Fate: The Forged Arthur Pendragon

The crescent moon rose, quietly illuminating the earth.

In the stone house, flickering in the candlelight, Lucan's sudden self-exposure and ruthless unraveling of their disguises left Merlin's face drastically changed. She stared at Lucan's face—

It was the face of a young man of about twenty-five or twenty-six. Though not as handsome as Su Ya, it possessed a deeply intellectual aura. Especially when his eyes curved into crescent moons and a gentle smile played on his lips, it made people instinctively feel warmth and trust.

Merlin seemed to recall something.

Her brow instantly furrowed, and she took half a step back. Four slender, pale fingers pressed against the purple ring on her thumb, and she directly summoned the dagger she had first used to threaten Su Ya.

It floated between her and Lucan as she watched him warily.

"This face... are you that charlatan who was captured by King Uther half a month ago?"

Su Ya, too, looked slightly stunned, staring at the man before him.

He hadn't expected that just as he was wondering why the man's expression was so strange, he'd unleash a "I'm Reiner, he's Bertholdt" combo.

As the man said, he also gave Su Ya a familiar feeling, one of being a 'kindred spirit.'

When Su Ya delved deeper into the source of this familiarity, he immediately thought of the specialty he had just gained—

[Swindler's Aura: As a swindler, no matter what role you play, you can quickly and deeply grasp the inherent nature of the character, radiating the aura of your played role from within, greatly increasing trust. However—be careful not to play too many roles. If you have too many roles, can you still distinguish who you truly are?]

[PS: This profession has two paths. One: Dragon of a Thousand Faces. As more roles are played, all deeds and stories accumulate, leading directly to legend. Two: 'King's' Path. Continue to conduct fraud rituals, defrauding 1000 people at once, thereby gaining the next level D-rank profession: Instigator, and the Instigator profession's unique Conceptual Armament.]

And the man before him,

Undoubtedly, he was a swindler who had deceived more people and played more roles than Su Ya!

Su Ya shifted his gaze to the man's slightly narrowed, slit-like golden pupils, trying to use 'Discernment' to identify the man's expression and the true emotions hidden beneath that face.

However—

To his dismay, this innate, powerful vision that could see through anyone and even grasp their weaknesses at a glance,

When meeting this man's gaze,

Su Ya could only see two constantly changing kaleidoscopes through that slit—like a vast ocean, like tides, countless layers of 'identities' completely obscured everything about this person. Nothing could be seen, nothing clear!

Even when Su Ya tried to go further, to break through this layered 'sea of human skins,' he felt his own mind growing increasingly hazy.

Just then,

Lucan completely closed his eyes, blocking Su Ya's gaze. Then, he smiled faintly:

"Oh, junior, don't be so nervous."

"I mean no harm."

Yet the man who clearly said he meant no harm... Lucan, with a flick of his wrist, pulled out a stack of papers deliberately torn from a ledger from his waist. He waved them at Merlin, then cleared his throat and read aloud:

"Merlin, July 298th of the Magic Calendar, joined Sir Ector's estate as a gardener maid, responsible for the maintenance of vegetables, flowers, fruit trees, tea, and other crops within the estate."

"This is the estate steward's diary. Another file contains your employment information and your magic-photo."

"The diary has this entry: 'After joining the estate, this young and beautiful magician is always loitering near Sir Ector's study. However, it's a pity the Sir isn't home, and I wonder if she wants to offer herself or what? What a shame, why doesn't she seek me out...' Hmm, this must be about you too, right?"

Merlin's face darkened, and she stared grimly at Lucan, asking, "What exactly do you want?"

Lucan ignored her and continued speaking to himself: "In early July, there was a widely circulated major news in the capital. It was said that a fairy-country lady, calling herself the 'Gambling Goddess,' who had traveled from afar, lost nineteen games in a row in her first gambling session at the largest casino in the second ring, losing her entire fortune to Princess Morgan le Fay, the 'Gambling King.'"

"The total stakes amounted to 300,000 gold pounds, the largest high-stakes gamble the casino has had all year."

"And I had the privilege of witnessing this grand gamble alongside the Princess."

"That lady looks a lot like you."

Lucan raised an eyebrow and smiled: "So, are you now desperate because you couldn't get into Sir Ector's bed, and so you've set your sights on his second son?"

"Since you're so unsatisfied, why not agree?"

"Actually, my junior here isn't wrong. 1,000 gold pounds for a chance to conceive a royal heir. You'd make a complete profit."

Merlin's face turned ashen, and she stared coldly at Lucan, squeezing out only four words through gritted teeth:

"Do you want to die?"

Su Ya sensed the atmosphere was off and frowned.

His words to Merlin were, of course, a joke. He realized Merlin wanted to snatch the only valuable item he had, the magic sword, so he changed his tone to dissuade her.

But the crucial point was—

When these conversations happened, the door hadn't been opened.

Meaning,

Lucan had been waiting outside for a long time, eavesdropping. The sudden opening of the door was no accident, but a carefully chosen moment.

Thanks to him, Su Ya now had a rough idea of what kind of person the magician he had made a contract with was.

But now,

The more critical point was—

Su Ya dropped his expression, staring expressionlessly at the gently-faced young man who had suddenly intruded. He placed his hand on the hilt of the sword hanging at his waist and asked indifferently:

"What exactly do you want to do? What did you come for?"

Lucan smiled, pointing to the yellow spear leaning in the corner, the B-rank Noble Phantasm named Unending Glazed Fire, which Su Ya had only recently scammed him out of.

"That, ah, that was spoils of war I worked so hard to get. Don't you think it's a bit much for you to just take my blood, sweat, and tears so easily?"

"Is that appropriate?"

Su Ya pursed his lips, his gaze darkening, remembering the man's fight with Seleucus. That was definitely a level he couldn't contend with right now.

He had thought the other party was the real Ector, so he had used this method of bullying an honest man to scam the spear.

But now...

Su Ya bit his lip slightly and said, "You can have it back."

"What about my horse?"

"The same."

"Oh! Thank you for your generosity, King of Fakes."

Lucan dramatically put his hand to his chest and bowed deeply to Su Ya, but his words were sharp enough to make both Su Ya and Merlin's expressions change simultaneously.

At this moment,

Hearing that the other party had exposed Su Ya's true identity, Merlin's gaze turned cold, and a murderous intent instantly flickered in her rose-red pupils. Her hand subtly moved to the sapphire pendant on her chest.

"I suggest you don't act rashly. Otherwise, how do you know I can't avoid your attack? And are you truly willing to be so easily bound to this fake?"

"Have you really met the conditions to release that Conceptual Armament?"

Lucan shook his head, then turned and smiled at Merlin:

"You, magician, are not a magician at all."

Merlin frowned deeply and asked, "How did you know?"

Lucan replied candidly, "He only asked for 1,000 gold pounds, and yet you weren't willing to bear a child for him. So, the answer is quite obvious."

"That's it?"

"That's it."

"Then you can die—"

"Wait!" Lucan quickly raised both hands in the French gesture of surrender and exclaimed loudly,

"I apologize for all my previous words and actions. Furthermore, I am willing to pay you 5 gold pounds as compensation, Miss Merlin."

Merlin lowered her hand, then raised it again.

Lucan quickly pulled out his wallet from his waist, meticulously counted five glittering gold notes, and handed them over with a pained expression.

Su Ya watched this unfold, dumbfounded.

Not just by Merlin and Lucan's swift change of demeanor, but by the five banknotes with a face value of 1. He was stunned for a long time.

Wait, this is the Middle Ages, right?

But why are you using paper money?

Merlin, having received the money, squinted and smiled, as if she hadn't been angry at all. She meticulously counted the money, then looked up and asked again:

"Alright, tell me, what are you here for?"

"I'm here to join you."

"Why do you want to join us?"

"Because you're too foolish, and you'll drag me down to my death with you. So, I need to convince you to follow my plan."

"1 gold pound, please."

"Here."

"Continue—"