READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 154: Witch of envy
"Ah, so she is the famous queen who wields the holy blade? Interesting."
Those were Gilgamesh's words as she looked Artoria up and down.
"Yes, I am. Didn't know my name had gotten so famous," Artoria replied, clearly hiding her annoyance.
"Think nothing of it. You are a beautiful lady, I must say. I cannot help but appreciate beautiful things and people. They deserve to be praised, do they not?"
This time Gilgamesh turned her gaze to Ha Joon with a smile.
Before he could tell what was happening, Gilgamesh placed her finger under his jaw and moved her face closer—almost as if she wanted to kiss him on the lips.
This left Ha Joon's women in shock; there was no way the queen was this bold.
Even Artoria, who was normally composed, felt her soul crack into a million pieces just from watching.
'Eh? What is she doing?!' Ha Joon remained calm on the outside.
"That said... A man who is handsome and attractive also deserves my praise, does he not?" Gilgamesh laughed.
In that moment, Ha Joon could feel the gazes of his companions on him. Whatever consequences he was going to face from them depended on how he responded to Gilgamesh.
With a serious gaze, he responded, "I receive lots of compliments from my wife, so I guess you're right."
Like a tidal wave, Ha Joon could feel the calmness of his companions fill the air.
"You're an interesting man, King of Camelot," Gilgamesh said with a smile before taking a step back. "I hope to learn more from you."
'Learn?' Ha Joon was confused.
What could Gilgamesh, a woman with so much knowledge, possibly want to learn from him?
"My servant Ellie will escort you to your chambers, if you don't mind?"
Gilgamesh began to walk back to her throne.
"We do not mind," replied Ha Joon as he watched the woman dressed in white fabric approach him.
At least he had successfully gotten past Gilgamesh without any unnecessary problems. Thankfully, the ladies allowed him to do the talking.
But still... Continue your journey on empire
Ha Joon couldn't help but wonder why Gilgamesh had invited them over like that. She didn't seem too worried, so he knew it wasn't urgent.
Perhaps...
....
(Kingdom of Camelot.)
"Where is the king?" Morgana asked, looking Dame Gwin in the eye.
She was standing outside her room, her black hair falling over her face as she rested her body on the wall.
Morgana had just woken up from a deep sleep, only to find that she couldn't sense the presence of Ha Joon in the castle.
"Lady Morgana. His majesty went to visit the Kingdom of Uruk along with her highness," Gwin responded with a slight bow of her head.
Morgana squinted her eyes. "Uruk? What could they possibly want with his majesty?"
"I wasn't told the full details, my lady, but it was said to be something along the lines of a celebration."
Gwin responded.
"Hmm..." Morgana looked towards the end of the hall, which led to the royal throne room.
"If both the King and Queen are missing, who is in charge of looking after the kingdom in their absence?"
Gwin looked up a bit, as if thinking. "I... hmm... I think it's Lady Merlin."
"Merlin?"
"Yes, my lady..."
"I did not expect to hear that." Morgana smiled a bit. "Really didn't..."
She leaned away from the wall, a small smile on her face as she began to walk away, heading towards the throne room.
Gwin could only stare in confusion, not because of Morgana's words, but because she had actually just witnessed Lady Morgana smile.
No one had seen even a hint of happiness on her face since she was a little girl.
Gwin was shocked, if not perplexed.
After a couple of steps, Morgana arrived inside the throne room, opening the door with full force.
There, she could see Merlin, standing at the entrance and handing out some papers to the workers.
"Morgana?" Merlin called out.
"Merlin... I heard his majesty left you in charge of the kingdom in his absence... Is that true?" Morgana smiled even more, walking towards her.
Merlin sighed, waving her fingers at the individuals surrounding her.
"Leave us."
Her command was not met with deaf ears as they all immediately left the room, even closing the door that Morgana had left open.
"Before you do anything stupid, remember, you just got out of a coma. Sending you back there is not on my agenda today."
Merlin was the first to speak, looking Morgana in the eye as if staring at a predator.
"Relax; after all these years, you still don't trust me."
Morgana stood a few feet away from Merlin.
"You broke my leg when we were little, just so I couldn't attend the same ball as you. Forgive me if I still have anxiety over that moment." Merlin raised a brow.
"I did do that, didn't I?" Morgana stretched her arm. "Urrrgh! So Ha Joon is not in Camelot, if I get that right."
She smiled. "Oh, do you know how hard it was for me to act all good while he was here? I wouldn't want my darling Ha Joon to think I'm some kind of monster."
"His majesty isn't the type to be easily deceived."
"That's what you think; you really don't know him as well as I do." Morgana began to walk around Merlin. "The way he loves playing video games, his obsession with strong, evil women, his fear of being the bad guy in situations even though he has to do it."
Morgana pulled her lips towards Merlin's ear. "Do you even know his fears? What he loves? Do you?"
Other than the fact Merlin was confused as to what a video game was, she couldn't understand why Morgana was telling her all this.
"He used to be so cool, terrified of many things but not afraid to stand up to them. My knight in shining armor was what he was."
Morgana moved towards the throne, gently settling on it, her legs crossed and her arms resting on the armrest.
"Sitting on the king's throne is not only disrespectful but goes against royal conduct. You could be executed." Merlin sighed.
"Then suddenly he changed; he no longer harbored the deep hatred he once had for the world. My sweet baby..."
Morgana ignored Merlin's words.
"But don't worry about it..."
"I wasn't..."
"I'll be sure to change him to the man he is meant to be. To do that, I have to gain back my magic, the one I lost long ago, and you have the knowledge to give it back to me."
Merlin looked at the window, then back at Morgana.
How Morgana lost her magic wasn't a secret. Everyone knew she tampered with a forbidden spell, and it came at the cost of her magic circuits.
That said...
"Even if I was able to, I still wouldn't help you," Merlin responded.
Morgana frowned. "You know, for a witch like myself, you sure do piss me off sometimes. Why are you so against me?"
Merlin felt a huge wave of nervousness wash over her. So intense she had to look around, just to make sure no one was eavesdropping.
"What? Does the fact someone is finally calling you a WITCH after so long terrify you? It shouldn't. You see, a WITCH embraces it. Being a WITCH doesn't make you any less annoying, WITCH. Does he also know that you're a WITCH?"
Morgana made sure she verbally weakened Merlin.
It was obvious.
The look on Merlin's face was that of a child, scared to enter a dark room.
"Shu...t up." Merlin managed to let out.
"Come now, don't be hostile towards me. We are both one and the same. Ah, I know." Morgana's eyes glowed sinisterly. "I wonder what he would think of you if he found out you are a witch? The race that murdered and killed children for their own satisfaction."
"I didn't... I didn't murder..."
"Of course you did. You're a WITCH. You and I murdered and killed people in the name of culture. Don't tell me you're denying your people?" Morgana smiled.
Merlin was mentally breaking down, her eyes widened in fear as beads of sweat dripped from her forehead.
Memories of back then...
The blood... The screams...
She covered her mouth, holding in her vomit before dropping to the ground, breathing heavily.
"Now you remember. That's right, Merlin, just as I said before, you and I... We are the same."
Morgana stood up, walked towards Merlin, and looked down at her.
"Just as we are witches, we also love the same man. Just like me, you despise the women who cling to him. Just like me, you want him to focus on only you. And just like me, you wish every woman who lays their filthy eyes on him dies and ends up six feet under. Am I wrong? Witch of envy... Merlin Ambrosius."
...
[A\\N: Thank you for the chapter]