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“You’re leaving when there are so many guests here?”
Morgana gestured toward the numerous nobles of Avalon filling the Great Hall with a tilt of her head. With Lancelot present as part of the delegation, Kellive had even more reason to stay.
Yet, after carelessly scanning the nobles, he slowly closed his eyes and smiled.
“None of them would stop me if I said I was leaving with Morgana.”
Kellive openly declared, his tone kind and gentle toward the surrounding nobles.
“Enjoy the banquet. Morgana and I have somewhere to be. If you wish for me to stay, speak now.”
Though not a trace of threat could be detected, the nobles stiffened as if frozen. Some even paled and bowed their heads in fear. No one dared to answer first.
“Since there are no objections, it seems everyone agrees.”
“Y-yes… Your Highness…”
A middle-aged man near the front answered in a trembling voice, his body shaking like a leaf. He looked utterly terrified.
‘Why are they acting like this?’
The Kellive Morgana knew was not someone to be feared. Compared to Vortigern—one of the few kings she had met—he might as well have been an angel.
Yet, unlike how they treated her, the nobles seemed excessively wary of him.
As she tilted her head in confusion, Kellive naturally called out to Lancelot, who had been watching the scene as a bystander.
“Sir Lancelot.”
Lancelot, who had been leaning against the wall, pushed himself up lightly and swept back his pink hair.
“Yes, I heard. It seems one of the knights sent as part of the delegation was harmed at the temple.”
“The Britain royal court has already submitted an official complaint.”
Having apparently heard the news earlier, Lancelot was calmer than expected. Though his usual lighthearted demeanor remained, the sharp glint in his eyes betrayed his anger toward the temple.
“Then you should attend to the matter. Don’t worry about things here. The ladies are kind, and the knights’ admiring gazes aren’t so bad.”
\With a glance, Lancelot indicated Gawain, who was glaring at him from a distance.
With even the most crucial member of the delegation giving his approval, Kellive smiled softly again and met Morgana’s gaze.
“This is Avalon. If anything happens, wouldn’t it be better if I were there to help?”
With everyone practically pushing them to go together, what choice did she have? Having an extra hand to open doors wouldn’t hurt.
Though she didn’t quite understand why she felt a little disappointed, Morgana nodded.
“Well… fine. Let’s go together.”
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Morgana narrowed her eyes as she stared ahead.
An unfamiliar mountain stood before her. There was no path—just a densely overgrown wilderness.
Suspicion in her voice, she turned to Excalibur, who was guiding her.
“…Excalibur, don’t take this the wrong way, but hear me out.”
—What is it? Tired of climbing? Should’ve built up your stamina before summoning the great Excalibur.
Excalibur, unfazed, gripped Morgana’s arm and pulled her relentlessly up the mountain.
Morgana shot the sword a glare and pressed further.
“Do you have some kind of grudge against me?”
Otherwise, there was no reason to make her climb such a treacherous peak.
This had to be deliberate—either to torment her or to bury her in the mountains for its new master.
Excalibur ignored her sharp gaze and urged her onward.
—Look! That dark-haired human next to you is climbing just fine! Can’t let your servant outdo you—right foot! Left foot!
Following its command, Morgana clenched her teeth as she ascended.
Just as Excalibur said, Kellive, supporting her from the side, was perfectly composed.
Seeing him climb without even a hint of labored breath left her with no retort. This mountain was so far from the palace that even horseback would take considerable time.
Its peak was so high that from below, it vanished into the mist.
Using Excalibur like a walking stick, Morgana stabbed it into the ground with each step, her suspicion unshaken.
“I thought Aide sealed the area with magic, so Mangeum couldn’t escape…!”
Kellive, effortlessly matching her pace, answered calmly.
“If it was sealed with magic, it would’ve only blocked magic.”
“What does that mean? The High Priest couldn’t escape either.”
Morgana planted Excalibur into the ground again and pressed further.
Kellive brushed aside the branches obstructing his view and replied,
“The high priest is human, after all. Magic belongs to the realm of humans. Things like demons or divine power fall under the domain of gods.”
Only then did it occur to him that he, too, could wield magic.
‘So that’s why the demon could take Merlin away?’
Mangeum was a divine beast. That meant he could break through the barrier and escape.
Morgana let out a deep sigh and asked Excalibur again, “Are you absolutely sure Mangeum is here? Why would he go all the way up the mountain?”
—Seems like the master’s forgotten something. Just because I can hear the fluffy beast’s words doesn’t mean I know his thoughts, you know? I’m a magnificent sword, after all.
Maybe she should ask for a full translation later when she meets Mangeum. Morgana nodded absentmindedly and struggled to catch her breath.
At least the slope had gradually become gentler, which was some relief.
Just as they were nearing flat ground, Morgana felt the sweat on her forehead turn icy cold.
A sheer cliff abruptly cut off.
There had once been a bridge connecting to the other side, but—
“The bridge is only half there?”
It was eerily strange. The other side was shrouded in thick fog, impossible to see. Morgana tentatively placed one foot on the bridge and pressed down firmly.
It felt sturdy, not even a slight wobble.
She let out a small exclamation of surprise.
“Oh, for something floating in midair, it’s surprisingly stable, isn’t it?”
“It might still be dangerous.”
Unlike Morgana, who remained unfazed, Kellive urgently grabbed her arm. His pupils trembled slightly, betraying his alarm.
Morgana stepped back and asked Excalibur again, “Where is Mangeum?”
—On the other side.
No matter how she looked at it, this seemed like a path to the underworld…
No matter how fearless she was, she couldn’t bring herself to cross that bridge.
As she glanced sideways to gauge Kellive’s reaction, the moment she saw his golden eyes, Morgana quickly fumbled around the back of her neck.
“Ah, the teleportation stone!”
Kellive had given her a teleportation stone as a gift.
In fact, it was a necklace, so there were multiple stones. Morgana fiddled with the golden stones around her neck and flashed Kellive a bright look.
“I’d forgotten about this, what a relief! The moment I saw your eyes, it just came to me!”
“…Next time, I’ll make sure to gift you a different color. That would be better.”
For some reason, as she listened to Kellive’s composed reply, Morgana absentmindedly touched her neck. She didn’t understand why he mentioned changing the color, but since it was a useful item, it didn’t really matter.
Lightly rubbing the necklace, she answered, “I’ll go ahead first. Kellive, follow me!”
No sooner had she spoken than a white circular portal opened before her. Having traveled this way several times before, Morgana stepped through without hesitation.
The moment she took a step out of the portal, her vision was filled with thick smoke.
The dense fog she had seen from the other side now completely obscured her sight. She turned to look back, but Kellive was nowhere to be seen.
Only fog surrounded her.
“Wow, this is intense. Kellive, can you hear me?”
She called out loudly, but no answer came.
Even in this situation, Excalibur was as frivolous as ever.
— Ugh, I can’t see a thing!
With a swing, the hand holding the sword cut through the fog as if slicing it apart.
Miraculously, the fog split open with a sharp sound.
As the smoke gradually cleared, the previously hidden scenery began to reveal itself.
“…This is…”
Morgana muttered, dumbfounded.
“A money tree?”
Golden grass sprouted from the ground.
Trees laden with dangling gold coins. Some even had gold ingots growing like fruit.
“I-Is this real gold?”
Her eyes widened as she darted around in excitement. She plucked a leaf and bit it—teeth marks remained.
It was real gold.
“This is insane. How much is all this worth?”
Morgana loved gold more than anything in the world. Because money never betrayed you.
Part of her wanted to uproot the entire place and take it all.
‘With this, I’d have an endless supply of gold…!’
Buzzing with excitement, Morgana suddenly froze mid-step.
Then, she turned to Excalibur and said, “Let’s go. Where’s Mangeum?”
— Huh? Why? Not even gonna take anything?
She gave a faint smile at his blank question and replied, “Nothing in this world is free.”
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