"Why me?" Kayal was flanked by Atoris and Irene. It was Irene who asked the question.
"I'm not the strongest, and I'm not very good at talking, so why do you want me to come with you?" Irene was very puzzled, speaking so much in front of Kayal for the first time.
"Well," Kayal smiled, "it should be your composure."
"You are the oldest of all the Claymores. Your composure is something they don't have, Irene. You need to discover your strengths," Kayal smiled.
Of course, that wasn't the only reason. A very important reason was: two Claymores had come to join!
Claymore No. 13, Jinny, and Claymore No. 22, Vig.
Unexpectedly, their jurisdictions were around Ireland and Scotland. They were the first to hear Kayal's demon-slaying declaration. From that day on, they left the organization and rushed towards Red Leaf Ridge. Surprisingly, even though they directly informed the organization, the agent merely left silently, without even a harsh word. One must know that their rankings weren't even in single digits, and it would have been easy for the organization to form a punitive force to deal with these traitors, but they safely reached the outskirts of Nottingham Forest, met up, and entered Red Leaf Ridge together.
Although some people still looked at these half-human, half-yoma with different eyes, compared to people elsewhere, there was something more in the eyes of the people here: was it pity, sympathy, or a smile on their faces?
When they naturally found the Duke's son who had issued the demon-extermination declaration, both of them were stunned. They had expected a handsome, tall, and dashing prince, but that image shattered in an instant. He was good, handsome, and beautiful, but why was he only half their height!
And only nine years old! Nine years old! What kind of situation was this?
Thanks to Teresa, who was once No. 1, for giving them confidence. When they saw that the top four Claymores were all here, both of them breathed a sigh of relief. So, to stabilize the hearts of more Claymores who came to join him, Kayal left Teresa and the other three, including the big-foreheaded Priscilla, there. Gawain, on the other hand, was suddenly called back by his father. Kayal guessed it was probably because of his newly introduced bill; the Duke of Birmingham was afraid that his son, or even himself, would get involved?
Thinking of this, Kayal couldn't help but chuckle self-deprecatingly. That uncle who smiled so kindly at the banquet was just a mortal after all. I wonder if anyone in the entire Kingdom of Camelot, besides King Uther, can see through my plan?
Perhaps Merlin was half of it; as a sage, she was still slightly lacking in politics, and her ability to see through it was purely due to her genius brain... Is there anyone else who can see through it?
Kayal couldn't help but feel a little anticipation. This was a test, and also a reform. Those who could react to this bill should all be intelligent people. Kayal's policy for these people was to win them over, to subdue them. As for those who couldn't see through it, their existence held no meaning!
Reform was naturally a good remedy for Camelot.
Kayal was deep in thought, and the three of them unknowingly slowly delved deeper into Nottingham Forest... "Wait a moment." Kayal suddenly stopped. He gently extended a finger, as if passing through a ripple, and then his finger simply disappeared.
"Let's go," Kayal grabbed the two of them, because he knew that this layer, similar to a barrier or a membrane of another world, wasn't that easy to break through!
A gentle and soft light emanated from Kayal, enveloping Atoris and Irene, and then the three of them instantly slipped through.
"Eh!" A mature beauty, who was happily peeking through a small crack in a gap full of eyes, holding a parasol, let out a soft "eh" out of curiosity due to a faint sensation. She closed her parasol and deftly opened a fan painted with two red plum blossoms: "The Hakurei Barrier has been invaded... No, it should be said that they entered Gensokyo in a synchronized manner~ Heh, it's the same energy as Hakurei... Interesting, I'll go see... Who could it be~"
With a swish, a crack opened in the gap, and then she moved from one gap to another... "Beautiful!" Kayal's eyes lit up. This was completely two different worlds!
If there were still traces of human activity near Nottingham Forest, there were absolutely no traces of humans here. It was the craftsmanship of nature!
"This... it's truly too beautiful... I really want to live in seclusion here for the rest of my life..." Irene's words resonated greatly with Kayal: "Haha, when I complete my plan, I'll bring everyone here to live in seclusion."
Kayal's words, however, filled Atoris with many thoughts: What plan?
"Let's go, we'll go find the so-called fairy..." Kayal didn't let go of their hands. Irene's hand was large and slender, and Kayal's small hand could barely grasp it all, but holding just three of Irene's fingers, Kayal instead felt that Irene's hand was very fragile. Yes, Irene's hand gave Kayal a feeling of fragility... Her heart, perhaps... Kayal murmured softly, the sigh in his words almost imperceptible.
Atoris's hand, however, was full of calluses and very thick. It was hard to imagine a girl's hand, barely eight or nine years old, being so rough. How old was she when she started wielding a sword? How old was she when she started working towards becoming a knight? She was a girl!
Kayal felt a faint pang of pity in his heart. He, of course, knew how difficult it was to become a knight in Camelot when there were no female knights yet—so she had to hide her identity as a woman... This child.
Kayal suddenly shook his head and laughed: Since she wants to do it, I'll help her, Atoris! Become Camelot's first female knight! Let your heroic figure illuminate the entire battlefield!
The three strolled through fields of flowers, by the shimmering lake, seemingly enjoying the atmosphere. But a figure lying on the grass, sleeping, constantly emitting cold air that froze the nearby flowers, plants, and trees, made Kayal's eyes light up. "That, could that be a fairy?"
In Kayal's mind, a fairy was a small, thumb-sized female life form with flapping wings, pure and flawless. But after seeing this object, Kayal was completely dumbfounded. Okay, she was very pretty. A girl about Kayal's age had a deep blue bow in her bright blue hair and wore a very cute blue and white checkered dress. However, this dress was completely dirty and messy due to the grass. This girl, wearing such a dress, was sleeping soundly in a spread-eagle position on the grass, completely without any image. Although he didn't know why she could freeze everything within about five meters, it didn't hinder her sleeping posture: while sleeping soundly, snot bubbles kept coming out of her nose. Although they quickly disappeared due to the cold air, they still popped out one after another. Snot bubbles, huh... His eyebrow twitched slightly, and Kayal hesitated greatly: "Is this thing really a fairy?"
Just as Kayal was hesitating, a loud shout rang out from the side: "Cirno! Die! Behold my Earth Strike!"