Heaven's Feeling – 10

"What she … say? She still called me a …. barbarian after all these years, but my King, you …. should put more … emotions into insults… like YOU BASTARD BARBARIAN, STOP DRIN…HIC…"

Naruto shouted angrily but didn't finish the sentence as he collapsed on the dirt, joining the rest.

Arturia remained indifferent to the whole thing.

"Punish them for misconduct," Arturia ordered as Lancelot about to comply.

"I will do it when they awake, my King, if I do it now, they would not feel it," Lancelot said as Arturia nodded, understanding the reason.

She looked at the only Knight of the Rounds in that tangle mess with a straight face.

"I change my mind, punish only Naruto, string him up in front of the gate," Arturia corrected as Lancelot sighed.

Lancelot carried out the order as he dragged the unconscious man toward the gate.

Arturia returned back to the castle.

She entered her bed chamber, but Guinevere wasn't there.

Ignoring the fact that the Queen was missing this late at night, she went to bed.

She didn't think much of the rumours, but she felt something else.

That night she couldn't sleep and wondered if the idiot Knight of her was getting sick in the cold weather.

She went to checked him without anyone noticing.

Naruto was snoozing while being bounded and hanged above the front gate.

Arturia smiled a little when no one was looking.

Months went by for England as Arturia continued to govern the people with absolute perfection.

However, even then, rumours continued to appear, and the more the people questioned Arturia's right to rule each day.

Arturia never narrowed her eyes or shown a sign of empathy toward her citizens.

She managed to balance the country without any deviations and punished people without a single mistake.

She sentenced hundreds of criminals to death without batting an eye.

She retained her cold expression throughout all the tasks as a few people wondered if their King was human at all.

Naruto watched from the sideline as the time went by.

He made fun and cracked jokes at his King's expense, trying to elicit a reaction, and he thought some small micro expression was shown, but he wasn't sure.

Naruto even changed Arturia's bedding, and shifted the schedule around, causing much confusion.

Naruto was disciplined for those misconducts by Arturia's alone instead of ordering Lancelot to do it.

Without Naruto around, Arturia showed no emotions as she sat on her throne as the people come and go from the castle day by day.

She exhibited no remorse or guilt when she cut down her enemies, or when a child handed her a flower on the way back from her skirmishes.

And like the King's cold demeanour, the people reciprocated the same cold attitude.

Civil unrest started to appear in small isolated pockets across Camelot.

"Are you leaving?" Naruto asked as several Knights carried all they have on their mount.

They became dissatisfied with their King in the recent months.

Arturia was seemingly invincible in battle and show great characteristic at leading them.

However, when she handed out promotion, as a King should, there was no feeling in it.

Those that received it felt empty. It shouldn't be like that.

"I know you can't go with us due to your vows, but you must see the discontent of the Kingdom under his rule… he doesn't understand human feeling… I gave my all in battle, yet he never smiled at me once, how can I serve someone like that?"

"What about your own vows? You are breaking your oaths!" Naruto called out at the retreating forms of his friends.

One of the knights behind them stopped and turned around.

"Naruto, we vowed to expel the barbarian invasion… We succeeded in that and fulfilled our oath. I thought I wanted to serve a King who could bring the peace till the end just like I had dreamed those years ago. But… I couldn't… I know Arturia, the King, had finally brought that peace with the Battle at Badon Hill. We all fought bravely and died bravely there… yet he show no sadness for the fallen… my two brothers died in that battle, so did my father the one before that... I'm all that left of my family. How could I serve someone who can't sympathize with my loss, and failed to understand my sorrow?"

Naruto looked at the ground and remained silent at the statement.

The Knight shook his head and continued toward the gate, leaving Camelot along with others.

More were leaving each passing day, searching for glory elsewhere.