Anchor, Stop Pretending, You're in Chaldea - Chapter 163

On a certain island surrounded by the sea.

A blonde-haired Saber and another woman wielding a silver Holy Cross staff were examining the nearby Bounded Field.

“Hey, do you think Master might have forgotten about us?”

Mordred, carrying Clarent over her shoulder, spoke discontentedly.

“It’s just full of noisy wild beasts here, occasionally seeing those irritating flying things too. Surrounded by ocean; if I could march on water like my father, we wouldn’t be stuck like this.”

“Of course not! After getting separated from us, Master must be quite anxious, right?”

Popess Johanna affirmed that Bai Qiu wouldn’t abandon their search, but then displayed a worried expression.

“If Mash and that always-angry, fire-loving woman are with him, they should manage fine, shouldn’t they?”

Mordred glanced down at small hermit crabs leisurely moving along the sandy shore.

“Oh, right, wasn’t there also that ‘Beast’ accompanying them? What was its name again?”

Mordred pondered for a moment.

“The Beast of Sodom…? Sounds kinda intriguing.”

“…It’s actually ‘the Beast of Sodom,'” Johanna corrected Mordred with a hint of exasperation.

“However, whether that ‘Beast’ adequately protected Master or not remains unverified.” At this thought, Johanna paused in her steps.

“…Could it be because my identity conflicts with the Beast of Sodom, leading to me being repelled?”

“Oh? I had no idea you two had some past issues?” Mordred stopped observing the hermit crab and turned towards Johanna.

“It’s not exactly past issues, more like…a difference in stance, perhaps?” After a moment of contemplation, Johanna managed to articulate her thoughts.

“In reality, there have been slight conflicts between the Church and that Beast of Sodom, naturally resulting in such animosity…” Johanna strove to explain concisely to Mordred.

“Aha! Now I completely understand!” Mordred smiled brightly.

“In essence, they’re sworn enemies, right?!?”

“…I can’t deny it; that’s pretty much accurate.” Hearing Mordred directly label them as “sworn enemies,” Johanna couldn’t muster any rebuttal.

“Since I’m a fictional character and even considered heretical by the Church, I don’t hold strong biases against her. However, Martha-sama’s perspective is different…”

“Oh? Things sure seem complicated on your side.”

Mordred appeared somewhat puzzled yet intrigued.

“Well, it makes sense though. Those Round Table fools often couldn’t stand each other, so this kind of rivalry isn’t surprising. But seriously, why must someone as talented as me be stuck at the bottom?!”

As they continued their conversation, a sudden cry echoed from the sky.

“Chirp, chirp——!!”

Tonbi flew back from the distant sea and landed directly on Johanna’s shoulder.

“Chirp, chirp!!”

The bird seemed anxious, continuously communicating something to Johanna.

“Oh? Did it find Master?!” Mordred quickly approached but couldn’t understand what the Tonbi was saying.

Earlier, Johanna had released the Tonbi with the intention of gradually expanding its search radius around the island. However, this effort yielded minimal results, providing no useful information.

“Chirp, chirp, ch-chirp—!!!” This time, the Tonbi’s reaction was exceptionally intense, as if it had discovered something significant.

Surprisingly, upon hearing the Tonbi’s message, Johanna furrowed her brow deeply.

Before she could respond, the seashells buried along the beach, used as Bounded Field stones, suddenly emitted a red glow! They began trembling continuously, indicating changes within their Magical Energy.

“It’s from the southwest direction!” Johanna swiftly identified the source of the issue.

“The Bounded Field has been breached; someone is invading the island from that side!”

“Hmph, is this boring life finally coming to an end?” Mordred instantly became excited.

Before Johanna could react, Mordred charged towards the southwest direction, wielding Clarent!

“I’ve nearly eliminated all dangerous creatures on this island; finally, some intruders have arrived! Maybe they brought a ship, and now we can leave this place!” With that thought, Mordred accelerated even more.

“Swish——!!”

Suddenly, a longsword swung from behind a nearby rock!

Instinctively, Mordred sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the attack, and simultaneously swung Clarent at her assailant!

A figure crumpled to the ground, dropping the sword that had just attempted to strike Mordred.

“—————?!”

Mordred looked down at the fallen attacker, clad in silver Templar Knight armor.

As their life faded away, the body disintegrated into specks of light, vanishing before Mordred’s eyes.

“Clang——!!!”

Several knights dressed in identical armor emerged from another side, drawing their swords with sharp metallic sounds as they rushed directly towards Mordred!

Unfazed, Mordred swiftly swung her sword forward, first knocking the weapon from one knight’s hand and then effortlessly beheading another with a fluid motion.

Without even glancing back, she turned and struck again on the spot!

In an instant, two more knights met their bloody end!

As the bodies of these four fallen Templar Knights vanished, Mordred impatiently shouldered Clarent and scanned the surroundings.

“You’ve had enough fun sneaking around, haven’t you? It’s getting boring. And why do they disappear as soon as I cut them down? Are you hiding nearby as some necromancer?”

Responding to Mordred’s provocation, a figure slowly emerged from behind the rocky wall.

Dressed in silver-white armor adorned with a cross, he had silvery hair and wore glasses, with a massive crusader shield prominently visible on his arm.

Following him were several dozen knights clad in similar Templar Knight armor. Each held weapons engraved with crosses, eyeing Mordred menacingly through their helmets.

“I didn’t expect our surprise attack to fail against you. You must be the knight who claims allegiance to Britain, correct?”

“Oh? You know me?” Mordred pointed incredulously at herself, surprised by this revelation. “Could it be that I’m actually quite famous here too?”

After hearing his words, Mordred pointed incredulously at herself.

“Wait, am I actually quite famous here too???”

“My apologies, that’s all the information I have about you,” Jacques de Molay replied, unwilling to reveal his sources.

“A knight from Britain and wielding this Holy Sword, could you be Lancelot of the Knights of the Round Table? But I’ve never heard of any female member among them…”

As Molay pondered the true identity of the armored blonde girl before him, a sudden surge of intense killing intent struck him!

“—What?!”

“Clangggg!!!” Clarent in Mordred’s hand slammed directly onto Molay’s shield.

“You fool! You managed to anger me twice in such quick succession!!!” With eyes blazing with fury, Mordred exerted immense force, pushing Molay back a step.

“Shhhk! Shhhk! Shhhk!” The knights on either side of Molay drew their weapons and immediately launched attacks against Mordred.

“Get out of my way!” Mordred roared, causing a surge of Magical Energy to erupt from her armor, transforming into startling red lightning that instantly repelled those around her.

Withstanding the crimson electrical assault, Molay forcefully used his crusader shield to block the attack and swiftly stepped back, evading Clarent’s sharp edge.

Due to the interference of other knights, Mordred abandoned pursuit and instead chose to strike down two more of them!

Apparently, the Templar Knights’ armor provided excellent defense, as neither knight sustained fatal injuries.

The surrounding Templar Knights also raised their crusader shields, forming an impenetrable formation.

Repositioning himself, Molay aimed his cruciform sword at Mordred ahead.

“If my words earlier offended you, I apologize.”

“Apologize?!” Mordred’s gaze brimmed with murderous intent.

“Don’t think you can provoke me and escape unscathed!”

Leaving these words behind, Mordred surged forward once again with renewed force.

“Clang ——!!!”

The strike landed on their shield formation with minimal effect. The combined defense of several Templar Knights and Molay absorbed Mordred’s attack head-on.

Realizing her initial assault had little impact, Mordred immediately intensified her power.

“Crimson Thunder!!!”

“Crack ————!!!”

A crimson bolt of lightning descended from the sky, striking Mordred directly!

Using the ancestral Mana Burst technique, Clarent emitted a brilliant red glow, simultaneously exploiting weaknesses in the Templar Knights’ shield formation.

“Got you now!”

Mordred swiftly infused Magical Energy into Clarent and aimed for the exposed gap, swinging decisively!

“Clang ————!!!”

Unexpectedly, another crisp sound echoed as Mordred’s attack was once again blocked.

“…Tch.”

The brief vulnerability was instantly rectified.

“Since you refuse to reveal your name, I shall announce mine here!”

With pride, Molay declared loudly:

“I am Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master of the Order of the Knights Templar, fighting to protect the Holy Land of Jerusalem! By my side stands the elite of the Templar Knights, and together we shall rekindle the past glory of our Order!”

“Clang——!!!” Mordred delivered another direct blow against the shield formation.

“The Order of the Knights Templar? Hmph, fine then. Since you wish to engage like knights, I’ll respond in kind!”

Mordred firmly gripped Clarent and pointed it forward.

“My name is Mordred, the rightful successor of King Arthur Pendragon, the Knight of Knights—and I am the one who will slay you all here today!”

“Mordred?!” Behind the shield wall, Molay’s eyes widened with realization.

“A knight from Britain… So, you’re actually a traitorous knight?!”

“It seems you’ve caught on.” Mordred began channeling Magical Energy into Clarent.

“But it’s too late!!!” Mordred, already poised for attack, poured all remaining Magical Energy into her sword and swung forward with a single breath!

“This is the evil sword that destroyed my father, rebellion against my beautiful father! (Clarent Blood Arthur)!!!”

“CLANG———!!!”

The compressed particles of Magical Energy transformed into lightning, striking directly onto Molay and the other Templar Knights’ shield formation.

With the intense impact, the Templar Knights staggered but continued to desperately maintain their formation despite struggling to stay upright.

“Just how long can you hold on?!?” Mordred advanced another step, pushing the already overwhelmed Templar Knights further towards their breaking point.

“CRASH———!!!”

Starting from the outer edges, Templar Knights collapsed one after another, causing their formation to rapidly crumble.

Soon, only Molay remained, steadfastly resisting Mordred’s Noble Phantasm.

“For the revival of the Order of the Knights Templar!” Molay summoned all his strength to counter Mordred.

“I must accumulate victories because behind me stands the radiant banner of the Knights Templar!”

A surge of Magical Energy erupted from Molay’s body.

“I was defeated as a knight. Destroyed as a monk. And wiped out as a leader”

He raised his crusader shield, struggling to stand upright!

“My regrets of being burned to the ground, having achieved nothing…..”

Despite enduring such immense Magical Energy assaults, he refused to yield.

With unwavering determination, he lifted his Holy Sword high above his head.

“I will release them here and now! ‘The Pilgrimage of the Temple’ (Pilérinage du Temple)!!”

Suddenly, the fallen Templar Knights rose back to their feet, raising their shields once more as they firmly followed Molay’s lead.

As they advanced, roaring flames erupted beneath their footsteps!

“——?!”

Mordred gritted her teeth, watching these Templar Knights marching with precise coordination against her. She increased her Magical Energy output once more!

Once Molay and the surrounding Templar Knights were sufficiently close to Mordred:

The knights nearby exerted their final strength to block incoming attacks while Molay directly aimed his Holy Sword at Mordred and charged forward!

“Haaaaa——!!”

Enveloped by raging infernal fires, the valiant figure of Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master, wielding his sword, flickered amidst the blaze.

With one rider and a single sword charging forth, the illusory realm shone brilliantly!