Hearing Shinji's answer, Mordred was struck by lightning. She stood there in a daze and even forgot that Shinji called her an idiot.
"You, how did you know?"
Well, that's like admitting that I was right. As expected, the Knights of the Round Table are a group of kingly chefs, and the twelve people in the first sequence are all hopeless chefs.
Shinji complained in his mind and said casually: "Because I am also a king chef, and I have met other king chefs, so I can better understand your thoughts."
"Chef Wang, what do you mean?"
"The so-called fan is someone who likes the king. A king fan is someone who likes the king. In a certain circle that studies the legend of King Arthur, your Knights of the Round Table are called the Knights of the King's Fan."
"King's Kitchen, how can I like something like that? I don't know about those guys, but I am a rebellious knight. I hate King Arthur the most."
Mordred pretended to grit her teeth, but anyone could tell from her stiff expression and trembling voice that she was lying.
Her master, Lion Jiejie, covered his face with his hands to show that he couldn't bear to watch.
Shinji couldn't bear to watch it, so he chose not to watch it and turned to look at Altria, although the latter's expression was not much better than Mordred's.
She had always thought that Mordred loathed her and hated her, but now—King Arthur's natural brain could no longer comprehend the current situation and entered shutdown mode.
"Hey, Artoria, Mordred said so, why don't you express your opinion?"
"She, she, I, I—" Altria stammered and ultimately said nothing.
"I can't do anything about you. Fiore, prepare a room for them later so they can have a good talk."
"No, no, we have nothing to talk about, um, nothing. I have something to do later, so I'm leaving now, Master, please leave now."
Having said that, Mordred grabbed Lion Robbery's arm and was about to walk out.
Before I took two steps, I heard Shinji say.
"Is it really okay to escape like this?"
"I, I didn't run away." Mordred avoided the gaze.
"Okay, I'll assume so for now, but I have one thing to remind you - after I finish the surgery on Fiore, I'll go to fight Amakusa Shiro Tokisada. As my Servant and observer of the Suppression Force, Artoria will definitely go with me. No one knows what the result of this trip will be. It's hard to say whether Artoria will respond to the call in the future. Maybe this is the last time you meet. Do you really not want to make things clear?"
"I..." Mordred wavered.
Shinji saw this and leaned over to Mordred's ear and added fuel to the fire.
"Altria is no longer a king. She doesn't need to suppress her emotions. Do you understand? It's hard to say whether she is King Arthur's heir or not, but I don't think she will deny the fact that she is Altria's child. Don't you want to throw yourself into her arms and act like a spoiled child like other children do?"
Mordred's face instantly turned red: "No, I don't want to."
"Really?"
"In no mood."
"Can you say that again?"
"I...I promised to talk to her, okay?"
"Okay, that's it. Remember, be frank and don't hide anything if you don't want to regret it."
"You're so annoying when you keep talking so much." Mordred muttered softly but did not refute.
"Thank you, Matou Shinji." Shishi Jie thanked on behalf of his servant.
"I just don't want to have any regrets."
For Altria, for Mordred, and for myself as the king's chef.
"If you really want to thank me, make a deal with me."
"What deal?"
"I know you have a precious specimen in your hand. I need you to use it to make three serums. In return, I will help you remove the curse."
"How do you know everything? You don't have the ability to predict the future."
The specimen that Shinji was referring to was the Hydra hatchling that Lion Jie obtained from Belfebon, the head of the Summoning Department. Only the two people involved knew about this, so Lion Jie was so surprised.
"If I could predict the future, how could I be so miserable?"
"Yes. I agree to the deal, but I need a day."
"Okay, once you've made the serum, I'll help you remove the curse."
"No need, the curse doesn't matter anymore."
Shishi Jie's choice obviously took Shinji by surprise.
"Huh? Why? If I remember correctly, this curse will make you..."
"I am well aware of the effects of the curse."
"Then you still..."
"This is the price I should pay, and it is also the price the Lion Tribulation Clan should pay."
"I respect your choice, but in this case, the reward will be—"
"No payment is required."
The eyes hidden behind the sunglasses swept over Mordred, and the uneasiness on the girl's face made Lion Jie smile a little more.
"Unless you can resurrect the dead, in which case I'll be willing to pay you any price you ask."
"I don't have that ability." Shinji smiled bitterly and shook his head. "Even if it's the Holy Grail, it can only save souls that haven't dissipated yet. Once they dissipate, there's no hope for them."
"It is true. Resurrecting the dead is just wishful thinking after all."
Shizijie took out a cigar and lit it silently, but did not put it to his lips. He just watched the wisps of smoke change quietly. In his mind, a series of long-lasting, almost moldy scenes and a lovely face that never faded appeared again.
In the island country in the far east, the place where the people who called themselves Lion Robbery moved to was a cold land that was covered by rain or snow almost all year round. There were only a few sunny days in the summer, and most of the days were covered by a large area of dark gray clouds.
It was a desolate place, as if just surviving would take all one's strength.
Even though they are magicians, they still need to obtain food to survive. This is especially true for magicians who have fallen into poverty. Therefore, they must start by winning the trust of the natives with boring curses that are barely even magic.
"It's not too late, it's not too late, it's not too late."
What's too late? You're already finished. You've reached the end helplessly. The seals have begun to fade, and the power has dropped to less than 10% of its heyday. With the change of generations, the magic circuits have become weaker and weaker. I'm afraid that before long you will become just an ordinary person who "knows magic".
Insult, humiliation, humiliation. For a magician, this is the ending that must be avoided at all costs. It is not dying in the challenge of understanding the abyss, nor is it dying in the tragic magic war. It is simply becoming a meaningless existence, the worst ending.
No, that's not okay. That's absolutely not okay. No, no, no.
He threw a tantrum like a child, desperately seeking help from the magicians he knew. They had been so kind to him during his heyday, but now, without exception, they showed him a mocking and contemptuous attitude.
"You are such a poor family. You are finished."
"How else can we help someone whose magic circuit is about to die?"
"It's a sad thing, but this is the fate of a magician. No matter how many letters you send, your wish will never come true."
"In the end, it was not the magician they knew who fulfilled their wish. Instead, they made a magical contract with an unknown evil spirit.
"Well, while I can guarantee your prosperity—"
"That guy" said with a happy laugh.
"But this is just an advance payment. You are destined to cut off everything in an instant in the future, right?"
Even if that happens, it doesn't matter. The family has made a decision. Before that moment comes, they must try to conquer this kind of magic. There are many ways to do it. Even if they can't do it, they can still pass it on to their descendants. One day in the future -
Perhaps there is also prejudice and contempt for the magic of the borderlands. Their magic is very primitive and crude, which is far from their aesthetic standards.
But on the other hand, the technique was so simple and strong that it could be described as beautiful. How shallow I was. Their clan began to inherit the knowledge, warned against the curse, and ordered their descendants to respond as quickly as possible.
The prosperous time is as beautiful as a dream. The thesis was accepted, and the Clock Tower accepted Lion Jie with an attitude of surprise. Although I don't know how it was done, it's really good, welcome -
Then, falling also happened in the blink of an eye.
It wasn't like rolling down a slope, it was like being pushed off a cliff. A miserable end? Not at all. This was something we had long been aware of - but it was like a sudden disaster for our descendants.
The departure of the Lion's Calamity is the beginning of the end. He has the most outstanding talent among the Lion's Calamity clan so far, surpassing his father and being the pride of the clan that has reached the deeper secrets of magic.
As soon as he reached childbearing age, he was forced to marry. The family, who had never forgotten the curse, always wanted to confirm whether they could give birth to a child as quickly as possible.
Then, the clan finally understood the fact that "it has already begun".
"No. Jie Li doesn't have the power to give birth to a child. Since there is nothing wrong with her body, this is undoubtedly the result of the curse. How could this happen? Is it finally going to start—"
First, they used various methods to try to see if they could have a child. They used various drugs, held rituals, mobilized all the connections they could, and invested huge amounts of money to have magicians who were good at healing help them diagnose.
In the end, all attempts resulted in a dismal outcome. The child was born, albeit only for a moment, but the child was indeed born. But no matter how many times the process was repeated, the child soon died. The child was constantly born, died, and disappeared.
He and his wife soon decided to divorce. She declared with a cold look:
"You are a great magician. You can even play with your own children."
She was right, Jie Li thought. Every child died the moment they were born - the responsibility was on me. No matter what I did, they still died one after another - it was the same as killing them myself.
But by this time, his wife's clan finally realized that the Lion Tribulation clan was facing decline, so they quickly decided to withdraw.
Jie Li and his wife were the best combination from a magic point of view. Therefore, the family always insisted that the child must be born by the two of them. But now that things have come to this, they can only decide to adopt someone else's child.
The Shizijie clan has no way out. In short, Shizijie Jieli must somehow pass on the magic seal to another child. Even if it is not a biological child but an adopted child, it doesn't matter.
Even at this point, they still didn't really understand the true nature of the "curse". The contract they made was to "give up magic the moment Shishi Jiejie was born".
Giving birth to a magician's child is impossible in itself.
Without realizing it, they took great pains to find a distant relative who was more adaptable. When they arranged the first meeting, Jie Li knew that she was afraid of him, and he was very frustrated.
In order to further improve his adaptability with the girl, Jie Li started living with her.
"If this happens, I can become a magician like my brother. I'm really happy—"
She said this with a smile. She was a weak, smart and well-behaved girl. Every time it rained or snowed, her physical condition would deteriorate. When she heard that she could become healthy by transplanting the seal, the girl smiled happily. However, she still had to maintain her unhealthy state before the transplant. Because there was no other way, Jie Li read books to relieve her boredom while she was bedridden.
"After becoming a magician, you won't read to me anymore. It's a pity—"
As she spoke, she lowered her head in frustration. Jie Li whispered to her, "As long as you recover, you can read any book you want by yourself." Seeing her puff up her cheeks and say "That's not what I meant," Jie Li finally realized that she actually wanted him to read to her.
I really can't do anything about you, so I'll keep reading until you get bored - after hearing Jie Li say this, the girl finally smiled again.
Whether before or after—
Jie Li had never experienced such a peaceful period in his life.
That kind of life,
One day, it disappeared without a trace as if by magic.
The body, which had turned purple, was cremated. Following local customs and more importantly because of concerns about polluting the land, the body was finally burned with fire. There were no tears, and there would never be any.
The one who had been turning a blind eye to the possibility that "something like this might happen" was undoubtedly Lion Jie himself.
Because I had the hope that "maybe it will work". Because my father and the people in my family said there would be no problem, I had the hope that "maybe it will really be okay".
These reasons are all lies. It is impossible to hold anyone responsible for this matter.
Because Shishi Jiejie wanted to be her father, it was this dream of his that tragically crushed the girl.
That was the truth, there was no other reason. Tears and apologies were no longer within reach.
Lion Jiejieli silently accepted everything that was cursed. He looked through books, thinking desperately as if he was going crazy, and in the end - he finally decided to accept this end.
The rest of his life was nothing more than throwing away his life. Even for a necromancer, the modern battlefield was still too dangerous.
He was not a magician, but close to a magician—no, it could be said that he was completely the same. But to him, all this was no longer important. It was like a man who realized that his death was approaching and was deliberately wasting the assets he had accumulated until now.
I don’t know whether to say that he was lucky as a thief, or that he had always resisted choosing death.
Half of the Lion Jie Li survived. As for the other half, they died the moment the girl died.
Whenever he bled and fell on the battlefield, he would recall it.
"Next time you wake up, you can call me father—"
Ah, he had committed the sin of "wanting the girl to call him that". It was painful, uncomfortable, and hard, and it would be much easier if he died - then, he clenched his hands, spat out a mouthful of blood foam, and stood up.
As time goes by, the soft shell has become as tough as steel, and the hands that wrote the thesis are also marked with countless scars.
Loot corpses, process them, compile rituals, earn money, and then squander it.
I am guilty.
Because of the sin, we have to live. So far, we have not found a way to atone for our sins.
At least you should experience a feeling that is almost like death.
And now, Shizi Jiejieli has encountered the Holy Grail. It was as if it was destined that he had encountered the Holy Grail.
It is impossible to resurrect the dead - this is what the magician's knowledge tells him.
The possibility is almost zero - the experience of fighting in countless battlefields tells me so.
But even so, there might be some new discoveries. With a half-abandoned mentality, suppressing the hope that was beginning to grow, the man reached out to the Holy Grail.
That's the only reason men seek the Holy Grail.
This is an extremely ordinary and boring story that can be found in countless similar stories in the world by simply changing the setting.
However, there is nothing false about this enthusiasm.
It was a very insignificant dignity as a magus that he himself was probably not aware of, and it was also a means of atonement that he had finally found. In the deepest part of his instinct, he had clearly understood this.
That is the place where Yi Yi Shi Jie Li is going to die.
But now, this last extravagant hope was shattered, and he had truly lost everything.
The man did not feel depressed because when his dream was shattered, he, like his partner, finally understood what he really wanted.
All he wanted was a girl with a thin and weak smile on her face. If that child could live and smile at him, that alone would satisfy him.
I was living a half-dead life just because I wanted to get her back. But her resurrection was absolutely impossible and it was an irreversible fact.
It is because of this that I am so reluctant to leave and live a wandering life.
It's better this way, cutting off all hope, carrying it all on my shoulders, and slowly moving towards the end of my life.
However, before that, there are still some things that can be done. As the Master of that troublesome guy, I can go crazy for this idiot who doesn't even have a correct understanding of his wishes.
When the cigar burned out, Lion Jie made a decision.
At least, I can't let that guy fall into the same irreversible situation as myself.