“Who are you?”
With the end of the blade being dangerously hovering a few inches away from the in-between of my eyes, I know that there is no hovering hesitation at all that settles to the wielder of such a sword. As I remain frozen on my spot, the sun catching the glint of the blade to make me anxious of the sharpness of such weapon without any doubt, I can’t imagine the next days of my stay here having to deal with this type of encounter and danger.
The hobby falcon that I’ve recently saved, with its string that binds it to my wrist, also stays still as it walks indifferently on the field. Slowly with his movements as if to inform me of the danger. I know that if a falcon is like a parrot, it had already informed me of my foolishness and the danger that I am facing.
The voice that I’ve been struggling to find within me seems to remain so deep that I can’t say any other word at all. That even when I open my mouth, not even a single sound manages to escape. The presence of the sword aimed at me surely contributes to me losing my courage to speak.
I start to wonder what on earth is going on. And where is Merlin to save me right now? He had just been here a few minutes ago when I saved the hobby. Does he used such opportunity to run away? To hide? Or does everything remain to be a trick? That he tricked me in believing that I’ve been transported at such time so different from that of mine?
But then… the presence of such a polish and expensive sword, and the clothing that this young man is wearing that I’ve only seen among the ancient times… there is no doubt that I am really in a completely different world.
The young man, despite being a handsome one, is frightening with how tight he holds his sword pointed at me. Not even wavering or shaking at all, completely so insistent with the taunting act against me. Certainly, the clothes that I’ve tucked in my backpack and the bag itself that had been there a meter away from me by the foot of the tree, are completely weird things to find at this time. Good thing that Merlin had handed me a change of clothes, but the frown that this young man has deepens and the stillness in the surrounding makes him much more taunting.
What am I to do? If I didn’t say anything more right now, he’ll proceed on thinking that I am clearly a threat. He’ll really kill me if I don’t do anything right away.
But then, he suddenly tips his head away from looking at me and then to something behind me. I am too scared to move and follow his gaze. He returns his sword back to its scabbard that is tied by his belt, sighs and says, “So… you’re the one that Merlin had been buzzing about. I didn’t think that it will be some stupid woman.”
Just as I turn to the direction to where he is looking at for a moment, I realize that drawing closer to where I am had been Merlin himself, who’ve been brushing himself off dirt as if he’d been pushed back by the young man away and for him to fall back to the ground.
Before I can say anything, Merlin scoffs. “I am not the one buzzing about it, sire. Sir Hector does.” He crouches next to me and holds out his hand to the hobby.
The falcon flaps its wings right away and the string effortlessly and magically loosens around my wrist, ending it then to make its flight and to land elegantly on the back of Merlin’s hand.
Merlin holds out the end of the string as he turns to me with a sheepish smile and then to the young man.
I have my assumptions. Especially when I remember right away Merlin’s presence here, his words regarding the prophesied “Golden Child”, and the young man bearing such glorious bright hair like the rays of the sun. I bite my lower lip and inquire, almost stammering, “Uhm… who are you?”
The young man snickers a confident chuckle and grins. He then says without missing a beat at all, “Me? I’m Arthur.”
This… This can’t be real! Is fate mocking me? That this… this man who didn’t even wonder at all to point his sword at me in our first meeting… This is Arthur?!
“Merlin,” he speaks up, turning to Merlin’s direction as he leans his forearm onto the hilt of his sword and his other hand remains on the pommel. He seems to be too far from being the hesitant one from unsheathing his sword another time if it ends up that there will be a threat… or if I will be the threat. “She’s the foolish woman you’re referring to be your meeting from earlier? The same woman that you’re saying you’ve been seeing in your visions as of late? The same person that you and the rest of Camelot believes will be the Unknown Seer?”
Merlin bites his lower lip for a second, absent-mindedly weaving his fingers onto the hobby’s feathers gently before nodding. “Well, yes? It will be better for the two of you to get acquainted right away.”
No one from me and Arthur speak, the two of us looking at him.
He blinks and sighs. “Arthur, this is Lady Eira. Eira, this is Prince Arthur,” he introduces.
I am too dumbstruck that I remain sitting on the grass despite knowing how impolite my actions are. Well, the truth had finally sink in to me that this young man is really Arthur. The prophesied legendary King of the Britons.
Prince Arthur snorts back a light laugh and looks away as he focuses on to the falcon. His fingers moving swiftly and elegantly as he removes the string. “A lady, huh? More of a stupid woman to me.” He turns to Merlin another time, whispering, “Now that makes two of you.”
“What did you say?!” I fume, immediately pulling myself up. I frown and look up at him since he is about a foot taller than me. I stand on my tiptoes, not wanting him to look down at me. “If there’s a stupid person between the two of us, then it surely is you! There is no doubt that you’re the one who’ve let the falcon loose with its string still attached!”
Arthur frowns as he finished untying the string, causing the falcon to finally, but reluctant, to flap its wings and flies on to freedom. I will say that I am a little sad about it, after all the efforts that I’ve done to save it; either way, he turns to me. He had crossed his arms and looks down at me under his nose, completely making me be reminded of that he is not only physically taller but someone in the higher ups of the society. “What did you just say?” he counters back. “I’ve never seen a woman such as stupid as you. Not to mention that your manners are strange and that bag of yours has a weird shape and that you let a falcon sit on your shoulder without even the right gear.” He looks back to Merlin another time and inquires, “Are you really sure that this is the Unknown Seer? She just appears to be the girl version of you.”
Merlin just smiles sheepishly, almost to the point of finding my and Arthur’s banter to one another amusing.
“You! Brat!” I scream at Arthur as I close my hands into tight fists. Only then that when the agony registers through my body that I remember how I’ve scraped my palm from my climb earlier and how idiotically, as Prince Arthur had mentioned, that I’ve allowed a falcon to settle on my shoulder without any protective gear. I instantly flinch at the pain.
Merlin reaches out for my wounded palm and he traces his thumb onto it, healing right away. “Arthur, we need to head back to the castle for me to offer the necessary medications onto this shoulder injury,” he tells me before turning to where Arthur is, looking at the two of us with question and hatred pointed at me directly. “Care to carry Eira’s bag?”
Arthur’s eyes widen a little. “You dare order me?”
The young sorcerer scoffs. “Yes. I’ll be the one carrying it. Right.” He takes my backpack with him.
I draw closer to him. “M-Merlin, let me be the one to carry it. I can do that.”
“Hey, are you truly that ignorant, Stupid?” Arthur asks, annoyance audible in his voice. He turns to his manservant. “Merlin can carry it.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “I’m not stupid. I’m Eira. And I am not ignorant to see that the weight of my backpack is much heavier than it seems. A true gentleman will volunteer to carry it than to order someone to do so.”
“Well, he is my manservant. He carries much heavier stuffs than that one,” he explains.
Still, not fair. Despite having the essence of chivalrous nature within him, not to mention the ‘kingly’ persona as well, he at least must know how to properly treat people. It is a basic manner to call people by their names, especially when you are not too close to even consider such hurtful words as a nickname to call one another. And one who treats his subjects with the same respect.
“Well, respect begets respect,” I say.
“Hmph!” He turns away and decides to draw closer to Merlin on the walk back to the castle. He surely had come from there already, so there is no question that he knows the direction himself. As an additional side comment, he remarks, “What a strange name.”
I grit my teeth, suppressing most of my anger to be thrown to him at this point. He is slowly getting on my nerves, to be honest. “What is strange about it, huh?”
“Won’t you listen carefully?” Merlin inquires, not even batting an eye in Arthur’s direction at all. He continues looking and walking right ahead of us. “The prophecy speaks of Eira as your strong subordinate in the future. She’ll be a great asset, and you will learn to lean on her.”
“Given that she’s the real Unknown Seer,” counters Arthur before he scrutinizes me with his narrowed gaze as if that is enough to see all of my history and everything. “What can she do? I don’t need a stupid woman like her to help me.”
My eyes flare and I grit my teeth in suppress anger. Seriously, if I am so sure myself that there is something I can do against this person… if only I know that I am stronger somehow and he doesn’t completely look so intimidating at all with that sword he has, I’ve surely tackled him to the ground and give me a good shot for him to eat back his words. But I know that I am in every disadvantage here. It is visible on how he carries himself and the flex of his lean and toned muscles that he handles his training to the maximum. I will not win against him at all.
Merlin chuckles lightly. “You’ve also said that when we first met. And now you can’t live a day without me.”
“I can, but not as relax as it seems,” he points out before turning to me, continuing on with his mockery, “Finally realizing that it is much better to keep your mouth shut, are you?” He is really trying to tick me off, but I will not give him the entertainment for it.
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