Watching the two who seemed to have reached some kind of tacit understanding, Saber couldn't sit still. She couldn't agree with their ideas, couldn't accept them, couldn't forgive them.
One was the arrogant and rude Ancient Fat Tiger of humanity, who viewed everything as his own.
The other was an arrogant warrior, greedy beyond measure, who plundered and conquered for his world.
Both were self-centered individuals driven by material desires, which was far from the Way of the Knight she had always upheld.
What was the difference between such a king and a tyrant?
She raised her head, looked directly at the two of them, and said, "I want to save my homeland, to use the omnipotent wish-granting device to change the fate of Britain's destruction."
However, after Saber finished speaking, everyone fell silent for a long time.
The scene became quiet for a moment, which greatly perplexed Saber.
Her wish was clear and straightforward, with nothing strange about it. Whether praise or refutation, someone should have immediately spoken up.
But at this moment, the entire courtyard was silent, with only the rustling of the night wind through the leaves, creating an eerily quiet atmosphere.
After a long while, it was Rider who first broke the silence. He scratched his forehead, a look of confusion on his face, and asked again, somewhat uncertainly.
"Wait a minute, I must have misheard, Knight King. You said your wish is to overturn history and change the fate of Britain's destruction?"
"Precisely."
"Let me confirm again, the destruction of that country called Britain happened during your reign, didn't it?"
"That's right. It is precisely because it was my responsibility that I feel such regret and cannot forgive myself. I want to change that outcome."
For Saber, her wish had never wavered, no matter when.
Even if the Holy Grail was indeed corrupted, as Chen Yu said, and couldn't grant her wish.
She still hadn't given up on obtaining the Holy Grail.
Even if this Holy Grail War didn't work, there would be next time, the time after that, and the time after that... Eventually, she would achieve her wish through the Holy Grail.
This was Saber's pride, and it was her King's Way.
In the name of the Knight King, she upheld her beliefs, even if she was alone, even if the road ahead was perilous, she would persist in walking this solitary path of a king.
Therefore, Saber firmly declared, "If the Holy Grail is truly an omnipotent wish-granting device, then even a wish that seems impossible to achieve through miracles must be granted!"
But before Saber's words could fully fall, Archer's loud laughter reached everyone's ears.
"Hahahahaha!"
Archer was clutching his stomach, roaring with laughter, his shoulders shaking violently, as if he had heard the greatest joke. His laughter was full of unrestrained mockery, showing no regard for Saber's wish.
"Archer! What's so funny!"
Facing Archer's ridicule, Saber's face was filled with anger.
How could she not be furious when her most cherished wish was mocked by Archer in such a way.
But Saber's anger only received Archer's mocking reply: "Hahahahahaha, did you hear that, Conqueror King? Someone who calls herself a King, and is praised as a King by all people, actually feels regret? How can that not make me laugh? Hahaha..."
Watching the ceaselessly laughing Archer, Rider also frowned, his expression somewhat strange, and he asked Saber in a grave tone, "So... Saber, are you going to personally deny the history you wrote with your own hands?"
"That's right!" Saber admitted Rider's words and continued, "Archer, why do you laugh? Britain, which granted me a sword and for which I dedicated myself, was destroyed in my hands. I am heartbroken by this, and of course, I want to save it, to save my people. What is wrong with that?"
However, what responded to Saber was another round of laughter from Archer.
"Hey, hey, Rider. Did you hear that? This little girl who calls herself the Knight King... actually said 'dedicate myself to the country'! Hahahaha, I'm dying of laughter. This is a masterpiece! Saber, I admit you are the best clown at this banquet! Hahaha..."
Facing the still laughing Archer, Saber suddenly stood up and criticized the selfish king, "Why do you laugh, Archer! As a king, one should step forward to ensure the prosperity of the country one rules!"
However, Rider firmly and seriously denied Saber's words: "You are wrong. It is not the King who dedicates himself to the people, but the country and the people who dedicate themselves to the King, and not the other way around."
After hearing Rider's statement, Saber could no longer suppress her anger and shouted sharply, "What are you saying! Wouldn't that make one a tyrannical ruler!"
However, facing Saber's questioning, Rider remained calm, not even raising an eyebrow.
"Indeed, we are not only tyrants but also heroes. But, Saber, if a King regrets his rule, regrets the fate of his kingdom, then one can only say that he is an incompetent ruler, worse than even a tyrant!"
Unlike Archer, who kept mocking her, Rider fundamentally denied her.
Saber furrowed her brows, her face taut, and again raised her voice, asking sharply, "Iskandar! After your death, the empire you personally built eventually fell apart. Don't you feel any regret? Don't you want to start over and save the country you established!"
"No!"
Rider's answer was straightforward.
He puffed out his chest, meeting Saber's stern gaze.
"If my decisions led my followers to such an end, I would mourn, and I would weep, but I would never feel regret! Let alone attempt to subvert history and overturn everything! This is a common insult to everyone who built our era! What an utterly foolish idea!"
Facing Rider's declaration, Saber again denied, "Only your army would find glory in destruction, but the weak people would not; they need salvation!"
"Are you saying they need the King's salvation?" Rider shook his head and chuckled, "I don't understand! What's the meaning of such a thing?"
"Of course it has meaning! This is the King's proper duty!"
Saber pounded the table with her fist and proudly declared, "Correct rule, correct governance, correct order, with the King leading the country to prosperity—this is the essence of a King, this is what all subjects collectively expect!"
"Then is your King a slave to 'correctness'?"
"A King should sacrifice for ideals! Conqueror King, a King like you, who only becomes one to satisfy endless desires, can never understand!"
Saber shouted sharply, but was rebuked by Rider, who widened his eyes.
"A King without desire is worse than a mere vase!"
Rider also stood up, his massive body towering over Saber.
"Saber, you just said 'dedicate yourself to ideals'? I suppose you must have been an incorruptible saint once, right? You must have possessed a noble and inviolable heroic demeanor, but a saint can comfort people, yet cannot lead them! How many aspire to the arduous and thorny path of 'martyrdom'? And who would dream of it?"
"A King, so-called, should be the one with the strongest greed, who laughs the loudest, and who rages the fiercest! Both the pure and the corrupt sides should reach the human extreme! Only then will subjects envy the King, be captivated by the King, and ignite in the heart of every person the aspiration, 'I, too, wish to become a King!'"
"As the Knight King, your ideals and justice may have saved the country and its people, but you surely know what end those you saved ultimately met! Not displaying 'the King's desire,' ignoring confused subjects, merely maintaining your own purity, and indulging in seemingly beautiful ideals—that is why you are not a true King. You are merely a little girl who exists only for others, bound by the idol called 'King.'"
After speaking, Rider looked up at the sky, a look of pity on his face, and sighed deeply.