To figure out what was really going on, Merlin and Gaius secretly went down to the Royal Crypt. There, they found Tristan's coffin broken open, and his body was completely gone. Seeing this, they were sure: their enemy was a Death Knight!
This was a type of monster summoned from the grave by an evil sorcerer using powerful magic. The resulting creature is filled with intense grief and hatred, and it's this overwhelming sorrow and rage that allows the monster to be resurrected.
According to ancient texts, this creature couldn't be killed by any mortal weapon. It would never truly rest unless its final dying wish was granted. But the clever Merlin found an alternative—a loophole, really: kill the undead monster with a weapon that wasn't "mortal."
This idea sent him straight to the Court Physician's library to search for a legendary weapon capable of destroying a Death Knight.
And wouldn't you know it, with Gaius's help, Merlin found what he was looking for in a chronicle called The Annals of Beltain. It mentioned a divine sword from the place where the Great Dragon lives—a sword that could destroy anything, living or dead!
That immediately made Merlin think of the massive dragon imprisoned right under the castle!
Merlin's a man of action, so he acted fast. He secretly grabbed Kay's swords, claiming he was taking them to be sharpened, and headed down to the Dragon's lair.
The Great Dragon wasn't surprised by Merlin's visit. In fact, Merlin had been down to the lair many times before. (Side note: you have to wonder about Camelot's security; King Uther hadn't bothered to put any guards down near the dragon's prison at all. Go figure.)
Anyway, after Merlin told the Dragon why he was there, the Dragon just laughed his head off.
"Hahahaha! What did you say? Help that scoundrel defeat an undead Knight? Hahahahahaha! That has to be the best joke I've heard since I was locked up down here! Hahahahaha! Seriously, Merlin, you should come down more often. It might make my imprisonment a lot more bearable."
Merlin was taken aback by that reaction. What surprised him even more was that based on the Dragon's words, he clearly knew Kay!
"How... how do you know Sir Kay?" Merlin asked.
Hearing the question, the Dragon stopped laughing. "Of course I know him! That man you're talking about is far more dangerous than you can possibly imagine!"
As he spoke, the Dragon suddenly went silent and lowered his head toward a bewildered Merlin.
Merlin thought the sudden silence was strange and was just about to ask a question when he heard a voice behind him—a voice he absolutely never expected to hear there.
"Yes, we know each other. You could even say we're old acquaintances, in a manner of speaking."
The hair on Merlin's arms stood straight up. He couldn't believe Sir Kay was actually there. In that split second, Merlin's mind raced. All he wanted to do was run back to Ealdor (The English name for '埃尔多') and tell his mother he loved her, because he was convinced he wouldn't survive the night.
Suddenly, a hand clapped him on the shoulder.
"Little guys shouldn't worry about grown-up matters. What you need to do is hit the books and focus on your studies, not get wrapped up in all this messy stuff. This is not something you should be sticking your nose into right now."
Much to Merlin's surprise, Kay wasn't angry at all; in fact, his tone was quite gentle.
"You... you... you don't blame me?" Merlin asked in disbelief.
"Blame you? Why would I? Just because you were trying to help me?" Kay asked curiously.
"I... I... I..." At that moment, Merlin was completely speechless. He thought he was about to be in huge trouble, but instead, he was safe and had even gotten a compliment from Kay—at least, he thought it was a compliment.
"Alright, head back now. Kids need to get their rest, or they won't grow tall," Kay advised.
"Oh! Oh!" Merlin was grateful to Kay, but even more afraid of him. The first time in his life he nearly died was thanks to Kay, and the memory was so traumatic it almost gave him a complex. How could he not be afraid? But just as he was about to leave, Merlin remembered something, and stammered out, "Um... Sir Kay, I read in an ancient text that a divine sword from the place where the Great Dragon lives can kill the undead. Since... you know Mr. Dragon, why don't you ask him for help?"
"Mr. Dragon?" Kay looked at Merlin with a slight frown, then turned to the Dragon, Kilgharrah (The accepted name for the Great Dragon in the English version is Kilgharrah, used here for '坎哥拉'). "You didn't tell the boy your name? That's not very polite."
The Dragon seemed to have some deep, dark reason for not answering the question and turned away from Kay.
"That's between him and me. It's none of your business," Kilgharrah snapped.
Kay looked at the evasive Dragon, then back at the confused Merlin, and suddenly realized something.
"No wonder, no wonder, no wonder you're talking to this kid. No wonder he thought to come and ask you for help. It looks like that old legend is true, haha! This is fascinating. You're scared, Kil..."
Kay was about to say the Dragon's name when Kilgharrah interrupted him with a ferocious roar.
"That is between him and me, Kay! You have no right to interfere!" The Dragon was clearly terrified that Kay would reveal his name to Merlin, so he quickly changed the subject. "You just want me to infuse your swords with Dragon's Breath, right? Fine, I'll do it!"
Kay knew exactly what was going on between the Dragon and Merlin. Before, it was just a guess, but now he was basically certain. Since the Dragon didn't want Merlin to know his name, Merlin's true identity could only be that of the Dragonlord!
The legendary Emrys! (The accepted name for the Dragonlord in the English version of the legend, also the name the Dragon refers to Merlin by.)
'Emrys' is the name of a family and how the outside world referred to their race. They were born with immense magical power and could command Dragons, which is why they were also called Dragonlords. A Dragon absolutely cannot refuse a Dragonlord's command.
This was why Kilgharrah didn't want Merlin to know his name. The moment Merlin had that name, he would eventually be unable to disobey any of Merlin's orders. That was a future the Dragon did not want to see.
However, the Dragon was right. He was the last Great Dragon on the entire British Isles, and Emrys was probably the last of his kind, too—just a lone descendant in Merlin. Kay really couldn't interfere with their destiny.
(As a side note, both of these races were almost wiped out by King Uther's purges, leaving only these two survivors... So, if you're talking about ruthless effectiveness, you have to hand it to Uther. He nearly drove two powerful races to extinction...)
"Alright, alright. I don't think it's necessary, but it's better to have it than not. Oh, and I have one small request: when you infuse the Dragon's Breath, try to be a little subtle. I don't want to embarrass Uther." Kay shrugged, effectively dropping the matter.
"You!!!!" Kilgharrah was absolutely livid. In his mind, Kay was completely blackmailing him. But seeing the inquisitive look on Merlin's face nearby, Kilgharrah couldn't risk refusing Kay, so he had no choice but to comply.