In Arthurian stories, typically Merlin is not the protagonist. This novel frames the Arthur stories from Merlin's point of view, showing how paternal Merlin must have been. Arthur is typically the hero of heroes in these stories, but in this story, Arthur is younger, he is less experienced, and he depends a great deal on Merlin. This backstory retelling of the Arthurian tale shows Merlin as more than an archetype—he is a character with a deep love for the king.
The thread that connects Merlin's actions is loyalty. He does his best to help those to whom he has extended his loyalty and he urges Arthur to adopt a loyalty-centric world view. He even teaches Arthur the arts of combat and swordplay so that Arthur can be well-equipped to defend his loved ones in the future. Merlin works very hard throughout the novel, often traveling long distances to help Arthur in ways that Arthur never even really learns about. This shows that Merlin is a kind of parent for Arthur, because Arthur gets to focus on growing while Merlin solves most of the problems.
This slowly changes as the story arc heads back toward society. Instead of living in woods and wildernesses, Merlin and his young protege king start to move toward Arthur's coronation. They conquer a force of evil in Morgause, and then they aim the story toward God and church. Merlin discusses God in his speech about Arthur's right to hold the holy sword, and when they arrive in the chapel, Arthur picks up the sword through flames, and like the burning bush or the three friends of Daniel, he is not harmed by the fire—a sign of his divine appointment. Now Merlin has served his purpose as a prophet by guiding the king to his coronation.
