Kill with a Stare

Standing there, under the scrutiny of everyone, was a knight of exceptional height, his heavy armor snugly fitted to his body, his massive frame exuding an imposing presence. His face displayed no hint of fear.

"In the end, it's just a sword. Even if you pulled it, it doesn't prove that you're the chosen king."

"..."

"Who is this guy? How dare he speak so arrogantly."

"Pulling the sword from the stone and becoming king, that's the prophecy of the Great Mage Merlin. Does he think he's even more powerful than the great mage?"

"It's a well-established tradition and known to everyone, and yet he makes trouble with that nonsense reason. I bet this guy has no good intentions."

The knights' gaze carried a hint of hostility. Most of them had acknowledged Arkhan as the king, but suddenly, an outsider appeared who didn't conform to the norm.

Who could tolerate this?

If they upset the new king and soured his impression of all of them, wouldn't all their preparations be in vain?

Stealing someone's wealth was akin to killing their parents, especially since this was the opportunity they had been waiting for so long. If this fool's words caused them to lose it all, they would find it hard to forgive.

Feeling the tangible hostility and resentment, the tall knight couldn't help but take a step back, beads of cold sweat forming on his forehead, his eyes revealing a hint of fear.

'This isn't right; the script wasn't supposed to go like this. Wasn't I supposed to step forward to rally everyone's emotions and then unite to challenge the new king? Why do these people look like they want to devour me...'

"Hah! A mere clown dares to question you. Your reign as king seems like a failure ehh~" Nidhogg's voice echoed in Arkhan's mind, full of malicious glee.

"In this world, not everyone has a brain, you know..." Arkhan said to Nidhogg indifferently, a coldness in his pitch-black eyes.

"Hmph. Let's see how you plan to end this farce." Nidhogg snorted and fell silent.

Kay and Artoria, standing behind Arkhan, clenched their fists tightly, a hint of annoyance in their eyes. They were about to step forward when they noticed someone had already stepped out.

Lamorak removed the spear from his back, the sharp tip pointing directly at the tall knight. His face remained unmoved. "Dishonoring the dignity of my king, even if it costs me my life, I won't regret it. I, Lamorak, as a knight of King Arthur, challenge you to a duel!"

The tall knight swallowed hard, fully aware of how powerful Lamorak was. There was no way he could win. If he accepted, death was the only outcome.

"I only spoke my mind, is the so-called great king so petty?!" The tall knight shouted loudly. The situation before him was dire, and he had to find another way out.

Lamorak showed no emotion, advancing with his spear calmly.

"Come back, Sir Lamorak. Don't let this man's blood stain your weapon."

Lamorak hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at Arkhan, his brow furrowing. "But Your Majesty, this man has stained your dignity, and I..."

"I know your loyalty, Sir Lamorak, but let me handle this matter personally."

Arkhan stepped forward, patting Lamorak's shoulder, and then turned to look at the tall knight, saying lightly, "You said just now that I'm not worthy of this throne?"

As the tall knight looked into those emotionless pitch-black eyes, he shivered. But thinking of the handsome reward that was about to come his way, he gritted his teeth.

"That's right! Since the founding of Camelot, all the kings have been exceptional warriors. But you want us to recognize your kingship with just a broken sword? It's not that easy!"

He drew his massive sword from his waist, pointing it at Arkhan.

"If you want me, Carlock, to acknowledge your status, you'll have to defeat me!"

In his heart, Carlock couldn't help but give himself credit for his quick thinking. Although the process had been somewhat crooked, he had still managed to achieve his goal. As long as he could force Arkhan to fight him, he would receive that handsome reward from those people.

But, he got a cold laugh instead.

"Oh, so that's how it is. Is that the order of some guy behind you?" 

Carlock's pupils instantly shrank to the size of pinpricks, and a towering wave surged in his heart.

'H-How could he know...?'

"Do you want to show off in front of me with this? Your idea isn't bad, but dealing with someone like you isn't worth drawing my sword."

Arkhan's pitch-black pupils suddenly became incredibly profound, as if two black holes were hidden within them.

As he stared at those eyes, Carlock's gaze gradually became vacant, and his expression grew more and more dull.

A strand of darkness deeper than the night itself began to burn in the depths of his pupils, though no one knew when it had ignited.

Carlock's body swayed for a moment, then collapsed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"???"

Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment, even Artoria and Kay wore puzzled expressions.

From their perspective, Arkhan had just stared at Carlock for a moment, and the latter had suddenly fallen to the ground without any physical contact. 

What on earth had happened?

Lamorak approached, checked Carlock's breath, and nodded to Arkhan.

"He's already dead."

"?!!!"

Gasp filled the area.

They had thought Carlock had merely passed out, but it turned out he had died just from a brief stare!?

This was even more terrifying than the legendary Medusa!

If Arkhan had killed Carlock in a direct battle, they would have admired the new king's bravery.

But to simply stare at someone for a moment and have them die, without anyone knowing what had occurred was too terrifying!

For a moment, everyone looked at Arkhan with deep fear in their eyes.

"You need not be fearful, everyone~!"

Merlin's familiar voice spread as he appeared behind Arkhan, wearing a warm smile on his face.

"The new king is the chosen one destined by fate for Camelot, the fated ruler of the British Isles. This man has blasphemed the king's dignity, and thus, he suffered the backlash of fate and losing his life. It's a perfectly normal occurrence."

'So that's how it is!'

Everyone suddenly realized, and their fear transformed into reverence for the new king.

"How did I do, Your Majesty? Not bad, right?" Merlin stood beside Arkhan and whispered.

Arkhan glanced at Merlin and subtly nodded.

In truth, this was a line Arkhan had prepared, a chance to strengthen his position in the public eye. But now that Merlin had said it in his stead, the effect was even better.

Despite Merlin's notorious unreliability, he was still the most famous sage and mage in Britain. What he said carried far more weight than the words of Arkhan who had just become the new king.

When such words came from someone else, they left a deeper impression. If Arkhan had said it himself, it might have seemed like self-praise.

From this perspective, this white-haired incubus wasn't entirely useless after all.