Chapter 32: Choice

In a Norman-style castle room.

Su Ya looked at Lu Kan standing under the round archway, then at Mei Li on the other side, feeling somewhat puzzled.

"Let's first hear what kind of fart he lets out."

Mei Li calmly said, "Don't worry, if necessary we can take him out instantly."

At this moment,

Lu Kan pushed open the wooden door of the round-arched ceiling and entered the room, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with Mei Li's words, merely smiling as he looked at the two and spoke:

"Well, then allow me to introduce myself—"

"My name is Lu Kan."

"A thief with a title."

But at this moment, Mei Li snorted at his words: "Is that really your name?"

"Absolutely."

Mei Li asked, "Then how many names is this for you?"

Lu Kan spread his hands: "Miss Mei Li, would you ask yourself how many loaves of bread you've eaten?"

But at this moment, upon hearing that name, Su Ya felt a surge of astonishment,

Lu Kan.

This name isn't particularly conspicuous, and legends don't record much glorious battle record for it, yet its bearer is a bona fide Round Table Knight.

He is the brother of Bedivere, the Round Table Knight from King Arthur's legend, the cousin of Guinevere, King Arthur's royal steward and chief cook, one of the last two knights who stayed by Arthur's side in the Battle of Camlann, and a figure who remained loyal to King Arthur from beginning to end.

Exactly,

Compared to Mei Li, who seized the position of royal steward by force midway, this person might truly be the legitimate royal steward and royal cook!

And now,

The Lu Kan appearing before Su Ya is a seasoned con artist with who knows how many identities.

Good grief, what's wrong with the Round Table Knights in this world?

Thinking this, Su Ya couldn't help but look up and ask:

"Can you cook?"

This sudden question left Lu Kan stunned; after half a second he regained his composure and replied:

"I'm not skilled at cooking, but if you need it, once we reach the capital I can introduce you to a cook."

Su Ya also realized his question was a bit off-topic, and immediately fixed his gaze on Lu Kan, returning to the subject,

"Why don't you continue using the identity of 'Ecto'?"

"Why did you reveal your identity to us at this time?"

"Compared to 'Lu Kan,' the 'Ecto' identity would be more convenient for you to escape your predicament, right?"

Hearing this, Mei Li also turned her head to look at Lu Kan,

She thought the same, and moreover she and Su Ya need Lu Kan to keep wearing the 'Ecto' guise, leveraging its reputation to act.

Lu Kan shook his head,

"The real Ecto already died in battle before King Uther's throne, his corpse left on the battlefield; this news will spread soon, and even my subordinate knights can roughly guess I'm not the genuine Ecto."

"When King Uther was captured that day, things were too chaotic, I couldn't help but leave too many loopholes."

"So I must sever this identity before the news spreads, but I have nowhere else to go, which is why I sought you out."

"Once this news gets out, Seleucus will realize I deceived him; Seleucus himself probably won't act, but his subordinate Hector will surely seek revenge—"

Saying this, Lu Kan paused, giving Su Ya an amused look,

"You stole his treasure, right?"

"I've heard that Hector has been searching for a treasure, trying to outshine Seleucus and gain military authority; he's eager to become a hero, even if it's the weakest kind."

"And the process that created the treasure in your hand involves his deeds, which for him means something different from an ordinary treasure."

Upon hearing this, Su Ya recalled Mei Li mentioning that becoming a hero requires 'deeds'.

"Could it be because of this that the enemy went mad, gathering so many cavalry to hunt me down?"

Mei Li frowned and asked, "In other words, now that Ecto is dead, we can't rally the routed troops under his name."

Saying this, Mei Li looked at Su Ya, about to say something.

But at this moment, Lu Kan suddenly spoke up first:

"You want him to gather the routed troops under the banner of the new king?"

"I advise you not to think about it."

Mei Li, struck at the heart of the matter, immediately retorted, "Why can't Su Ya become king?"

Lu Kan sighed, saying, "You come from the Fairy Kingdom; you don't understand Britannia, nor the upper echelons of Britannia's realms."

"No one will acknowledge his identity; those who could help him rise—King Uther, Grand Mage Merlin, Sir Ecto—are already gone. Using this identity means death; everyone, friend or foe, will want his life."

Mei Li frowned, saying, "Just a temporary stand-in, using this identity to protect us to the capital—even if he can't ascend the throne, wouldn't that work?"

"No." Lu Kan decisively declared:

"First, setting aside that Hector could retaliate at any moment,"

"Seleucus will surely report his intelligence to the Conqueror King, and the Conqueror King will immediately launch a massive dragnet to capture Arthur Pendragon, who has thrown this place into chaos."

"Why is that?"

"Because she is lustful."

Mei Li didn't find this conclusion strange; instead, she continued to frown and retort:

"So what?"

"So, playing house like this will lead us to a dead end; now is not the time to play knight games. We must raise a new banner, scatter our forces, and then, under another identity, escape this meat-grinder battlefield."

Su Ya vaguely felt a discomfort aimed at himself, then immediately looked at Lu Kan and asked in a low voice:

"What identity?"

"You cannot be king, but you can use the identity of Sir Ecto's second son; having this identity is enough for us to continue acting under Sir Ecto's banner."

Hearing this, Su Ya didn't react right away, but Mei Li beside him suddenly furrowed her brows and asked:

"What about those cavalry outside who already know his identity as king and even swore loyalty to him?"

Lu Kan fell silent, closed his eyes and pondered for a moment, then turned his head to look at the yellow spear placed in the corner of the room, the "Eternal Glazed Fire", a dangerous glint flashing in his eyes.

He looked at Mei Li and Su Ya and asked:

"We're not exactly good people, right?"

Mei Li remained silent for a moment, then nodded,

The three of them: one a murderer, one a fraudster, one a bandit gambler magician.

By rights, at this point they should indeed cut ties cleanly.

And then,

Lu Kan finally revealed his true purpose for visiting tonight, took a deep breath, looked at Mei Li, and said coldly:

"We can only... deal with them; you and I joining forces are enough to kill all the knights loyal to this little brat, and completely seal this news, so that no fourth person knows he might be king."

Su Ya listened as the two talked about him as if he were a commodity, excluding him,

The more he listened, the more wrong it felt.

The good news is, he seems not to need, and indeed cannot become, the king of this country.

The bad news is,

The soldiers outside who had just sworn loyalty to him might, because of him, be completely wiped out by these two hidden talents at his side.

So, what next?

Su Ya knew his role was limited to the identity he was substituting, no, should say, these two identities——

One, the heir to a kingdom, is currently being eyed by a bandit gambler beauty for the wealth this identity could bring.

The other, the second son of a knight, is currently being eyed by a loud-mouthed fraudster for the protection this identity could offer, or perhaps more.

And these functions are time-limited,

The deadline for these functions is only until their hastily formed trio reaches the royal capital they speak of.

Perhaps Mei Li still needs him to help play a card game, but that's all.

When his utility is exhausted,

In this small team where nobody is really a good person,

To prevent their respective secrets from leaking,

Who will be the next to be ruthlessly eliminated?

A hot, dry summer breeze blew in from outside the house,

but at this moment Su Ya suddenly shivered, his brain forced to race madly.

(End of chapter)