Chapter 376: Subtlety

On the ruined high ground, Weigong Qiesi slowly released his finger from the trigger and engaged the sniper rifle's safety.

In the distance, the purifying golden-white radiance had faded, the giant insect turned to ash, the surviving Insect Swarm was now few, and the battlefield temporarily returned to a weary silence.

His taut nerves relaxed slightly, and habitually he reached for the cigarette pack in his pocket, hoping the familiar nicotine scent would suppress the swirling complex emotions in his heart.

However, just as his fingertip was about to touch the pack— Shana—

The surrounding light dimmed without any warning.

It was not the natural deepening of night, but a blackness that seemed to absorb all life, quickly permeating the cramped space he occupied.

The wall's texture and the dust on the floor lost their colors, turning into a monotonous gray‑black.

Qiesi's pupils contracted sharply, his muscles tensed instantly, and his other hand reached for the Handgun at his waist.

But what weighed heavier on his mind was the voice that sounded at his ear.

"Qiesi..."

The voice was gentle and melodic, bearing a tenderness he knew intimately, yet its trailing tone was laced with a strange hollowness.

"Look down there... how lively it is."

Qiesi snapped his head around and saw, in the previously empty window shadow, a faint outline of a silver‑haired, red‑eyed woman—exactly Ailisi Feier's appearance!

Her face bore the warmest smile of his remembered wife, yet those red eyes were bottomless.

"You keep shouldering everything alone, always like this..."

"Ailisi Feier"'s figure flickered, and her voice slithered into his ear like a poisonous snake, "Leave the danger to yourself, bear the responsibility on your shoulders... aren't you tired? Look at those people below, they each have their own power, their own heroes... that orange‑haired queen, that little girl with a shield, even that raucous Fen Mao... they are all shining."

Qiesi clenched his teeth, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

He knew this was certainly not Ailisi Feier!

It was something imitating, beguiling!

He tried to move, but found his body bound by an invisible spiderweb, unable to budge, unable even to make a sound, forced to stare fixedly at that phantom.

"But you, Qiesi?"

The phantom's voice grew increasingly mournful, with a bizarre allure, "You are merely a mortal, relying on scheming, bullets, and turning yourself into a machine... just to barely keep pace with them. How tragic... your ideals, your Reason String, in the face of true power, are so pale and feeble..."

The phantom drew nearer, almost pressing against his back, its cold breath brushing his nape: "How about... giving up? Hand everything over to me... extinguish those noisy lights below... let true peace descend. I know the deepest fatigue in your heart... and the darkness. Together we can... create a perfect world without conflict, without pain, just as you once dreamed... let Ilya truly live forever in happiness, okay?"

Each word was like a poison‑tipped needle, precisely stabbing the most vulnerable corner of Weigong Qiesi's heart.

The veins on his temples bulged, his teeth chattered, and Reason String screamed wildly that this was a trap, a twisted beguilement!

Yet the massive malice originating from This World's Evil was seeping into every crevice, Corroding his will, attempting to awaken the fragile mental defenses that had wavered under Illusion Realm shock and real‑world pressure.

His fingers, uncontrollably, trembled as they reached again for the sniper rifle, even attempting to disengage the safety.

His gaze flickered between scattered and focused amid the fierce struggle, his body twitched slightly, yet he could not even let out a Warning low growl, forced to wage a silent, deadly tug‑of‑war in the isolated darkness between his inner self and the external double malice.

Perspective shift.

In the battlefield's center, the atmosphere was somewhat subtle.

Ailisi Feier watched Gui Naifen, far away, brushing dust off herself, then glanced at Artoria, whose brows were tightly knit as she stared at Gui Naifen with an extremely complex expression, suddenly realizing a major problem.

(In Cognition, this Lancer 'Gwenivere' is a girl from before meeting Arthur Wang, and therefore should not recognize the present Saber.)

(But Saber... does know Gwenivere!)

She hurriedly exchanged a glance with Tengwan Lixiang and Mashu.

Tengwan Lixiang instantly understood, and the three discreetly led the still stunned Artoria to a relatively intact broken wall nearby.

"Saber, listen to our explanation..." Ailisi Feier whispered.

Artoria, made more puzzled by their mysterious demeanor, had her emerald eyes filled with question marks.

After hearing Ailisi's brief explanation—that the orange‑haired Lancer called herself 'Gwenivere', yet seemed to have no recollection of herself, perhaps an earlier facet—Artoria's expression instantly became exceedingly vivid.

First bewildered, then incredulous, finally frozen in a 'elderly subway‑phone' demeanor.

She abruptly turned back, looking toward the distant Gui Naifen— the girl had just leapt from a skewed prefabricated slab, stumbled upon landing, nearly fell, frantically grabbed a nearby rebar to steady herself, then sheepishly glanced left and right to see if anyone had noticed.

Artoria: "..."

She stiffly turned her head back, looking at the three Ailisi, her voice a bit wavering: "She... is Gwenivere?"

Ailisi Feier was also a bit uncertain, glancing again at Gui Naifen's flamboyant festive attire and her demeanor that bore no resemblance to a queen, and whispered, "I‑I think so? After all, Heroic Spirit data can't be falsified... and you sensed her Noble Phantasm. Perhaps... Gwenivere before becoming queen and after... have quite different personalities?"

She herself felt this explanation was a bit far‑fetched.

Artoria cast her gaze at Gui Naifen a third time, this time more closely and for longer.

Gui Naifen seemed to notice the stare, looked back puzzled, met Artoria's serious gaze, froze briefly, then awkwardly raised her hand, gave a tiny wave, and forced a "Hi?" smile onto her face.

Artoria: "..."

She slowly withdrew her gaze, her brows furrowed enough to crush a fly.

Indeed, the aura... that essence‑of‑soul aura was exactly identical to the Gwenivere in her memory; it resonated from the deepest part of the Spiritual Core, impossible to disguise.

But!

This image, this temperament, this behavior...

Compared to the queen in her memory—gentle, elegant, with a hint of melancholy—it was like night and day!

The disparity was as stark as a poised classical beauty suddenly becoming a vibrant rock‑style rebel, causing Artoria's Cognition to be violently shocked, her brain CPU overloaded, unable to process.

At that moment, Tengwan Lixiang clapped her hands sharply, eyes brightening: "I've figured it out!"

The three immediately looked at her.