Merlin is something of a celebrity in Camelot, and the reason is pretty simple: King Uther has ordered him locked up in the public square to be pelted with rotten fruit and vegetables eight times now. Arthur himself contributed twice to that total (right when they first met). So, by now, pretty much everyone in Camelot knows who Merlin is.
Most people view him as a clown or a lovable idiot. They don't mean any harm, though, because Merlin has seriously thick skin. Every time he gets covered in rotten produce, he just laughs it off, even joking that the people throwing food at him are his biggest fans.
This has made the townsfolk quite fond of the goofy, optimistic young man. People constantly swap stories about his silly blunders, and even King Uther has heard them. The King once famously joked that they were lucky Merlin couldn't get any dumber, or Camelot would face a famine because all the food would be thrown at him.
Because of this, some well-meaning folks gave him the mocking nickname: "Prince of the Square."
This morning, when the palace guards dragged Merlin out to the square again, a few bored people had already started gathering rotten fruit and veggies, excitedly anticipating the regular show. But this time, they were in for a shock.
After Merlin was secured in the stocks, two guards ripped off his shirt. Another burly soldier carrying a whip stepped up behind him.
It was a public lashing.
Everyone stared in shock at the unusually silent Merlin. They couldn't figure out what crime this silly, happy-go-lucky young man could have possibly committed that warranted a whipping. In their eyes, Merlin was just clumsy and a bit dense—not a criminal.
"CRACK!"
Before the crowd could even process the situation, the executioner's whip whistled down onto Merlin's back. A bloody welt instantly appeared on his skinny frame.
Merlin's silent expression shattered immediately. He gasped, mouth and eyes wide open like a fish flopping on the dock, but for a moment, he couldn't make a sound. Before his cry of pain could escape, the soldier's whip came down again and again.
When the twenty lashes were finished, Merlin was hanging limp in the stocks, unconscious. His entire back was shredded, and blood had even soaked through his pants.
As a punishment, a lashing is brutal—people have died from it. Merlin was only saved because he has good connections, and the soldier administering the punishment knew to pull his punches. Otherwise, his small frame might have been beaten to death.
As soon as the punishment was over, two soldiers rushed forward, picked Merlin up, and hurried back to the palace. They were afraid he wouldn't survive, so they rushed him immediately to Gaius (the physician).
...
By evening, thanks to Gaius's full attention, Merlin's condition was finally stabilized. For the next little while, Merlin would be sleeping on his stomach. He was conscious now, and although the pain on his back was intense, Merlin barely cared. He was more concerned about something else.
"Gaius... was I really wrong?"
Merlin had been agonizing over Kay's words while he was locked in the dungeon. His previous certainty had vanished. Before, Merlin was convinced the King's law was wrong! It blocked people like Lancelot from achieving their potential. He believed in Lancelot's abilities, so he thought he could just introduce him to Arthur and have Arthur help him. After all, while the laws were strict, there were legitimate ways to approach the problem.
But because of his meddling, he had ruined even the legitimate path!
"Merlin... I don't want to preach to you, but all I can say is, remember this lesson: Good intentions don't always lead to the right actions." Gaius had plenty he wanted to say, but seeing how guilty Merlin felt, he couldn't bring himself to lecture him any further.
Merlin was silent for a long time, then he managed to ask, "Does Lancelot really... have no chance now? That wasn't his intention; it was my fault."
Gaius was quiet for a moment. He had interacted with Lancelot, who had been staying with him before, and Gaius knew he was a good kid. Just as Merlin said, he deserved that chance. Unfortunately...
"Arthur went to see Kay earlier and asked him the same question. Do you know what Kay told him?"
Merlin looked up, watching Gaius with a hopeful, pleading look. Even though the chance was slim, Merlin hoped for a miracle.
"Kay said this: 'Lancelot violated the very first rule of the Knight's Code. He humiliated himself and he humiliated us. This code is built on trust, and that is the bond that holds the Knighthood together! How can you trust someone who has once deceived you? How can you convince the other knights to believe a liar?'"
After that, Gaius picked up a vial of medicine and brought it to Merlin's lips. "Drink this. Otherwise, you won't get any sleep tonight. The pain will drive you crazy."
...
Perhaps because Merlin was injured and forced to rest, the next two months in Camelot were completely calm. There were no incidents; everything was peaceful.
During these two months, Arthur had the toughest time of his life. Kay was furious when he saw that Arthur couldn't even dress himself without Merlin around. Kay had never had a servant growing up—King Uther tried to get him plenty, but Kay refused them all; he was used to doing things himself.
So, Kay gave a strict order that no servants were allowed to wait on Arthur. He forced Arthur to dress himself, serve his own meals, and even clean his own horse. If he hadn't thought kicking the Prince out of the palace would cause too much trouble, he would have made Arthur live in the Knight's barracks!
In short, for those two months, Arthur truly became just a regular knight. He had no special privileges, and Kay targeted him constantly. If people didn't know how close Kay was to the Royal Family, they would have had some nasty suspicions.
However, this tough period was about to end. Because Kay was going home.
Camelot is Kay's home, yes, but Kay isn't an orphan; he has biological parents. So, every year, he goes back to stay with them for a month as a filial duty. Kay's departure signaled the end of Arthur's boot camp. Plus, Merlin was finally healed and could resume his duties as a valet. Arthur felt a huge wave of relief just thinking about it.
Of course, Arthur admitted that even though those days were tough, they were effective. Arthur had made significant progress. This progress wasn't just in his fighting skills; his temper had calmed down a lot, and he acted and spoke with the maturity of an adult, not the impulsive boy he was before. King Uther was extremely pleased. If Kay going home wasn't such an expected and proper tradition, the King wouldn't let him leave, so he could continue training Arthur.