Samael looked around, completely unsurprised by the lords' awkward reactions.
As for the Duke of Oxford's so-called "caravan," that was probably just a polite name for a notorious slave-hunting party.
Back when they were standing before the Sword of Selection, Kay had subtly warned him to watch out for suspicious figures nearby and keep a close eye on Baobhan Sith and the others.
Later, after the Ancient Serpent casually killed a few people who had followed them with less than honorable intentions, he naturally became more cautious and looked into the matter.
Humans were popular in the fairy world.
Likewise, fairies were popular in human society.
Especially beautiful fairies, or those with unusual abilities.
Young and attractive fairies kept as private pets were particularly sought after among decadent nobles.
And humans were hardly strangers to darker practices.
Throwing members of the Fang Clan into arenas, imprisoning the Earth Clan in workshops and forcing them to labor day and night, compelling the Wind Clan to brew potions, using the Mirror Clan to predict the future...
Humans had done plenty of such things behind closed doors.
So there was a thriving market for fairy slaves in human society.
Driven by wealth and profit, humans secretly organized slave-hunting parties that captured fairies and sold them to merchants and nobles on the black market.
As far as Samael knew, any slave-hunting group operating on a serious scale usually had the support of local nobles behind it.
A bunch of slave traders went deep into the Nameless Forest to capture fairies and ended up getting slaughtered.
They had it coming.
And you still have the nerve to complain to Artoria about it?
Then there was the lord whose population had supposedly been "abducted."
His people would rather abandon their homes, risk being devoured by Magical Beasts, or die of thirst and starvation on the road, all so they could reach the Nameless Forest and live under the fairies.
What did that say about him?
Wasn't the example of the Nok couple obvious enough?
Oppressive rule was worse than a tiger.
No one left to farm your land?
Heh.
Maybe think about what you did first.
And finally, there was the mine owner.
The amber gemstone hanging from his chest was about the size of a pigeon egg and absurdly pure.
If Samael was not mistaken, it looked like something condensed from the essence of an ore vein.
He had seen similar things before in the temple of the Mother Goddess Gaia and in Gilgamesh's treasury.
You were supposed to mine the mountain, and instead you tore down someone's house.
Now you think they have no right to fight back?
With his extensive experience in politics, the Snake struck directly at the heart of the matter the moment he opened his mouth.
After all, even while slacking off during his stay in Camelot, he was neither blind nor deaf.
He could watch.
He could listen.
By now, he already knew most of the ugly business hidden beneath these nobles' seats.
As for the southern lords unanimously requesting that the Lion King send troops against the fairies of the Nameless Forest, their real motives probably had little to do with lofty ideals like eliminating threats or protecting the people.
The fairies themselves, the "artworks" they produced, and even the refugees who had fled there were all valuable commodities.
It was not as though fairies were the only ones with ugly instincts.
Humans had not replaced countless other species by being merciful, kind, or fair.
So the Snake, supposedly burdened with original sin, had never held especially high expectations for human morality.
Still, anyone who had reached the rank of lord naturally had thick enough skin.
They simply pretended they had no idea what Samael was talking about, avoided his gaze, and looked eagerly toward the Lion King, who was frowning in thought.
Before anyone could speak again, however, Kay tapped the table and drew everyone's attention.
He spread his hands with a dry laugh.
"My King, the war in the Northern Realm has already emptied everything the treasury had saved up. The storehouses are so bare that even the mice in the palace would cry if they saw them."
"I certainly can't squeeze out enough money for another campaign. And nearly half our legions are still stationed in the north to guard against the Saxons. If we move them away, who can guarantee those Anglian barbarians won't take advantage of the opening?"
Camelot's chief quartermaster spoke half-jokingly and half-seriously as he laid out the facts, while casting a somewhat regretful and concerned glance toward the northern lords.
"My King, Sir Kay is right. After everything we've been through, this really isn't the time to raise another army. We need a chance to recover."
"The Northern Realm is Your Majesty's land, and we are Your Majesty's subjects. When winter comes, those Saxon barbarians without enough food or clothing may very well raid their way south. We should prepare ourselves."
"And there's still been no word of the Usurper King Vortigern. If we start another war against the fairies in the south based on nothing but speculation, the whole of Britannia could descend into chaos. Wouldn't that be exactly what those southerners want?"
The northern nobles, who had already been badly mauled and were relying almost entirely on the Enforcement Knights to rebuild their defensive lines and maintain appearances, immediately erupted.
They banded together to plead their case before the Lion King and hurried to reaffirm their loyalty.
Before long, the northern and southern lords, whose interests now directly conflicted, began arguing and insulting one another, each side accusing the other of harboring ulterior motives.
Seeing the situation slipping out of control, the Lion King frowned slightly and raised her right arm.
Her golden-green eyes swept across the room.
At once, the lords fell silent like roosters suddenly grabbed by the throat, shrinking their necks and shutting their mouths.
Artoria glanced toward her foster brother Kay, then turned back to the chamber.
"In that case, we will postpone the matter of the Nameless Forest until the situation has been properly investigated."
The Lion had made her decision.
However dissatisfied the flock might be, none of them dared oppose her openly.
The chamber immediately quieted.
"Then what does everyone think of my elder sister's proposal?"
With the earlier matter brought back up, the lords looked at one another.
Every single one wore an expression suggesting it had nothing to do with them.
Clearly, no one wanted to say much.
"Why not put it to a vote?"
Seeing that the discussion was going nowhere, Kay, acting as a mediator between the different sides, glanced at Samael and Morgan, the married couple in name at least, then sighed and made the suggestion.
The lords nodded in agreement.
Then they all remained perfectly silent, plainly refusing to cooperate.
After a moment, one hand rose alone.
The lords looked toward the Holy Sword wielder sitting beside Morgan and calmly drinking his tea.
Wisely, no one said a word about whether he actually had the right to vote.
After all, they could not afford to offend someone capable of challenging nearly the entire Knights of the Round Table by himself.
They might as well show him some respect.
It would not change the outcome anyway.
After becoming the first person to publicly support the proposal, Samael turned his gaze toward the Round Table faction beside the Lion King.
His brow slowly furrowed.
No one.
Gareth, still young and also a girl, hesitantly began raising her right arm, apparently intending to show support for the measure.
But then one stern gaze and one cold gaze fell upon her from either side.
A chill ran down the girl's spine.
She shrank back and obediently lowered her hand.
Seeing that they had successfully suppressed their younger sibling's restless impulse, Gawain and Agravain relaxed their brows, looking as though they had uncovered a crisis and thwarted some enormous conspiracy.
"In that case, we will discuss this another time. Very well, today's deliberations are over."
The Lion King looked around the room and spoke calmly.
Then she rose and left.
The knights nodded together before turning and following close behind her.
Heh.
So these were the knights who swore to respect women.
These were the children Morgan had raised and educated...
Watching them leave, Samael gave a cold sneer.
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