Chapter 25: The Beginning of the Royal Capital -6-

Morning broke, and the inn's first-floor dining hall was lively and noisy from the early hour as the Servants gathered before departure.

The one who came trudging down the second-floor stairs last of all was Caenis, and she carried an atmosphere that was subtly different from usual.

Her nose was still tilted up stubbornly, and her sharp gaze was unchanged, but the faintly loosened droop of her shoulders, the soft flush lingering over her cheeks, and the traces of Arthur's mana faintly seeping from her whole body could not be hidden.

The first to notice that strange air around her was Nobunaga, who had been knocking back a mug of beer.

"Hoh..."

Nobunaga set down her mug, curled her lips into a grin, made an OK sign by touching her thumb and forefinger together with one hand, then repeatedly shoved the index finger of her other hand through the hole with a sticky, lewd smile.

"You, did you do that with the brat last night?"

"You crazy bitch, what the fuck are you babbling about first thing in the morning?!"

At Nobunaga's blatant finger gesture, Caenis's face turned red as a tomato and she lunged at her at once.

She grabbed Nobunaga by the collar and shook her back and forth like mad.

"N-no! Seriously, the smell's all over you! And on top of that, you've got this weird sexy glow about you, to the point that even I'd think you look like a woman worth fucking right now! Kahahaha!"

Even with her throat half-crushed and her body being rattled around, Nobunaga did not stop laughing boisterously.

"Shut up! I-I'm not in that kind of disgusting relationship with that brat! I just lost the match and got forced... aaagh, whatever! I'll kill you!"

Just as Caenis was furiously spitting out denials, a small hand lightly tapped her on the shoulder from behind.

When she turned, Artoria was standing there with a bright smile like an angel, having just walked out while yawning with a still-sleepy face.

"Welcome, Caenis. Welcome to the harem."

"Who the hell joined any harem?! No, more importantly, you!"

Caenis flung Nobunaga aside by the collar and turned to Artoria with an accusing glare.

"You're that guy's little sister, aren't you?! No, forget that—you said with your own mouth that you're the lover he cherishes most! Your brother's openly rolling around with someone else and cheating on you, and you're seriously in your right mind?!"

In any normal relationship, it would not have been strange if swords had already come out. But Artoria calmly pulled out a chair, sat down, sipped her tea, and let out a deep sigh.

"Of course I'm jealous. I want to keep my brother all to myself forever too."

Artoria's eyes lost focus slightly as she stared off into empty space.

"But... I just can't handle my brother by myself.... Especially physically. It feels like my bones will be crushed and my waist will snap, so I thoroughly realized the wall of reality and compromised. Since it's already come to this, if other people help carry some of the burden, then at least I get room to breathe."

Faced with that blunt truth born from physical limits, Caenis could only gape in disbelief.

Having personally experienced that monstrous stamina last night, she could not even think of a rebuttal.

"Fufufu... congratulations, little sea bird."

At that moment, Stheno floated lightly through the air and approached with a bewitching smile.

"As the most beautiful goddess, let me sincerely bless the fall of a fellow divine spirit who broke her arrogant pride and surrendered to pleasure. So? Was the taste of the tyrant sweet?"

"P-please, all of you, shut your mouths before I crack your skulls...!"

Caenis clutched her head and sank down as if a headache were crashing over her.

Watching the scene, Medea sipped her tea and muttered in fascination.

"I never thought that Caenis would fall head over heels for that young skirt-chaser overnight. To be honest, if anyone was going to be conquered first..."

Medea's gaze shifted toward the large Fairy Knight in the corner, who was blushing as she cut into her meat.

"I naturally thought it would be Barghest over there, the one who wags her tail like a dog in heat every chance she gets."

At Medea's mercilessly sharp remark, Barghest flinched so hard she nearly dropped and shattered her plate.

"Well, talking with your bodies is the most honest kind of conversation, isn't it? Between a man and a woman, there's such a thing as affection born from sex. The kind where someone looks hateful just by glancing at them, but once you mix bodies, you can't live without each other... guh!"

Nobunaga, who had been spewing crude old-man-like remarks, was finally smashed in the head by Caenis after her patience ran out and collapsed face-first onto the floor.

"You're all making enough noise to bring the whole inn down this early in the morning. Are there nothing but animals staying around here?"

Just then, the inn door swung open and Kay came in looking tired, grumbling as he entered.

Artoria narrowed her eyes and looked up at Kay reproachfully.

"You're one to talk, Brother Kay. Didn't you sneak out alone last night to flirt and fool around with the local women? Why don't you wipe off the kiss marks on the back of your neck before saying that?"

"...Ahem! Cough! A knight was merely out inspecting public sentiment!"

Kay gave an awkward cough like he'd been struck where it hurt and hurriedly covered the back of his neck, making Artoria click her tongue.

"In that respect, Brother Arthur and Brother Kay really aren't any different. They aren't even blood-related brothers, and yet somehow they're exactly alike when it comes to chasing women."

Amid the lively commotion, Arthur finally came down from the second floor after a full night's sleep and joined the group.

When he threw Caenis a wink with an easy smile, she reddened all the way to the tips of her ears and sharply turned her head away.

After the cheerful breakfast ended, the group quickly gathered their things and set out once more under the early morning sunlight.

Early that evening.

Just as the sunset began dyeing the sky red, the group arrived before the gates of a city surrounded by massive walls.

"Before going to North Wales, the proper order is to make contact first with the major countries inside Cornwall, your homeland. Even if your exploits happen in North Wales, you still need to build connections here in Cornwall for the political foundation that'll support you from behind."

From atop her horse, Merlin pointed ahead as she explained.

The place they had come to visit was Totnes, the center of trade in southwestern Cornwall.

And the towering stone fortress before their eyes was Nantes, the capital of Totnes, ruled by King Idris.

As befitted a nation that had amassed wealth through trade, its walls were high and sturdy, and its guard was strict as well.

But beyond merely being strict, the gates of Nantes were currently shut tight and locked altogether.

"Stop right there!! Don't come any closer!"

From atop the walls, the watchmen and gate soldiers shouted at the group with their bowstrings drawn.

It was understandable. Heroic Spirits radiating power enough to face an army alone had appeared fully armed, riding a giant black horse and a white horse, so at a glance they looked like no ordinary force.

After spotting them from afar, the city had barred its gates.

"Approaching the capital while armed—state your identities at once!"

At the gatekeeper's sharp cry, Arthur calmly dismounted and walked toward the gate.

"I come from Tintagel. My name is Arthur Pendragon. I am the legitimate heir of the late King Uther Pendragon, and the successor who will unite this Britain. I have come to meet King Idris, so open the gate."

Arthur's calm but weighty voice, laden with mana, rang against the walls. But the soldiers looked at one another, then quickly sneered.

"The heir of Pendragon? Ha! Do you think there are only one or two frauds running around these days claiming to be the heir? How dare you impersonate the name of Pendragon? Turn back at once, or we'll fire!"

When the soldiers leveled their weapons and refused to believe him, Arthur let out a long sigh and drew the [Sword of Selection], Caliburn, from his waist.

Fwaaash!

A brilliant golden radiance burst from Caliburn's blade, instantly tearing apart the dimness of dusk.

"Can you still not believe after seeing this sword? This is the [Sword of Selection] drawn from the stone."

The dazzling golden light made the soldiers flinch and murmur among themselves. But the captain of Nantes's guard forced his expression firm and shook his head.

"It certainly looks like an extraordinary holy sword, but do you think you can just wave around some weapon and insist it's the [Sword of Selection]? Do you take the guard of Nantes for so lax that we'd open the gate over a trick with such flimsy proof?"

At the soldiers' stubborn refusal to open the gate while doubting him to the end, Arthur smacked his lips.

In a way, it was only natural. It wasn't as if he had identification, and in an age like this, trusting him so easily would have been stranger.

"Haa... this is getting annoying. Political showmanship is all well and good, but if the gate's shut, we need to see the king's face first before any talking can happen, don't we?"

Arthur lightly rolled his shoulders and slid the golden sword Caliburn back into its sheath. Then he strode up to the huge wooden city gate reinforced with iron, sealed firmly shut.

"Brother? What are you planning to do?"

The moment Artoria asked in puzzlement—

Suuuuuck...

"H-hey! Don't tell me that guy's—!"

The captain on the wall had no time to finish shouting in horror.

"I'm breaking through first."

The muscles of Arthur's back drew taut, then snapped forward. His fist, packed with monstrous mana, slammed straight into the center of Nantes's tightly shut gate without mercy.

KWAAAAANG!!!!!

With a deafening roar like dozens of bombs exploding at once, the massive gate of Nantes—one that would not have budged even if dozens of strong men had rammed it with a log—crumpled like paper and shattered to pieces.

Huge wooden splinters and twisted chunks of iron tore through the streets inside the city, and the entire wall shook violently as if an earthquake had struck.

"Uwaaaaah!!"

"C-crazy! Th-the gate in one hit...!!"

Where the gate had stood, there was now a gaping hole the size of a house.

The soldiers on the walls and the residents beyond the opening dropped where they stood in utter shock, jaws hanging open.

Striding proudly into the city through the thick cloud of dust, lightly shaking out his fist, the boy king looked for all the world like a fearsome demon king incarnate.

At that absurdly brute-force method of breaking through, the reactions of the group behind him split sharply.

"No, what kind of lunatic comes to do diplomacy and build legitimacy, then smashes the gate of someone else's capital apart with his fist?!"

Kay cried out in horror, clutching his head, while Merlin and Medea also pressed hands to their foreheads and sighed in disbelief.

"I suppose I'll have to teach him the meaning of the word diplomacy again...."

Of course, deep down Merlin secretly thought Arthur looked cool.

But the beasts who had fallen completely for Arthur's uniquely overbearing violence reacted differently.

"Well, if they won't open the gate, then smash it down and go in. I like that~"

Caenis laughed in exhilaration and clenched her fist, while Penthesilea also nodded heavily with a satisfied smile.

"Mm. Obstacles that bar a king's procession should be crushed by force. That is the proper duty of a warrior. A splendid blow."

And so, with the grand original purpose of politics and networking nowhere to be seen, Arthur's fiery and brainless diplomatic campaign for the conquest of Britain began by punching a hole through the gate of Nantes with a single fist.

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