"As for the eligibility criteria, rest assured that I'll take care of everything for you."
Morgan lightly tapped the table with her index finger and looked at Arthur. "So, what's your answer?"
"Let me be clear from the start: you only have one chance. If you refuse, I won't invite you a second time. Likewise, I'll give this to someone more suitable." Morgan shook the bottle in her hand. A kind of crystalline glow emanated from the seemingly transparent vial, as if it contained some form of magic, involuntarily drawing Arthur's gaze to it.
Morgan knew that the guy in front of her was a bit strange and had a habit of saying things like "But I refuse" when others were full of confidence—something that made people want to punch him. So she warned him in advance.
"Wouldn't that be considered betrayal…?" Arthur suddenly asked. "I'm from the Land of Shadows. Wouldn't it be a bit inappropriate for me to join the Round Table?"
"There's nothing inappropriate about it," Morgan said, waving her hand. "I'm not asking you to steal information from the Land of Shadows. I just want you to join the Knights of the Round Table and hone your abilities."
Arthur couldn't help but let out a wry smile.
"To hone my abilities…" Not even Morgan herself would believe such a statement.
Arthur's gaze returned to the small bottle in front of him.
She's really trying to tempt me with something like this.
Morgan, you're seriously underestimating me!
How could a mere bottle of mysterious liquid—one that seemingly surpasses even the essence of the Black Dragon—possibly tempt me?
Such temptation is simply… impossible to resist.
Seeing Arthur still hesitating, Morgan turned to Artoria beside him and smiled. "Could you step outside for a moment? I'd like to speak with Arthur alone."
Artoria cast Arthur an uneasy glance, but still nodded and left the palace.
Watching Artoria's figure disappear, Morgan beckoned to Arthur. "Come, sit here."
She gestured for Arthur to sit on the throne beside her.
Arthur hesitated for a moment, but didn't step forward.
"You should know that I could easily place a geis on you if I wanted, right? If I'd wanted to kill you, you'd have been dead four years ago," Morgan said with a smile.
"Don't worry. I won't lay a finger on you unless it's something extremely serious… After all, I don't want to offend that woman either."
Arthur's eyelid twitched slightly.
That's true… If Morgan wanted to kill him, she could have done so long ago.
Morgan reached out and touched his face, smiling as she spoke. "Besides, I wouldn't want to hurt you either. After taking care of you for so long, who would want to harm you?"
"You should be relieved now, shouldn't you?" Morgan continued, looking at Arthur seated beside her.
Arthur shook his head. "I don't feel at ease."
Morgan was instantly left speechless and sighed.
If Scáthach had grabbed him and taken him home earlier, it would have saved her a lot of trouble back then.
Morgan quickly shook her head, no longer dwelling on such thoughts, and went straight to the point. "What's your decision?"
"Will you join the Knights of the Round Table? Or will you refuse my request?" Morgan asked, fixing her gaze on Arthur as she finished speaking. Her smile faded considerably, and an odd sense of pressure radiated from her.
Arthur hesitated for a moment, but still didn't answer.
He wasn't sure whether he should accept the offer. Although it sounded good—becoming a Knight of the Round Table and receiving an unknown liquid from Morgan to enhance his body—
But—
It was true that a small portion of the Knights of the Round Table were Morgan's men… yet most of those knights were double agents, and very few truly obeyed Morgan.
That wasn't an exaggeration; it was the plain truth.
Once he joined the Knights of the Round Table, Morgan would likely assign him a task and then reveal which of the current members were truly loyal to her. At that point, Arthur would become the lone tragic figure serving the organization wholeheartedly. If he had a codename, it would probably be "Gin."
"You and my sister have a good relationship, don't you?" Morgan suddenly asked, looking at the hesitant Arthur.
Arthur was startled, unable to grasp what Morgan was getting at.
"If you were a Knight, you could help her immediately if she were ever in danger, right?" Morgan said with a smile. "Would you like to think about it a little more?"
---xXx---
Morgan was in a very good mood now.
Thinking it over, she realized that if Arthur were to pull the sword from the stone in the future, all she would need to do was allow Arthur to marry her. In that case, she would have a handsome husband and could control Britain, while Arthur would have her as his wife and wouldn't need to do anything at all. He could simply stay in the palace and enjoy life. Her sister could continue living her wonderful life.
As for the Saxons, there was no need to worry. If she became queen, she was confident she could wipe them out.
She didn't care much about things like marriage.
But she did like Arthur quite a bit. Although he seemed to have a bit of a teacher complex, that could be corrected with some effort.
If he truly liked his mentor, then after teaching him for so many years, she could be considered half a mentor herself, right?
In short, according to the plan, all she needed to do was make him stronger and then have him pull the sword from the stone. Before that, all she needed to do was wait and… make Arthur rely on her more.
In fact, she had other ways to ascend the throne, but this was the best one for now: have him join the Knights of the Round Table, pull the sword from the stone, and then marry her… She preferred this approach.
It wasn't just that she had feelings for that child, but also… the sensation of conquering a man who was already engaged was surprisingly thrilling.
As Morgan finished thinking, a satisfied smile curved her lips.
She was growing more and more eager for that day.
---xXx---
"What did my older sister say to you?" Artoria asked.
"It was a matter of persuasion," Arthur thought for a moment. "But Sister Morgan said I don't need to join the Knights of the Round Table right now. She said I'm not qualified yet and need to wait until I reach a certain level of strength. Even if I joined now, I'd start as nothing more than a knight apprentice."
"So you agreed?" Artoria asked.
Arthur shook his head. "I didn't agree. I just said I needed more time to think about it. In any case, she's not waiting for my answer right now."
"Is that so…?" Artoria lowered her head, a thoughtful expression on her face.
(End of the chapter)