Three days later, in the morning,
Kailar opened his eyes and looked at Artoria in his arms, smiling faintly. He gently withdrew his hand from under her neck, stepped barefoot from the bed onto the rug, stretched, and walked out of the room.
He went to the washroom, dried his face, and after carefully cleaning himself, Kailar finally exited the washroom.
Kailar had a slight obsession with cleanliness, which is why he liked everything to be meticulous. His long hair was always neatly combed back, straight and smooth, and his body was always spotless. Not to mention his white robes, even his boots were always white. However, on the battlefield, his attire was incredibly conspicuous. If it weren't for the enemy lacking archers, Kailar would likely be a priority target for assassination.
And most importantly, there's no composure on the battlefield!
Wasn't Kailar's first war when he personally fought and killed at least a dozen cavalrymen?
So, it was a slight obsession with cleanliness, because things had varying degrees of importance and urgency. Kailar was not someone who couldn't distinguish priorities.
Today is the day of the Sword in the Stone, isn't it? Kailar held a cup of red tea he had brewed, took a small sip, and felt a flood of emotions.
I really wish I could meet King Arthur... If it were me, I'm sure I could move him, right?
Facing the morning sun, Kailar felt endless regret. If the two of them had planned well, riding on the momentum of the Sword in the Stone, all it would take was a rallying cry to implement military reforms in front of a hundred thousand knights. All the trump cards and combat power would be in their hands. At that point, Kailar was confident that in three years, he could reform Camelot to be prosperous and powerful, sweep through Scotland and Ireland in one year, and then consolidate for another year. In just five years, it would form a formidable power, confronting Rome and Uruk across the English Channel.
If he were to employ a few more minor strategies to seize the island as a stepping stone, it wouldn't be impossible to counterattack the European continent within eight years.
If anyone were to hear Kailar's plan, ordinary people would naturally scoff, laughing at Kailar's wishful thinking. But true heroes would be incredibly astonished. Such an eight-year plan would be considered a national policy in any country, and its implementation would strike fear into all other nations.
But just as conspiracies cannot be spoken aloud, Kailar had never told anyone his plan. The more people who knew the plan, the more likely it was to change. Moreover, his opponent had already set his sights on that generation's great ruler: Alexander the Great.
This hero had brilliant achievements, but don't forget: after conquering Persia, he used just one move—marrying a Persian princess—to completely win over Persia, directly leading to a great ethnic integration with Macedonia. He ordered every soldier to marry at least one Persian woman, which also ensured the Persians held no resentment towards their invaders.
This kind of political wisdom was the most terrifying! Yet everyone only looked at his military achievements! How foolish!
Everywhere he invaded, he was welcomed with open arms; many even offered him flowers and praise for his invasion. This terrifying political wisdom and ability to unite people... only he is worthy of being my opponent!
Kailar's eyes sparkled with excitement. Indeed, confronting such powerful historical figures was what thrilled him the most... he was hard!
So exciting!
Kailar suppressed his desire and didn't seek out Artoria to resolve it. Instead, relying on the rapid secretion of hormones and the intense heat in his brain, he quickly calculated the day's events, the chances of controlling the situation, and so on. To be honest, these might be difficult and painful for ordinary people, but Kailar, with his clear memory and quick processing ability, found joy in it.
Kailar's most persistent question had always been: how could those protagonists in novels, with IQs under a hundred and memory cells only capable of retaining roughly deep memories for two to five years, manage to reinvent high-tech inventions they'd seen ten years prior?
Does everyone now possess photographic memory comparable to his? Or a memory capable of remembering everything at a glance and reading ten lines at a time? How could that be? Theoretically, those protagonists with IQs below 100 shouldn't have such powerful memory capabilities... Kailar was at a loss, so he stopped thinking about it.
"Are you awake?" Hearing the sound of someone getting out of bed behind him, Kailar asked with a gentle smile, his tone clearly teasing.
Having been tormented for most of the night, Artoria still had a blush on her face as she sat up in the morning. Hearing his teasing, a hint of annoyance flashed across her face, but she could only shake her head in exasperation and sit up naked.
Her delicate figure glowed white in the sunlight, almost making Kailar unable to resist pulling her back into his arms for another round of affection. However, Kailar knew Artoria was angry, perhaps because he had gone straight to bed and doted on her last night?
Setting down his teacup, Kailar gently pulled the naked Artoria into his arms. With a smile and an apologetic tone, he asked, "What's wrong? Are you still angry?"
"How dare I be." Artoria, still clearly angry, mumbled, turning her head away.
Kailar, experienced in such matters, smiled faintly, hooked her chin with his hand, lowered his head, and passionately kissed her.
He kissed Artoria until she was completely limp, then released her and pulled her into his embrace: "Alright, my dear, don't be angry anymore."
"What did you call me?" Artoria looked up and asked in surprise, her eyes filled with delight.
"My dear (honey can also be translated as sweetheart, etc…)," Kailar said with a smile, "Then, as an apology… do you want to hear our plan for today?"
Kailar asked with a triumphant smile, "The gift my father and the four Grand Dukes have prepared for the new monarch, the new monarch will surely love it. Do you want to hear our plan?"
"Yes!" Artoria's eyes sparkled with joy and happiness. It wasn't about the gift itself, but the fact that Kailar and the others had put thought into it. At least it showed her that her father, King Uther, hadn't failed too badly as a person, and that there were still many dukes willing to pledge loyalty to the royal family. This attitude was what touched her the most, because she deeply understood what a proud person Kailar was.
"Thus, and so, next, finally…" Kailar, with a hint of wisdom and reserve, explained the plan. When he looked at Artoria, he was unexpectedly met with a gaze of admiration and adoration.
How long had it been since he had seen her express such a look? It seemed that sometime after she turned twelve, Lily had become composed and thoughtful, hadn't she?
Although he liked the composed and grand Lily, he still preferred this Lily the most... Kailar smiled, then suddenly hooked her chin and kissed her. The two then tumbled together on the bed once more...