The expansive dining hall of North Wales Castle.
From morning, the air was thick with the aroma of freshly baked bread that Kay himself had made, fluffy omelets, and rich soup.
But unlike its usual clamor, the atmosphere at the table was strangely silent, tense with an undercurrent of anticipation.
Kay, seated at the head of the round table, cleared his throat and sliced into a loaf of bread. At his sides sat the two sisters, Lancer and Alter, looking notably different from yesterday.
Their eyes were bright, their cheeks flushed, and most of all, the way they looked at Kay dripped with honey.
"…So."
After taking a sip of water, Kay carefully addressed the three Servants sitting across from him.
"I've decided… to become lovers with these two."
…
…
Silence.
Tamamo was the first to react. Unfazed, she perked her fox ears and gave her tail a little flick.
"Oh my, as I thought. Ever since I cast that perfect transformation spell on my sisters-in-law last night, I knew this result was coming. Congratulations, my husband."
Tamamo beamed proudly as if she were the MVP of the entire affair.
Medusa, quietly sipping her tea beside her, nodded behind her blindfold.
"I suspected as much. Well, it is something to celebrate. In my era, it was far more common for blood relatives to become lovers than for unrelated family to do so."
But there was one person who was completely unaware of this development.
Jeanne d'Arc Alter's eyes nearly popped out of her head.
"Wh-what?! Lover… love… the two of you! Since when?!"
Jeanne Alter bolted upright in her chair, letting out a sharp shriek.
She didn't care about the moral quandary of her Master snuggling with his 'sisters.' What set her off was something else entirely.
"You crazy bitch!! You threw yourself at Master in my form?! How dare you use my face to have your wicked way at night?! You devious, cowardly—"
As she drew her flag and prepared to unleash fiery hell, Alter scoffed and spread butter on her bread.
"Hmph. Don't make a fuss just because I borrowed your face for a bit."
"You, c-come here!!"
"Enough, enough! Not at the breakfast table!"
Kay hurriedly settled Jeanne Alter back into her seat, trying to defuse the situation.
It was a morning of utter chaos—but Kay felt a secret relief.
He could see the dark shadow of obsession that had clung to Lancer and Alter over the past five years lifting, replaced by the bright smiles they used to wear.
Once breakfast was winding down, Kay spoke up with a serious expression.
"Right, let's set our future course. Wander aimlessly across Britain looking for the others is too inefficient. We need to gather intel, then plan our route."
"Right you are, big brother."
Lancer wiped her mouth and nodded. Her voice was endlessly gentle.
"As Queen of North Wales, I have networks of informants throughout Britain. I already know the rough location of Arthur-and-Lily's main force. And I can send a letter in my own name to the Wild Hunt mercenary band in northern Britain, led by Alter (Lancer Alter)."
"Oh? Seriously? Then it'd be best to have them come to North Wales rather than us chasing after them."
"Yes. I'll dispatch messengers at once."
Lancer smiled shyly at Kay's praise before speaking again.
"It will take time for the messengers to go back and forth and for them to gather here in North Wales, so please, big brother, stay in the castle and rest. I'll be sure to work off your five years of fatigue day and night."
At her sticky remark, Kay flinched, and Alter pinched Lancer's thigh under the table to keep her in check.
"And big brother."
Lancer suddenly set her teacup down and, as casually as if dropping a bomb, said,
"If you wish, I will hand over the crown of North Wales to you immediately."
Puh!
Kay, who was drinking tea, choked and burst into a coughing fit.
"W-what?! The crown?! Why would you give me the kingdom you built with your sweat and blood?!"
"I had no attachment or interest in a throne from the start."
Lancer met Kay's gaze with eyes as clear as polished crystal.
The majestic castle, the knights and people under her rule—they were worth less to her than a single strand of Kay's hair.
"I took North Wales and became its Lion King only because I needed an army and a network to find you. Now that you've returned, this cumbersome crown is useless to me."
Lancer toyed with her silver crown and gave a bitter smile.
"Five years ago, I lost you but clung to a vague hope that you were safe, so I followed Artoria to save Britain. But the days in Orkney without you were pure hell. At the time, I even thought, 'If I can defeat Vortigern, I might become the king of some land,' but I realized how meaningless and foolish that was."
She clasped Kay's hand tightly with both of hers.
"Big brother, if you must leave immediately to search for our sisters, I'll abandon this country and the knights without hesitation and follow you. Whether Britain falls or not, my only happiness is to be by your side."
Her devotion was a raging, blind obsession, surrendering all her queenly duties and pride to one man.
"Hey, hey! Even if you say that, you can't abandon the country! What about the people and knights under your rule?"
Kay broke out in a sweat as he tried to calm her down.
"Since you're already king, you're doing a good job running things, so don't give it up. I'll stay in North Wales for the time being and see how things go."
"Really? You want me to keep being king?"
"Yeah, that's right. Keep the throne."
With Kay's confirmed answer, Lancer breathed a sigh of relief and broke into a bright smile.
"Very well, big brother. If it's your command, I'll gladly wear this crown. But please sign off on all North Wales's affairs as you see fit. I will be nothing but a puppet carrying out your will."
"No, you little—there's no difference between that and handing me the kingdom! I don't wanna work!"
No matter how Kay panicked, Lancer simply floated in ecstasy at being able to give him everything.
After the meal, the group moved to the castle's most scenic outdoor terrace.
Once Lancer had dispatched her messengers, she appeared on the terrace carrying a stack of documents—not in her office.
"Your Majesty? Why did you come all the way out here instead of the office?"
When her attendants asked in surprise, Lancer pressed herself against Kay's right arm and answered decisively.
"From today, my office is wherever big brother is. Any objections?"
The proud, ice-cold Lion King of North Wales clinging to an ordinary man's arm, rubbing her cheek against it. The knights and servants inside the castle stared in disbelief, but no one dared displease their queen.
"Ah, come on! Let me read in peace and let go of my arm. You're smearing ink on the documents."
"No way. After five years of no physical contact, we still have plenty of catching up to do."
While Lancer rested her head on Kay's shoulder and signed papers, Alter flopped down on Kay's thigh from the left side.
"Hmph. I thought only you two would hog those broad shoulders."
With her hair loose, Alter pressed a grape against Kay's mouth.
"Here, big bro."
Seeing the two Pendragon sisters blatantly flirting with him from both sides, the Servants' patience snapped.
"Ugh! This is too much! Master, your mouth must be dry. Have some of Tamamo's special tea!"
Tamamo fluffed her tail and squeezed into the gap at Kay's knees.
"Playing house with your sisters. Here, try these — I baked them in the kitchen a little earlier."
Jeanne Alter grumbled as she set down a tray.
Though the cookies were uneven and half of them charred black, Kay noticed burn marks on her fingertips. He smiled and popped the blackest cookie into his mouth.
"Hmm. A little burnt but sweet and tasty. Well baked, Jeanne."
"Hah, of course it's delicious. I'm Jeanne d'Arc Alter, after all!"
Jeanne Alter's face turned as red as an apple. Alter leapt up, glaring and about to seize Jeanne Alter by the collar, and Medusa quietly approached behind Kay to massage his shoulders with a cool smile.
"Master, pace yourself. You'll need to conserve your energy for tonight's… endeavor."
At her single remark, the terrace erupted into another volcanic explosion of chaos.
'…Wish me luck outlasting this lot.'
Kay sighed amid the weight of the beautiful women hanging on his arms and their relentless affections, but he couldn't hide the smile spreading across his lips.
The hellish training in the Magecraft Realm for the past five years was all to return to these girls and laugh like this.
In the end, by afternoon's end, Kay had to make a hasty escape from the terrace under the pretext of going to train the kitchen staff.
Fleeing the terrace, he found himself under a tree near the castle's quiet training grounds, conversing with the First Knight Commander Galehaut.
"So, Commander Galehaut, did the 'cured salted meat' recipe I taught you get passed on to the kitchen?"
"Of course, Kay. Thanks to the menu you devised, even after doubling the training intensity of the North Wales knights, the soldiers are delighted by the taste of the meat and train eagerly. You truly are the magician of the dining table."
Since the incident in Manchester, Galehaut had become Kay's enthusiastic fan.
His pride as a former king had long since been discarded, and each time he saw Kay, he bowed respectfully and wagged his tail like a loyal hound.
As the two shared a warm camaraderie…
"…Commander. What are you doing here idly?"
A cold, sharp voice shattered the training ground's tranquility.
When they turned, there stood a slender female knight in sleek black-and-blue light armor.
Her long black hair gleamed down to her waist, her eyes were cold and fierce, and her muscles were as firm and beautiful as any man's.
At her waist hung a uniquely shaped magic sword.
"Oh, the Second Knight Commander. Back from patrol on the western border?"
Galehaut greeted her cheerfully and introduced her to Kay.
"Kay, meet the Second Knight Commander of North Wales, Lady Calogrenant, who leads our special reconnaissance unit."
"Calogrenant…"
Kay tilted his head at the name—which sounded masculine—only to see a clearly feminine figure before him.
It turned out she had once been a burly male knight but was cursed by an evil Dainn sorcerer and transformed into a woman. Her combat strength, however, remained among the top in North Wales.
"Greetings, Lady Calogrenant. I'm Kay."
Kay offered a friendly smile and held out his hand, but Calogrenant didn't even glance at it. She instead scanned him from head to toe with a frigid glare.
"…So you're the mystery survivor of the Magecraft Realm who bewitched Her Majesty and Commander Galehaut."
Her voice dripped with unmistakable hostility.
Galehaut, startled, stepped forward.
"Lady Commander, that's rude! Kay is Her Majesty's precious companion and a man of great strength and wisdom."
"Companion? Hah. I've heard all the tales of your deeds, Commander Galehaut."
Calogrenant cut him off coldly.
"I know your strength is great enough to shatter Taquin in one blow, and that your culinary skills distract the soldiers. I acknowledge your contributions to North Wales as a knight."
She begrudgingly inclined her head, then glared at Kay once more.
"But in my eyes, your skills are the same as any other's. You rocked Her Majesty's composure the moment you appeared and eroded our orders with food. You are nothing but a monster gnawing at North Wales."
Calogrenant's unflinching scorn.
She had returned from border patrol to find Lancer happily clinging to Kay's arm.
And secretly witnessing Lancer surrendering all crown affairs to him had filled her with deep despair and suspicion.
"If it's to protect Her Majesty, I will never allow a corrupt being like you to remain within these walls."
The female knight gripped the hilt of her magic sword, radiating murderous intent.
…
In place of the removed bias, yet another stubborn and troublesome loyalist now stood in Kay's way.