It all began when King Arthur departed from the capital city. With Lancelot and Gawain, the two most powerful knights of the Round Table, left to guard the city, no external enemy could pose a threat.

Indeed, in terms of prestige and strength, these two knights were among the very best in the Round Table, and defending against outside forces was certainly not an issue. However... while they could guard against external threats, there was no one to manage the internal strife.

The greatest internal turmoil in Britain, Morgana, orchestrated a monumental upheaval after King Arthur left.

As an alchemist and the Lady of the Lake, Morgana could achieve many things. First, she used alchemy to create a near-death illusion for Guinevere, and then, under the guise of treating the Queen, she dispatched Lancelot to seek the Holy Grail. Lancelot was the Queen's sworn protector; safeguarding her was his paramount duty, and furthermore, he held deep affection for Guinevere. Since only the Holy Grail could save her, he naturally took on the quest without hesitation.

With Gawain remaining at the capital, his absence was not seen as a significant problem.

Thus, Lancelot departed the city with a contingent of knights to find the Holy Grail. Although he was the last to set out, he was the first to discover it. Yet, despite finding it, he could not touch it, for he was an unclean soul.

His love for Guinevere had not yet crossed into the physical realm; it was purely spiritual affection, a relationship even the Church recognized as legitimate. Why, then, would the Holy Grail deem him impure?

Lancelot, of course, did not know that the Grail he found was not the true one, but a counterfeit created by Morgana through alchemy.

In the end, anxious to save the Queen, Lancelot set aside his confusion and sent his son back to the city with the chalice. Upon his return to the capital, Lancelot received two pieces of news: First, the Queen was unharmed, having been revived by Morgana’s alchemy. Second, King Arthur had returned and discovered the truth of his affair with Guinevere, and the matter had already spread throughout the city, leading Arthur to decree the execution of both by death.

The populace initially refused to believe such a thing, but once they learned that Lancelot could not touch the Holy Grail, the image of him as an unclean man circulated, and no one doubted it further.

Yet, no one knew that Guinevere’s revival was simply Morgana lifting the illusion, nor did anyone know that the story of Lancelot and Guinevere's adultery was a fabrication spread by Morgana herself. Even less did anyone realize that the King Arthur who returned early was merely a simulacrum doll already perfected by Morgana.

Since she could use forbidden arts to conceive a child with her own sister, creating a doll identical to her sister was hardly an issue. In appearance, voice, and mannerism, it was indistinguishable from the true King Arthur; the only difference was that this "Arthur" was entirely under her control.

Knowing her sister's nature intimately, she could easily make the "King Arthur" act precisely as Arthur would, and the people and knights would never suspect.

Though Lancelot felt a dissonance in the events, he did not suspect the King was a counterfeit, believing only that his secret affair with Guinevere had indeed leaked among the populace, and that the King, to preserve royal dignity, naturally had to execute such a disgraceful act to maintain authority.

But could Lancelot stand by while Guinevere faced death? For the sake of the kingdom's honor, she had already suffered enough sorrow; now she faced this baseless accusation—how could he accept such a thing!

While he could understand the King's difficult position, Lancelot found it impossible to tolerate the Queen's death sentence. After repelling the knights sent to arrest him, he stormed the execution site without hesitation.

He was entirely unaware that this action, too, had been calculated by Morgana.

Storming the site, Lancelot displayed absolute martial prowess, striking down and killing every enemy who stood in his way, forcibly rescuing Guinevere from the stake. Immediately afterward, the pair fled the city, crossed the sea, and escaped to France.

However, following mediation from the Pope, Lancelot reluctantly returned Guinevere, bound by the code of chivalry. But the war did not end there, for Gawain's brother, attempting to stop Lancelot from rescuing the Queen, was killed by Lancelot. The spirit of chivalry was completely overshadowed by hatred. With Gawain's instigation, the "King Arthur" finally had an excuse to seek vengeance against Lancelot and ultimately decided to personally lead the campaign to France!

But Lancelot's part in the drama was now concluded. To Morgana, he had served his purpose by tying up the knights loyal to Arthur. Just as the false King led his loyal knights on the distant campaign, another protagonist emerged—Mordred.

With Morgana's assistance, Mordred easily subdued Gawain, who was guarding the city alongside him, then seized the capital and publicly revealed his identity to the people. Because all the knights loyal to the true King had been deliberately drawn away by Morgana, most of those remaining in the city were knights distrustful of the King, allowing Mordred to seize complete control of the nation and declare the original monarch his enemy.

The conflict with France and Lancelot, due to the "erroneous" command of the "King Arthur," no longer yielded the swift, crushing victories of before; instead, the two armies settled into a stalemate. It was at this juncture that the King suddenly "received" intelligence that his throne had been usurped. The entire army was shaken, unable to spare another thought for Lancelot, and rushed back to Britain. But by then, the tide had turned, and it was too late.

The "King Arthur," returning with a battle-weary army, not only failed to reclaim his country but instead became a traitor reviled by all.

All of this transpired in just over a month. Morgana's plan was not only ruthless and precise but also incredibly swift, allowing no time for catching breath.

"At this moment, the two armies are set to clash at Camlann. If you move now, and quickly enough, you might still catch the end of this... final war," Viviane offered her last counsel to Artoria. But the latter merely stared blankly at Excalibur lying on the ground, seemingly having heard nothing.

It was not just her; even Hinagiku and the others, who had long suspected this history, were stunned. They were familiar with the events and knew Morgana played a significant role in shaping this timeline, but they had never imagined that Morgana was not just the fuse that ignited Britain's destruction, but its direct architect, with every turn of events precisely manipulated by her.

"What an intricate scheme!" After hearing the narrative, only Lin Luo, save for one or two still slightly bewildered individuals, remained outwardly composed. But even he was astonished. Morgana's actions were clearly not planned after their departure; she must have been prepared long beforehand, perhaps even before Mordred was born. It was truly a masterstroke of conspiracy!

"How did you learn of all this?" Hinagiku couldn't help but ask. She couldn't fathom how Viviane, who had been staying here, could know such distant matters in such detail.

Viviane understood her confusion and replied calmly, "Morgana told me, naturally. We Lady of the Lake share a unique method of communication."

"She told you?" Viviane’s calm reply did not settle the others. Such a monumental conspiracy should surely have been kept more secret; how could she casually divulge it?

Viviane nodded. "Once Morgana witnessed the war beginning, she knew her plan was certain to succeed and her desire would soon be realized. In such a state, she naturally sought someone to share it with. As the Lady of the Lake and her closest friend, I would not interfere in her affairs, so telling me was no strange thing."

"You are friends?!" Viviane’s statement startled even Lin Luo. Morgana desired Merlin's destruction, while Viviane loved Merlin deeply. What kind of convoluted relationship was this?

"It is not as you imagine," Viviane sighed, explaining. "When Morgana became the Lady of the Lake and learned I was the guardian spirit of the sacred sword, she deliberately sought me out and befriended me. That was when her plan began. For her, the greatest obstacle was Merlin. Her approach to me was aimed at that objective. When Merlin suffered the backlash of his premonitions from future sight, she attempted to persuade me to—to assault Merlin and eliminate him in the process. However, she was unaware that Merlin and I already knew each other, and that my becoming the Lady of the Lake was partly due to him. Upon learning of her plot, I feared she would harm Merlin when he was weakest, so I played along, taking Merlin with me as we left the capital. Guided by Merlin, we arrived here, and have remained since. I had no contact with Morgana until I informed her of Merlin's death; only then did she lower her guard and reveal her entire scheme to me."

"So that is how it was," the others finally understood, surprised to uncover such a dark history.

"Foreknowledge touches upon the forbidden. Though I used my power to extend Merlin's life, it was only temporary. His body has been weakening steadily over the years; his death was only a matter of time," Viviane sighed again, finally revealing the true cause of Merlin’s demise.

Indeed, in any world, delving into the timeline to foresee the future is a grave transgression. Merlin doing so was, frankly, courting death. However, Lin Luo now understood why Merlin had insisted the history was immutable: he likely foresaw Arthur's fate as well.

It was precisely for this reason that he sacrificed his own life to send them to the Inhibitor.

"I am going to Camlann!" While everyone was contemplating the deeds of Merlin and Morgana, Artoria suddenly stood up and declared with firm resolve.

Everyone looked toward her, noticing that her previous look of desolation was gone, replaced by the imposing bearing of the King of Knights, her face radiating an irrepressible courage.