Chapter 38: Ahoge King: Rich Lady, Hungry, Food
Another two months or so passed. Summer gradually passed, and a continuous half-month of drizzle brought the coolness of autumn to this island. But this rain could not extinguish the restlessness in people's hearts.
"There's going to be a war."
"A big war."
Although the king had not yet issued a conscription order, after two full months of preparation, even the most obtuse person could feel the oppressive atmosphere gathering on this island. The clouds of war once again loomed over this island called "Britain."
And ironically, the last large-scale war that had occurred on this island was ten years ago, during the decisive battle between the Red Dragon King Uther and the White Dragon King Vortigern. The outcome of that battle was the death of King Uther and the destruction of the kingdom of Camelot.
Then what about this time? This civil war, triggered by the red dragon sisters, what kind of ending would it have?
"Eight kingdoms, nearly thirty thousand people."
"To gather so many people at once... even for me, it's a bit difficult."
Artoria listened to the intelligence gathered by Bedivere, her face showing a bitter expression. Of course, she was not worried about how to defeat these enemies. Don't forget, she was not a human in the normal sense. She was a dragon, a true red dragon.
No matter if the enemy was ten thousand, thirty thousand, or one hundred thousand, she could easily drown them with her dragon's breath—it was just a matter of spraying a few more times. But the problem now was: Artoria didn't want to kill so many people, and she absolutely could not kill so many people.
The thirty thousand strong army led by those eight kings was almost all the elite of the Britons. She certainly couldn't kill them all—she was the chosen king of Britain, and she would have to rely on these elites to rule this island in the future. She had to find a way to defeat those eight kings while preserving the living forces of both sides to the greatest extent.
"If only the outcome could be decided by the result of a knightly duel."
Artoria thought with some regret. She herself also knew that this seemingly best solution was actually just a fantasy, right? Those kings who only knew how to play with power, how could they give up their biggest advantage just to reduce the losses of their subordinates?
"Don't underestimate the opponent, my King."
"Although most of them are incompetent... among those eight kings, there is a true hero."
"King Pellinore—that king who has the inheritance of a [Hero], possesses martial arts that are by no means inferior to your father's. In fact, if he had been able to join forces with your father to fight against Vortigern back then, who would have won and who would have lost would have been a matter of uncertainty."
Merlin, sitting on a stool, was teasing a small white beast that looked like a cross between a small cat and a fox with his fingers, while bringing Artoria the latest intelligence:
"Also, although our situation is rather grim, it's not all bad news. Among the kings of Britain, there are still kings who support us."
"Who?"
"King Leodegrance."
"Ah? Who is he? Do I need to pay him a visit?"
"A good friend of your father's. Because his martial arts were mediocre, he missed that fatal war. He himself also has no talent for governing a country—but he did give birth to a daughter who could bring disaster to a country."
"???"
"Stop with the question marks. She's already at the village gate. Aren't you going to go out and greet her? Are you planning to let that Kay guy whistle at a noble princess?"
...
Artoria quickly ran to the main gate of the village. Sure enough, just as Merlin had said, a beautiful silver-haired girl was standing in front of the village gate, looking at the environment in the village with a curious gaze.
Of course, the girl did not come alone—behind her were more than a dozen carriages, loaded with large bags of grain, as well as tools that might be used in daily life, such as hoes and iron basins. Backed by these supplies, she could be said to be full of sincerity!
The people in the village were also looking at her curiously. But the girl exuded a noble aura—it was the temperament of someone who had lived in a royal palace since she was a child, living a pampered life. Even if the girl herself had no malice, and had no intention of keeping people at a distance, the ordinary people in the village only dared to look at her from a distance, and did not dare to stare at her seemingly extraordinary appearance for long.
"Your Highness Guinevere, alright. Please wait here for a moment, I will go and ask the King."
In the end, it was Bedivere who came forward to make the initial contact with this beautiful princess.
"Thank God, Brother Kay is not here."
Artoria had never been so grateful for her brother's lazy nature. But in the next instant, she showed a very formal, gentle and polite smile to entertain this distinguished guest who had come from afar.
"Welcome, Your Highness."
"Sir Bedivere, I'll trouble you to prepare some fruit and lunch in the kitchen."
"...Forget it, don't prepare the food. I'll just let Merlin figure something out."
Artoria was a little hesitant. Although she also understood royal etiquette, it was the first time she had hosted a real princess—not to mention this princess was a timely help, bringing many supplies to this small village in the mountains when everyone was not optimistic about her. In this situation, she undoubtedly had to show the highest courtesy to entertain this princess who had come from afar.
But the problem was... in this kingdom where everything was still in its infancy, what could the highest treatment be? Cured salmon? Or ham made from the meat of a magical beast? Could this pampered princess really swallow those "terrible" foods?
Artoria looked at this seemingly very noble silver-haired princess before her with a worried gaze.
However, this princess named "Guinevere," as if she had long known that these things would happen, showed a very relaxed and pleasant smile on her face:
"There's no need for such trouble, Your Majesty. My father knows that you are short of food here, so he has specially prepared a cart of mutton and three barrels of wine for you. These should be enough to cope with today's banquet. Also, my father has already gone to lobby the other kings—he said, although he doesn't know what the result will be, he must do his best to stop this war that should not have happened."
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