Kay first soothed Gwen, telling her to relax and not worry. Once she was calm, Kay began his questions.
"Gwen, don't worry about anything else right now. I need you to carefully remember if Morgana has encountered anything or anyone strange in the last few days. Don't rush to answer, just take your time, think it over, and try to remember anything unusual, no matter how small."
Kay inquired gently.
At this moment, Merlin was curious and tried to sneak closer, hoping to overhear what Kay was saying. But as soon as he started to move, Arthur grabbed him.
"What are you doing?! This is Morgana's room! The fact that I brought you this far is the limit. If you go inside, Uther will be unhappy." Arthur was exasperated. He was convinced that Merlin had a crush on Morgana. While this was technically true, Merlin had never admitted it. But Arthur was determined that Merlin had feelings for her. Merlin was Arthur's friend, and normally, Arthur would support a friend who liked someone.
But if the object of Merlin's affection was Morgana, that was a different story. Not only were Morgana and Kay childhood sweethearts and clearly in love, but the difference in status between Morgana and Merlin alone ensured that this secret crush had no future. The best-case scenario would be Merlin getting beaten half to death by Uther and Kay and then thrown out of Camelot. More importantly, Arthur wouldn't even know how to help him.
After all, one was his father, and the other was his brother. While Arthur hated differentiating who was more important to him, well... reality was often frustrating, and no matter how close he was with Merlin, he couldn't put him before his family.
When Arthur saw Merlin trying to enter the room, he thought Merlin was worried about Morgana—his secret crush. Arthur was genuinely upset about Morgana's current state, but he still stoically comforted Merlin: "Listen, Merlin, the truth hurts, but you and Morgana are impossible. She already has Kay, and... well, the point is, you need to forget her. You can find someone better. Not that I think anyone can truly top Morgana, but you know, a guy has to face reality. Try to move on. Also, don't let your little feelings show, or I can't guarantee what Kay and Uther will do."
Hearing Arthur's 'comfort,' Merlin was completely bewildered and didn't know whether to laugh or cry. While the main gist of what Arthur said wasn't wrong, the problem was that no one comforts a person like Arthur does! A stranger would think Arthur was insulting and mocking Merlin!
In any case, because of Arthur's 'good intentions,' Merlin had to stay put. This was the Royal Palace, and Merlin was a servant. Being allowed to stand outside the Princess's door was an immense favor. While the Celtic people might not be as strict as ancient cultures about segregation between men and women, allowing a male servant into the Princess's room while she was in bed was still strictly forbidden.
Inside, Kay's voice seemed to have a magical effect on Gwen, calming her considerably. She began to recall recent events as Kay had requested. However, after going over them several times, she couldn't find anything strange.
In the past few days, Morgana had been busy looking after Arthur and Kay. She hadn't gone out, and the people she saw and the things she did were no different from usual. But for Morgana to suddenly be in this state, something absolutely must have happened. So, Gwen began to recall again and again. Though she didn't know what good it would do, she was willing to do anything, no matter how small, to help Morgana.
Seeing Gwen deep in thought, Kay didn't interrupt. He started to examine Morgana's room. Kay was more familiar with this room than anyone, so he quickly finished his inspection. Morgana wasn't a girl who favored luxury, and most of the items in her room were familiar to Kay; there were very few new things.
The only change might have been the bouquet of lilies by Morgana's bedside. It looked like they had been changed yesterday, and the flowers were in full bloom. Morgana loved flowers, which Kay knew well, so he didn't find that strange.
But just as Kay was about to check if anyone had tampered with other objects, Gwen suddenly clapped her hands and exclaimed, "I remember! It was the flowers! The flowers!"
Gwen had been so deeply engrossed in thought that she didn't control her volume, causing everyone to look over, including King Uther!
"Flowers? What flowers? And Gwen, what are you doing? Morgana is ill, she needs rest! You cannot shout in here!" King Uther was in a foul mood, and Gwen's surprised tone only infuriated him further!
"As a lady's maid, failing to care for the Princess was already neglect of duty, and now you are yelling at the Princess's bedside! You are utterly inexcusable! Guards!"
King Uther was raging, and Gwen had clearly given him an outlet for his anger. As a king prone to tyranny, it was not unusual for him to execute someone when angry. If the guards really took Gwen away, her fate would certainly be grim.
"Wait!" Just as Arthur and Merlin were about to plead for Gwen, Kay stepped forward first. "Your Majesty, Gwen didn't mean it. It's because I was asking her for important clues, so... please forgive her. Your stern authority will just make a humble maid like her go blank, and that won't help us figure out why Morgana is like this. Please, calm your anger."
Kay's words immediately brought Uther to his senses. The reason Kay gave—that they were trying to figure out the cause of Morgana's illness—hit directly at Uther's most pressing concern. This was the key difference between Kay and Arthur and Morgana: it seemed no one in the Celtic court had taught them the art of diplomacy. For instance, if they thought something was wrong, they would point it out directly to the King's face.
Yes, that was honest, but it was also incredibly foolish. King Uther was not just their father, he was a King. Regardless of whether your motive for pointing out the King's mistake was good or bad, forcing a King to admit he was wrong in front of others... wasn't that essentially stripping him of his dignity?
Even an ordinary person would feel ashamed and angry if their mistake was bluntly pointed out by others, let alone a King.
Arthur and Morgana certainly had no ill will toward Uther, but they often only considered themselves to be correct, never Uther's reputation. That kind of behavior was utterly foolish. Some goals could be achieved using better methods, so why choose the least effective and worst way?
See? With Kay's words, he simultaneously flattered Uther and offered gentle advice. Uther now had both his dignity and his anger managed. Why would he insist on his momentary fit of rage?
Convinced by Kay's counsel, King Uther did not summon the guards but immediately seized the main point, asking, "Are you saying there's something strange about Morgana's illness?"
"Absolutely!" Kay had confirmed the moment he stepped into Morgana's room that her illness was definitely man-made—it was caused by magic! As mentioned before, Kay was a decent sorcerer. Though his path wasn't the same as the Celtic sorcerers, some magical principles were universal, like curses!
Every curse carried deep malice; that much was the same everywhere. And Kay had detected this malicious intent on Morgana. She had been cursed. However, since Kay hadn't studied Celtic magic, solving the problem without causing a fuss would be difficult. Moreover, curses were always tricky, and Kay wasn't sure if intervening directly would harm Morgana. That's why he wanted to investigate to find the culprit, allowing him to resolve the issue from the source.
In any case, regardless of the type of curse, finding the person who cast it was the most direct and clearest solution.