Is It Wrong to Abusing Cartoon Tropes in Dungeon?

To build a bond with Mordred, the key was to leverage the identity of King Arthur and offer her the recognition she craved. Her deepest desire was to be acknowledged by the King, which was why she always proclaimed herself as King Arthur's sole heir.

Altair, currently posing as a male King Arthur, not quite the same as Artoria, the Saber with the iconic ahoge, could still resonate with Mordred through his parallel-world King Arthur persona. By mimicking some of Artoria's mannerisms and granting Mordred that coveted recognition, he could win her over completely. Perfect, Mordred's trust was secured!

Though it was the dead of night, with Kairi Sisigou's handy magecraft, the trio found a closed restaurant. Altair took it upon himself to cook, whipping up a spread of Western dishes to suit the local ingredients.

"Food made by King Arthur himself? If word got out, every magus would be green with envy." Kairi remarked, slicing into his steak.

"Seriously! The King Arthur I know couldn't cook to save her life, let alone make something this good!" Mordred said, tearing into her food with gusto, grabbing it with her hands and stuffing it in her mouth.

"Well, the Knight of the Round Tables were a bunch of rough guys. When Mordred joined, I couldn't exactly make her serve us, could I? So, I took up cooking. The others on the Round Table? Their best dish was… potatoes, probably." Altair said, sitting back with a fond smile as he watched Mordred devour her meal.

"To eat better, I had to step up. Mordred's got a big appetite, and Morgan wasn't much for cooking, so to keep her satisfied, I learned to make all sorts of tasty dishes."

Mordred froze mid-bite, and Kairi paused, stunned.

"That's the reason? Hard to imagine." Kairi muttered.

"Damn it!" Mordred slammed her fist on the table, then attacked her food even more ferociously.

"Why does she get to have it so good? Why was everyone I knew such a jerk to me?" Mordred growled, imagining the parallel-world Mordred living it up under King Arthur's care, eating his cooking daily, even inheriting the throne with his approval, while she was stuck as the "rebellious knight."

She glared at her plate, as if it were that other Mordred, ready to chomp it to bits.

"It's alright, Mordred." Altair said, gently placing a hand on her head, making her pause again.

"To me, you're an exceptional knight. I can sense the immense power within you, stronger than the Mordred I knew."

"Really?" Mordred's eyes lit up, ignoring the hand ruffling her hair as she beamed at Altair.

"Absolutely. The Mordred I raised was… honestly, a bit mediocre in combat. She was always the lowest seat at the Round Table. I even gave her my sword to boost her skills."

"What? You gave her your sword? Excalibur?" Mordred exclaimed.

"Yup. Merlin churns out holy swords like a factory, but the others weren't great. Since she was to inherit my throne, Excalibur, the king's blade, naturally went to her."

"Damn, that girl's too lucky, getting that sword!" Mordred's jealousy flared. That Mordred had Excalibur, while she was stuck with Clarent.

"But even with that sword, she wasn't as impressive as you. From what I sense, you're far superior. Maybe I spoiled her too much with Morgan." Altair said, his tone warm and paternal.

"Unlike her, I can feel your unyielding spirit. Your strength comes from your own hard work, step by step. You're stronger, more confident, an exemplary knight, exactly the kind I'd envision."

Hearing Altair's praise, especially claiming she surpassed her parallel-world counterpart, Mordred's mood soared. A grin spread across her face.

"Hmph, obviously! I'm the best knight!" She boasted.

"Without a doubt, the very best!" Altair nodded, ruffling her hair again. Mordred didn't resist.

"Just wait, this Holy Grail War, I'll show you a performance that'll blow you away!"

"I'm looking forward to it." Altair said, smiling contentedly. Her affection was practically maxed out.

Though none of the Servants in this Holy Grail War held personal significance to Altair, he had a soft spot for a few, especially Mordred. Her straightforward, brash personality made her his favorite. She could be a handful, but with the right approach, she was downright adorable, like now.

Deep down, she was just a kid craving her father's approval.

Back in his Familia, Altair filled the role of the father figure, age-wise, though maybe a bit of an eccentric one. In this Holy Grail War world, he'd fully embraced the dad role.

Mordred, without realizing it, had placed Altair in her father's position with her last comment, eager for his approval. She was completely won over.

Kairi had no objections. Servants were the heavy hitters in the Holy Grail War, and with two on his side, the closer their bond, the better their teamwork. His chances of winning were looking up, and he couldn't be happier.

The hearty dinner brought Altair and Mordred closer, and even strengthened his rapport with Kairi. The Saber trio's teamwork was now seamless.

The next morning, they set out for the rendezvous at the church.

The Red Faction in this Holy Grail War was a coalition of the Mage's Association and the Church, six from the Association, one from the Church as a facilitator. The meeting point was the church where this facilitator resided, as the Church had outposts in nearly every country.

What the Mage's Association didn't know was that this facilitator was the war's biggest wildcard: Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, the Ruler-class survivor of the last Holy Grail War.

As planned, Altair acted as the visible Saber, accompanying Kairi, while Mordred dematerialized, trailing them to maintain the illusion of a single Servant.

The two entered the church, and as the doors swung open, they saw Amakusa Shirou kneeling in prayer.

"This is the meeting spot, right?" Kairi spoke first.

Hearing the voice, Amakusa rose, glanced at Kairi, and introduced himself with a smile, using his alias. "Greetings. I'm Kirei Kotomine, the Church's overseer for this Holy Grail War."

"I'm Kairi Sisigou." Kairi replied, giving his name.

"Let's skip the rest of the introductions."

"Very well." Amakusa nodded.

"And your Servant is…?"

"My Servant is…" Kairi began, then realized Altair was gone.

Huh?

He froze, words trailing off.

Seeing Kairi hesitate to reveal his Servant, Amakusa assumed he was cautious and summoned his own first.

A graceful figure materialized beside him, a woman in a black-and-gold dress, with pointed ears suggesting elven heritage. She introduced herself immediately.

"Assassin, true name Semiramis."

Semiramis, the Assyrian empress, a master of poisons with some knowledge of magecraft.

"This is my Servant." Amakusa said, completing the introduction.

"Saber, true name Arthur Pendragon."

A sudden voice startled Amakusa and Semiramis, who spun around, instantly on guard.

"Saber?" Amakusa's eyes widened, shocked. How had this silver-armored, golden-haired man appeared behind them without a sound? Was he an Assassin? No, his own Servant was the Assassin. So how?

Amakusa and Semiramis weren't the only ones startled. Kairi jumped too, he'd just been wondering where Altair went, and now he'd popped up behind the others, catching them off guard. Semiramis even raised her hands, ready to fight.

Seeing their rattled reactions, Kairi smirked. Gotcha.

"The legendary King Arthur?" Semiramis stared at Altair, astonished. The name was too famous to ignore.

"Why'd you appear behind us?" She demanded.

"Sorry, old habit." Altair said with a helpless shrug.

"How'd you do it? Sneaking up so silently as a Saber, your stealth rivals an Assassin's." Semiramis said, incredulous. Stealth was her domain.

Altair's lips curled into a grin, and he made a playful gesture, pinching his thumb and forefinger. "Well, I'm a Saber, but I dabble in assassination."

If an Assassin can dabble in magecraft, why can't a Saber dabble in stealth?

***

Every 5 reviews and 200 power stones, a bonus chapter will be dropped. 

(5,10,15, 200, 400, 600, and so on then two bonus chapters will be dropped, 1 for 5 reviews and 1 for 200 power stones, so that's 2 bonus chapters!) 

And if you want to read more than 50 chapters early, feel free to visit pat re on. com / Xelenea (remove space).