As the head of the Wind Clan and the lord of Salisbury, it was only natural that Aurora’s residence appeared quite splendid, filled with an air of elegance.
"Please, have a seat."
Aurora welcomed Riezel and Artoria to sit down, then took a seat across from them.
Coral silently stood behind Aurora, her gaze on Riezel and Artoria still filled with caution.
Artoria aside, Riezel’s attention had already been drawn to Aurora.
Only now did Riezel finally have the time to properly observe this head of the Wind Clan.
She had long, lustrous golden hair that clearly took a great deal of time to style, and wore an exquisite formal gown, with butterfly-like wings extending from her back, just like Coral. Her pointed ears were another distinct feature of the Wind Clan’s fairies, and this clan head was no exception.
Her skin was fair, her figure tall and graceful, and every movement she made radiated elegance, where even a single glance or smile from her carried a breathtaking beauty.
Coupled with the ever-present gentle smile on her face, it would be no exaggeration to call her a perfect noble lady. In fact, if someone claimed she was a goddess, many would believe it without hesitation.
In truth, within Faerie Britain, Aurora enjoyed tremendous popularity.
Her status was second only to Morgan’s, yet she was not as cold or terrifying as Morgan, but gentle and kind.
She was as beautiful as Lancelot, yet unlike Lancelot’s cool demeanor, she was incredibly approachable.
Some called her the most beautiful fairy.
Some called her the gentlest woman.
Some called her the kindest clan head.
Even though the title of the most beautiful fairy remained a matter of debate due to the presence of Morgan and Lancelot, her reputation as the gentlest and kindest was universally acknowledged among the fairies.
For this reason, Tristan disliked her, believing that such gentleness was nothing but hypocrisy.
On the other hand, Woodwose admired her greatly, as she always treated him like a gentleman, speaking softly and with understanding.
Lancelot shared a close friendship with her.
Gawain kept a constant watch on her.
Spriggan would sometimes visit her quite frequently.
Even Muryan considered Aurora someone not to be underestimated and remained wary of her.
Such was a woman admired by many fairies, and one who drew the attention of just as many.
If popularity alone were to be considered, she might very well have been the most beloved figure in all of Faerie Britain, surpassing even Lancelot.
Even Riezel had to admit, if a pure and innocent young boy were to meet Aurora, there was a ninety percent chance he would be instantly smitten, fall for her at first sight, see her as the goddess of his dreams, and spend many long nights thinking about her, completely enamored.
When interacting with such a dazzling noble lady, anyone would naturally let down their guard, trust her, rely on her, and open their heart to her.
Unfortunately, just as a certain thought passed through Riezel’s mind, Aurora spoke.
"I’m very glad."
Aurora closed her eyes with a gentle smile.
"It’s truly wonderful that you both made it out of Camelot safely. When I heard that the Fairy Knights had encountered you and fought with you, I was really worried you might run into danger, but it looks like I worried too much. Even with the Fairy Knights acting together, taking on the Child of Prophecy and the foreign magus is no easy task."
Upon hearing this, Artoria was filled with mixed feelings.
She felt as if she had hardly been of any help.
During the encounter with the Fairy Knights, aside from briefly blocking Tristan, she had done nothing else. It was thanks to Riezel alone, who fought Gawain, that they had been able to escape.
And what about her?
Not only had she done little beyond momentarily holding back Tristan, but in the end, it was Lancelot who saved her life.
How could Artoria not feel conflicted about that?
Of course, Riezel thought that Artoria’s Reinforcement had been quite effective, because thanks to her support, he had been able to suppress Gawain throughout the fight. Facing the atavism-state Gawain without Reinforcement would have required much more effort on his part.
However, Artoria didn’t know this, so she simply spoke her honest thoughts.
"Fairy Knights are really powerful..."
When she said this, Artoria could not help but think of a certain disgrace among the Fairy Knights, which caused her tone to pause slightly without meaning to.
Still, she continued speaking.
"If it were just me, there’s no way I could fight against the Fairy Knights. It was all thanks to Riezel that we managed to hold them off."
Artoria’s words earned a cheerful smile from Aurora.
"I never doubted that." Aurora said with a gentle smile toward Riezel. "Lord Riezel’s strength is well known throughout all of Faerie Britain. My Salisbury is proof enough of that."
Standing behind Aurora, Coral immediately cast a wary and hostile glance at Riezel.
It was understandable.
It was because of him that Salisbury had ended up in its current state.
"So-Sorry!"
Being reminded of Salisbury’s destruction, Artoria quickly apologized to Aurora.
"Don’t worry about it. It’s not entirely your fault."
Aurora shook her head, surprisingly open-minded.
"If it hadn’t been for Lancelot, Gawain, and Woodwose chasing you down, you wouldn’t have had to fight in Salisbury. So, if we’re talking about responsibility, at least half of it lies with the Fairy Knights and the Fang Clan."
"Besides, Her Majesty the Queen has already made reparations, and the citizens of Salisbury have received compensation."
"Not many people care about this anymore. In fact, some fairies even think rebuilding Salisbury is a fun game now."
If this had happened in the human world, it would surely have been unimaginable, but with fairies, the situation took on a different meaning.
Even though many fairies had perished in the disaster a month ago, who would still remember them?
For fairies, who could turn on each other for the slightest reason, who could kill close friends or even lovers without hesitation, the death of a few unrelated individuals simply was not worth remembering.
Consequently, when Aurora said that not many still cared about the matter, it was indeed true.
Aside from a few fairies like Coral, who viewed the situation from the standpoint of Salisbury’s leadership, the rest, including Aurora herself, had likely already forgotten the terrifying impact Riezel had made that day.
If Riezel were to walk the streets now, there would probably be a crowd gathering to see him, and not a small one at that.
Such a fact brought a faintly ironic look to Riezel’s face and made Artoria’s feelings even more complicated.
Aurora, unaware of all this, simply looked at Riezel and spoke again.
"After seeing your strength, your power... even I can’t help but start believing in the Mirror Clan’s prophecy."
Naturally, Aurora was referring to the prophecy that the Child of Prophecy would overthrow Morgan, take the throne from the false king, and be crowned the true king.
"If it’s you, I think... I’d be willing to help you ascend the throne."
Such a statement could only mean one thing—Aurora was preparing to betray Morgan and join the faction seeking to overthrow her.
"Lady Aurora!"
Coral could not help but speak up.
"I know what you want to say, Coral." Aurora stopped her with a gentle voice. "Yes, this decision is sudden and very dangerous. If we’re exposed or fail, I know I’ll be facing the gallows. I’m well aware of that."
As always, Morgan was no benevolent ruler, but a tyrant ruling through fear—a dictator who had unified Faerie Britain by crushing the six great fairy clans through sheer force.
In the past, the Wind Clan had once opposed Morgan, but like the other clans, had suffered a devastating defeat, which was why the Wind Clan and the other clans had no choice but to submit to her and acknowledge her as queen.
Needless to say, to go against such a fearsome witch now, and worse, through outright betrayal—if things went wrong, Aurora would surely face death.
Yet, she did not hesitate in making this choice.
"Britain has no future as it is now."
"Fairies are being forced to bear command spells and hand over magical energy that is no different from their very life force, like they’re on a countdown to death. Once their magical energy runs dry and they can no longer pay the tax for existing, they die."
"Meanwhile, humans are being controlled, enslaved, and treated like livestock. Even if they’re completely used up, no one would care."
"On top of that, the Queen is plotting something terrifying, trying to invade Proper Human History. We have to make a change while we still can."
Aurora’s words left Coral speechless.
Riezel, on the other hand, remained calm, even a little indifferent, as if he did not echo Aurora’s sentiments.
It was Artoria who seemed puzzled.
’Proper Human History?’
She remembered that when Morgan exposed her in the throne room, hadn’t Morgan mentioned the term too?
—Artoria, my sworn enemy from Proper Human History.
In the throne room, Morgan had indeed said this to Artoria, who had still been in disguise at the time.
What did it mean?
Artoria wanted to ask, but before she could, Aurora spoke again.
"There are many others who think the same as I do. Whether it’s the Round Table Army formed by humans, the northern King Clan, or those in Sheffield, none of us can accept the Queen’s rule anymore."
"Now, with the Child of Prophecy and the foreign magus from the Mirror Clan’s prophecy having appeared and shown such power, we should no longer hesitate."
"For the Fairy Kingdom, for Britain, we must make a choice."
Aurora’s gentle persuasion finally plunged Coral into complete silence.
As Coral said no more, Aurora turned her attention back to Riezel, making him a promise.
"I know the Wind Clan’s strength is nowhere near that of the Fang Clan. Even the guards maintaining order in Salisbury are just conscripted humans used as combat power, so I can’t send an army to support you."
"But our intelligence network surpasses all others in Britain. Our fairies are scattered across the major cities—Norwich, Gloucester, Oxford, New Darlington, and Manchester. We have people everywhere."
"I can lend you the Wind Clan’s eyes and ears so that you can get the latest information from all over Britain as fast as possible."
"Also, if you plan to undertake a pilgrimage and ring the other Bells of Pilgrimage, I can help with that too."
Aurora said that if she stepped in to negotiate, she could probably help Riezel and Artoria ring two more Bells of Pilgrimage.
Norwich was the territory of Spriggan, the head of the Earth Clan, who was a greedy man but had dealings with Aurora, so if she intervened, there was a good chance he would turn a blind eye.
Oxford, known for its great restaurant, was under the control of Woodwose, the head of the Fang Clan. Given that he had a violent temper and was undoubtedly loyal to Morgan, there was no way he would allow Riezel and Artoria to ring the Bell of Pilgrimage.
However, Woodwose harbored some complicated, unspoken feelings toward Aurora, so she could use that to lure him away and let Riezel and Artoria reach the bell tower in Oxford without interference.
Gloucester, the fashion city, would be a bit more troublesome.
Muryan had holed up there, refusing to step outside the city, and remained somewhat wary of Morgan’s faction, so it would not be easy to persuade her to cooperate.
As for the north, Orkney had already become a wasteland, causing even the Wind Clan to have little information about its current state. If Riezel and Artoria wanted to ring the Bell of Pilgrimage there, they would likely have to go and take that risk themselves.
Meanwhile, the last Bell of Pilgrimage had disappeared along with the Mirror Clan many years ago and remained missing to this day.
"I’ll send people to look for the Mirror Clan’s Bell of Pilgrimage, and I’ll also have someone check the region of Orkney." Aurora spoke softly about her plans. "I’ll try to talk to Muryan as well, and do my best to get her permission for you all to ring the Wing Clan’s Bell of Pilgrimage."
All of this was the extent of the help Aurora could offer.
"Aurora..."
Artoria hesitated, but in the end, said nothing.
She knew the reason Aurora was being so sincere and willing to help was because of Riezel. Because Riezel was the Child of Prophecy, the one who gave her hope of overthrowing Morgan, Aurora was willing to set aside past grudges and ignore the losses at Salisbury to stand by his side.
If Aurora knew that Riezel was not the Child of Prophecy and that she herself was, it would be hard to say if Aurora would still go this far.
Such a fact made it impossible for Artoria to speak up, to say that she was the true Child of Prophecy.
Riezel, on the other hand, did not object at all.
"Honestly, the matter of the Bells of Pilgrimage isn’t that hard to handle." Riezel looked at Aurora deeply and said calmly. "What’s really difficult is dealing with Morgan."
For the remaining five Bells of Pilgrimage, if Artoria truly wanted to ring them, Riezel had ways to help her accomplish it in a short time.
Just like with Salisbury’s Bell of Pilgrimage—when he said he would take Artoria there, he took her there. He just had not expected so many things to happen afterward, even causing Morgan to take action herself.
As long as Riezel was not worried about getting sniped after ringing the Bells of Pilgrimage, he could easily use teleportation magic to bring Artoria to the bell towers in Oxford, Norwich, Gloucester, and even Orkney, allowing her to ring the four Bells of Pilgrimage with ease.
Even for the last Bell of Pilgrimage, Riezel knew how to find it—or rather, how to make it appear.
However, the problem was that even if Artoria rang all the Bells of Pilgrimage, it did not guarantee that she would be able to defeat Morgan.
Everyone believed that once the Child of Prophecy completed the pilgrimage and rang all six Bells of Pilgrimage, they would become the savior and defeat the witch ruling Britain. Only Riezel knew that ringing the six Bells of Pilgrimage was not the end, but just the beginning.
Knowing that fact, Riezel stood up.
"Let’s take some time to think this over first."
Riezel spoke calmly, which made Coral raise her eyebrows.
Surprisingly, Artoria had no comment, while Aurora was briefly stunned but quickly went along with it.
"You’re right... For something this important, it’s best to consider it carefully and plan accordingly..." Aurora said, then turned to Coral. "Coral, go prepare a room for Lord Riezel so he can rest."
"...Understood."
Coral lowered her head and replied before leaving the room expressionlessly.
"Please stay here for now. Later, I’ll introduce a special helper to you." Aurora said warmly.
Riezel nodded calmly without asking anything, took Artoria’s hand, and left the lord’s chambers.
Aurora watched them go, and after a moment, she let out a soft sigh with a smile.
"As expected of the rumored savior. Really hard to deal with."
===
Outside the Lord’s Chambers, in the Corridor.
Riezel held Artoria’s hand and walked through this place.
Riezel did not speak right away, while Artoria also remained silent the entire time, quietly following him.
"Do you trust her?"
After a short while, Riezel suddenly asked this question.
Artoria’s expression froze for a moment before she answered.
"I... don’t know..."
Indeed, Artoria truly didn’t know.
"Even though Aurora is very gentle and kind, and makes people want to trust her, not everything she says is the truth..."
Saying this, Artoria seemed to have noticed something early on with her Fairy Eyes, which surprised Riezel a little, so he let out a soft laugh.
"I almost forgot. No one can lie in front of you."
Riezel had thought Artoria fully trusted Aurora by now, but it seemed that Artoria also had her own thoughts.
"Is there really something wrong with her?" Artoria asked hesitantly.
"Kinda ironic, isn’t it?" Riezel did not answer directly but instead looked amused. "Sometimes, the ones who show you kindness aren’t always good people, and the ones who show you hostility aren’t always bad people."