By the time Artorius and his group had escorted the Princess to her prepared residence and finished settling in, the sky had already darkened.
The dying sun sank in the west, painting the horizon a blood-like crimson.
Emerging from the manor, the black-haired Kay spotted Artorius, Artoria, and Muur squatting together in a circle, playing with ants. Her temper flared instantly. She marched over and delivered a swift rap to each of their heads.
Artorius ducked, his head dipping low to avoid the strike.
Artoria, however, whose attention was entirely occupied by the ants, and Muur, who had noticed but didn't dare dodge, were not so lucky.
"What do you think you're doing?!"
"Ow! Sister, we're just playing with ants."
Artoria clutched her head, her face twisted in pain. Beside her, Muur had simply face-planted into the dirt, playing dead.
"You're all grown up and you're still playing with ants? Have you no shame?"
Kay delivered another rap to Artoria's head for good measure.
"Waaah! Brother!"
Artoria looked at Artorius with piteous, watery eyes.
Artorius finally patted the dust from his hands and stood up, bracing himself on his knees. "Finished talking?" he asked languidly.
"Finished."
Kay shot him an annoyed look, then reached out and pinched his ear, hoisting it upward.
"Sister! Sister! Sister! Muur is right here! Muur and my sister are watching!"
"Oh, so now you care about shame?" Kay gritted her teeth. "Then why were you such a pushover in front of Jayn?"
"That's a different situation entirely."
"I know you think the Helmut family is too powerful for us and that we should avoid conflict with them." Seeing her brother's foolishly cheerful look, Kay glanced out of the corner of her eye at Muur, who was still face-down in the dirt. She released her brother's ear and sighed helplessly. "But didn't you see how much he humiliated you?"
"By tonight—not even tomorrow—the incident at the city gate will be known throughout all of Camelot. The reputation you earned from saving your sister, killing the chieftain's son, and dueling the demon boar for the Princess... it'll all be overshadowed by this!"
"I don't really care. I'm not the one who's going to pull that sword, anyway."
Artorius remained cheerful. If he were the one meant to draw the sword, reputation would indeed be vital. But he wasn't. His concern was how to smoothly join King Arthur's service in the future. Starting a feud with the Helmut family—regardless of whether they joined the King or not—would only lower the King's evaluation of his character.
"Even if you don't care what outsiders think, what about Muur and the others? Your knights..."
"Milady, we believe in the Young Mas—"
"Shut up! Did I give you permission to speak?!"
"Oh. Right."
Kay glared at Muur, who timidly pressed his face back into the dirt to resume playing dead. She turned back to glare at her brother.
"I know you don't care about public opinion. I know you only acted that way in front of Jayn because you were worried a conflict would put us in danger. But you don't have to do that for our sake!"
"...Sister, I didn't think it was necessary to fight either," Artorius said, his smile fading into a weary, bitter one. "Jayn is a sensitive, insecure, and impulsive idiot. All he wanted was the glory of protecting Guinevere. What's the harm in letting him have it? It's not worth a blood feud."
"Even if you gave Guinevere to him, he would have found a way to mock you! He came there specifically to humiliate you!"
Kay looked at her brother with an expression of "hating that iron cannot turn into steel."
Why had she pushed so hard? Why had she risked a fallout with the Helmut family just to argue with Jayn? If Jayn had only come for the Princess, and her brother had made it clear he didn't want to marry her, she would have happily negotiated with Bart to hand the task over.
But she knew Jayn. He had come to humiliate the "little brother" who used to be so obedient—the one who was never a threat, but who had suddenly become a prime candidate for the throne just as the Selection Ceremony was starting.
Artorius remained silent.
He understood her perfectly, but the crux of the problem was that he couldn't pull that damned sword. That sword was reserved for "Arthur Pendragon." He couldn't exactly tell his sister that, though.
Left with no choice, Artorius used the one divine technique that always worked on Ector and Kay: he hung his head and listened to her scolding with an expression that said, 'I hear you, I understand you, but I'm not changing!'
"You..."
Kay was so angry she pointed a finger at him, speechless.
Bedivere stepped in to smooth things over, grabbing Kay's arm. "Don't be angry, Kay. You both have your reasons. There's no need to fight. Besides, my family is here too. With our families allied, Jayn won't dare do anything truly insane, no matter how stupid he is. It's over now."
Kay finally lowered her hand and let out a long breath.
"Fine. I'm done with you. Bedivere and I are going to her house to see Marquis Lucan and have dinner. Do you two want to come?"
"No. Lia and I will stay and keep watch here."
"There isn't much to do now that we're in the city," Bedivere pointed out gently. "Jayn was just speaking out of anger. As famously stupid as he is, he isn't mad enough to try something in the capital. Just let Muur and the men keep watch."
"I know. I'm actually planning to take Lia out to a restaurant later."
"Eat, eat, eat. All you think about is eating."
Kay rolled her eyes, turned around, and dragged away the giggling Bedivere.
Watching his sister's figure disappear at the end of the street, Artoria moved her hands from her head and looked at Artorius with excitement.
"Brother, are we really going to the restaurant?"
Artorius immediately gave her another rap on the head.
"Wha—?!!"
"Eat, eat, eat. All you think about is eating. Muur, get up. Tell the men to don their armor and increase patrols. Something might happen tonight."
Muur lifted his head from the ground, not even bothering to wipe the mud from his face. He looked shocked.
"Huh? Young Master, are you saying that idiot Jayn is actually going to make a move?"
"He's stupider than Kay and Bedivere realize, but not that stupid. He won't do it himself, but that doesn't mean he won't find someone else to do it for him."
"Who else would do it?"
"Did you forget the Saxons who attacked the towns? A good number of them escaped into the mountains and haven't been caught yet."
"You mean...?"
"Go. Lia, come with me."
Recognizing the shift in tone, Artoria's grievance vanished. She rubbed the spot on her head that had been hit three times in a row and jogged to keep up with her brother.
"Brother, if you're worried about a night raid, why didn't you tell Sister and Bedivere?"
"If they sent their men here to help and a raid actually happened, what would they do if the city descended into chaos? Besides..."
What if they came to help and I still failed to hold the line?
Artorius stopped and looked at his silly little sister. He raised his hand, causing Artoria to reflexively shield her head.
"Don't hit me again, Brother! It really hurts!"
"Hands down."
"...You're so mean."
Artoria pouted piteously. Finally, under Artorius's stern gaze, she slowly lowered her hands and closed her eyes, looking like a martyr facing execution.
But Artorius didn't strike her. He placed his hand on her head and rubbed gently, channeling a bit of healing magecraft to release a cooling sensation that numbed the pain.
"Lia, you mustn't grow up to be like your sister. When faced with the pressure of powerful people, if they aren't going to harm your family, you can let the small things go. Losing a bit of face is nothing."
"Hmm?" Artoria looked up, squinting her eyes like a kitten enjoying a head scratch. "What if we back down and they still won't leave us alone?"
"If that happens..."
Artorius patted her head one last time and turned to walk toward the inner manor.
"If we get the chance tonight, I'll show you."
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