FATE: The Man with Divine Keys

All was silent.

The wind whispered gently, as if time itself had come to a standstill.

Everyone stared in astonishment at the Caliburn held by Arkhan. Their mouths hung open, unable to close.

But the most astonished were not the onlookers but three individuals in particular.

"What the heck?! He pulled Caliburn so easily?! How?!" Merlin, his usually calm and frivolous demeanor replaced by confusion, as he ran his fingers through his white hair in disarray. He muttered in bewilderment, "But it can't be! Obviously..."

"Obviously, those two thousand seals still exist." Morgan, with her cherry lips slightly parted, her pale golden eyes filled with intense curiosity.

As the two most powerful mages were present, they could both tell that the two thousand seals surrounding the sword were still there and had not vanished!

This meant that Arkhan had forcibly pulled Caliburn, defying the power of those two thousand seals. But was that even possible?

Merlin and Morgan were quick to dismiss that possibility.

Even with the divine power of gods, it seemed impossible for anyone to break the two thousand seals laid down by Merlin.

Still puzzled, Morgan suddenly recalled something.

'Wait, could it be that Arkhan is...'

Abandoning all other possibilities, they were left with one incredible answer.

"Ahahaha... I should have known. Black hair, black eyes, Land of Shadows, unimaginable vitality... how could I forget..."

Merlin chuckled as he remembered the past and shook his head.

"Well, this just got a lot more interesting."

Of all the people present, Arkhan was probably the most confused. He was well aware of the immense power of the seals, and he had prepared to use Jizo Mitama secretly.

But when he gripped the sword, he felt no resistance at all. It came out effortlessly as if meant to be.

What was happening?

Didn't Merlin say that no one, except Artoria, could pull the sword? Was that white-haired bastard deceiving him? But for what purpose? Just to see his distress over the past half-month?

Arkhan pondered. Maybe this was indeed something that dick wizard would do.

An inexplicable power flowed into Arkhan through the sword, and he instinctively used the prepared power of corruption to devour it.

'This must be the curse that freezes the body's age at the moment of pulling the sword from the stone.' Arkhan thought. 'Without this curse, Lily should be able to grow normally.'

As Arkhan contemplated, a crisp voice that only he could hear echoed in his ears.

[Quest Two: Pull the sword from the stone on the day of the king selection (Completed)]

[Quest Reward: The Eighth Divine Key - Fenghuang Down]

[New quest detected]

[Quest Three: Within one year, destroy the Kingdom of Ganna]

[Quest Reward: The Tenth Divine Key - Xuanyuan Sword]

'The Tenth Divine Key...' Arkhan's eyes narrowed slightly.

"T-This..."

Canterbury was so shocked by this sudden turn of events that he yanked his own beard off. However, he seemed oblivious, his eyes fixed in astonishment on Caliburn held by Arkhan.

'In the name of God, what had just happened?'

Before Canterbury could begin to fathom the answer, a deafening roar erupted in the background, like a tsunami of cheers.

""OHHHHHHH—!!!""

""Arkhan! Arkhan! Arkhan!""

Everyone had gone mad.

Many were weeping tears of joy, and some even knelt on the ground, fervently praying.

After fifteen long years, someone had finally pulled the sword from the stone!

Camelot had finally found its chosen king!

And his name was—Arkhan!

The knights of Camelot silently removed their helmets and knelt down, pledging their loyalty to the figure on the top of the stone.

No coordination was needed, and no prior discussion was necessary; everyone understood exactly what to do at this moment.

"Hail the king!"

"Hail the king!"

Kay knelt, and so did Artoria.

"I'm not a knight, why do I have to kneel too?" Yulina muttered softly, but she obediently knelt.

Ector sighed deeply and dropped to one knee. He knew that from today, the era of King Uther had come to an end. From now on, it was the era of the new king!

""Hail the king!""

""Hail the king!""

""Hail the king!""

The shouts of over a thousand knights sounded like thunder as if the entire world trembled!

No one could remain calm in such a situation, and Arkhan was no exception. He felt his heart trembling, and a fiery passion burning within. Only at this moment did he finally understand why so many sought to become king.

This feeling of adoration from thousands was something that material wealth could never provide.

The intoxication of authority was truly overwhelming.

Arkhan took a deep breath and, with the help of the newly acquired Fenghuang Down's power, suppressed the swelling desire in his heart. His clouded gaze gradually cleared.

'It seems my mental training still has a long way to go huh...'

Arkhan chuckled self-deprecatingly and looked at the Archbishop beside him.

"Archbishop Canterbury, I've pulled the sword from the stone. According to the prophecy, I am now the new king of Camelot, right?"

Canterbury's eyes held complexity, but for some reason, he felt a strange sense of relief deep down.

"Yes, you are right. From this day forward, you are the new King of Camelot..." Canterbury nodded.

"Thank—"

*ROARRR—!*

Arkhan smiled and was about to say 'thank you' when suddenly, he heard the roar of a dragon.

'A dragon's roar?'

Arkhan paused, and then, endless darkness suddenly flooded his vision like a tide.

===

Time did not exist, space did not exist...

Arkhan stood on a desolate hill, his gaze fixed in the distance.

There, stood a giant tree.

A tree that seemed to have no end.

Its infinite branches reached out into the boundless sky, like pillars between heaven and earth.

From that tree, Arkhan felt a life energy unlike anything he had ever experienced, something that words could not describe.

It was as if it didn't give birth to 'life', instead, it was the one that birthed 'life'.

Arkhan's gaze shifted downward slightly, and at the base of this vibrant tree was darkness.

No, it wasn't darkness; it was lifelessness.

Devoid of vitality, it had fallen into decay, and this was lifelessness.

It was difficult to imagine that the legendary Tree of Life, which supported the world, had a place of lifelessness at its most vital roots.

This couldn't possibly be a normal occurrence.

A shadow cast a dark veil over the sky, and Arkhan raised his head to meet a pair of cold, black dragon eyes.

A loud and majestic voice resounded from every direction.

"You pitiful human who dared to steal my power!"

"Before your impending doom, etch my name into your feeble minds!"

"I am the Dragon of Despair who devours the world! My name is—"

"Nidhogg!"