Chapter Summaries

Sovell, Kay, and Artoria returned to Saynor Manor after four days of peaceful travel, only to find the town in ruins. Kay rode ahead toward the manor to search for his father while Sovell gave him a protective bead and waited for Artoria.

• Sovell and Artoria said goodbye to Lancelot before sailing away with Kay and their horses.
• The group landed in the Lynn Region, built a carriage from the boat, and traveled toward Saynor Manor.
• Sovell and Kay saw that the town near the manor had been devastated, shocking both Kay and Artoria.
• Kay galloped toward Saynor Manor to look for his father, and Sovell gave him a bead that could create a Gale Barrier.
• Sovell stayed behind to wait for Artoria after Kay rode off.

Sovell and Artoria investigated the ruined settlement, while Kay escaped pursuing English soldiers with Joanie and was rescued by Sovell’s Dragon Roar. Kay confirmed that someone had taken over the manor, and Artoria broke down in grief as she worried about Sir Ector.

• Sovell examined the burned ruins and concluded that foreign soldiers from England had likely invaded the settlement.
• Sovell sensed that the Wind Pearl he had given Kay had shattered, and Artoria hurried with him toward Saynor Manor.
• Kay used the Wind Pearl’s barrier to flee the pursuing cavalry until Sovell’s Dragon Roar killed the pursuers.
• Sovell calmed Kay, and Artoria arrived before asking what had happened at the manor.
• Kay said someone else had taken over, and Artoria panicked about Sir Ector before Sovell reminded her about Caerleon.
• Artoria apologized to Kay, then buried her face in Sovell’s chest and sobbed over her lost home and uncertainty about Sir Ector.

Sovell, Artoria, and Kay agreed to head to Caerleon and raise an army, but Artoria led Sovell in wiping out a foreign soldiers’ camp along the way. After Artoria broke down over her fears for Ector and her doubts about becoming king, Sovell comforted her until she fell asleep.

• Sovell proposed traveling to Caerleon instead of taking a manor, and all three agreed to the plan.
• Sovell led the captured horses south with Kelpie as their herd leader, while Artoria vowed they would return to the ruined town.
• Artoria ordered Sovell to attack a foreign soldiers’ camp, and the two slaughtered its occupants before Sovell buried the bodies.
• Sovell gave Kay a map and a Large Wind Barrier Enchantment Bead before continuing with Artoria.
• Artoria questioned whether she could be a good king, blamed herself for not returning sooner to help Ector, and sobbed over his fate.
• Sovell carried Artoria to a tree, comforted her, and used sleep-inducing magecraft to help her fall asleep in his arms.

Artoria confided her doubts about becoming king to Sovell, who listened and helped her regain her spirits. As they traveled to meet Kay, Sovell realized that wherever Artoria was, he had found his home.

• Artoria woke beside Sovell in a tree and clung to his arm while they shared the cloak.
• Artoria explained that Britain faced invading peoples, dwindling magic, and a food crisis that would make ruling and defending the land difficult.
• Sovell listened as Artoria shared her worries, and his encouragement helped her recover her spirits.
• Artoria ordered Sovell to carry her on his back as they set off to meet Kay.
• As he carried Artoria through the treetops, Sovell reflected on places he had lived and realized that wherever Lia was, there was home.

Sovell found Kay and reunited with him and Artoria after traveling through the night. After teasing Artoria and getting punished, Sovell left her flustered, and she kissed him before fleeing into the tent.

• Sovell used the Thousand Winds to locate Kay and reached his campsite with Artoria before dawn.
• Sovell woke Artoria by smacking her backside, and she choked him until he apologized.
• Kay emerged from his tent and scolded Sovell and Artoria for making noise and flirting.
• Sovell reminded Artoria about the slap, leaving her embarrassed as she reflected on her feelings for him.
• Artoria called Sovell a rogue, turned his face toward her, kissed him, and fled into the tent.

After a tender moment left Sovell overheated, he and Artoria traveled with Kay to Caerleon. Before entering the city to meet Ector, they realized Artoria was still dressed as a girl, so Sovell gave her princely clothes and a chest binder; she emerged looking every inch the Crown Prince.

• Artoria left Sovell flustered, and the Kelpie cooled him with a burst of water before he combed its mane.
• Kay returned from the river, and the group resumed their journey after Artoria finished washing up.
• After traveling for two days and a night, Sovell stopped Kay and Artoria outside Caerleon when he noticed Artoria was wearing a skirt.
• Sovell gave Artoria a fine set of men's clothes, boots, and a silk-and-cotton chest binder to wear as the Crown Prince, Artoris.
• Artoria changed inside the carriage and emerged looking like a young prince returning from travels.

Sovell, Artoria, and Kay reached Caerleon and learned that Ector was alive and at the lord’s residence. After Captain John recognized Artoria as the prince, he escorted them there, where a middle-aged man came out to greet them.

• Kay showed Captain John Duke Ector’s insignia, and John confirmed Ector was in Caerleon attending to official business.
• Sovell revealed his identity as Merlin’s apprentice and introduced Artoria as Prince Arthur Pendragon, prompting John and the guards to kneel in greeting.
• John escorted Artoria, Kay, and Sovell through Caerleon to the lord’s residence.
• A middle-aged man hurried out of the lord’s residence and smiled delightedly when he saw Kay and Artoria.

After returning to Sir Ector’s manor, Sovell and his companions learned why Ector had abandoned the town and discovered that Barghest had been brought back by Merlin. Merlin then revealed that Tristan had survived and was in Ireland with the princess who rescued him.

• Sir Ector explained that he evacuated the manor and town to protect the soldiers and civilians, and Artoria understood his choice.
• Merlin arrived with Barghest, who pounced on Sovell and greeted him affectionately.
• Sovell confronted Merlin, who admitted he had disguised Barghest as an ordinary dog and used her to attract women.
• Merlin told Sovell, Artoria, and Kay that Tristan was alive after drifting to Ireland and being rescued by an Irish princess.
• Merlin used Clairvoyance to watch Tristan and the princess, but Sovell covered his eyes and told him to give them privacy.

Sovell trained his mana output, then went out early in the morning and found pastries he wanted to buy for Artoria. He left the shopkeeper stunned by declaring he would take all the gingerbread and Cheesecake.

• Sovell circulated mana through his body to strengthen his circuits and increase his instantaneous mana output.
• Merlin woke Sovell by entering his room, and Sovell left him behind when he went out into the courtyard.
• Sovell walked through Caerleon as the city began its morning routine and stopped at a pastry shop.
• Sovell sampled the pastries, praised their taste, and told the shopkeeper he would take all the gingerbread and Cheesecake.

Sovell tried meditating outside Artoria’s room, fell asleep, and was woken by her prank. He explained that his magic circuits had become more responsive after the White Dragon incident, while Merlin’s earlier investigation suggested the Holy Spear had developed its own consciousness from Sovell’s body and soul.

• Sovell entered the Lord’s Mansion and waited outside Artoria’s room with pastries he had bought for her.
• Sovell attempted seated meditation and fell asleep as his magical energy circulated through his magic circuits.
• Artoria woke Sovell by teasing him with foxtail grass, then slipped her cold hands inside his collar.
• Sovell restrained Artoria and warned that his magic circuits might treat her as a threat again.
• Sovell recalled that Merlin had attributed the Holy Spear’s consciousness to storm divinity formed when it merged with portions of Sovell’s body and soul during his unconsciousness.

Merlin explained how divinity from the Holy Spear was changing Sovell’s body and soul, then teased him with the possibility that he could ascend to godhood. Sovell refused to risk becoming a danger to Lia and the kingdom, but Merlin revealed that his calculations made that outcome impossible, prompting Sovell to punish his laughing teacher.

• Merlin told Sovell that the Holy Spear’s divinity was eroding his bodily and soul personalities, while his mind remained protected and could allow him to ascend to godhood.
• Sovell rejected godhood and offered the Holy Spear back to Merlin, fearing that its influence might harm Lia or the country.
• Merlin laughed at Sovell and explained that the divinity in his body and soul was insufficient to make him a god or turn him into the Holy Spear’s puppet.
• Sovell transformed, restrained Merlin with his mystic eyes, and punched him as Merlin begged him to stop.

Merlin revealed that Sovell’s divinity-tainted circuits were developing personalities, while the group planned Artoria’s coronation and chose her royal title. The chapter ended with Sovell proposing that she be known as the “King of Knights,” a radiant ruler worthy of every knight’s allegiance.

• Merlin explained that Sovell’s body, soul, and personality had been tainted by divinity, causing his circuits to develop personalities.
• Sovell gave Artoria pastries, and she ate dessert before joining the others for breakfast.
• Ector, Merlin, Sovell, Kay, and Artoria agreed to prepare for her coronation in two or three years while keeping her out of public view until then.
• Artoria proposed inheriting Uther’s title of “Great Dragonhead,” but Merlin and Sovell argued that it was too limited to Wales and too dependent on Uther’s legacy.
• Sovell proposed the title “King of Knights” and defined it as the King of Radiance worthy of every knight’s allegiance and service.

As Caerleon prepared to establish the Knights of the Round Table, Sovell received King Pellinore’s convoy and recognized the young man accompanying him as the bearer of Holy Spear Longinus. The chapter ended with the young man surprised that Sovell knew the spear’s name.

• Over two years, Artoria’s claim as Arthur drew knights and commoners to Caerleon, and she announced fourteen seats on the Round Table.
• Sovell rejected unworthy applicants, while Artoria assigned Kay the third seat, Bedivere the fifth, and Sovell the additional seat.
• Sovell halted a convoy approaching Caerleon’s northern gate and identified its banner as belonging to King Pellinore.
• Sovell and King Pellinore exchanged formal greetings and a handshake, easing the tension between them.
• Sovell recognized the spear carried by Pellinore’s young white-haired companion as Holy Spear Longinus, and the young man asked how he knew its name.

Sovell welcomed Duke Pellinore and his son Percival into Caerleon after recognizing the Holy Spear Longinus, while Percival’s innocence amused him and unsettled Pellinore. They entered the palace, where a one-armed knight greeted Sovell and asked who his guests were.

• Sovell recognized the holy aura of the Spear of Longinus and learned that its bearer was Pellinore’s son, Percival.
• Sovell used wind magic to restrain the guards’ weapons and invited Pellinore’s party into Caerleon.
• Kelpie arrived, reacted fearfully to Longinus, and Percival sheathed the spear when Sovell asked him to.
• Sovell led Pellinore and Percival into the city, where his personal guards collected the other guards’ weapons and escorted them to the inner city gate.
• Sovell, Pellinore, and Percival entered the palace, where a young one-armed knight greeted Sovell and asked about the guests.

Sovell brought Pellinore and Percival before Artoria, who pardoned Pellinore and granted them the Second and Eleventh Seats of the Round Table. After Percival received the higher seat, Sovell arranged a public challenge ring for anyone who disputed his worth, leaving Percival to face the challengers.

• Sovell introduced Pellinore and Percival to Bedivere, then escorted them to meet Artoria.
• Sovell argued that Pellinore had proclaimed himself king to defend Britain after Uther’s death, and Artoria pardoned him while stripping him of his ducal title.
• Pellinore refused the Second Seat, so Artoria awarded it to Percival and gave Pellinore the Eleventh Seat; both accepted.
• Sovell set up a ring in Caerleon’s Central Square and invited challengers to take Percival’s Second Seat if they could defeat him.
• Percival questioned Sovell’s plan, but Sovell urged him to trust in his own strength and Artoria’s judgment.

After spending months destroying invader camps in Wales, Sovell returned to Caerleon for Artoria’s May Day celebration and found six kings’ armies camped outside the city. He hurried to the palace, where Artoria was discussing how to handle the visiting kings, just as Sovell arrived.

• Artoria’s playful letter summoned Sovell back to Caerleon for the May Day feast, and he ordered his guards to break camp.
• At Caerleon’s North Gate, Sovell learned that six kings had arrived with 3,300 knights and additional infantry, and he suspected they had hostile intentions.
• Sovell entered Caerleon with his personal guard, rode Kelpie toward the palace, and hurried inside to find Artoria.
• Artoria discussed sending gifts to the six kings to test their willingness to submit, while Ector and Bedivere joined her at dinner.
• A knock sounded at the dining room door as Artoria and her companions spoke, just before Sovell reached them.

Sovell returned to Caerleon and reunited with Artoria, who teased him before asking him to accept an unspecified condition. That evening, the Six Kings rejected her gifts and insulted her, and Artoria arranged to meet them at the North Gate the next morning.

• Sovell rushed into the dining room after hearing Artoria was in danger, then advised her to prepare Caerleon's troops for the Six Kings' arrival.
• Artoria ordered Sovell to feed her, and their playful reunion ended with her demanding that he agree unconditionally to one future request.
• Artoria sent invitations and gifts to the Six Kings, but they returned the gifts with smashed locks and invitations cut in half.
• A messenger reported that the Six Kings had called Artoria an inexperienced bastard of Uther who falsely claimed to be the Red Dragon's incarnation.
• Artoria rejected further negotiation by procedure and told the Six Kings she would meet them at the North Gate at seven the next morning.

After negotiations with the six kings failed, Artoria led Caerleon’s cavalry into battle against their allied army. Sovell fought in the charge and confronted King Lot, who attacked him with a sword.

• Three hundred soldiers from the six kings’ forces defected to Caerleon, while the six kings offered rewards for the heads of Artoria and her knights to rally their troops.
• Artoria ordered Sovell, Kay, Bedivere, and Ector to join her in the field, while Pellinore and Percival stayed behind to watch.
• Artoria led fifteen hundred cavalrymen out of Caerleon and charged the six kings’ army after declaring the battle would take place under the witness of the Gods of Danu.
• Bedivere killed a Scottish commander with a lance strike, while Sovell fought through the enemy ranks and encountered King Lot.
• Sovell and King Lot exchanged words about Sovell’s choice to leave his father’s path and serve Arthur, then King Lot charged and swung his sword at him.

Sovell reunited with Gawain on the battlefield, learned that Gawain had accepted Artoria as the King of Knights, and fought him. After Gawain unleashed the full power of his Sun’s Holy Sword and scorched him, Sovell began transforming into a dragon and invited Gawain to continue.

• Sovell dueled King Lot and urged him to withdraw, but King Lot called Gawain to fight in his place.
• Gawain removed his disguise and greeted Sovell, who told Artoria’s allies he needed no support.
• Gawain acknowledged that he had lost their six-year wager and agreed to follow Artoria, then challenged Sovell to a bout.
• Sovell sent Kelpie to support Artoria and exchanged powerful attacks with Gawain, who used Excalibur Galatine to scorch him.
• Sovell removed his helmet, revealed dragon horns, and challenged Gawain with the pressure of a divine-beast-class dragon.

Sovell and Gawain fought at full strength, testing the limits of Gawain’s sun blessing and their reflexes in a prolonged exchange of blows. Sovell later awoke unable to move in Lia’s room.

• Sovell revealed his half-dragon form and attacked Gawain with his full strength.
• Gawain used his blazing sun blessing to triple his abilities and continued fighting Sovell.
• Sovell struck Gawain with Rhongomyniad, then the two discarded their armor and fought hand to hand.
• Sovell and Gawain relied on instinctive muscle memory to trade punches until they collapsed.
• Sovell woke on a bed in Lia’s room, able to move only his eyes.