As the watery moon sunk into the depths of the earth, another dawn broke here in the Mathers Domain, the golden radiance of the morning sunshine seeping through my curtains, lightly caressing my skin.
Today was the big day. An exciting day, and a potentially disastrous day. I was heading off to meet with Sir Reinhard once again, and that thought filled my heart with joy and excitement.
I was a transmigrator, and though I seemed to be adjusting pretty well, it was still impossible for me to not feel some home sickness and sadness at my current situation, but events like this one made me look brightly towards the future.
Meeting with Reinhard and all the fellow knights, going on a binge across the Lugnican Capital, draining every single tavern of their alcohol, not leaving until we were thrown out… that kind of thought made my heart dance with untold jubilance!
Nonetheless, with excitement and reward came great danger! There was no greater time to attack someone than when they were travelling, and if the Witch Cult really did want to make a move, the road between the Mathers Mansion and the Royal Capital would literally be the perfect place to strike, as proven by Regulus during the shift between Arc 3 and Arc 4 during the canon timeline.
My strength had grown considerably over the past week thanks to my training, but even still, I wasn't sure whether or not I was ready to tangle with the upper echelons of the Witch Cult. In terms of physical power, there wasn't much of an issue, but the Authorities and special abilities wielded by the Sin Archbishops of the Witch Cult brought with them a variety of different issues that were truly troublesome to deal with.
Ignoring Regulus for a moment, even Betelgeuse, the first member of the Witch Cult that Subaru killed, and the archbishop whom many considered to be the weakest, was significantly difficult to deal with. I could cut him down in an instant, but then he could potentially use his Special Abilities to possess one of the precious members of the Emilia Camp, essentially checkmating me in an instant.
Although it seemed his possession only worked on those with high spiritual affinity and those who did not already have a contract, I couldn't be 100% sure his ability wouldn't work on people like Rem or Ram. Though the chances were low, I really didn't want to gamble with their lives.
And that was only one Archbishop of the Witch Cult. Each one of them was more troublesome than the last.
With that being said, excluding Pandora, Regulus was my biggest worry as far as the Witch Cult was concerned.
Currently, I had no way to tell whether my Noble Phantasm could penetrate his authority, and if it couldn't? Well, unless I went on a murder spree and killed a bunch of innocent people, I would be finished.
Beyond the issue of travelling, this so-called 'Festival' that was being arranged was another big issue.
When I made the suggestion to include Reinhard, I imagined it as like a small, private competition, but thanks to the meddling of Lord Roswaal, it was being advertised as the second Silver Flower Dance, the dance of Crimson and Sapphire he called it, a heated competition between the Sword Saint and the mysterious knight of the otherworld, with nobles and commoners travelling far and wide to witness the battle.
At this point, I would be incredibly naïve not to suspect Lord Roswaal of scheming something, and although I didn't know what he had in mind exactly, it most definitely involved this festival he had in the works.
The only thing that reassured me was that Reinhard would also be there, so no matter what the jester had cooked up, with the power of the Sword Saint and the Once and Future King, we should be able to handle just about anything he throws at us.
Either way, as anxious as I was towards this whole festival thing that did not appear in the canon that I was familiar with, there was no point sitting around stewing anxiously. No matter what happened, as long as I trusted in Excalibur, I would be alright… probably.
I closed my book and got up from my desk, my silky lounging clothes instantly being replaced with the regal gowns of the king, Excalibur resting solemnly at my side. I closed my eyes and rested my hand solemnly on the hilt, muttering in a quiet voice, "I'll be counting on you, partner."
After making my preparations, I made my way down to the foyer, soon noticing that Lady Emilia was already there, clad in a silky silver dress accented with vibrant teal, looking rather lovely as usual, awaiting her knight patiently.
Indeed, it was not good practice for a knight to keep his lady waiting, but how was I to know that Lady Emilia would arrive so early? There was still twenty minutes before we were supposed to meet.
"Good morning, my lady. Sorry for keeping you waiting." I made a polite bow as I waltzed across the glimmering marble floor.
"Mm-mm." She shook her head, her silky bangs swaying gently, "It's alright, I just couldn't wait around stewing anxiously in my room any longer, I'm just too nervous about today."
"You're worried, Lady Emilia?" I tilted my head at her, "Do you mind explaining what's the matter?"
"I will once we're in the carriage, Rem and Ram are about to arrive with our bags."
"I see." I nodded my head softly, "Speaking of which, I wonder which of the two sisters will be accompanying us?" I questioned aloud with a rather awkward look. I seemed to remember promising Rem and Ram that I would try and keep them together, but it seems that I had forgotten about this matter until now.
"Hm?" Emilia placed her finger to her lip as she recalled inwardly, "I'm pretty sure the both of them are escorting us today?"
"Eh, is that alright? Then who is to take care of Lord Roswaal?" I thought openly, my pondering soon broken by the sound of jangling chains that echoed out in response.
"Please allooooow me to explain, Siiir Arthur." Lord Roswaal stepped forward, clad in regal, gallant formal clothes, "I have sent for my third maid, Fredeeerica to return from the Sanctuary to assiiist me in matters here at the Mansion."
"Frederica?" I blinked towards Lord Roswaal. She wasn't supposed to appear until Arc 4, and now she was appearing in Arc 2? Well, I suppose Julius and Felix appeared in Arc 1, so it's anything goes at this point, "If I recall… Rem said she was the third maid who is, or rather, was on temporary leave."
"That's correct." Emilia nodded her head, "Frederica is reaaally sweet and mature, so the two of you should get along well."
Well, I'm sure that we would indeed get along swimmingly as we had no reason not to, I was just surprised she was turning up so early.
"As long as Lord Roswaal is in good hands, I can travel with my heart at peace." I made the fakest smile I could possibly make towards the scheming jester.
"Don't wooorry, Sir Arthur, Frederica is one hell of a maiiid." Lord Roswaal smiled back brilliantly towards me as he turned his head, "And speaaaking of maids."
"Good morning, Lord Roswaal." Rem made a polite bow towards her lord, clad in her standard maid's uniform, carrying a large suitcase with her.
"Lord Roswaal, you look as regal and majestic as ever." Ram perfectly matched with her sister, bow, suitcase and all.
"Lady Emilia, you certainly have a lot of stuff to bring with you." I couldn't help but tease my liege. Now that Emilia and I's bond had grown, I could now afford to be a touch more casual with her.
"Don't make fun of me, Sir Arthur, we can't all be like you, carrying our wardrobe around with us." Emilia made a slight blush, giggling into her hand, "No doubt I'll be meeting other members of the Royal Selection during our time in the Capital, I have to make sure I'm dressed suitably for the occasion as to not let you down as your Master."
"Talking about this is getting me a little excited, Lady Emilia. If you're lucky, you might get to see my White Rose outfit or my Formal Dress outfit." When it came to dressing to impress, King Arthur was certainly an expert.
"I certainly am looking forward to that." Lady Emilia's eyes curled upward, and she let out a small pearl of laughter.
"Whilst I hate to interrupt your fraternizing, Sir Arthur, since we have everything, should we begin our journey to the capital?" Ram asked with a blank expression, "If we leave now, we should arrive for lunch, that way that gluttonous stomach of yours will be sufficiently satisfied."
"How fast can you run, Ram?" I asked with a smile that was not quite a smile as my inner Tohsaka energy flew off the charts.
"I can run fairly fast, Sir Arthur, why do you ask?" Ram put down her suitcase and crossed her arms, shooting me an unfriendly glare.
"Well, I was thinking that since you've been eating a lot of my desserts as of late, you might want to run alongside us to the capital to burn some calories."
"That's a very good idea, Sir Arthur, and since you've been stuffing yourself with Rem's cooking recently, you can pull the carriage yourself!" Ram slapped her hands together as a lightbulb appeared above her head, seeming very pleased with herself.
At that moment, two slender hands reached out, with Lady Emilia grabbing me by my ear, and Rem grabbing Ram by her ear.
"Sir Arthur, that's quite enough tomfoolery, you'll apologize to Ram at once."
"Sister, that's enough bullying Sir Arthur, he is as fragile as the precious vases belonging to Lord Roswaal, please apologize to him immediately."
Like that, Ram and I could only look menacingly towards one another, offering some fake apologies with plastic smiles, and with that little comedy skit out of the way, our journey to the capital officially began in earnest.
I held Lady Emilia's fair hand and helped her into the beautiful carriage, taking my seat opposite her at a respectful distance, causing her to pout.
Looking around at the glamorous, noble interior of the carriage, I couldn't help but recall Subaru, the original protagonist of this world, who had so humorously poked his head out of the carriage, almost killing himself in the process.
Are you out there, Subaru? I thought as I turned my head out the window, living your best life out there in Kararagi or somewhere, building up your business successfully, living out your dreams?
"A penny for your thoughts, Sir Arthur?" Lady Emilia asked as Rem and Ram fastened the bags to the back of the carriage, taking their seats atop the ground dragons, the carriage slowly trembling as it started to move.
"I was thinking of old friends." I responded back softly, a genuine smile appearing on my face.
"Speaking of old friends, you must be excited to meet Mr. Reinhard again, right?" Emilia looked at me with her watery violet eyes, "Though you only met for a short time, the two of you really hit it off."
"In truth, meeting Sir Reinhard again is what I'm most looking forward to in returning to the capital." I rubbed my nose sheepishly before frowning, "But more importantly, what worries you, my lady?"
"About that…" she kneaded her hands together pensively, "I can't help but worry that Miss Felt and Mr. Reinhard might turn us down. After all, she's a candidate for the Royal Selection, and cooperating with someone like me would be a nightmare for their political campaign."
"Please don't say phrases like 'someone like me' in the future, Lady Emilia, you're a beautiful person, and Lady Felt would be lucky to work with you." I scolded her sternly.
To which, Emilia turned her downcast gaze to the ground as she played with her hands, "I'm happy you think that, Sir Arthur, but whether or not Lady Felt feels the same is a different matter entirely."
"Though I don't know much about Lady Felt, I can tell that she's not someone to care about the opinions of others, and worst comes to worst, I'll drag Sir Reinhard back myself." I placed my hand to my chest and vowed solemnly, causing Emilia to giggle.
"Doing so would get you beaten up, Sir Arthur."
"Do you really think that Sir Reinhard could beat me up?" In truth, she was probably right, but that didn't make it any nicer to hear.
"Well, hopefully, if you're right and they do end up accepting our invitation, we'll be able to find out."
"Don't worry too much about it, Lady Emilia. If nothing else, Sir Reinhard owes me one, for it was thanks to the two of us that he managed to meet Lady Felt in the first place."
"You're not wrong, but humans are incredibly fickle, Sir Arthur." Emilia made a troubled look before changing the subject, "Speaking of which, you must be excited to meet with Mr. Julius as well, right?"
"That's right, that's right." I nodded my head, "Us knights are going to have a get-together in the capital and knock back a few drinks, and by a few, I mean oceans full."
"Well, just make sure you don't drink too much, Sir Arthur, I don't want you stumbling back in the middle of the night completely drunk."
"Eh? You'll be joining us though, Lady Emilia." I tilted my head back at her.
"I will?" She pointed at herself, "But I'm not a knight."
"True. But I also cannot allow you to be left unguarded, especially in the middle of the dangerous capital. I have a feeling that Sir Reinhard will also bring Lady Felt, so the two of you can foster a friendship."
"Is there any point in me fostering a friendship with her?" Emilia asked with genuine curiosity, "We're rivals, after all."
"This is a rather complicated topic, Lady Emilia. My true thoughts on this matter are quite deep and complex, and I feel the time is not yet right to expound upon this matter to you."
"You're always like this, Sir Arthur." Emilia pouted as she crossed her arms unhappily, "It's always 'maybe next time' or 'maybe in the future' with you. Have you ever considered that we could die today, and all your promises for the future would be for nothing?"
"There's no 'we' about it, Lady Emilia. Even if the Divine Dragon himself wants you dead, I will send him back beyond the waterfall even if it costs me my life."
"This is just like you. You say some sweet words, so I forget that you owe me an explanation." She looked out the window moodily, and I could only scratch the back of my head helplessly.
Lady Emilia's relationship with Lady Felt had yet to reach the point where I could suggest forming an alliance between the two of them, but hopefully this time in the capital will be a good opportunity for the two of them to bond and at least consider the possibility of working with each other instead of fighting one another.
After all, no matter what, I didn't want to fight with Reinhard, whether that be on the battlefield or the political battlefield. I wanted to fight alongside him.
"By the way, Lady Emilia, can I ask you a question?" I asked the silver-haired princess with a faint smile about me.
"That depends." She still had her arms crossed, her body language telling me she wasn't impressed with me, "What kind of question?"
"Since we have a few hours to kill, do you mind telling me about that dream of yours?"
"Hah. That's typical, Sir Arthur. You won't tell me what you're thinking, but you want me to tell you about my dream? I don't know." Lady Emilia shook her head, looking out the window.
"Alright, then how about this? If you tell me about your dream, I'll answer any one question you might have, as long as I find the question acceptable."
With that, Lady Emilia finally turned her gaze to me, looking at me with obvious intrigue, "I can agree to that, but I want to ask the question first so you don't end up scamming me."
"Lady Emilia, I'm you're knight, please don't treat me like a scam artist." I sighed with exasperation at her words.
"Will you agree or not?" she put her foot down, and I could only nod my head.
"Very well, I agree. What's your question?"
"Alright, let's see…" Emilia twirled her silver locks as she thought, "I can tell that if I ask you something too personal, you'll refuse, so how about this? You're always mumbling under your breath about the Knights of the Round Table, do you mind telling me a little about them?"
"The Knights of the Round Table, huh?" Just hearing the name of the once glorious, now destroyed organization caused my heart to tremble painfully, but I didn't mind telling Lady Emilia about them. Considering she would eventually learn all about them in our Dream Cycle at a later date, it didn't seem to be an issue to give her some context to work with in her dreams.
"That's fine. I agree to your proposal." I nodded my head, "You're aware that I'm from beyond the waterfall, right?"
"That's right." She nodded her head, "It's such a major thing, how could I possibly forget?" Her eyes lit up with enthusiasm as she leant forward on her seat, "In truth, I've always been reeeeallly curious about what it's like beyond the waterfall, but I also wanted to respect your privacy… but since we're having this conversation, do you mind telling me about the world beyond the waterfall?" she asked with an endearing look that was impossible to say no to.
"Technically that's two questions, but very well, I'll tell you a little."
The world beyond the waterfall was not a planet, but a vast, complex cosmology of differing universes, parallel universes and alternate universes, but I'm not sure Lady Emilia was the right conversational partner to discuss the complex cosmic make-up of the Nasuverse, Echidna was a better partner for that.
Instead, I would just treat the world beyond the waterfall as plain old planet earth, "Well, the world beyond the waterfall is not much different from this one, Lady Emilia, except it's been given a lot more time to develop and advance to a more modern, somewhat civilized society… but the future is not what you want to hear about, but the past." I looked out towards the window with a faraway look as memories of the past and future overlapped, "My Kingdom was named Britannia, and I'm sure you've already seen it. An island nation with rolling shires and deep verdant forests, towering mountains and vast valleys, surrounded by roaring tides. Although I say it's a Kingdom, it was more like a splintered nation of warring kingdoms that formed one collective nation. It was originally governed by a powerful empire known as the Roman Empire, but after the Roman Empire fell, Britannia was left vulnerable to all kinds of threats, the most dangerous of which being the Saxons."
"The Saxons…" Emilia muttered, "Those terrifying warriors riding their black ships across the roaring coastal tides."
"That's right. The Saxons came from the southeast, attacking the coasts of Cornwallen and East Anglia, killing and pillaging everything in sight. They slowly established themselves in East Anglia and spread outwards across the country like a ravenous plague, devouring everything in sight."
"That's horrible…" Lady Emilia gasped as she held her mouth in fright.
"It was truly the Dark Ages of Britannia, and much of the history of that time is still lost to this day, a hundred-year void if you would. Nonetheless, the citizens of that time did not lose hope." I made a rather mysterious smile.
"Why is that?" Lady Emilia blinked her large eyes at me curiously, "If Lugnica was in that kind of situation, I'm sure it wouldn't take long for the citizens to lose hope."
"That's because it was foretold that a legendary hero would be born, and would one day draw the Sword of Selection, Caliburn from stone, uniting the splintered kingdoms of Britannia into one United Kingdom, to fend off the Saxon threats and return peace to Britannia."
"And did that happen?" Emilia asked, eyes sparkling as she reveled in the ancient mythology.
"It did." I nodded my head, "The legendary king, who had been instructed on swordsmanship by honored knights, and magic by a legendary wizard, drew the sword from the stone, sacrificing everything to become the ideal king. Like yourself, he started off by drumming up support, questing around the nation helping others, before eventually establishing the kingdom known as Camelot, and within that kingdom of Camelot, there was a group of knights that acted similarly to the Lugunican Royal Knights."
"The Knights of the Round Table." Lady Emilia beamed, her features glowing as she turned to me, "They sound reeeally powerful. Were you a member of the Knights of the Round Table, Sir Arthur?"
"Do you think I was?" I turned to her in response.
"Well, Sir Arthur, you were able to defeat a legendary and incredibly deadly assassin like Elsa in one-on-one combat, and whether it's your sword, armor or clothing, none of it appears normal to me, thus I'd assume you were a member of the Knights of the Round Table."
"You're both correct and yet incorrect. I was both a member of the Knights of the Round Table, and I wasn't. I was just a squire for one of the Knights of the Round Table, the legendary Sir Kay. I would carry his swords for him to battle, and watch as he vanquished threats one after the other." I laughed jovially as warm feelings filled my insides.
"Sir Kay!" Lady Emilia clasped her hands together in recognition, "I'm familiar with him! He looked a handsome, noble and honorable knight."
"Amidst all of the Knights of the Round Table, Sir Kay was one of the kindest, only bested by the legendary Sir Bedivere, whom I'm sure you'll also meet at some point."
"Still, Sir Arthur, you're already so powerful, and your sword can illuminate the capital, yet you claim to be just a squire. If that's the case, then how strong are the true Knights of the Round Table?"
"Very strong." I spoke seriously, "Whether or not they could beat Sir Reinhard, I don't want to comment, but they were at least relative to him, and there were a handful of these knights. You had Sir Lancelot, the Greatest Knight, Sir Gawain, who was invincible beneath the sun, Sir Percival whose spear was unrivalled, Sir Galahad, the strongest shield of the Kingdom, and you even had Sir Mordred, the prodigious child who possessed unrivalled instinct! Not to mention, many, many more knights. Of course, all these powerful knights followed the Legendary King Ar….toria, who was capable of banishing planetary threats to the depths of the void with each swing of her sword."
"All of them sound so incredibly powerful, Sir Arthur!" Emilia was filled with excitement as she pressed her fingers together, "With so many powerful knights, the Kingdom of Camelot must have lasted for countless millennia, right?!" she beamed at me excitably.
Hearing her words, a frown slowly appeared on my face as various images appeared in my mind.
Scarlet rain that poured from the sky.
Crimson rivers that ran through the earth.
The desecrated corpse of a beautiful ideal reduced to crumbled ruins.
A lone king that stood amidst the bloodshed, and a clarent red light that swallowed the sky whole.
"What is it, Sir Arthur?" Lady Emilia looked at me worriedly, and I reached out my hand, pinching her button nose.
"Ah! What was that for, Sir Arthur?!" her cheeks immediately dyed deep crimson, and I let out a jovial laugh.
"What happened to the Knights of the Round Table is a story for another time, Lady Emilia. Sorry, but you've used all your story time points."
"What?! But we were just getting to the good part!" she huffed, "You're always like this, Sir Arthur!"
"If you wish to hear more about the Knights of the Round Table, please save up your story points or top-up your in-game currency!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Sir Arthur!"
"Don't worry, Lady Emilia, all will become clear in the future, but for now, you'll just have to wait." I raised my hand to cover my mischievous smile, and Lady Emilia could only roll her eyes.
"You're the worst, Sir Arthur!" and with that, she picked up one of her study books, ignoring me, "Don't speak to me for the rest of the journey. You and I are no longer friends!"
Despite the fact she said that, I could feel that our bond had increased significantly. Nonetheless, Lady Emilia was yet ready to learn the truth behind the fall of the Knights of the Round Table… it was a true tragedy, and I didn't want to burden her with such heavy, sorrowful memories, especially when she was currently doing so well.
Perhaps when she had completed the trials of the sanctuary, and was capable of carrying sorrow and guilt on her shoulders, I would narrate to her how the Noble Knights of the Round Table fell into complete and utter ruin.
With that, for the next few hours whilst we journeyed, Lady Emilia studied diligently, and I closed my eyes, creating a net of magical energy and lesser spirits to have constant surveillance on the area. In the case of an attack, I would be able to immediately react and defend the party.
Of course, that was just avoiding an instant death. The truly troublesome matter was protecting my three precious friends whilst fending off the threat.
Rem was a powerful Oni warrior, capable of casually killing powerful humans like Subaru as many times as she wanted to, and Ram was equal to her in strength, capable of amping herself to even stronger degrees at the cost of her own health, and yet, both of these warriors would be rendered helpless in the face of Betelgeuse, one of the weaker members of the Sin Archbishops.
They would need my protection in the case of an attack.
Emilia was more difficult to actually scale. In her default form, she seemed to be Subaru-level, capable of being sneak-attacked by pretty much every single villain, but as she proved in her spar against me, when she was actually in combat mode, she could easily become Elsa-level and even surpass her with magic. It was just an issue of transitioning between normal Emilia and combat Emilia. If she was always in her combative state like me, things would be a lot easier.
Either way, the point was that in the case of a Sin Archbishop, it would be incredibly difficult for the three of them to get out unscathed, and as such, I was focused on defending them from any initial attacks, then escaping with them.
I didn't believe that any Sin Archbishops could keep up with me in terms of running speed, and if I set my mind on retreating with Rem, Ram and Emilia tucked under my arms, no one could stop me.
And as such, I focused every single cell of my body on surveying the situation, and my Instinct was churning away, prepared for literally anything.
Even if Pandora popped out from the middle of nowhere for a chat over tea and cakes, I would not be caught unawares.
And thus, when the towering walls of the capital appeared in sight, I was left feeling rather exhausted, and a touch exasperated, my lips twitching.
What the hell was that? We arrived just like that? Completely unharmed? Naturally, I was thankful that there weren't any attacks, but I couldn't help but be confused at the actions of the Witch Cult. In my professional opinion, if they really wanted to attack us, during that trip was the perfect time.
Most likely, we would be returning from the Capital with Reinhard in tow, so I couldn't physically comprehend why they didn't make a move.
Unless they had something even more disastrous planned, that is.
"Are you alright, Sir Arthur? We're finally here, but you look so tired and serious." Lady Emilia asked worriedly.
"In truth, I'm surprised we weren't attacked." I responded back honestly as I withdrew my net of Magical Energy back into my body.
"Isn't it a good thing if we weren't attacked, Sir Arthur?" my liege tilted her head, "That should be cause for celebration."
"You're right, Lady Emilia, but I can't help but feel that something isn't quite right. Like an ominous premonition that something big is going to go down."
"That's just paranoia, Sir Arthur. Don't worry about it too much, you're strong, and Mr. Reinhard is even stronger, with the two of you together, nothing bad can happen."
Usually, I would be annoyed with her Reinhard favoritism, but admittedly, in this time of confusion, anxiety and worry, I too was using Reinhard as a crutch.
As long as Reinhard was there, everything would be fine. Even the Witch Cult wouldn't be mad enough to attack.
Or so I told myself, knowing full well that the Witch Cult were more than mad enough to attack no matter the time or place, Reinhard or no Reinhard.
Arriving at the gates to the capital, the clock had just struck noon, the sky was a beautiful clear blue, and the Lugunican capital was bathed in deep gold. This was the Sword Saint's city after all, the city that never rained.
Bearing the Mathers coat of arms, we were let into the Capital without any issues, and we were even given a guard escort to the Noble Quarters.
To be honest, I wouldn't mind taking Lady Emilia, Rem and Ram for a quick jaunt through the merchant quarters to get some coffee and snacks, but considering how anxious Lady Emilia was getting towards this meeting with Felt and Reinhard, it seemed better to just get things over with as soon as possible.
To be honest, I was a little perturbed as well, something that Lady Emilia noticed, "Are you alright, Sir Arthur?"
"Well, I can't help but be a little worried that Sir Reinhard might be a little annoyed at us turning up like this. I imagine both himself and Lady Felt have been busy each day preparing themselves for the Royal Selection, and they might find our arrival somewhat intrusive."
"But we've already sent word for them, no?"
"True, but that was more like a notice than a dialogue." I held my chin as I thought about it. Naturally, I knew I was just overthinking, but even in the body of King Arthur, I couldn't stop myself from overthinking things.
"You'll be fine." She patted my shoulder, "You and Mr. Reinhard hit it off last time, it's me I'm worried about. I don't know what Miss Felt's going to think about me after what happened last time."
"I guess we're both as bad as each other, huh?" I smiled helplessly towards Lady Emilia, to which she giggled,
"You may just be right about that, Sir Arthur." She giggled, her anxiety lessening a touch.
"I just hope that Sir Reinhard isn't in the middle of eating lunch when we arrive." I let out a heavy sigh, "I know that there's nothing more annoying in life than being interrupted in the middle of a meal!"
"I guess we'll just have to wait and find out." and with that, we entered into the Noble Quarters.
Like with the Mathers family, the Astrea family owned a mansion within the Noble Quarters of the Royal Capital, where the Sword Saint, Sword and Shield of the late Royal Family resided.
This was not to be confused with their main estate, located nearby Flanders. This was just a 'small' capital retreat for Reinhard to reside when performing his knightly duties within the capital.
Looking at the astounding mansion, I could not help but imagine the helplessness that Reinhard felt as the Royal Lineage he swore to protect crumbled piece by piece.
Despite having all the power in the world, he was unable to save anyone. As a viewer, I sympathized with him, but now, as someone with a liege of my own, I couldn't help but feel my heart ache for his pain. It was truly a blessing he found Lady Felt, most likely a remnant of the late Royal Family, to serve and protect.
Either way, my sentiments aside, after entering through the gates and ascending the driveway, our carriage parked up outside the humungous building, no smaller in size than the Roswaal Mansion despite being located in the heart of the Capital. I suppose this was the power of the Sword Saint lineage.
Surprisingly, there were actually people waiting for us outside. It was none other than Flam and Grassis Remendis, who were being led by Carol Remendis, the former aid of the late Theresia van Astrea.
To be honest, I was greatly honored to be in the presence of such a formidable warrior who fought alongside the likes of Theresia and Wilhelm during the Demi-Human war. The Wilhelm novels were actually the first Light Novels from the Re:Zero world that I brought, so seeing Carol like this in person was a little strange, though considering the last week or two I've experienced, nothing could phase me anymore.
"Honored Envoys of the Emilia Camp, please allow us to formally welcome you to House Astrea." With Carol taking the lead, the three of them bowed in unison, "I am Carol Remendis, the head housekeeper here, and these two little ones are Flam and Grassis Remendis, who assist with my duties."
With that, Rem and Ram jumped off the carriage in a synchronized manner, with Rem stepping up to open the door.
With that, the sound of armor clinking echoed out as I stepped out of the carriage, reaching out my gauntleted hand towards my liege, my figure bathed in wreaths of celestial incandescence, as if the sun itself was welcoming my arrival back to the capital.
"Thank you, Sir Arthur." With that, Lady Emilia took my hand, departing the carriage, and Ram of all people introduced us with a significant lack of sarcasm,
"Honored members of the Felt Camp, please allow me to introduce you to Lady Emilia of House Mathers, and her knight, Sir Arthur Pendragon."
It seemed that even Ram understood the importance of inner and outer circles.
"Lady Emilia." Carol stepped forward and held Emilia's hands, making a warm smile, "Please allow me to personally welcome you to the Astrea Household. I've heard a lot about your heroic actions from Reinhard and Lady Felt."
"Uh-uh?" Emilia became stunned by the sudden bout of kindness, turning her head away from Carol sheepishly, "I really didn't do much, though."
"You're a candidate to be ruler of this Kingdom, Lady Emilia, you should hold your head high and puff your chest out with pride." Carol spoke in a gentle tone as she turned to me, grabbing a hold of my hands, inspecting them, "And you must be the rumored Sir Arthur, despite being a formidable swordsman, your hands are as smooth as marble. It seems your physical constitution is so formidable that even calluses will not form on your palms."
"In truth, it's not that exaggerated, Lady Remendis. In the past, I simply had a rather good healing factor that healed all the scars I earned from my days swinging my wooden sword as a youngster." I sheepishly withdrew my hands, scratching my nose.
"You have good, strong hands, Sir Arthur." She gave me a warm, grandmotherly smile as she pulled her own hands back, "In truth, I've heard a lot about you from Reinhard."
"Sir Reinhard? He wasn't saying anything bad about me I hope?"
"He praised your honor and valor, as well as your talent in destruction. He said that if any of us ever needed any buildings destroyed in the future, we should contact you." Carol turned her head away to hide her laughter.
Hearing her words, I was genuinely dumbfounded. Reinhard had actually been saying such things about me here in the Capital? He's the last person I'd expect to engage in such jokes and gossip.
It was only then that I remembered a conversation between Reinhard and I in the past.
"Tsk, tsk, Sir Reinhard, a noble Knight of the Kingdom resorting to kidnapping? How the societal standards have declined!"
"I assure you, Sir Arthur, this is not what it looks like."
"Sir Reinhard, I'm just playing with you – that was payback for earlier!"
"You're as cruel as ever, Sir Arthur. You'll have to be wary I don't pay you back one day."
Could it be Reinhard was actually being serious? He was not such a petty person in the canon, though!
I couldn't help but rub my hands together deviously as a duplicitous smile spread across my face, Reinhard, it takes two to tango my good friend. This battle between us is only just beginning!
Withdrawing myself from my monologue, I noticed that whether it was Emilia, Rem or Ram, they were all averting their gazes, trying to stifle their laughter, and I couldn't help my lips from twitching.
Sure enough, when it came to the ability to earn respect and awe from those around me, I was still massively lacking compared to the king!
"Speaking of Sir Reinhard, my dear best friend in the world…" I spoke, grinding my teeth harshly together, "Do you know where I might find him? I would like a polite chat with him over tea let's say… fifty to a hundred kilometers away from human civilization."
"Regarding Reinhard, that child…" Carol made a troubled look as she turned her attention towards the entranceway of the Astrea Mansion.
"Bite me, dumbhard, the day I wear a stupid frilly dress is the day I die!" with that, Felt kicked open the front doors and staged her escape from the mansion.
"Lady Felt, Sir Arthur will be here any moment, don't you want to make a good impression?!"
"Sir Arthur can take my foot in his face- hm!" With that, Felt came screeching to a halt as she landed in front of me, making a rather awkward smile as she looked up at my towering frame, "Speak of the devil, good afternoon, Sir Arthur, it's nice weather we're having here, isn't it?" Felt forced out some polite words as she saw my unfriendly gaze, sounding incredibly unnatural.
"Lady Felt, perhaps I'm growing hard of hearing in my old age, but I seem to have heard something about your foot in my face?"
"Geh!" Felt folded as she ran back in the opposite direction, "Rein! Flashy-flash is here!"
"Huh?! He is!?" In that moment, Reinhard came rushing out of the house with an equally awkward expression, arriving in front of us in an instant, making a polite bow, "Lady Emilia, Sir Arthur, what a pleasure it is to see the two of you again."
With that, he wiped the bead of sweat from his brow, acting like nothing had just happened. So cool, he was indeed the Sword Saint.
"Sir Reinhard, it seems that your lady is lacking in demure. She should take some lessons from my Lady Emilia." I gestured to the graceful and beautiful Emilia, who glared daggers at me for adding fuel to the fire when she was nervous.
She did not understand that I was trying to pay Reinhard back for his gossiping it seemed.
Hearing my words, Reinhard made a smile that was not quite a smile, turning to Felt, who looked back at him, grinding her teeth together, "Fine, I'll wear your stupid dress, alright?"
With that, Reinhard made a bright smile, "Lady Emilia, Sir Arthur, though you've only just arrived, please excuse Lady Felt and I for a short while. In the meantime, Carol here will guide you around the mansion, and we'll reconvene at the dining room for lunch."
"Don't worry, Lady Felt, Sir Reinhard, there'll be plenty of time for us to catch up over food later, please just take your time getting ready." I made a somewhat smug smile towards the duo. Sure, Reinhard may be more competent than my unexperienced self in combat, but was his lady as perfect as mine? Heh.
Seeing my smug smile, a 'I won't lose to you!' light appeared in Reinhard's eyes, and after making a polite bow, he and Lady Felt rushed back to the mansion to get changed into their most suave formal wear.
Seeing that, I couldn't help but rub my hands together. It seemed that it was about time for one of my formal outfits to make their appearance!
"Sorry about all the chaos, Lady Emilia, Sir Arthur. In truth, Lady Felt's and Reinhard's relationship can be described as rocky at best, in the just over a week that Lady Felt has been here, she has attempted to escape over a hundred times." Carol let out an exhausted sigh.
"It seems that Sir Reinhard has his work cut out for him in this royal selection." If it was an hour ago, I would offer him some heartfelt sympathies, but since he too was spreading this idea that I was some kind of demolition expert, such sympathies would not be shared.
"Sir Arthur, I'm going to take the carriage to the guesthouse to unpack, and in the meantime, I shall leave Lady Emilia and yourself in Rem's care." Ram made a polite bow, "I'll be back at around dusk to pick the three of you up."
I nodded my head, and Rem held Ram's hands, "Take care, sister."
"Of course." And with that, Ram got back on the carriage and drove off, leaving Lady Emilia and I stranded at House Astrea with Rem as our caretaker.
Authors Notes:
Well, that has been Chapter 16 everyone, I really hope you enjoyed! I would say that Arc 2 is slightly over halfway done now, with around 5-6 remaining chapters, so I really hope you're all still enjoying despite the fact we're diverging from the canon timeline!
As always, thank you so much to everyone who has viewed, followed, favorited or followed my story! It really means a lot to me :D I was absolutely flabbergasted this morning when I saw that we're at 525 followers, that's absolutely incredible to me, so thank you so much to everyone who has followed this story, I sincerely hope I can continue writing a story you all enjoy!
Take care everyone, have a fantastic rest of your week! :D