Chapter Twenty-Four: A Strange Predicament

On his way back, Lancer could not stop pondering how he ought to handle this issue. He had no idea what to do about this woman. Simply killing her seemed futile—who could guarantee another woman wouldn’t come forth to take her place? That would only make the situation even harder to control.

“Forget it, I’m not going to dwell on it. I’ll just play it by ear.” Since nothing had happened yet, no one would believe his words, and besides, the woman had married the current King Arthur. Two women...

He didn’t know what stray thought crossed his mind, but suddenly he felt a warm trickle from his nose. Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, he removed his mask and wiped away the nosebleed.

At that moment, Lancer’s appearance was rather enchanting—yes, enchanting rather than merely handsome. As a self-proclaimed recluse, his once pale skin was now laced with violet magical patterns. He had never been the muscular, burly type; his physique was lean and well-proportioned, nothing like those unnaturally robust men. And in a country of blond hair and blue eyes, his jet-black hair gave him a demonic allure.

Yet Lancer had not realized that a shadowy figure trailed behind him.

“Oh! What a beautiful lady you are!” A voice slithered into Lancer’s ears, making his skin crawl—not because of its strange tone, but because the speaker had addressed him as “lady.”

Lancer immediately put his helmet back on and shouted, “Who are you? Don’t you know I am the ‘Crimson Knight’ under King Arthur?” He was speechless. He had always been on the delicate side, but at least he had never lacked for masculinity. Yet ever since arriving in this world, his murderous aura had grown while his skin became ever more flawless, and he seemed to grow younger by the day. He certainly didn’t think this was a reward for being transported here; he suspected Lianhua had some secret scheme. Hmph, who’s thinking about me now? Never mind, I’d better think about how to rewrite the script. Somewhere, a certain girl in white was sprawled on a cloud, scribbling something...

“Oh, no need to say more, my lady. I understand. In this era, women are not valued, so in order to serve the king, you’ve disguised yourself as a man and become a knight. Oh, what a beautiful story! As a fellow knight—Bors—I am deeply moved. My lady, let me join the royal army!” The man completely ignored Lancer’s words and rambled on. When Lancer heard his name, he was speechless. Was the entire Round Table full of such oddballs?

He’d taken a shortcut to watch Toria and Gawain’s meeting, but to his surprise, he ran into another knight. Not wanting to waste words, he dashed toward the castle. To his astonishment, Bors kept up with him; Lancer knew that Bors was not famous among the Round Table knights for his combat prowess.

One was desperate to shake off his pursuer; the other was determined to chase after the “beauty.” Before long, they arrived at Toria’s castle. Lancer rushed inside and quickly ordered the guards to stop Bors.

“Good heavens, to think I’d run into—” No sooner had he entered the city gates than Lancer spotted Gawain leaning there.

“What happened?” Gawain was surprised to see Lancer in such disarray; even when they had sparred, Lancer had never looked like this.

Lancer recounted the events as they walked, and Gawain looked at him with a peculiar expression. “We’ve only dueled a few times, haven’t we? As men, we’ve never shared lodgings. You always sleep alone.” His gaze was distinctly odd.

“What are you getting at? Everyone knows I only have eyes for Arthur.” Lancer said this without the slightest embarrassment. Even the usually dense Gareth had begun to sense something.

“Enough jokes. Our real issue now is Toria’s marriage. You know as well as I do, if she marries this woman, it will be a tragedy for everyone.” Worry filled Gawain’s words. To him and Lancer, Toria was not only their sovereign but also like a sister, and neither would sacrifice her happiness for the sake of some supposed alliance.

They chatted as they walked, soon arriving outside Toria’s bedchamber. Lancer knocked gently, and Toria’s voice called from within.

He opened the door softly and found the two women chatting on the bed. For anyone else, the scene might have seemed suggestive, but knowing the truth, the two men gave it no thought.

“My king, I have just discovered an extraordinary young knight. I believe he could be of great use to your cause.” Lancer spoke as any ordinary guard would, giving himself a perfectly legitimate reason to be present.

Toria merely nodded, seemingly unconcerned with the news, and then said to Lancer, “Lancer, I have made my decision. I intend to marry Gawain.”

“What?!”

———Lancer’s absence, a line break———

“Gawain, why did you ask me to come to your bedchamber?” Toria stood by her desk, looking at the girl seated on her bed. Any ordinary man would have swallowed nervously at the sight, but as a woman herself, Toria felt nothing of the sort.

“Arthur, you’re a woman, aren’t you?” Gawain’s first words stunned Toria, but the once-naïve girl had long since become the King of Knights and quickly regained her composure. “Gawain, what do you mean by that? Are you questioning me, the King of Britain?” Though still the same girl, Toria now exuded the authority unique to the King of Knights.

“Enough with the airs. I, too, am a candidate for the Lady of the Lake and have begun my training.” Gawain calmly dropped another bombshell.

“As a candidate, I learned of your secret from the other sisters. I would never reveal your identity. In exchange, however, I hope you’ll help me.” A faint blush crept across Gawain’s cheeks as she recalled something.

“What is it?” Realizing her secret was safe, Toria relaxed and asked coolly.

“I hope you can introduce me to Lord Arthur.” All composure vanished from Gawain’s face.

“Very well, it’s settled.” In the end, who knows how Gawain negotiated, but Toria agreed to marry her, and arranged for Lancer to serve at her side. Since both were women, it would be easier to explain things to Lancer later. Though it should have been a simple matter, Toria found herself strangely unsettled.

“What’s going on with me? I swore to lead Britain to greatness—how can I waver here?” She silently steeled her resolve.

“Everything I do is for Britain!” Little did Toria know, each time she repeated this to herself, the shadow in her heart grew deeper.