Chapter Text
Eggsy shifts the aim from JB to Arthur, and shoots him in the face.
The gun barely kicks.
The look the old man gives him once the flash passes and the smoke fades is extremely sour. And not exactly on the you've-gone-and-fucked-up-son way. He says nothing though – just stares.
"Fucking there," Eggsy says, leaning back and taking the clip out of the gun, checking the magazine. Custom Kingsman blanks – exactly as heavy as the real thing. He throws the gun on the table between them in disgust.
"You knew they were blanks," Arthur says after a pause. He sounds pissed off – barely even tries to hide it.
"Did I?" Eggsy asks, picking startled JB from the floor and settling the pug in his lap. Arthur gives him a look and utterly unrepentant, Eggsy scratches his dog's ear. "So now what? Failed that test, didn't I?"
"Hm," Arthur says and glances away – and at a hidden camera Eggsy spotted on his way in. The whole Kingsman manor is bugged throughout – it doesn't have a single unmonitored corner.
There's a distant gunshot and Eggsy glanced at the door. "Roxy," he says and looks at Arthur.
The old man touches his glasses. "How'd she do, Merlin?" He asks, staring at Eggsy. Arthur waits a moment and nods. "Feel free to give her the good news… No. He didn't."
Eggsy grinds his teeth and the old man lowers his hand. After a moment, Arthur takes out a tablet and taps at it.
"Should I pack up my shit and go?" Eggsy asks irritably after few minutes of tense silence.
"Sit," Arthur orders without looking at him. "During your first test, you were the one to break the glass. You did it with your fist – and under water too. How?"
"Spotted it earlier – the thing was weak," Eggsy shrugged. "Big pane of thin glass, no wire or any reinforcement. Bet you guys made it intentionally that way, to make it easier to break. Knew it wouldn't take much – just enough to focus the pressure and water was gonna do the rest."
"And why did you go for the door?"
"Bit dumb to not even check the bloody door, innit?"
Arthur nods with a frown and taps the screen. "Your sky diving exercise – you were the one to plan the landing, pairing everyone up."
Eggsy shrugs. "It worked didn't it?"
"It is how the sky diving exercise usually goes," Arthur agrees, and gives him an irritated look. "But why bother? Not only did you save your fellow competitors for the position as Lancelot, but you waited until the end. Almost got yourself killed."
"It was my damn plan – I had to make sure they got down all right," Eggsy says and frowns right back at the old fucker. "You getting somewhere with this shit?"
Arthur lifts a hand to forestall the question. "The NLP test."
"At that point you'd nearly drowned us for a test and Merlin faked us out with the parachutes – it got fucking obvious nothing about this shit is how it looks," Eggsy says. "Also who the fuck ties you to actual fucking train tracks? Fucking seriously."
Arthur presses his lips thinly together and stares at him.
"So what?" Eggsy asks, more and more irritated now. "Roxy's the new Lancelot, right? So the fuck it matters?"
Arthur scoffs and nods at the gun. "If you figured out they were blanks, why didn't you shoot the dog?"
"Why the fuck would I shoot my dog? I've spent months training JB, he's a good dog and I sure as fuck won't shoot him just because some old fuck tells me to," Eggsy scoffs. "I know fuck all about you – for all I know you're some fucking traitor fucking with me. Besides Merlin's been banging on about fucking teamwork since day one. The dogs were a teamwork exercise. Be one fucked up team where you go shooting your team mates at the drop of a fucking hat."
Arthur looks fucking disgusted at that. "You have failed the knight trials," he says, scoffing.
"Big fucking surprise," Eggsy snarls and moves to get up. "I'll be –"
"Sit down," Arthur snaps at him and Eggsy sits. The old man takes a steadying breath. "You've failed the knight trials," he repeats and hands over the tablet. "And entered the king trials."
Eggsy pauses at that, staring at him, at the tablet. "What?"
Arthur looks away. "Kingsman trials are in two part – every test engineered for two objectives. For finding knights – loyal and capable agents for the Kingsman Agency… and for finding kings – leaders capable of seeing beyond the surface, and leading the Knights. You've done well in the knight trials. Your scores in the king trials are similarly exemplary."
Eggsy blinks. "Wait. So me shooting you instead of the dog –"
"A knight is expected to do as he's asked – a king does what is right," Arthur says sourly and gives him a disdainful look. "Forty years of waiting and eighteen candidate trials and it's a little prick like you, who's suited to be the next Arthur. Go fucking figure."