Suya covertly glanced at Merlin from the corner of his eye, and when he saw her willingly put on a face of agony, he couldn't help but inwardly chuckle.
He hadn't lied to this woman; everything he said was the truth.
As for what Merlin might have inferred from his truthful words, Suya didn't know.
Her timing was too coincidental, and she had set a trap for him in the oath, looking like someone trying to take advantage of the situation.
She didn't seem like a good woman at all.
If he let her manipulate him, he would likely be treated as a slave with no human rights.
Moreover, on this chaotic battlefield, an imposter who killed the king and the true heir to the kingdom—
Clearly, the latter's identity would be more favorably received by friendly forces!
It would also make it easier for Suya to escape the current perilous situation.
Therefore,
Even though he had no interest in becoming this King of Britannia,
Under the pressure of reality,
Suya had to make Merlin, who knew better how to escape, treat him as the true king, not the imposter she initially thought he was!
At this moment,
Seeing that the timing for this calculated blow was right, Suya exhaled deeply, raised his head, and looked solemnly at the Floral Magician before him.
"Court Steward, Merlin, is it?"
"Ah, yes!" Merlin jolted, snapping back to attention, and looked at Suya with suspicion.
Then, she saw,
The golden-haired boy raised his hand, vigorously wiped off the black mud and blood from his face, took a deep breath, and stared intently at her with his translucent, emerald-like eyes. Then, he slowly spoke,
"I don't mind sharing the King's treasury with you, though I currently have nothing."
"I also don't mind forming a bond of kinship with you. As things stand, all I can offer you is this empty title."
"You, who control the oath, should understand better than I how to utilize me."
At this point, Suya let out a bitter laugh.
Then,
His gaze darkened, and he spoke in a low voice:
"If, for the sake of saving this country, I still hold any exploitable value—"
"I, Suya Pendragon, permit you to share the King's treasury, become the King's friend, and assist in the King's great endeavor!"
"Merlin!" Suya called out sternly.
"Huh? Ah—I'm here!"
Suddenly having her oath-trick revealed, Merlin couldn't help but tense up. Then, she looked incredulously at Suya, who had virtually promised her everything.
And then,
She heard the boy, in a voice clearer and more melodious than any bard's, ask her with gravity:
"Can I trust you?"
Merlin swallowed hard.
When the noblest person in the kingdom opened his heart to her,
Even if this guy was currently covered in blood, looking as wretched as a dog,
Merlin's heart suddenly couldn't stop pounding.
By now, she had almost completely believed that Suya was the true King of Britannia!
And now,
A true king was extending an olive branch to her, a failed gambler!
In a flash of lightning, Merlin's thoughts raced wildly.
She had to consider if this was the only chance she would ever get in her life, completely suppressing any lingering doubt about Suya's identity.
Then, she saw—
Suya stripped the leather armor off a knight's corpse on the ground and put it on. Then, he put his foot in the stirrup, swung over, and naturally mounted her horse. He then extended his hand to her and spoke earnestly:
"I understand this is a difficult decision for you."
"But, right now, there's no time to explain."
"Get on the horse, quickly!"
"Huh? Oh, alright!"
Merlin, in a daze, offered her small hand, was pulled onto the saddle by Suya, and then had the reins handed to her by Suya, who couldn't even ride a horse.
Confused, she instinctively took on the responsibility of guiding the horse.
Yet, she didn't feel anything amiss, even though just moments ago, her intention was to ride the horse herself and make her slave—Suya—run behind.
Now,
The two squeezed onto one horse, their bodies almost intimately pressed together. She could clearly feel Suya's warm breath by her ear, his heart beating in sync with hers, as if expressing the equally unsettled emotions of the boy behind her.
"Let's get out of here first, as you just said. If we delay any longer, we might be caught by the scout cavalry captain."
Suya frowned deeply. The moment Merlin believed his lie,
Click, click, click!
In his ear, he heard the sound of dice tapping a skull again.
The fourth, and currently last, legendary path he could rely on had been triggered.
Too late to look, Merlin, who was slowly coming back to her senses in front of him, paused and asked blankly:
"My King... How do you think we should proceed?"
"I'll follow your lead."
"But, I escaped with you from Sir Ector's Manor; you are the one to decide the route."
"I trust you."
"This... this... but I..."
"No buts." Suya took a deep breath and said earnestly:
"Even kings can make misjudgments, let alone me who hasn't even inherited this position yet. I need to carefully consider the next plan, Merlin. For now, let's proceed according to your ideas!"
Merlin nodded dazedly,
Feeling as if her mind was being bombarded with so many thoughts that it was getting a bit overwhelmed.
However, there was nothing wrong with what Suya said.
Their immediate priority was to leave this place, especially now that Arthur Pendragon was dead.
Previously,
After Arthur led their group of manor retainers out of the estate, he rallied some scattered soldiers under Sir Ector's banner and then headed directly towards the capital.
However,
During this process, they unfortunately encountered the Conqueror King's army.
Arthur had left his other retainers from the manor in the rear, in the army formation of scattered soldiers, which was the very unit just overrun by the Macedonian army led by Seleucus. Most of them were likely dead or in dire straits.
And Arthur himself, possessing the highest combat power in the group, was unfortunately ambushed and gravely wounded while observing the enemy, subsequently dying.
Without judging whether Arthur's chosen plan was correct, perhaps if he hadn't been ambushed, he would have been a formidable warrior, capable of surviving and escaping back to the capital of Winchester with his retainers amidst the assault of the even more formidable Seleucus and the Macedonian phalanx legions.
But now, with Arthur replaced by Suya, Merlin understood that with their current abilities, they absolutely could not directly confront a hero-class unit like Seleucus. Even against his phalanx legions, companion cavalry, or even the lower-tier scout cavalry,
They could only choose to flee.
Thinking this, Merlin's gaze firmed. She gripped the horse's reins and squeezed her thighs!
"Giddy up!"
The brown warhorse leapt out of the trench, carrying the two of them in long strides down the hill, away from the Conqueror King's main army.
"My King, next, I will explain the situation to you as we move. Please pay close attention—"
"Alright!"
Suya nodded gravely.
Taking advantage of Merlin's focused horse-riding, he cast his gaze upon the floating text in front of him.
[Talent: Legendary Heart, triggered.]
[Legendary Path triggered: King (Ex).]
[Acquired F-rank Class: Deceiver.]
[Explanation: Ordinary deception masks falsehood with falsehood; excellent deception masks falsehood with truth; and brilliant deception is truth itself! By successfully executing a brilliant deception, you have resolved your crisis. Therefore, it's time to embark on this path from a fraudster, to an instigator, until you overturn everything and become the strongest Master of Non-Action—Farewell, prison!]
[Acquired Ability: Observational Acuity, slightly improves reaction time and experience in deceptive rhetoric.]
[Path: Continue to deceive a hundred people (1/100) with your undeniably true lies, hold a collective deception ritual, and acquire the next class: Fraudster, and its exclusive specialty.]
[You have taken another step forward on the legendary path!]
[Current Legendary Paths: 4/4.]