Six years pass. Kay prepares for his impending knighthood while the Wart continues his education. (The Wart will become Kay's squire after he is knighted.) King Pellinore informs Sir Ector, Sir Grummore, and Kay that Uther Pendragon has died without an heir, and to remedy this politically chaotic situation, a sword has appeared outside a church in London, running through an anvil and into a stone. The inscription on the sword's pommel reads, "Whoso Pulleth Out This Sword of the Stone and Anvil, is Rightwise King Born of All England." A tournament is announced on New Year's Day to give all able men in England a chance to remove the sword. Kay convinces his father that they should attend, and he agrees. The Wart then enters, upset at Merlyn's announcement that he will no longer be tutoring him. Merlyn does assure the boy, however, that they will meet again.
During the tournament, Kay arrives at the tilting fields and realizes he has forgotten his sword; He orders the Wart to return to their inn and retrieve it. Finding the inn locked and nobody there, the Wart searches for a replacement. He eventually spies the sword in the stone and, and after a short struggle and the guidance of some animal friends, removes it, not realizing the significance of such an action. He returns to the tournament and tells Kay where he found the sword; Kay then lies to Sir Ector and claims that he pulled it from the stone. When they all go back to the stone, however, Kay admits his falsehood and, with his father, falls prostrate before the Wart, hailing him as King. The Wart, confused and embarrassed, bursts into tears.
Eventually, the Wart overcomes his awkwardness with his new title and is given a great party for his coronation. All of the characters offer him gifts. Merlyn reappears and tells the Wart that his real father was Uther Pendragon. He further informs the Wart that, in the future, it will be his "glorious doom" to "take up the burden" of his nobility. After promising to stay with the Wart for a long time, Merlyn addresses him as King Arthur.
