"So... how did this end up happening?"
Arthur stood in the hallway, feeling completely bewildered.
The hall before him had turned into a true sea of dancers. Couples gracefully spun across the perfectly polished floor while music echoed throughout the grand ballroom. It was only at that moment that Arthur realized he had an extremely serious problem.
He didn't know how to dance.
Not at all.
Hmm...
If he absolutely had to choose something, would the calisthenics exercises broadcast over the radio count as dancing?
Young eagles take flight, youth dances through the air...
But thinking about it, while everyone else performed elegant, refined movements to the music, he would be standing in the middle of the ballroom doing exercise routines.
Maybe it would be better to simply stand in a corner, watching everything while daydreaming.
Besides, because of Morgan's actions, he couldn't find either his master or his sister anywhere.
Arthur glanced across the crowd of nobles, but it was useless. The magic Morgan had cast had completely altered everyone's appearance, making it impossible to recognize a single familiar face.
"Would you like to dance with me?"
A gentle voice sounded beside him.
Arthur turned his head.
The moment he did, his eyes filled with regret.
Why did you have to show up here?
"You know who I am?" the other person asked, clearly surprised.
"That irritating aura, that fake smile, and those utterly frivolous eyes..." Arthur crossed his arms and stared at the man in front of him. "There's probably no one else like you in the entire world."
—Merlin.
"What an impressive observation!" Merlin exclaimed, placing a hand over his chest. "Or have we met so few times that you've already fallen in love with me?"
"How did you end up here?" Arthur completely ignored the provocation.
"Of course I'd come to such a magnificent ball." Merlin spread his arms dramatically. "After all, I helped organize it."
"You were one of the organizers?" Arthur raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You actually decided to help Morgan?"
"Ah... speaking of that..." Merlin scratched his head with a slightly annoyed expression. "Actually, I should have said that I wanted to appreciate beautiful things..."
"So, in short, you just want to look at pretty girls?" Arthur concluded.
Merlin's smile froze.
After a few seconds of silence, he let out a deep sigh.
"Has anyone ever told you that you're incredibly irritating when you're this straightforward?"
"You're the first."
Arthur answered immediately.
Merlin was left speechless.
Arthur then noticed that Merlin was extending a hand toward him.
His eyes immediately became cautious.
"You're not serious, are you?"
Dancing with a man at the ball would already be strange enough.
But this man was nearly six feet tall.
Nearly six feet tall.
Although his appearance had been altered by magic, the person Merlin had disguised himself as was clearly still an exceptionally tall man.
Compared to him, Arthur looked even smaller.
At the moment, he was only taller than Artoria, but standing beside someone that tall made the difference painfully obvious.
Merlin watched Arthur for a few seconds before solemnly nodding.
"Of course I'm lying to you."
Arthur immediately turned his head and started looking around.
"What are you looking for?" Merlin asked, alarmed.
"I'm trying to figure out where I left my sword."
At that moment, Arthur genuinely wanted to beat up that irritating mage.
Maybe it would relieve the frustration that had been building up for quite some time.
"You'll never become a worthy king if you stay so petty," Merlin said with a shrug. "Still, I must admit I really liked the idea you presented."
"Hm?"
"Building ports, establishing trade routes, and opening diplomatic relations with other countries after unifying Britain." Merlin smiled. "Honestly, I never expected to hear something like that coming from you."
"I'm just making use of the wisdom of those who came before me."
Arthur shook his head.
"And that doesn't even mean it'll work. I just came up with the idea on the spot and mentioned it."
Then he looked up.
"But what exactly do you want?"
"I already told you." Merlin turned his head toward a distant part of the ballroom. "I'm only here to admire beautiful scenery."
He paused.
"And to make sure this ball continues until the very end."
Arthur narrowed his eyes.
"Is this an illusion?"
"Yes and no."
The ambiguous answer came immediately.
Before Arthur could ask anything else, Merlin suddenly extended his hand toward a young woman walking by.
"My lady, would you honor me with a dance?"
His tone was elegant.
Yet for some reason, it still gave off an extremely frivolous impression.
The young woman smiled and nodded.
Then she walked toward them.
But as she passed Merlin, she simply ignored his outstretched hand.
Instead, she stopped in front of Arthur.
Then she offered him her hand.
"Would you honor me with a dance, my king?"
Arthur looked at Merlin.
Then at the young woman.
She seemed like a complete stranger.
Perhaps she was a foreign guest.
Or perhaps not.
After all, under Morgan's magic, no one retained their original appearance.
"I'm not very good at dancing," Arthur replied politely.
It wasn't that he was bad.
He simply didn't know how to dance.
Not at all.
"That's alright." The young woman smiled. "I can teach you."
Arthur found himself cornered.
She had already gone so far that refusing would be rude.
Besides, he was the bait in this operation.
If he turned down too many people, he might end up arousing suspicion.
And if he wasn't mistaken...
There were probably already members of the alien races infiltrated throughout the ballroom.
Even knowing this was a trap, they would never pass up the opportunity to get close to the King.
If Arthur simply remained in the palace directing everything from afar after the ball, those races would never get another opportunity like this.
"If we can capture a few of them alive, we might be able to uncover the traitor's identity."
He remembered Morgan's words.
Now all that remained was to wait.
To wait for the fish to bite the bait.
With that in mind, Arthur finally nodded.
Then he extended his hand.
"Then I accept."
"Good luck."
Arthur waved to Merlin before leaving with the young woman.
Merlin watched the two of them walk away.
Then he scratched his head.
"Oh dear..."
"Does being the King really make him that popular?"
He sighed.
A moment later, his eyes settled on another young woman walking past.
In any case, no one could recognize him at this ball.
So it didn't really matter what he did.
---
On the other side.
"I'm sorry."
Arthur apologized once again with a genuinely remorseful expression.
It was the sixth time.
The sixth time he had needed to apologize.
Since they had started dancing, he had stepped on the young woman's foot over and over again.
Fortunately, she seemed extraordinarily patient.
Or impeccably well-mannered.
Despite the constant accidents, she continued smiling as though nothing had happened.
"No, it's alright."
She gently shook her head.
"After all, I was the one who invited you to dance."
Her eyes briefly studied Arthur.
"But it seems you really don't know how to dance."
Arthur nodded silently.
As he tried to imitate her movements, he continued following the music rather awkwardly.
At least he managed to keep moving.
As long as she didn't pay too much attention to his feet, perhaps she wouldn't notice every mistake.
"You've never learned before?"
"Didn't your master teach you anything besides martial arts?"
"My master is very busy."
Arthur shook his head.
"So there usually isn't much time left to teach anything else."
He had no intention of prolonging that conversation.
Especially when the subject involved Scáthach.
He didn't like sharing details about her with strangers.
"Ah, I see."
The young woman nodded.
Then she seemed to reach a conclusion.
"I've heard that King Uther's daughter is extremely well-mannered."
"Have you never asked her to teach you?"
"Princess Morgan?"
Arthur raised an eyebrow.
"You've heard of her too?"
"Of course."
The young woman smiled.
"She's kind, intelligent, and seems to understand practically everything."
"I'm sure you could ask her for advice someday."
"..."
Arthur fell silent.
Then he looked directly at the young woman.
"You're Morgan, aren't you?"
"You should add the words 'older sister.'"
The young woman replied with a smile.
It really was Morgan.
Hearing that answer, Arthur was finally completely certain.
"Why did you come looking for me?" he asked as they continued dancing. "Weren't you searching for the Saxons? Have you found anything?"
"Can't I dance with you first before continuing the search?"
Morgan sighed theatrically.
"Do you think it'll really be that easy to find them?"
Then her eyes narrowed.
"But I've already found a few leaders."
"There are members of other races here?"
Arthur immediately became alert.
"So far we've only found two suspicious individuals."
Morgan answered calmly.
"But I still haven't confirmed it. Once I'm certain, I'll take action."
She smiled.
"Besides, your master is watching over you."
"You don't need to worry about your safety."
The moment she finished speaking, the ballroom was suddenly plunged into darkness.
Arthur's vision vanished completely.
When the lights returned a few seconds later, Morgan had already let go of his hand.
She was slowly disappearing into the crowd.
"Take care."
Her voice reached him.
"I'm going to verify whether they really are enemies."
"Wait!"
Arthur tried to catch up to her.
He ran several steps forward.
But at that exact moment, a new piece of music began.
The couples switched partners.
A new round of dancing started.
Arthur found himself blocked by a veritable wall of dancing couples.
He was forced to go all the way around the crowd before finally getting past them.
Where did she go?
Where had Morgan disappeared to?
Arthur searched in every direction.
Then his eyes found a familiar figure just ahead.
It was the young woman he had danced with earlier.
Without wasting a second, he rushed forward.
He grabbed the young woman's wrist.
And asked in a low voice,
"Morgan, where exactly are those two people you mentioned?"
The young woman looked visibly surprised.
For a moment, she seemed completely confused by what was happening.
Arthur looked around at the couples dancing once again.
Then he took her hand.
"Forget it."
"That would attract too much attention."
He took a deep breath.
"Let's just keep dancing."
"And while we do, tell me everything you've discovered."
(End of Chapter)