Arthur ended up being taken away by Morgan.
Even if he didn't want to, there was nothing he could do about it, since his master had already agreed.
Besides, his master had said she would visit him at his training location in a few days, so it wasn't a complete separation.
In that sense, it was still within Arthur's acceptable limits.
Before leaving, he had already said goodbye to Nessa, who had insisted on going with him but was immediately stopped by Scáthach.
If you have talent but refuse to put in the effort, then even the most talented person is useless.
Because of this incident, Nessa finally decided to work as hard as possible to surpass Arthur so that she wouldn't be left out next time… even though that would be far from easy.
Scáthach watched Arthur leave through the gates of the Land of Shadows before looking away.
Morgan believed that after taking her apprentice away, she had taken everything with her.
But—
The effects of the geis were still present.
Regardless of her purpose, he would eventually return to the Land of Shadows.
Two months might seem like a long time, but to Scáthach… it was merely a short and insignificant period.
Besides, she would check on the situation in a few days to make sure that woman didn't try anything troublesome.
---
Arthur followed Morgan to the castle. The palace knights allowed them to pass without any trouble.
"You can rest in this room. I still need to go to the capital," Morgan said, turning to look at Arthur.
"Going to the capital this late…?" Arthur sat on the edge of the bed, hesitating for a moment.
"Oh my, is it because you're worried about me traveling alone?" Morgan looked at the concerned expression on Arthur's face and gently patted his head with a smile.
"Don't worry, there won't be any problems. I'm just going to see King Uther."
"Does it have to be now?" Arthur's eyes revealed a hint of doubt.
"Of course. If I don't go now, I'll end up wasting a lot of time tomorrow."
Morgan looked at Arthur's confused expression and smiled faintly.
"Do you know why I was so eager to take you away for training?"
"Think carefully about what happened over the past two days," she reminded him.
"Merlin?" Arthur asked.
Among the people Morgan had interacted with so far, it seemed that only Artoria and Merlin were connected to him.
"Do you know why Merlin suddenly approached you?"
Arthur was surprised.
"Wasn't it to confirm my identity? By the way, where did you get that dragon essence?"
"That's only one of the reasons," Morgan said, shaking her head instead of answering Arthur's question.
"If nothing unexpected happens, King Uther will fall gravely ill and die within three months. At that time, Britain will fall into turmoil, and a new king will be needed to take responsibility for reclaiming the lost territories and governing the country."
"What does that have to do with taking me away for training?" Arthur asked.
Why do I have such a bad feeling about this…?
For some reason, Arthur kept feeling a sense of unease, but he didn't know where it was coming from.
"Oh my, didn't I tell you?" Morgan seemed surprised.
"Tell me what?"
"Ah, I really never told you before. Well, that's perfect—let me take this opportunity to explain." Morgan pushed Arthur down so he sat properly on the edge of the bed.
"Do you think my sister is beautiful?"
"Artoria… well, she is quite beautiful, but what does that have to do with what you were talking about?"
"She's adorable, isn't she? Of course she is—after all, she's my sister. She's dedicated to her training, kind, and has a wonderful personality. She's perfect in every way," Morgan said softly.
"But she's a girl, and I hope she can live happily as one."
Finally, after thinking for a moment, she murmured quietly to herself:
"Seriously… he thinks she's beautiful too? That's good."
Arthur was completely confused and couldn't help asking again.
"What exactly are you trying to say, Morgan?"
"No, it's nothing. Just a personal matter of mine—don't worry too much about it." Morgan's charming smile quickly returned.
"Well then, I'll be going now. Get some rest, otherwise you won't be able to sleep when I come back."
Arthur: "???"
That sounded like a rather dangerous statement.
"Wait until I come back, and I'll do some things that will make you happy."
After saying that, Morgan turned around and left the room, leaving Arthur alone with a face full of confusion, completely unable to understand what was going on.
In the end, you didn't tell me anything… Arthur thought.
Only after Morgan left did Arthur push those thoughts aside and begin observing his surroundings.
The room was quite luxurious in its decoration, which matched that woman's style perfectly.
And although she was called a goddess, there were no books about magic or anything of the sort in the room.
At least, based on his current observations, Arthur hadn't found anything like that.
That said…
Wasn't this the room where Morgan usually slept?
Arthur suddenly thought about that.
Logically, shouldn't she have taken me to a guest room…?
Maybe she forgot because she was too busy?
If she comes back very late and I'm too tired to stay here waiting, I might fall asleep… I'd better find a room for myself.
Arthur had visited this palace several times over the past three months, so he was already quite familiar with most of the place, and finding a room to rest in wouldn't be difficult.
With that thought in mind, Arthur stood up and opened the door.
At that moment, he heard a faint sound in his ear.
It was a furious roar—a roar that should have echoed throughout the entire castle—yet Arthur could only hear it faintly.
If his body hadn't been strengthened by the dragon essence, which had sharpened his hearing and senses, he probably wouldn't have heard it at all.
Am I imagining things?
Arthur stepped out of the room in confusion.
The thunderous sound echoed in his ears once again.
Could there really be some kind of creature inside Morgan's castle?
Arthur held his breath again, closed his eyes, and focused on the origin of the sound.
He was human, but dragon blood flowed through his veins.
After receiving the dragon essence given by Morgan, he could feel his physical abilities developing rapidly.
At that moment, after closing his eyes and concentrating his attention, he could even sense the movement of the air around him.
After a long moment, Arthur slowly opened his eyes.
He had found the origin of the sound.
Unexpectedly, Morgan's castle was hiding a mysterious creature.
And judging by the situation…
The dragon blood she gave me earlier is probably related to that creature.
With that thought in mind, Arthur walked toward the source of the faint sound he had heard earlier.
---
(End of Chapter)