

(She didn't even try...)

Cao Cao on the other hand, was crystal-clear at what he should do in this situation.

His goal has always been to achieve the pinnacle of humanity. To be able to defeat Great Red, the Dragon of Dreams who lingered in the dimensional gap.

Now with such a powerful opponent, human no less, his blood began to boil and his grip on his spear became tighter.

She then spoke, "you should have the means to heal him right? Despite what I said, it is no doubt a fact that he is an inheritor of Siegfried. I wouldn't want him to die."

Nodding, he dropped a few drops of a liquid called phoenix tears onto him, before his arms began to regenerate at a visible rate.

"My name is Cao Cao. I am a descendant of Cao Cao from the Three Kingdoms era and the leader of the Khaos Brigade's Hero Faction. Perhaps if who you identify yourself as is true, then you may also see me as an inferior copycat, and perhaps I am. But I will still be brave enough to put up a challenge in front of you."

"I acknowledge your bravery." She nodded in appreciation and respect, "I did not know Cao Cao personally, since we lived in two separate worlds, but his legends are not foreign to me. I hope you are able to live up to his name."

A golden light shone on her, and the once dark sky seemed to have a hole in it, in which sunlight bathed Artoria.

Her clothes then changed to a blue and silver armour, with plates that although look inconvenient did not affect her movement at all.

But the most attractive feature was the sword in her hands.

(Is that the true Excalibur?)

"HAHAHA! I believe you now. Perhaps you are the real true Pendragon. That sword has an aura of holiness and strength that cannot be compared to. I now believe that the ones owned by the church are just a toned down version. They pale in comparison.

He offered his genuine praise, as the light in his eyes became brighter.

His will to fight became stronger.

"I will also go all out at the start." He announced as a similar light fell onto him.

Unlike Artoria's, which was full of holiness and righteousness , Cao Cao's felt more gentle and mysterious.

"This spear is my treasured weapon. It is the true Longinus, the very one that St. Longinus used to pierce Jesus Christ."

Then, seven identical orbs appeared behind him.

This was the indication of the start of the battle...