Morgan: I Miss My Sister

You took someone's throne, and now you expect them to congratulate you?

What nerve!

Killing someone wasn't enough; you had to twist the knife.

Morgan wholeheartedly supported Leon's approach.

Years ago, ever since she learned of the mission Artoria had been born to fulfill, she had never thought highly of her half-sister.

She was the one who should have been Lord of the Island, the one born to have everything. Yet Artoria, born after her, had taken it all away. The very meaning of her coming into the world, all the effort and hard work she had put in—it had all been denied.

From then on, Morgan knew she hated Artoria.

But before she could actually scheme to seize Britain, she heard that a man named Leon had drawn the Sword in the Stone and taken Artoria's throne.

She also learned that this Lion King wanted to marry her!

Morgan knew her chance had come. She agreed to marry the Lion King and planned to use him to achieve her goal: reclaiming the Britain that belonged to her.

The Lion King was no fool. After meeting her only once, he saw through the dark schemes in her heart. And his strength far exceeded her expectations. In a single exchange, he defeated even the Vile King, whom she herself had to treat with caution.

Even so, she would never give up on her dream.

Fortunately, although the Lion King was powerful, he was at the age when young men first fell in love. Her beauty had already captivated him, and he had successfully fallen under her spell.

Her goal had never changed: use Leon's power to eliminate the Red Dragon and the White Dragon.

Now Leon wanted to suppress Artoria, and Morgan wholeheartedly approved. She couldn't have been happier.

She told Leon everything she knew about Artoria, and he didn't disappoint her. The very next day, he went to see Merlin.

"Merlin, have a seat."

Merlin watched Leon pour him a cup of honey water himself, and unease stirred in his heart.

When someone offered kindness for no reason, they usually had an ulterior motive.

"Your Majesty, is there something you need me to do?"

Leon smiled. "It's nothing major. Since returning to court, Morgan has sorely missed her sister, whom she hasn't seen in years. I thought I'd grant her wish and have Artoria come to court to see her. The sisters can catch up, and she can attend my coronation while she's here."

At Leon's words, Merlin's expression faltered. He nearly failed to keep a straight face.

Morgan? Miss her sister?

How could he say something so blatantly untrue with a straight face?

Merlin knew all about the history between Morgan and Artoria. Hearing Leon say this sent a storm of sarcastic remarks swirling through his mind.

But looking at Leon's utterly serious expression, Merlin forced the words back down.

Morgan didn't miss her sister at all. It was clearly Leon who didn't trust Artoria, the former heir to the throne. If she entered the royal city, she might never be allowed to leave; he would keep her under watch.

And he was inviting her to the coronation, too. It was a way to twist the knife—a deliberate humiliation.

But Merlin could tell Leon wasn't asking for his opinion. He was informing him.

Given Leon's domineering nature, a flat refusal would only make things worse.

"I can bring Artoria to see you, but you'll have to agree to one condition."

"Go ahead."

"I want you to guarantee Artoria's safety."

Leon considered it briefly, then agreed. "As long as she doesn't oppose me, I'll ensure she lives out her life in peace."

Merlin sighed and nodded helplessly. He couldn't beat Leon, and he couldn't escape him. There was nothing else he could do.

Perhaps this really was to be Artoria's ultimate fate.

With their business concluded, Merlin downed the honey water. Just before leaving, he suddenly asked Leon, "Your Majesty, there's something I don't understand. Please forgive my impertinence. I thought I'd done a good job of keeping Artoria's identity hidden. Only a handful of people in the world know who she is. How did you recognize her when we first met?"

"Take a guess."

Merlin gave a bitter smile, then took his leave.

Watching Merlin go, Leon certainly couldn't tell him that he'd known all along in his previous life.

Leon considered himself an upright and honest man, but this was one thing he would never tell anyone.

No matter who they were.

Merlin didn't brush Leon off, either. After leaving the palace, he sent word to Artoria's foster father, Ector, and asked him to bring her to the royal city.

With a jumble of thoughts on his mind, Merlin went to find Luther, who was making preparations for the coronation.

He wanted to find out about Leon's past.

Luther treated Merlin, the renowned grand mage, with great respect. After all, Merlin had spent many years persevering for the sake of the country.

But when Luther heard that Merlin wanted to dig into Leon's past, he spread his hands.

"I don't know."

"Don't worry, I won't do anything to the Lion King. I just think he's rather extreme. I want to know what happened to him in the past, so I can avoid offending him without realizing it."

Hearing Merlin put it that way, Luther also felt that Leon had become much more arrogant since ascending the throne.

Before becoming king, Leon had already been so brazen that he acted as if Jesus was second-in-command to him. But he hadn't been quite so overbearing back then.

Could the throne really have such a huge effect on someone's character?

Or had he become so dismissive of everyone after sweeping across Britain and discovering that he was invincible?

After thinking for a while, Luther nodded and said, "I still don't know."

He hadn't forgotten Merlin's political associations.

Strictly speaking, Merlin was a remnant of the previous dynasty. Leon had been magnanimous enough to let bygones be bygones and had even continued to employ him, bringing him along on campaigns. Luther could see exactly what that meant.

Leon's wariness of Merlin was plain as day.

Luther had heard his son mention Merlin and Arthur. Putting himself in their shoes, if someone took Leon's throne, he'd probably grab a sword and fight them to the death.

Yet Merlin had reacted so calmly and accepted it so easily... Thinking of this, Luther became even more wary of him.

Seeing that Luther still wasn't willing to answer, Merlin knew there was no point in pressing him. He wouldn't get any answers.

Even if he went to ask the Lion King's older brother, he would probably get the same response.

Sigh, they still kept their distance from him.

Merlin took his leave, his figure carrying a hint of loneliness.

Watching Merlin walk away, Luther called after him loudly, "By the way, don't forget to prepare a gift for my king's coronation. He's looking forward to your surprise."

Merlin paused. Almost imperceptibly, he nodded, then left.

It really was an order from Leon.

Leon was about to officially become king. On a day of such universal celebration, it was better to share the joy than to keep it to himself. He wanted to share his happiness with all his ministers, so they could experience it too.

So he issued a decree: every minister had to present a gift. The gift's value didn't matter, but it had to be thoughtful and exquisite.

Leon specifically pointed out that the ministers weren't the only ones expected to share in the celebration. People in every region were to join in as well. The people of each region could contribute together as a group; one gift per region was enough.

At the end of the decree, Leon added one final, especially brief sentence—

Disobey, and you die!