Arthur, unable to believe the news, asked again, uncharacteristically.
“What did she pull out?”
“Excalibur. The holy sword.”
“Then…”
Seeing him at a loss for words, Raon awkwardly averted his gaze to the air. He remembered how devoted Arthur had been to Morgana.
Raon glanced at him subtly and hinted at the answer.
“She’ll become the King of Britannia now.”
Arthur had thought that becoming a knight would at least allow him to stand by her side.
But the radiant Morgana had now ascended to a position where everyone would look up to her.
“Ha…”
A sigh, whether of lament or sorrow, escaped him.
Arthur bowed his head, pressing his rough hands firmly against his eyes. When he finally raised his head after a moment of silence, his eyes held a glint unlike before.
A deep voice soon flowed from his lips.
“So, where is the lady now?”
💫
“You want to come to the Holy Kingdom…?”
Merlin, who had visited the temple by the lake to guide her, blinked in confusion.
Morgana, clutching the sword tightly, nodded solemnly.
“Yes. It’s a neutral territory, and as you can see, my situation is a bit…”
She smiled brightly and subtly turned her head to glance behind her.
Kellive, openly smirking, nodded with a smile.
“Since you’re from an Avalonian family, you should naturally come to Avalon.”
Not to be outdone, Guinevere, who was preparing to return with her escort knights, shouted toward Merlin.
“Britannia has also granted Morgana a title, High Priest!”
Morgana watched the scene with a smile, then turned her gaze back to Merlin.
“As you can see, given these circumstances, I was hoping to stay at the temple temporarily.”
“Ah, I see. There’s quite a backstory here.”
Despite the sudden request, Merlin showed no sign of annoyance and remained kind.
In fact, he even extended a hand toward the exit, taking it upon himself to guide her.
“Don’t worry. The Holy Kingdom welcomes all who come.”
“Wow, what a relief!”
Excalibur, following Morgana’s lead, chimed in with an excited voice.
— Great! Now that I’ve been freed, they should throw a grand feast in my honor!
Ignoring the sword’s shameless remark, Morgana smiled brightly as if she hadn’t heard anything.
‘Yes, whether it’s reinserting the sword into the stone or transferring it to Arthur, I would find a way.’
If all else failed, she was even prepared to plaster it back into the stone. But her joy at finally having a place to go was short-lived.
As she pondered Merlin’s words, her eyes flickered with unease. She paused, watching Merlin’s elegant figure as he prepared to guide her to the temple with the priest.
“Um, does the Holy Kingdom really not stop anyone from coming?”
“Yes, that’s right. As a neutral territory, anyone can come to Coventina, regardless of origin or status.”
A chill ran down Morgana’s spine.
From behind her, she heard Guinevere giving orders to the escort knights who had accompanied her from Britannia.
“If Morgana wishes it, there’s nothing we can do. Let’s return to Britannia immediately and prepare to head to the temple!”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Guinevere, having already made her decision, showed no hesitation.
Kellive, who had been standing by as if waiting for a decision, also pointed out the window with one hand and smirked.
“Shall we go together? I brought a spacious and comfortable carriage for the journey back.”
Morgana naturally followed his gesture with her gaze.
A carriage, adorned with intricate carvings and patterns, stood out conspicuously against the modest backdrop of the temple.
The carriage was so massive that it could easily fit five people, like Sir Caradoc.
Kellive, as if it were an everyday occurrence, casually added an explanation.
“You once mentioned you liked pretty things. I’m confident it’s at least prettier than Britannia’s carriages.”
— This guy knows his things.
At the very least, he seemed to have won over Excalibur.
Guinevere, who had arrived in a plain royal carriage, sharpened her gaze at this unexpected appeal. She trembled with frustration and gritted her teeth.
“Morgana, Britannia can do that much too. I’ll bring you to the temple, just wait!”
While they were burning with determination, Merlin simply offered a welcoming greeting.
“You’ve come at a good time. The Holy Kingdom’s festival is in a few days. We might as well hold a banquet to celebrate the new wielder of the holy sword.”
— What a perfect place to show off my magnificence!
Right…
Since everyone except her seemed excited, Morgana could only smile.
💫
The Coventina Temple, surrounded by the sacred Caledon Forest.
Sturdy white walls enclosed the vast lands of the Holy Kingdom.
Morgana followed behind Priest Asen, who was guiding her, while glancing around.
Every part of the temple was awe-inspiring. Shallow water, ankle-deep, flowed across the land except for the paths people walked on.
It felt as if roads had been laid over the water. It was hard to believe this temple was in the middle of a forest.
Priest Asen guided her to her quarters while offering friendly explanations.
“Long ago, it’s said that Goddess Coventina created the first lake right here, where the Holy Kingdom now stands.”
Meanwhile, Excalibur, the holy sword, seemed more interested in the banquet than the temple’s scenery.
— We’ll gather people from all over the continent. Then, my wielder will lift me high in the center, and when they see my flawless blade, they’ll all faint in awe!
Morgana felt like fainting for a different reason. His words felt all too real, given that it wasn’t an impossible scenario.
News of Morgana staying at the temple and hosting a banquet seemed to have spread quickly.
Some nobles from various countries had already arrived at the Holy Kingdom.
Priest Asen smiled awkwardly as he observed the temple bustling with more guests than priests.
“This is the first time we’ve welcomed such a large number of guests.”
Morgana glanced at the endless stream of carriages from various nations crowding the central path of the garden.
“The day after the banquet is the temple festival, so it feels like even more people are coming.”
Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice overlapped with hers.
It was a shout that didn’t fit the peaceful atmosphere of the temple.
“Is this how you treat a patient?!”
Turning her head toward the noise, she saw a group of priests huddled together nearby.
Priest Asen, looking flustered, grabbed one of the murmuring priests and asked,
“Lianon, what’s going on?”
“Well, an injured man barged into the temple and demanded treatment. He doesn’t even have the money but insists we provide a priest.”
“That’s strange.”
Everyone on the continent knew that a priest’s healing services were expensive.
Even Arthur had to consistently go on subjugation missions to pay for Sir Hector’s treatment fees.
‘It’s not like demanding it will make it happen…?’
As she subtly turned her head, she noticed a man lying on the ground behind the gathered priests.
He was stubbornly arguing, even willing to physically fight the priests.
“I need to enter the forest right now! Send out a priest!”
The man’s voice was fierce, but there was a hint of desperation in it.
The man’s desperate plea was so pitiful that it made anyone listening wonder if there was a deeper story behind it.
Because of this, even the priests seemed hesitant to outright dismiss him.
Meanwhile, Excalibur, completely out of sync with the situation, started causing a commotion.
— Master, now’s the time! We’ll use the mighty power of Excalibur to defeat these priests who are tormenting this poor man!
“What do you mean ‘defeat’ in a temple?!”
‘You’re a holy sword, for crying out loud!’
Before Morgana could stop him, her hand holding Excalibur shot upward.
— Excalibur is here! Make way!
Amidst a crowd of priests in their robes, a lone outsider suddenly standing with a massive sword drew everyone’s attention.
The priests, who had been focused on the man, turned around and stared at Excalibur.
Morgana, caught in the unintended attention, quietly bowed her head. The only thing she could do was cover her eyes in embarrassment.
The man, who had been crying out, also seemed stunned, his mouth agape as he stared at the sword.
Excalibur, satisfied with the attention, spoke proudly.
— Everyone’s mesmerized by my blade, huh?
To be fair, even if it were just a regular wooden stick, waving it around like that would have drawn stares.
Morgana, under the weight of everyone’s gaze, forced a bright smile.
“I’m so sorry! My arm just felt heavy! Haha, this darn sword doesn’t even have a scabbard, so I can’t even carry it on my waist!”
Perhaps snapping out of it thanks to Morgana’s apology, the man grabbed the priest’s ankle again.
“Just my leg, please heal just my leg…!”
“Ugh, really. We can’t just skip the line and treat you out of order!”
At the priest’s exasperated tone, the man collapsed to the ground, sobbing.
“But… my daughter went into the mountains! She hasn’t been sleeping well for days, and her condition has been strange…!”
He clung stubbornly to the priest, dragging his injured leg.
“If I don’t go, she might die!”
Morgana, who had been about to walk away, paused.
The way he described the situation reminded her of a curse. She had been wondering who was behind the curses for a while now.
‘Even Merlin seemed completely clueless before…’
At first, she thought King Vortigern was targeting Guinevere. But since he was also cursed, the purpose now felt unclear.
Was the curse targeting all of Britannia?
‘…What if they target me next, now that I’ve pulled Excalibur? Everyone believes I’ll become the King of Britannia!’
This is exactly why I didn’t want to pull the sword!
At the very least, she needed to know who was behind it and what their goal was.
Swallowing her tears, Morgana peeked her head out from among the priests and subtly waved the sword.
“Excuse me, if the issue is the payment, could I cover the treatment cost instead?”
Perhaps it was because Excalibur kept waving in front of them. The priests, who had been frowning moments ago, now stumbled over their words in surprise.
“Ah, well…”
The priests exchanged glances and tightly shut their mouths.
The temple garden was filled only with the sound of the man’s sobbing.
From behind, a delicate but firm voice spoke up, rejecting the offer.
“Lady Morgana, the temple has its own rules.”
Morgana turned around to see Merlin walking toward her with a smile.
Soft, violet hair fluttered in the wind, blending with the white high priest robes to create a sacred aura. He was the very image of a high priest, even his gentle voice fitting the part.
“The priests with divine power have scheduled appointments. If we allow interruptions like this, who will follow the rules in the future?”
In short, she was saying that there were already scheduled appointments, and cutting in line wasn’t allowed.
But couldn’t they use a different method of healing that didn’t require divine power?
Morgana clapped her hands together cheerfully.
“Perfect! Then I’ll heal him myself.”
The moment she mentioned healing, the man’s head shot up. He stared at her with desperate, tear-filled eyes.
Meeting his gaze, Morgana subtly nodded.
“You said the temple is open to anyone, right? This way, we can still follow the rules, so it’s fine, isn’t it?”
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