Artoria slowly opened her eyes. Before her stretched an endless expanse of blazing red. Through her skin, she felt as if she were in an ocean, yet the temperature was like being engulfed in flames.
"Where is this…?"
"Right, I remember being embraced by Master…"
Her last memory was of Naoki holding her as they were swallowed by light in a ritual.
Though her heart had raced slightly at the time, now that she recalled it, it was likely Magecraft requiring her power to face that massive white giant.
That made sense.
"By the way, where's Master? And where exactly is this place?"
"Up here, Lia."
Naoki's voice suddenly came from above. Artoria looked up, only to see Naoki floating above her—somehow without a single piece of clothing.
"Master!? What's the meaning of this…?"
"I should clarify, I didn't do this on purpose. The effect of the Summoning Magecraft means I can only exist in this state. After all, we're both consciousness entities now, not our physical bodies, so we can't wear clothes."
We?
Consciousness entities?
Artoria hurriedly checked herself—sure enough, she was in the same state as Naoki.
Despite years of disguising herself as a man, in this situation, Artoria's feminine side couldn't help but feel a surge of embarrassment and anger!
"Master—please explain what's going on! Why are we appearing in this strange place in such a shameless state!"
"Strange place? This is inside our combined body."
Naoki explained, waving his hand to project a light screen in front of Artoria. The screen displayed the scene around the Fuyuki River. On both sides of the river, aside from the white horse giant Artoria had just seen, another blazing red giant resembling a dragon species had appeared at some point.
"Who's that giant?"
"That's us—or more precisely, the giant body formed after you, I, and the Spirit fused. Of course, it also has some mecha elements, but that's a minor detail."
"Huh? Huh—?!"
Hearing Naoki's words, Artoria rubbed her eyes vigorously, staring in disbelief at the blazing red giant on the light screen.
That was the combined form of her and Master?! Speaking of which, they had actually fused?!
"How did this happen? Is this also an effect of Master's Summoning Magecraft?"
"Yes. While it's usually used to summon Spirits and fairies, it can also be used like this, merging a human body with a Spirit. In the past, I was the main subject, but this time, you're the primary subject. Since I'm Half-Fairy, I'm also a valid target for Summoning Magecraft."
Naoki did his best to explain the current situation to Artoria.
"And this place is inside our body—you can think of it as a cockpit. Right now, our consciousnesses share one body, but you're the main controller. I can only assist from the side—not wearing clothes is because we're consciousness entities, not because I did it on purpose!"
That was the truth. Naoki himself was shocked when he realized he was unclothed. But honestly, seeing Artoria's body didn't stir him. How could it, when he was surrounded by women with overly developed figures? The only ones who were modest were Gray, Mordred, and Atalanta.
Rei didn't count—she could adjust her size at will.
After hearing Naoki's explanation, Artoria quickly grasped the situation. "So, Master fused me and you to fight that white giant, right?"
"This is fusion! Not just disassembled and reassembled, but true fusion!"
If it were mere linking, that would be something the opposing mecha, Odysseus's, excelled at.
Not dwelling on the naming details with Naoki, Artoria nodded. "Then, what we need to do now is control our fused body and fight Rider's Noble Phantasm, correct?"
"Exactly. By the way, the Holy Sword and Avalon are also fused, so they can't manifest as weapons. We can only use fists and feet, but their core characteristics remain."
"No problem. I've specially trained for situations without weapons. Fighting unarmed isn't an issue for me." Artoria refocused on the white giant. "Leave the support to Master, and the front line to me!"
"Alright! Neuro-link, limb-sync, five-senses sharing—all processes complete. Go for it, Lia."
Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes to feel the new body gradually merging with her consciousness, Artoria confirmed the fusion was perfect and opened her eyes again—
"ROAR—!"
As if activated, the blazing red giant, previously still, suddenly raised its head. Its eyes emitted a green flash, and the gems scattered across its body glowed brightly, as if brimming with Mana!
Vortigern Special Armor · King Arthur!
*BAM!*
The giant's dragon-clawed foot suddenly lifted, crossing the Fuyuki River in one step. The distance between the two giants, already close, shrank drastically. Aiming at the white giant's chest, Artoria threw a full-force right-hand punch!
*BANG!*
A heavy rumble, akin to a collapsing building, erupted!
Blocking the punch with his own fist, Odysseus, in the Trojan Horse's cockpit, looked at the blazing red giant with awe and excitement. "To think such a thing exists. Though its essence differs, it matches the specifications of my Troia Ippos…"
[Only a Gundam can fight a Gundam. If you didn't bring out this level of power, wouldn't it be embarrassing for someone who deliberately unleashed their Noble Phantasm fully?]
Naoki's voice came from the blazing red giant's mouth.
Only a Gundam can fight a Gundam?
Odysseus didn't know what a Gundam was. The modern knowledge granted by the Holy Grail didn't include it, but that didn't stop him from understanding Naoki's intent—he had taken this form to face him at full strength.
Undoubtedly, this was respect. He was expressing his regard in his own way.
"If so, I must return the favor with equal measure—Master, and the other ladies, please hold tight to the safety devices around you. After this, the unit may move quite chaotically!"
This was the first time in his life Odysseus had fought mecha against mecha.
He couldn't contain the growing excitement blazing in his heart.
[I've used the Command Spell. Fight with all your strength, Rider.]
"Thank you, Master—let's begin, Trojan Horse!"
*ONG!*
A bright blue light ignited in the Trojan Horse's eyes, as if the unit were responding to Odysseus's emotions.
The next second—
*BOOM!*
The roar of a giant-versus-giant battle echoed throughout Fuyuki City.