I Pulled Out the Excalibur

I PULLED OUT THE EXCALIBUR
Chapter 25 – The City of Opportunities, Cambria (1)

Sword Aura, the symbol of a Sword Expert.

It’s considered the exclusive domain of the strong who have reached a certain level, but for a transcendent being like Merlin, Sword Aura wasn’t anything special. The stage where she had been active was crowded with those who easily emitted Sword Aura.

The Sword Aura itself wasn’t surprising.
The realm of a Sword Expert was the same.

Having seen countless seekers and masters surpass the level of a Sword Expert, Merlin wasn’t easily amazed by mere talent. So, what exactly had left her speechless?

The answer was simple.

-…How old are you?
“I’m eighteen.”
-By the standards of the Empire?
“Yes, by the standards of the Britain Empire.”

The first point was the boy’s age.
18. Not a young age, but too young to emit Sword Aura. Even for Merlin, who wasn’t greatly concerned with the ways of the world…

「Merlin!」
「Look at this. The youngest-ever Sword Expert has emerged. He managed to emit Sword Aura at the age of twenty-three. Can you believe it?」
「My goodness, twenty-three!」

She remembered, about a decade ago, the buzz around the birth of the youngest Sword Expert. Bedivere had made a fuss about it. She clearly remembered her own surprise upon confirming the news.

Emitting Sword Aura at twenty-three was certainly astonishing. Except for the exceptional case of King Arthur, he was called the youngest-ever Sword Expert. Isn’t he now the head of the Order of the Sword?

‘A so-called genius emitted Sword Aura at twenty-three.’

But the boy before her was eighteen.
When had Arthur emitted Sword Aura? She couldn’t be sure since Arthur was already handling Sword Aura when they met, but she thought their ages were similar.

-……

Merlin gazed at the boy’s sword in silence.
Even if it was impressive that he emitted Sword Aura at a young age, the color of the Sword Aura shimmering before her now was something she couldn’t overlook.

She was at a loss for words.

Platinum-colored Sword Aura. That was something only Arthur could handle, Arthur’s exclusive domain. Of course, it’s too early to judge just by the color of the Sword Aura. She would need to re-evaluate when the boy reached the level of a Sword Seeker capable of imbuing his Sword Aura with his own sentiments…

But just in case.

If the boy’s Sword Aura possessed similar properties to Arthur’s, it was not a matter to be taken lightly. Platinum-colored Sword Aura was like a thorn in the side of anything related to Camlann.

And above all.

The moment the dragons recognized the boy’s Sword Aura, they would try to kill him by any means necessary.

‘…This has become complicated.’

Even if it wasn’t revealed that Najin was the owner of Excalibur, the moment Najin’s Sword Aura was exposed, he would be targeted by countless forces.

The light the boy possessed.

It was something the boy as he was now couldn’t handle.

Merlin had thought it would be fortunate if the boy could handle mana to some extent, but she discovered something beyond her imagination in him. She chuckled. What the boy held was full of too many dangerous things.

If discovered, things that would make the whole world target him.

To nurture the boy to a level where he could survive in the world with these things in his possession was her role as a far-off guide.

A difficult task. A path where everything collapses if misstepped.

But, as the boy himself would say… That’s what makes it a path worth challenging. A smile spread across Merlin’s face.

While traveling, Najin had several conversations with Merlin.

From these conversations, he gathered a few points and tried to organize the information.

“First, you said that the constellations that could become my allies… are far from here, right?”
-Yes. We are bound near Camlann.

The Knights of the Round Table.
And the heroes who were with Arthur.

They were located not inland but on the boundary line at the edge of the world, spending their time hunting the cursed beings from Camlann that crossed through the cracks in the seal Arthur created, Merlin explained.

-Even if that weren’t the case, constellations usually find it difficult to intervene inland. To intervene, they need to create an order, and that’s not a simple task.

The fact that most constellations cannot intervene inland.
Constellations can only intervene in intermediate areas away from inland or in battlefields of stars and near Camlann.

-Normally, just talking to you would require me to bear an enormous burden. But since I transferred my consciousness through Excalibur, I can talk to you comfortably like this.

Although she didn’t fully understand, Merlin boasted that what she had done was quite amazing and something ordinary constellations wouldn’t even dream of. For Najin, listening to her, it was just a matter of accepting it.

-The point is this.

Merlin said.

-Unless you have your own star and reach a certain level to come to the battlefield of stars, it’s hard for us to protect you. Inside the mainland, you must survive on your own.
“Like King Arthur did?”
-Yes. Arthur was pursued by numerous demons and nations that worshiped demons… but for you, it’s just different enemies.

There might be constellations and forces friendly to Arthur and to Najin…

-Simply relying on goodwill, the malice of those who are determined to kill you is a bit too intense.

There were too many enemies to rely on just goodwill.
Merlin muttered and smiled bitterly.

-Do you understand what I’m trying to say?
“Roughly.”

Najin was quick to understand and had a rough idea of what Merlin was trying to say.

“Hide the special things I possess. That’s what you mean, right? If they are exposed, I’ll be targeted by troublesome forces.”
-Exactly.

Fortunately or unfortunately, only a very few knew that Najin had drawn Excalibur. The order was somewhat annoying, but they wouldn’t want to expose their own faults either.

“For now, I just have to be careful of the Starlight Order.”
-……

At the mention of the order, Merlin fell silent.
Having briefly learned about Najin’s origin and the background of his life in their conversations, she sighed deeply and spoke.

-…That’s my oversight.

Her voice slightly subdued.

-I never thought the order’s judgment body would be maintained in such a way, in such a manner.

To think they would try to kill a candidate who drew the sword, possibly challenging Arthur’s authority. Would they act so decisively to protect the order’s reputation?

-I didn’t think the ‘Lighthouse’ I know would have the audacity to do that. Whether it’s the lower ranks acting on their own or the Lighthouse is involved, I need to find out. I’ll ask Bedivere to…

“Don’t do it.”

As Merlin was muttering about how to respond to the order’s actions, Najin interrupted her.

-…What?
“Don’t. Don’t touch the order.”

Najin said decisively.

“Whether it’s taking revenge on the order or punishing them… I’ll do it with my own hands, without anyone’s help.”

He had made that promise.
Ivan had said to become an existence that no one could ignore and to reclaim his honor. Saying so, Ivan made Najin his squire.

Even though that promise was broken.
And was overshadowed by a new vow.

Najin still considered himself Ivan’s squire. The honor that Ivan had been trampled by the order could only be reclaimed by his own hands, Ivan’s squire. He didn’t think Ivan would appreciate honor regained with someone else’s help.

‘Someday.’

Beyond a Sword Expert.
When he reaches the next level after Ivan, a Sword Seeker. If that’s not enough, then to the even higher level of Sword Master…

When he is fully qualified.
When he has enough power.

Then he will return to that city and proclaim. He came to reclaim the honor of the Knight of Atanga, Ivan. That the starlight they tried to trample has returned like this. Imagining a distant future, Najin said.

“There are things that I can only reclaim, only obtain if I bring them down with my own hands. So don’t interfere.”

Merlin was silent.
Feeling the weight in the boy’s voice.

-If that’s what you say, alright.

His determination to achieve his goals with his own strength. Someone might mock that stubbornness as foolish, but Merlin liked that foolishness. The people who were with Arthur were nothing but such fools.

…He’s an interesting young man to guide.

Thinking so inwardly, Merlin returned to her original role. A guide who shows the way. She was there to advise, but walking the path was the boy’s responsibility.

The City of Opportunities, Cambria.
The city that became the backdrop for King Arthur’s rise to prominence and where his epic began to take shape.

Was it because Arthur built his reputation in Cambria and gathered his comrades there? Or was it because Cambria was the starting point of his journey? At some point, Cambria came to be known as the ‘City of Opportunities.’

The city, with its background of magical beasts and various anomalies, and the legend of King Arthur tied to it, naturally attracted adventurers and mercenaries.

In this city formed by adventurers, nobles seeking hidden talents and external capitalists and merchants targeting adventurers and mercenaries flocked in.

As the city developed, students from academies, apprentice mages from magic towers, apprentice knights, and others… young buds about to step into society would come to Cambria to hone their sense of reality.

Hence the nickname, City of Opportunities.

If you have talent, if you have the right qualities, no matter how lowly your origin, you can rise to great heights in Cambria.

Chasing opportunities.
Or gold and power.

Every year, countless people come to the City of Opportunities with big dreams. But, of course, not all of them can succeed. While some find success, others realize the limits of their talent and end up stuck in the city’s alleyways.

So…

Although the situation is a bit different, like Najin now.

-……
“……”

Both Najin and Merlin were silent, unable to accept the current dire situation.

…Here’s the context:

Najin arrived in the City of Opportunities, Cambria, after following the path guided by Merlin for ten days. Camping in the forest, filling their stomachs by hunting animals, and barely catching a ride on a carriage, they made it to the city.

Everything was fine until they reached the city.

The problem was they had run out of money. And they were starving. Their emergency food supplies had been used up long ago, and it had been days since they had a proper meal.

Wandering the city with a hungry stomach for a while.

When Najin came to his senses, he found himself in a dingy alleyway. It was almost like a habit.

-…Why did you come here?
“Thinking of rummaging through the trash.”
-…Seriously?

Najin nodded.
Merlin was horrified.

-That’s, that’s not really right, is it?
“No, we have to survive somehow.”
-You should beg rather than…! No matter what, rummaging through trash isn’t the way to go…!

Najin laughed while listening to Merlin’s cries of dismay.
In truth, Najin didn’t intend to rummage through trash. He would do it if really cornered, but for now, he still had some leeway.

There was a reason he came down this alley.

“It’s a joke.”

Najin exhaled deeply.

“I was thinking of resting here for a bit.”
-Really?
“Why would I lie about something like this?”
-…Why not rest outside?
“It’s too bright. Hurts my eyes.”

Najin was still unaccustomed to sunlight. He could move around in it, but when resting, he instinctively sought out shade where light didn’t penetrate.

‘It feels somewhat cozy.’

It had only been ten days since he left the Underground City.
Habits ingrained over 18 years don’t easily fade away. Leaning against the wall of the alleyway, Najin slowly exhaled.

City of Opportunities, Cambria.

The city was very different from what he had seen in fairy tales and much larger than Najin had imagined. A wider stage. A broader backdrop. By drawing Excalibur and escaping the Underground City, the prologue of his story had ended.

Now, it was time to begin Chapter 1.

Najin suddenly shifted his gaze, looking at those dozing off against the walls of the alleyway. Likely the dropouts and failures of this city. There were many like them in the Underground City.

‘If you settle for coziness…’

He might end up like them.
Najin took a deep breath and spurred himself on. Staying still wouldn’t make the hunger go away. He had to do something.

Just as Najin was about to get up from the alley, he turned his attention to an approaching presence.

At the entrance of the alley. A girl stood there, backlit by the sun. She was looking down at Najin, who was about to get up, narrowing her eyes. Najin met the gaze of the girl looking down at him.

‘She’s been watching me since earlier…’

More precisely, she had been watching this alleyway. She had been sitting on a bench with a clear view of the alley, observing it all the while.

“Looks like.”

The girl smiled.
Her hair sparkled in the sunlight, a light brown color. The girl’s half-closed eyes reminded him of a snake. Najin knew this type of gaze well.

The eyes of a loan shark, or a merchant.

The greedy, glittering eyes commonly seen in the Underground City. The girl didn’t seem to hide her greed. Najin sensed that her greed was directed at him.

“You don’t seem to have had a proper meal.”

She reached out her hand to Najin.

“How about we go to a nice place together?”

Her name was Dieta Arbenia.
The nobles of the city called her the abandoned child of Arbenia, but the adventurers and mercenaries of this city had a different name for her.

The Snake that Swallows Gold.

A nickname earned because she would pounce on anything that seemed profitable, swallowing it whole. Dieta rushed towards anything that could produce gold, whether it was a relic, a request, or even…

“I’ll buy you a meal.”

Even if it was a human being.