Morgan let out a soft breath and chuckled lightly, a hint of amusement breaking through her composed expression.
"Are you being a jest, Sir Jin-Woo? Because your teasing… it makes me smile, even when it shouldn't."
Jin-Woo extended one hand calmly, his fingers making a slight, elegant gesture.
"Walk with me, my queen."
Morgan le Fay raised a brow, her smile subtle, but her tone wry.
"Heh… I really hate letting someone else take the lead," she said softly, "but—" she stepped forward, brushing past Baobhan Sith, "—I'll accept your offer."
."I wish to walk with Sir Jin-Woo privately."
Barghest gave a slow nod, stepping aside with a quiet grunt of acknowledgment.
Baobhan Sith gave a playful shrug and stepped back as well.
Without a word, Melusine launched upward, wings unfurling as she flew into the air. Her sharp gaze scanned the surroundings from above, taking her place as the queen's personal sky-guard.
And so, Jin-Woo and Morgan began to walk—just the two of them.
And so, Jin-Woo and Morgan walked side by side through the quiet streets of Camelot, the remnants of the tournament still fresh in the air. The skies had cleared, but the tension lingered—a mixture of awe, fear, and silence from the citizens who dared not meet the eyes of the dark figure beside their queen.
Jin-Woo glanced around the city with detached calm.
"The fairies… they didn't even dare to look at me."
Morgan gave a light laugh under her breath.
"Nor mine. Can you blame them?" she said with a smirk. "A crazy monarch just summoned more than ten million immortal soldiers above their heads. And then made them sing praises to him in a thunderous chorus."
Jin-Woo smiled faintly.
"And you—Queen Morgan. The so-called dictator."
He tilted his head toward her.
"Though I understand. You needed to be one. After all… the citizens of Camelot in this Lostbelt are cutthroat bastards."
Morgan let out a quiet scoff, her expression cool.
"You're not wrong. Without an iron grip, they'd have torn this kingdom apart centuries ago."
She looked ahead, but her tone softened just slightly.
"...But even dictators get tired sometimes."
Morgan let her gaze drift toward the cobblestone path ahead, her voice quieter now.
"Jin-Woo… how did you gather all that loyalty from your subjects? I've ruled for so long… and yet, I've never achieved anything close to that."
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye.
"Your life—I'm sure—is younger than mine. And still…"
Jin-Woo answered without hesitation.
"Eighty. At least."
He didn't elaborate, his tone flat.
Morgan's brow lifted slightly.
"You died once… didn't you, Jin-Woo?"
There was a long pause.
Jin-Woo didn't look at her.
"I don't want to talk about it."
The silence that followed wasn't awkward—just… real.
Morgan didn't push. She only walked a little slower, matching his pace perfectly.
Morgan kept her eyes ahead, voice soft but clear.
"I know you, Jin-Woo. You must see something in me—something like what you saw in Daybit. Something that can help solve whatever problem you left behind in your galaxy… right?"
Jin-Woo didn't stop walking. His voice was calm, certain.
"Even if Daybit… or you… refused to help, I'd still get the problem solved."
He paused for just a breath.
"But a surefire outcome… is always appreciated."
Morgan let the silence stretch again, before speaking in a quieter tone.
"You've been alone all this time… haven't you? Just like me."
Jin-Woo nodded slowly.
"Eighty years," he said. "I fought like hell."
His voice didn't falter, but it lowered, just slightly.
"My subordinates are still my subordinates… loyal, unbroken."
A longer pause followed.
"And before that… I had a wife. In my original world."
He looked ahead again, his gaze distant.
"But that place is… elsewhere now."
Morgan narrowed her eyes slightly, her voice a touch more personal now.
"So… is she dead? Are you alone now?"
Jin-Woo exhaled faintly.
"She's very much alive. Healthy, too."
He glanced sideways, letting the next words land with quiet amusement.
"Sorry to break your expectations… First Wife position's already taken."
Morgan puffed her cheeks slightly, clearly not used to being on the receiving end of that kind of tease. Without warning, she reached out and tugged Jin-Woo's cheek with one hand, a mock glare on her face.
"Traitor. You should be executed for that. I demand… compensation. Specifically—headpats."
Jin-Woo blinked once. Then gently placed a hand on her head and patted.
Not rushed. Not mocking. Just a slow, quiet gesture.
Morgan's breath caught for a second. Her composure almost cracked, but she didn't stop him.
The warmth of his touch lingered, and her face flushed ever so slightly.
"…Tch," she muttered, looking away.
"It's been 2,000 years since I felt something like this."
Jin-Woo let his hand rest a moment longer on her head before lowering it, his voice quiet but unwavering.
"To be precise… you've never felt something like this, have you?"
"Your whole life, you've worked to keep everyone safe. To carry everything alone."
Morgan turned her face toward him, half defiant, half curious.
"What do you know about me, Jin-Woo? It's like… you read me like a book."
Instead of answering with words, Jin-Woo stepped forward and pulled her into a gentle, romantic embrace. His arms wrapped around her—not forcefully, not hesitantly, just… present. Solid.
"You've fought an unwinnable battle your entire life," he said near her ear. "And you're tired. Not just physically—emotionally. You've been running on empty for centuries."
He paused.
"Well, I've felt that. That kind of exhaustion."
Then he leaned his forehead lightly against hers.
"But the good news is… you're not alone. You still have your subordinates. You still have people who believe in you."
Morgan's breath was soft.
Her voice came out barely above a whisper.
"Jin-Woo… before you became the Shadow Monarch… did you have a life? Was it terrifying?"
Jin-Woo didn't move.
"I killed everyone in my universe," he said simply. "Every last being. For eons. So the next universe—the next law of existence—could be born."
"I even killed the god who ruled the throne at the end of all things."
The weight of his words hung in the air.
And for once… Morgan said nothing. She just wrapped her arms tighter around him.
Jin-Woo held her quietly for a moment longer, then leaned back just enough to meet her gaze.
"Morgan," he said softly. "I want to show you something."
He raised one hand. A dark portal bloomed open midair—swirling with deep void energy—just at the edge of Camelot's highest rampart.
"I want to give you a taste of what it feels like… to walk in Proper Human History."
Morgan's eyes widened instantly, disbelief shaking her voice.
she blinked, stepping back half a pace. "You want me to walk outside… my Lostbelt?"
She placed a hand over her chest, her voice suddenly rushed.
"Jin-Woo, thank you—but I—I can't. My existence is like a singularity. I'm not supposed to be out there. If I leave… the world will reject me. My Lostbelt will collapse, vanish. I'll be banished. And—"
Before she could finish, Jin-Woo gently grabbed her hand.
He pulled her forward with a smile.
"Let's go, Morgan. Come," he said, with a soft pull. "Fly away with me."
She opened her mouth, but nothing came out—just stunned silence.
And then… behind them, a signal was made.
A gesture—small, but deliberate.
From the shadows of the city, a million soldiers rose in unified silence.
Igris stepped forward, blade at his side, and dropped to one knee.
"The liege," he said firmly, "wants us to preserve this world."
And then, all at once—
A chorus of voices thundered across Camelot.
"THE ENGLISH LOSTBELT SHALL PREVAIL!"
Mana erupted from every corner of the kingdom as a million shadows flared simultaneously, casting a stabilizing barrier over the entire Lostbelt. Veins of shadow-rooted magic spread across the landscape like a living sigil—anchoring it, locking it in place.
Morgan, still holding Jin-Woo's hand, turned to see the blackened sky above… filled with protection, not dread.
And beneath all the power, the darkness, the legend…
She smiled. Softly. Truthfully.
This man… this terrifying monarch of shadow… is a good man.
Morgan stood at the very edge of the dark portal. The swirling shadows parted like a curtain as her foot crossed the threshold—her heel touching down on the snow-covered soil of England for the first time.
A soft crunch.
The air hit different. Colder… but real. Alive.
She stood still, trembling for just a moment. Her eyes widened, and her breath fogged the air like a sigh from centuries past.
"…For so long," she whispered, her voice cracking with a joy she didn't know how to contain, "I waited for this moment."
She took another step. And another. Then she dropped to her knees.
"…Is this what it means… to be free?" she murmured. "Is this what it means… to exist… in the world?"
Her fingers trembled as they touched the snow. She laughed—just a little, breathless and stunned.
"This… this is the same world as Artoria's…" she whispered, tears quietly slipping from the corners of her eyes.
She stood up again, voice softer now. "I… I never thought I'd walk here. Never thought I'd feel this."
Without a second thought, she reached down and pulled off her heel boots, then peeled off her socks, standing barefoot in the snow.
Her feet sank into the cold white powder, her toes wriggling slightly as if memorizing every grain. She closed her eyes.
The chill, the sting, the truth of the world itself—beneath her feet at last.
Morgan spun around, smile wide on her face.
But then… her expression shifted.
Jin-Woo was still behind the portal, standing calmly within the swirling dark.
Morgan tilted her head, arms crossed now in amusement.
"Don't tell me… our situation just got reversed now?"
She gave a light smirk, brushing her silver-blue hair from her face.
"I'm the one walking in a real world now… and you're the one behind the veil?"
She extended her hand toward him. "Come on, Jin-Woo. Walk with me again."
Jin-Woo stood at the edge of the swirling portal, shadows whispering around his frame like old secrets. His gaze didn't meet hers at first. Instead, he looked up at the grey sky above her—then to the white snow at her feet.
"…No," he said finally, calm and measured. "Not that I'm hesitating. It's just—this world. It's alive, right?"
He glanced toward the distant horizon. "Gaia has sentience, doesn't it?"
Morgan's expression shifted. Her smirk faded. Her hand lowered slightly.
She understood what he meant now. Jin-Woo's existence… his overwhelming force, his unnatural presence—it wasn't just powerful. It was disruptive.
If Gaia truly lived, he would be the anomaly. The god beyond the gods of their world . The paradox wrapped in a shadow. The threat not just to the planet—but to its very will.
In a world that had once named Artoria a king and Merlin a mystery… Jin-Woo would be a catastrophe.
Her lips parted in a soft, uncertain murmur. "So… that's why…"
But before the sorrow could take hold—
Jin-Woo looked her dead in the eye and smirked. "Nah."
He took a step forward. "Who gives a shit about that."
The moment his foot touched the snow—
—the entire planet screamed.
The clouds overhead shuddered. The winds dissappear . The trees froze as it decayed
A planetwide, metaphysical shockwave rippled through Gaia's nervous system.
The ground beneath began to pulse with wild mana , veins of light sparking through the ley lines like seizure jolts.
The Counter Force, a primordial mechanism long silent, suddenly surged awake.
Emergency. Catastrophic Emergency.
A being unrecognized. A scale not accounted for. A presence that bypassed conceptual rejection.
Even the Root groaned, sensing a distortion that shouldn't exist within reality's rules.
From deep beneath the earth, from floating ruins and the World Tree's dead roots—everything that had once been calm… now panicked.
Jin-Woo casually looked around, unfazed.
"Tch. So dramatic."