Chapter 645

Chapter 645: The Farewell Battle of Two Generations of Round Table

While King Hassan was thoroughly exasperated by Sakatsuki’s shameless persistence, Leo’s heart was a whirlwind of mixed emotions.

If one called it grievance—Leo never believed being the Holy King entitled him to act recklessly. He had long prepared himself for the indifference of the Grand Servants.

If one called it anger—the Grand Summoning Ritual wasn’t something Sakatsuki forced him to perform. In the end, it was his own chosen path. Who could he blame?

But if one called it acceptance... To have the Grand Servant he painstakingly summoned become nothing more than a stepping stone for Sakatsuki—how could such a stark contrast leave him at peace?

The sudden intrusion of a Grand Ruler from beyond the seven standard classes, only to be slain and replaced by the Grand Assassin... When the ghostly old man raised his greatsword and repelled the unrivaled Sakatsuki, what flashed through Leo’s mind wasn’t relief, but rather a sense of being undeservingly honored.

Repeated disappointments had long since eroded his expectations for Grand Servants. Precisely because of this, when he finally realized the Grand Assassin wasn’t hostile to Sakatsuki but merely testing his strength, Leo felt no anger—only a simple regret for his own miscalculation.

"Gawain, how are you?"

"I’m fine, my lord. Mere scratches, nothing noteworthy."

As long as his Spirit Core remained intact, Gawain’s self-healing under the Saint’s protection was formidable. Sakatsuki had also used Gáe Dearg rather than Gáe Buidhe, and with Leo’s endless supply of magical energy, he had already fully recovered. Yet as he gazed at Sakatsuki, a peculiar light flickered in his eyes.

If he hadn’t misheard earlier, Sakatsuki had referred to himself as... the last knight of the Round Table?

The legend of King Arthur had concluded with the return of Excalibur, and the tale of the Round Table Knights had ended with the king’s passing. Countless millennia had passed since then.

Yet this young man, a contemporary of Leo’s, claimed the title of the Round Table for himself?

Come to think of it, he had indeed caught traces of familiar energy...

As Gawain pondered, the conversation between Sakatsuki and King Hassan continued:

"Old man, give me a hint first—where has the Counter Force sent you to work for free this time?"

King Hassan shot Sakatsuki a cold glance. "Save your wit for someone who cares."

"Aside from special summons tied by fate, my shadow follows only where the Beasts descend."

"Got it. Either the Sixth or Seventh Singularity then. But to let me take over your summoning—you’re really bold, old man. Aren’t you afraid I’ll mess it up?"

"..."

Blue spiritual flames flared violently. Under King Hassan’s silent stare, Sakatsuki twitched his lips and raised his hands in surrender.

"Alright, alright, I get it. If I screw up, you’ll clean up the mess yourself, right?"

Somehow, Sakatsuki had deciphered King Hassan’s gaze. With his promise secured, the Grand Assassin gave a slight nod and fully released his suppression, allowing his Spirit Origin to gradually disperse.

"Wait, Grand Assassin—at least assist me in one battle..." Leo instinctively called out.

The Grand Assassin turned and cast him a faint glance.

"Even if I were to intervene personally, I could not stop him. Your opponent has long surpassed what is called a Servant. Unless it be a deity, a savior, or a calamity of human governance (Beast), there is absolutely no possibility of wresting victory from his hands."

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have so confidently dumped this burden onto Sakatsuki.

After leaving these words, the figure of the Grand Assassin completely dissipated. Leo withdrew his gaze and scratched his head helplessly—this was the first time he’d made such a boyish gesture: "Even if you don’t intend to help me, there’s no need to pour cold water on things."

"This isn’t pouring cold water—it’s the truth." The young man’s cheerful voice came through. After King Hassan’s departure, he had reverted to his usual lively self. "Don’t bother resisting, Leo. Just die first, and we’ll talk later."

What he meant, of course, was to follow the same method—kill Leo and extract his data, after which it wouldn’t matter whether he was revived or kept as a backup energy source. But to Leo and Gawain, these words sounded like nothing short of outright provocation.

"Gawain, can you still wield your sword for me?"

"Yes, my lord. This body shall serve you unto the last moment."

This was the end. Every remaining Master in the Moon Holy Grail War realized it. When Leo’s trump card was shattered by the accumulated ’bonds’ Sakatsuki had gathered, all that remained for this King of Saints was a desperate gamble.

"Gawain, by my Command Spell, I order you—replenish your diminished strength!"

Without hesitation, he used a Command Spell... Hakuno tensed as she watched Leo grip his wrist. After the first mark faded, the second and third Command Spells flared to life.

"Leonardo Bistario Harwey commands my Servant, Gawain! Unleash your holy sword’s full power—incinerate Sakatsuki!"

Gawain’s holy sword let out a resounding cry. Flames surged up the hilt, towering like a pillar to the heavens before exploding into a blinding, scorching sun.

"The temperature inside the barrier is rising rapidly... So this is Gawain’s true power." Even Rin, watching from the school building, had to raise a defensive barrier. "But even with three Command Spells, can Gawain reach—or surpass—Sakatsuki’s level?"

Unconsciously, her concern had shifted from Sakatsuki to Leo’s side, now the underdog, as she pondered ways to defeat this great demon king.

Facing Gawain’s full power head-on, Sakatsuki showed not the slightest hint of underestimation. Even with the enhancements of a Dragon Kind and the Third Magic, taking a full-powered strike from a holy sword boosted by three Command Spells required careful consideration.

For example—

As a diamond-shaped space flickered, Sakatsuki appeared to Gawain’s right. Hakuno and Nero only felt their vision blur before finding themselves in Sakatsuki’s previous position.

"Huh?" Hakuno blinked in confusion.

"Looking for a scapegoat?" Gawain’s heroic brows furrowed. "It’s useless. Before my Noble Phantasm is fully unleashed, I can lock onto your presence at any time!"

Sakatsuki ignored him, merely measuring the distance between Gawain and himself before nodding in satisfaction.

Since ancient times, the left side loses in beam clashes... Now, I’m the one standing on the right.

Gawain, you’re doomed to lose!

"Sigh, my contractor, though I loathe to admit it..." The golden-haired Red Dragon Emperor followed with a peculiar look in her eyes, "But you’re not thinking of that, are you? That positioning theory you once mentioned to me with such earnestness?"

"Not at all, just finding the right stance." Naturally, Sakatsuki wouldn’t admit to his childishness. He blinked his left eye at the alluring Red Dragon Emperor. "Look, Leo as a Master has reinforced Gawain inside and out. As my Master, shouldn’t you show some initiative too?"

"Initiative?" Draco swayed her wrist, the three Command Spells on the back of her hand glowing like the evening sky. "You’re truly incorrigible, like a child begging for candy."

"Then, sister, won’t you give me a taste of something sweet?" Sakatsuki’s fox-like eyes glimmered with amusement. Draco paused, then curled her lips as her delicate, boneless form leaned into his embrace, extending a slender arm.

"By my name as Master Draco, I declare—"

Her words cut off abruptly as her arm coiled like a serpent around Sakatsuki’s neck. The golden-haired emperor exhaled a fragrant breath, drawing close to her contractor before pressing loving crimson lips against the young man’s cheek.

"Bring victory to me."

"Ah! This cheater, this sneaky cat, how shameless!" Nero, witnessing Draco’s ’adultery before the wife,’ puffed up in fury, her eyes reddening. "How dare you lay hands on my governor right in front of me!"

Draco’s kiss didn’t last long—any longer, and Gawain’s ultimate attack would finish charging. She released Sakatsuki’s embrace, vanishing like a phantom.

"Let me witness... your divine might."

As the crimson mist dispersed, Sakatsuki absently touched his cheek—then—

"Oooohhhh, I’m fired up!!"

His pupils blazed like molten gold as the young man roared with the vigor of someone pumped full of adrenaline. With the radiance of twilight scattering, the dragon-slaying demonic blade howled in his left hand, while his right gripped a blazing meteoric greatsword wreathed in crimson dragonfire!

It was Siegfried’s Noble Phantasm, Balmung, and the fully analyzed Draco-exclusive armament—Flames of the End!

When Draco finally unlocked her third spiritual foundation, her and Nero’s shared beloved sword, Aestus Estus, was reforged through the flames of seven dragon heads. Born from the crimson sunset and scorching blood, it became the Crimson Dragon’s Forge, capable of scorching three thousand worlds.

"Awaken from the golden dream, break free from the cradle—O crimson tide, adorn the final act!"

As the magus chanted, the golden-embracing evil dragon and the seven-headed, ten-horned calamitous beast stirred from slumber. The wills of the twin demonic blades roared in excitement, surging through the hilt into the young man’s veins, making his heart leap with exhilaration. With a sharp exhale of white breath, Sakatsuki, now wielding both swords, raised his gaze toward the tense-faced Gawain.

His left side was draped in robes woven from twilight’s glow, the evil dragon revealing glimpses of its scales within the azure mist.

His right side was cloaked in wildly burning crimson demonic flames, unfurling like a tide of blood, within which the beast of calamity smirked soundlessly!

The Knight of the Sun had encountered his fated crimson twilight.

Yet this did nothing to shake his will, steadfast as stone!

"This radiance dispels the night, illuminating the land as an unchanging guardian—Excalibur Galatine!"

At the same moment, Sakatsuki also channeled his magical energy, unleashing both Noble Phantasms without reservation:

"O seven-headed dragon, become my wings and soar! Strike them down—Balmung: Phantasmal Greatsword, Heaven’s Fall / Rose Blood Tide!"

Golden flames surged from the left, roaring past like a volcanic eruption. The twilight ether and crimson magical energy twisted together, forming a spiraling pillar of dazzling light that swept in from the right. The moment they collided, an earth-shaking explosion erupted, as if mountains were being toppled!

The violent torrent of energy radiated outward in all directions, obliterating the structures of the Moon Cell Sea with unstoppable force. Rin shrieked and crouched defensively, only to be swallowed by a diamond-shaped space and dropped into Nero and Hakuno’s arms. Leo raised a magical barrier, his eyes illuminated by the clash of three colors. In the distance, Draco appeared beside the priestly figure of Kirei Kotomine, watching her contracted swordsman with a smirk as he gripped his blade.

The next instant, the crimson twilight swallowed the blazing sun, and the surging magical torrent drowned the Masters’ vision. When they regained their senses, only Sakatsuki stood unscathed on the desolate battlefield, facing the golden-haired knight Gawain, who knelt on one knee, his armor shattered.

The outcome was decided.

"Sakatsuki..." Hakuno peeked out from behind Nero, calling his name softly, but the sound of a blade scraping against the ground silenced her. Following the noise, she saw Gawain stagger to his feet, dragging his holy sword behind him as he advanced step by step toward the young man.

"Sakatsuki!" Gawain shouted his name. "You... are also one of the Knights of the Round Table, aren’t you?"

Hearing this, Nero and Draco showed no surprise—they had long since realized during the second Singularity that Sakatsuki had deep ties to King Arthur. Only the three Masters wore expressions of shock, unable to comprehend how Sakatsuki could have transcended time to become the last knight of the Round Table.

Before Gawain, his senior, Sakatsuki did not deny it. "Yes. But what of it?"

At this, Gawain smiled in relief. Though his body swayed precariously, he maintained his dignity as a knight. "Good... At least I have not disgraced the glory of our king."

The golden-haired knight then turned to Leo, his eyes filled with remorse. "But I must apologize, my lord. I, Gawain, have been defeated by Sakatsuki, the last knight of the Round Table. I could not bring you victory."

Leo silently shook his head. He watched as golden particles began to rise from Gawain’s body, his Spirit Core crumbling away. Yet even in his final moments, this knight, like a prince from a fairy tale, showed no regret for death—only sorrow for failing to fulfill his loyalty.

This noble chivalry shone as brilliantly as the sun in the sky.

Then, Gawain looked back at Sakatsuki.

"Sakatsuki, you who have inherited the light of the Round Table a millennium later... Your strength and resolve fill me with pride. Though I have fallen to you, I do not despair, for our king’s choice was not mistaken. You will carry on the glory of the Round Table, becoming a shining star in this era."

Sakatsuki nodded silently. He understood that Gawain was speaking to him now not as a Servant, but as a senior knight of the Round Table.

Gawain continued, his voice filled with expectation. "Your power exceeds my imagination. But I hope you realize—what you bear is not just your own fate, but the honor of the entire Round Table."

"May you inherit our will, just as we did in the past, and become that indelible legend of radiance."

Sakatsuki solemnly sheathed his sword and bowed deeply. "Rest assured, I will not fail this duty."

With a sudden sound, Draco and Nero appeared beside Sakatsuki without warning, each clinging to one of his arms while casting sharp glances at Gawain.

"With just these words of yours, do you think you can whisk away my governor (contractor)?"

"A Roman-affiliated Heroic Spirit... I must report this to my king and comrades upon returning to the Throne of Heroes," Gawain muttered quickly under his breath. By then, he had already stepped beside Sakatsuki, giving him a firm pat on the shoulder before continuing forward.

Thus, the two generations of Knights of the Round Table passed each other by—one dissolving into a shower of golden light, while the other gazed intently into the distance.

The fallen had departed, and the victor must press onward.

Saber·Gawain, exit.

Master·Leo, eliminated.