Chapter 23 - Staff of Selection (2)

Merlin had envisioned countless times the meeting with Arthur's successor, the hero chosen by Excalibur. Although no one could surpass Arthur's greatness, being chosen by Excalibur meant possessing certain qualities of a hero. Merlin had expected someone with the stature of a hero, even if not equal to Arthur.

When the sword was drawn recently, Merlin had considered heroes of this era as potential candidates: the greatest swordmasters, the Sword Saints leading the Orders, or even the proud leaders of knightly orders who upheld ancient chivalric codes.

Though these candidates didn't quite impress her, they were barely passable, possessing fame, skill, and character.

"But now," Merlin looked at the boy in front of her, holding the shining sword with a frustratingly smug expression.

He was neither a transcendent swordmaster nor a person of great character. He lacked the completed stature of a hero and had no fame or accomplishments to speak of. The only notable thing about him was his insult to Arthur, which was more of a demerit than an advantage. Merlin mentally scored the boy before her: a fail.

He was like a candidate who, instead of attending an interview, flipped off the interviewer. Merlin felt a headache coming on.

'Is this really the successor?'

She was tempted to dismiss him as unworthy of being Arthur's successor.

'Why did it have to be him?'

Merlin glanced at the sword in Najin's hand, Excalibur, the sword that became Arthur's voice after his death.

'Why this boy...'

She thought of Arthur, now long gone. Excalibur chooses the material for a hero, but it's the Staff of Selection, Merlin, who determines the path that hero will walk.

Though she disliked the boy, Merlin tried to set aside her personal feelings and the fact that Najin insulted Arthur. After all, he had drawn the sword, and that fact couldn't be changed.

Najin had broken centuries of silence by drawing the sword. What did Excalibur see in him? What potential made it choose him? Merlin needed to know.

She composed herself, opened and closed her eyes, her gaze deep like a tranquil lake with stars rising to its surface.

"Boy."

Merlin glared at Najin.

"Do you think you can handle that?"

It was both a warning and advice, a trial set by Merlin.

'That is no ordinary sword for humans. It’s beyond your capacity. You will surely crumble.'

The same trial Arthur faced before becoming a renowned hero. Merlin now posed it to Najin.

"Will you crumble?"

To test him.

To select him.

'What exactly?'

Najin's qualities and potential.

***

"Will you crumble?" Merlin's words made Najin frown.

"What do you mean by that?"

"You still don't seem to understand what wielding Excalibur means."

Merlin pointed at the sword in Najin's hand.

"Drawing Excalibur isn't just about becoming Arthur's successor. As long as you hold the sword, you're 'bound' to walk the path of a hero. Excalibur will ensure it."

Excalibur, the Sword of Selection, not only chooses a hero but compels the wielder to become one. Although depicted as noble and glorious in fairy tales...

"The path you walk with that sword is fraught with countless obstacles and trials."

Reality was harsher.

Trials and tribulations make a hero. They walk a thorny path, always on the edge of life and death.

"Damned creatures of Camlann, traitorous knights and their followers, dragons at the world's end, witches of the forsaken...”

Merlin stepped forward, and a mirage rose where she walked.

"Filthy beings that have led countless heroes to death and desecrated their spirits and bodies. They will all set their sights on you. And that's not all."

She sighed.

"How many constellations above, and beings below who walk the earth, will be displeased by you? How many will seek to eliminate you?"

Countless malevolence.

"Can you endure all that?"

The inevitable companions of a hero's path.

"If you were somewhat complete, I wouldn’t even say this. A transcendent swordmaster, a famed hero, a leader of a group, or even of noble birth..."

If he was any of these.

If he had followers or a firm foundation to not be swayed.

"If you had any of these when you drew the sword, my words would merely be advice."

If he possessed even one of these, he could withstand the storms. Even if swayed, he could quickly return to his path.

"But you don’t."

Merlin stared directly at Najin.

"You have nothing. You’ll easily be swayed, maybe even lose your way. You are prone to become a plaything, prey, or puppet for the powerful."

A future foreseen for the boy.

"That you will..."

"Why are you so long-winded?"

Najin interrupted Merlin.

She frowned.

"What?"

"Why are you making it so complicated? The point is simple. You're asking if I can handle the responsibility of drawing the sword without understanding what it entails, right?"

His tone was disrespectful but not wrong. Merlin nodded reluctantly. Najin sighed and faced Merlin.

"As you said, I have nothing. I’m insignificant and if pushed, I’ll be crushed. Who wouldn't know that?"

He was painfully aware of his situation. The struggles he faced just to reach the surface, how close he came to death, how he would have been a corpse in the underground city without Ivan's sacrifice.

"Will the strong hunt me? Will numerous forces try to bury me?"

Najin scoffed at Merlin's warning.

He was prepared to face these challenges from the moment he reached for the sword.

"I didn't draw the sword without that resolve."

From crossing the line, Najin had been prepared.

The only thing he could hold onto was his yearning for the stars. He’d rather be crushed than give in to fear from the start.

Najin glanced at Merlin.

"Wasn't King Arthur also not great from the start? He rose from the bottom without any foundation, and that's why he’s called a great hero."

Najin knew the stories well.

He remembered Merlin guiding Arthur, a figure in the fairy tales who saw potential in the unremarkable and led them to greatness.

"Isn't it a bit petty for you, who guided King Arthur, to talk like this?"

"Are you provoking me?"

"I'm just stating facts."

Merlin chuckled.

Did he realize this was a test? It didn’t seem so.

"Anyone can talk."

But not bad for a start.

Najin's defiance was not unimpressive. Merlin flicked her finger.

Snap.

The mirage following her footsteps suddenly rushed into Najin's eyes. Talking was easy, but proving oneself was always through action.

"If you can still say the same after seeing this."

Merlin stopped.

"Then I’ll acknowledge you."

The mirage in Najin's eyes showed him the path and battlefields he must traverse. The trials he will 'inevitably' face now that he has drawn Excalibur.

The same trials shown to Arthur centuries ago.

If he could still utter the same words after witnessing them, then she would reassess him. With that thought, Merlin watched Najin stiffen.

***

Najin saw countless scenes flash before him.

He felt as if he were right there, trembling. The vibrating stench made his nose sting, and the heat seemed to burn his skin.

Battles against vile and wicked beings. He saw countless strong beings devoured alive by demons in their dark realms.

As soon as their eyes met, Najin felt torn apart by the demons.

Torn apart, destroyed, and ultimately turned into their minions after death. He had no time to shudder at the horrific fate as the scenes shook again.

Battles where stars were born and faded. He witnessed the arrogance of established constellations in this ultimate battleground. He saw numerous heroes mocked and ended by them.

Crushed by those dreaming of becoming stars.

Destroyed by those coveting stars.

He saw corrupted constellations amassing power at the expense of others. They greedily expanded their influence. When they noticed Najin, he felt crushed by something immense, as if his very existence was denied.

And beyond these countless scenes.

Najin saw one last thing.

Najin witnessed a land of death beyond the horizon, a place dominated by entities far greater than anything he had seen before. He wasn't standing there but merely observing from a great distance. Something surged on the horizon, resembling a mountain range forming waves. It was a dragon, immeasurably vast. Merely acknowledging its existence shattered Najin's soul into fragments.

Camlann, the abyssal land.

Confronting a fragment of that place, Najin's spirit crumbled. As the scenes repeated, the light in his eyes, despite the haze, dimmed.

Merlin sighed as she watched this.

She had been wrong; the boy had broken. It was expected, as even the mightiest warriors would be bedridden for months after witnessing such scenes, and some would be utterly broken.

Arthur, however, had stood up defiantly after seeing these visions and argued his resolve to Merlin...

'But that was because it was Arthur.'

Who else could be like Arthur? Merlin had a glimmer of hope in the boy's bold words, but was it all just talk? Disappointed, Merlin reached to erase his memories and retrieve the sword. If he crumbled here, there was no potential for him. Better to end it here than to leave him as prey for the corrupted.

Just as Merlin's fingers almost touched Najin's forehead...

"Wait, you."

A sudden hand grabbed her wrist. Surprised, Merlin looked at Najin, whose eyes were now focused, the haze gone. He had freed himself from the illusion. His eyes still shone brightly.

'How?'

Before Merlin could react, Najin spoke.

"I know I'm nothing special. I'm not as noble or exalted as King Arthur. It's obvious that I'm unimpressive to you."

Breathless, Najin continued. His eyes were bloodshot.

"I didn't mean it when I said Arthur was just fortunate in his era. I don't think that way. King Arthur was the greatest, shining brightest in the night sky."

A hero who dispelled humanity's dark age.

Who overcame countless demons.

Who toppled false constellations.

And ultimately, halted Camlann's time.

"That's why."

Because Arthur shone so brightly.

"I must reach King Arthur, or even higher."

It had to be a goal worth pursuing.

Not just a hero of the era, but a great hero leading the times, making it worthwhile to challenge. This was what Najin was saying.

"Whatever stands in my way, I'll go. I must hang my own star at the highest place."

He had promised a proud knight.

Sworn from a land where no stars shone.

"So, I can't return this to you."

Najin gripped Excalibur tightly.

It still shone brightly.

"..."

Merlin silently watched him.

Her blue eyes saw Najin and also something beyond him, a past long gone.

「No matter what stands in my way, it's fine.」

「I will be the hero leading this era.」

「To be a beacon for those who follow, I need a symbol. A symbol like this sword.」

Arthur's first meeting.

His defiance even after seeing the future Merlin had shown.

「So, I can't give this back.」

「From now on, this sword will become a symbol with me.」

「A symbol of victory, glory, and hope.」

Remembering Arthur, Merlin sighed deeply. Najin couldn't see her face due to her hanging hair, but a smile was on Merlin's lips.

"That statement."

Merlin lifted her head, clearing her smile.

She stepped back, no longer pressuring the boy, and spoke.

"The one about Arthur being a hero of his time."

"You said it without meaning it..."

"You have to prove it. Prove that audacious claim, boy."

Merlin smirked.

"If you can't prove it, you die by my hand. I’ll hold off your divine punishment until then. If you give up or run away, I'll strike lightning on your head immediately, so don’t even think about backing out."

Her extended hand stopped in front of Najin.

Not at his forehead or neck, but a position to shake hands. Looking at the offered hand, Najin's eyes narrowed in confusion.

What does she expect? Frowning at his gaze, Merlin growled.

"Aren't you going to take it? Do you want to die?"

Reluctantly, Najin grasped Merlin's hand.

As he did, his vision shook, similar to the sensation when he was first drawn here, but slightly different.

Through the flickering vision, Najin saw a constellation being engraved on the back of the hand he held with Merlin. It was a constellation of eleven stars, the constellation of the Staff of Selection.

Merlin had made her decision. Remembering Arthur's last words, she had to guide this new owner of Excalibur.

Her extended hand was a gesture of agreement, a sign of her willingness to guide him on this path. Najin looked at the hand, understanding its significance.

Grasping it, he accepted the challenge, the path, and the trials ahead.

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