A brief silence dawned upon the alleyway, soon to be broken by the soft sound of clapping that echoed outward. Finally, he had arrived.
Silky red hair reaching down to his temples, glistening beneath the sunlight, shining like a sea of flames, and a pair of bright, cerulean eyes, mirroring the sky overhead. He was a tall figure, standing at an equal six foot, with taught, toned muscles, clad in a white, knight's uniform that sat above his black shirt, the Dragon Sword Reid resting sanctimoniously at his side. Despite how outrageously strong he was, he appeared cool, calm and refreshing, much like the spring winds, his charming, handsome features, as well as his powerful, confident, yet easy-going aura making people feel incredibly comfortable and safe in his presence.
He clapped his hands with a look of genuine appreciation, speaking in a soft voice, "That was an incredibly impressive display. When I saw the three of them attempting to accost you, I assumed I'd need to step in, but I didn't expect you to deal with them so effortlessly, without having to resort to any physical violence. You've saved me a lot of headaches and paperwork." He chuckled softly with an amiable smile.
Reinhard van Astrea. The Sword Saint. Both the Sword and Shield of the Lugunica Kingdom. The favored child of Od Laguna, possessing unfathomable power, and a sincere, pure heart. A chivalrous and noble individual who in the future, would serve Felt, a candidate to be the ruler of this kingdom. Someone who was both ridiculously overpowered, yet humble enough to consider a 2v3 with the three stooges and Subaru a difficult situation.
What left the biggest impression on me, however, was the fact that behind his kind smile and friendly personality, was an incredibly tragic past that made me very emotional upon reading it. He was born into a tremendously affluent family, gifted strength beyond his citizen's wildest imaginations, yet his life was arguably one of the most tragic of them all. Naturally, this was all subjective, I just felt especially sympathetic towards Reinhard, the man who had everything, and yet nothing at all.
The moment I realized I was in the Royal Capital, I simultaneously realized that Reinhard would be watching me. King Arthur, as not just a servant, but one of the most well-renowned heroes of all time, possessed an utterly outrageous amount of raw energy. When such an enormous amount of magical energy gathered in the center of the city, it was impossible for Reinhard to not be alarmed.
Considering my lack of Avalon, and his seemingly infinite number of Divine Blessings, I cannot tell you who would win in a fight between the two of us, but there certainly wouldn't be a city remaining by the time we finished our battle, so I can only imagine how tricky a position I have put Reinhard in just by being here. I had to admit I felt genuine guilt at putting him in such a situation.
"Violence is the enemy, after all. If I can resolve a situation peacefully, then that would always be the most ideal option." I responded back to him in an equally gentle voice, trying to show in my demeanor that I meant no harm to him or his people.
"To think that even when threatened with physical violence, you can remain pacifistic. You're a man after my own heart." Reinhard approached, closing the distance between us. Despite the fact his guard was relaxed, I knew that this fellow, who could move at light speeds, was ready to restrain me at any given moment should things turn sour.
"I do consider myself a knight, after all. It would be unthinkable to cause a commotion in a foreign kingdom. That would be a diplomatic issue." I made a small smile. By now, we were within arm's reach of one another. Despite that fact, I was calm. I knew that as long as I didn't make a move, Reinhard wouldn't either.
"As expected, you're not from around here, are you? Indeed, I think I would've remembered if someone like yourself visited our Kingdom before." Reinhard nodded his head to himself, as if internally confirming some theory.
In an effort to ease the bubbling tension, I couldn't help but attempt to make a joke, "Do I make that bad an impression?"
The key word being 'attempt.'
Perhaps Reinhard was a touch too tightly wound as he became genuinely flustered by my response, "No, no, not at all!" he shook his head, bowing his head towards me, "My apologies, Sir – I didn't mean to offend."
"Please, don't worry, I was only making a joke... a rather poor one, mind you." I laughed awkwardly.
"Really?" he blinked in surprise before smiling wryly, "Though I'm relieved, that was rather cruel of you, Sir." he scratched his cheek, and the two of us stood awkwardly for a moment before Reinhard finally decided to change the subject, starting to question me curiously, "If I might ask – what nation do you hail from? You don't really seem like a warrior of Vollachia, nor Kararagi or Gusteko for that matter."
"I'm from the Kingdom of Camelot. Though, I don't think you'll find it on any maps in this world." I responded back calmly.
"This world…? I see." Reinhard nodded his head, mumbling to himself, "I think I'm making sense of the situation. If you don't mind me asking," he turned back to me, "What's your purpose in visiting our Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica?"
To which, I could only look at him helplessly, "Would you believe me if I said this was a complete accident?"
"Actually, that would explain a lot." Reinhard responded back with a wry smile, "I'm sorry to keep prying like this, but might I infer as to your intentions now that you've arrived here in our Kingdom?"
"I'm first and foremost a Knight. I think I'll search for a worthy Lord or Lady to serve." I smiled back towards the young man.
"I see. Then our objectives in life are much aligned." Reinhard let out a relieved chuckle, "It seems you've picked the perfect time to arrive here, Sir… ah, you'll have to forgive me, I've been incredibly inconsiderate. My name is Reinhard, a simple Knight here in the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica… might I be so rude as to inquire your honorable name?" Reinhard spoke with a considerable amount of etiquette and politeness, as one would expect from a Knight. Though I couldn't help but notice his level of formality was a lot different than when he conversed with Subaru, perhaps due to the difference in our situations.
"My name is Arthur," I responded back without hesitation, "Arthur Pendragon." Despite sharing the first name as that mythical King, the surname I possessed was most definitely not something as ostentatious as 'Pendragon', but nonetheless, the response came incredibly naturally from my lips, as if Pendragon had always been my surname.
"Pendragon, you say?" Reinhard made a rather bemused smile, "Sir Pendragon, it seems you're fated with our Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica."
"Please, just call me Arthur. Sir Pendragon, it makes me sound like my father." Once again, the words flowed from my mouth incredibly naturally, leaving me momentarily alarmed, after all, my father was most definitely not Uther Pendragon. Had I taken on more than just Arthur's appearance and abilities? Did Mash gain traits of Sir Galahad after she became a Demi-Servant? I've completely forgotten what Prologue Mash was like.
Just as we were engaged in pleasant, jolly conversation, a cry echoed out through the alleyway, "Out of the way, bozos!" like a divine gust of wind, a short figure burst across the cobblestone pathway.
She possessed silky blonde hair, and a pair of deep crimson eyes that resembled Reinhard's hair to some degree. Her appearance actually reminded me somewhat of Gilgamesh, as well as my cousin, Arcueid. The only difference was that she was considerably younger, and her clothes were rather scruffy, with her mischievous snaggletooth being her key trait.
Even Felt is here? This is a different alleyway than the one Subaru used, right? Am I like a magnet, attracting everyone to me?
Utilizing her unnamed Divine Protection, she moved like a gust of wind through the alleyway, though obviously to Reinhard and I, she may as well have been moving in slow motion. I must say, Felt was incredibly bold to be out thieving when Reinhard was on patrol.
Naturally, she was completely unable to notice as I invited myself to her pouch, helping myself to Emilia's insignia whilst she was busy rushing past me.
Like that, she passed, darting up the buildings and disappearing into the distance, completely ignorant of the fact she had just been thieved.
"That was rather rude of you." Reinhard couldn't help but frown towards my behavior, "A knight should not lower himself to petty theft."
"You've misunderstood my intentions, Sir Reinhard." I smiled wryly at the man, shaking my head, "I witnessed earlier that young lady thieving this insignia from another young lady, I merely felt it best to return the insignia to its rightful owner. That poor young lady, she must be rushing around the city hectically in search for it."
When Reinhard saw the insignia pressed between my fingers, he made a rather weird expression, "That is…" eventually, he smiled, "I see – the lady fate is with you, Sir Arthur, it seems you'll have a lot more luck than you might have anticipated in finding a Lady to serve."
"You think?" I played coy with him, not wishing to openly divulge the extent of my knowledge, "Though, there is one thing that's bothering me, Sir Reinhard."
"Just Reinhard is fine, Sir Arthur. I'm unworthy of the title 'Sir'." Reinhard shook his head before asking curiously with an inquisitive look, "Might I ask what's bothering you?"
"When that young lady that rushed by stole the insignia, it was glowing red… but now that I'm holding it, the colors have dulled. Am I unworthy of its splendor?" I spoke, trying desperately not to smile, to look as serious as possible.
"That… Sir Arthur, you'll have to forgive my rudeness, but I have urgent matters to attend to. The next time we meet, I shall surely repay you for this great kindness." And with those words, Reinhard melded into a flash of golden light, disappearing from the spot.
Although it appeared like he was teleporting, it was simply light speed movement, something even I was incapable of in my base form. The speed of Sword Saints was a little whacky, Reid could cut rays of light with chopsticks. I would need to release at least six shackles on Excalibur to keep up with his speed.
It was only then I seemed to realize something, "Hang on a moment… can Reinhard detect lies?" I looked off into the distance where he had left with a rather bizarre expression on my face. Unfortunately, I could no longer utilise the Wiki.
Either way, my next step was to find Emilia. Though it turned out I didn't have to look very far.
"You there." A voice called out from the entrance way to the alley where the sunlight shone brightest, "Stop mumbling to yourself and graciously return what you stole."
Root be damned… is this a gathering spot for named characters? I know that this all happened in the original timeline, but I've already deviated from the script, no?
I turned my eyes and gazed upon the ephemeral figure soaked in radiant sunshine. Her silky silver hair flowed like fluid strands of moonlight, whilst her eyes glimmered like resplendent amethysts, diamond blue pupils twinkling beautifully like stars in the sky.
The young lady appeared more fairy than human, with pointed ears and rosy-red cheeks, reminding me heavily of my family tree, Merlin, Artoria, Vivian, Morgan, etc, etc.
Like in the canon, Emilia was clad in her regal silver and purple robes that fully highlighted both her lovely features as well as her noble bearing. A single glance was enough to tell me that this was no simple young lady, but the future ruler of an entire Kingdom.
Considering the fact I would soon need a supply of magical energy to keep me running, it seemed there was no better person in this world to pledge my Sacred Brand too, and that was not an easy thing for me to say. Excalibur represented the hope of humanity, just carrying it at my side felt like I was dragging a mountain with me.
"By 'what I stole', could you be referring to this insignia?" I reached into my pocket and pulled out the Dragon Insignia. Like with earlier, it did not glimmer upon my touch. After all, I was King of Camelot and Britannia, not Lugunica.
"Eh…?" Emilia jolted in shock, "T-That… that's… my insignia?" no doubt she had been experiencing incredible panic at losing the right to obtain her dreams, so I imagine seeing it like this was quite the relief.
"Here, catch." I chucked the insignia towards her, causing her eyes to widen in surprise.
"Ah!" she reached out her hands and tried her best to catch it, as if she was playing with a hot potato. After a few slip-ups, she eventually caught it firmly between her hands, her eyes lighting up along with the red jewel at the center, "It's the real deal…" she muttered.
"It seems pretty important to you, so do take care of it, okay?" I gave her a genuine smile. This was indeed an important item, and it was hard to believe Emilia lost it in the first place. Though Felt is quick, an experienced Spirit Arts user like Emilia shouldn't be caught so unawares, especially with Puck hanging around. Perhaps Emilia simply didn't expect someone would actually steal from her.
"You… you…" she seemed choked up for a moment as tears gathered in her glimmering eyes. She bowed her head so far her forehead almost touched her own knees, "Sir Knight, I've wronged you. Please allow me to thank you from the bottom of my heart for returning my insignia to me."
"It didn't take much effort on my part." I scratched my nose sheepishly, "I saw the insignia get stolen from you earlier, and coincidentally, the thief happened to come straight back past me, so I felt it best to return it to its rightful owner. Perhaps thieving from a thief was not the best example to set as a knight, but well, seeing you so happy, I think it was worth it."
To be honest, I actually felt embarrassed and a touch guilty. Subaru went through so much effort to find this little thing, and well, it took me a single second. If he was here right now, I would be exactly the kind of person he hated. Perhaps he would have had a better time if he did get Excalibur after all, though whether or not he could wield it efficiently was another matter entirely.
"You… you're quite the man of character." she smiled brightly, "Really, thank you so, so much. You have no idea what this means to me. Is there any way I could ever possibly repay you for this gracious deed?"
"I wouldn't go as far as to call it a gracious deed, but, well…" I rubbed my grumbling stomach with a crimson hue about my cheeks, "Though this may sound inappropriate, how would you feel about treating me to a meal as thanks? I'm currently incredibly broke, and incredibly hungry."
To my serious question, Emilia giggled into her hand, laughter chiming out like silver bells, smiling brightly as she responded, "That's not rude at all. I would be happy to treat you. The only issue is I don't know any good places to eat. If I can find my maidservant again, Ram, perhaps she can recommend us somewhere good to eat."
"I would be honored to, Lady Emilia." Like that, from the rooftops above, another figure jumped down. She was rather short in comparison to myself and Emilia, with a bob-cut of cherry blossom pink hair and a pair of dark pink eyes, clad neatly in her traditional black and white frilly maid uniform, a flower accessory attached to the right side of her head. Of course this was Ram, who somewhat flew under the radar during the first season, growing more popular within the anime community during the second.
This was truly the alleyway where named characters gathered!
"Ram!" Emilia cried out, "If you found me, you should've said something!"
"My apologies, Lady Emilia. I only just saw you enter the alleyway, and since you were conversing, I thought it rude to intervene." The maid bowed her head apologetically.
"That's fine, Ram, but you really scared me." Emilia let out a sigh of relief, "Anyhow, do you mind leading this kind gentleman and I someplace to eat? I owe him a massive favor."
"As stated, Lady Emilia, it would be my honor – please allow me to guide the two of you."
Authors Notes:
Hello everyone. First and foremost, allow me to thank you all for the favorites, follows and reviews on the first chapter. Considering this is my first time posting my work, I really didn't expect a positive reception at all, let alone so much support from so many people. All of your favorites, follows and reviews have increased my motivation massively, and I wrote a lot yesterday because of it!
I had originally intended to respond to reviews within the authors notes, but after some research, it seems to be frowned upon, so I will be responding via PMs instead. Since I'm both editing and writing, I probably won't be able to respond to every review in the future, but I'll try my best to respond to the reviews that add to the discussion regarding the story!
Regarding an upload schedule, I really can't promise anything concrete as life is generally unpredictable, but at least for the next week or two, I'll try my best to maintain a rate of one chapter per day.
Once again, thank you for reading the chapter! I hope you all continue to enjoy the story!