"Yes, Her Highness Morgan wishes for us to become knights under King Lot's command. We plan to discuss this with our father. Hehe, as expected, our talent is truly exceptional—Her Highness Morgan even came to seek us out! Merlin, what you told us before doesn't seem to hold up now!"
Since they were no longer in front of Lot and Morgan, Kay relaxed considerably. He looked at Merlin, reverting to his usual casual and sharp-tongued self.
"Indeed, no one can guarantee how the future will unfold."
Merlin didn't seem bothered at all and simply smiled in response to Kay.
"Then tell us, should we agree or not?"
Kay continued pressing Merlin.
Merlin made a thoughtful expression before quickly replying to Kay:
"Hmm, well, that's hard to say. It depends on what you think."
Kay said to Merlin: "In that case, we'll consult our father further. If he has no objections, the two of us will pledge our service to His Majesty King Lot."
"Excellent! The food here under Lot is quite delicious. If you serve him, he'll surely provide you with plenty of fine meals. When I come to mooch off you later, you must help me snag some too."
Merlin grinned at Kay.
"That would violate the knight's code. I refuse to collude with you in such disgrace."
Kay flatly rejected him.
"Yes, Teacher. Stealing food is unbecoming of a true knight."
Artoria fully agreed with her foster brother's words.
(The knight's code was secondary—the real issue was the importance of food.)
"How cruel of you to say that. You've wounded me deeply."
Merlin put on a 'grieving' expression.
Then, after telling Kay and Artoria where to find Sir Ector, he turned and left.
After leaving, Merlin returned to seek out King Uther.
"What is it? Has something happened to Artoria?"
Seeing Merlin rush over in such a hurry, King Uther couldn't help but ask.
"Your Majesty, a minor issue has indeed arisen."
Merlin nodded lightly.
"What kind of issue?"
King Uther still held immense expectations for Artoria, so upon hearing that something had come up, he immediately pressed Merlin for details.
"Your daughter is about to become your daughter's knight."
Merlin answered King Uther.
"Huh?"
After hearing this, King Uther felt utterly confused.
What are you talking about?
No—
A moment later, King Uther finally processed it.
Good grief, Morgan is trying to make Artoria her knight!
"This contradicts your prophecy!"
He questioned Merlin.
"Oh, this is just a minor deviation."
Merlin replied nonchalantly.
King Uther, looking at Merlin's indifferent attitude, pressed further:
"Then what do you propose we do now?"
"Well… let things take their natural course. Ultimately, the choice will be up to Your Majesty."
Merlin answered King Uther.
"So you're shirking responsibility?"
"Your Majesty, I just remembered I haven't had lunch yet. I'll go eat first."
Merlin quickly excused himself before King Uther.
In the blink of an eye, he vanished from the king's sight.
This series of actions left King Uther utterly dumbfounded.
"I…"
King Uther realized that his earlier advice to Morgan—"If a beautiful woman encounters Merlin, don't believe a single word he says"—had been somewhat incomplete.
The correct version should have been: No one should fully believe a single letter of what Merlin says.
He shook his head and consoled himself aloud:
"Well, at least Artoria is by Morgan's side. The danger shouldn't be too great, and a little experience won't hurt."
Soon after, he felt his body weakening further. The upcoming war against the Savage King Vortigern would likely be the last battle he could fight.
Though Merlin's prophecy stated that he had no chance of truly defeating Vortigern…
Since his previous prophecies have already failed, perhaps I still have a chance to defeat Vortigern after all.
A surge of ambition rose in King Uther's heart as he prepared for the coming war.
"These are all of Orkney's documents. Don't underestimate our small domain—there's a lot of work to handle every day."
Upon entering the study, Lot eagerly picked up a stack of documents and placed them in Morgan's hands.
[After years of waiting, someone's finally here to help me! Come on, Morgan, give it your all. Meanwhile, I'll figure out how to make an OL uniform for you—to make you look even more like a corporate queen!]
He thought excitedly.
Morgan was speechless.
This man… when it comes to slacking off, he doesn't slack off at all.
And that OL uniform…
Morgan thought for a moment, recalling the illustrations she had seen in a certain picture book.
There had been depictions of OL attire.
That kind of outfit…
A tight pencil skirt ending above the thighs.
And those so-called stockings.
Morgan's face flushed bright red.
Meanwhile, Lot was still lost in thought.
[Ah, and then, while she's handling official business, I can just… from behind…]
He was thrilled.
Morgan could tell that Lot's inner voice was unusually loud this time.
"LOT!"
Morgan slammed the stack of documents onto the table.
"Huh? What's wrong?"
Startled by her sudden action, Lot quickly asked.
[What's going on with her? Is she okay? Did she not rest enough earlier?]
Hearing his thoughts, Morgan felt somewhat satisfied.
Hmph. At least this horndog's first instinct is to worry about me.
Not bad.
"It's nothing. I'm fine. Come on, let's handle these documents together—we'll discuss and reach more accurate decisions."
Morgan said to Lot.
At the same time, she opened the topmost file.
"Can't you do it alone…?"
Lot looked at Morgan, his tone weak.
"No."
Morgan's voice was firm.
Seeing Lot's expression instantly turn dejected, her heart softened slightly.
After a moment's hesitation, she spoke again:
"Well… if you help me finish, I might give you a reward."
"Really?!"
Lot perked up immediately.
"Yes. Even wearing an OL outfit… is possible."
Morgan clenched her teeth as she made the offer.
"Great! Let's start processing these documents right away!"
Lot immediately declared.
However, the moment he opened the file, a look of confusion crossed his face.
"Huh? Wait… how did you know about OL attire?"