Chapter 51: Volume 1: Chapter 52 - What Arthur? My Name is Al
The Chalk-White Castle, Camelot.
"Calm down, Artoria! I know you're anxious because En was taken, but you need to calm down first!"
Inside the workroom, Merlin stood in front of the golden-haired girl, who was holding her Holy Lance and looked as if she was about to charge off to Orkney County in the next second. He urged her to stop, his tone anxious.
Fortunately, he was the first to arrive on the scene after Artoria's magical energy had flared up. After understanding the general situation, he had stopped the other Round Table Knights who had come to investigate, lying that it was just a small accident caused by his magic and persuading them to return.
Otherwise, the girl before him would probably have already started gathering the army to attack Orkney.
"Calm down? How do you expect me to calm down!? You know that En was taken away by that woman!"
Not even bothering to call Morgan "Royal Sister," Artoria raised the Holy Lance in her hand and pointed it at Merlin, as if to say, "If you dare stand in my way again, I'll take you out first."
Aigh, what a mess...
Merlin sighed inwardly, his head aching. After a moment's thought, he changed his tactics.
"Fine, I won't stop you. But do you truly understand the consequences of what you're about to do? Although the wars are not yet over, Britain has finally achieved a large-scale peace."
"If you lead an army to attack Orkney now, it will undoubtedly cause the other lords to panic. When that happens, it won't just be Orkney County; most of the lords may be forced to stand against you."
"Besides, do you think En would want to see you start another war just for him?"
The steps she had been about to take froze in that instant. Artoria's body went stiff for a second. After a long moment, she lowered the Holy Lance in her hand with reluctance, gritting her teeth.
"But, if I don't go now, En might be in danger..."
Her holy, cerulean eyes were filled with anxiety and worry. Artoria could even imagine that evil woman Morgan forcibly tying up her adoptive brother, while the boy could only helplessly whisper "Sister," praying for her to rescue him.
At the thought of this image, the half-length strand of hair on Artoria's head began to spin around in agitation.
But what Merlin said was also true, leaving her at a loss for what to do.
Seeing that the girl seemed to have regained some of her reason, Merlin secretly breathed a sigh of relief and continued.
"...I'm not saying we shouldn't rescue En. But even if we are to do it, we can't do it openly, let alone by assembling an army. The impact of that would be far too great. Therefore, we must find another way."
"Fou~!"
Fou, on Merlin's shoulder, nodded as if in agreement. Hearing this, Artoria finally stopped her anxious pacing. Her fine brows furrowed, and as if an idea had struck her, she said seriously.
"You're right, Merlin. We definitely can't just go there directly. If we do that, she'll see us coming."
"Mhm, mhm."
Merlin nodded in agreement, an expression of relief on his face that said, "You're finally listening."
But his peace of mind didn't last long, as he heard Artoria continue.
"Therefore, I intend to go alone. With Dun Stallion, it will only take half a day to reach Orkney. As for Camelot, I'll have to trouble you to help me cover things up for a while."
With that, Artoria picked up her Holy Lance, walked around the stunned Merlin, who hadn't seemed to react, and left the workroom directly.
After being patted firmly on the face by Fou's paw, Merlin finally came back to his senses. He glanced at the girl who had long since disappeared down the corridor, then at the pile of official documents waiting to be processed on the desk, and the corner of his eye twitched.
"I don't remember raising such a willful disciple..."
The sun was setting.
Orange sunlight streamed through the window, quietly灑 (sǎ - sprinkling) onto the boy's body. Aozaki Rin was leaning against the headboard of the bed, his small face full of helplessness and worry.
Under the influence of Morgan's magic and potion, his body showed no signs of recovery. He was still so weak that his breakfast and lunch had been personally brought to the bedroom by Morgan, who then helped feed it to his mouth.
To prevent him from having any more ideas about escaping, Morgan had even chained one of his hands to the bed.
"I wonder how Sister is doing. I hope nothing has happened... Also, Miss Morgan, she..."
Worried about his sister's situation, Aozaki Rin frowned. But he also recalled his conversation with Morgan that morning.
He didn't know why, but he felt that what Morgan had said at the time was not just about the throne, but about something else entirely.
Unfortunately, before he could ask, she had lost the intention to answer, and after that, Morgan seemed to have forgotten the question, never bringing it up again.
"...There must be a way for us to coexist peacefully."
The boy firmly believed this as he thought seriously.
Just then, a violent explosion suddenly came from outside the castle, interrupting his thoughts.
And in the next second, a majestic voice, laced with fury, rang out.
"Morgan, come out and die—!"
Sister?
Aozaki Rin blinked as if stunned. Though unable to see, he subconsciously turned toward the direction of the voice.
"Tsk! As expected, you were prepared. You've set up wards and defensive magic..."
Outside the castle, Artoria sat atop a white steed, holding her Holy Lance. Seeing that a casual swing of her lance had failed to shatter the castle gate, she knew that Morgan had taken precautions.
As for herself, she was not dressed in her usual deep blue formal dress and bright silver skirted armor. Instead, her entire body was encased in silver-white armor, and she wore a lion-shaped helmet to conceal her identity.
The evening wind blew through the mane-like tassel on her armor and the forked blue surcoat. Under the setting sun, the girl was like a majestic lioness, about to reclaim what was hers.
And she did not have to wait long. A dozen or so seconds later, a figure slowly floated out from within the castle and stood in the sky.
Morgan held her staff, her face covered by a black veil. She looked down at the lion-armored knight below, naturally recognizing her foolish little sister at a glance.
She sneered, lowering her altitude slightly, and looked at the girl mockingly.
"You went to all this trouble to dress up like this to come here, how touching, Arthur. But you're a real fool for coming alone."
"What Arthur? I am the wandering knight, Al. I heard that the Enchantress Queen Morgan is wicked and especially fond of snatching other people's 'things,' so I came specifically to punish evil! Either return En peacefully, or prepare to die!"
Artoria, of course, could not possibly admit her identity. Although it was only the two of them outside the castle right now, if it became known that she, as King Arthur, had come to attack Orkney, it would undoubtedly cause a great deal of trouble.
It was just that at the end, she had accidentally blurted out her true purpose.
"Heh, is that so? Then come and take him yourself, if you have the skill! And speaking of 'snatching,' aren't you the one who has stolen so many of my children!?"
Morgan glared at Artoria below, her eyes filled with rage. In reality, after bringing Aozaki Rin back, she no longer cared so much about the betrayal of those "traitorous sons."
But she had no intention of just swallowing this insult.
"...That was all their own choice. If you must blame someone, blame yourself for not being a proper mother."
Artoria shook her head, feeling no guilt. After all, she had heard from Gaheris and Gareth about Morgan's erratic behavior, so she could understand why those two had distanced themselves from her.
Choking on these words, Morgan was so angry that her already ample chest seemed to swell even more. She let out a cold laugh, took out a magic crystal ball, and said with a slight curl of her lips.
"Fine. If you're going to say that, then En is also staying here of his own free will. After all, listen. He was even willing to call me Sister."
—[Sister Morgan.]
The familiar, clear, and youthful voice came from the crystal ball. Artoria was so stunned she froze for a few seconds, but almost immediately, her heart erupted in flames of fury.
"You dare to force En?! As I thought, your crimes are unforgivable! Take this, Morgan!"
-------
Enjoying the story? Support the author and get access to early chapters by joining my Patreon!
Find me at My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (50 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (158 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (160 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (60 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (50 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (210 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (50 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it.