Fate: The Forged Arthur Pendragon

Inside a Norman-style castle room.

Suya looked at Lucan, who stood under the archway, then at Merlin on the other side, feeling somewhat confused.

"Let's hear what nonsense he has to say first."

Merlin calmly stated, "Don't worry, if necessary, we can kill him in an instant."

At this moment,

Lucan pushed open the wooden door beneath the arched ceiling and entered the room. He neither agreed nor disagreed with Merlin's words, merely smiling at the two of them. "Then, allow me to introduce myself first—"

"My name is Lucan."

"A thief with a title."

However, Merlin scoffed at his words, "Is that really your name?"

"Without a doubt."

Merlin questioned, "Then how many names have you had?"

Lucan spread his hands. "Miss Merlin, do you ask yourself how many loaves of bread you've eaten?"

Meanwhile, Suya was surprised to hear that name.

Lucan.

This name wasn't particularly prominent, and there weren't many glorious battles or achievements attributed to it in legends. However, the owner of this name was a genuine Knight of the Round Table.

He was Sir Bedivere's elder brother and Sir Griflet's cousin in the Arthurian legends, King Arthur's royal butler and chief cook. He was one of the last two knights to accompany King Arthur during the Battle of Camlann, and he was a figure who remained loyal to King Arthur from beginning to end.

That's right,

Compared to Merlin, who had suddenly appeared and seized the position of royal butler, this person was likely the true royal butler and royal chef!

And now,

The Lucan appearing before Suya was an experienced con artist with who-knew-how-many identities.

Damn it, what was wrong with the Knights of the Round Table in this world?

Thinking this, Suya couldn't help but look up at him and ask,

"Can you cook?"

This sudden question stumped Lucan. He paused for half a second before recovering. "I'm not good at cooking, but if you need one, I can introduce you to a chef once we reach the capital."

Suya realized his question was a bit out of place and immediately focused on Lucan, getting back to the point.

"Why aren't you still using the 'Ector' identity?"

"Why did you come to us now and reveal your identity?"

"Compared to 'Lucan,' wouldn't the 'Ector' identity be more convenient for you to escape your predicament?"

Hearing this, Merlin also turned her head to look at Lucan.

She thought the same, and both she and Suya needed Lucan to continue using the 'Ector' persona and its reputation to act.

Lucan shook his head.

"The real Ector died before King Uther and his body was left on the battlefield. This news will spread quickly, and my knights can roughly guess that I'm not the real Ector."

"The day King Uther was captured was too chaotic, and I inadvertently left too many flaws."

"So I have to cut ties with this identity before the news spreads, but I have nowhere to go now, which is why I came to you."

"Once this news spreads, Seleucus will realize he's been deceived by me, but Seleucus himself probably won't do anything. However, his subordinate Hector will definitely seek revenge—"

Lucan paused here, then looked at Suya with a half-amused expression.

"You took his Regalia, didn't you?"

"I've heard that Hector has always been looking for Regalia. In order to surpass Seleucus and gain authority over the army, he's eager to become a hero, even the weakest kind."

"And your Regalia was formed with his deeds involved, which means something different to him than an ordinary Regalia."

Hearing this, Suya remembered Merlin mentioning that becoming a hero required 'deeds.'

Could this be why the enemy was madly gathering so many cavalry to chase after him?

Merlin frowned and asked, "So, now that Ector is dead, we can't rally the scattered troops under Ector's name."

As she said this, Merlin looked at Suya, about to say something.

But then Lucan suddenly spoke up, interjecting, "You want him to rally the scattered troops in the name of the new king?"

"I advise you not to even think about it."

Merlin, having been hit where it stung, immediately retorted, "Why can't Suya become king?"

Lucan sighed and said, "You are from the land of fairies. You don't understand Britannia, much less the upper echelons of the various British kingdoms."

"No one will acknowledge his identity. The people who could help him ascend—King Uther, Archmage Merlin, Sir Ector—are all gone. Using this identity means death; everyone will want him dead, both allies and enemies."

Merlin frowned, "Just temporarily replacing him, using this identity to protect us until we reach the capital, even if he can't succeed, is that not allowed?"

"No," Lucan asserted decisively.

"Leaving aside the possibility of Hector's retaliation at any moment,"

"Seleucus will definitely report his information to the King of Conquerors, and the King of Conquerors will likely immediately begin a large-scale arrest of Arthur Pendragon, who has stirred up so much trouble here."

"Why is that?"

"Because she's lustful."

Merlin wasn't surprised by this conclusion and continued to frown, asking,

"So?"

"So, playing house like this will lead us to a dead end. Now is not the time for knightly games. We must raise a new banner, disperse, and then escape this meat grinder battlefield under another identity!"

Suya vaguely felt an unease directly aimed at himself. He immediately looked at Lucan and asked in a low voice,

"What identity?"

"You cannot be king, but you can use the identity of Sir Ector's second son. This identity is enough for us to continue operating under Sir Ector's banner."

Hearing this, Suya didn't immediately react, but Merlin, beside him, suddenly frowned and asked,

"What about the cavalry outside who already know his identity as king and have even pledged allegiance to him?"

"..."

Lucan fell silent, closing his eyes in thought for a moment. He turned his head to look at the yellow spear, Unfading Glass Fire, placed in the corner of the room, a dangerous glint flashing in his eyes.

He looked at Merlin and Suya and asked,

"We're not good people, are we?"

Merlin was silent for a moment, then nodded.

The three of them: a murderer, a con artist, a bandit, gambler, and magician.

Logically, at this moment, it should indeed be time to cut ties decisively...

And then,

Lucan finally revealed the true purpose of his sudden visit tonight. He took a deep breath and looked at Merlin, his voice cold.

"We can only... deal with them. You and I, working together, are enough to kill all those knights who pledged allegiance to this kid and completely seal off this news. That way, no fourth person will know he might be king."

Suya listened to the two of them talking as if he were merchandise, completely excluded from the conversation.

The more he listened, the more unsettling it became.

The good news was that he apparently wouldn't, and couldn't, become the king of this country.

The bad news was,

The soldiers who had just pledged allegiance to him outside might all be wiped out by these two 'Sleeping Dragons and Phoenixes' beside him, all because of him.

So, what next?

Suya knew his role was limited to the identity he was assuming, or rather, these two identities—

One, a kingdom heir, with a bandit, gambler, beautiful girl coveting the wealth this identity might bring.

The other, a knight's second son, with a loose-lipped con artist coveting the protection this identity could offer, or perhaps more.

And these roles had an expiration date.

The roles would expire only when their temporarily formed team reached the capital they spoke of.

Perhaps Merlin would still need him for a card game, but that would be the extent of it.

Once his usefulness was completely squeezed out,

In this small team where no one was a good person,

To prevent the leakage of their respective secrets,

Who would be the next to be mercilessly eliminated?

The hot summer draft blew in from outside,

But at that moment, Suya shivered violently, his mind forced to work at a frantic pace.