Due to Merlin's scheme, the events unfolding in Wales between Arthur Pendragon and the kings who opposed him were broadcast across the country, the fights and the discussion that preceded them being shown to all.
While many were skeptical of the authenticity of the scenes displayed on the projections, some were baffled by the behavior of the lords under whom they served, their words and their actions against Arthur.
However, there was a common thought running through the mind of all, that there was no way Arthur could come out of this encounter unscathed, given how outnumbered his army was. But, to everyone's surprise, the fighting was a one-sided massacre in favor of Arthur's troops as they defeated with ease the different armies marching to Caerleon.
Arthur Pendragon, after beheading Brandegoris of Stranggore in seconds, made quick work of the few soldiers who wished to avenge their fallen lord while sparing those who wished to surrender before her.
Yggdrasil, whom people were debating over her true nature as either a goddess or a fairy, turned the vaste wasteland she created after dropping a meteor over Carados of Estrangore and his army into a meadow full of flowers and vegetations, leading to many farmers across the country to worship her, hoping that their prayers would cause her to heal their lands as she showed on the screens.
The Kings of Wales, Belinant and Cradelmas, decided to retreat after finding that they could not win the fight without suffering considerable casualties, despite their numerical superiority.
But while the clash didn't end as fast as Arthur and Yggdrasil's, people across the country were still surprised by the performance of Arthur's army. Cavall, in particular, awed many with his swordsmanship and how he swept across the battlefield like a whirlwind, cutting through anything that crossed his path.
And as the projection showed Cavall howling as he watched the opposing army retreat, subtitles appeared beneath the mystical screen, seemingly translating the dog's cry.
{That's right, bitches! Go back to your kennel with your short tail between your legs! My lord, Arthur Pendragon, is the true pack leader of Britain! My lord dominates you all with his big, large and fat tail!}
Despite their crudeness, the subtitles brought a chuckle to many as they didn't expect to see such a childish joke in this situation.
And so, with the three fights over, the eyes of all people in Britain turned to the projection showing the last fight, which was still going on.
"This can't be happening... We have over a thousand soldiers under our command, so why... Why can't we even kill a brat like him?!" Lot cried out in anger as he glared at Kay who stood on a mountain of corpses, his azure sword in hand.
Although he fought and slaughtered more than half of their troops, he remained unscathed from the ordeal, showing no sign of wounds or exhaustion on him. The only difference from his initial appearance was his white cloak, adorning his armor, now entirely red after being stained with the blood of the men he felled.
"Let me repeat my previous warning, withdraw your armies and leave from this place. It is the mercy which my king, Arthur Pendragon, has graced you despite your affront towards him for you were the trusted vassals of his late father.Too much blood was spilled tonight and there is no need for more, so please, I sincerely hope that you will accept his offer."
"Mercy? How dare you say that when you already killed many of our men?!" Nentres shouted at Kay who glanced down at the corpses beneath him and nodded, an apologetic smile appearing on his face.
"Indeed, I am responsible for their deaths. However, I did say that I would show no mercy to any who dares to take a step forward. They all decided to ignore my warning or, I should better say, they decided to listen to your orders despite my words. We may be enemies, but I respect their loyalties to you three. It's too bad that they had to lose their lives as a result."
"You... Are you insinuating that their deaths are our faults?"
When Kay heard Lot's question, he simply gave him a serene smile which only infuriated him, causing the king to draw out his sword from its sheath.
"You damn brat! I'll show you what happens when you disrespect me!" He shouted as he ran towards Kay who just let out a sigh.
"Good grief..." Kay muttered as he shook his head before he jumped off the corpses he stood on and quickly swung his sword midair, unleashing a shock wave in the direction of Lot who widened his eyes in surprise.
"Wha–?!" He could only say before his right arm, which was wielding his sword, was separated from his body, the shock wave cutting through his upper arm.
Lot then screamed as he knelt on the ground in pain, clutching what remained of his right arm.
"Damn it! My arm... my arm!!"
"My lord!"
"You'll pay for this!"
Upon seeing their king down, several knights charged at Kay with their weapons raised, attempting to save Lot. But just as they quickly approached him with a handful taking the groaning Lot back to their ranks, Kay's sword turned into stardust which quickly dissipated into thin air, momentarily surprising both the attacking soldiers and the onlookers.
But then, despite being unarmed, Kay immediately charged at the closest soldier, narrowly dodging the sword that was swung at him, before he struck the unprotected part of his sword-wielding arm with a knife hand strike, causing the soldier to groan in pain and accidentally let go of his sword.
Seeing this, Kay immediately took hold of the sword and used it to decapitate the groaning soldier in front of him. Then, he soon went after the others running at him and made quick work of them with his swordsmanship, accurately slicing through their bodies through the areas that were not covered by their armor.
"Oh, that's quite a good sword he had here. Well, not as good as my best ones but still good enough to be part of my sword collection." Kay said as he looked at the sword he acquired with a smile on his face, not bothered with either the blood of the slayed soldiers on his face or the horrified looks he received from his enemies.
"A monster... he's really a monster..."
"How can we win against him..."
As whispers began to spread among the soldiers, Kay turned in their direction, causing many of them to recoil in fear.
"Oh, it looks like you finally registered my warning and took a step back this time. Good. At least, it shows that you lot are more understanding than that man over here." Kay said as he pointed at Lot who was glaring at him with anger in his eyes, not really caring about the animosity as he gave him a smile.
"Well, now that I know that we are speaking the same language and that you are comprehending my words, I'll say it one last time. Leave this place and go back to your realms, if not, I will be forced to take serious measures." He said, now sporting a serious look on his face as he released an aura that erupted from his body, which contrasted with the nonchalant demeanor he had displayed thus far.
Kay was then met with silence as neither the kings or the soldiers under them could speak, feeling the heavy pressure from Kay's aura despite being at a distance from him. Some even fell on the ground, feeling helpless before him, as if they were merely ants standing in front of a giant.
And after several minutes of pure silence, the one who first spoke up was Urience.
"Let's do as he says... The way we are right now, we can't win against him."
"You can't be serious! How can you suggest that?! Do you have any pride in you, Urience?!"
"Shut your mouth, Lot. Without your sword arm, you are nothing but dead weight to us. And learn to control your temper already, you just lost an arm because you couldn't keep your cool." Urience said, glaring at his old comrade and fellow king who could only grind his teeth in fury. He then turned to Kay who simply gazed at them from his spot, his aura growing more and more overwhelming as time went on.
"Kay, I believe you named yourself this, we accept Arthur's act of mercy and will fall back from Wales, but how can I be certain that you won't strike us while we have our back turned?"
"I understand your worries, but I apologize for the only thing I can do right now is making a verbal promise to you. Whether you are willing to believe my words is up to you."
"...Then swear it. Swear it on your honor, and I'll be inclined to believe you."
"Understood. Upon my honor as a knight of Arthur Pendragon, I swear that, unless you wish to attack me or invade Caerleon again, I won't attack any of you while you are leaving the region."
As soon as he said this, Kay's aura dissipated, allowing the kings and their soldiers to normally breathe once again as the pressure quickly disappeared as if it had never existed. And, while keeping their guards and eyes on Kay, they quickly left the area after giving him some last words.
"Don't you think you've won, brat! Heed my words for I shall repay this humiliation! I swear that, one way or another, I will come back with my entire army, so be prepared!"
Hearing Lot's words, Kay just waved his hand at him, which only irked the man more.
And as soon as both he, Nentres, Urience and their armies left his sight, Kay let out a sigh before he glanced at the starry sky, feeling that Merlin dispelled her Magecraft.
"I did what you asked me to do... but was it really the best call?"
Once the events had passed, the festivities in Caerleon resumed as Artoria was standing in front of a crowd, a sword in her hand.
"In commemoration of your bravery, I shall bestow upon you the title of knight. I hope that from now on, you will wear this title with pride." She said, placing the blunt side of her blade on the shoulder of the one kneeling before her.
"Hey, Ulfius."
"What is it, Baudwin?"
"Why are we watching a dog being knighted?" Ulfius asked his old friend as they stood by the sidelines, seeing Cavall bark as he got knighted by Artoria before all the guests who clapped for the dog.
"I don't know, I'm completely lost right now. Hey, Ector, can I ask you... Eh?!" Baudwin started to say before he widened his eyes, seeing Ector drink mead directly from a bottle, several of them being lined up on the table next to him.
"Don't... hic... bother me..." He only said before he tried to resume his beverage, only to be stopped by his friends who restrained him.
"Hey, you should know better than to drink so much!"
"Baudwin's right, Ector! Just what happened to you since last time we saw each other?! You've never liked to drink in the past, so why are you just downing bottle after bottle?!"
"Shut up! You will never understand what I'm going through right now?!"
As Ector started to struggle against his friends' hold over him, Kay and Merlin observed them from afar in the corner of the hall, chuckling at the old men's behaviors.
"To think I'd ever see Ector act like that, I wonder if something bad will happen today."
"Don't you think that today's events weren't bad enough, the one that you created?" Kay said as he bonked Merlin's head, causing her to wince before she gently rubbed the spot where she got hit.
"Hey, didn't I tell you that it was necessary? In any case, thanks to this little accident, the country now knows the prowess but also the character of Artoria. I don't believe that there are many people who would dare to attack her territory without suffering huge losses, like the kings who tried to assault us. Our little show will act as a good repellent against such people, so there will be no problems for us to resume our little travel across Britain. And don't worry, I can always teleport us back home if something akin to an attack actually happens. Also, it may inspire the other kings to form alliances with Artoria."
"Do you really think it will work well?"
"Yes, I believe so. What people need right now are results and proof, and we gave them both by displaying both our strengths and characters, fending off the awful assailants from our land to protect our dear subjects. And we even showed them mercy by letting them go away despite their actions, showing to all our goodwill and morality. I'm sure that many were appealed by Artoria's character, wishing to live under her reign right now."
"No matter how I see it, I feel like we're just duping people with a fake image of us."
"It's not like we're entirely deceiving them, so it's fine. That aside, how about we share a toast? Tonight's a festive day, so there's no way we can forget to share one." Merlin said as she glanced at Kay with a smile on her face, two glasses appearing in her hands from thin air, causing him to let out a sigh.
"You know that I'm weak with alcohol, right?"
"Don't worry, it's just mead. Compared to the drinks in the Grandcypher, I believe it isn't that strong, so you should be fine. And if you get yourself drunk, don't worry, I'll take care of you."
Seeing Merlin hug his arm, Kay groaned as he clutched his head, feeling a little headache, before he slowly nodded.
"Alright, I'll trust you on this one."
"Great! Then, here is your glass! And now, for our new adventure, cheers!"
"Cheers."
Meanwhile, in the archipelago in the Northern Isles of Britain, a certain woman was frowning, having witnessed the events happening in Wales from her former mentor's Magecraft.
"That was quite the show. Although, I knew she was strong since the event in Londinium, but to think she became even stronger since then. And that dog... How did she raise him in order to become as strong as a knight? Just how did she manage to do that? Just what is her secret?"
As she pondered over her questions, her mind quickly went to the fight between her husband and an old acquaintance of hers.
"Still, I can't believe that he would try to do that kind of thing behind my back... It is a shame that he didn't lose his life on the battlefield, but it's nothing but a matter of time. In any case, Kay... that power he showed in the end, I'm quite interested in it. I believe that I should give him... a little visit."