In Britain, the Noble Phantasm: Divine Key

"But at your funeral, there is no more appropriate expression than a smile."

"What you're saying really hurts me," Merlin sighed. "Tell me, what do you want me to do?"

“Remove the magic from the sword in the stone. I know there’s a seal you placed on that sword, and no one but Lily can pull it out,” Yanan said.

Merlin's eyes darted away slightly, and he gave a dry laugh: "Haha...it seems there really is such a thing."

Yanan narrowed his eyes slightly. His time together had made him realize even more how unreliable this Flower Magician was, especially when the other party showed this kind of expression!

"Don't tell me the magic trick went wrong."

"How could my magic trick go wrong! It's just... the effect might be slightly stronger than before..." Merlin extended his index finger and thumb, making a very small gesture.

“A little bit stronger?” Yanan frowned slightly. “What does that mean?”

"At first, I only planned to use Ancient Elven language to seal the Stone Sword, but I felt it was a bit too simple, so I added runes. But then I remembered that Morgan also knew it, so I added Ancient Dragon language. But I still wasn't comfortable with that, so I added some Ancient Elven language, Ancient Giant language, and Divine Seal..."

Anan's face grew increasingly dark: "So, just how many seals did you add to the Stone Sword?"

"If you count it over the past ten years... there should be more than two thousand." Merlin chuckled awkwardly.

Yanan took a deep breath: "I guess what you're going to tell me next is that you've already lost the ability to break the seal on the Stone Sword."

"As expected of the man that both Lily and I admire, he's absolutely right!" Merlin gave Yanan a thumbs up, a bright smile on his face.

Boom! A black pillar of fire shot into the sky!

"Die, Merlin!!!"

……

……

Two weeks later, the day of choosing the king arrived.

Before dawn, knights from all over gathered, donning their gleaming, cleaned armor and riding their tall horses, heading with excitement and anticipation towards the Stone Mountain outside Tyrell.

Then came the town's residents, who also took action, putting aside their work to witness this historic moment.

Everyone had waited too long. Since King Uther's death, people had been filled with fear and unease. Although the defenses in the far north had not been breached, the shadow of the white dragon had always loomed over everyone's hearts.

Everyone was anticipating and hoping that, following King Uther, another new king of Camelot would be born!

He will bear the name "Arthur," defeat King Vortigern, drive out the Angles and Saxons, and let Camelot's glory shine again in Britain!

This is the hope that millions of Camelot people have been carrying for more than a decade, and today, it all comes to an end!

Chapter Thirty: The Day of Chosen King Has Arrived!

"Master, you don't look well."

Yulina asked Yanan curiously.

Yanan touched his face: "Is it that obvious?"

“Yes, teacher, you don’t seem to be in a good mood today, it’s been like this since this morning,” Artoria replied.

Kai, who was standing next to him, nodded.

Yanan sighed silently in his heart.

He didn't really want it to be like this, but when he thought about the more than two thousand seals Merlin had placed on the Sword in the Stone, he couldn't help but want to curse.

That damn white-haired piece of trash, can't he do anything even slightly more reliable?!

For the past two weeks, he had been trying to figure out how to break the more than two thousand seals, but all his efforts came to nothing.

The only option he has left is to try to use Jizo Mitama to erode these seals.

But this is a seal set up by a candidate Grand Magician, and it has two thousand layers. Even if Jizo's Soul can really erode it, his magic power definitely won't be able to hold out.

So he approached Merlin again, asking him to break the seal as quickly as possible, breaking as many seals as possible.

The rest is up to fate.

"Lily, there's something I need to tell you beforehand."

“Please speak, teacher.” Artoria nodded.

“If I can’t pull the sword out of the stone later, then you’ll have to do it,” Yanan said helplessly.

"Why?" Artoria's eyes widened, and the ahoge (cowlick) on her head stood up instantly.

Kai was also full of doubt.

Two weeks ago, Artoria took the initiative to tell Sir Hector and Kay about her plan to abdicate.

Sir Hector neither agreed nor disagreed, saying, "As long as Sage Merlin has no objection, then I have no objection either. You can decide for yourself."

Although Kai found it hard to accept, it was mainly because he couldn't bear to see Artoria's efforts of more than ten years go to waste. But if he really looked at it from the bottom of his heart, he also thought that Anan was more suitable for the position of king than his adopted sister.

Moreover, the thought that Artoria wouldn't have to shoulder such a heavy responsibility actually brought him more relief than anything else.

However, judging from Yanan's current attitude, what changes might occur later?

"Teacher, didn't you say you had already sent Merlin to break the seal?" Artoria asked anxiously.

But those were two thousand seals!

Yanan sighed: "I'm just letting you know in advance. Don't worry, even if the sword in the stone isn't pulled out, I'll still be by your side to help you."

Artoria's eyes flickered, a sense of unease rising in her heart.

What on earth happened that even the usually omnipotent teacher showed such a helpless expression?

……

……

On the rocky mountain, countless knights craned their necks, their eyes burning with anticipation as they gazed at a giant rock at the top.

It was just an ordinary stone, and many people at the scene could easily lift it. But what truly attracted people's attention was not the stone, but a sword standing straight up on top of it.

It was a golden sword, and no one knew exactly what it looked like, because most of its blade was hidden under the stone, and the exposed part reflected a magnificent light in the sunlight.

This is the sword of kings, this is the sword of victory, this is... the sword in the stone.

More than a decade ago, the great sage Merlin prophesied that whoever could pull the sword from the stone would become the new king of Camelot.

An elderly man dressed in a clergyman's robe walked slowly along the mountain path.

"It's the Archbishop of Canterbury!"

"They're here! They've finally arrived!"

"After fifteen years of waiting, a new king is finally about to appear!"

The crowd stirred.

Bishop Cantreber walked onto the stone and stood beside the boulder with the sword in the stone stuck in it. He looked around at the crowd, and when he saw Artoria standing in the corner, his gaze paused for a moment.

I really don't know if what we're doing is right or wrong...

He sighed inwardly, but his expression remained calm. He opened his mouth and uttered a loud voice that seemed completely out of place with his aged appearance:

"Knights of Camelot! The day of the king's election, foretold by the great sage Merlin, has arrived! The successor to King Uther will appear today! This land will soon welcome a new king! He will transform into a dragon, gather the mighty Knights of the Round Table, defeat the evil white dragon, drive out the invaders, and unify Britain! Today, he will appear here! Now—draw your sword! This is the holy sword of kings, a banner pointing to victory! Whoever can draw this sword—will become the chosen king of Britain!"

"Draw your sword!"

"Draw your sword!"

People cheered, and even those who knew they had no chance of finding the sword in the stone couldn't help but show their excitement.

Witnessing the ascension of a new king is an honor in itself!

“Now then…” Bishop Cantreber waved his hand, “begin to draw your swords!”

The knights were eager to try, scrambling to climb the boulder to pull out the sword from the stone, but in the end they all walked down dejectedly.

Everyone failed, without exception.

Neither the mighty strongman capable of lifting a cauldron nor the magician disguised as a knight could pull the sword from the stone.

"That's outrageous. I can lift a 600-pound boulder, but when I drew my sword, I didn't even budge."

"I feel like that sword is connected to the whole mountain."

"Is it really as the wise man Merlin said, that only the chosen king can pull the sword out of the stone?"

People complained, questioned, and felt lost.

Many of them had been preparing for this for fifteen years, but the final result was a huge blow to them.

The onlookers gradually realized something was wrong; so much time had passed, and the sword in the stone still hadn't been pulled out.

Could Merlin's prophecy have been wrong, and the chosen king of Camelot has not yet appeared?

Anxiety was evident on people's faces as they cheered on each knight who went up to draw his sword, but in the end, all they received was disappointment.

Anxiety began to spread.

"Two thousand seals in total. Merlin really went to great lengths for my dear sister."

In a corner unnoticed by anyone, a tall woman wearing a veil stared at Shi Zhongjian and curled her lip.

I wonder if it's him, he'd be able to draw the sword...

Her pale golden eyes shifted slightly, looking at the black-haired man standing in another corner.

Yanan suddenly felt like he was being watched, and subconsciously turned his head to see a woman standing not far away wearing a black veil and exuding a mysterious aura.

Morgan?

He raised an eyebrow slightly. Although he had never met the other person before, he recognized him at a glance.

Then he saw Morgan nod at him, a faint smile appearing beneath her black veil.

The legendary witch actually smiled at him, which made Anan feel a little flattered.

He nodded back at the other person, returning a friendly smile.

Presumably, it's because I helped her sister.

Chapter Thirty-One: Pulling Out the Sword from the Stone!