Though Saber had absolutely no desire to get entangled with that golden-clad narcissist before her, the way she shamelessly flirted and then immediately denied any interest—as if nothing had happened—was more than enough to irritate her.
Her composure wavered.
What made it worse was how, ever since that green-haired individual appeared, the golden one's IQ seemed to have fallen off a cliff. All she did now was grin like an idiot whenever that person was around, like a dog chasing after a tossed stick.
Saber forced herself to bury the growing flames of indignation deep within.
Instead, she turned her attention back to her ongoing argument with Rider.
"The righteous rule, the proper order—that is what every subject yearns for. It is the sacred duty of a true king!"
Rider laughed heartily, utterly unconvinced. "I don't get it! What's the point of such a thing? That's not the kind of life a human would ever choose."
"King of Conquerors, someone like you—who acts only on personal desire—could never comprehend the ideals I uphold. You're just a tyrant, drunk on ambition!"
Rider grinned with unfazed confidence.
"A king without desire is just a decorative vase—pretty to look at, but empty inside."
The two continued to argue, voices climbing over one another, refusing to yield. While the bickering escalated, Gilgamesh quietly took Enkidu's hands into her own, whispering to her in soft tones.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Nero happily poured the rest of the wine into several cups, discreetly handing them to Jeanne, Mordred, and Dracula, who were all silently spectating.
She took a sip with a loud slurp, beaming.
"Hey, Miss 'Emperor' over there—what's your wish for the Holy Grail?" Rider suddenly asked Nero.
"Eh?" Nero blinked, caught off guard that the spotlight had shifted to her. Pointing at her own face, she asked uncertainly, "You mean me?"
"Yes. Since you claim the title of Emperor, you count as royalty. So, what is it you seek from the Grail?" Saber added, her eyes narrowing.
"First of all," Nero replied with regal pride, "'Emperor' and 'King' are not the same. An emperor outranks a king, you know. Second…"
She suddenly clung to Dracula's arm, pressing herself close.
"I have no real desire for the Grail. Because compared to it, Dracula-sama is far more powerful. Anything I want, I just need to act a little spoiled and he gives it to me~"
"Eh?" Dracula pulled off one of his headphones, looking confused. "What's going on?"
"Impossible." Saber cut in sharply. "How could a Master possibly surpass the Holy Grail? Can he rewrite the history of Britain's fall?"
Dracula thought for a moment, then replied casually, "Oh, I get it now… Yeah, I could actually do that."
And then, turning back to Saber with a calm tone, he added, "But why would I bother helping you?"
Saber was left completely speechless.
Dracula let out a sigh. "Besides, the reason I came here tonight wasn't just because Nero dragged me here… I had something else to say. Something just for you."
His crimson eyes locked onto Saber's.
"First off, let's set aside all your nonsense about kingship or royal ideals… I don't think you even qualify as an ordinary person, let alone a ruler."
"You—!" Saber's voice trembled with fury.
"Let me ask you something. Your wish is to return to your time and have the Sword in the Stone choose a new king, right?"
Saber nodded firmly.
"Then you're just shirking responsibility," Dracula said bluntly. "It'd be one thing if you wanted to start from scratch and fix things yourself. But you ruined your country, and now you want to pass the burden onto someone else? Don't give me that 'saving Britain' excuse. All you're doing is running away."
"You can't even take responsibility for your own actions as a person. What gives you the right to talk about the responsibilities of a king?"
"Secondly—look at this child." He reached out and pulled the helmet off of a quietly seated Mordred.
"She's well-behaved, loyal, and clearly your child."
He ruffled her hair gently, then continued with a frown.
"No matter how it happened, you gave birth to her. That makes you responsible for her. And yet you refused to even acknowledge her, saying she shouldn't have been born. In the end, you even killed her with your own hand."
Dracula pointed a finger right between Saber's eyes.
"Don't give me that 'I was tricked' excuse. That just means you were weak and foolish. That's still your responsibility. If you can't even be a decent parent, you have no right to call yourself a king. Frankly, it's laughable that you still take pride in your so-called title."
"You're just a little girl lost in the glow of your own legend."
"I…" Saber's lips trembled, but no words came out.
"Now then," Dracula said with a sigh, turning toward the others. "Let's talk about the rest of you."
"Nero doesn't want the Grail, so I won't say much there." He glanced toward her. "Just one thing—from now on, if you need money, ask Kirie first."
Nero nodded earnestly, committing it to memory.
"Next up is Rider. Honestly, I've got no complaints. Whatever floats your boat."
"Heh!" Iskandar gave him a thumbs-up in return.
"And then we've got Miss Gilgamesh over here." Dracula turned toward the radiant king, who was still whispering sweet nothings to Enkidu.
"Hmm?" Gilgamesh turned her head, slightly puzzled.
"You've only got prototypes in that treasury of yours, right?" Dracula teased.
"That's correct," Gilgamesh admitted easily. Perhaps Enkidu's presence made her more mellow than usual.
"Then tell me—do you have a PSP in there?"
"...No," Gilgamesh admitted with rare honesty. "Which is why I'd like to trade with you. I've got plenty of rare treasures to offer!"
"Yeah, yeah, calm down." Dracula waved her off. "Anyway, that Grail? Doesn't actually belong to you. It was made by magi."
"Oh? I see." Gilgamesh didn't seem the least bit offended. "Then I want it even more. Collecting rare treasures is my hobby, after all."
"Now that's the kind of attitude I respect." Dracula turned toward Saber again, his gaze sharp.
"This is what I mean by understanding people. You, on the other hand, clearly don't."
He glanced at Saber's armored chest with faint disdain.
"Frankly, Rider's got more humanity in him than you do."
"But—!" Saber tried to push back. "They're both after the Grail out of selfish desire! I'm the only one doing it for my country—how is that wrong?"
"First of all," Dracula interjected, "there's no such thing as a 'higher' or 'lower' wish. You think your goal is noble? In the end, aren't you still swinging your sword and cutting down others to get what you want?"
Saber fell silent again.
"Let me be blunt. Even if someone else wins the Holy Grail War and decides to take it home and use it as a toilet, that's their right."
"As for all your debates about 'kingship' or 'royal ideals'—total nonsense. That stuff isn't meant to convince kings. It's supposed to earn the faith of the people."
"If you can rally a following, then that alone proves the legitimacy of your path."
"And as for this ridiculous argument about who's worthy of the Grail—"
Dracula stretched and shrugged nonchalantly.
"Why don't you all just go outside and have a proper fight? Whoever wins, takes the Grail. Simple enough, right?"