Blue-Eyes White Dragon: Adopted by the King of Knights [23]

A blinding white light radiated from the young dragon’s body.

At first, no one thought much of it—no one realized that this light, in another sense, was a harbinger of disaster.

But only moments later, when that glow suddenly swelled in scale—morphing from the size of a basketball into a blazing white sun looming over the entire village—Artoria’s expression changed in an instant.

“Not good!”

“Everyone, fall back now—evacuate the village!”

She attempted to organize a retreat.

To ensure her voice carried clearly to the crowd entranced by the light, she infused her words with magic—a king’s command, snapping the onlookers from their daze.

And yet… no one moved.

Everyone stared up at that blinding, swollen white sun in the sky, and deep down, they knew: they were witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime miracle. No one would leave now. Even the humblest peasant refused to miss this moment—a moment that would never come again.

“Tch—”

Artoria clenched her teeth.

She stepped forward, planting herself between the expanding light and the crowd—shielding the mesmerized onlookers with her own power.

But her strength had limits.

She could protect people—but not the village itself. And as the white glow finally receded and the newly evolved young dragon revealed its transformed body, the air between its wings erupted with a devastating gale, a wind of annihilation that tore through everything in its path.

“What’s happening to it?!”

Artoria’s eyes widened. She couldn’t understand—how had the playful little dragon from just moments ago suddenly become the source of this disaster?

But there was someone who understood. Someone who could offer answers.

“Don’t worry. It’s not doing this on purpose.”

It was Merlin.

The magician who had likely orchestrated much of this from behind the scenes now appeared at Artoria’s side.

“But such is the nature of true divinity. When gods descend, they inevitably stir the heavens and the earth. Those who cannot withstand such phenomena call it ‘disaster’—but those who can face it, feel the majesty beneath the chaos.”

“Divine wrath is like a prison. Divine grace, like an ocean. In the presence of such overwhelming power… even someone like me can only kneel and offer reverence.”

That’s what Merlin said.

But he didn’t kneel.

Instead, he raised his staff and unleashed his signature Magic of Flowers, casting it directly into the heart of the storm.

Under the force of his magic, the world-ending winds stilled at once—then, moments later, transformed into harmless pink petals. Petals that danced through the sky, forming a dreamlike sea of blossoms above. They fluttered down softly, landing on heads and shoulders, scattering across the earth.

This town, on the verge of obliteration just moments ago, was suddenly overtaken by a vision of pure, rosy innocence.

A miracle in its own right.

Normally, the people protected by such a spell would have cheered Merlin’s name—or praised him with casual awe: “As expected of that magician.”

But now, no one cared about the petals.

Every eye was fixed on the white dragon in the sky—its body so massive that a single wing could cast a shadow over the entire village. From beneath its vast form, it was impossible to see its full shape.

But Artoria could.

Because she wasn’t looking with her eyes, but with her heart—communing with the great white dragon even now.

This… this is what you look like when you’re grown up?
How did you suddenly become so huge?!

After the initial shock passed, Artoria gradually calmed.

To others, the sight of this colossal being might be terrifying. But to her, it was simply the baby dragon, grown up. Nothing to fear.

She was the one who had fed it—pancake by pancake—who had raised it with her own hands. How could it possibly be anything other than a good child?

“This isn’t really adulthood,” the dragon said, a note of pride in its voice.

“It’s more like adolescence… My true form, at full evolution, is thousands of times stronger than this.”

Kaiba spread his wings smugly—his current form was that of the standard Blue-Eyes White Dragon: Level 8, 3000 ATK, vanilla, no effects.

To unlock his true powers, he would need to absorb more mystery, and evolve into something far greater.

But that would come later. For now, there was something far more important.

“I know it’s a dumb question… but I still need to ask, just in case your thick skull decides to change its mind.”

“Arthur Pendragon—do you really want to be king?”

“A king destined to walk into the most tragic of endings, in a time on the brink of destruction?”

The white dragon asked this plainly, and with it, sent a stream of images into Artoria’s mind.

Its voice was no longer in the language of dragons, but in human speech. So not only Artoria, but everyone in the village could hear his question.

“Of course.”

Artoria’s reply was unwavering.

Just moments ago, Kaiba had shown her a glimpse of that apocalyptic future—a twilight world, soaked in blood, where she stood alone atop a mountain of corpses, bearing the hatred and curses of all the world upon her back.

And yet she didn’t falter.

The throne of the end times was not a blessing, but a curse. No matter how she struggled, her path would lead to isolation and a miserable death—that much, she had long understood. And still, she would raise her king’s banner without hesitation.

Because she had never fought for herself.

She fought to protect the people who lived on this island. To protect the smiles on their faces.

“Even if it’s the end of the world… between letting this island fall into a hell of hatred, and facing the end with a smile—facing it together—there is a difference.”

That was the answer she gave.

It wasn’t a perfect answer.

But it was enough—sincere, resolute, and quietly moving.

—And that was enough.

In an age when every choice might be the wrong one, the simple fact of having an answer was itself something to celebrate.

“Honestly, I don’t know whether that’s right or wrong…”

“But… since you’ve chosen—then form a contract with me!”

“A contract? What kind of contract?”

“You and I. An eternal pact.”

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T/N: sigh bluey is gone... replaced by... KAIBA???

This is a fan translation of 综漫：青眼幼龙，被骑士王捡到了 by 歌冰丽月. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!