Chapter 107: Merlin: My King, You Must Take This Seriously...
In the end, the matter of explaining things to Artoria concluded with her own resolve.
After hearing the whole story, Morgan first expressed her disgust for Merlin, then burst into laughter at Artoria's attitude.
She looked as if to say—"As expected of my sister."
Then Morgan handed over her current workload to Noah, while she herself went to find Artoria, saying something about having a sisterly heart-to-heart talk.
Noah had no objections to this.
But he didn't start working right away either. Instead, he placed the pile of work Morgan had pushed onto him—which was two or three times taller than Fou when crawling—right in front of Fou.
Then, as she stared in shock at the mountain-like stack, Noah placed a quill in her arms.
"Help me handle this a bit. I have something urgent to attend to."
Hearing Noah say this, Mary, who had originally planned to lie in the sun and sleep in her Fou form, couldn't help but roll her eyes in a human-like manner while still in Fou form.
As for what urgent matter he had to handle, Noah didn't hide it from Mary.
Due to Mary's current state, Noah would discuss almost everything with her, except for highly private matters. Whenever he encountered a problem, the first person he contacted was basically Mary.
In a sense, Mary had already become his assistant.
His assistants should be Morgan and Mary, not Morgan and Merlin.
"White, if you're contacting me now, it means you've made progress in Rome, right?"
That's right.
The urgent matter Noah mentioned was none other than White, whom he had previously sent to Rome, contacting him just now through long-distance communication.
This matter concerned his true name, and Noah was quite curious about it.
Mary was the first to point out that "a god's true name is an extremely important thing," and she also knew that Noah had sent White to Rome to investigate.
So when she heard Noah say that White had made progress, she pricked up her pointed ears while handling the documents.
And White's voice came through from the other end of the communication at that moment.
"Your Majesty, I have indeed made progress and understand the specific situation. If you are in a hurry to know, I will try my best to find a way. But if you are not in a rush, please allow me to explain it to you after I return."
Hearing White say this, Mary understood, and although Noah was momentarily stunned, he quickly caught on as well.
He recalled the power contained within his name when Mary wrote it in midair using Magecraft.
White likely avoided mentioning his name or any hints related to it in the communication Magecraft for this reason.
"White, is it because this communication Magecraft cannot bear the power contained within my true name?"
"Yes... Your true name inherently contains immense power, likely due to your strength. But in any case, your true name is more domineering than other powerful names. If it were spoken here, not only would the communication Magecraft be unable to withstand it, but it could even damage the communication equipment. So if you are not in a hurry, please allow me to report to you after I return."
"I permit it."
Noah nodded upon hearing White's words, indicating that this was acceptable.
After exchanging a few more words with White and learning that she was already on her way back to Britain, Noah concluded the communication for now.
However, at the end of the conversation, White said something that left Noah somewhat concerned.
"Your Majesty, before I return to Britain, please be sure to consider your stance toward Rome."
Noah was puzzled by White's statement.
As for his stance toward Rome... was it because of his true name?
Moreover, based on what White had mentioned earlier, it seemed his biological parents had been exiled by Rome and even ambushed during the process.
That would imply he originally belonged to some kind of criminal family in Rome?
But even so, given Rome's current state, could Sword Emperor Lucius really go to war with Britain over this?
As for White worrying that he might seek revenge against Rome...
Not only were his impressions of his biological parents vague, but compared to them, the deceased old knight and Morgan felt more like the family who raised him.
Besides, even if war did break out... it certainly wouldn't be his side that should fear.
Britain already held an overwhelming advantage over Rome.
Once the Knights of the Round Table and the Fairy Knights were established, Rome would stand no chance against Britain.
Even if Sword Emperor Lucius, as described by the old sword, was said to be stronger than Gawain and Lancelot, at best, she would only be on par with Artoria after she matured.
Without the Holy Lance, someone like her wouldn't stand a chance against White, let alone with Scáthach and him on their side.
No matter how he thought about it, victory seemed assured.
If there was anything to be concerned about regarding Rome...
It could only be the Titan.
But the Titan hadn't erupted yet. At this moment, Rome was still fighting Altera, the King of the Huns.
So, Noah had no clue what White meant by her words.
And Mary felt the same.
Her Clairvoyance allowed her to see the situation in Rome. Apart from the Senate's archives, certain rooms in the emperor's palace, and special places like the Pantheon, she could observe the entirety of Rome.
Compared to Britain, where a significant portion was obscured, Rome held no particular secrets for her at this moment.
Since there were very few places she couldn't see, by observing people's activities, it wasn't hard to guess what was happening in those unseen areas.
With such a perspective, Mary also didn't believe Rome posed any threat to Britain now.
The Sword Emperor Lucius of this world was indeed different from the one in her original world.
If the Lucius from her original world seemed somewhat formidable, then the Sword Emperor of this world... wasn't she just a transformed red-haired monkey?
What threat could a woman who resembled a red-haired monkey possibly pose to Noah?
But Mary also knew that White would never lie to Noah.
So, since White had said this...
"Then let's wait until White returns before we discuss it further."
Mary said this, and Noah nodded in agreement.
"That's all we can do."
...
Both Noah and Mary were waiting for White to return.
Meanwhile, Morgan, having just finished her heart-to-heart with Artoria and feeling she had now grasped both familial love and romantic love, was also waiting. She was awaiting confirmation from the agents she had sent to Rome to investigate whether the intelligence regarding Shijou Aoko was true or false.
However, before any of them returned, another individual made their return.
————That was Merlin.
A few days prior, Merlin had used investigating the Holy Sword as an excuse to run off to the Lady of the Lake.
Originally, he had planned to stubbornly linger there for a while.
But then he heard Vivian, the Lady of the Lake, speak some prophecies concerning Rome, and Merlin rushed back at top speed.
This matter had a significant impact on his King Arthur legend!
Previously, no matter how much the process of the King Arthur legend changed, the final enemy was always Vortigern, the inevitable doom—a villain character who could never compete with the hero for the hero's position.
From Vivian's prophecies, he learned that everything seemed different from what he had anticipated. Not only had Britain truly given birth to Noah, this Chosen King, but it seemed Rome had also birthed an emperor highly recognized by the Pantheon!
Moreover, when he used his Clairvoyance to look towards Rome, he found he couldn't even locate this individual!
So he hurried back, intending to inform Noah about this matter. He had to make Noah take this seriously!
That individual would undoubtedly be Noah's destined rival!
In his view, it was more like the protagonist of another story had invaded the tale he had been watching all along!
Thus, Merlin returned to Camelot and immediately sought out Noah, directly laying out the matter.
"Your Majesty, you must take this seriously. That individual, clearly hidden away by Rome, even bestowed the name 'Romulus'—the name of Rome's founding emperor—by the Pantheon, will inevitably be your destined rival!"
"Vivian's prophecies are rarely wrong, so Your Majesty, you absolutely must pay attention to this Romulus!"