I’ve already stamped my mark on Guinevere, so why bother working so hard? Although I’ve grown fond of her, I have my title now, so I thought I’d just show my face occasionally at banquets.
‘Since I have some time, why not see Excalibur?’
Arthur will be back soon, so there’s not much time left. It’s not just any sword—it’s the famous Excalibur.
‘After the sword is pulled out, they’ll turn the rock into a tourist spot, marking where the sword once was!’
I should see it with my own eyes at least once in my life. It feels like going on vacation after retirement, and I’m a little excited. But the excitement was short-lived.
‘Lady Morgana, are you having any difficulties?’
As soon as I handed in my resignation to the headmaid, for some reason, I was scheduled for a private meeting with Caradoc.
“Is someone bothering you? I’ll break their spine in half for you!”
Thud—
Caradoc lightly slammed the table with his fists and stood up. His sharp eyes, towering height, and anger directed at an invisible threat—it felt like if I named the enemy, he would take revenge without me having to get my hands dirty. But that wasn’t all.
“Morgana, are you really leaving…?”
Suddenly, Sobella, who was still adjusting to Morgana’s new title, was summoned. She seemed reluctant to part ways, her eyes glistening with tears as she switched between casual and formal speech.
What was even more surprising was that Sobella wasn’t the only one.
“Morgana, I thought we got along well while serving the princess together.”
Even Mauren, one of Guinevere’s direct attendants, was among those who requested a private meeting. She slid a blank piece of paper across the table.
It was completely empty.
Mauren clasped her hands together, covering her mouth, and spoke seriously.
“Now that you’ve received your title, your salary will be much higher than before.”
She leaned closer to Morgana, who in turn leaned in as well. In a hushed, solemn voice, Mauren whispered,
“If you want, I can subtly nudge the Princess and the headmaid to negotiate better terms for you.”
She pointed at the blank paper and firmly added, “Write down the salary you want.”
“Yes!”
Morgana smiled brightly and began writing zeros endlessly. <1000000000000000 gold> She was certain it was an amount they could never pay.
Up to this point, it was still within the realm of understanding.
But when Lancelot requested a private meeting, Morgana was utterly baffled.
“Miss Morgana, I heard you’re leaving?”
“Wait, Sir Lancelot, aren’t you part of the royal knights? Why are you meeting with me…?”
Caradoc was understandable since they were close, and Sobella and Mauren made sense since they had worked together.
But the royal knights had absolutely no connection to her. The reason became clear in Lancelot’s casual reply.
“Ah, Princess Guinevere asked me to. She said I’m only useful for my face, so she told me to use that to keep you here.”
In an instant, everything made sense.
‘The princess gathered everyone around her to persuade me!’
Sigh—
Morgana took a deep breath and smiled brightly at Lancelot, who was grinning as if he found the whole situation amusing.
“…You like signing things, don’t you?”
“Not particularly, why? If you want one, I’d be happy to sign as much as you want.”
Morgana slyly slid a piece of paper toward him.
“Then, could you sign here in the resignation approval section…”
“Oh, suddenly I feel dizzy…”
“…”
Lancelot’s acting was so poor it was almost laughable as he slumped over the desk.
“I’m too dizzy to see the words…”
Morgana had no intention of backing down.
‘My trip! Freedom! A life of extravagance while running Tir na Nog!’
Morgana stood up abruptly and strode over to him.
“Then just give me your hand! I’ll hold the pen and sign for you!”
“Oh my, what’s this? That’s almost like forgery! I may look like this, but I’m still the captain of the first knight order!”
Morgana silently watched as he exaggeratedly wrapped his arms around himself, as if she were about to pounce on him. He seemed to find the situation amusing, blinking playfully.
“If you really want, the regular subjugation team will be back soon. Why not stay and watch?”
“What difference will that make?”
“You’ve received a title now. You’ll need to recruit knights for your barony.”
That was something she hadn’t considered.
Seeing her curiosity piqued, Lancelot quickly continued.
“I overheard a bit about the subjugation team returning. There’s an external mercenary named Arthur who seems exceptionally skilled. They say he’ll be knighted soon.”
The moment she heard the familiar name, her mind sharpened. If this kept up, she might never get to see Excalibur.
Morgana raised both hands and declared even more firmly, “No, it’s fine! I don’t need knights!”
Sensing her unwavering resolve, Lancelot slumped over the table, burying his face in his arms and tilting his head. He looked up at her with a crooked smile and a playful glint in his eye
“I can’t interfere with the princess’s hiring process. Please tell her I did my best to hold on.”
Only after he left did the final decision-maker finally reveal themselves.
“Morgana, let’s think about this again. It was good, wasn’t it?”
Once this hurdle was cleared, a vacation by the shimmering lake awaited.
Morgana, pretending to be as weak as possible, answered in a voice that sounded like she was on the verge of collapse.
“I was just thinking of taking a break and traveling for a bit…”
“Then I’ll give you paid leave. How about six months? Take as much rest as you want and come back.”
It was then that Morgana realized.
‘I can’t escape with ordinary reasons!’
Morgana let out a deep sigh. She really didn’t want to do this, but there was no other way.
“I’ll tell you the truth.”
As she straightened her posture, Guinevere nodded quickly.
“Alright. Speak openly to me!”
Covering her mouth and briefly staring at the floor, Morgana cautiously began.
“Actually… I’m planning to return to my hometown and take up farming.”
“Farming…?”
It wasn’t entirely a lie, since I did gather herbs from the mountains.
Guinevere’s eyes wavered for the first time at this unexpected answer. Morgana seized the moment and firmly pressed on.
“Yes. It’s a family business.”
Having lived off herbs since she was very young, she was quite skilled with them, so she decided to call it a first-generation family business.
“If that’s the case, then there’s nothing I can do…”
Guinevere, still reluctant, reluctantly agreed in a weak voice, dripping with regret.
💫
Evening at the Avalon’s Office.
Today, Kellive looked unusually splendid.
He was wearing a uniform he rarely put on. His hair, swept back from his forehead, fell naturally, making him look even more charming.
Raves, watching him set up in the office, had moist eyes.
“…What are you doing?”
“Preparing to ask the future for a favor.”
The golden epaulets on his shoulders, the tie pin, and the ornaments on his cloak were dazzling.
Raves gazed at him wistfully and quietly slid a document onto the desk.
It was a report he had prepared a few days ago after receiving sudden orders to investigate events in Britannia.
Seeing his superior in this state, it seemed like he wasn’t entirely in his right mind, so the best course of action was to leave.
Raves spoke quickly without hesitation, “Well then, I wish you a brilliant future, and I’ll be taking my leave now.”
Kellive, however, didn’t seem to be listening.
The speed at which he flipped through the documents suggested he wouldn’t finish before the two minutes left until the end of work.
Sure enough, one minute before the end of the workday.
Kellive’s low voice posed a question.
“Anything special?”
Raves, clinging to the last thread of hope, answered rapidly.
“If you count, there’s a lot. For one, an intruder opened a portal and entered the royal palace, which is more eerie than special.”
“The ringleader?”
“That’s the strange part. Usually, there’s a main figure behind such big events, right?”
Raves gestured with his finger to flip through the document.
On the back was a list of names, places of origin, and brief descriptions of appearances.
Kellive’s gaze narrowed as he skimmed through it.
“Mercenaries.”
“Exactly. There are a few from Avalon, some from the already vanished Kingdom of Arca. It’s literally a mix with no rules or leader.”
“They even used a summoning circle.”
Kellive closed the document with a thud.
“Anything else?”
“Finally, a Count’s family in Britannia has naturally disappeared. An unexpected triumph, though it was a rather minor house.”
“Anything else?”
Tick-tock!
The second hand signaled the exact hour.
Raves, smiling faintly like the last leaf, looked at the clock passing the hour as if recalling distant memories and asked again.
“You’ll have to tell me what you want for both His Highness and me to work efficiently.”
“The magic stone flashed several times.”
The red magic stone in his room had flashed urgently multiple times.
It seemed someone had been taken down again.
Taking a step back, Kellive stared intently at the words written on the document.
“In Britannia… she finally received a title.”
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