In a cramped room within Camelot's royal castle, a man and woman sat facing each other.
Alvin stood up and walked to the windowsill, gazing through the window toward the direction of Camelot's royal palace.
The ancient European-style white building seemed coated in a warm golden glow under sunlight, majestic and sacred.
It was afternoon now.
The streets bustled with pedestrians, and occasionally patrolling knights could be seen checking transmigrators who had appeared in the empire.
Behind him, the golden-haired girl blinked at Alvin.
Although she didn't say anything, she was obviously a little surprised.
"Who did you just say should persuade King Arthur?"
After a long while, the girl silently pressed her forehead and sighed helplessly: "Alvin, am I dreaming or hallucinating right now? Did you really just suggest having Merlin mediate with King Arthur?"
If she hadn't pinched her thigh hard enough to feel pain, Reines might have thought she was hallucinating.
Merlin Ambrosius...just this surname meant 'eternity'.
He was the greatest mage in Arthurian legends, King Arthur's mentor, a half-human half-nightmare hybrid.
In legends, he witnessed Camelot Empire's rise and fall.
He served as both Britain's court mage and the king's guide, a prophet.
Such a being... if he really intervened to mediate, it would certainly be effective...
But—
Merlin was after all from Camelot Empire.
Why would he help you, an outsider?
Although she had felt that Alvin was unreliable when they were in the Clock tower before, Reines was still a little surprised that he could be so whimsical.
Noticing the strange expression on her face, Alvin snapped out of his thoughts and asked blankly: "What's wrong?"
Reines' mouth twitched slightly as she said helplessly: "Are you pretending to be stupid or are you really serious? Merlin is King Arthur's teacher - why would he help transmigrators like us?"
"And even if we take a step back and just assume that he would, King Arthur might not listen. By the end of 'Arthurian legends', the king and Merlin were practically estranged."
"Estranged...?" Alvin froze for a moment before murmuring softly: "Is that recorded in 'Arthurian legends'?"
"Yes, didn't you know?"
Reines gave the boy a strange look before speaking. "Initially, King Arthur deeply respected her teacher. But Merlin was the driving force behind 'The Death of the White Dragon'. It was during that battle that King Arthur's lover, the 'Night Watchman', died in her arms."
For some reason, Alvin suddenly became motionless, like a statue, lost in prolonged contemplation.
"Could the worldline have changed...?" In the end, he couldn't help but mutter in a joking tone.
In Alvin's memory, 'The legend of Arthur' contained no records of King Arthur and Merlin becoming estranged... Had the worldline shifted somehow?
Because the story Reines was telling was exactly the same as the Type-Moon game Alvin had played!
"I know you rarely visit the library, but how could you not know such important history?" Reines clearly felt frustrated by his lack of knowledge. "How on earth did you pass last semester's history elective?"
Whatever Reines was saying, Alvin had completely stopped listening.
At this moment, he was entirely immersed in his own thoughts.
If what he was experiencing now wasn't an illusion, then the game's storyline had clearly influenced this world's timeline...
Alvin's eyes flickered with an unreadable emotion, perhaps shock, or something else entirely.
"Alvin? Alvin?"
After a prolonged silence, the golden-haired girl waved her hand in front of his face, snapping him back to reality.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I just remembered something," Alvin replied with a smile. "Don't worry. King Arthur is probably just being cautious with Merlin because of certain warnings."
"But on major issues, she would still take Merlin's reasonable suggestions into consideration"
*Take care of yourself, eat well, and... don't trust Merlin.*
Those were the three pieces of advice Alvin had given "before dying." From Reines' words, it seemed Artoria had taken them to heart.
"You don't even know the Arthurian legends properly, so how can you be sure King Arthur would listen to Merlin?" Reines rolled her eyes. "And even if she would... where are we supposed to find Merlin now?"
The legendary Grand Mage of Camelot, a Grand Caster—even the highest echelons of the Clock Tower would bow before him.
Not just Reines, but even her arrogant uncle Kayneth wouldn't dare show the slightest disrespect in Merlin's presence.
If a Lord of the Clock Tower descended upon Camelot, they might stand a chance against the Knights of the Round Table from the Age of Gods.
But facing the court mage Merlin himself?
Most transmigrators would struggle to muster the courage to even look him in the eye.
After all, he was one of the three Grand Casters.
In Reines' knowledge, she couldn't think of a single modern mage capable of matching Merlin or sitting at a negotiation table with him.
"Merlin is an elusive figure. Hoping to actively find him isn't realistic," Alvin shook his head slowly. "In the end, we don't even need to go looking for him."
"So what, are we just supposed to wait for him to come to us?"
Reines crossed her slender, black-stockinged legs, twirling a strand of golden hair around her finger as she spoke in a half-joking tone. "If Merlin really does come looking for us, he'll probably bring an entire battalion of knights to arrest us, won't he?"
"He'll come," Alvin chuckled. "In fact, he's probably had his eyes on you since the moment you entered the royal capital."
Reines was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized something and whispered. "...Clairvoyance?"
Indeed, if it were Merlin, he likely would have noticed them as soon as they set foot in Camelot.
The only silver lining was that, according to legend, the court mage always maintained a playful attitude toward life, so, she didn't think he would go out of his way to hunt down two 'kids'—
*Knock, knock…*
Suddenly, a series of raps came from the door.
Reines' heart leaped into her throat, until she heard the voice from outside.
"Hello? Anyone home?"
"Your dear big brother Merlin is here~!"
…Merlin?!
Reines shot to her feet on reflex, already reaching to drag Alvin toward the window for a quick escape.
But then she saw him, calmly walking toward the door.
And under her stunned gaze, he slowly pushed it open.
.
.
.