Chapter Twenty-Four: The Kill (Please bookmark, please recommend)

As the group scrambled to dodge the incoming arrows, Edwin chanted another spell, and a wall of fire instantly erupted to block their path. Seizing this opportunity, he turned and dashed toward Morgana’s chambers, intending to take her hostage to secure a chance at survival. Even if he ultimately failed to escape, he could at least take her with him as a final act of vengeance. Though he knew this was far from gentlemanly, he was even more acutely aware that Morgana had been entirely innocent in this affair from the start.

Edwin did not consider himself a villain; he had never intended to drag the innocent into his quest for revenge. Even with Gaius, his only plan had been to exploit the "misdiagnosis" to drive the physician from the court and keep him out of harm's way.

But at this point, he had no other choice. All he could do now was make King Uther feel the pain of losing a loved one right before his very eyes.

Seeing Edwin charge toward Morgana’s room, Arthur prepared to rush through the fire, but Uther immediately held him back.

"There is no need to worry. Kay is there."

His tone was filled with complete confidence in Kay.

***

Edwin chose to return to Morgana’s room because that direction was not surrounded by soldiers; only a single knight stood guard there. By comparison, it seemed the path with the greatest chance of success.

That knight was, of course, Kay.

Watching Edwin charge toward him, Kay sighed. Sorcerers were the most troublesome of all. If you gave them even the slightest opening, they would use all manner of bizarre abilities to make your life a misery, or worse, cost you your life.

The best way to deal with a sorcerer, therefore, was exactly what King Uther did: gather a crowd, say nothing, and fill them with enough arrows to ensure the job was done once and for all.

What made matters worse was that with so many people watching, Kay couldn't use many of his own methods. He had no desire to reveal powers akin to sorcery in front of Uther, as that would be a true test of the bond between them. In Kay’s experience, affection was the one thing least capable of withstanding such tests.

As long as people were human, they had their own agendas; not everyone made decisions based solely on sentiment.

However, since the sorcerer had already charged right up to him, Kay had no choice but to engage. Fortunately, his superior physical conditioning meant that even without resorting to his hidden abilities, he remained the finest warrior in the British Isles.

Discarding those extraneous thoughts, Kay drew the twin swords from his waist. He crossed them in front of his chest in a gesture of salute.

"Get out of my way!" Edwin, seeing a knight blocking his path, had no desire to tangle with him and intended to use telekinesis to fling the man aside. But the very moment he reached out with his mind, the knight launched into a sliding sprint, closing the distance like an arrow loosed from a bow. Before Edwin could react, the swords that had been crossed at the knight's chest swept forward, scissoring through Edwin’s neck.

The knight’s speed was blinding. Edwin felt a sudden chill at his throat, and then his world plunged into darkness.

Soul energy acquired.

Kay glanced at Edwin’s headless corpse as it collapsed to the floor and shook his head. Based on the sorcerer’s reaction, he was nothing more than a novice. He might have been able to bully ordinary people with his flashy parlor tricks, but against a master—no, even against an average knight who was on his guard—he was easily dispatched. Magic was not invincible. Combat was a contest of comprehensive strength; knowing a few spells meant nothing.

If it were otherwise, the plight of the sorcerers today would not be what it was.

"Kay! What’s happening outside? Is something wrong?" At that moment, Morgana, having just regained consciousness, noticed the commotion outside her room and asked with a hint of concern.

"Oh, it's nothing. Everyone is just a bit excited to hear that you’ve woken up," Kay called out toward the room while waving for the soldiers to hurry and clean up the mess. A lady’s quarters had no place for such gruesome sights.

"I’ll tell them to keep it down. After all, you’ve just woken up and are still very weak; you need your rest."

***

The news of Princess Morgana’s recovery quickly spread throughout the city, and everyone who heard it breathed a sigh of relief. As for what illness she had suffered, no one knew, nor did anyone care; the only thing that mattered was that she was unharmed.

Thus, no one knew that an apothecary named Edwin had treated the princess. Not even Morgana herself was aware of such a person. She only knew that she had been exhausted by the preparations for the banquet the night before and, compounded by a cold, had fallen into a stupor.

Although Morgana didn't believe a simple cold could cause her to lose consciousness, the facts were what they were, and she had no grounds to argue. She had no choice but to follow Uther and Kay’s instructions to remain in bed for two days to recover her strength.

King Uther was motivated by a simple, deep concern for Morgana’s health, fearing any lingering side effects that might haunt her for the rest of her life. He insisted that Gaius examine her at least five times a day to ensure no further accidents occurred.

Kay, however, felt differently. He knew there was nothing wrong with Morgana’s body; on the contrary, she was in better health than ever before.

He remembered the mysterious energy he had sensed within her earlier.

That power had been locked in a struggle against the curse on Morgana’s body, which was why she had felt no ill effects after waking. Now that the curse was gone, the mysterious energy had not vanished with it; instead, it had only grown more potent.

Kay had insisted on Morgana’s rest precisely to observe this power. He could not determine what it was, where it came from, whether it was benevolent or malevolent, or how it would affect her. With so many variables, he felt it was best to be cautious.

More importantly, this could not be allowed to reach Uther’s ears. Uther was a die-hard anti-magic zealot; because of past events, he believed magic was inherently evil. Any person or object associated with magic was something that had to be destroyed.

If Uther ever discovered that his beloved daughter was involved with magic...

Whatever the outcome, it would not be pleasant.

Since he knew this, Kay could not allow it to happen. While the relationship between the father and daughter might not be a paragon of filial piety, it was certainly not bad, so why subject such a bond to unnecessary trauma? Kay had no interest in "tax evasion" or causing tragedy for the sake of it. Morgana and Uther were fine as they were; they did not need such turmoil and strife.

Therefore, Kay had to uncover the truth and find a way to mask the influence of that power.