Although Bavanzi had carelessly blurted out Guinevere's real name, exposing him, it wasn't much of an issue now. After all, Guinevere had already signed a contract with Mordred—at this point, they could be considered allies.
As such, Guinevere didn't bother spinning the same half-truths he used on Ritsuka Fujimaru and the others to try and fool Mordred.
Still, Mordred didn't seem particularly interested in questioning him.
"You don't have to explain so much. Going in circles just gives me a headache. If you don't wanna talk, then don't. I bet coming up with those excuses is exhausting, right? I won't ask."
"I became your Servant simply because we've fought side-by-side through life and death. It has nothing to do with where you come from."
…How frank of her.
Guinevere blinked, momentarily stunned, but deep down, he felt relieved.
And then, the next second, Mordred punched him straight in the face, sending him sprawling to the ground.
"But! That being said, lying to me is still lying!"
She didn't hold back at all—her fist smashed right into his eye socket, instantly bruising it and puffing up the corner.
When Guinevere finally dragged himself upright, seeing stars, Mordred was already standing over him, arms crossed.
"That punch was your lesson. Next time you lie to me? It won't be my fist you'll be eating—it'll be my sword. Got it?"
Bavanzi looked at Guinevere, then at her freshly acknowledged little sister, and finally nodded.
"Mordred's got a point."
…Traitor.
He grumbled internally, but Guinevere quickly remembered—technically speaking, Mordred was Bavanzi's family. Which made him the outsider.
In any case, a wise man knows not to argue with women. Guinevere quickly snapped a formal French salute and said with the utmost sincerity:
"My bad, my bad! Won't happen again!"
Seeing his earnest apology, Mordred nodded in satisfaction.
Guinevere, on the other hand, swiftly changed the subject:
"Now that we've dealt with Bavanzi's nightmare manifestation, let's head back to Scotland Yard."
They didn't spend much time on the journey. Before long, the three of them had returned to the vicinity of Scotland Yard.
On the way back, Guinevere also filled Mordred and Bavanzi in on everything that had happened so far—including the fact that he was operating with two distinct personalities, one in reality and one in the dreamscape.
"So... are you Guinevere, or is the you in reality Guinevere?" Bavanzi asked, clearly confused. "How do I tell you two apart? And for that matter, which one is the Guinevere I know?"
"Well…" Guinevere thought for a moment. "We share the same memories. In essence, we're just two sides of the same person, so there's really no need to differentiate that much."
"I guess…" Bavanzi still looked uncertain.
But before she could ask anything more, Mordred suddenly noticed something.
"Wait... are those Servants over there?"
Guinevere turned toward the gates of Scotland Yard—and sure enough, he recognized some familiar faces.
"Eek! That ominous guy is back!"
Before he could raise his hand to greet them, the little girl in the black gothic lolita dress—Nursery Rhyme—suddenly shrieked, hiding behind the others while pointing at Guinevere with a look of alarm.
"Oh? Finally found him," said Andersen, adjusting his glasses with a cold glint in his eyes, voice belying his youthful appearance. "Looks like we won't be missing any more deadlines, at least."
"Ah?"
Only then did Ritsuka Fujimaru notice Guinevere's approach. Her eyes lit up, and she immediately waved both hands, beaming brightly.
"Dr. Jekyll—over here!"
And it wasn't just Chaldea's team—besides Ritsuka and the others, Guinevere spotted Frankenstein, too.
Unlike before when she appeared as the security captain "Ella," this time she wore a delicate white gown reminiscent of a wedding dress—clearly her in-game form from FGO.
Upon sensing Guinevere's arrival, the usually expressionless Frankenstein smiled faintly.
"Com...panion?"
"Oh! It's Fujimaru and the gang!" Guinevere felt deeply reassured. With Ritsuka, Mash, Nursery Rhyme, Andersen, Frankenstein, and even Hinako Akuta all present, the full five-Servant lineup was an overwhelming source of comfort.
If he included Bavanzi and Mordred, they basically had enough Servants to start a Holy Grail War—each with different classes, no less. No need to worry about class affinity or counters… assuming that existed in reality.
It was a lineup so extravagant that Guinevere couldn't help but smile.
But just as he was about to approach them with joy, Mordred suddenly yanked him back.
"Hold up. Who are those people? That woman in front and the one in the wedding dress—why are they looking at you like that? Are you close to them?"
"Huh?" Guinevere blinked.
"W-Wedding dress?!" Bavanzi exclaimed, instantly flustered. "Why is some girl waiting for you dressed like that? You'd better explain!"
"Wha—wait, no, that has nothing to do with me!" Guinevere panicked. "That's just her default outfit! Totally unrelated to me! Besides, that's not even a real wedding dress!"
"Really?"
Still suspicious, Bavanzi pointed toward Ritsuka.
"That's Ritsuka Fujimaru, right? Didn't you just meet her before we entered the dream? Since when did you two get so chummy? Isn't it a bit fast?"
"Ah, well…" Guinevere scratched his face, awkward. "We've fought together a few times—it's only natural our bond grew. And, honestly, it's mostly my other personality that got close to her, not me!"
He had just explained the dual-personality thing to Bavanzi and Mordred on the way back, so now, he was quick to toss the blame onto Will.
"You literally just said you two are the same person…" Bavanzi muttered.
"Semantics!" Guinevere snapped back. "Didn't I say we're just two sides of the same person? Will's the 'evil' personality, you know—he's the one who indulges in all those… less restrained desires. His mistakes aren't mine!"
When it came time to divvy up rewards, of course they were the same person. But now that someone was calling him out? He'd throw Will under the bus without hesitation.
"So what you're saying is—you're better at restraining yourself from being a womanizer, right?" Mordred asked.
"Exactly!" Guinevere nodded frantically.
"Which means, deep down, you still want to be a womanizer, huh?" Bavanzi cut in sharply.
Guinevere froze.
Damn it. Isn't she supposed to be kind of airheaded? Why's she suddenly sharp as a tack?
Fortunately, before they could grill him any further, Ritsuka and the others had already walked over.
"We finally found you!"
She glanced at Bavanzi beside Guinevere and lit up again.
"Oh, is this Miss Bavanzi? You look completely different from how you do in the real world!" She paused. "But I suppose that makes sense—your dress may be a bit tattered, but you still carry yourself with the air of a noblewoman!"
"...But of course," Bavanzi preened. "I am the rightful heir of Her Majesty, my mother. In your terms, I suppose you'd call me a princess—nobility is in my blood."
"Whoa!" Ritsuka's eyes sparkled. "So you're royalty? That explains the elegant aura! It's a pleasure to meet you, Princess!"
"Mhm, mhm." Pleased, Bavanzi leaned in close to Guinevere and whispered, "I think she's quite nice, actually."
...
You're way too easy to win over.
Guinevere stared at her for a moment, but ultimately held back from saying it out loud.
However, Mordred wasn't so restrained.
"Hey, sis, don't let a few sweet words fool you," she said. "That girl's definitely hiding something."
"Huh? Mordred, you don't remember me?" Ritsuka pointed at herself. "I'm Ritsuka Fujimaru—we've met."
"Ah, right," Guinevere coughed, jumping in. "Mordred's memories are currently locked back when she had just become a Knight of the Round. She doesn't remember anything past that."
"Got it." Ritsuka nodded, then smiled at Mordred. "It's a shame you don't remember, but seeing that you're still the same incredible knight puts me at ease. You truly are the child of King Arthur."
"...Maybe I was overreacting just now," Mordred mumbled to Guinevere. "She seems alright."
...
They really are cut from the same cloth, aren't they?
"No, seriously—why are all of you here? Especially Miss Hinako…" Guinevere glanced at the quiet girl in the back. "Wasn't she supposed to stay in the real world to watch over everyone's bodies?"
"Huh? You didn't know?" Ritsuka looked surprised. "It's because we ran into Mr. Hyde in the real world. First thing he did was demand we all enter the dream to help you. He said he'd watch over our bodies."
"Oh." Guinevere nodded, then frowned. "But you all just… trusted him like that? Even Hinako?"
"Well…" Ritsuka scratched her cheek, embarrassed. "You know how forceful Mr. Hyde can be. He said if anyone didn't enter the dream, he'd just… eliminate them. Hinako got beaten down three times before she finally agreed."
"Ah." Guinevere's jaw dropped a little.
He blinked a few times, then offered a sheepish smile.
"Sorry for the trouble."
"No worries," Ritsuka waved it off. "Honestly, knowing someone like Mr. Hyde is guarding our bodies? We feel a lot safer."
Before Guinevere could reply, she pulled Frankenstein forward.
"By the way, Frankenstein's been looking for you for a while. We just happened to run into her while she was searching."
"Looking for me?" Guinevere blinked, glancing toward Frankenstein—who swayed slightly on her feet, seemingly in high spirits.
"…Comrade… safe… happy."
"Thanks," Guinevere said, stepping forward. He almost went in for a hug, but feeling Bavanzi's sharp gaze from behind, he opted instead to just grasp her hand and give it a shake.
"I'm glad to see you safe, too."
With everyone regrouped, the next step was to share intel and devise strategy. Since they were already outside Scotland Yard, the group decided to head in and consult with Adonis directly.
However, just as they approached the entrance, an officer suddenly burst through the doors, fleeing in a panic. Upon spotting them, he looked as if he'd seen salvation itself.
"Please! Help me! Help the other officers inside!"
"Lord Adonis… he's suddenly been overtaken by a nightmare!"
"…Huh?"
Guinevere blinked.
He looked at his side, at his team of Servants, and then back at the fleeing officer.
Well, talk about dramatic timing. Guess Adonis really knew how to make an entrance.