Merlin

Merlin, King Arthur's court magician and a trusted senior minister since Uther's reign, still held a position of crucial importance in the Arthurian dynasty.

Though he was not a Knight of the Round Table, he could attend their meetings and was effectively counted among the Knights of the Round Table as their magical adviser.

If Sir Kay, King Arthur's foster brother, was the chancellor of the court; Sir Bedivere was the king's steward; and Lancelot was the foremost knight of the Knights of the Round Table—if those three possessed unrivaled power in King Arthur's court and could join forces to strip Arthur of his authority—then Merlin had no need to do so, because he could "command" King Arthur.

When Merlin declared that a matter concerned magic and prophecy, as the only magician among the Knights of the Round Table, he possessed supreme authority.

Having witnessed countless prophecies made by Merlin come true throughout history, even the most stubborn people had no choice but to admit that the great magician truly had ability and acknowledge his authority in this field.

Even if Merlin spouted nonsense and called it a prophecy, no one could prove it true, nor could anyone prove it false. It was best to treat it as true.

Accompanied by Sir Bedivere, King Arthur arrived in a vast hall. An enormous round table capable of seating over a hundred people stood at its center. The torches placed throughout the hall ignited the instant Arthur entered, casting bright light everywhere.

This was where the Knights of the Round Table held their Round Table Council. Compared with the hall's former crowds, it was now so empty that only two or three people remained.

"Fate has changed, Your Majesty!"

Merlin sat in his own seat, not far from the round table yet somewhat apart from it. Touching a crystal ball, he delivered his prophecy as King Arthur entered the hall.

"Changed? Whose fate has changed?" King Arthur asked.

"Prince Gawain's," Merlin replied. "If I am not mistaken, Your Majesty originally intended to grant Gawain the title of Prince of Camelot and knight him as a Knight of the Round Table."

"Nothing escapes you. I had originally planned to announce, on this Christmas Eve and before the Knights of the Round Table and lords from every land, that Gawain was my heir. But Gawain's words changed my mind."

King Arthur sat in his own seat and met Merlin's gaze. Bedivere stood silently to one side, while several highly ranked Knights of the Round Table nearby remained alert, watching the surroundings.

"Gawain does not possess the talent or bearing of a king. I only understood that after speaking with him. My nephew Gawain is merely a spoiled young noble. As his uncle, I could leave him all my possessions. But as king, I cannot entrust the kingdom to him simply because of my feelings. I cannot imagine whether, once he became king, he would truly be capable of wielding a sword on the battlefield, leading the Knights of the Round Table to victory, and protecting his people."

"Your Majesty, you have no heir. The kingdom must ultimately pass to someone, and you have only this one nephew. As for Sir Mordred, you should understand that he will never be accepted by the Knights of the Round Table or the Church. A kingdom without an heir is a cursed kingdom. Such a kingdom has no future."

Sir Bedivere could not help speaking up. He supported neither Sir Mordred nor Prince Gawain. The one to whom he had always been loyal was his sovereign, King Arthur.

Yet this great sovereign had not fathered a prince with Queen Guinevere, so the right of succession had no choice but to fall upon the other children of the late King Uther.

Since King Uther had only one son, Arthur, and three daughters, while the princesses themselves could not inherit the throne, their children could.

Whether King Arthur wished it or acknowledged it, the first heir to his throne had always been one person only: Gawain, the son of his sister and his own nephew.

It was only natural that he would be unwilling to accept having no son of his own.

In England's history, Henry VIII of the Tudor Dynasty had fretted over the matter of an heir throughout his life. During his reign, he married six queens, took countless lovers, and fathered many illegitimate children. Yet in the end, because he had no son, his line died out. The throne had no choice but to fall into the hands of a distant cousin, and the Tudor Dynasty was replaced by the Stuart Dynasty.

King Henry I of the Norman Dynasty had twenty-one illegitimate children. After the death of his only legitimate son, he could only pass the throne to his daughter and allow her son—his own grandson—to succeed him.

Illegitimate sons could conquer a throne, but they could not inherit one. This was an iron law of England's history.

Mordred was precisely the king's illegitimate son, yet on the political spectrum of royal succession, he was someone who did not exist.

"No, that is not the reason, Bedivere. You have seen Gawain with your own eyes. Can you name any of Gawain's strengths?"

Faced with this unexpected accusation, King Arthur felt uneasy. He could swear before God that he had never thought as Sir Bedivere claimed.

A shepherd's son could inherit his father's flock because it was the shepherd's private property. But a kingdom was a state formed by land and people; it was public property.

A holy king was not something that could be handed over at will. He was chosen by Heaven.

As a shepherd, King David could leave his flock to his son. But as a king, succession to the throne ultimately depended on God's will, and God had chosen King Solomon.

Therefore, even if he adopted Gawain and made him heir to the kingdom, it would be for the public good.

Gawain need not thank him for choosing him, because he should have been king in the first place. But if he was unfit for the throne, Arthur would not choose him as king, even if it earned him the resentment of his own kin.

"This fourteen-year-old prince from the Vikings is very handsome, like the sun itself, and greatly resembles Your Majesty."

Hearing the king's question, Bedivere froze for a moment before answering slowly.

Honesty was among a knight's virtues: honesty toward God, toward one's sovereign, toward friends, and toward others. As Arthur's court steward, Bedivere could not lie.

Precisely because he could not lie, even when trying to praise Gawain's strengths, he could only speak of his handsome appearance.

No one in the entire kingdom could rival Gawain's looks. Even King Arthur in his youth might have paled in comparison. The mere sight of him naturally made people feel fondness for him.

With such a handsome face and such an upright air, however one looked at him, he did not seem like a bad person but a born hero. At their first meeting, Arthur had even been glad that Gawain was his nephew.

But being handsome was merely praise for a person's appearance. Any parent would be delighted to hear others praise their child. Yet if that person was a prince, a Knight of the Round Table, and a king, then he was nothing but a handsome fool.

For even Sir Bedivere could find no merit in Gawain beyond his looks. Even when he wished to praise him, he could find no other words.

Letting such a Gawain inherit the throne would be a disaster not only for Camelot, but for Gawain himself.

Those whose talents did not match their position would suffer beneath its burden. Those whose virtue did not match their position would invite calamity.

If they wanted young Gawain to become king, he simply did not have the ability for it yet.

His exploits were fake, his reputation was exaggerated, and his courage did not exist at all. He did not even possess the skill to wield a sword in battle.

"I believe that even without wealth, noble blood, or an illustrious background, a brave and capable person will still earn the respect of the world and gain prestige. Yet even if someone's home is piled high with money and he is born into royalty, if he lacks courage, then as a coward he will still be despised by others."

"Your Majesty, the rarest quality in a person is self-awareness: knowing what one can do and what one cannot. Anyone with such self-knowledge can at least be called clever. Since Prince Gawain can tell such wonderful stories, it seems he possesses the talent of a bard. Then perhaps he should govern the country."

"A man too timid to take risks, afraid of hardship, unwilling to hone his martial skills, who merely invents stories and wishes to inherit the throne—who lives at ease, leaves such matters to others, and dares do nothing himself—even if he possesses all the knowledge in the world, it is of no use to him. If you place a bright lamp before a blind man, will it illuminate his darkness?"

King Arthur and Bedivere argued back and forth, each holding firmly to his own view. Yet Merlin could not help smiling at the sight. "Arthur, setting aside your role as king, what do you think of Gawain as his uncle?"

"Well... I like him very much. He is an honest, good child who is filial to his mother and values his family. But you understand, what I need is not merely a nephew. I need an heir to the throne, not a child," King Arthur said after a moment's hesitation.

"Arthur, I am not criticizing you. But you yourself admit that you are Gawain's uncle. Since you are his uncle, why do you not fulfill your responsibility?"

"My responsibility?"

"That is right. That responsibility is to educate him! You pity Gawain's misfortune and resent his failure to improve. You believe Gawain's parents failed to educate him properly, leaving him a spoiled young noble. Yet Gawain is your sister's child, and you wish to shape a suitable heir according to your own desires. Then you, Arthur—since you have that wish, you must bear the responsibility of making it a reality. You must educate Gawain yourself, teach him yourself how to become a knight and how to become a king."

Merlin looked at King Arthur's stunned expression. "In a sense, this is a duty you cannot shirk. It is the duty of becoming a father. An adoptive father is greater than a biological father because raising a child is more important than merely giving birth to one. If King Lot gave Gawain life, then you must give him a soul."

"But I do not have much time left!"

King Arthur let out a long sigh. Heaven's decree had descended, his destined time had come, and his reign was nearing its end.

The king who had once drawn Excalibur from the stone had already realized that the land of Camelot could no longer bear his weight.

What can be done? What can be done!

"Do people not now believe that I became Britain's High King purely through force?

"Perhaps that is what they think. Yes, force is necessary. A person utterly without strength cannot become a ruler, because this world is not Eden, nor is it Avalon. A king's sanctity lies in defending his country, protecting his people, and bringing peace to the realm.

"Can Gawain truly stand against the Saxons, fierce as wolves and tigers?"