The Pendragon family dinner was going as lively as expected—
"Where. Did. This. Come. From?" The king asked; he simply had to know.
Cesealia, smirking, finally walked down and stood beside Arthur. "Well, Your Majesty," she said sweetly, "My grandmother has ginger hair. I did not think it stood a chance, but… here we are."
Gilgamesh looked at her. Then at Lizzie. Then, at Arthur.
Arthur exhaled deeply, mustering up courage, and finally came clean. pushing his plate away, and then turned to his mother. "Mother—" he started, taking Arthuria's hands in his, squeezing them gently. "I lost Excalibur, well, no, I-i… dropped it."
The room fell silent.
Arthur, trying not to panic, hurriedly continued, "I was hundreds of feet under the sea—so I dropped it. I'm sorry, Mother. I failed you," he quickly sped through.
Still silence.
Arthuria blinked slowly. Then simply said, "…Eh."
Gasps filled the room.
Arthur stared at her in disbelief. "You—You're not mad?"
Arthuria chuckled. "Good riddance…"
More gasps.
Arthur, now completely bewildered, "I—I don't follow! he stammered, I LOST OUR ANCESTRAL SWORD—THE SWORD OF KINGS, THE LEGENDARY EXCALIBUR! I LOST EXCALIBUR—!"
Arthuria casually sipped her husband's wine and said, "Oh, that? That was never the real Excalibur."
Arthur blinked. "What?"
She waved a hand dismissively. "The one you had was a fake. Just a mere holder to allow you to control Excalibur's true strength."
Arthur's soul left his body. "…Excuse me?"
Gilgamesh exhaled slowly. "Your mother asked me to make a replica using celestial steel, effective for you when came the time."
Arthuria smirked and casually dropped a bombshell, "Out of an oak tree, do you remember, gil?"
Arthur was mute, as he blinked frog-like, hundreds of feet under the sea. Holding a sword with sword made of a tree, that could be a cool storybook name.
Mental Dad note for later.
Arthur blinked. again, more sleazily this time—"…And the one I had is still?"
"Probably fish shit by now." The king said.
Gasps.
"GRANDPA SWORE!" Callisto pointed an accusing finger.
Rhyssand, smirking, said, "He did—swear jar—" he paused at the sight of his father-in-law glaring at him.
The king snapped a finger, and a servant brought out a solid gold brick and placed it in Callisto's hands.
"There."
The young heir beamed.
Arthur was still numb. He stared at his parents, then back at the table.
Arthuria sensed this was a conversation to be held in private. "Come with me."
Arthur sat in the gardens.
He followed his mother to where Excalibur used to be. She took his hand and placed it on the stone like an elevation. He reached into a portal and pulled out something shiny.
The REAL Excalibur.
Arthur's entire reality was shattered as Excalibur now rested across his lap.
He turned it over in his hands, running his fingers along the edge, the weight of it unchanged. But it didn't feel any different. And that was the problem. This was the real Excalibur, wasn't it? So why did it feel the same?
Arthuria sat beside him, silent at first. Then she finally said, "I wasn't honest with you before."
Arthur, still staring at the blade, exhaled deeply. "I knew it. I lost the real Excalibur, and this is the fake one, isn't it?"
His mother chuckled. "No, that's definitely Excalibur, sword of the settlers."
Arthur looked at her, brows furrowed. "Then… why does it feel the same?"
Arthuria leaned back against the stone bench, watching the wind rustle through the trees. Then she said, "Because Excalibur… was never a sword. Not truly."
Arthur froze over again.
"…Sorry, I am just so confused…" he managed. "You taught me my entire life how to prepare for the day I may one day wield it, if it is deemed strong enough to even hold it—"
"I did." She nodded. "I taught you how to be more than just a wielder, but to be a Holder."
Arthur's grip on the hilt tightened. "You keep saying holder. What does that mean?"
Arthuria looked at him with a gentle, knowing expression.
"Avalon."
Arthur's breath caught.
The stories she told him when he was a child about Avalon being the place where the sword was created. Where the first Pendragon was born.
She continued, "When a Holder is born, they are infused with a piece of Avalon. That is where the true power lies. Not the sword, not the steel—but the spirit, the essence of Avalon itself. The stories we tell of Excalibur being the 'Sword of Kings' are true in part, but only for those who understand its real nature."
Arthur's brow furrowed deeper. " Why didn't you tell me? "
"Because," Arthuria turned to him fully. "To wield such power, you must first decide what truly matters to you— power, the world, or your heart."
Silence hung between them.
Arthur's mind spun.
Everything he had been taught—everything he had believed—was turning into something far greater than he ever imagined.
Arthuria continued, "When I gave up my power when I made my vow, but the little that remained, I used it to make something you can believe in without committing to a lifetime of burdens and bloodshed because a sword told you to."
He finally understood what she was trying to say. She didn't want him to make the same mistakes she did for the sake of duty.
She wanted him to live the way he wanted to live. She wanted him to find his place in life to be Arthur Pendragon.
She pressed on, "I can't pass on my experience, but my discipline. That, you had to find on your own."
Arthur looked down at the sword—his sword.
He had spent his entire life believing this was his greatest weapon. But now he understood—he was the weapon. The blade was merely a reflection of the wielder, of the heart that guided it.
Arthuria placed a hand on his shoulder. "You are a father now, Arthur. A protector. And so, now, I tell you the truth. The real strength of our lineage… is not the sword. It's You
She smiled softly.
"Perhaps, Avalon will pass to Lizzie. Or to someone else. Who can say? But know this… You are a far greater Holder than I ever was. And for that… you have made me proud."
Arthur felt a lump rise in his throat.
For all the expectations placed upon him, for all the weight he had carried… hearing those words from his mother, from the strongest warrior he had ever known, meant more than anything.
He turned to her, eyes soft, and without hesitation, he embraced her.
"Thank you." His voice was thick with emotion. "For believing in me."
Arthuria held him for a moment before pulling back and flicking his forehead lightly.
"Of course, I believe in you," she said with a smirk. "You're my son."
Arthur chuckled and wiped at his eyes before looking back at Excalibur, its golden edge gleaming in the sunlight.