"I can let you leave… as long as you swear that you will not raise your sword against any Saxon for the next hundred years."
The serpent-eyed man let out what seemed to be a helpless sigh after speaking. His tone was calm, almost friendly, as though he were sincerely trying to negotiate.
"Honestly, we do not wish to continue fighting." He slightly opened his arms while observing Arthur. "We only want a place where we can survive. We had no choice but to resort to this method."
Then, he tilted his head slightly and concluded:
"We hope you can understand our situation."
"If that's the case, then why is only the king allowed to leave?!" Scott immediately shouted from behind the group, unable to contain his indignation.
His face was pale, and his voice carried a mixture of fear and anger.
The serpent-eyed man slowly turned his gaze toward Scott and smiled.
"We trust King Arthur." His eyes narrowed slightly. "But we do not trust the rest of you. Even if you swear."
The words fell like a heavy stone over the atmosphere.
"Of course…" The serpent-eyed man suddenly seemed to think of something and casually pointed toward the pink-haired girl beside Arthur. "It isn't necessary for everyone to stay."
His smile became slightly amused.
"If she happens to be King Arthur's lover or something of the sort… then we wouldn't mind allowing her to leave as well."
Milo's eyes immediately lit up.
She turned toward Arthur, her eyes filled with obvious anticipation, almost as if she were eagerly awaiting his answer.
However, Arthur remained completely expressionless.
"Leave the others behind." The serpent-eyed man's smile widened further. "Make the oath… and you may leave."
Almost at the same instant—
BOOOOM!
A violent explosion echoed behind them.
The massive city gate was finally destroyed.
Shattered wood flew through the air as a tide of Saxon soldiers violently charged toward the group.
The entire ground began trembling.
Without a doubt, this had all been carefully premeditated.
The Saxons had not only predicted their movements, but had also meticulously prepared a trap to corner them.
They had probably been hiding nearby from the very beginning, simply waiting for the perfect moment to completely seal the encirclement.
"Your Majesty, you must leave first." Gawain immediately turned toward Arthur, his expression becoming extremely serious.
"Britain waited far too long for the birth of a new king." His hand tightened around the hilt of his sword. "There will always be a way to protect the king."
After a brief silence, Artoria slowly nodded as well.
"Gawain is right." Her voice remained calm, but her eyes showed unwavering determination. "As long as you are alive… there will still be hope. You need to leave now."
"What kind of joke is this?!" Scott screamed almost hysterically. "Why is only King Arthur allowed to leave?!"
His entire body trembled.
"I want to get out of here too! I don't want to die here!"
"What are you talking about?!" another knight immediately snapped back. "Obviously King Arthur's life is more important than yours!"
"Why?!" Scott roared. "Just because he's the king, does that mean he gets to abandon all of us and flee alone?!"
"You—!"
"That's enough!"
The atmosphere instantly descended into chaos.
Arguments erupted from every side.
Some insisted Arthur had to survive at all costs.
Others were beginning to show fear and resentment.
Seeing this, the serpent-eyed man revealed a triumphant smile without even realizing it.
This was exactly the scenario he wanted.
All those vows and promises had merely been a trap from the very beginning.
He never believed Britain would truly stop attacking them over a simple oath.
No.
The real goal was to destroy the symbol that unified Britain.
If news spread that King Arthur abandoned his own men…
The people's trust would collapse.
The tribes would once again begin distrusting each other.
The Round Table would lose its authority.
And Britain would slowly return to its former chaos.
Once that happened, the Saxons could reorganize themselves and begin everything again from scratch.
"My king…"
Milo gently tugged on Arthur's sleeve.
Her pink eyes were filled with genuine anxiety.
"Let's leave first." Her voice became much softer. "Staying here won't save them."
"There will always be another opportunity later."
After all, the serpent-eyed man had clearly stated earlier that if Arthur wished to leave, Milo could accompany him as well.
Arthur remained silent.
Around him, the arguments continued.
One side insisted the king must survive.
The other slowly began to resent that possibility.
"My lord…"
Lancelot finally spoke after a long silence.
His voice was low and heavy.
"You should leave."
Everyone's eyes turned toward him.
Lancelot continued:
"And then find the traitor."
A heavy silence instantly descended.
Without question, someone had leaked their information.
The Saxons could never have prepared such a precise ambush without inside help.
The only people who knew the route, timing, and plan for this operation beforehand were the Knights of the Round Table and the tribal leaders.
If they failed to uncover the traitor…
All future operations would be at risk.
Artoria looked toward Arthur.
She slightly parted her lips as though wanting to say something…
But then she noticed something.
Arthur was smiling.
It was not a joyful smile.
Nor a relaxed one.
It was a small smile… almost resigned.
"Lily, if it were you…" Arthur finally spoke while looking at Artoria. "And I told you to return to Britain alone… would you go?"
Artoria fell silent for a moment.
Then she slowly shook her head.
"No."
"Then that's my answer as well."
Arthur slowly turned toward everyone present.
His gaze swept across every face there.
"How exactly am I supposed to return to Britain after this?"
His voice became firmer.
"Am I supposed to tell the people that I abandoned everyone here and ran away alone like a dog with its tail between its legs?"
The entire area fell silent.
"The real traitors…"
Arthur slowly raised his golden sword.
"…are those trying to convince me to abandon my comrades."
Everyone froze.
Even the serpent-eyed man seemed surprised for a moment.
Then, after several seconds of silence, he finally spoke:
"…So you intend to break through this encirclement?"
His smile slowly returned.
This time, filled with absolute confidence.
He spread his arms while gesturing toward the massive army behind him.
"Our forces outnumber yours several times over. Even on this side of the city alone, we already have more than twice as many soldiers as you do."
He slightly tilted his head.
"Give up. It would be unfortunate if you were accidentally injured."
Milo cast a glance toward the endless mass of troops spreading before them like an unstoppable tide.
She then leaned slightly toward Arthur and whispered softly:
"My lord, this is an extremely reckless decision. As long as you remain alive, there will always be a way to begin again. If we learn from this experience—"
"Shut up."
Arthur cast a cold glance toward Milo before she could finish speaking. His eyes, usually calm, now carried a terrifying pressure.
"Not everything can be negotiated."
The girl's expression froze for an instant.
Her serene and seductive smile slowly disappeared, like snow melting before heat. It was as though those words had awakened some unpleasant memory within her, something deeply buried in her past.
She lowered her head.
Her hair partially covered her cheeks while, slowly, a blush climbed all the way to her ears. Yet unlike ordinary embarrassment, her eyes shone with excitement and joy.
As though she had just discovered something incredibly precious.
Arthur did not notice this.
His focus was already completely fixed on the battlefield ahead.
Without hesitation, he unsheathed Caliburn.
The golden sword released a soft glow the instant it left its scabbard.
Arthur then raised the blade.
"Charge!"
None of his subordinates moved.
Silence lingered briefly.
Everyone stared at Arthur in disbelief.
This was an utterly irrational maneuver.
The enemy forces ahead were nearly double their size. Furthermore, they were surrounded from both sides, trapped between the armies advancing through the city gates.
Charging forward like that was practically suicide.
Even the Knights of the Round Table hesitated for an instant.
But they had no time to think further.
Because Arthur had already pulled the reins and charged toward the city gate's exit without the slightest fear.
The horse's hooves exploded against the stone ground, scattering sparks.
"Has he gone mad?!" Milo exclaimed, widening her eyes.
But in the very next instant, something even more unbelievable happened.
The group of subordinates who had been desperately arguing moments earlier began charging after him.
One after another.
Without even realizing it, all of them had followed Arthur.
Even filled with fear and doubt, once they saw the king personally leading the charge, none of them could remain standing still.
If the king did not fear death and charged ahead of the army, how could the soldiers retreat?
If the king does not act first, how can the soldiers follow?!
The atmosphere changed completely.
Fear began to be replaced by a kind of irrational fervor.
"Gawain, Lancelot, the decision is yours!"
Arthur partially turned while riding and shouted toward the two greatest knights of the Round Table.
Even while harboring doubts in their hearts, the Knights of the Round Table would obey King Arthur's words unconditionally.
That was how it had always been.
And likely always would be.
The two unsheathed their swords almost simultaneously.
In the next instant, they charged directly toward that overwhelming mass of enemy troops.
This was a result that had never once been in doubt.
But when they looked into Arthur's eyes at that moment, both Gawain and Lancelot felt something strange.
Relief.
As though they had finally found once again the true king they wished to follow.
"Lily, do you remember what I taught you?"
Upon seeing the two knights raising their swords, Arthur lifted his finger into the air, and runes began appearing before him.
Artoria immediately understood his intentions.
She also raised her hand and used the enhancement power of the runes!
The runes instantly spread across the knights behind them.
In a single instant, everyone felt their bodies become lighter, stronger, and faster. Magical power surged through their limbs like a blazing torrent.
"Since King Arthur refuses to negotiate, then we must apologize."
The serpent-eyed man shook his head with a false expression of pity.
After speaking, he slowly raised his hand.
"Stop them."
His voice sounded cold.
Since this new king was so convinced of himself, then they would give him an unforgettable lesson.
They had abandoned five entire territories just to execute this plan.
All for this moment.
How could they possibly allow Arthur to escape so easily now?
But then—
"Sword of Selection, grant me your power and destroy the wicked!"
Arthur raised the golden sword above his head.
"CALIBURN!!!"
BOOOOM!
It was as though a miniature sun had appeared upon the battlefield.
Arthur held the Sword of Selection in his hands, and for the first time since being pulled from the stone, it revealed its true power.
The golden blade shone with enough brilliance to turn night into day.
That sword, which many believed existed only as a symbol of kingship, now unleashed terrifying power.
Or rather…
This was the true power it was always meant to possess.
A colossal wave of magical energy exploded around Arthur.
Then, a gigantic beam of golden light roared forward with deafening force, crushing everything in its path.
The enemy army was instantly swallowed whole.
Soldiers vanished before they even had time to scream.
Behind Arthur, Lancelot and Gawain also raised their swords simultaneously.
With the blessing of the runes, both felt explosive power surging through their bodies.
The two knights charged like hurricanes.
Beams of light erupted one after another across the battlefield.
Artoria also raised her lance.
Her white horse seemed to instantly understand its master's intentions and released a powerful war cry toward the enemy.
"King Arthur, this is your final chance!"
The serpent-eyed man still attempted to speak while watching his army being destroyed.
His smile was finally beginning to falter.
"If you do not stop now, we will have no choice but to take drastic measur—"
BOOM!
More than a dozen beams of light tore across the battlefield simultaneously.
The serpent-eyed man did not even have the opportunity to finish his sentence.
His body instantly vanished within the luminous explosion.
Alongside him, countless enemy soldiers and an entire line of trees behind the army disappeared as well.
The entire battlefield was torn open in a straight line.
"Break through the enemy defenses!"
Arthur once again raised the sword chosen by destiny.
His voice echoed throughout the entire battlefield.
Immediately afterward, a massive army charged through the devastated path carved open by the beams of light.
The horses galloped at maximum speed.
Countless clouds of dust rose behind them.
Amidst the dust storm and the chaos of the battlefield, Arthur and his army quickly vanished from the enemies' sight.
Only destruction remained behind.
Long after Arthur and the others escaped, Menason finally arrived at the scene leading a massive alien reinforcement army.
But it was already far too late.
All that remained was an enormous trail of devastation cutting straight through the battlefield.
"What useless trash!"
Menason stared darkly at the empty space ahead, his expression twisted with rage.
The straight trail carved open by the golden beam seemed to mock him.
"I told him to be careful… Yet he still allowed the enemy to escape."
He slowly clenched his fists.
After that failure, it would probably be extremely difficult to find another opportunity like that again.
(End of Chapter)