Type-Moon, but the Servant is Tom

"Is that so?" Artoria asked with her eyes still devoid of emotion.

Soji quickly nodded and continued to coax Artoria, "Of course! We're an unbreakable team, how could I possibly laugh at you in your time of need?"

Although she did feel a sense of joy because it seemed Artoria couldn't compete for the Holy Grail with her, that was not something she could tell her ally. It would hurt their sisterly, allied bond.

Soji decided to silently stab her in the back instead, so as not to harm the relationship between her and Artoria. She had initially not intended to compete for the Holy Grail herself, as her greatest wish was to cure her own frailty. But being summoned in this form and with the assistance of the life support device, her frailty had essentially disappeared. So, her wish to heal her inherent frailty had been fulfilled. Moreover, her Master, Kotomine Kirei, had no intention of pursuing the Holy Grail, so assisting her ally's Master in obtaining it was certainly possible.

However, now there was a sudden turn of events. When facing Schrödinger's Cat, she became extremely flustered and, in her haste, mistakenly used the thrusters when releasing her Noble Phantasm. The result was a prolonged full-speed boost that caused some subtle malfunctions in the thrusters.

The thrusters themselves were still functional, but a critical issue arose - the life support device's energy started leaking, and by tomorrow at around 10 a.m., the life support device would completely shut down due to lack of energy.

In other words, she would once again experience the affliction of frailty. The thought of being plagued by illness again made Soji nervous to the point of nearly spewing blood. This strong urge to vomit blood further intensified her suspicion that the life support device might already be malfunctioning.

"Is that so? You've been laughing the whole time, never stopping," Artoria replied, unfazed by Soji's persuasive words, and continued to stare at her with lifeless eyes.

Gulping nervously under the pressure of being stared at with such deadpan eyes, Soji felt her heart pounding erratically, almost jumping out of her chest. "What should I do? What should I do? What should I do?!"

Feeling the overwhelming pressure that seemed like it could crush her, Soji's feet fidgeted nervously. In her desperation, she raised her right forearm with her upper arm hanging down. Then, she pointed her palm towards Artoria with her fingertips facing upward. She folded her thumb, ring finger, and pinky, leaving only her index and middle fingers raised, making a solemn hand gesture akin to swearing an oath.

"It truly is just your misconception. I swear upon our friendship, I have never once made fun of you!" Soji declared earnestly.

"I see... Then I believe you..." Artoria replied and lowered her head again, continuing to absentmindedly stroke her broken beloved sword.

"Huff~" Soji heaved a sigh of relief when she realized that Artoria had believed her. Even though she had sworn, she wasn't overly concerned. After all, the oath was directed towards her friend, not some divine entity. What harm was there in swearing a false oath to a friend?!

Feeling righteous and bolstered, Soji thought, "Even though I have absolute confidence in my swordsmanship, let's not forget the battle by Mion River a couple of days ago. Artoria unleashed a beam of light that pierced the sky, and it was just the aftermath of her attack! Though she ended up being defeated, it's not like she lost disgracefully. After all, she was facing that terrifying Schrödinger's Cat. It's not strange for her to lose; it would be strange if she actually won against it. Schrödinger's Cat is Schrödinger's Cat, and it's no surprise it could easily withstand such a fearsome attack. But with my petite physique... I can confidently say I would be reduced to nothing in an instant by that kind of strike. The scene would be nothing short of annihilation."

Considering the situation, she absolutely couldn't afford to expose her thoughts of backstabbing her ally. Instead, she inquired nonchalantly, "By the way, is your racing car ready? If not, I can prepare one for you~."

Soji smirked inwardly. All she needed to do was fit a sufficiently large explosive in the car she'd prepare for Artoria, and it would be enough to send her back to the Throne of Heroes! Don't blame her for being deceitful; as the saying goes, "All is fair in war." Besides, she was just an ordinary Heroic Spirit with flexible moral boundaries!

"No need, I have my beloved Excalibur, and that's enough," Artoria replied as she hugged her broken sword, Excalibur, with only a palm-length left of the blade.

"Oh? Are you sure you don't want it? The racing car I prepared contains the power of the universe!" Soji immediately intensified her persuasion when she saw Artoria remain unmoved.

And in truth, Soji's statement wasn't entirely deceptive because the self-destructive power she had prepared could be considered a form of cosmic power, right? So, her words were entirely honest, with no hint of deception. She honestly informed Artoria that the racing car was equipped with such cosmic power, making her quite the candid swords...woman.

However, Artoria still shook her head. "I have my beloved Excalibur, and that's enough."

"My racing car is fitted with tracking missiles that can lock onto any Servant. It will target whoever you want!" Soji escalated her tactics again, attempting to entice Artoria.

No matter what, she had to deceive Artoria into getting on the self-destructive racing car today. She had already thrown her dignity away, so she had to go all the way.

Otherwise, her lack of scruples would be in vain!

"Really... I don't need it. I have no intention of attacking anyone," Artoria responded firmly.

"But... I saw someone named Merlin on the list of participants?" Soji mentioned, hoping that name might trigger a reaction from Artoria.

As soon as she heard that name, Artoria's eyes sparkled as if she were under the effect of a red-eye special effect, emitting a crimson glow.

"Where's the racing car? Give it to me!" she demanded eagerly.