'If she weren't here, all of this would have belonged to me.'
'But there is no need to think that far now. Once the banquet is over, everything will be settled.'
Thinking that, Morgan gently pushed the boy down onto the floor behind her, and her soft red lips tenderly pressed against Alvin's.
Very soon, Morgan moved to the boy's ear, her breath warm and fragrant as she whispered, "Stay with me a little longer, Alvin~"
———
On the last day before the banquet, Alvin chose to spend his time in the royal chambers.
And to chat a bit about life with Mordred.
After these past few days together, this rebellious knight had basically started treating King Arthur's bedchamber as her own home. Whenever she had the chance, she would sneak into the royal chambers to talk about life with Alvin.
Compared to Morgan le Fay and the King Arthur who rarely paid her any attention, after these days, Mordred felt that her "father" was the more reliable one.
Aside from having long life talks with Mordred, Alvin had also been thinking about one question this whole time, 'How can I get Morgan and Artoria to make up?'
At the root of it, there had never been any original hatred between the sisters. Their grudge was essentially a mess left behind by Merlin and the previous king, Uther.
'Is there any way to make them understand each other?' [T/N: Let them two fight without any mana.]
———
On the other side, Morgan le Fay had been personally involved in planning and coordinating this banquet since early that morning.
As the grandest banquet in the history of Britain, and in order to fully express the host's courtesy and sincerity, all the Knights of the Round Table of Britain were attending as honored guests in the splendid great hall of the royal palace.
The tables were covered with all kinds of delicacies. Among these transmigrators, most could handle the food and wine here just fine… After all, not only the Clock Tower, but many of the magi present were from modern-day England.
The banquet had not officially begun yet, but many guests were already in the golden hall.
At this moment, Tristan was leaning in a corner with Lancelot.
The red-haired knight looked at the ebb and flow of people at the banquet and said quietly, "Lancelot, I really didn't expect you to come. I thought you would..."
"Go find Morgan le Fay as soon as you got back to the palace and avenge the King?"
Lancelot watched everything in the hall quietly and said in a low voice, "I've thought about it countless times over these three days since we returned. But if the King were here, I don't think she'd want me to fight Morgan either."
"Besides, Merlin has already passed on the King's will."
Merlin might not be very reliable, but he wasn't so bad that he'd fake an order from King Arthur.
Even for Britain's sake, he had to endure for now. He had to make sure this banquet went off without a hitch.
'If the King was here, she would also put the bigger picture first, right?', Lancelot thought to himself.
The magnificent golden hall glittered under nine gorgeous crystal chandeliers.
Magi from the modern world and nobles from ancient Britain raised their glasses and mingled. At first things were a little stiff, but everyone slowly started to loosen up.
This banquet was meant to be a process for both sides to understand one another.
Classical British music played, performed impeccably by the royal court musicians.
Kayneth had just stepped into the golden hall with his younger sister when he spotted a particularly eye-catching figure among the crowd.
An old man with silver hair leaned on a cane, slightly hunched, holding a glass of red wine as his gaze drifted around the hall.
The always-arrogant Lord of the Department of Mineralogy narrowed his eyes, then leaned down and quietly said to the blonde girl beside him, "Reines, I've got something to take care of. Handle yourself."
"But remember this: don't make trouble tonight."
After his warning, Kayneth headed straight toward the silver-haired old man.
"Teacher, I didn't expect even you to come."
Kayneth approached the old man with a smile on his face.
For this usually arrogant Lord of the Clock Tower to so proactively greet someone was an extremely rare sight.
But this old man's identity was special. He was both Kayneth's benefactor and his fiancee's father.
Even just for his fiancee's sake, Kayneth had to maintain a good relationship with his future father-in-law.
The old man named "Eulyphis" looked the man in front of him over with his cloudy eyes, "Kayneth, has there been any news in the palace recently?"
There was not the slightest hint of courtesy, his tone even somewhat cold.
It was no surprise. To this old man, if it weren't for the need to stabilize the "Aristocratic" faction, he would never have married his daughter off to Kayneth.
For most people, Kayneth was absolutely a genius. But in this somewhat gloomy old man's eyes, Kayneth was at best a magus with a bit of talent, and nothing more.
Kayneth had already expected this cold treatment. He frowned slightly and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, even though I've been in the palace all this time, I haven't really had many chances to gather internal information."
"But since Morgan's return to the palace, she hasn't made a move against those in Britain who opposed her. As you can see, she even invited the Knights of the Round Table, who only serve King Arthur, to this banquet."
"Heh! That woman certainly has confidence in herself."
The old man stared coldly at the gleaming hall, "Then again, even King Arthur chose to avoid a direct clash. There probably isn't anyone in Britain who can restrain her."
Kayneth's expression turned a bit complicated when this was brought up.
Unlike any of the other modern magi present, Kayneth had actually met King Arthur.
It was precisely because of that he knew all too well just how terrifying the King's power was.
With someone like King Arthur, if she had really gone all out against Morgan, there was no way the aftermath around the palace that day would have been so limited.
"Have you found your next successor yet?"
Eulyphis's voice pulled Kayneth back to reality.
Seeing him remain silent, the old man went on, "You should know that with Reines's talent, she isn't really qualified to inherit the future El-Melloi family, right?"
Hearing that, Kayneth could not help feeling a bit irritated, but he still had to suppress his anger and answer tactfully, "Teacher, I'm still young. There's no need to decide an heir so early—"
"Magus is a very short-lived profession. Even a Lord of the Clock Tower is no exception. Settling on an heir early is for your own good."
Eulyphis said flatly, "I've heard that you have a disciple named Alvin, and that his talent is quite good. Even Aozaki Touko mentioned him before."
If that woman acknowledged someone, it was clear he had some level of talent.
Kayneth shook his head, "Alvin is clever, but he isn't from the El-Melloi family—"
"An heir doesn't have to come from one's own family."
Eulyphis said slowly, "If needed, you can have him marry your sister Reines."
"That's also a way of continuing the family's glory."
Kayneth said helplessly, "Matters of the heart can't be forced…"
"Feelings can be nurtured."
Eulyphis's tone was calm, "The key is whether you're willing to put in the effort, Kayneth. I'm not telling you to settle on an heir this early, just to be prepared."
Though he was not entirely convinced, Kayneth still lowered his head.
"Yes."
Perhaps feeling that he himself was being a bit too hasty, Eulyphis spoke again soon after, "Today is a rare banquet. Let's not bring up such matters for now, relax a little."
Kayneth nodded lightly, then let his gaze sweep around, "Looks like we've got quite a few modern magi here tonight."
He had already spotted several familiar faces.
"Morgan le Fay spread this news precisely to throw a multiple-choice test at us. If we lose our nerve now, we can forget about sitting at the same negotiating table as Britain in the future," Eulyphis said coldly.
"But the main host of this whole banquet hasn't even shown up yet," Kayneth said.
The old man glanced around the hall and replied slowly, "Morgan already achieved her goal by setting up this board. Whether she comes or not doesn't really matter."
"Though I am curious what the legendary 'Lady of the Lake' actually looks like. A shame."
While the two of them were talking, the sound in the hall suddenly quieted down at some point.
Then it went so silent you could hear a pin drop.
It was like a noisy classroom suddenly going still. Everyone present could faintly sense that something was off.
Eulyphis instinctively turned his head just in time to see a figure step gracefully in through the palace's main doors.
"Huh, why does that woman look so familiar?"
A faint stir spread through the crowd.
Even though the transmigrators had never seen King Arthur in person, just from the way she was dressed and the aura she carried, they could more or less guess something.
Gawain had been holding a glass of wine and chatting with a noble lady beside him. When he sensed the disturbance not far away, he turned his head.
"…"
After a brief moment of blankness, his eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the woman.
The wineglass slipped from his hand and shattered on the floor, red wine splashing out.
"Y-Your… Your Majesty?"
The woman's smooth golden hair hung down her back, and a crown symbolizing "authority" sat on her head, instantly giving this already imposing woman an indescribable sense of pressure.
In that moment, all the Knights of the Round Table present, including Gawain and Lancelot, felt their scalps go numb, their adrenaline spiking out of control.
It was the King.
'She has returned?'
———
Brilliant lights illuminated the entire hall, golden and resplendent, yet all that radiance together seemed to dim the moment King Arthur arrived.
For a heartbeat, all sound in the venue vanished.
Countless eyes, full of doubt and surprise, secretly observed the golden-haired King of Knights who had appeared at the banquet.
Even though many of those present had never seen King Arthur's true face, just from this unique, noble aura, they could more or less guess the woman's real identity.
King Arthur.
In Type-Moon's history, because a certain King chose to defy the gods and later returned the miracle granted by the gods back to the heavens, the Age of Gods slowly began to fade from the surface.
Since Britain was the land closest to the inner sea of the stars, the retreat of the Age of Gods there was slowed.
And while that Age of Gods was fading, this King Arthur could be said to have been undefeated. Even the White Dragon, the final product of the Age of Gods, was ultimately slain by her own hand.
Even at the end of the story, King Arthur never experienced any real "defeat" in the true sense.
If Morgan's oppressive presence came from her strength, then in King Arthur's case, her name alone was enough to command respect.
The Lord of the Department of Spirit Evocation stared uncertainly at the golden-haired woman by the door, "There's something off about that one's magic. Could it be…"
"She really is King Arthur. I saw her myself in the palace last time," Kayneth said quietly, eyes fixed on Artoria.
"She actually returned?", Eulyphis furrowed his white brows tightly, his expression shifting.
Not long ago, in that great battle at the Camelot royal palace, Merlin had taken King Arthur out of Britain. Not just the transmigrators, even the people of Britain believed the King would only return when the time was right for a counterattack.
Yet none of them had expected, that the King of Knights would choose to return to her palace at a moment like this, under the eyes of the world.
Compared to the two Lords of the Clock Tower, the Knights of the Round Table in the hall were even more shaken.
Their first reaction upon seeing King Arthur was joy.
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