Chapter 248 - Perhaps...

Simultaneously, Drako had a feeling of satisfaction that he hadn't felt for many months.

The training he had with the three Servants were nothing more than pieces of training. They could not be compared to real fights.

If Drako remembered correctly... Was Ladon the last one to make him feel this way?

This feeling... Drako couldn't forget it.

The feeling that he could be killed at any moment.

Diarmuid was really talented, a Servant worthy of putting Artoria through a lot of trouble in the show.

Drako thought that he shouldn't have much trouble facing Diarmuid if he concentrated on the Gae Dearg.

However, Drako had underestimated the abilities of this Servant.

With a Strength inferior to Drako's defense, Lancer should not be able to harm Drako. However, this could only be considered if Lancer fought with his fists.

His Noble Phantasms were both rank B, so they could certainly get through Drako's skin. But, with the armor he was carrying right now, Gae Buidhe was utterly useless.

With the armor covering all of Drako's body except his face, Gae Buidhe was destined to fail. Despite being a Noble Phantasm of rank B, it could not pass through Drako's armor.

Too bad Drako still didn't have the strength to extend the armor all the way, creating a helmet to cover his face as well. This way, he wouldn't even have to worry about surprise attacks from the back of an Archer or an Assassin.

Still, he could not easily penetrate Lancer's defenses.

"What's the matter, kid? Although I must say I'm surprised at your strength, your attacks don't seem to be working."

Drako did not return Lancer's provocations. He frowned as he thought about how to overcome the barrier in front of him.

With the long spear, Lancer defended himself against any attack Drako tried to use. In one battle, the spear had the advantage over the sword because of the difference in size, and Diarmuid had two spears. Although Gae Buidhe was only a short spear, the same size as an ordinary sword, he was still a danger to Drako.

The effect of Gae Buidhe was to reduce the maximum HP of a target, and this was something that Drako wanted to avoid. Although Drako knew that this weapon could not pierce his armor, his face was still exposed. It wasn't as if he could really ignore the spear altogether.

Without waiting for Drako's response, Lancer brandished the spear in his right hand (Gae Dearg, the long spear) and ran straight at him. Lancer held the spear in his right hand and approached Drako, running directly. The swinging edge covered a wide area; its strength and speed equaled that which could be reached with two hands. No, precisely because it was used with one hand, there were many movements that were not possible when a spear was used conventionally with both hands could be shown when it was wielded with only one hand.

However, a spear has its own limitations. Given its length, it would inevitably show an opening between two attacks. During this time, the shorter spear on the left could continue and make Drako uncomfortable.

But, Drako already knew this pattern.

He had seen it countless times in the anime. The fight between Artoria and Diarmuid was some of the best-animated battle choreography ever seen. Drako, as a good FATE fan, had seen it countless times.

Right now, Drako was in a position not too different from Artoria's. However, there were a couple of details that differed between the two.

In the original battle, Artoria was unaware of Diarmuid's Noble Phantasm, and Lancer was unaware of the length of the Saber-class Servant sword.

However, in this battle, both opponents knew these details.

But, since both knew the details of their opponent, the battle was also close to a stalemate.

The problem was that even knowing the pattern of Diarmuid's attack, Drako could not advance carelessly. A single mistake, and he would pay dearly for it.

Lancer is strong!

That was Drako's honest assessment.

It wasn't like the battle he had with Ladon. Back then, both dragons were fighting to see who could last the longest in receiving attacks without dying. However, the current fight could be decided with one move.

If Lancer pierced Drako's heart or cut off his head, there was no doubt that he would die.

The same could be said for Lancer. If Drako managed to land a blow, Lancer would die.

But Drako wasn't the only one evaluating his opponent.

How can he fool this kid?

Diarmuid had already observed that the boy's speed was not less than his own, and he could not gain a real advantage in battle despite carrying two spears. Find authorized novels in , faster updates, better experience, Please click <a href="#!_15693570606776305/perhaps..._52370411899372843">#!_15693570606776305/perhaps..._52370411899372843</a> for visiting.

He had already tried several times to trick Drako with Gae Dearg, so that he could use Gae Buidhe to deliver a deadly blow to the boy. However, whenever he tried this, it seemed that the boy was willing to go all out for a counterattack. He practically ignored Gae Buidhe.

The boy was confident that this armor would protect him from Gae Buidhe. But where did that confidence come from?

No matter what, Lancer had this feeling of constant danger. There was no doubt that, if the boy made one impact, he was going to die.

This kid is strong!

…

The murderous intention that both emitted created an overwhelming pressure that made it difficult for people with high magical abilities like Irisviel, or the rest of the people who watched the battle from the shadows, to breathe.

"I understand that Lancer has such a killing intent, but how can your Master show something like that, being a person who was born in these peaceful years?"

Artoria was curious about this person, so she took this opportunity to ask Mordred.

"Huh, you don't understand anything about Master," Mordred said proudly. "Master's strength is the result of having wiped out all his enemies. When I knew him, he was even weaker than your false Master."

Mordred nodded to Irisviel, pointing out that Drako was even weaker than she was back then.

Compared to the young man who could maintain Lancer's speed and fight on the same level as a Servant, both Artoria and Irisviel could not believe how someone so strong could be so weak.

"How long have you been summoned?"

Artoria did not hesitate to ask Mordred.

Perhaps because of the connection between the two, she had no problem in talking frankly with Mordred, even though it was her daughter who took her life.

"Hmm," Mordred thought about it and began to recount internally. "If I'm not mistaken, I think it's been about four years."

"I see..." Artoria nodded her head. "You have grown a lot during this time. Good job."

Artoria was thinking of the Mordred who had always looked at her with hatred since a certain incident. Many times, she did not even bother to hide the hostility she felt toward Artoria.

Artoria couldn't have a decent conversation with Mordred in those days.

Perhaps it was Artoria's inability to understand people's hearts, and therefore her inability to communicate with her subordinates by showing any emotion had put a barrier between her and Mordred.

Perhaps, if things had been spoken of calmly at that time...

But, one could not go back in time.

Looking at today's Mordred... Artoria could hardly recognize the one who at one time was his subordinate.

Her explosive character remained intact, but she seemed much calmer than before. She no longer showed hostility and hatred as before, even though it was obvious that Artoria was not to Mordred's liking.

Without a doubt, Mordred had grown up a lot.

Four years...

Artoria knew Mordred's history well.

When Mordred introduced herself to Artoria as her "son", only nine years had passed since Morgan had taken Artoria's s.e.m.e.n. However, a sixteen-year-old girl with a face identical to her had been shown in front of her.

Perhaps, if Artoria had treated Mordred differently...

Artoria understood this later, when Merlin explained to her that homunculi were growing much faster than humans.

That meant that Mordred was now 13 years old.

Perhaps, if Artoria had given Mordred more time to mature.

No, it didn't make sense to keep thinking about possible futures that could have prevented the tragedy.

Artoria would have thought more about that when she got the Holy Grail.

At least, she now knew that she had more options to save Britain than the sword in the stone test.