Chapter 1452 Knight And Queen

It was no surprise that her unexpected appearance shocked everyone who had come to witness the tournament.

How could it not?

She was the Queen of the kingdom, the most respected position just below the King himself. The highest stature a woman could ever achieve. Hence the reason why everyone was very confused why someone of such status would suddenly decide to participate in a tournament where injuries could not be guaranteed not to occur.

Gwen could be seen very conspicuously as she stood with her head held high amongst the two hundred or so people, who had all come to prove themselves, to be recognized as an elite among the other knights and receive the illustrious title of Silver Knight.

Today, on the fourth day since the Knight of the Round Table Tournament began, the challenge that was about to take place was another one that involved close combat like the third day. The difference was that the scale was much greater.

Many of the participants who had come today were veterans, who had participated in the Battle of Camelot. Not only that, there were also several dozen Viking veterans standing in line eager to join the fray.

Many amongst the people of New Brittania had heard rumors of their Queen before she ascended to her current position, that she was a valiant warrior. However, because they had only seen the benevolent and considerate queen these past few years, they couldn't correlate those rumors with her no matter how hard they tried.

Hence, one could imagine their shock when they saw how the Empress was fighting splendidly with a sword. They were dazzled and speechless by the skillful yet enchanting swordsmanship she wielded.

The same expression could be seen with King Arthur Pendragon. But his surprise was not because of the extraordinary prowess she displayed, for he knew it all too well.

Instead, he couldn't understand her intention of doing such a thing. He wasn't sure if he could feel comfortable watching his partner, the queen of the kingdom he ruled, fight amongst those men and be watched by countless people. Not only that, there was also the possibility she could be injured.

Even so, Arthur didn't have enough reason to justifiably stop her, not without causing a scene. If he were to suddenly order to remove her from the tournament, he was worried that rumors would start flying around among the populace.

Fortunately, there was no need for him as Gwen's performance truly did not disappoint. She completely suppressed her opponents, Britons and Vikings all the same. She sparked loud cheers from the audience every time she won her fight in a convincing manner.

Sitting in the VIP seat with her hand supporting her chin, the situation that unfolded brought a smile to Klea's face, especially after she finally got to see the Queen's power.

---

[Gwenneth Lioness]

[Battle power: 33]

[Spirit force: 99]

[Acolyte rank 5]

[Spirit aptitude: D]

---

While it couldn't be argued that Gwen was of low aptitude, she surprisingly possessed quite high spirit force. Adding her pretty decent battle power into the equation, Klea couldn't help but be curious about the girl.

After all, such a thing could only be possible if one had access to the abundant resources from the Magus Universe. But then again, with Emery being such an excellent apothecarist, there was a high chance she received some potions from him.

With such high stats, coupled with her decent swordsmanship, Gwen was able to make her way through all of her matches with ease, making it into the top 50 of the tournament which qualified her to join on the final day.

On that day, both her and Glita were in the spotlight, stunning many pairs of eyes with their prowess in addition to their good looks. Many people had their view about the tournament completely turned upside down.

When the challenge was finally over and the crowd began to disperse, Arthur asked Gwen to come with him back to the palace and talk with him in private.

"A female knight... I don't know, Gwen... I don't think it's appropriate. And also... you, you are the queen."

"And a queen can't become a knight?"

"No... I mean yes... I guess." Arthur averted his gaze. "You have to understand, Gwen. We have never had a woman knighted in our history."

Gwen smiled at those words, before starting to speak quoting the Knight's Oath. "Protecting the realm. Be brave and upright. Speak the truth. Save the helpless... is that duty all only for men?"

"No, of course not. But... you can do all those things as queen," He argued. "Why do you want to be known as a knight?"

Gwen fell into a trance hearing those words. She couldn't help but remember the same words were spoken to her by her late father. Until now, she didn't know the answer.

All her life she was inspired by the Knight's Oath and always lived her life by it. If she were to be honest, deep inside she always wanted to be one of them, hence her constant training with Sir Yvain even after becoming Queen.

Arthur heaved a sigh, "There are so many things you can do other than fighting on the battlefield. So leave that dangerous task to us... men to protect you."

"And then what? Leaving us women to stay home and wait? Helplessly hoping...?"

As Gwen said the words, her voice gradually turned emotional, Arthur grabbed her shoulder, "Is this about Emery?" Looking into her eyes he said, "Ever since he came back, I have seen you gazing off into the distance again."

This time, it was Gwen's turn to sigh. She took a step away from him before saying, "You know I tried... I tried so hard to let him go. But this... This isn't about him."

Arthur was silent before he slowly moved closer to her. Grabbing her shoulder, he turned her around and said, "I know what I agreed to for our marriage, but... all these years that I've been close to you, I couldn't stop myself from falling for you."

Gwen could feel him squeezing her shoulder lightly, "If you want to really let go... I am here. I can help you... Let's make this marriage work."

Gwen heaved another sigh. She turned her head, her eyes seeing the charming and kind man before her, "I'm really sorry, Arthur. But I don't think I can give you what you want... I can't help thinking there is some purpose waiting for me... but not here, not like this..."

The next day, Gwen's figure was once again seen in the field. Her eyes were more determined than ever as she stood in her silver armor.