Typemoon: Starting Out as the Lion King's Personal Knight

The air seemed to freeze, and the increasingly oppressive atmosphere triggered warning bells in Alaric's instincts. A slight fluctuation of magical energy arose within his body, precisely like the sensation he felt earlier when dispelling negative effects on his mana.

Poison?!

Alaric realized immediately that, at some point, the air had filled with an invisible, odorless toxin. The source was undoubtedly the nameless Servant standing before him!

"Besides poison, how many more tricks do you have?"

Bang!

A flash of red lightning streaked by as Alaric charged forward, and the battle resumed! Unlike the previous stalemate, where he was suppressed, this time Alaric displayed absolute dominance. Releasing his mana without restraint had greatly enhanced his physical strength. His power was unmatched!

As their blades clashed, the fierce red glow emitted by Alarice's sword suddenly condensed, abandoning a wide-range attack and instead focusing all of its force on a single point. Where the sword blade passed, it was as if a crimson crescent moon had descended.

There was almost no resistance. The moment the crescent appeared, the nameless Servant was sent flying like a kite with its string cut!

"Where's your sword now?!"

Having gained the upper hand, Alaric laughed loudly, launching himself forward like a cannonball. The sword technique he used, inspired by Lancelot's Noble Phantasm Arondight Overload: Breaking All Restraints - Overloaded Light of the Lake, was far from perfect in terms of mana control and technique, but Alaric managed to focus his wide-range mana output into a single point, significantly boosting his offensive power!

Crack—!

A faint cracking sound echoed behind Alaric, carried by the wind. The terrifying battle raged on in the vast desert as Alaric, fully unleashed, attacked with maximum mana output. The strain pushed his body to its limit.

Bang!

With Alaric's second acceleration, he caught up to the still-airborne nameless Servant! Finally, Alaric saw how the nameless Servant managed to shoot nine arrows simultaneously—the Servant twisted in mid-air, drew their bow, and released nine arrows in rapid succession!

Almost simultaneously, Alaric swung his sword from below. The torrent of red light surged skyward, a brilliant pillar standing tall in the desert, engulfing both the nine arrows and the nameless Servant. Alaric didn't stop his advance. He knew an attack of this level wouldn't be enough to end the battle!

As he closed in on the nameless Servant for another clash—

Crack—!

The crisp sound of something breaking reached Alaric's ears once more. He glanced down to see the nameless longsword in his hand had finally reached its limit and snapped in two!

What kind of quality is this?! Am I the only one with a normal weapon?

Alaric could tell that the slender sword in the nameless Servant's hand was some kind of divine weapon, though modest in design.

As the saying goes, "A longer weapon has strength, but a shorter one has risk." At this point, the broken sword in Alaric's hand was as short as a dagger, making it almost unusable in combat.

Faced with such a dangerous situation, Alaric didn't hesitate. He swiftly switched his grip, using the broken sword to block the nameless Servant's blade while pulling their bodies closer together. The crimson glow burst out once again, generating a shockwave as powerful as a heavenly ring, slicing through the desert sands.

As the nameless Servant was forced back once more, a mist of blood quietly bloomed in the air.

"So you can get hurt after all!"

The nameless Servant, having parried Alaric's punch with one hand, now had a torn palm, flesh and blood mangled. This confirmed for Alaric the possible limits of the nameless Servant's skills or Noble Phantasms.

"Hm?"

Alaric frowned, staring intently at the Servant's palm. There, rotating and shimmering, were runes composed of strands of light—

"So, you're using magecraft to enhance yourself!"

At that moment, Alaric finally understood why the nameless Servant had been able to withstand his attacks—it was through the use of extensive defensive magecraft! The desperate situation that could have only been overturned with his Mystic Eyes of Death Perception had suddenly reversed, but now a new problem presented itself. With the longsword broken, Alaric had lost his only combat-capable weapon.

Even with unlimited mana, fighting an overwhelmingly strong Servant barehanded would be a tremendous challenge.

The chance to use the Mystic Eyes...

Alaric estimated that the remaining broken sword could only be used two more times. Based on his experience, there were only two reasons the sword had broken: the fierce clashes with the nameless Servant and the extreme strain placed on it by his excessive mana output. Two remaining chances—could he find an opportunity to kill the Servant?

It was nearly impossible.

?!

At that moment, Alaric's instincts screamed a warning. Almost simultaneously, the nameless Servant charged at him, sword in hand. Faced with the ferocious onslaught, Alaric instinctively retreated, but the sense of danger only grew stronger.

It's not this guy? It's coming from below!

Squelch!

A strange, splitting sound came from beneath him. Before he could react, black mud erupted from the ground, engulfing both him and the nameless Servant.

The almost tangible curse within the black mud began madly corroding Alaric. The crimson mana swirling around him was rendered useless under the mud's influence, rapidly consumed! Yet the Nameless Servant's assault didn't cease. Despite being similarly engulfed, it seemed like killing Alaric was their top priority—even if it meant sacrificing their own life.

Something's wrong!

Alaric forced his eyes open, pushing his mana to the limit to resist the black mud's corrosion. He saw clearly that the Servant was unaffected by the mud's erosion. Or rather, the mud clung to them but caused no harm!

As I suspected, they're working together!

Now, with his movements restricted, Alaric had to fend off the Servant's relentless attacks!

Slash!

Sensing that the situation was growing dire, Alarice didn't hesitate. Ignoring the Nameless Servant's assault, he thrust his broken sword downward!

Boom!

When the red lightning dissipated, Alaric stood unharmed, but the ground around him had turned to blackened earth, corroded by the poison. Meanwhile, the nameless Servant had been blown away by the explosion, sent flying dozens of meters! Though Alaric was unscathed, his expression was cold as he scanned the area. Multiple sources of magical energy were closing in from all directions.

So, there are others at play. Is it that magus? No, a Servant? There's more than one Servant...

After the nameless Servant, three more appeared, seemingly working for the Crusader remnants. But Alaric dismissed the idea that they were true Servants.

Several gaunt, humanoid figures stood before him. Their appearances varied, but they shared certain common traits. Their eyes were vacant, like puppets. The magical energy they emitted gave Alaric the illusion they were all part of the same entity.

It's the same technique as the Chimera, similar to that artificial lifeform, Alaika!

Alaric's expression remained unchanged. The numerical difference didn't trouble him much; while their mana levels reached the realm of Servants, they were still weak compared to him.

What truly concerned him was the magus lurking in the shadows. Their mastery of curses was extraordinary—whether it was the sand-binding spell earlier or the black mud this time, it was likely all the work of one individual. Such a magus, hiding in the shadows, made it difficult for Alaric to feel at ease.

"Aren't you going to show yourself?"