"That's right, it's like a natural feeling. It's as if you can't think of an answer to a complicated arithmetic problem, but you get an understanding by chance. I nodded understandingly.

"Has Shirou ever racked his brains for his homework?" The girl turned her head, her green eyes full of mockery of me.

"Please, please spare me...... Not everyone is born like Artoria and you are the top student. I shrugged helplessly, "If you have worked hard enough in school but still can't learn, then no matter how much time you spend after school, it will not be effective." Instead of that, it is better to spend your time in more effective places, such as magic training, physical exercise, and cooking research......"

…………

"No, at the end of the day, Shirou had thousands of paths to choose from in the beginning, and he was never told what he wanted to do in the future." The girl shook her head slightly, with a different meaning in her eyes, "If there is only one way to go to school from the beginning, then Shirou can only study seriously." ”

"Who knows about this kind of thing, and maybe you can't stand the oppressive atmosphere halfway, so you can take the initiative to drop out of school and come out to work." I looked up at the cloudless sky, but my mind felt like I had entered another world, "After all, people often force people to do things that they don't agree with in their hearts, and no matter how much they force them to do it, it won't have a good effect." ”

"However, it's not okay to just do what you want, after all, each of us has different responsibilities." The girl turned her head slightly, looking at the many British soldiers who were following closely behind her before continuing, "After all, so-called freedom has been a restricted thing from the beginning, and it is precisely because of this that it is truly worthy of praise. ”

…………

"Artoria, do you really matter?"

I always feel that today's girls are very different from before, both in terms of temperament and speech and behavior.

At least she would never speak like Merlin in such a tone that seemed to have an epiphany about life itself.

"Don't worry, just to suddenly find out that you're really stupid. The answer to a question that I used to frown and think about all day long is so simple that it doesn't even need to go through the brain. The girl's eyes looked calmly ahead, and there seemed to be a clear translucency in them.

"Now, I have the confidence to face Iskander."

…………

"Huh? Were you completely unprepared for battle before? "I was amazed.

"Of course not, I have already made preparations for battle, and in order to ensure that nothing goes wrong on the battlefield, I also deliberately let everyone at the round table practice dozens of times." The girl gently pushed her chest with her slender shoulders, as if to blame me for not understanding her meaning at all, "It's just that the strength of the army, the quality of the equipment is an external factor after all, and the key to victory is whether I can have the heart to face Iskandar again, but I will not have the intention of subservience at all." ”

“……”

I fell silent for a moment, not knowing what to do.

…………

Believe in the path you have chosen and keep going, even if you know that it is a mistake, but puff out your chest with pride.

Give up everything you should have to protect what you love, and carry on your faith until the end even if you are repeatedly betrayed.

The heart of the knight king should have been arrogant and unyielding.

Doubt, worry, and distress should be completely cut off at Camelot.

She is the light herself, and as a bright monarch, she illuminates the future and opens up hope for countless people.

…………

Then she saw the invincible posture of the mighty king of conquest—

tyrannical, impermanent, cruel, conceited......

The original sins of human beings, the root of evil that cannot be erased since they were born in the world, are vividly displayed by that man.

There is no doubt that the actions of a man today have led him to be classified as a feared tyrant, denounced by a group of people as a destroyer of civilization, a hypocrite of peace.

…………

Mingjun should be loved by all people and be of one mind; The tyrant should also be spurned by thousands of people, and all the people will betray their relatives.

However, the truth is quite the opposite.

The unreasonable tyrant fought in the north and south, and formed a deep and eternal bond with the army under his command.

The virtuous and glorious Mingjun worked day and night, but he was lonely to the end, and he did not get the understanding of his subordinates until his death.

…………

But can it really be judged based on this alone, the tyrant is right and the Ming monarch is wrong?

If we hesitate to move forward because of the final result, how many famous heroic epics will disappear into the long history of mankind?

There is a kind of victory called victory without force, and there is also a kind of defeat called glory despite defeat.

Most of the time, right and wrong, good and evil, are just judgments that later generations are not enough to use as evaluation criteria.

The true meaning may only be cleared in the hearts of the parties involved in the incident.

…………

I see.

This meaning -

Finally found by the girl who was once in a deep confusion.

…………

A truly strong heart is never invulnerable.

It is no different from ordinary people, flesh and blood.

It will rejoice in happy things and grieve in sad things; They will be longed for by bright ideals, and they will also be disappointed by the cruel reality.

However, no matter what kind of impact it receives, it will quickly return to its original state like a temporarily fallen reed.

Just as joy does not turn into ecstasy, disappointment does not turn into despair.

…………

The blonde girl had quietly buried her head in my arms, and the scent of her hair was naturally sent into her nose by the breeze.

Holding the warm and soft body in my arms, my heart was full of love.

The rest of the day, we didn't say a word, just pressed each other's bodies close together as usual, enjoying the peace of the last moments before the decisive battle.

My ability to command my troops, the might of the girl's holy sword, plus Skaha's secret weapon-

I don't know if these three can be most reasonably unified.

…………

Two hours later, the British army reached the border.

Seeing me and the girl leading the troops on horseback, the vigilant guard hurriedly knelt down on one knee and saluted, and then respectfully gave up his position.

"My king, there is still half an hour before the other party agrees with us for negotiation." When the maiden stopped, Bedwell stepped forward to warn us.

…………

"Thank you, Bedwell." The girl smiled and waved his hand for Bedwell to step back.

"Shirou, I'll negotiate with Iskandar later." Then the girl turned to me and said, "I know that reconciliation is not possible, but if I can make him swear that he will not harass the people of Britain under any circumstances, it will be a good result." ”