Morgan left Lot's side.
That horndog had pushed all the responsibilities onto her.
Now, the only "productive" thing he did all day was mess with Merlin's head.
Everything else fell to her.
But Morgan was in a good mood today, so she didn't mind taking on a little extra.
She had gained two new goals to strive for.
The first was researching the "vitamin" thing Lot had mentioned.
She had a feeling that completing this research would help her understand Lot better—and at the same time, it would undoubtedly strengthen Camelot's power.
Morgan speculated that if she could squeeze every last drop of knowledge out of Lot, she could elevate Britain to unimaginable heights.
Perhaps, just as Lot envisioned, their influence wouldn't be confined to this island.
We'll cross over to France.
Even march upon the legendary city of Rome itself.
See with our own eyes what the famed Seven Hills truly look like.
So—
For Britain's future…
Please hurry up and let me drain you dry!
Morgan thought to herself with quiet determination.
The second matter was the establishment of the knightly order.
The army Lot envisioned would be too difficult to realize—common soldiers simply weren't suited for it. But if she gathered a group of knights and instilled in them both unwavering faith and strict discipline…
Well, older knights wouldn't be suitable for that.
If they were too set in their ways, it'd be hard to… reshape their beliefs.
So younger ones would be ideal.
Hmm…
Young, skilled, and capable knights.
Wait.
Morgan thought of two people.
These two could be considered newly recruited knights under both her and Lot.
They should be the most loyal to us, right?
Good. She'd go find them.
Her eyes gleamed with purpose as she set off toward where Kay and Artoria were.
Strike while the iron is hot—Morgan was never one to dawdle when it came to action.
...
When she arrived at Artoria's ship, Morgan found the girl standing alone at the deck's railing, observing something intently.
Startled by Morgan's sudden magical approach, Artoria's hand flew to her sword—but upon recognizing her, she quickly sheathed it and stood at attention, straight-backed.
"Your Majesty, the Queen."
She spoke loudly and formally.
Now that she had sworn loyalty to Lot, her address for Morgan had shifted from "Your Highness, the Princess" to "Your Majesty, the Queen."
"Mhm."
Morgan nodded lightly.
Then, glancing around, she raised an eyebrow.
"Wait, where is everyone else on the ship?"
"They're eating," Artoria replied.
"And you?"
Morgan was curious.
Though Artoria was small in stature, her strength was undeniable. There was no way the others would exclude her.
"Ah… I'll eat later. The ship's cooking pot isn't big enough to prepare everyone's meals at once."
"..."
Morgan suddenly felt the urge to leave.
With a food enthusiast like this, would our knightly order end up revolving around a cooking pot?
What would people think when they saw us?
"Ah, those knights who hold their meetings around a giant stew pot."
Would we end up being called the Round Pot Knights?
Oh, please, no.
That name alone might make the enemy lose half their fighting strength—from laughter.
But after some consideration, Morgan decided to recruit her anyway.
Artoria's talents were exceptional, and Lot had hinted at her having unique qualities. So, she'd allow it—as long as Artoria kept her eating habits discreet and didn't embarrass them in front of enemies.
Dignity must be maintained.
"Very well. You can eat later. There's something I'd like to ask you."
"What is it?"
Though reluctant (her stomach growled softly), Artoria listened attentively.
Morgan met her gaze seriously.
"I wish to establish a knightly order—and I want you to be among its first members."
Knightly order?
Artoria's ahoge curled into a question mark.
Is this about transferring me to a specialized unit?
A group composed entirely of knights…
The idea stirred something in her heart.
Then, recalling Merlin's words, she thought:
"Lot and Morgan are different. King Uther only has the Queen as his heir—so the throne of Camelot will likely pass to her and King Lot. Becoming a knight under them now would surely pave the way to becoming a renowned and distinguished warrior."
So—
"Your Majesty, I would be honored to join your knightly order."
"Excellent."
Morgan smiled in satisfaction.
At that moment, Artoria tilted her head slightly.
"By the way, Your Majesty… how many members are in this order?"
Let's see who else is in it.
That'll give me an idea of my standing.
"Ah… just two for now."
Morgan averted her eyes.
Artoria's ahoge twisted into another question mark.
"...And the other member?"
"I'm about to recruit them. That would be your foster brother, Kay."
Morgan's gaze drifted upward.
The sky is so blue today…
Is it too late to back out?
Artoria wondered internally.
But then, she considered that having just the two of them might not be so bad.
If the order truly consisted solely of her and Kay, then her brother would be the order's First Knight—and she, the Second Knight.
Hmm… founding members, then.
That's still quite prestigious.
The thought comforted her.
In fact, she felt so reassured that she estimated she could eat five extra loaves of bread tonight.
"Then come with me to find your brother Kay."
Morgan gestured for her to follow.
"As you command."
Artoria nodded firmly.
Together, they sought out the knight Kay.
And when Kay learned that Artoria had already joined Morgan's fledgling order, he agreed without hesitation.
"Good. Our knightly order is now officially established."
Morgan was pleased as she looked over her two new recruits.
"Ah, Your Majesty—since we're forming an order, shouldn't we have a name? What will we be called?" Kay asked.
"Oh. Right."
Morgan snapped back to attention.
If we don't pick a name now, people might start calling us the Round Pot Knights!
We need to decide on one, fast.
But what should it be?
After a moment's thought, Morgan concluded that this was a problem best left to a certain horndog to solve.