Morgan Can’t Be a Fool, Right?

"Bastard! You damn pompous clown! Who do you think you are?! How dare you speak to me like that!"

Woodworth's face twisted into a snarl, fully enraged by Guinevere's tone as if dealing with some lowly underling.

"Don't think that a few victories—defeating one calamity—make you so great! Compared to me, who has protected the Fairy Realm for a thousand years, your achievements are nothing!"

"Is that so? It seems the Fairy Realm's thousand-year endurance has been largely due to luck. If all you have are worthless fools like yourself, Queen Morgan must have had a hard time."

Guinevere shrugged, disdain on his face.

"But since you admit you're already an ancient relic of a thousand years, prepare to be laid to rest. I'll be waiting in Norich; if you're not afraid to die, come on over."

A dangerous growl slipped from Woodworth's throat as he glared at the water-mirror communication. Through gritted teeth:

"Fine! Fine! Very well! When I tear your head off, I hope that mouth of yours is still as cocky!"

Unable to restrain his fury any longer, Woodworth lunged at the mirror with a roar:

"You're dead meat! You're dead meat! Mark my words—no one can save you!"

"Understood. But you should brush your teeth, big dog."

With that, the mirror cracked sharply and the connection severed.

"Alright, that prewar trash-talking is enough. Next, let's prepare to face Woodworth's wrath."

Guinevere turned to Banquix, but to his surprise saw Lico had silently appeared as well.

"You slip in as always without anyone noticing. You must have been an assassin once?" Guinevere said, stunned.

"No, only because I was pursued many times in the past, so I learned a bit about stealth and escape… But speaking of which,"

Lico paused briefly before continuing:

"Woodworth has protected the Fairy Realm for over a thousand years and is undeniably a great fairy. Guinevere, is it appropriate to call an elder 'prepare to be buried' just because he's old?"

"I believe I mentioned before that for fairies who aren't limited by lifespan, age holds no real value," Guinevere replied.

(No wonder you seem unusually sensitive about age—just how ancient are you?)

Guinevere naturally didn't dare voice that thought.

"Ahem, I assure you I remember that point well. I take every word you say seriously, Miss Lico."

Lico's expression softened somewhat, but she still asked:

"Then why did you speak that way just now?"

"Merely to provoke him," Guinevere shrugged and walked to the strategy table with the map of Britain:

"Look, Woodworth's position in Oxford is extremely awkward for us—it lies right in the center of the territories we control."

"Normally, that would be a huge disadvantage for Woodworth, since he would be surrounded by our lands… but given his strong military, it's another story."

"Our forces are spread out, and each territory's troops alone would be easily crushed by Oxford's army. He can strike either side with great advantage. Especially if he turns to attack Salisbury or Sheffield: by leaving some troops to defend Oxford and striking those two, he could cut off our advance routes between Darlington and Norich. Once we're openly enemies, reclaiming those territories would be extremely difficult."

"Although I have confidence in my main forces' combat strength and believe I could defeat Woodworth in a head-on battle, that presumes he faces me directly. But reviewing his past engagements with Nocnary's army and Bogart's army, his military skill is not poor. He sees both the weakness in our dispersed forces and his geographic advantage. If he chooses a flanking approach, I would be in serious trouble."

"And Woodworth is the sort to fly into a rage. Though he tries to control himself, old habits die hard. The best way to deal with him is to use provocation. He prides himself highly and is easy to manipulate. Previously we managed to restrain him from acting; now if I provoke him, he'll likely rush his entire army to Norich in anger."

Lico listened in silence for a long moment, then feigned understanding:

"Ah… I see."

Beside her, Banquix likewise nodded with faux comprehension:

"Oh… oh… impressive as always, Guinevere."

(They both clearly didn't understand a word!)

Guinevere felt a vein twitch on his forehead. He had tried explaining with the map, but soon realized he was speaking to deaf ears. Finally he simplified:

"In short: if we can lure Woodworth to bring his troops to Norich for a showdown with me, all will be well. That's why I provoked him."

"Oh! I see now!" ×2

Watching their triumphant expressions, Guinevere felt weary. Yet at the same time, a burden lifted from his mind.

Lico's ability to stealthily appear behind him was deeply unsettling. And when he mentioned age, though Lico smiled with her usual calm, he instinctively sensed danger from her side. How absurd—his own stats, even outside of luck, had reached high levels (3B, 1C) plus the Chainsaw Man transformation for massive boosts; he could surpass top-tier heroes. Yet he still felt threatened by Lico. Could she possess some "absolute perception" skill that ignores raw strength differences? Combined with her sensitivity about age, he guessed she might indeed be a lifelong confidante of Morgan… If so, perhaps Morgan did value Banquix more than he thought. But if Morgan truly cared, why was she so distant from Banquix? Why had she allowed someone like Beryl by her side? The child had been led astray to believe that killing earned maternal praise, spawning widespread misery. Could it simply be Morgan was bad at child-rearing? The thought was ridiculous: the iron-willed queen who ruled the Fairy Realm for two thousand years couldn't be so inept. And if Lico were Morgan, that would make Morgan a foolish ruler lacking empathy or governance skill—absurd and insulting to Morgan's formidable reputation.

…

[At your provocation, Woodworth flew into rage and soon chose to deploy troops against you.]

[As you predicted, upon confirming you were in Norich, Woodworth led Oxford's army to attack Norich directly.]

For this war, Guinevere had prepared thoroughly. Though his other three territories needed garrisons to guard against opportunistic attacks, he still shifted two-thirds of his total forces to Norich, with all cannon-fodder units in place. He was mentally ready to sacrifice these cannon-fodder in a decisive battle. Moreover:

[Queen Era 2018 November: Your fairy arms factory has produced the first batch of magic plate armor, quickly manufacturing fifty sets.]

[You held a martial contest in your camp, selecting the fifty finest fairy warriors to equip with these armors, naming them "Princess Knights."]

[Roughly four Princess Knights working together can match one Queen Knight in a skirmish; five can defeat one.]

But most important was why he chose Norich as the battlefield:

[Queen Era 2018 November: As Woodworth declared war, your fairy arms factory achieved a breakthrough in new weapon research.]

[You named the first magic firearm to emerge "Magivac Model I."]