Chapter 73: The Blessing of Swords
"Uncle?"
Looking at the female war god who had returned, Guinevere was slightly stunned. After hearing Su Mo and Pandora's words, she immediately thought of something.
"You've become the Godslayer's property?"
"Indeed." Lancelot opened her eyes, feeling the divine connection between herself and Su Mo. "I have now become a familiar god to Su Mo... no, I should now call him Lord Master."
Steel Hero Gods possessed the ability to plunder an enemy's authority and turn them into their own subordinates. This principle also applied to Steel Hero Gods themselves.
Under the effect of the Origin of Swords, not only was her Divinity plundered, but her very being was also taken.
Although she was still a war god, still retaining the complete Divinity and power of a war god, in essence, she had become Su Mo's familiar god, a position similar to a wife or daughter.
"Yay! As expected of my favorite child!"
Pandora, having figured out the situation, immediately cheered. Su Mo's actions could be said to be undermining the Last King, so she was naturally happy about it.
"Although she's a detestable Steel, if she's obedient to my Su Mo in the future, I suppose I can reluctantly forgive her!"
Since she had become Su Mo's property, she no longer held any hostility towards Lancelot.
"Rest assured, Lady Goddess. As a knight, I cannot betray my master. And it is a good experience to be able to work alongside King Arthur."
Faced with Pandora's words, Lancelot was not angry, her attitude as straightforward as ever.
After expressing her loyalty, she seemed to sense something unusual. She immediately removed her armor, lifted her clothes, and completely exposed her lower abdomen. Then, she looked at Su Mo in confusion.
"But, Lord Master, what is this?"
On her soft, fair abdomen, a mark resembling a sharp sword had appeared at some point. The sword was golden, and Lancelot could feel considerable power from it, as well as a strong connection to her Lord Master, Su Mo.
Clearly, this sword mark had been inscribed by Su Mo.
"Could it be something like Lord Su Mo's exclusive mark?" Lancelot asked with a hint of doubt.
If it were a slave mark, she could understand. The Age of Gods she was active in still had the custom of slavery. Masters, in order to mark their property, would often brand their slaves with their own unique crest...
"Ah, this..."
Seeing this scene, Guinevere and Pandora exchanged a glance, their eyes becoming a little embarrassed.
This Rakshasa King... my child, is actually into this sort of thing?
In modern society, where slavery was basically nonexistent, such a mark could easily be mistaken for some kind of strange fetish.
She hadn't expected this Godslayer, Su Mo... this child, to be so kinky.
Before their gazes could become even stranger, Su Mo spoke up in time, clearing the misunderstanding.
"This is a blessing I have bestowed upon you with the Origin of Swords. Saber has one too. Based on this blessing, your Steel attribute will be greatly enhanced, and your shortcomings will be supplemented."
Lancelot's nature as a Steel Hero God was already quite excellent, but she was like a hexagonal warrior, still having shortcomings in her attack and defense.
The Mythical Thaumaturgy called the Origin of Swords was not only effective for Su Mo himself, but also had a very powerful effect on his vassals. Su Mo was naturally not stingy.
"Master, I have one too?" Hearing this, Artoria was first quite pleasantly surprised. After the surprise, she touched her own lower abdomen, hesitated for a moment, and was too embarrassed to show it.
Being able to increase her strength was naturally a good thing. It meant she could help her Master more conveniently.
But to show it in public was a bit too much of a test for her sense of shame. Although everyone present except for her Master was a girl, it still felt inappropriate.
Seeing her hesitation, Su Mo spoke up at the right time.
"This mark can also manifest on the back of your hand. It stores a large amount of magical energy and can be used in emergencies."
"Besides the usual buffs, in times of crisis, you can also use the Blessing of Swords to request power from me. As my vassals, the Origin of Swords will respond to your prayers."
The development of the Blessing of Swords was inspired by both divine blessings and the Command Spell system. In normal times, it could be used as a blessing to receive all-around enhancements.
In critical moments, it could be used to request a burst of power, making it quite convenient.
"Thank you, Master!"
Looking at the Blessing of Swords mark on the back of her hand, Artoria's ahoge stood straight up.
"Just one blessing, and it has such a significant boost?!" After feeling the power of the blessing, Lancelot's eyes showed a look of shock. "So this is the power of the Mythical Thaumaturgy that Lord Master mentioned before..."
She suddenly understood why she had lost so miserably before. A newly formed Mythical Thaumaturgy could give its vassals such a powerful boost, and this wasn't even its true power.
If Su Mo were to use the Origin of Swords himself, how strong would it be?
Seeing Lancelot's strength increase, Guinevere was initially happy for her. But she soon realized that Lancelot was now her enemy, and she had perhaps been happy a bit too soon.
"As expected, it would turn out this way..."
Guinevere knew Lancelot's temper and understood the integrity of a Steel Hero God. So, she only sighed and had no intention of dissuading her.
Hearing her sigh, Lancelot spoke up.
"My beloved child, I can only apologize about the Last King. After all, serving the victor is the duty of a loser, and I am very satisfied with this lord's magnanimity."
"If you have the chance to see the Last King, remember to tell that fellow to be careful. I am terrifyingly strong now!"
"I will become the glorious sharp blade in my lord's hand and cut off his head!"
When she spoke of cutting off the Last King's head, Lancelot's eyes also became sharp.
Unlike the relatively united Earth Mother Goddesses, a major characteristic of the Steel Hero Gods was their love for infighting.
They were willing to obey the rules of battle and were happy to challenge all strong opponents, regardless of whether they were comrades or not.
To drink from the same golden cup, yet not spare the white blade.
The trivial matters of past friendships did not affect them in the slightest when it came to swinging their swords at each other.
When she was a subordinate of the Last King, she would not hesitate to swing her sword at Su Mo. And now that she was Su Mo's subordinate, she didn't mind raising her blade against the Last King.
In fact, when facing the Last King, not only would she not hold back, but she would cut even more fiercely. After all, a suitable opponent was not so easy to find.
Faced with Lancelot's battle-filled words, Guinevere nodded helplessly.
"If I have the chance, I will tell him."
All Steel Hero Gods were like this; she was already used to it.
Just then, a petite figure appeared in front of Guinevere, making a large 'X' with her slender arms.
"Don't worry, you won't have the chance!"
"Lady Pandora?" Guinevere immediately became nervous. Compared to Su Mo, she seemed to fear Pandora, this Earth Mother Goddess, even more.
"Little Su Mo, I remember you said before that you were very interested in the pseudo-god manifestation spell this one possesses, right?" Pandora ignored Guinevere and turned to look at Su Mo.
"Mm," Su Mo nodded slightly.
"And she's not willing to tell you?" Pandora asked again.
"Her attitude is indeed resistant," Su Mo replied.
"Hmph~ As expected. In order to save the Holy Grail for the Last King, this one is unwilling to admit defeat." Pandora put her hands on her hips, looking smug. "Unfortunately for her, she ran into me! You're still too young to be negotiating terms with my little Su Mo. Don't worry, leave this to Mommy!"
To deal with an Earth Mother Goddess, it was best for an Earth Mother Goddess to do it herself. Although it wasn't that Su Mo didn't have a way to deal with it, he was still very interested in Pandora's words.
"What are you planning to do?"
"Of course, to completely conquer this one's body and soul!" Pandora had a mischievous smile on her face.
"Doesn't this one sympathize with the Last King and is determined to become the handmaiden of Steel? Then we'll let her have her wish, except the Steel she serves won't be the Last King, but you, little Su Mo!"
Hearing Pandora's words, Guinevere's face changed drastically. She wanted to run, but Artoria and Lancelot were watching her like hawks. There was no escape.
Su Mo also guessed Pandora's intentions.
"You mean, like before, to turn Guinevere into my subordinate as well?"
"Although the scope of the Usurpation Cycle only includes gods, the plundering range of the Steel attribute is indeed not limited to Divinities. As a descendant of an Earth Mother Goddess, Guinevere also seems to possess the power to temporarily restore her Divinity. In that case, it seems we only need to slightly adjust the Origin of Swords spell to obtain..."
After understanding Pandora's meaning, Su Mo's mind immediately began to analyze the principle and gradually construct the ritual.
Before Pandora could even speak, he had already developed the spell to plunder a god-ancestor.
Just then, Pandora directly covered Su Mo's mouth.
"Stop, stop, stop! If you say any more, the spell I've carefully prepared will be directly deduced by you. Then wouldn't Mommy be useless?"
Sometimes, she wished Su Mo's comprehension wasn't so strong. It gave her no sense of accomplishment.
So, before Su Mo could speak, she stood on her tiptoes and passed the spell to plunder a god-ancestor to Su Mo through oral instruction.
After finishing the knowledge transfer, she wiped her lips, then pointed at Guinevere with high spirits.
"Go on, teach her a lesson! I love seeing this traitor trying to resist but failing."
After saying such villainous lines, Pandora remembered something and suddenly turned to look at Artoria.
"Speaking of which, Artoria, although it's unlikely, I'll ask beforehand. You wouldn't mind, would you?"
"Huh?"
Artoria was stunned for a moment, not understanding what Pandora meant. After a few seconds of bewilderment, she finally realized the key point.
Although the myth was false, according to the relationship in the myths, Guinevere was indeed Artoria's queen.
For Su Mo to make a move on Guinevere in front of Artoria, didn't this sound a bit like NTR?