C130

Under the blazing sun, the intense heat caused the earth to crack. As one walked on the hardened soil, a wave of heat rushed up through the soles of their shoes, making them curse the scorching weather and sweat profusely.

A peculiar group of four individuals were strolling leisurely on the wide country road.

At the head of the group was a black-haired youth adorned in silver knight's armor, with a white cloak draped over his shoulders. To his left, a white-haired magus walked with a smile on his face, and with each step he took, two beautiful flowers bloomed.

To the youth's right was a female knight, her delicate features reminiscent of a lily in full bloom. Her eyes were a piercing shade of blue, alertly scanning the surrounding area for any potential threats. In her hand, she held a gorgeously decorated sword, its surface glinting in the sunlight.

Following behind these three individuals was a young knight carrying a large bundle on his back, silently trailing behind them. With each step he took, his footfalls were heavy, creating a sound like a heavy object hitting the ground and raising a cloud of yellow dust. This peculiar group of four caught the attention of many people.

Indeed, the magus's ability to make flowers bloom while walking was truly eye-catching. However, despite this, no one came forward to strike up a conversation with them. This group of four was none other than Shirou and his companions.

"Is this Garrod?" Shirou asked, looking towards the nearby town, and turning to Merlin who was walking beside him.

"Yup," Merlin nodded.

At this moment, Kay caught up with them from behind and couldn't resist teasing Merlin. "Hey, old white mouse, can you stop with your illusions? People are staring at us!"

Merlin retorted, "What do you mean by 'old white mouse'? It's Merlin, big brother Merlin! Besides, I can't dispel the flower field. It would ruin my image."

Kay scoffed, "Who cares about your image?"

"Enough with the complain. Besides, the king supports me," Merlin replied.

"Is that so?" Kay raised an eyebrow.

Shirou chuckled, "There's nothing more attention-grabbing than this."

"I see," Kay nodded, pretending to understand.

"Huh, I see? what does that mean? Why won't you listen to me, but you listen to the king?" Merlin complained.

"Because you're a white mouse who can only trick people, while Arthur is an honest king," Kay sneered.

"What a joke! Arthur is even better at tricking people than me!"

He was hurt. The king, who was even better at tricking people than him, was right in front of him, yet he was still being called honest. It was just too unfair!

Shirou stood at the gates of Garrod, taking in the scenery. The townspeople nearby couldn't help but cast curious glances at their unusual group, but no one came forward to welcome them.

Kay approached and asked, "My king, what are we doing here?"

"What are we doing?" Shirou rubbed his chin, then smiled. "Why, to stir up some trouble, of course!"

"Cause...trouble?" Kay was a bit perplexed, not entirely understanding his intentions.

Shirou didn't elaborate and instead turned to Artoria. "From now on, if there's anything that you find offensive, charge in and take care of it!"

"Huh?" she was taken aback, hesitating for a moment before expressing her concerns. "Are you sure that's a wise decision? It may offend some of the nobles, my king. It could harm your rule."

Her thoughts were rigid, but she was not foolish. She swiftly deduced the hidden implications.

As Shirou had already mentioned, the purpose of their journey was to increase his renown and for more people to recognize "Arthur." The most straightforward way to achieve this was, of course, to stir up trouble in different locations and stand up for the common people.

Nevertheless, in the ancient era where the nobles held power, this approach was highly likely to provoke people and prove detrimental to Shirou's bid for the throne. This was because the most prominent nobles consisted of Shirou, who was soon to be crowned king, followed by the northern kings, and then by knights and nobles such as Brastias and Ector.

"I trust you to handle anything that comes your way. If there's ever a situation that proves too difficult for you, I'll be there to step in," he reassured with a warm smile.

Artoria nodded in understanding and then took off like a sentry, keeping a watchful eye on her surroundings and on the lookout for any signs of injustice.

"Are you sure it's wise to grant her such unrestricted freedom? things could easily take a turn for the worse," Kay cautioned, concern lacing his words.

"I'm not afraid of things going wrong; what truly worries me is the prospect of nothing happening at all," Shirou responded, a playful smile dancing on his lips.

Kay felt a headache coming on. It appeared that amongst their group, it was Shirou who had the true penchant for trouble-making!

By this point, Artoria had already encountered a thug who was harassing innocent people. She began to scold him before ultimately engaging him in a fight. As a result, the attention of the crowd had turned towards Artoria and the battered thug, with many eyes also fixated on Shirou and Kay.

Despite Kay's desire to intervene and stop the fight, Shirou held him back.

"That's enough, right?" Kay said helplessly. "People are staring at us with strange looks."

Shirou asked Kay curiously, "You've been leading troops in the dreams for years, so why are you feeling intimidated by this?"

Kay replied with a helpless tone, "Dreams are just that- dreams. Reality is entirely different. How can you confuse the two? And aren't you embarrassed by all these people staring at us?"

Shirou smiled and responded, "No, I don't feel embarrassed. As the chosen king, I have to stand before the people and accept their gaze. In the future, you will have to lead troops to attack Vortigern, so it would be best to adapt as soon as possible."

After a brief pause, he glanced over at Kay and couldn't help but ask, "Where's Merlin? I haven't seen him since earlier. Do you know where he went?"

"I have no idea. Who knows where that white mouse scurried off to," Kay taunted before asking, "Do you need my help to find him?"

He shook his head and smiled, "No need. The next battle is mine to fight!"

Taking a deep breath, Shirou faced the crowd and loudly proclaimed, "People of Garrod! I am Arthur, son of Uther, the incarnation of the red dragon of Britain, and the destined king!"

As the number of onlookers continued to grow, Kay felt the pressure weighing heavily upon him. He was overcome with a mix of pressure, shyness, and fear... he wished he could lower his head and bury himself in a hole in the ground!

The feeling of being laughed at like a joke was simply unbearable for Kay. However, when he sneakily glanced at Shirou's profile, he helplessly realized that Shirou remained calm with a faint smile on his face.

His heart is just too strong!

Kay sighed inwardly and suppressed his urge to flee out of fear. Instead, he followed in Shirou's footsteps.

As Artoria spoke out against injustice, Shirou seized the opportunity to deliver a speech and rallied the people of the town of Garrod. Even the patrolling guards were drawn in by his words and joined the gathering crowd.

The guards were prepared to take down Artoria and Shirou for causing trouble, but Shirou swiftly retrieved Caliburn and fired a beam of light into the sky. This sudden action caused the guards to hesitate, and they dared not take any further action against them.

"Wow! It's the king prophesied by the great magus Merlin!" exclaimed a bystander.

Another onlooker chimed in, "He's the embodiment of the Red Dragon, who will lead us to victory against the White Dragon Vortigern!"

"Will he bring us a peaceful and stable life?" questioned yet another.

Excited whispers filled the crowd as they chanted, "Arthur! It's Arthur!"

...

The sudden beam of light caused people to initially be stunned for a moment, but their emotions quickly escalated. Soon, the crowd was in a state of chaos!

Meanwhile, on a nearby balcony, Merlin smiled and walked towards a group of girls who were pointing and discussing Shirou's speech.

"Hey, ladies, are you talking about Arthur?" Merlin asked with a grin.

The girls turned to look at him and were captivated by his handsome appearance, coupled with the gentle smile on his face. As he walked, flowers bloomed around him, creating a dreamy and beautiful scene, reminiscent of a prince from a fairytale. Some of the girls couldn't help but feel their hearts flutter.

One of the girls asked shyly, "May I... ask who you are?"

Merlin gently lifted the girl's chin with his hand and smiled. "My name is Kay, a knight of King Arthur. Would you like to have a fruitless love affair with me?"

Overwhelmed with excitement, the girl answered without hesitation, "I... I would, Lord Kay!!" Her heart was aflutter with excitement.

Merlin smiled.

Standing next to Shirou and listening to his speech, Kay suddenly shuddered all over. It felt as though a cold hand was slowly crawling up from behind him, causing him to feel uneasy and uncomfortable.

"What... what is this feeling... this kind of chill..." Kay's eyes flickered with confusion, trying to understand the strange sensation he was experiencing.

...

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