Shinji Matou At Your Service

Chapter 404: Artoria’s Progress

The "Dragon Slayer" ability's effectiveness against "Dragon Attributes" manifests in two specific ways.

First, it provides an anti-dragon boost, increasing damage. Originally, a sword slash would result in a three-millimeter-deep wound. With the "Dragon Slayer" boost, the same slash would deepen the wound to four or even five millimeters. The exact boost depends on the skill level and the degree of the opponent's dragon attribute.

Second, it has a psychological impact. The suppression Artoria feels instinctively comes from this reason.

Of course, Artoria's will is exceptionally strong, having borne the weight of all of Britain as a young girl. Now, without any lingering obsessions, her mind is harmonious and flawless. The pressure from the "Dragon Slayer" is formidable, but it's not unbearable.

However, being able to withstand it doesn't mean being unaffected. The pressure from innate instincts will always exist unless the dragon factor within her is removed, affecting Artoria's performance. Her full strength of one hundred percent is reduced to ninety-five. If Siegfried's momentum increases, it could drop to ninety.

Don't underestimate the difference of five or ten points. In a duel between masters, even a one-point difference can decide victory, let alone five or ten. Coupled with the anti-dragon damage boost, Artoria has already lost half the battle before it even begins.

This isn't an exaggeration. The differences in compatibility between Servants are vast. Compared to Siegfried being helpless against Achilles, Artoria is much better off; at least she isn't completely powerless.

Based on Shinji's understanding of Artoria, even if she has the power to fight, she is ultimately doomed to lose. Siegfried's advantages are just too overwhelming.

Their basic attributes and physical capabilities are roughly equal; neither can overpower the other.

In terms of swordsmanship, Artoria, trained since childhood and tempered by battlefield experience, is undoubtedly top-tier. But that's limited to human standards and hasn't surpassed human limits. Siegfried, however, has truly stepped into the "non-human realm," a whole level above. Even with "Instinct" and "Mana Burst," it's hard to bridge this gap.

For Noble Phantasms, both have two. Artoria has one A++ and one C; Siegfried has one A+ and one B+. Averaging out, Siegfried still has the advantage, not to mention his "Armor of Farnir," which ranks among the top ten in practical Noble Phantasms. With its protection, Siegfried has a high margin for error, while Artoria's margin is reduced to zero due to the "Dragon Slayer" anti-dragon trait.

With the "Invisible Air" shattered, unless Artoria retrieves her scabbard like last time, or Siegfried makes an irreparable mistake, Artoria stands no chance of winning.

—Or so it should be, but reality is different. After hundreds of rounds of fierce battle, Siegfried, having exerted his swordsmanship and dragon-slaying prowess to the fullest, still couldn't gain an advantage over Artoria.

Desperate, Gordes had to report the situation truthfully to Darnic and request reinforcements.

Upon hearing this, Shinji was stunned, his mind repeatedly turning over one question: How could my Artoria be so strong? Could it be that after transforming from a girl to a mature woman, not only did she understand people's hearts better, but her combat power also skyrocketed? This isn't scientific.

In his bewilderment, Shinji forgot that this world encompasses both science and the mystical. The one who made a master-servant pact with him is no longer the Artoria he remembered.

The Artoria he remembered was the original Saber from the Fate series, contracted with the Counter Force to participate in the Holy Grail War, her strength based on her last battle in life.

Now, however, she has broken the time lock, having spent 1,500 years in Avalon as an immortal being. Fifteen hundred years—enough time for even a pig to become a sage, let alone the world-renowned King of Knights, the Red Dragon of Britain.

Though Artoria spent most of these 1,500 years like a dragon, mostly asleep, with little waking time, her memory remained untainted by time. But having signed a contract with the Counter Force, aware that she might fight for humanity or the planet, she trained in both swordsmanship and spear skills whenever she was awake.

More astonishingly, Artoria wasn't alone in Avalon; there was also Merlin. As her teacher, Merlin taught Artoria most of her skills—through dreams, as entering dreams is as easy as breathing for this nightmare magus.

Due to Merlin's pampering and indulgence, whenever Artoria wanted to train, Merlin would weave dreams for her filled with whatever monsters she needed. As an immortal top-tier voyeur who could observe the entire world, there wasn't a monster Merlin hadn't seen. Even if you wanted to fight a god, Merlin could create one in the dream, with a realism surpassing eighty percent.

Honestly, Artoria herself didn't know exactly how strong she had become, only that she kept getting stronger. Even if it was just a little every day, no, every month, after fifteen hundred years, the accumulation was considerable. Any deficiencies she had were gradually filled over time.

To this day, her first-rate swordsmanship has reached the divine realm through dream battles, and her greatest reliance, "Instinct," has upgraded from A to A++. At this moment, she is undoubtedly the strongest among the Knights of the Round Table. Even if Lancelot, wielding the "Arondight," were resurrected, or Gawain at the peak of "Numeral of the Saint," they would not be her match.

If Artoria were more accustomed to her mature form, even with Siegfried's "Dragon Slayer" bonus, she could still gain the upper hand. Of course, victory wasn't assured—just like Siegfried against Karna, without a chance to unleash her Noble Phantasm, and with the opponent having "Armor of Fafnir" and "Renewed Stance," fighting for days and nights would still prevent Siegfried's defeat. Even if she couldn't win, she could wear him down. This is Siegfried's capital as a top-tier Servant.

For this reason, Gordes contacted Darnic, hoping to use the strength of multiple Servants to take down Artoria. If she could be used for their side, great; if not, they could seize the opportunity to eliminate her.

Darnic couldn't refuse such a rational proposal, so he quickly gathered forces to support Siegfried.

Unfortunately, the Master of Black Assassin was among the reinforcements. As soon as the support team set off, they received the message.

Knowing she couldn't continue the fight, Artoria unleashed a maximum power Mana Burst to force Siegfried back, then softly called, "Dun Stallion."

A loud neigh, accompanied by the sound of the earth-shaking, announced its arrival—a white warhorse clad in silver horse armor.

The warhorse was very fast. Just as its features became clear, it had already arrived in front of Artoria.

The warhorse was very intelligent, choosing its path intentionally, passing right in front of Gordes, scaring him pale, and forcing Siegfried to protect his Master. Although the warhorse wasn't a Noble Phantasm, it wasn't something Gordes could withstand.

Taking advantage of the gap, Artoria flipped onto the horse's back.

"Continuing this fight would be pointless; let's end it here. Black Saber, through your sword, I can sense that you are an excellent and upright knight. Why then, do you let your Master act against the knight's creed without advising or stopping him? Are you true to your knightly vows?"

Hearing the female knight's stern question, Siegfried moved his lips but ultimately remained silent.

Artoria snorted slightly in disappointment.

"I hope next time I see you, both you and your Master will have changed. If all of Black Faction are like this, I would rather go forward alone!"

With that, the white horse galloped away, carrying its master into the night, leaving behind Siegfried silently sheathing his sword and a disgraced Gordes.

PS1: Renewed Stance: Rank A

The ability to disengage from battle and reset the situation. It restores skill conditions to their initial values and forcefully removes several negative statuses.

PS2: Artoria's swordsmanship isn't highly ranked. Typically, she relies on her attributes, Instinct, and the advantage of an invisible sword when fighting. Without these, purely comparing techniques, she might not even match up to a spear-wielding Lancer.