Mordred felt slightly panicked.
Obviously, this wasn't because she feared Nile's strength. Whether it be by her own opinion or by the fact of reality, the truth was that there were very few on the current Earth that could match Mordred in power.
The issue was that this wasn't a situation she could brute force her way out of. Even if she easily deflected the advancement of these wolf riders, what would she do about the thousand strong army to their back? And even if they somehow managed to repel them, what would happen to the situation with White City if they suddenly began to infight?
Even though The Empire seemed to be helping now, Mordred and Arthur alike were very much aware that Camelot wasn't their home ground. The Empire could easily choose to retreat and focus on Earth and come back.
But could they do the same? They could technically find a place on Earth, but what could their millions of citizens do? Where would they place them?
Unlike on Earth where many if not most had some level of combat prowess by now and had tempered themselves over a year of hardship, the people of Camelot were still lagging behind in this aspect.
Even as they awakened to their abilities, they were completely unused to using them and would be even more useless on a battlefield.
To make matters worse, Camelot didn't have a monitoring system like Earth did, so rounding everyone up would likely take months. By then, how many more would they lose?
"Boy, I think that's enough."
At that moment, King Arthur took a step forward.
The sight of his valiant air and white lion engraved armor was something to behold, indeed. Despite having chosen to yield to The Empire, that kingly air of his hadn't diminished in the slightest.
He only stood there, before his daughter and Aina, yet it felt as though the beasts engraved onto his white armor had come to life, causing the black wolves Nile and the other rode to tremble slightly.
They might have been demon beasts, but just how many of these beasts had Arthur killed in his life? He had long since lost count.
Nile frowned. "Are you sure that you're aware of what you're doing?"
"I'm well aware of what I'm doing. I have no idea what laws of your land this child has broken, but what I do know is that she's been fighting for our and your sake all this time. Is this what your Empire does to those that fight for them?"
Nile's expression grew cold. "Are you questioning The Empire?"
"I have yet to become one of your people." Arthur replied just as coldly, taking a step forward that forced the shivering black wolves into an even sorrier position. "In fact, I believe that in your minds, I am still nothing but a fairy tale, is that correct?"
Arthur scanned the five before him and even sent a glance toward Noah in the distance.
Despite meeting Arthur's gaze, Noah remained unmoved. A clash of royal air shot through the battlefield making the atmosphere several times heavier.
"I may be just an inconsequential fictional character in your minds, but you shouldn't forget that you're currently standing on my fictional lands, breathing my fictional air, and are in my fictional presence.
"Until the day Camelot cedes to The Empire, this will still be the case. If you want to take people under my protection beneath my nose, you'll have to taste my blade first."
The black wolves reeled and whined, kicking up to their hind legs. If it wasn't for the strength of their riders, Nile and the others would have definitely been kicked off.
Nile didn't seem to notice the poor performance of his black wolf. His eyes remained locked onto Arthur as though he was prepared to attack at any given moment.
"Nile, return."
Noah's cold voice rang through the battlefield. His words alone seemed to dispel Arthur's aura, calming the black wolves down in an instant. The contrast was so drastic that even Arthur himself narrowed his eyes.
Nile didn't hesitate to follow Noah's orders, clicking his heels against the coat of his wolf and dashing back to The Empire's troops.
Mordred looked toward her father's back with a complicated glance.
On one hand, Mordred knew that this had always been her father's character. He wasn't a man who took kindly to others looking down on him. But, by the same token, over the years, he had begun to somewhat allow others to trample over him.
It seemed as though Arthur was overly prideful, but hadn't he allowed The Church and the thoughts of the nobles to dictate his own thoughts for a long time? There was no doubt that he had been hypocritical in this aspect in the past…
But now, he managed to hold his head high even after choosing to submit to The Empire. This was in stark contrast to the him of the past. It even brought a smile to Mordred's face before she could even reel it back in.
It was at that very moment that Aina suddenly collapsed completely.
"Aina!" Mordred was shocked.
She had been propping Aina up from the very beginning, so she immediately realized the change in the weight she had to uphold.
When Aina could no longer support her own self, Mordred was at a loss because even she herself almost collapsed.
'What the hell is this weight? This girl!' Mordred sent a glance toward Aina's great sword and the massive curved box on her back.
This was a level of weight that even a Three Star Grand Knight wouldn't be able to carry around, let alone do battle with. What the hell was this little girl thinking?!
Mordred took action immediately, doing her best to pry the sword out of her hands and the package off her back. But, Aina's grip was so steely that Mordred found she couldn't budge it in the slightest.
Aina's face flushed red before draining into a sickly pale color. Her breathing became short and somewhat hurried, her lips slightly parted.
Mordred's eyes widened.
"Fa –" Mordred hesitated. But, luckily, Arthur turned back in time to see his daughter's pleading gaze. "Please heal her."
Arthur's gaze became serious as he nodded. But, just when he was about to take action, The Empire's troops moved.
"I'm greatly disappointed by your choice, Arthur."
Noah's black wolf stalked forward, the army to his back moving as one.
"I'll give you another chance."
An oppressive aura surged out from Noah, a blue bladed saber appearing in his hand.
The moment it did, the black wolf beneath his feet collapsed, its spine snapping in half beneath the weight. Yet, Noah's steps didn't falter in the slightest, his aura only growing with an added bloodthirsty air.
Arthur's gaze became serious as he turned back.
But, no one expected for the situation at that moment to change once again.
"HAI!"
Beating war drums and blaring horns sounded from the distance.
A woman with short hair, dressed in black robes accented by white flexible armor and wielding a massive two headed hammer stood at the helm of an army, her battle aura towering.