PLACES WE WONT WALK ⚜ solo

The morning light that broke through the cracks in her blinds had invaded their way into the room, thanks to a familiar Heroic Spirit opening them. The holy mage would groan as she felt the light shine onto her face. Arthur chuckled as he sat at the edge of her bed before speaking, "You really can't get up in the mornings no matter what, can you?" The Heroic Spirit's master placed her pillow over her head as Arthur laughed once again. It really felt like they were a pair of siblings. Maybe in another time, they could have been simple siblings that only really had to worry about school. But, they were both broken beyond repair and he needed to make sure that she was able to complete her mission before being able to die by her choice or live on carrying out good. Arthur wasn't able to experience the same sort of freedom however. He died before his mission ended which was to unify his nation under a common cause, but... he didn't remember how it all ended at the finale. Shaking his head, the Heroic Spirit would chuckle as he lifted the pillow that covered his Master's face as he recoiled for a moment in shock. She was over exerting herself. Normally, this wouldn't happen until a little bit later in her lifetime but it seemed to be taking effect sooner rather than later. The holy mage's formerly chestnut hair was now becoming a shade of blonde. It was due to the overwhelming presence of Arcadia in her soul. She continually was channeling it's energy and magic into her and it was making her soul that of a holy entity as opposed to a human. If she kept this up, she risked losing her humanity. But, just like a lot of things involving her magic, he couldn't tell her a lot of things. Athena made him make a vow in order to stay quiet. However, he couldn't hide the fact that her hair was changing to resemble the colour of the sun when viewed from Arcadia. It reminded him of her. It's been ages since he's heard her name. The most precious being in his life. "Am I really that captivating in the mornings?" The Heroic Spirit would be snapped out of his trance as the holy mage chuckled to herself, seeing the flustered reaction of her Spirit. He was beginning to act a lot more his age that he died. More of a young adult than a young irritating mentor. They were probably around the same age but he never acted her age until recently or at least she theorized they were around the same age. She never really asked.

The holy mage would be munching on some toast with an egg on it as Arthur was in the kitchen, preparing his own breakfast. Honestly, for a Heroic Spirit, he was odd because he was essentially human most of the time. He still had basic human needs such as sleep, food, water and all that jazz but she didn't know where the similarities end. Either way, she enjoys having a roommate basically that prepared her breakfast. But, shouldn't she be the one serving him? He was a king but she was a noblewoman. In the social hierarchy, she is beneath him and should be treating him like royalty. She chuckled as she grabbed her mug of coffee and crossed her legs. Nah, not possible. She was the Master here and needed to take advantage of this fact. He walked in with his plate as he caught her gaze being rather smug. His face hardened to an annoyed expression as he stated, "Sure are getting cocky, aren't you?" She gave him a smug expression again as she placed the coffee on the table while saying, "Of course. I am the Master after all." His irritated expression darkened as she challenged his glare. This was actually a rather new development as before now Lilium actually held a little bit of fear when talking to the Spirit. But she has grown a lot since she has met him. She's grown as a person and as a mage and could probably keep her own in a duel between the both of him. But, she doesn't know his true strength when he was at his peak in his lifetime. The two chuckled and went back to eating their breakfast. However, Arthur interrupted the silence by saying, "Hey. I was wondering if we could go to a library today since we don't have a mission today." The holy mage raised her eyebrow in surprise as he continued, "I wanted to go to another library to research about my past since the Black Rose library didn't have anything the time that we went together." Lilium spat back some of the coffee in a bit of surprise when he mentioned that.

Of course, the Black Rose library didn't have information about him. Lilium requested that Izayuki disposed of it all. She hadn't had many opportunities to speak to Athena but the goddess found it extremely important to speak to her about important topics, one of them, focused on Arthur as a person when he was alive.

The goddess had summoned her most recent chosen magic wielder and newest mentee of Arthur, the oldest magic user in her disposal. She knows that Lilium is a faithful servant to her but still warned her to be extremely careful regarding Arthur. Her warning rang clear when she spoke to the former noblewoman as her voice spoke with a tone of omniscient knowledge about what has happened and what will come, "You have been known to be wise on multiple things, Lilium of the Santiais. Knowing that, I found it fair to warn you of something you must never do, under any circumstances." The former noblewoman nodded her head understandingly as the goddess took it as a sign to continue what she was saying, "Under any sort of circumstances, you are never to let Arthur know what became of his legacy." The noblewoman hesitated before nodding and the goddess noticed, "If he finds out in any circumstances, you most likely will not live to tell the tale. Many things will happen but you surviving in the end of it all is rather rare." The holy mage gulped somewhat in fear as Athena sighed while Lilium asked questioningly, "What if it's out of my control that he finds out." Athena turned her gaze towards Lilium, who looked at her in concern for her Heroic Spirit. Ah, of course. This was one of the girl's closest friends. Of course she's worried. Such a human emotion but nothing can be helped from this. Athena chuckled and Lilium was worried about the foreign sound from the normally serious goddess. Sheesh, this human really was interesting compared to the other wielders of Arcadia. The goddess would place her hand on the woman's chestnut hair as it pulsed with magic. Lilium felt the holy energy from Athena flow into her body as the goddess spoke calmly, "Don't worry. With this, I'll be in direct contact with you if this happens. I can prevent it from happening if I feel like you aren't ready. But, no promises." The holy mage smiled as she looked back down in her kneeling position. "Thank you, my goddess."

The holy mage was snapped out of her reminiscent state as Arthur stated, "Don't worry, I've planned this out. I was even thinking we could go to the area where my castle was. The holy mage felt a ringing in her head but ignored it as she smiled, while putting down her coffee. "Of course. Whatever you want." Arthur smiled as he finished his toast and took both of their dishes towards the sink. Glancing at her hair, the holy mage would be somewhat alarmed as she noticed that her hair was completely blonde and she was surprised. Was she really overusing her magic this much? She thought that she was being good with how much she relied on it but apparently not. Glancing at her new blonde locks, she'd sigh as she looked at Arthur. All users of Arcadia were blonde weren't they? Now, she just fit in more with the people who accepted her. Now, it felt like she lost all ties with the Santiais family that she formerly had. It was bittersweet in the end. But, she couldn't help but feel somewhat down. So much was changing and she simply had to bare witness to all of it didn't she?

Arthur was surprised at how quickly she was used to the sudden appearance change as he took note of how her outfit played off her now blonde locks. Maybe she already did know and was trying to use her magic so that she shouldn't rely on him all the time. He chuckled to himself as she stepped out of her room in a light blue sundress with a matching hat. "Is my new radiance too much for you?" Arthur grabbed the sunhat off of her head and hit her with it. She winced, not really because it hurt but more because she was used to being dramatic. He rolled his eyes as the two left the guild hall and headed to the train station.

The holy mage sat on her seat while looking at the window of the changing scenery. Arthur had fallen asleep and was leaning against the wall on the seat next to her. If he was researching this all night, he should have planned it for another free day that they would have. But, she wasn't really sure that doing that was a good idea because she didn't know when their next free day would be. The holy mage would almost bound upwards when she felt magic pulse in her head. She had a feeling her eyes changed to the gold when she spoke to Arthur telepathically but when she glanced at him, she saw that he was in a deep sleep. Wondering who was going to speak, her heart dropped a little when she heard the elegant voice speak, "It's time for you to make a decision." Lilium had a feeling her face was becoming paler as she placed her hands open palmed on her dress, to catch the sweat that was forming. There was a bad feeling in the air lingering today and it was coming to fruition now. The holy mage listened to the goddess of Arcadia speak as she continued calmly, "You placed yourself in the situation for this so I would like to know what you'd like to do. I can erase the plans from his mind and you can do something else today to keep his ideas away from deciding to want to see his legacy or you can choose to deal with this and never have the opportunity arise again because he'll know what happened. What would you like to do, Lilium of the Santiais." The decision was an easy one wasn't it? She should just Athena deal with it because it'll hurt him to know what happened. But, isn't that selfish of her? To not help her friend deal with this problem that remains unknown to him? He could know and she could help him through it. Before the holy mage replied, she heard Athena chuckle, "You have the habit of taking life on the hard path, you know that?" Lilium chuckled as she looked at her Heroic Spirit's sleeping form again, "He's saved me from a lot of things. It's my turn to repay the favour." With a serious expression, the holy mage would ask, "When will this happen?" The holy mage waited for a reply and within a few moments, it came, "You will know when it will happen. There will be someone there who can tell you what to do to stop this, but be warned, if you die here, this will be the end of your journey. Call this a sort of test." Lilium sighed. Of course, the goddess would choose now to test her. But, she couldn't argue with this and at this point, she was too stubborn to change her mind and ask Athena to change this fate. "Of course. I haven't died yet and I'm not gonna let this loser be the reason I do." Hearing a chuckle, the holy mage would look at Arthur as she felt his gaze on her. He was stirring and beginning to wake up. The goddess' voice was distant with this last statement but rang clearly in her head as they stepped off the train.

"Good luck, child."

WC: 2,113/15,000

The holy mage and her Heroic Spirit stepped off of the train calmly as he looked rather eager. It was similar to how a child looked when they stepped into a candy store. After all, they were extremely close to where Arthur's castle was located. This was a village away because the train couldn't take them to that area actually. Not that the Heroic Spirit minded because now he was able to see the land that he worked from the ground up. He remembered most of the village as well because it retained it's old style and some of the buildings were actually there from when he was alive. It was an odd feeling. He seemed so human in these moments that you wouldn't believe that he was actually basically a ghost. Either way, Lilium was worried how much finding out the truth will hurt him in the end.

The duo stopped at a cart that was selling crepes as Lilium bought one with strawberries and bananas while Arthur simply got a savoury one. She was rather upset with that because crepes clearly weren't made for meals and were desserts through and through. But, she couldn't really change him because that's just how he is as a person. The pair began to walk through the town as Lilium munched on her crepe while Arthur was trying to decide which direction to go in. Turns out, he knew what to go to, but didn't really know where to go. Maybe it was the nerves getting to him, after all, this was the town where he was born. It'd be more odd if it didn't change from when he was growing up, so perhaps his mind was following up on the old layout of the village. It was very visible that it has grown since there was a very obvious distinction from the new buildings versus the ones of the past. They tried to retain the old style but it just was obvious with the materials. Either way, Arthur stopped in somewhat frustration as he rubbed the back of his hair, "I... don't think there even was a library in this town when I was alive." Arthur sighed to himself as Lilium finished up her crepe. Wiping her mouth from any residual the food may have left, the holy mage smiled at him before closing her eyes. Thanks to her magic, she could see an aerial view of the town, and that made it rather clear where they should be heading. Grabbing her Heroic Spirit's hand, she'd smile as she gently tugged him in the direction that they needed to head in.

Being in this village, it was very clear how much nostalgia was hitting the former king. It was rather amazing because his face was glowing when they passed by some of the older buildings. They could stop by at some on the way home if he really wanted, or if he wasn't feeling well enough, they could stop by on the next day off. But, that was if he ever even wanted to come back here after what would happen. Lilium had to tighten her grip on his hand because he was attracting a lot of stares as is and was attempting to sneak away when he saw certain buildings, he was extremely eager to explore but they had to move rather quickly because while the castle was pretty close, it would still take some time to get to since he wanted to walk there. Walking when they could easily see the scenery from above while flying, it was a big pain but in the end, the holy mage agreed to it because she didn't quite have the heart to say no to him at the moment. After a couple more moments of Arthur attempting to sneak away and hearing the whispers of passerby on how he resembles the former king, she turned to him with an annoyed expression, "Arthur, put on your hood." He looked surprised intially at her expression but sighed and placed his hood on anyways. He wanted to be recognized in all honesty because this was a place where his name held weight but he could understand why Lilium would tell him to put on the hood as well. It seemed as though she was getting fed up with all the attention that he was attracting.

The duo arrived at the rather extravagant library for the small town and proceeded to the double door. Lilium breathed out a sigh as she looked to the side, right in front of the double door. Whatever was going to happen, it wouldn't happen the minute he figured out his past, right? It wouldn't cause any harm to people, right? She was rather anxious on opening the door so she simply placed her hand on the door as she glanced at the eager King. He was very ready to walk in and was waiting for Lilium to open the door. Smiling at him, the holy mage would pause to think once more before opening the door. It was rather worrying in all honesty but Athena would probably help contain the cause that Arthur would cause whenever this happens. Actually, she wasn't even sure if he would cause chaos. She wasn't sure what would happen in general to be completely honest. But, she couldn't afford to be scared at this point. She came too far and needed to accept what would happen as she chose this. Taking in a deep breath, the holy mage would push the door open with minimal effort.

The smell of the library was rather overwhelming, especially since the library was just opening. There was a lot to take in as well because the library was extremely large, with books decorating the shelves that lined all three floors visible from the centre. It was a rather marvelous library. She had never seen many libraries like this and it was rather beautiful. But, she couldn't let herself get captivated like this. She needed to keep an eye on him. The Heroic Spirit that she actually just lost. He was gone from the minute she opened the door. Cursing under her breath, she'd gaze at the area before seeing that he walked up to the receptionist. At least he was being rather smart about this. Lilium knew an worrisome amount of people who would have just ran into the library and searched for what they could have without asking. In some libraries, it would have worked but in one as large and organized as this, it'd save a lot more time by asking them. Although, judging by how Arthur was reacting, the news that he was getting was rather annoying for him. She saw the annoyed expression on his face as he walked over to her to report what he found out probably. "They moved all the information about King Arthur, er, I mean myself to the castle as they are doing tours at the castle now." Arthur turned his head to the side in annoyance and the holy mage could probably guess why for two reasons. The first being that he's annoyed that they came here and they didn't even have any information about him. While the second reason was probably because they were holding tours in his castle. It pissed him off in all honesty. But the holy mage placed her hand on his shoulder as she spoke, "In that case, let's not miss a beat. Let's go to the castle." She was wondering if this was planned by Athena or a mere coincidence that it was like this.

The holy mage's eyes were caught by a pamphlet that seemed to be decorated with the story of King Arthur and hastily grabbed one while Arthur held the door open. "Hm? What'd you grab there?" The holy mage smiled quietly as she teleported it to Arcadia. "I'll show you it later when we are at the castle okay?" The holy mage smiled as he gave her an annoyed glance while the door shut behind them.

The walk was a slow one because Arthur was taking in the surroundings. He remembered spots where he rested with his friends as a child, and even spots where he would take leisure from his kingly duties. No matter what, this area was one that was full of affection for the king. It was the land where he could escape to just be Arthur and not someone who the world was building him up to be. The holy mage looked around at the area. It was gorgeous as it was farms and open plains as far the eye could see. If she had something like this near her home, it probably would have helped her manage and stay at home. However, she might have ended up running away sooner if there was an area like this near her home. She didn't really think about it at the time but now, it was extremely convenient with the way she found herself escaping. There was a party that went on where her presence was not required for once. It was rather jarring because she seemed to be a thing of luxury at every party that her parents threw. But not that one. It was a little suspicious now that she had time to dwell on it. But, she shouldn't be selfishly thinking about herself right now. After all, today was about Arthur.

The clouds in the sky began to cover up the sun and it was quickly beginning to spit rain. The holy mage teleported them to a nearby abandoned farm that was still sturdily kept to keep out of the rain. However, when she saw the expression on Arthur's face, she knew that this wasn't just a regular farm. "This is... my home." The Heroic Spirit simply blurted out his thoughts because he was overwhelmed by emotions in this moment. While glancing at the doorframe, he saw indents marking his height as he smiled sadly. He distinctly remembers his mother always being with him while she cooked in the kitchen and was cleaning the house. It was rather sad seeing the house in such a beaten up state. Lilium's hands began to glow with golden magic, but Arthur grabbed her wrist gently. Words weren't needed to express the emotions on his face. He was clearly telling her that it should be left like this. Nodding sadly, the holy mage would glance at him as her hand glowed a gentle green. He looked at it for a moment, and while pondering, he nodded to her. She placed the orb of magic on his heart as he closed his eyes. Before he knew it, when he opened them up again, it was like he was in a different world.

There she was, his mother was standing at the stove and saw her son. Her emerald eyes began to glaze over with tears as she ran to him. He lifted her up and the two embraced. His mother was one of the un-named spirits that was present within Arcadia. Athena located her and allowed her to dwell as an honorary guest of the land seeing as how important she was to Arthur, millenia ago and even to this day. Smiling, the holy mage would sit at the table while the former king spoke with his mother about everything that he's done. Lilium will always vividly remember what the two shared that day, but some conversations are best left between the family that shared them.

After a while, the magic wore off as Arthur bid farewell to his mother. Smiling, she patted his head as she faded away while the farm house was clear to resemble what it looks like now. Sighing, the Heroic Spirit would rub his eyes before remembering, "Ah, if we are at my house, then it should be close by." The holy mage tilted her head, attempting to remember what in his legend he was referring to before remembering. Ah, the stone was definitely nearby. The rain had let up as the two stepped out onto the plains that were glistening because of the golden sun and the rainwater that fell. Within clear sight, both the Heroic Spirit and his Master saw the stone and began to jog over to it. When they arrived, the holy mage looked at the mark in the stone that said "Caliburn" as Lilium looked at Arthur. Ah, that was the sword that she broke. Chuckling, the holy mage would hold out her hand as she summoned the hilt of a sword. The king's eyes widened in shock when he realized what it was. The holy mage was summoning Excalibur. Upon the sword materializing, the blonde woman gave the sword to the king who chuckled to himself.

Stepping onto the stone with ease, he raised the hand holding the sword to the sky as it glistened with light and caused the souls of fallen soldiers to find solace within the purity of the blade. However, four spirits rose up and had clear distinct features. They were visible for a moment but each of them did something unique. The tall blonde ghost reached out towards Arthur before recoiling and looking to the side while placing his hand at the side before fading. The blonde woman that had a hair ornament placed her hand on her chest and clutched the fabric in pain, while looking at the ground before dissipating like the last one. The black knight seemed to be enraged and leaped at the king in fury before fading mere inches before his face. The last girl, who seemed to be Lilium's age, glared at the king with the most scornful gaze one could imagine before turning around and fading. Arthur felt the sword fall from his grip as he dropped it. It couldn't be right? They didn't die in battle right? Why was she there? Didn't she live on past him? Why was she that young? Lilium walked over to Arthur but he stopped her with hand. Holding it out flat, palm facing the sky, he would speak just barely above a whisper, "The pamphlet. Give it now." Lilium would hesitate for a moment before summoning the pamphlet in a golden flash. The Heroic Spirit would grab it as Lilium attempted to walk forward. But with hurt deep in his voice, the Heroic Spirit would cry out, "Get away from me!" Hurt was evident on Lilium's face but she understood the pain that he was enduring now. Summoning her wings, the holy mage would simply say, "I'll see you at the castle."

Her wings would fade in a burst of feathers as she looked at the castle. Or what used to be one. It was more ruins that anything else now. At this point, he probably will have calmed down enough to read the pamphlet. He was a pretty fast reader and would probably be here soon. It was guaranteed that it was going to happen soon but she had yet to hear Athena's warning. However, she didn't have time to ponder before a flash of light appeared next to her in moments. The holy mage barely managed to dodge the fist that emerged from it. His eyes were obscured by his bangs. "You knew this entire time, didn't you?!" The holy mage had to dodge a sword that he manifested and threw at her. The weapon cut her skin open but she brushed off the pain to hear the pain in Arthur's voice as he spoke, "If you knew, why didn't you tell me a thing?" The holy mage looked away as she tried to avoid speaking. Anything she said would make his rage worse. The former king glared up at her menacingly, his eyes now a dull yellow with all light devoid of it. "Answer me!" The holy mage heard a sound in her head before hearing lightning crackle. She heard the goddess' voice, panic coating her calm tone, "Now, Lilium, get away from him!" The lightning in Arthur's hands seemed to course through him and into the ground before a massive crimson portal appeared underneath them and the land was seemingly swallowed. Lilium didn't have enough time to act and was pulled into the portal due to the overwhelming force that the portal exerted.

The goddess in Arcadia shook her head in regret as she saw what was happening through Lilium's eyes. "Oh sweet summer child, you made this a lot harder than it needs to be."

Post: 2,761
Total: 4,874/15,000

The holy mage felt as though she was falling. The endless darkness seemed to envelop her completely and she couldn't see anything other than flickering crimson lightning in the distance. It was completely silent with the exception of the wind rushing through her ears as she fell down more and more into the complete darkness. Maybe this was what happened to those who didn't complete their mission for Arcadia. With what she just did to Arthur, perhaps she failed her duties because she failed to remove the darkness in his heart. Sighing, the holy mage would look around her as she saw things making themselves more clear within the darkness. There were... memories. She saw Arthur with her, either in the past or even just today. It was all through his point of view. But then, she saw more than this. The four ghosts that appeared when he wielded Excalibur earlier were making themselves present. The woman who had clutched her heart was sparring with Arthur and the duo was having the time of their lives practicing. It was nothing more than a sparring duel but they went at it as if their lives depended on it. Then, the next memory was from Arthur's perspective. There was a blast of crimson lightning heading his way, and he was stuck like a deer in headlights, too hurt and betrayed to move a muscle. Until, she intercepted the blast. She was facing him and he saw the tears on her face as she was completely consumed by the lightning with nothing left after the attack. Lilium heard a single name uttered in Arthur's voice after this. The voice had the harsh tone but seemed to be filled with emotion as he stated it. "Cordelia."

The next memory was another ghost. The large blonde man who was with Arthur before. He seemed much younger, in tattered noble clothes and was visiting Arthur at his farm. They were playing pretend and headed over to the sword in the stone. The other child tried to take out the sword but ultimately failed, causing the pair to chuckle. However, when Arthur attempted to take the sword out, he succeeded, the rays of light reflecting off the sword from the sunlight. The blonde haired noble boy knelt towards the future king as Arthur was trying to brush it off as a fluke. The boy smiled at him and told Arthur that he was going to make an amazing king and he'll always be by his side. However, with the next memory, the holy mage saw what his fate ultimately was. A bell was tolled as the body of the knight was brought into the throne room. Arthur went to the entrance instead of waiting for it to be brought to him. It was the body of his best friend. He saw the sword wounds and the arrows that he took. Knowing his best friend wouldn't go down without a fight, Arthur requested that he be given the finest funeral as he retired to his room. He felt weak because this was the first sign that they weren't invincible. His picture perfect nation was falling apart at the seams. Arthur laid his head in his bed and that's where the memory ended. The same voice seemed to be recovering as it called out to his best friend. "Gawain."

The next memory was shrouded beyond the darkness. Lilium had a hard time making it out in all honesty but she saw a face that was completely veiled by the darkness pledging allegiance to the king. However, with this next instance, he was immediately banished from the castle for attempting adultery on Arthur's wife. The knight was ran out of the kingdom but instead of returning the same, he was broken. The betrayal that he commit weighed heavily on his heart and didn't want to show his face. He donned a black helmet that helped the holy mage deduce him as the black knight ghost that appeared in front of Arthur. The black knight was seen to be bringing the battlefield to chaos as he swung whatever he could get his hands on. The weapons he wielded always brought death to whomever he combated against. However, when Arthur raised up Excalibur, the black knight stopped his rampage and let himself get annihilated from the blast. Perhaps this was his way of repenting for the negative feelings that he harboured in his heart. Even to the end remaining fiercely loyal to his king. Arthur's voice seemed to be full of regret this time as he uttered the knight's name. "Lancelot."

The memory after that one started extremely bright compared to the other ones. It was once again from Arthur's perspective, however, this time Arthur was in front of a child. She was a small little girl and the king let himself be pulled by her up towards a hill. When they sat underneath a tree, she smiled at him with her emerald eyes which told the holy mage what she had been suspecting. Arthur had a child. The little girl would grow up dueling with the other knights to train to become a king however, Arthur turned cold towards her attempts the throne as a king. She didn't appreciate how her father never appreciated all the effort that she was putting into getting the throne and when she confronted him about it, he told her that he hopes that she will never become the type of king that he is. Lilium narrowed her eyes at Arthur. His wording was rather cryptic and there was a lot more to that statement than meets the eye because it didn't seem like he was denying her capabilities. Just denying her ability to rule in the same fashion that he does. Leave it to Arthur to word himself terribly. The rebellion was at it's climax where Arthur was dueling with the knight who led the rebellion with their entire armor protecting them while the king wielded Excalibur. However, in the heated fray both parties were disarmed. The knight frantically searched for a weapon and ended up finding their sword. The sword coursed with crimson lightning, however the knight was far too late as Arthur ended up summoning Rhongomyniad. All the armor the knight wore meant nothing when it was met by the end of the lance. The helmet shattered and revealed Arthur's daughter as he caught her in his arms with the lance fading. She glared at him as she passed, dropping her sword, completely coursing with lightning. Arthur felt the tears fall from his face as he held his daughter, not caring about the imminent explosion from the sword. The explosion clouded all vision but did not stop the name from being uttered with complete sadness. "Mordred."

However, the explosion did not simply stop it even consumed the darkness surrounding Lilium. Reaching her hand out revealed to the holy mage that this was not lightning, it was Mana. It was purer than the type that she wielded. The holy mage's eyes widened as the explosion was consumed and she seemed to be falling towards ground this time. Twirling, the holy mage would summon her wings on her back as she elegantly landed on the ground with a flourish. Upon searching her surroundings, she saw that she was back at the plains where Arthur had confronted her. However, the portal was above her now, meaning this was not the same place. Upon glancing at where the castle ruins should be, she saw the complete castle in all of it's glory. It was gorgeous. Restored by the fabrics of time, or wherever they were, it was like Arthur was still in reign right now and the rebellion hadn't started. The holy mage heard a voice present nearby and scanned the area before a voice called out to her. "Good thing you made it out of there." The holy mage turned around to see the goddess of Arcadia behind her. Instantly dropping to a knee, the goddess would take the noblewoman's hand, implying that she wanted her to stand. "Right now, I'm here before you as a mentor, not your goddess. So, treat me like an equal." That was somewhat hard to do considering all her magic was due to the goddess standing before her, she always felt something of subordination to her regardless.

The goddess would use her powers to take Solais out of it's sheath and coated it with a golden light. The blade seemed to change with this, resembling a broad sword as the sheath at Lilium's side changed with it. "While you are here, this is not Solais any longer. It is Caliburn. I've substituted it with the shards of the sword you broke. Once you are done here, Arthur restored or not, it will be Solais again." The holy mage held the sword in her hand, glancing at the grip that seemed to fit a man's hand more than her's, she resheathed it and prepared to go but remembered she didn't really know what she was supposed to do. The goddess continued as if she was a recording. "Right now, we are in Arthur's Reality. It is the deepest part of his mind where his desires and ideals are fact and he has lived on forever. You can dispel this by defeating the Heart of the Reality, which is him. You can defeat him in battle or with tactics you may think of along the way." The holy mage glanced at Caliburn before nodding. However, Athena had one last duty for the holy mage. "Take this soul with you. It can easily guide you towards the Heart." The goddess opened her palm, revealing a crimson soul in front of her. The holy mage would open her palm, to which the spirit would fly over into it, floating above it in the same way. Nodding wordlessly, the holy mage would walk over to the castle while Athena waited on the spot where Lilium fell into the portal from the real world. "She's in for a lot of surprises if she thinks that this will be easy."

The holy mage continued to the gate of the castle and the draw bridge was lowered. She didn't really have time to gaze at the surroundings but she still felt as though everything around her was off. The holy mage felt the soul above her palm flicker as it started to move erratically. Moving her palm away, the soul would gently float to the ground before erupting in a crimson light. The holy mage had to shield her eyes in an attempt not to be blinded. When the light had finally faded, the holy mage glanced at where the soul should be, only to see a pair of feet. When she had moved her arms out of her face, she made eye contact with a blonde girl in... rather revealing clothing. Upon the girl opening her eyes, she was met with a familiar emerald gaze. "You are... Mordred, correct?" The girl smirked smugly as she said, "Of course! I guess my legend was grand enough to carry on afterwards." The holy mage looked away for a minute as she thought. Well, getting killed by your father in a rebellion you staged against him is one way to get remembered within history. The emerald eyed blonde in front of her summoned her crimson sword at her side before saying, "Can't wait here all day. I'm gonna get revenge on that old man again." Lilium heard the contempt laced with her words. Maybe she still didn't know what Arthur meant with his words, but it wasn't her place to tell her. She might find out with this, who knows.

The duo walked into the castle grounds, only to be met with the sparring grounds of the castle. It looked extremely familiar. The training dolls were completely destroyed by something. Upon further inspection, the holy mage saw lances that had recently fallen into the Earth. She was going to walk over to them until she heard Mordred cry out, "Watch out!" There was a sound in the sky as another lance fell. Lilium however summoned her own and completely destroyed it. Her eyes widened however when she saw the lance glow with holy light and completely detonate. The explosion caused dust to envelope her as her shield quickly dispelled all of it with a shockwave. It was destroyed, so now she really had to be on her toes. Glancing at the sky, the holy mage saw something flying down at her. It was approaching quickly and had a glare due to a weapon reflecting off the sun. Quickly approaching, the holy mage drew a cross with her hand as she summoned another shield to protect herself from the oncoming impact.

Mordred had used her sword to slash away the dust brought by the oncoming pegasus strike. However, she didn't see Lilium in all the haze. The daughter of the king had actually also forgotten to ask what's her relationship to the king. If it was anything like Cordelia's, yikes. The dust cleared and the holy mage was face to face with a blonde woman with a tiara like ornament on her head. "Cordelia." The pegasus knight glared at Lilium when she laid her eyes on Caliburn, the quiet fury present in her eyes. You don't deserve to wield that sword. The holy mage knew that these were her thoughts as if she could read her mind. The pegasus knight grabbed the reins of her mount as she guided it to the sky, perhaps to gain the aerial advantage. Mordred bit her cheek in a little bit of anger because she knew that she couldn't help in this fight. Lilium was going to be at a disadvantage, because she had the mobility of a mount while wielding requip. The holy mage summoned white wings from her back as she unsheathed Caliburn, glaring at the holy knight.

The two were face to face as their weapons clashed. However, with each hit, the pegasus was getting worn down. The pegasus that never seemed to tire in it's life was getting exhausted with each blow that the combatants shared. The pegasus wanted to land but Cordelia was relentless with tightening her grip on the reins as she summoned spears to launch at the holy mage. Each one was slashed with the sword in the stone or dodged simply. She never fought someone with more air control than herself and was getting worn down. However, she couldn't afford to land because Mordred was there. She had backed herself into a corner but had no choice to fight. Summoning an orb of light, without much delay, weapons of each sort began to shoot out of the orb towards the holy mage. Lilium glared at Cordelia and sheathed Caliburn. Cordelia's eyes seemed to widen in response to this because she was going to die as a result of all the impeding weapons. However, the holy mage summoned twin cursed lances that emanated with corrupt energies. Cordelia intensified the flow of weapons from the orb but Lilium was able to fly and dodge them without fail whatsoever. Glancing at the holy mage as the lances made contact with the pegasus, stunning it. She made eye contact with the holy mage, whose eyes were glowing gold. The pegasus and the knight began to fall out of the sky as Lilium aimed her lance towards the holy knight. "Wielder of Arcadia, forgive my actions."

The holy mage's eyes widened as she dropped the lance and flew towards the knight at an extremely alarming rate. Catching the holy knight within her grasp, the holy mage couldn't stop herself as the pair crashed into the wall. Cordelia's voice let out a chuckle as Lilium groaned in pain, "You are just as reckless as he is." The holy mage sighed as she looked at the holy knight in her arms. "Perhaps it's something I've picked up along the way." The holy knight stepped onto the ground and assisted Lilium in getting up. "I thought he was the wielder of Arcadia in his time." Cordelia summoned an orb of gold magic and glanced at the newest wielder of the magic. "He was. When I died, I left this and he took it without hesitation. He was motivated after my death that he mastered the magic within mere days. He deserves the recognition for this time period. I... have done nothing of note." The holy mage placed a hand on her shoulder as she said, "You did. You protected your king. The most fiercely loyal knight in his squadron. Dame Cordelia." The former Arcadia wielder's eyes widened as she smiled at Lilium. "Thank you. I wish you all the best on getting through to him. I wasn't acting like myself earlier. That sword... filled me with rage as I thought it was you who killed him." Lilium's eyes went to Caliburn as she sighed. Athena probably knew what she was up to when she was giving the holy mage this sword.

Cordelia's gaze turned to Mordred as Lilium was purifying her soul, so that she could rest in Arcadia. The holy knight's glare was enough to make Mordred wince. "He wanted the best for you. You have no idea how much of this is on you." Before the heir to the throne could slash the knight with her sword, she faded into Arcadia. Lilium glanced at Mordred, who seemed to be contemplating before announcing, "That old hag always defends him. Let's get going. You are probably going to run into more of his knights since this happened." The duo walked towards the main door of the castle as Lilium glanced at Mordred behind her back. Perhaps she was denying any possibility that Arthur was a good man. If she found out the truth, would she stop Lilium from besting him? She could easily take care of this now with the heiress not paying attention. The holy mage felt her hand moving to her sword until she heard a voice, "This isn't solely about you and Arthur. She needs to find out the truth. Deal with that bridge when it comes to it." The holy mage sighed. She tried to take the easy route in an already hard situation. The two were facing the door side by side as Mordred looked at Lilium smugly, unsheathing her sword. "Ready to go?" The holy mage drew Caliburn in response before nodding, "More than ever."

Post: 3,096
Total: 7,970/15,000

The double gate opened revealing the interior of the castle. Despite appearing completely fine on the outside, there was a scary amount of damage and soldiers fighting on the inside. The holy mage back gripped Caliburn before Mordred placed her hand in front of the Wizard Saint. Why was the hot head daughter of Arthur stopping her? In all honesty, she thought that Mordred would be all for this seeing as how eager she was to get into a fight. The holy mage glanced at the young heiress to the throne as she spoke slowly and somewhat calmly, "You can't affect these spirits. There is something else afflicting them." The holy mage looked at her with confusion as the young knight, sighed somewhat annoyed, "You have your magic! Look at this closer." Lilium chuckled as she looked at the blonde knight in front of her. It seems that she was quite similar to her father in getting Lilium to pay more heed to her surroundings. With a golden glow glazing over her eyes, the holy mage would look at the area in front of her before seeing the flickering souls of the soldiers prominently. The glow was dull but it was still there. These soldiers were fighting on a different plane than the one that they were on. She could still probably affect them with her magic, but that would require weaving more Mana into her spells, which could be deadly for the holy mage. Sighing to herself, the holy mage would look at Mordred. It seems that this was the rebellion that she constructed to go after her father. The knight broke a smirk as she turned to Lilium saying, "Wow, I really outdid myself. These are the land's finest soldiers and they are even going after their deaths." The holy mage's eyes narrowed at the knight. For being so observant, she was rather ignorant. Maybe that's why she didn't really understand what her father had said to her when he stated she wasn't getting the throne. Summoning herself into her armor, the holy mage would look down at the unfamiliar navy blue fabric with metal ornaments for armor. It was similar to the armor that she wore when she summoned the greaves of the Saintess. Perhaps letting Cordelia into Arcadia had enabled it that her armor was empowered now. Feeling the hair ornament she now wore, the holy mage would sheath Caliburn as she walked to the right of the door. Her heels would click against the marble floor with a quickened haste of footsteps that belonged to Mordred followed close behind.

Seeing everything in the castle being in chaos yet all the decorations remain completely fine. There was paintings lining the hallway also with artifacts being on display as one would walk around the corridor. The holy mage's eyes fell on a soldier whose glow was somewhat stronger. However, it was burning with a negative emotion. All the soldiers who were running seemed to pass through them as they were nothing more than spirits. However, this one ran right into the holy mage, almost being a physical being. Looking at the soldier, his eyes were completely over run by fear. This meant that there was something up ahead that was causing this. If it had enough fury to cause a spirit to run away horrified, it was definitely going to be hostile and willing to challenge the holy mage and the crimson knight. It was extremely unnerving but the soldier continued to run as if his life depending on it, not conscious enough to know that he had already died. A screech was heard from down the hallway and Mordred's eyes narrowed in a quiet rage. The holy mage summoned her wings again and flew down the hallway to travel side by side with the knight who was increasing her running speed with Mana. This meant Arthur had some form of Mana manipulation as well, but it was a technique that remained unique to the Santiais. How did she get her hands on that technique?

The duo arrived as Lilium unsummoned her wings while brandishing Caliburn. Looking around the holy mage would glance at Mordred who drew her crimson sword as well. The duo heard a yell and turned towards the ballroom. A soldier was crawling towards them, pleading for someone to save him. The holy mage's hand glowed a golden colour as she ran over to the soldier. She was within arm's reach of him until she saw a blackened axe with seemingly red trace marks throughout it make it's way into the injured soul's head. There was no blood, but one could see his soul completely shatter. An already wandering spirit was unable to find happiness in the end and his chance at redemption was ended in suffering in a way similar to how he died most likely. Gazing at the source of the blackened axe, the holy mage would lock her eyes on the helmet with a red cross in the center. The holy mage's eyes flashed crimson before she spoke out the black knight's name. "Lancelot."

The blackened knight cried out in fury in response to his name being called as Mordred's eyes widened. "Lancelot? What happened to you? You... were the motivation for this rebellion. What have you become? Why are you killing our own soldiers?" The black knight's glare narrowed in on the holy knight as he tightened his grip on his axe. The blonde knight charged to meet blows with his axe as the holy mage sighed. She still saw her way as the correct way. She wasn't even considering what her father was doing and why he did it. It would be so much easier to kill her now because when Arthur inevitably had to tell her the truth, she was going to side with her father. After all, who wouldn't kill to actually be acknowledged by your parents?

The holy knight and her former rebellion partner continued trading blows with the red Mana around Mordred's sword began to intensify and increase the power behind her strikes. The holy mage was going to sit this one out but her goal was to purify all that was here. It wasn't solely to think about Arthur. If she let Mordred kill all of Arthur's regrets, then he would be even harder to take down in the end. Holding Caliburn to the sky, the light began reflecting off the sword as Lilium's voice spoke clearly, "Lancelot, is this not the Sword in the Stone?" The holy mage's eyes glowed gold as glared at the black knight, "You have betrayed but this can offer you salvation if you can bring it to your king." The knight swiftly shoved Mordred into a pillar nearby but the knight was able to stop the impact by using her sword to solidify the Mana and land safely as she looked at the Ace of Black Rose. "Oi, why did you interrupt me? I need to give this traitor the proper punishment." The holy mage sighed as her glare turned to leader of the rebellion, "You have to start to understand that there is another perspective and another way to look at everything." The black knight was face to face with Lilium as he swung down his axe at her. Using Caliburn to parry the slash, the knight was caught off guard and the holy mage summoned Mana in her hand in the form of an orb and launched it at the knight, causing a crimson explosion.

After the smoke had faded, the holy mage made eye contact with the knight whose helmet was destroyed as he yelled a battle cry as he ran towards the holy mage with a piece of rubble that he was using his Trace abilities on, causing it to harden as much as a piece of steel. The holy mage stabbed Caliburn into the floor as she raised her hands cause a hilt to materialize within her grasp. The elegant blade of Excalibur was fully materialized as Mordred's eyes widened along with Lancelot's. He felt himself stop in front of the blonde noblewoman as she placed the sword near his head. Instead of receiving the swift death that he was hoping for, he felt the blade christening him, knighting him and causing him to look up in shock at the holy mage. "Arthur has forgiven your sins. You were led astray in a time where you were lost and felt abandoned. He has forgiven you and regrets ever putting you through what you went through." The holy mage felt her gaze soften as she held his chin and pointed his gaze up to face her as she placed Excalibur in his open hands. "With this, you are forgiven and are free to go on to a place with no regrets."

The holy energy of Excalibur purified the corrupted armor of Lancelot, transforming him into what he looked like before he fell from grace. The tears that fell from the knight's eyes didn't stop falling even as the holy mage did her best to wipe them away. The holy mage smiled at him as placed his forehead on her hand and kissed the back of her hand. Common for knights but the holy mage was unused to this treatment. The blush on her face was slight as she looked to Mordred at the same time that Lancelot did. Excalibur was purifying him enough that he was beginning to fade. With great hope, he was going to be in Arcadia and could reconcile with Cordelia hopefully. Smiling, the holy mage listened acutely as Lancelot spoke his words to Mordred. "You capitalized on my ability to lead in a time where I was completely lost. I utilized my abilities for evil. You are no fit for the type of king Arthur was. However, you really need to become aware of how much you meant to him. I can forgive your actions but I don't know if he will feel the same as you killed two main things on the day that you both perished. His body and his heart." The crimson knight sheathed her sword in silence as Lancelot completely faded along with Excalibur.

Grabbing the hilt of Caliburn, the holy mage would resheath it as she walked over to Mordred. "After hearing that, are you sure you simply wish to kill him again? This is his most honest form emotionally, you can ask him anything and he will tell you the truth. Especially you Mordred." The heir to the throne kicked a nearby pillar while her foot was charged with Mana, causing the entire structure to crumble underneath the attack. Sighing the holy mage would scan the area as she felt Mana coming to them at an alarming speed. Raising a shield would shield them both from the flash of teal Mana. Her eyes widened as she looked at the source of the Mana as he hopped down from a balcony in the ball room. "After all this time and here you are acting like a spoiled brat like always." The large swordsman would smile as Lilium stood straight and spoke his name, voice quivering a bit as her suspicions were confirmed with this. "Gawain."

Post: 1,880
Total: 9,850/15,000

The stocky blonde male made his way calmly over to Lilium and Mordred. The holy mage bit her lip in annoyance as Mordred urged her, "Oi, what are you standing there for? You need to fight him the same way you fought the rest of Dad's knights." Mordred smugly smirked before turning her gaze to Gawain. "Although, if you aren't up to it, I'd be glade to take care of this one." Grabbing her arm the holy mage would look away as she closer her stance somewhat in irritation as she let out an annoyed groan. "I can't fight this one." Mordred smirked and unleashed the crimson lightning in her sword. "Ah, in that case, I'll take care of this old bat." The built young man smirked as Mordred made her way over to him before wiping it off his face with a scowl. "Do you really call that your version of my magic? Apparently, I didn't train you well enough." Mordred's glare intensified as she slashed towards the blonde knight. However, before anyone could blink, he blocked the strike with his great sword, coated in a similar essence to Mordred's magic however the Mana that surrounded his blade was teal and calm unliking her coursing lightning. His smug glare continued to beat down on her as he parried her away, "How did you even make it to him in this pathetic state?" The fury on the heir's face was extremely prevalent. "I don't want to hear that from a man who died before the battles even started!" It was as she said this when Gawain was coated with a teal aura, his Mana flourishing around him. It was similar to flames and Lilium's gaze was locked onto the floor next to her. Mordred was too caught up in her battle to realize that the crimson lightning on her sword was slowly fading. Gawain's Mana control was completely suffocating hers and it would only be a matter of time before he started draining all the Mana that was present in the room currently.

Falling to her knees, the heir of Arthur would groan as she began to roughly cough with a few spurts of blood making their appearance as she choked. Because of how much Mana was placed into the sword, she took a dangerous amount out her. Normally, this was fine because her Mana could easily go back into her body due to the way that Clarent Blood Arthur was designed however, due to the Mana being stoled by Gawain, she had potentially given away far too much Mana than any normal human could have endured. However, this was a stubborn child of an even more stubborn king. Smirking, Gawain would glare at the heir to the throne, relishing in her despair. "If I had been there, your so called rebellion would have plummeted before even reaching the castle doors." Lilium bit her tongue in a bit of fear. She was doing her best to suppress her Mana because she didn't want to let Mordred know anything about her. It would become fairly obvious if she started to combat with Gawain so she didn't. However, the rebellious knight looked to Lilium as she raised herself shakily, standing with the help of her sword. She saw the holy mage's eyes turn crimson and remain that way until the holy mage realized and changed her eye colour back to the gold they were due to using the magic of Arcadia. Mordred turned her gaze to the furious knight that was walking over to her while he brandished his great sword. Mordred glanced at Lilium who was doing her best to avoid eye contact with Mordred. The knight of the rebellion soon cried out in frustration to the Wizard Saint, "Considering how much control over Mana you have, do something!" The holy mage winced as Gawain turned his glance over to her. He looked at her with a little confusion as she sighed. Reaching to grab her sword, she'd look in surprise to see that it was Solais again. This goddess loved to work in mysterious ways while tormenting the holy mage. Letting out a rather large sigh, she'd calm down before launching a rather deadly glare towards Mordred, "Considering how annoyingly observant you are, you'd think you'd actually understand why your father did what he did." Brandishing her sword, she'd make eye contact with Gawain, her crimson gaze meeting with his teal one. Both of their eyes reflected the colour of the Mana that they wielded.

With her sword becoming coated in the crimson flames of Mana that she normally wielded, she noticed that the way that he wielded his magic was almost the exact same. Both of their Mana took the person of flames. However, his were a lot more wild and reckless while Lilium's were wielded with control and precision. Normally, she'd think that would benefit her but considering how much she was restraining the Mana, maybe letting go like he was would work a lot better. The knight stabbed his sword into the ground, releasing the Mana out in a pulse. It had knocked Mordred off of her feet but the former noblewoman stood tall, acting as though it was a burst of wind. With her blonde hair flowing behind her the holy mage would look at Gawain as he spoke proudly. "My name is Gawain of the Santiais family. May I ask of yours, young knight?" The holy mage felt herself faltering a little bit before pointing her sword to the sky and then stabbing it in front of her, letting out a similar pulse of Mana. Mordred had to shield her eyes for a moment but they were full of shock when the holy mage spoke. "I am called Lilium, formerly of the Santiais family. It's a pleasure to meet you." Gawain's eyes widened in surprise before clearing his throat and speaking, "Formerly? Then what have you done child to no longer be under my name?" The holy mage's eyes lingered around Gawain's muscular build and form while wielding a sword. "The tactics that made you the kind of man you are. The same tactics that have been in our family for generations. The torturous training that we endured even if we lost our name as warriors. The same tactics that were employed with punishments growing harsher with each generation." Lilium felt her eyes water but blinked back the tears as she said, "The tactics that didn't let me be who I was meant to be and kept me living in a lie my entire life." Gawain's gaze softened as he looked at the broken child. His aura of Mana seemed to flicker in doubt for a moment and Mordred used this hesitation to stand to her feet once again. However, Gawain expected this and glared at her, using his Mana to form chains to bind her to the ground. "I don't deserve this, Uncle!" Gawain's stone cold glare was caught again by the rowdy heir as he spoke, "You deserve all that came to you, except his feelings of regret. Her however..."

Gawain looked at his palm as he let out a sigh. He aired out his thoughts verbally to appease the holy mage, "I did want my name to live on. When you spoke that you were of the Santiais, I was so relieved. It meant that my dear Stella lived on." Gawain walked over to the holy mage calmly as she tried to resheath Solais. He stopped her hand with his own as he placed his sword next to hers. It was nearly identical as opposed to the size of the blade. Which makes sense because the sword changes to the best type that is wielded by the family member who currently has it. Sighing to herself, she'd look at Gawain in his teal eyes as he continued. "However, that means it's my fault you endured as much as you did. I'm sorry." She bowed her head as she mumbled a "Thank you." She was grateful that he was able to understand where the tactics employed on both of them went wrong. His sword began to glow teal as he spoke to her solemnly, "I can only do this to those I have a strong connection to. With my Mana, I can cut ties between us. Meaning that you would have never grown up a Santiais but maintain who you are today." He lifted his sword to be in front of him as opposed to stabbed in the ground beside him. "If you want, I can make it so that you just grew up as an ordinary girl." The holy mage's eyes widened in shock as she considered the offer. Mordred was quick to interject however, "Of course, you of all people would try to do this to her!" The taller Santiais glared over in her direction as he said, "Although, there is no guarantee that you'd be a mage." The holy mage's eyes glazed over to her hand where she materialized an orb of Mana for a moment. The offer was tempting.

She could have had a life with a pair of parents who actually genuinely loved her and didn't force her to endure all that she has up until this point. However, if she did that, would she even be herself? The holy mage looked at the orb of Mana within her hand before crushing it. It caused sparkles of Mana to decorated the room as she looked at Gawain. "I won't lie. If you had given this offer to me before I met Arthur, I would have agreed." Chuckling, the Santiais male placed his hand on her head, ruffling her hair. "But you doing that, wouldn't make me myself would it? I've endured so much because of my name but I've also found those who are precious to me through my magic. My guild, my friends that I've made, and one of the most important people in my life, Arthur." Smiling, the holy mage would shake her head in disagreement. "I appreciate you trying to make up for what happened, but you aren't my parents so it's not your fault at all." The knight chuckled as he drew his sword to the sky, as he stated, "I expected that to be your answer. You take a lot after him now. He's really good at influencing people. But, just because you are family doesn't mean I'm going to let you take down my best friend." As his sword made his way to impact the holy mage, she smirked while saying, "Don't worry. I wouldn't have it any other way." The impact caused dust to fly over the entire ballroom, leaving a gaping impact where the strike hit the ground.

Slicing away the dust, the holy mage would smile as her sword glowed with a crimson flame decorating it. Breathing in deeply, the holy mage would manifest a pair of two crimson wings on both of her feet. Summoning an orb of Mana, she tossed it in the direction of Gawain, only to be met with a similar ball of Mana. The two exploded when they made contact, causing a flash of light as well as smoke due to the explosion. Figures. That'd be a little too easy. Smiling to herself, the holy mage raised her hand to the sky, manifesting countless orbs of Mana. She saw him making a similar motion and causing a similar effect to it. The holy mage started chuckling to herself. All applications of Mana Burst were supposed to be different yet here they were having similar applications. Pointing towards each other, all the orbs of Mana that they summoned were launched towards each other. There was a lot of explosions due to the collisions however, the holy mage sliced at the orbs that made their way past the explosions and at her. She was able to slice them pretty simply so she assumed that Gawain had done the same. Mordred was retreating to the sides of the room to hide behind the pillars supporting them and potentially ambush Gawain with a surprise attack but then, the holy mage saw chains reemerge from the ground and capture Mordred again. She really was no help was she? Sighing to herself the holy mage's glare would harden again as she ran a hand down Solais. The crimson flames seemed to ignite with a passion as the holy mage ran towards the elder Santiais. The slashes she swung with her sword materialized the slashes as Mana and made their way to the knight. Dodging his oncoming crescent slash, the holy mage would make a platform as she launched herself towards the knight. Her body becoming more Mana than physical, she let herself fade into the Mana as her sword was prepared to slash. Gawain's smirk widened as his sword became coated with Mana. Jabbing in the direction she was launching herself, her torso was completely impaled by the sword. She had not considered that his Mana let him reinforce his blade to cut through the element.

Rematerializing was a mistake but it's all she could do. Either way, she felt immense pain as she coughed up blood. The knight of Arthur sighed as he tossed her effortlessly off the blade, where Lilium laid, seemingly lifeless. Mordred cried out, "Dragging her into these matters doesn't affect us! Fight me!" Gawain's former soft expression while talking to the noblewoman was no longer on his visage as it immediately hardened when it turned to Mordred,"You really think that I give a shit what happens to you? You ruined my best friend's legacy, and I'm gonna relish every moment that you suffer. You destroyed his life. Some horrible daughter that could never live up to the title of king." Mordred's glare hardened again as she began yelling curses and cusses towards the Mana Burst wielder. His sword became similar to a cross due to how much Mana was flowing into it. Each step he made towards Mordred, the pressure in the room seemed to increase. He was ready to end the heir's life at this very moment. However, Lilium stirred within a brief instant and grabbed Gawain's cape. Chuckling, the holy mage's eyes would glow gold, "You think I'd just fight you with the technique that the family didn't teach me properly?" Her eyes didn't return to her neutral blue colours and Gawain instantly understood. This was not the holy mage. The clone began to glow a solid gold light before erupting in an explosion of magic.

The knight was blinded due to the flash and slashed away at the smoke enveloping him. When his vision came to, he was not quick enough to react to Lilium behind him. Solais coated with a crimson flame, she slashed his back, slicing straight through the armor to reveal his flesh. He cried out in pain as she grabbed a spiritual version of her sword and tossed it straight through him. In attempt to kill the noble, he made a wide slash, turning his body to get his entire circumference but the holy mage smiled as she disappeared before rematerializing with Solais buried in the knight's chest. Removing the blade from his chest, the holy mage would smirk as she resheathed her blade while Gawain fell to one knee, reliant on his sword to stay up. Solais would transform once again into Caliburn as it glowed with a golden light. Placing the sword on his shoulder, Gawain would chuckle as he looked at it. "It's been a while since I've seen this. Let me know if you need help again. You confirmed to me that the Santiais will always be a fighting family." The holy mage looked at her free hand as it glowed with a little crimson. "Of course. I'll be fixing this family from the ground up as it's not just something I can leave behind." The holy mage smiled as Gawain matched it. However, his gaze hardened as he turned to Mordred who was becoming free from her chains of Mana, "You don't deserve to see him. This woman is the only one that should be allowed to see him like this. Then again, you'd only understand the truth if it came from his mouth so have it your way." The holy mage let him finish his words until the purification was complete and his soul was sent to Arcadia.

Resheathing Caliburn, the holy mage would almost fall over as Mordred reacted fast to steady her comrade. "My apologies. That clone was my Mana so sending it to die like that almost caused me to pass out." The heir to the throne had an unreadable expression on her face before smiling and declaring, "It's fine! After all, we are almost there and..." the holy mage felt Mordred's grip tighten against her, "This is the battle that I have to fight for myself." The holy mage looked at Clarent Blood Arthur as it remained stood up in the centre of the destroyed ball room, stabbed into the floor. Once Mordred let Lilium go and steady herself, the holy mage watched the girl closely as she walked over to sword before sighing. Grabbing the sword from the earth, the memory of Gawain watching Arthur retrieve Caliburn flashed in her mind once again. The holy mage chuckled as the knight grabbed the hilt of her sword and raised it towards the ceiling as it coursed with crimson lightning. In response to the crackle of the Mana contained within the sword, the holy mage heard a creak as the door to the throne room began to open, as a golden light was illuminating the room completely, causing an almost blinding amount of light to be emerging from it. The holy mage locked eyes with the leader of the rebellion as the two walked side by side towards the light within the throne room. Arthur, I hope you have heard my voice calling out. I will save you.

Post: 3,009
Total: 12,859/15,000

The holy mage had to shield her eyes from the blinding light as they entered the throne room. Mordred managed to face the radiant light without relenting for a second. Glancing at the heir, Lilium stopped and grabbed Mordred's wrist for a second. Without missing a beat, the crimson knight's glare fell upon the holy mage. It was probably the most threatening glare that she's ever given to anyone that day, but upon remembering she was working with Lilium to speak to Arthur, her gaze softened as she murmured a small "What?" The holy mage looked at the heir to the throne's trembling hands and the holy mage clasped them in her own while not breaking contact with her. "You don't need to do this alone. I'll be here." Mordred smiled softly while taking her hand back and placing it on Lilium's shoulder. The holy mage smiled as Mordred spoke, "Of course. But, you've been doing all the fighting at this point." Mordred unsheathed her blade while smiling. Placing the sword over her shoulders, the crimson knight would grin. "I deserve to know the truth from my old man and I'm gonna get it one way or another." The holy mage chuckled to herself while Mordred looked somewhat confused. Tilting her head slightly in confusion, the holy mage would really see the resemblance between the daughter and her father. "Ah, it's just funny because I've never thought of him as someone older and I'm standing in front of his daughter who is about my age." Mordred felt a blush on her face as she slapped Lilium on the back, slightly hard, who held back a snicker in response. "Of course! He's like the oldest person ever." Lilium shook her head as she unsheathed Caliburn as she looked at Mordred. Holding her fist out, the holy mage would look to Mordred as she smirked. The crimson heir would smile as she met her fist with a bump. With that, the duo stepped through the door completely overflowing with light.

When her eyes adjusted, the holy mage looked around and saw the land of Arcadia. Why were they here? Weren't they supposed to be in the throne room of Arthur's castle? Mordred looked just as confused as Lilium did but the two were now under the golden sky of Arcadia with the door slamming shut behind them and completely disappearing. The duo continued to stare at the sky until they saw it flicker a slight bit of crimson. The holy mage's eyes looked closer at where the flicker emerged until there was a giant flash of crimson. Shielding their eyes from the intense light, the duo of the Wizard Saint and leader of the rebellion would be completely blinded from the surrounding area as the crimson flash consumed the entire view of Arcadia.

After the flash had faded, the holy mage heard embers nearby as well as the sound of magic being cast in addition to the clashing of weapons. Upon removing her arms from her eyes, the holy mage wasn't met with the familiar view of Arcadia. This... this was war. There were countless knights fighting. Some decorated with the colours that Mordred donned while the ones that they were fighting wore the deep blue that Arthur usually wore. This was the final battle. Was Arthur constantly at battle with himself over this? The holy mage heard Mordred fall to her knees, while holding Clarent Blood Arthur tight in her grasp. "I caused this." Shaking slightly, the crimson knight would stand while gripping her sword tightly within her grasp. Running past the fallen bodies and the flames on the battlefield, the holy mage would follow her quickly through the use of her wings. The duo would run closer towards the centre of the battle field where she saw a silhouette of a tall man. Unsheathing Caliburn, the sword would shine as the battlefield fell completely silent other than the sound of the flickering flames that coated the site. The golden rays emitted from the sword and it cleared the sky somewhat from the crimson, with rays of gold light shining through. However, in response to her unsheathing her sword, a beam of crimson light emerged from the man across from her. It was an ominous black and red beam of pure light and the holy mage recognized the unholy magic as a blackened Excalibur. The holy sword was heavily influenced by the wielder's soul and considering it was in such a state of disarray with the unholy energy, that was probably the person that they were looking for. Before the holy mage could utter his name, Mordred cried out, "Arthur!"

Her sword would be coated with an intense crimson lightning energy. The stoic Heroic Spirit let out a small gasp as he looked at his daughter, but when his gaze settled on Lilium again, it immediately hardened again to a glare of pure contempt. Breathing in a breath, the Sword from the Stone was coated with her Mana which had taken on a golden hue due to the energy of Caliburn. Sighing the holy mage would look at Mordred as she charged at her father. Her father's glare would harden when gazing at Lilium until he summoned an orb of unholy magic and crushed in, containing the surrounding battle field in a dome, surrounding him and Mordred, leaving Lilium on the outside. The holy mage would walk over the edge of the dome of unholy magic before trying to touch it and hissing in pain when her hand made contact. It's unholy magic so it should have been obvious that she was going to get harmed by this sort of spell. Summoning her wings the holy mage would fly around the dome while unable to view the scene between Mordred and Arthur inside.

The pale gold eyes of the Heroic Spirit looked at his daughter as she charged to him, full killing intent in her eyes. His gaze softened as he sheathed Excalibur as Mordred had trouble stopping herself, caught off guard by her father's lack of will to fight her. The blackened king would catch his daughter and embrace her as she protested by kicking him in the shin. The king would let her go at that but not react to the kick whatsoever. "Why are you acting like this to me now?" Mordred's emerald eyes glared at his pale gold eyes as he sighed while taking off the crown that he was wearing. "I've never hated you. I'm just as bad at expressing myself as you are." Mordred's glare didn't relent as she got more on edge while the king placed the crown atop her head. "W-why are you giving me this now? Are you mocking me?" The king chuckled as he ruffled his daughter's hair while explaining himself, "You... are the most beloved person in my life, next to your mother." Mordred felt her grip on Clarent Blood Arthur loosen as Arthur smiled at her while continuing. "The day you told me you were excited to become a king that succeeded me... I hated hearing that from you." Mordred's sword emitted her crimson lightning as she prepared to drive it into Arthur's chest. However, she wasn't completely committed to the attack so he was able to grab the hilt of the sword and target it behind him. It blasted a burst of crimson lightning that hit the edge of the dome that he created before exploding. "Didn't your Uncle Gawain tell you that you never listen to things completely?" The glare on Mordred's face didn't falter as she cried out, "What the hell are you mocking me for?" Arthur sighed as he pulled his daughter into a hug.

"I didn't want you to become a king like me." Mordred tried to pull away from her father but his grip on his daughter tightened, almost as if he was pleading for her not to go. "I... was a horrible king. I didn't ever do my duties properly and the only thing I could manage to do properly was conquest and fight. I was basically a barbarian." Arthur chuckled as he felt Mordred shiver while he continued, "I didn't want you to become a king like me. I wanted you to become the greatest queen in the land. One that could perfectly do her duties while fighting her own battles when needed. I saw you were training the same way Uncle Gawain and I did and I didn't want that at all." Mordred let out a small gasp as Arthur rested his head on her's. "You... were going to make me so proud and I was hoping after this rebellion, you'd lead the fallen kingdom to glory." Mordred sniffled for a moment before Arthur said, with a dead look in his pale gold eyes while they surveyed the area. "I never intended that you were the one who would be meeting the end of Rhongomyniad." Mordred began to cry quietly while Arthur rubbed her head. "Don't cry, Princess. We can live here in an ideal world." Arthur's eyes glared to the spot where Lilium was flying at this moment in time. He didn't have that much time left before she completely destroyed the dome. He heard the weapons she was summoning make contact with the dome of unholy magic. Breaking the hug with his daughter, he'd lock eyes with her as the pale gold flickered while they looked. "Now that you know, do you want to help me dispose of the intruder?" Mordred looked at Lilium hesitantly and looked to her father once again. Glancing at her sword, there was no need to fight at all. The only reason she fought was a misunderstanding. There was no meaning to this ceaseless fighting as she now knew that it was pointless to do this. Gathering all her energy into Clarent Blood Arthur, the crimson knight would look at her father, who held a blank expression on his face. "Dad, if we can talk out our problems like this, I'm sure you can with her." The amount of Mana that she was gathering in her sword was a completely absurd amount as the metal was slowly beginning to erode away, leaving a blade of pure Mana. The blackened king's eyes widened as he looked at his daughter's blade. She was planning to destroy the dome to let the holy mage in. However, with that amount of Mana, the barrier may implode. Reaching his hand out, the knight would grab her as she protested, "Hey! Just let me get rid of this barrier and we can talk!" Arthur said quietly, "No, just let me dispel it!" The glare on his face wasn't leading his daughter to be believed as the crimson lightning began to glow.

The Wizard Saint was completely left out of the conversation so she had absolutely no idea what was going on with Arthur and Mordred. She couldn't even see past the darkness that the barrier of unholy magic shrouded them in. Summoning countless weapons, the holy mage would launch them at the barrier as they slowly worked away the magic energy that was within the barrier. She had been doing this for a little while until she saw a crimson light that decorated the dome. Was that Mordred's Mana? That much output could destroy the sword, or even herself. With the crimson light, the piece of the dome that Lilium was constantly hitting developed a crack. Looking at the area, the holy mage knew that she needed to apply as much force as she could with one hit. Placing her hand beside her, the hilt of a lance would appear as she flew up, fully extracting it from the portal from Arcadia. Rhogomyniad was summoned as the holy mage flew up towards the sky. Her eyes would glaze over gold as she placed all her control into the lance, not consciously attacking. Her eyes would focus on the crack as she launched herself to it using a platform of Mana. The spear would become coated in a completely gold hue as she made her way to the dome. However, the cracking began to spread over the entire dome. At this moment, the light appeared back in the holy mage's eyes as she was confused by this. However, she couldn't stop herself at this point. Rhonygomyniad was looking for it's intended target. Before it could make contact with the barrier, the dome completely shattered as the sky became gold once again. The crimson Mana emanated from the centre was in fact Mordred who saw the golden flicker of Lilium in the sky. The holy mage cried out, "Get out of the way!"

The heir to the throne was ready to move but the blackened king was completely shocked at seeing the holy lance that he killed his daughter with again. Mordred would grab his hand but he wouldn't budge. Looking at Arthur, she'd cry out, "We need to move!" Arthur felt himself freeze up as Mordred panicked. However, as the holy lance drew closer, the crimson heir hugged her father as he was the intended target. His eyes widened as she held her blade of pure Mana, and launched a beam of crimson lightning at Lilium in an attempt to stop the mage from attacking. However, due to the holy mage's control over Mana, the holy mage was able to completely coat the lance in Mana, empowering the attack further. Sighing to herself, she grinned while turning to her father. Channeling Mana into her hand, she would shove him with maximum energy to propel him away from the impact zone. Before he was out of earshot, he heard her yell, "I love you Dad." The holy mage made eye contact with Mordred as she simply stood in place. Biting her lip, she knew that Mordred was completely aware that Rhongomyniad wouldn't disappear until meeting a target. Sighing, the holy mage would look to where she had shoved Arthur and mumbled out a "I'm sorry."

The lance completely impaled the crimson heir as her torso was separated from her legs. It was a quick death but due to the explosion afterwards, there were no traces of Mordred left whatsoever. Lilium fell to her knees as now she couldn't even send the knight to Arcadia. Her soul was completely destroyed by the holy weapon. Letting out a shaky breath, the holy mage would grab the crown that was unharmed in the impact. Clutching it to her chest, the holy mage would let out a quiet sob while standing up. She seemed to be really screwing over generations of Arthur's family at this point. Standing up, her eyes would be met with the unholy essence that the blackened Excalibur let off. Glancing at Arthur, she could see the unholy energy growing stronger as he held the sword above his head. "You! You have taken everything from me! My past and the most precious thing in my life." Sighing to herself, the holy mage would fly over to Arthur at her fastest speed. "You know completely well that I can't fight you." The holy mage landed in front of him, dissipating her wings as she sat down facing him. "I could never bring myself to fight you. I could match your strength, but never actually battle you to the death. I care about you too much." The conflict on his face completely evident as Lilium continued, "I don't want to die, but if you can find closure with it, I put my life in your hands. Just know..." The holy mage smiled at the blackened king who was doing his best to keep up a stoic expression. "You were the best friend I could ever ask for and even if I hid this from you, I hope you remember all the times we spent together." Completely bowing her head to the floor, she would not notice as the spirits of the knights of Arthur materialized around her.

The king's eyes widened as he looked at Gawain, Cordelia and Lancelot. Smiling at his best friend, Gawain would say, "Man, she is amazing at speaking." Sticking his chest out proudly, he'd look up as he said, "She really is a Santiais." Cordelia sighed as she punched Gawain in the shoulder. "Dear Athena, how is that this one's stupidity plagues me even in the after life." The two knights glared at each other as Lancelot tried to put an end to the fighting before Cordelia glared at him while saying, "Oh shut up! You were the one that betrayed him anyways!" Lancelot felt somewhat hurt by that statement as Gawain let out an "Yeesh, Cordy, take it back a notch." Lancelot sniffled as Cordelia and Gawain tried their best to cheer him up again. A smile emerged on the face of the king as his three knights looked at him as they took up a kneeling stance similar to the holy mage. Arthur let out a chuckle and when Lilium looked up to make eye contact with the king, he smiled at her, "I could never kill you. You are my Master after all." The holy mage would stand and hug the Heroic Spirit with all her might. It wasn't in the plans to take him down with words, but she was actually willing to put down her life to appease her friend. She wasn't sure what that said about her but either way, it made this a lot easier. The sky would be painted a brilliant blue as a portal appeared underneath both of them.

The trip in the portal was an awkward one as Arthur found it hard to look at his Master because of all the effort that she went to get him back. "You could have just found a new Heroic Spirit you know. Arcadia is completely filled with them." The holy mage let out an annoyed huff as she summoned a golden newspaper from Arcadia and hit him on the head with it. "Hey, what the fu-" The holy mage glared at him and he stopped speaking. She chuckled as his recognition of her brief anger. "First of all, you don't tell me that after I went through all of that. But, you are the person that saved me from all the darkness that completely surrounded me. You were there when no one else was. I wanted to provide that for you this time." Arthur sniffled as Lilium looked at him smugly while looking at the sniffling Heroic Spirit, "Oh? What's this? You actually are touched by my heroic deeds?" Another voice would interject, "You were right, Lilium. He really does look younger when he is with you. But, he's still my dad so he'll always be old." Chuckling, the holy mage would look at Arthur as he panicked, until he saw Mordred next to him. Hugging her tightly, the crimson heir would chuckle as she said, "Heh, you are such a dork, Dad. But, I'm glad you are." Glowing with a faint crimson aura, the holy mage would urge Arthur. "I absorbed her soul temporarily. Only her body died with Rhongomyniad. Send her to Arcadia." Smiling, Arthur would place a glowing head on his daughter's head who smiled right back at him. However, he gripped her head in a similar way that he did when he was annoyed with the holy mage. Oh, so that's where it started. Poor Mordred. "I swear, if you annoy Gawain or Cordelia, I'll hit you. Okay? Lancelot is free game though." Mordred chuckled through the pain as she was coated in a golden light before disappearing.

Back in the normal world, the holy mage would get launched out of the portal and land on her feet as Arthur was launched out of it. Catching the king, the holy mage would chuckle at the surprising reversal of the situation. The normal world seemed unharmed by the carnage that they just endured and the duo laughed. The rest of the knights and Mordred would rematerialize next to them as they looked towards the castle. Smiling, the holy mage would say, "Now, do you want to visit it?" Looking at Mordred who was eager to go, Gawain who was looking around at the area in fascination, Cordelia who was looking at the castle ruins with Lancelot, Arthur would nod with a smile on his face, "Sure. Wherever you go, I'll follow."

Post: 3,413
Total: 16,272/15,000