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2

231 Foolish or Brave?

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[Due to increased comprehension level, host's training speed as a mage has improved by 50%.]

The King of Lanthanor could only stare into space for a few seconds after hearing this notification.

50%! This was just…unbelievable!

Calculating in his head, Daneel realized that he would be able to reach the Warrior level as a Mage in…less than a year!

Usually, if the level of the surprise was below a certain level, one would be able to comprehend and jump in the joy, assuming that it was positive.

In this case, it was well and beyond what Daneel had ever imagined.

Just the thought that he could reach this legendary level in such a short time….made him dumbstruck.

It was said that one had to go through the toughest of difficulties to gain something truly valuable.

By taking the decision to fight against the entity, it seemed that Daneel had gained so much more than he thought he would.

Besides, according to the level classification that Daneel knew about, legendary potential was the minimum if one wanted to get to the Champion Level before their life ended.

Of course, Crimson comprehension level only meant that one would be able to touch on the Champion Level if they spent most of their time training, while also being lucky enough to pass the final hurdle that blocked one from becoming a Champion.

As for those with Gold comprehension level, it was said that just by staying safe and training nominally, they would be able to reach the Champion level without too much effort.

This was also why every candidate with legendary comprehension level would send enemy Kingdoms into a frenzy.

If a Champion level powerhouse did emerge from any of the forces in Central Angaria, they might even be able to unite the entire area because of their overwhelming power.

Yet, not even one had appeared in centuries.

According to the memoirs of the previous Kings of Lanthanor, this was because of the final hurdle to reach the Champion level from the peak Warrior level, which Daneel still did not have a clear idea about.

Coming back to his condition, if legendary comprehension was required to become a Champion, then would his level correspond to….the rumored Hero level?

Daneel had heard not a whisper about 'Heros' since coming to Angaria, except for the legends in the books that he had collected from the Town Library all those years ago.

Hence, he did not even know if there was someone at that level in the entire continent at the moment.

Even the matter of the absurd boost in training speed would be able to be explained by this fact.

After all, the way power scaled in Angaria was that each major level was exponentially more powerful than the one before.

This would mean that getting to a level above that of a Champion really would require exponentially higher training speed.

Finally, after a minute or so, the King of Lanthanor came back to his senses before avidly plunging his hands into the goo to continue training.

"Warrior level, here I come.", he thought, before starting to train alongside the clone with renewed vigor.

.....

Meanwhile, in the underground room that was the headquarters of the Network of Angaria.

In a private chamber that had been constructed just for her, Eloise sat in front of a map of the continent with an expression of serious thought on her face.

After the success with the advertising scheme, offers had started to pour in all over the two Kingdoms in which the NOA was prevalent.

Yet, knowing the importance of not flooding the Network with too many ads and driving away people, Eloise had decided to take a moderate approach by introducing a few ads every day, and rotating them during the week.

In this process, they had found out that ads right now were most beneficial to only a certain number of people who were listening.

This was the core problem that if solved, would generate much more growth in business for those opting the advertise using the NOA. If they could accomplish, Eloise knew that the NOA would generate revenue in the range of hundreds of thousands of Gold Lans, opposed to the present where it was still around the tens of thousands.

Yet, although the problem had been identified, they were still a long way from figuring out a solution.

Deciding that she would have to speak to the King about it soon and haplessly blushing again at the thought, Eloise turned to the next major problem.

Expansion.

Right now, the NOA was only present in Lanthanor and Eldinor. Due to the tireless efforts of the assembly line, enough communication trinkets had been made to flood Lanthanor city with the Network.

Instead of the small community where NOA had been tested, the Network now had listeners all over the Capital, with a penetration of 70% in the population of around 500,000.

Of course, all of them had been given for free, meaning that right now, the NOA was only burning a hole in the Kingdom's pocket.

As for Eldinor, the adoption had been slower due to the fact that many of the Elves were much more learned in their worldview than the citizens of Lanthanor, who led their lives without much knowledge about the continent.

Hence, the penetration in the capital of the Kingdom of the Elves was at around 50%.

Although Eloise had many features and schemes planned to increase the adoption rate in both of these Kingdoms, the primary aim right now was to expand to more Kingdoms.

Yet, why would Kingdoms freely allow them to distribute trinkets knowing that they would be able to influence the minds of their citizens?

When thinking of this matter, Eloise realized that it was all about need.

In Eldinor, the Network had chosen the right time when there was no Queen or King on the Throne.

She surmised that as the network had been one of the contributing factors which had allowed the present Queen to win the election, it was being allowed to proliferate through the Kingdom.

If this was the case, then it all came down to need.

Unless there was a need, no Kingdom might opt to give the permission they needed.

If so, she had to identify a need which the Network would address for each Kingdom.

Thinking like so, Eloise started poring over all the news that was going to be broadcast next on the Network.

When she was doing so, a single news item became stuck in her eyes.

.....

"Your Majesty, Eloise is asking for an urgent meeting."

Interrupted after only having just begun training, Daneel initially felt frustrated for a bit because he had truly become hopefully addicted to the feeling he got when he reached nearer and nearer to a level where he wouldn't have to fear anyone from Central Angaria.

Of course, this only lasted for a moment. Eloise was actually his most hardworking subordinate, and the fact that she had called for an urgent meeting definitely meant that it was something very important.

Deciding to only use the clone, he said, "All right. Ask her to come to my chambers."

Yet, right after he gave the order, Daneel remembered the last time he had called her to his chambers.

Hence, hastily contacting Kellor through the oathstone again, he said, "You come too."

...….

After a few minutes, Daneel's clone walked into the Chamber.

After receiving the bows from the two who had arrived, he sat in the central seat before gesturing at Eloise to speak about the matter for which she had called the meeting.

"My Lord, someone has recently made a stir in the Black Raven Kingdom by challenging the claims that ravens give substantial boosts in power to Mages and Fighters who are able to connect with them. He seems to be someone who is capable of fighting above his level, as he has already defeated a Black Raven Fighter with a single punch. As the people of the Kingdom are aware of this and because pride is valued above all by them, the King himself has decided to fight this challenger in public after restricting his power level."

As Eloise took a pause at this point, Daneel couldn't help but feel awe at the person who had practically woven a story straight out of the legends about himself.

To challenge an entire Kingdom….was it bravery or foolishness?

Daneel couldn't help but incline his thoughts towards the latter, unless this person had the ability to Kingdom.

Regardless, wondering what this news had to do with them, he waited for Eloise to continue.

"The purpose of the fight is to let the continent know that the Black Raven Kingdom does not back down, and also to showcase the power of the descendants of their deity. I propose that we give the offer to do a live blow-by-blow broadcast of the fight on the Network, if they allow the Network to spread in their Kingdom."

Index

Book232 Cause and Effec

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Hearing Eloise's proposition, Daneel was impressed that she had managed to identify such a great opportunity.

Indeed, just as she felt, Daneel knew that need was what drove any business or discussion. Hence, this could very well be the perfect way to spread the NOA to the Black Raven Kingdom.

"Kellor, initiate contact with the Black Raven King's point of contact immediately. Explain everything, and also ensure them that the strength of a Black Raven Fighter will definitely be emphasized heavily. Set up a meeting with me if needed. Eloise, well done. Time and time again, you've proven that you are the best one for the job. I am really glad to have you working with me to make my dream come true."

As Daneel said these heartfelt words to Eloise, he saw her blush and hide her face with her hand.

At the moment, the expression he saw in her eyes reminded him of the one he had seen in Dalia's.

Although the intensity of the adoration was lower, there was a different aspect to it which he couldn't place.

Was it… infatuation?

Not at all experienced in matters of this kind, Daneel really couldn't tell if that was the case.

Regardless, what he felt for Eloise was true gratitude and a growing sister-like feeling.

Besides, there was no way he would even consider any romantic thoughts unless the looming threat on Angaria was resolved.

Thus, he wished that his guess was wrong because if it wasn't, he would feel quite guilty for breaking the heart of someone whom he trusted and admired for her hard-working and smart nature.

As he had been absorbed in his thoughts, he realized that Kellor had asked something which he had missed.

Coming back to his senses, he realized that the question had been: "What if the Black Raven King loses? Won't the entire operation backfire?"

Thinking for a moment, he answered, "The chances of that are very, very minute. The King would only set up such a match in public if he is confident of winning. I've met him, so I know that he is most probably not dumb enough to just rush into the fight without taking countermeasures. Besides, he's a true-blue peak Exalted Human Fighter. Even if he restricts his power, his experience will still ensure a victory."

Although this was the answer he gave, there was also an unspoken reason that he had kept to himself.

As the King hadn't hesitated to try and cheat Lanthanor by giving the Echer seeds without explaining about their effect on the land, he would definitely not think of it as under him to ensure a victory by using dishonest means.

Little did he know that the Black Raven King and the Old Man were arguing about this very same point in the throne room of the Black Raven Kingdom.

.....

"No. I am a warrior, and I would rather die than use underhanded methods to defeat an enemy in an upfront fight. If I don't do so, even if I step into the level that has the same name as the one I call myself, it wouldn't contain any meaning. I will defeat him, no matter what tricks he has up his sleeve."

Hearing the words spoken in a tone that brooked no arguments, the Old Man who had just gotten out of the Natural Energized Training Chamber and heard about the news of the fight sighed and said, "I know. But in this crucial moment, we cannot take a chance. Just carry the trinket I give with you, and go on to defeat him without touching it if you can. But if I see you losing, I will activate it myself."

"NO! Old man, I don't know if you have ever been on a battlefield. It is the desperation of there not being any other way that leads a warrior to give his all in a fight! If I have this countermeasure, I can't fight to my heart's content!"

SLAM

With the last word, the Black Raven King had slammed his fist on the handrest of the throne, making the sound echo all around the throne room.

His eyes were bloodshot, and his face had turned red from the indignation he felt.

Yet, seeing the old man's usually neutral expression morphing into one of utter seriousness, his expression slowly started to turn into one of trepidation.

SLACK. SLACK. SLACK.

The sound of the old man's slippers echoed in the room as he took one step after another in the King's direction.

It was as if each step was tightening a noose around the Black Raven King's neck, as he felt as if the air flow were being cut off from his lungs.

By the time the old man reached him, his red face which had previously been so due to anger now had additional veins popping out as he was close to suffocating to death.

"I did not think that I needed to remind you of our… arrangement. Do what I say, or you die. I won't even bother commanding you through the oath you swore. Don't make me warn you again, or you might find yourself missing something other than the air. Something more… personal."

The last words were said while the old man looked at the crotch area of the Black Raven King.

As the King realized this, he couldn't help but helplessly clutch at that spot after the feeling of being suffocated disappeared.

Seeing the fear that had been renewed in the King's eyes, the old man smiled coldly before turning around and walking out of the throne room.

As he did so, it almost seemed as if the eyes of the enormous Black Raven that stood above the throne flashed, as if it were following him while he made his exit.

.....

"Dalia, enough! You haven't spoken a word or eaten properly in two days! I know you are embarrassed for what happened in the Palace, but this is taking it too far!"

As Helena finally reached the limits of her patience and berated Dalia who was playing with her food, her daughter only blushed again and bent, hiding her head under her hands which she had folded on the table.

After the meeting in the Lanthanorian Throne Room, they had been told that they would soon be called back to the Palace to have their problem resolved.

A few days of delay was something they could still handle, hence the family had gone back to their home while hoping that the call would come soon.

Yet, since that point, Dalia had become someone entirely different from her usual self.

Her talkativeness was gone, replaced by the activity of acting like so every so often.

Helena knew very well how much her daughter had been looking forward to seeing the King.

Thus, she had easily figured out that it was because she had become tongue-tied when she was supposed to explain the situation.

Although she had thought initially that Dalia would be able to get over it herself after a period of time, she had noticed that it was only getting worse.

Hence, she had decided to finally confront her daughter about it.

Yet, seeing that there was no answer, she thought for a bit before deciding on saying something that would definitely elicit a response.

"You know, by acting like you are right now, you are only decreasing the chances of talking to him again."

This statement finally made her daughter look up with a confused expression on her face.

Realizing that it was working, she carried on.

"You know who the King speaks to on a regular basis?", she asked, making Dalia look into the air as she tried to come up with an answer.

After a few seconds, she shook her head.

"To those who work under him, dummy! And do you know what the criteria is for getting a job in the Palace?"

"The head counselor said that…we have to be at the top of our chosen field."

This was actually the first sentence Helena had gotten out of her daughter since the incident.

Feeling happy, she said, "Exactly! Then if you don't eat and question things and be the Dalia from before whom the teachers always praised, how will you get to the top? Daughter, just put what happened out of your mind and work hard while being yourself to become someone the King can rely on. Will you do that for me?"

At the mention of the word 'rely', it seemed that a fire had been born in the eyes of the 10-year-old.

Nodding with determination on her face, Dalia got up and walked to the chair her mother was sitting on before hugging her tight.

"Mom, I'm starving. Can we go get some candy? After that, we should go to the library!"

Laughing at her daughter's cute expression, Helena couldn't help but laugh and nod, making Dalia run off to change her clothes.

Seeing her bobbing head and patting herself on her back that she had fixed her daughter's behavior, Helena also got up to change her clothes and fetch her purse.

She had no idea exactly what path she had set her daughter on at this moment, and how this would end up changing the fates of many in the future.

Index

233 Entering the Black Raven Kingdom

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"They say the Network of Angaria will allow the entire continent to know exactly how powerful the descendants of our deity are, allowing the world to see and fear the might of the Black Raven Kingdom."

Gesturing at the messenger who had just spoken out the entire missive sent by the Kingdom of Lanthanor to leave, the Black Raven King sat back on the throne while waiting for the old man who had been standing at the side to speak.

Due to the recent warning, he had been behaving quite subdued unlike his previous self who had started to act unruly because of the long time that had passed since reaching the arrangement which tied his life to the old man's.

After pondering for a bit, the old man looked at the Black Raven King and said, "Allow it. I see more advantages than disadvantages. Your Kingdom isn't one where public opinion matters anyway, unlike the Kingdom of the Elves where a sway in opinion can change the leader itself. It'll also make the bratty King think that we are valuing the 'alliance' reached due to the Echer seeds. Make sure to send that part in the communication. Also, make a committee to keep an eye on the network, and assess whether there is any long-term risk for the Kingdom. And don't disturb me unless there is anything important. I will come out next when the fight is due."

The Black Raven King only nodded hearing these words, opting to look on as the old man exited the throne room.

Yet, at the last moment before walking out the door, the old man turned around to shoot a cold glance at the King as a warning to not play any antics when he wasn't there.

Feeling an instinctive fear, the Black Raven King couldn't help but grasp at his crotch area again, remembering the warning that had been given before.

Seeing the door close and finding himself alone in the room, the Black Raven King got up before walking towards the door himself and turning around to gaze at the enormous statue which had apparently existed for as long as the Kingdom.

Closing his eyes, he did the only thing he could think of right now.

He prayed. He prayed that someone could come along and kill this old man, whose only purpose seemed to be to wring the Kingdom dry for his own motives.

This was definitely not what he had in mind when he had taken the offer to become someone who could stand above all and below one.

....

In the King's chambers in the Kingdom of Lanthanor, Daneel, Eloise and Kellor were standing in front of a parchment while waiting for the communication from the Black Raven Kingdom who had intimated that they would be sending over the decision in a moment.

All of them had hopeful expressions on their faces, as an approval would mean that they would be able to tap into almost half the population of Central Angaria.

Seeing the parchment flash, Kellor walked forward and immediately held it in his hand, receiving the transmission.

After a few moments, a wide smile spread across his face which was enough for the others to understand what the message was.

Eloise immediately jumped up in the air, whooping and clapping her hands before calming herself down realising in whose presence she was.

Yet, the King himself had an even wider smile on his face and looked like he was resisting the urge to jump up himself.

Instead, he turned to Eloise who had just landed and grasped her by the shoulders before saying with excitement, "Well done Eloise! Time and time again, you keep exceeding expectations! Thank you for being by my side!"

Saying these words and looking into her eyes for a moment, the King turned around before beginning a conversation with Kellor about the logistics of preparing enough communication trinkets to deliver to the Black Raven Kingdom.

Thus, he didn't see that his small gesture of appreciation had made Eloise freeze where she stood and stare at him, completely entranced by the broad shoulders which gave her a measure of stability and security that she had always been looking for her entire life.

As this feeling swept over her, she realised that the feelings she had for the King had long surpassed those that existed between a ruler and a loyal subject.

Her stomach fluttering as if butterflies were flying inside, she left the room, replaying the moment that had just happened over and over again in her mind.

...

Two days later.

A man wearing the guise of a traveller entered the Black Raven Kingdom before heading towards a town nearby.

Although the Black Raven Kingdom was also surrounded by walls just like the Kingdom of Lanthanor, these walls could not even hold a candle to the impregnable ones that had thrown back enemies for centuries.

They were made out of stone bricks held together by a mixture of clay. On top, a metal layer had been applied for added strength.

Only Mages who were well experienced in handling metal elementary particles could even hope to melt enough iron in order to make such a coating possible.

Hence, this was one of the costliest projects the Kingdom had ever undertaken, but it had proven its value multiple times when it put up a strong resistance against foes who attacked.

Of course, unlike the walls of the Lanthanor Kingdom, these could be breached much more easily resulting in many villages and towns not opting to be situated near the borders.

Most of the land was barren, making it so that even if an invader did manage to breach the wall and enter, they would only be met with no cover and no stronghold to take control of.

Teleportation detection stopped people from entering however they wanted, and the strikeforce of the Black Raven Kingdom which was ranked among the top in terms of speed of response made anyone think twice before deciding to attack these lands.

Daneel had already read about all these facts in the dossier they had back in Lanthanor.

Although he had been reluctant to pause his training, he had taken the decision to investigate the Kingdom himself because he might soon have to figure out a way to take control of it just like how he had done with Eldinor.

This was actually his second stop after leaving from the Lanthanorian Palace, because he had first gone to the location of the Ker Gem mine to pick up the gems formed in the Natural Energised Training Chamber.

Glad that he at least had a way to train without taking the risk to expose the goo, Daneel had taken on this disguise before entering the Kingdom.

After reaching the village, he saw that the style of architecture was different from Lanthanor's.

In Lanthanor, even villages had houses made of stone bricks because the simple technology to construct such houses had been proliferated in the public long ago.

Yet, in the Black Raven Kingdom, he saw that many houses were still made of mud and thatch.

Of course, larger establishments such as inns were still made of stone bricks.

Taking lodging in one such inn in the town which was closest to the location where the Black Raven King would soon fight the challenger, Daneel ordered the local delicacies before asking the bartender, "I've been to Lanthanor and Eldinor, but this is the first time I saw houses like these which looked so primitive. Why is this the case?"

The bartender was an individual who had an eye patch, with an old raven perched on his shoulder who was looking at Daneel suspiciously as if he wasn't who he seemed to be.

Indeed, after entering the Kingdom he had realised that Black Ravens weren't as rare as he had thought in his mind. Out of 10 citizens that he had seen, at least three or four had ravens perched on their shoulders or resting on their hands while the people went about their daily tasks.

Although he had read this metric in the dossier, the sight was truly something to behold.

It was almost as if the entire society was built around this intelligent species and the humans.

According to what he had read, each and every Black Raven citizen would have the option of trying to bond with a Raven after reaching the age of 14.

This offer was not extended to outsiders, or even those that had chosen to marry outside their own society.

This reminded Daneel of some of the communities on earth who also acted the same way, being open to outsiders but still prioritising 'blood'.

Because the population of the citizens itself numbered in the millions, inbreeding wasn't a problem except in rare cases.

"Typical foreigner. Those are the houses of the true citizens, and they are a tier above when compared to the stone houses. They keep the houses cool naturally and are enchanted with special spells for added defense. I wish I could live in one of those."

234 The Fight 1

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Hearing the answer from the bartender, Daneel couldn't help but feel surprised seeing that there was this much demarcation between citizens and noncitizens, to the point that even the house they lived in was enough to tell who they were.

Opting to not respond, Daneel waited for a bit before receiving the local delicacy which was an animal that looked like a small rat poked through with a stick floating in a broth of some kind.

Taking the food and a glass of cheap wine and sitting at one of the tables in the inn, he started to eat while carefully looking around.

People wore mostly loose clothes because of the higher temperature, with some even opting to go shirtless and exposing the scars on their bodies.

Typically, these kinds of people also had ravens with them, showcasing that they had once been part of the military which was something to be adored in this part of Angaria.

As the common saying went, the weakest point of a chain was its weakest link.

From the way people interacted with each other, he could tell which ones were citizens and which weren't.

The citizens usually seemed like they had more swagger, confidently speaking in loud tones without caring that they were in a public setting where they could disturb others.

Although the noncitizens weren't very subdued, it could easily be assessed that they were acting while keeping their lower status in mind.

Although the Black Raven Kingdom always insisted that it allowed outsiders with open arms, the difference in status was something that was very glaring.

This made it so that the number of noncitizens living inside the Kingdom was pitiful, coming to around just 20% of the total population.

Hence, Daneel's initial plan of riling up tensions between citizens and noncitizens to cause riots and bring about a change in leadership was scrapped, both because the noncitizens were too low in number and the fact that the King wasn't someone who could be deposed by any common citizen.

In a way, this entire Kingdom looked to him like a cult. A cult whose leader and founder was the legendary Black Raven who was responsible for this Kingdom existing in the first place.

All the typical signs of a cult were there: all the citizens worshipped their deity with a single-minded fanaticism, with the objects of that deity being the ones which decided the role of someone in the society-if someone could connect with a descendant of the deity, it meant that they were blessed, leading them to possess as much wealth and power as they wanted up to a certain limit.

Also, they had several exclusive things such as the houses, some other perks and the advantage of trying to bond with a Black Raven which no one else could do.

The cult leader was the one who had the strongest connection with the strongest Black Raven in the Kingdom, which was rumored to be at a level comparable to an Exalted Human, as opposed to the other ravens which could only be trained up to the Eminent Human level.

It was still told in stories how the present King had challenged the previous one to a fight and defeated him before going on to form an extremely strong bond with the strongest Black Raven.

Hence, he had won the adoration of the people and smoothly become King, still worshipped to this day because of the strength of the ancestor's blood which flowed through him that had allowed him to make that bond.

While assessing everything he knew about the Kingdom in his mind, Daneel tried to come up with a different plan while waiting for the appointed time of the duel to arrive.

An hour later, the inn started to empty as everyone rushed to the large stadium that was on the outskirts of this town.

Seeing this, Daneel also got up from the chair and had the last of the bitter wine before heading towards the stadium himself.

After reaching, he couldn't help but stop in his tracks seeing the striking resemblance between this stadium and the famous colosseums back on Earth.

After all, the purpose was the same, making it so that this simple structure had been adopted by both worlds.

Outside the doors of the stadium, stalls had been set up which were distributing communication trinkets after carefully noting down the details and making sure that the binding of the trinket happened in the presence of those who were put in charge.

Daneel was the one who had insisted on this, as the trinkets weren't so cheap as to just spread them and hope that they wouldn't be discarded due to disinterest.

A catchy slogan which had actually been proposed by Eloise was in front of each stall: "Join the Network of Angaria and watch as the glory of the Black Raven Kingdom becomes known to the entire continent!"

As was crucial with every advertisement, this one's goal was to strike a chord in the people who were attending the tournament who were very prideful of their Kingdom.

Thus, many didn't hesitate to head over to at least find out what it was as they had been enthralled by the word 'glory'.

Smiling at the long line in front of the stalls, Daneel headed over to a bookkeeper and bought a ticket before heading to a common seat in the stands.

The fight had yet to begin, with people filling in rapidly as the time slowly crept towards noon, which was when the King would supposedly beat down the challenger into dust.

Seeing that he had some free time, Daneel took out a communication trinket before saying, "Eloise, are the three broadcasters ready? Have you check their credentials thoroughly?"

After a brief pause which made Daneel wonder if there was some problem with the communication trinket, Eloise replied in an uncharacteristically breathy voice as if she had just run up and down the stairs.

"Yes, My Lord. Two of them are veterans of the Lanthanorian Army who fought with the Black Raven Kingdom in a few skirmishes, while the third is a traveler who has gone around the whole continent challenging every type of fighter there is, just like the challenger who is going to fight the King. All three of them are quite fluent, and we have already had multiple trial broadcasts where they assessed a spar between two Lanthanorian Fighters. The broadcast will surely be a success."

"Good. I would expect nothing less from the most hard-working and sincere person in the entire palace. Keep it up, Eloise."

Having no idea that his simple compliment had again made Eloise lose her breath and smile happily to herself, Daneel put his eyes back on the stadium and noticed that someone had entered the field in the middle even though there were still 20 minutes till the start of the fight.

This man was wearing a mask which covered everything but his eyes, and he stood with his arms folded while lazily looking around at all the people booing him in the stands.

Indeed, this familiar figure had invoked in the people who had been present in the previous tournament a desire to tear him apart due to the overconfident and gloating nature he had shown before.

Their pride had been very heavily stung, and if even the King lost to this nameless challenger, Daneel couldn't even assess what would happen.

As he looked again and again at the man in the field, Daneel couldn't help but shake the feeling that he was someone familiar.

Yet, no matter how much he thought about it, he just couldn't place a finger on who it was.

Giving up and hoping that the mask would be revealed during the fight, Daneel thought back to the secondary transmission he had received from the Black Raven King.

In it, the Black Raven King had expounded on the bond that had formed between them due to the deal with the Echer seeds, which had apparently been part of the reason for him accepting the Network of Angaria to spread in his kingdom.

At this, Daneel had had to resist the urge to curse.

After all, he knew that the bond was nothing but a hope that by destroying some of the most fertile land in his Kingdom, he would be led to find a way to fix that land which could be copied by the Black Raven Kingdom to rejuvenate their own which was definitely already barren due to the energy-sucking effects of the Echer seeds

Knowing that the Black Raven King would soon get his comeuppance for scheming against his Kingdom and people, Daneel only smiled to himself coldly before putting his focus on the fight which was going to start in a few minutes.

Index235 The Fight 2

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The booing of the crowds which had been getting louder and louder stopped the moment a tall man appeared at the end of the stadium, confidently walking towards the center of the field where his challenger was waiting.

He wore black leather armor which covered his entire body including his palms. While his black hair flew in the wind, a confident smile appeared on his face as he raised his hand to wave at the crowds who had just started an ear-shattering cheer.

Meanwhile, Elanev, who was putting on the façade of a warrior who knew no fear couldn't help but feel a slight amount of trepidation feeling the entire stadium itself shake due to the people on the stands who had all gotten up the moment the King had arrived.

Yet, at the same moment, the thrill of a challenge coursed through him, making him enter the familiar zone of concentration which he had relied on often in his journey to save his life.

Whether it be the fiercest animal or the strongest bandit, no matter who his enemy was, this zone allowed him to ignore all distractions and focus completely on the movements of the one in front of him.

Hence, with his eyes fixed firmly on the King who was walking towards him, Elanev started to plan the first move he would make.

He knew very well of the history of this man who had gone through countless battles before challenging the previous King and defeating him in the process.

Even though he would be wearing a special trinket designed to limit his power to that of an Eminent Human Fighter, his experience would definitely give him an edge in this fight.

Yet, Elanev was confident in his own trump cards which might even result in a surprise victory.

Unlike before when he had completely disregarded the threat that his opponent represented in the last Battle Royale match, Elanev entered into a stance with both of his fists pointing forward while his legs loosened up, enabling him to be light on his feet when needed.

After the King reached a distance of 50 feet from Elanev, he stopped and waited for an official who had entered from the other entrance of the field.

In the official's hand was a cage in which a Raven was looking around astutely, trying to figure out where it was.

In the Black Raven Kingdom, there were actually two types of Ravens which were known as awakened and unawakened.

According to their doctrine, any Raven which managed to form a connection with a human, thereby awakening its ancestral blood, was considered an awakened Raven which would always be treated with the highest of respect and would never be forced to do anything by anyone.

Unawakened ravens were those which had not formed a bond with anyone. Hence, no one would say anything even if they were caged in this way.

According to the statistics, of all the Ravens bred to power using the Kingdom's secret technique, a small percentage were always unawakened.

Still, these ravens weren't treated unfairly. Put in cages and fed well, they waited for someone to come along who could bond with them.

Apparently, this was one of those ravens. Its size was similar to the one which had fought alongside Elanev's opponent in the Battle Royale before, at around double the size of a man's head.

Yet, unlike that Raven and the one which had been the partner of the woman, this one did not have any special features such as a bulkier or more agile build.

After the official reached them, the King opened his mouth and shouted in a voice which did not need any amplification trinkets to resound across the stadium.

This was because the people had already fallen silent the moment the King had done so.

Even before Elanev could marvel at the absolute respect and obedience the people had for this man, the Black Raven King's words had already started to echo in the stadium.

"People of the Black Raven! Today, a challenger is in front of me who doubts that the descendants of our glorious ancestor give any boost in power to those who are lucky enough to bond with them. You know very well that many soldiers would have already torn this man to bits if I had allowed them to."

This line drew a roar from the crowd, inundating the stadium for a few seconds before fading away because the King had resumed speaking.

"I only stopped them, because this is a great opportunity for the continent to be reminded about the sheer power of a Black Raven Fighter. And for this purpose, I myself am ready to defend our honor.

"For the purpose of fairness, I will only be using a Raven which has been unawakened and thus not trained in a specific way to build a specific power. This man is a 6th Grade Eminent Human fighter, but I will be restricting myself to the level of a fifth-grade one so that he won't whine later that he lost because I have more experience than him."

The Black Raven King chuckled as he said these words, making the crowd laugh alongside him while the desire for revenge in their eyes only got stronger.

Walking to the official, he first looked at the Raven for a few moments before using a finger to scratch at its head, right above its sharp beak.

Initially, it tried to resist, but it was soon enjoying itself and tilting its head in happiness as the King continued scratching.

While still doing so, the King carefully opened the cage door and coaxed the Raven onto his hand.

Yet, as soon as the Raven did so, it screeched as if in pain.

With his sharp eyesight, Elenav could see that there was some sort of ring with a pointy needle on the fingers of the Black Raven King.

The ring had penetrated the leg of the Raven, and although it was about to fly away seeing that it was actually free, it stopped itself after unfolding its wings and turned around to look into the eyes of the King.

With its head cocked to one side, the raven's eyes connected with the Kings for a few seconds before it completely turned docile and got onto his shoulder.

"So fast!"

"That's our King! The one with the strongest Black Raven blood!"

"Praise be to our Saviour, the legendary Black Raven!"

Statements like these resounded across the stadium, making Elanev raise his brow as even he couldn't help but feel impressed at the feat of the king.

According to what he had heard, connecting with a Raven was usually a process that took weeks or even months depending on the blood of the person.

Seeing it happening in a few minutes was truly fascinating, and it had also revealed to Elanev exactly what kind of trinket was used in the process.

After this, the official handed over another trinket which was shaped like a belt with thorns all around.

As the King wore the belt, he winced as the thorns dug into his skin, but his expression returned to normal as the feeling went away after a few moments.

Yet, a grimace passed across his face after this had happened, as he felt his strength receding to the level previously set on the trinket.

Such trinkets were actually quite rare and limited, but they weren't very sought after due to their limited uses. Apparently, even the design for creating such trinkets had long been lost, making it so that this one was one of the last that was still in use in the continent.

With his job done, the official left the stadium while the King said one last sentence before the fight began.

"To all those listening, I only say one thing. If you ever even think of opposing my Kingdom, then remember this fight and cower in your boots."

With the bold proclamation, a bell sounded across the stadium, signalling the beginning of the fight.

It was as if his statement had served to fire himself up, as the Black Raven King's eyes had become bloodshot just like the people in the stands who were cheering for him as if there was no tomorrow.

The first attack itself made a cold sweat appear on Elanev's back.

Taking a single step forward and swinging his body while holding both legs of the Raven in his hand, the King flung the Raven at him with a blinding speed that made him lose hope of even trying to intercept it.

Rolling to the side, Elanev prepared himself for a tough fight.

Index236 The Fight 3

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After he rolled to the side, a feeling of danger coming from his back made him jump and roll again as he realized that the King had already rushed towards him and launched an attack which would have almost hit if it weren't for his instincts which had been honed during the months of traveling.

Seeing the consecutive rolls in the middle of the field, the people of the Black Raven Kingdom couldn't help but laugh with satisfaction as they became filled with the sweet feeling of seeing their enemy beaten down in front of them.

After the Raven had missed its mark, Elanev hadn't been able to figure out where it was, making him feel an additional sense of danger which was all the more frightening as he did not know from which direction it would come from.

Meanwhile, the Black Raven King was raining down punches and kicks at him in a barbaric style that emphasized offense over defense.

Since childhood, Elanev had been trained in punching and kicking techniques which would try and take advantage of an enemy's weakness while also protecting the user.

The technique the King was using was the antithesis of what he had learned.

By forsaking defense, although there are many holes in the King's technique which he could take advantage of, the speed of the offense was so high that if he wanted to land a punch or kick, he would have to allow himself to be hit multiple times.

The lack in experience was already showing its mark. The first attack itself has served to throw Elanev off his game, putting him in disadvantages position which the King had capitalized on to push him more and more towards defeat.

Knowing that that was the only outcome if this continued, Elanev used one of the trump cards he had picked up since leaving the Kingdom.

Pushing energy towards his feet, Elanev took two steps which looked normal.

Yet, two muffled explosions could be heard in the stadium while Elanev flew back in a controlled manner before vaulting in the air and smoothly landing on the ground.

This almost made people suspect that the challenger was actually a mage, but their doubts were answered when they saw that two clear footprints had appeared on the exact spot where the man had stepped off of on the ground to fly into the air.

This was definitely some sort of technique that used force to push oneself and result in this effect.

Only one man among the crowds almost stood up with shock, seeing a familiar technique being used in a place far away from home.

Meanwhile, Elanev had taken out two strange looking trinkets that seemed like they had been designed to be worn.

Although they looked like they were made up of a metallic material, as Elanev put them on, they bent to perfectly surround his fists, making them shine in the sun.

Seeing the strange trinkets, the king only smiled before advancing towards his opponent again.

He was not even wearing any weapons, showing his confidence in being able to win the fight even if he was barehanded.

Yet, the moment he threw another punch at his opponent, he realized that he had probably made a mistake by underestimating him like so.

The reality was that although his power had been restricted to that of a fifth-grade Eminent Human Fighter, his experience allowed him to output a fist power at least two levels above his due to the perfect usage of stance and movement.

Each punch travelled from his foot to his hand, resulting in a power that would make one feel as if they were facing off against an Exalted Human Fighter.

This was something that could only be learned by years and years on the battlefield, as it required a near subconscious focus that could not be trained.

Although he had known that it was very unlikely that his challenger was also aware of such a technique, he had decided to take the cautious route by using the Raven to distract him before launching his attack.

This had allowed him to see that the opponent indeed did not have any such technique to amplify power.

Hence, he had simply walked up now and punched thinking that the opponent would just be blown away.

Yet, his fist had been met by a metallic object which made him wince.

More than the strength of the metal, it was the strange phenomena which accompanied each punch that shocked him.

It was as if a snake had slithered into his arm at the moment of contact, which would definitely burst with a simple command from his opponent, thereby rupturing his blood vessels and causing a grave injury.

Thinking quickly and understanding exactly what it was, the Black Raven King used a technique to expel foreign force.

By shaking his hand vigorously in a certain direction, he managed to lessen the force that was traveling through his arm so that even if the explosion really did occur, there would be very minimal damage.

The problem was that when he had been absorbed in this process, the opponent had already thrown three more punches at three different locations on his body.

Understanding that it was now his turn to retreat, the Black Raven King hurriedly commanded the Raven which had been lying in wait to initiate an attack.

This gave him a moment of respite, which he used to jump back and use the same technique as before to get rid of all the 'snakes' that had entered his body.

Meanwhile, Elanev had had no option but to give up the advantageous position he had grasped using the element of surprise.

The damned Raven had managed to swoop down from the sky in his blind spot, making him pause his attack and move in order to escape its sharp beak which would definitely impale him if he gave it the chance.

On the other side, the Black Raven King had already managed to expel all the 'snakes'.

"Interesting. Enough warmup. It's time to end this farce."

With these words began the most disastrous fight in Elanev's entire life.

It started with the Raven flying back into the sky, while the King charged again and began attacking in the same way he had before.

Yet, the difference was that each punch from him was accompanied by an attack from the Raven from a different direction.

Unlike the Raven of the Fighter he had fought before, this one could agilely turn in the sky whenever it wanted, allowing it to return back and attack him again and again even though it kept missing due to his careful dodging.

Even though he did land some punches on the King in the process because he wasn't flustered like before, it was as if the explosions had no impact whatsoever on this man who did not even flinch at the pain of having his blood vessels and skin torn open.

SHWIP.

BAM.

HWEP.

BOOM.

The sound of their punches synced with the sound made by the Raven as it kept turning and attacking him repeatedly, not even giving him a moment of respite.

Only a minute had passed since the moment when he had made the King retreat, but he had already taken eight punches and three kicks to his body while blood had already risen to his mouth indicating that he was internally injured.

Still, he looked fine on the outside, as opposed to the King who had taken five of the Hidden Kill punches which made blood flow down his body due to the patches of skin torn off on his hands where the leather armor had holes due to the explosions which came from inside.

The crowd couldn't even follow the movements of these two individuals, whom anyone could have mistaken as Exalted Human Fighters instead of the Eminent ones that they were.

The only thing they could catch clear glimpses of was the Raven which kept reorienting itself to keep launching attacks.

After a minute and a half, the two figures finally separated.

Both were panting, but where one was so bloodied that he looked like he had swam through hell, the other looked the same as he had at the beginning of the fight.

Noticing that it was actually the King who was the bloody one, shock appeared on the faces of the people of the Black Raven Kingdom who started to fear the worst.

If they were given a moment longer, no one could tell exactly what the emotion could have devolved into.

Yet, the chance to find the answer was lost.

The challenger moved forward one last time as if he had a last punch left in him, but the step he took made him shake suddenly, almost as if someone had electrocuted him.

This made him fall to the ground, leaving the King standing. Clearly, he could take no more.

This time, the entire stadium shook as everyone got on their feet and jumped with joy, seeing the pride of the Kingdom defended in such spectacular way.

As the broadcasters on the NOA kept raining praises on the King who had clinched the victory, Daneel narrowed his eyes and glanced at a specific corner of the stadium, before casting a spell to contact his dear brother whom he had missed for so long.

Index237 A Brief Reunion

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As the crowds got louder and louder, the Black Raven King felt all of his senses disappearing as he imagined himself standing in a battlefield, having just snatched victory from the jaws of death.

With the pride and glory of a warrior surrounding him, the King couldn't help but smile wide wishing that this moment wouldn't pass.

Yet, sadly, he came back to his senses and realized that those days had already gone by.

These past few minutes were definitely the best he had experienced in the past few decades.

Although the adoration from the crowds in the stands did make him happy, it was nothing compared to what he had felt in the moment that had just passed.

Of course, the last movement of the opponent had been a bit suspect, but the King just attributed it to the sudden pain that must have shot through his body due to that step.

Waving at the crowd, he almost turned around and walked away before glancing at his opponent's crumpled body which was still breathing.

Getting an idea, he started walking towards the challenger who had been so arrogant just a few minutes ago.

There were no shouts such as "Kill him!", as killing a downed enemy was not something that Black Raven Fighters or Mages did.

After reaching his body, the Black Raven King first hesitated for a bit remembering the old man who was definitely watching.

Yet, thinking back again to what he had felt, he decided to handle whatever consequences may come and bent to help up the man.

As he did so, the man winced but his face only had an easy smile.

"Good fight. Black ravens are indeed… Incredible. "

The smile on the Black Raven King's face only becoming wider, he bellowed out, "Did you catch that, my people? In the words of the challenger himself, black ravens are indeed incredible! All praise our Saviour! We have someone new who has understood the specialty of our ancestor. To such a man, I believe only friendship must be offered. What do you all say?"

Hearing the words of the King, the people of the Black Raven Kingdom only shouted louder, feeling impressed at the grace that their ruler was showing.

As the positive reply echoed all around, the King extended his hand and said in a low voice, "Good fight, indeed. I offer the friendship of my Kingdom to you. Although we cannot let you connect with the Black Raven due to the rules set by our ancestor, you can study techniques and even spar with me. What do you say? "

To this, the challenger only shrugged before replying, "Only if you allow me to stay in the palace. Treating these wounds is going to cost all of my money."

Chuckling at the answer, the King said, "I give my word that you will be welcome in the palace for as long as you want. And my healers will personally attend to you. What is your name, by the way?"

"E-eganev", he answered, before collapsing onto the King's shoulder.

...

Two days later. In an inn in the capital of the Black Raven Kingdom.

A man sat on a table sipping on a glass of wine while wincing at each mouthful as if it very bitter.

His eyes constantly scanned the door of the inn, as if he were waiting for someone.

A few moments later, the door opened to let in someone who had a scar across his cheek which looked like it had been recently inflicted.

Seeing his brother finally appear, Daneel smiled before getting up and directly hugging Elanev after he reached the table he had been sitting at.

Yet, hearing him wince slightly and flinch due to the hug, Daneel hurriedly let go before allowing him to sit.

A few seconds of awkward silence followed, after which both tried to speak at the same time.

This made them burst out laughing, while Daneel ordered another glass of wine and two bowls of the rat broth that he had grown to like over his time in this Kingdom.

"You sure have grown powerful. If I'm not wrong, that last technique you were going to use before the interference would have resulted in your victory."

Widening his eyes with surprise, Elanev said, "How do you know? And what are you even doing here?"

"Let's just say I have a talent in… assessment. As for that, I can ask you the same thing. How did my sworn elder brother end up becoming the foolhardy man who challenged an entire Kingdom? You are the talk of the continent now, you know."

"Long story. We can talk about it later. As for that fight, my only intention was to find out something about the turmoil that will supposedly happen in this Kingdom soon and see if it affects our Kingdom in any way. I had no idea it would end up resulting in a fight which would almost have taken my life. Damn that person who interfered.", said Elanev with frustration in his tone.

"You can't fool me. I know you were waiting to escape the moment the King even thought of attacking while you were down. About the interference, I have no idea either. Anyway, let's get to the matter at hand. I cannot give you the exact details, but the Black Raven Kingdom has ulterior motives against Lanthanor. Suffice it to say that if I weren't the King, our Kingdom would have entered a deal with the Black Raven Kingdom which would have destroyed it utterly. I need you to gather information inside the palace. Take these. They are disguised communication trinkets for audio and video, and I need you to have them on you at all times inside the palace. This is why I asked you to find a way inside during the fight."

Nodding, Elanev understood the reason behind the transmission after the fight which had startled him. In fact, he had asked something which only the both of them knew to ensure that it really was his little brother who was speaking to him.

Usually, he would not have accepted such an offer as it would mean tying himself down for no purpose. Besides, he had even been attacked in some discreet away when he had about to use another trump card which would definitely have seen him win.

It was only because Daneel had asked him to that he had stated that request to get inside the palace.

After all, his overall motive behind the entire thing was to find out if there was a threat against Lanthanor.

At this moment, the door opened letting in a Black Raven Fighter who nodded at the bartender before taking a table and scanning his surroundings.

Seeing this, Daneel said, "Let us continue our discussion on the communication trinket. As someone who could put up a fight against the King himself, you are definitely being scouted by multiple forces who want to find out just where you belong to. I will be taking my leave to Lanthanor. Stay safe, and I will make sure to come again so that we can have a proper reunion after things have settled down. I'll see you later, brother."

Elanev nodded hearing these words and looked into Daneel's eyes for a moment before starting to drink the rat broth which had been served at the table.

Although Daneel was currently under the guise of someone else, his eyes were still the same, filled with confidence and determination that pushed him forward to accomplish things one could only dream about.

Seeing him get up and leave, Elanev finished his meal and left the table after leaving some money, hoping that the day that Daneel had promised would come soon.

.....

A day later, a long stream of Ether driven carriages appeared at the East Border Gate of the Lanthanor kingdom.

The mercenaries who were in charge of protecting this group were bruised and bloodied, with their number whittled down to half of what it had been when they had set out on their journey.

Wearily, a man got out of the carriage at the lead and approached the waiting soldier of Lanthanor before handing over a trinket which made the soldier's eyes widen.

A few seconds later, a strikeforce of elite Mages and Fighters appeared around the group, arranging themselves around it and taking over the duty of guarding it from those who had been hired to do so.

The carriages made a beeline for the capital, making short work of the distance in between and reaching the Palace by night.

Daneel, who had just gotten back, stood at the gates of the Palace looking at the line of carriages as they were carefully escorted inside.

Kellor, who stood beside him, held a parchment in his hand before going to each carriage and checking them to make sure that everything was in order.

After he gave the go-ahead, the carriages headed towards the treasury of Lanthanor to refill it with Ether blocks and gold bars.

The fund to begin the Bank of Angaria had finally arrived.

Index238 Citizen In Need

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Getting notified by the communication trinket that had been given to them by the Palace, Helena and Dalia made their way to the designated location looking forward to finding out just how their problems would be solved.

Dalia had been thinking hard on the matter for the past few days, and she had been unable to come up with a way in which the King could effectively solve everything.

The most obvious thing to do was to give the money to go buy a trinket by themselves, but in that case, they would have to be lent a lot of money to buy the best trinket that had insurance, the cost of which came to around 100 Gold Lans.

If this much money really was given to them, no matter what interest was charged, it would be very very difficult to pay it back as their earnings were only in Silver Lans which was enough for them to sustain their life.

Of course, the insurance here only meant that any trinket possessing a specific indication that it belonged to a certain seller could be taken to that seller for repairs before a period of time passed after its purchase.

So, what would the King do?

With anticipation in her eyes, Dalia kept looking around while waiting in the auditorium-like room in the Palace which was currently empty.

Seeing the size of the room, the two had been puzzled as to why they had been asked to come here.

The query was answered in a few seconds, when they saw people trickling in slowly who looked like they were from all walks of life.

Most of them seemed to be slum dwellers with tattered clothes that had faded colors, while a few were from the middle-class, wearing clothes which were neat even though they did not look very expensive.

Only one seemed to be a high-class individual, wearing clothes that were clearly enchanted with auto-fitting and auto-cleaning enchantments.

Finally, over 500 people had arrived in the room and taken their seats, waiting for the King to arrive.

A minute later, the King of Lanthanor arrived at the podium at one edge of the room flanked by the Grand Court Mage and the King's father.

After receiving their bows, he began to speak.

"Welcome, hard-working citizens of Lanthanor. Except for a few of you, the rest must be wondering why you were called here. The reason lies with a particular mother and daughter duo who did not hesitate to come to the Palace and place their problem in front of me so that I could find a solution for it."

These words made Helena and Dalia both look down, feeling glad that they had made the decision to go to the Palace. Of course, the credit lay in Dalia whose fanaticism for the King had led her to push them towards doing so.

"Over the past few days, I tasked our government officials with finding hard-working citizens who are looking for loans from loan sharks but did not obtain them because they had no surety to give. The criteria was that each individual had to have run a business for a certain amount of time before having to shut it down for reasons like these. Not just these, even the ones who are on the verge of shutting down due to financial problems have also been called to this meeting."

This finally made the people in the room understand why had they had been called. Indeed, each and every one of them currently had no money in their pockets to buy the trinkets or materials needed to continue the businesses that sustained their lives. They had approached loan sharks and exhausted every resource they had to no avail.

But, how did the King even manage to find out about their problems?

Seeing the puzzled expressions on a few of the faces in front of him, Daneel answered the question even though it hadn't been asked.

"I could identify you all because of the details you gave when setting up a stall in any marketplace. Using that, it isn't hard to find out and check for those who are in need of money by asking around."

Realizing that their personal situation could be found out so easily, some in the room couldn't help but feel slightly disgruntled.

This made Daneel resist the urge to chuckle, as he was reminded of the people back on Earth who had been indignant when they found out that each and every one of their actions could be tracked by the government very easily.

Looking into each of their eyes and taking note of the frustration and hopelessness that came from the situation they were in, Daneel put on a serious tone before continuing to speak.

"You are the people who trusted and supported me when I ascended the Throne. And there is no way that I would let you starve because you have no surety to give to obtain a loan."

Nodding at Kellor who was beside him, Daneel waited for the display trinket to activate which had the logo of the Bank of Angaria rotating on it: it was a locked golden chest with the letters BOA clearly visible at the place where the keyhole was supposed to be.

Of course, there was no way for Daneel to create graphics in this world. This 'animation' had been simply made by recording fire elementary particles which had been controlled to make the logo.

"The Bank of Angaria is my cherished dream that will hopefully help many, many people all across the continent. Right now, I shall not get into the particulars and the plans that I have for it in regards to the continent. Instead, let me tell you what you will obtain from the bank."

As he said these words, officials started to spread around the room holding pairs of trinkets that were shaped like square badges made of what looked like gold.

The letters BOA were stamped on the badge, shining in all their brilliance while the people looked at them, awed.

"From now on, all of you have the status of 'Citizen in Need" in Angaria. This means that you have a credit of 1000 Gold Lans with the Bank of Angaria, which you can use to buy anything you need."

At the mention of the number which made them feel dizzy, the people in the room gasped with shock.

"You have to understand one thing. This does not mean that you can take money for free and use it as you wish. There will be a special wing opening in the government which will directly procure what you need when you give it your requirements. As for the interest, it will be collected in a unique way. Your business will be closely monitored by the government, and you have to pay 20% of the profits you receive from the business to the government as both a fee for maintaining the account and as payment to clear your debt. Of course, there is a hard limit for this amount that will be collected, which comes to 120% of the amount that was loaned."

Daneel gave a pause at this moment to see what the people would say. Although some weren't very experienced with the calculations that came with interest and principal amount, many were astute enough to realize that he was actually charging an interest rate of 20%, going by the usual way they can calculated interest.

This was simply… atrocious! Even loan sharks didn't charge this much, with their interest mostly capping at 10%.

Wasn't this simply… fleecing them of their hard earned money?

Seeing the anger and indignation that has started to appear in some of the faces, Daneel continued to speak.

"If you think I'm charging an interest rate of 20%, you are wrong. Instead of interest where you have to pay monthly or yearly, this is a lifetime fee. This means that no matter how much time you take to pay back that amount, I will only take a 20% extra on it. This number may still seem to be a bit high, so this brings me to the other main factor that you need to consider. If you do come into losses and lose the money, you do not have to pay anything. Your loans will be waived off, and after assessing the reason behind why the loss of money occurred, you might even be granted a new loan to try again. And of course, most importantly, no surety is required except for the blood which you will use to bind the trinkets that shall be your proof which you must use when you take material or money from the government. What do you all think now?"

As the realization finally dawned on the people that they were essentially obtaining a loan from a friend who would understand if they lost the money and not berate and threaten them for it, many of them couldn't help but smile.

This was because the whole agreement was based on one thing: trust. And it was this trust that they had never gotten from any of the people they had approached to obtain a loan.

Here, the King was placing trust in them that they would use the resources that they took to bring in profits for their business which would benefit both parties.

If he was doing so, what else could they ask for?

Index239 Revelation

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After thinking long and hard about all the economic models he had studied during his time on Earth, Daneel had come up with this model whose success was dependent on the capability of those to whom he gave this loan.

He had actually been inspired by macroeconomics, which had been hailed in the beginning of the 20th-century as the tool which would end world hunger.

Yet, as the years went by, this claim became challenged more and more until it was completely overturned by research which showed that macroeconomics was 'an' answer, but definitely not 'the' answer.

Macroeconomics basically meant giving small loans to people who are in need of them, usually without taking any surety.

This was all well and good in the cases of those who did honest work and paid back what they had been given.

The problem came when some issue came with the business, making it so that people couldn't pay back the loan. This made them fall into a never-ending cycle of interest payments over interest payments, finally giving them no other option except to either run away or commit suicide in order to escape the debt that they could not pay back.

Also, there were many cases of fraud where people used this system to take loans using bogus claims.

The other model that had inspired Daneel was the corporate model where individuals or organizations invested in promising companies and were paid back in an amount multiplied by a predetermined number.

Although this wasn't very common, its advantage was that it did not put much stress on the people who were being lent the money, as they knew the exact amount they had to pay back and could work while keeping that in mind, as these deals are usually in a way that a long amount of time was given before the money had to be paid back.

Daneel had basically combined both of these schemes to make his own. The key to finding success in the second case was identifying the right company which could earn enough money to pay back what had been given to them.

Hence, after identifying these hard-working people, he had selected them as the first who would be testing out this model to see if it works.

After all, they would be losing nothing with only the kingdom sustaining a loss of 500,000 Gold Lans in the worst-case if it did not work out.

Having some time to think about everything and also ask the officials in case they had any queries, the people in the room slowly started to realize that this was actually a very beneficial scheme for them.

After all, the main problem they were facing was that they could not place anything as surety to obtain the money. Here, they were getting the money without any surety, and they would also have no debt to pay back if their business ended up failing.

Thinking along these lines, they understood that what the King asked for was actually very reasonable. He would share in the profits but he would not reprimand them if there were none. As honest citizens, why would they hesitate from sharing the profit if the reason for it was the loan in the first place?

Besides, even if they obtained loans from loan sharks, 20% of the money would have to be paid anyway if they took it with an interest rate of 5% with four months passing from the date of taking the loan.

Although some were slow and some were fast, these calculations did not take long to occur to them.

As they did so, they realized that the King might even be giving the money at a loss while also risking a loss in the first place.

Now, they finally understood that this was indeed a scheme meant to benefit them as they were the subjects of such a thoughtful king.

Although Dalia was still doing the calculation slowly while adorably looking at her fingers which she was using to keep count, tears had already started to appear in the eyes of Helena who understood that this really was as perfect a solution as could be in their present situation.

She knew clearly that they would have agreed even if the rate was set at 50%, because all of them were that desperate.

Yet, clearly, the motive of the King wasn't to earn money.

It was to help those who had placed their trust in him, by trusting them back.

Wordlessly, each of them started to bow to the man who had now been thoroughly idolized in their hearts.

As he saw this sight, Daneel smiled to himself.

No matter what he accomplished, the feeling that came when he saw the needs of people being addressed was truly something else.

…

In the Throne room of the Black Raven Kingdom.

The Black Raven King sat on the throne, smiling to himself and still reminiscing about the blood boiling fight he had had in the stadium.

His great mood making his tongue loose, he glanced at the old man who had just entered with an irritated expression on his face and said, "See? No countermeasure was needed whatsoever. There is no one who can defeat me at the same level as me, let alone someone weaker."

The old man had recently been having a bad time. The wound he had sustained long ago was acting up more and more these days, and his supply of energy was dwindling due to the fact that the Energy in the ancestral grounds of the Black Raven Kingdom was close to being sucked dry.

Today, the pain was especially worse, but he had still endured it and come to the Throne Room as he had wanted to give certain orders to the king.

Now, the moment he entered, the irritating smirk of the King and his gloating words served to make him blow his fuse.

"You idiot. You think you won that fight through your own effort?"

Hearing this question, an expression of utter shock came on the Black Raven King's face.

Feeling all the happiness and pride that he had been reveling in since the moment he had won the fight receding from him like a flood, he asked in a disbelieving tone, "What are you...talking about?"

Seeing the expression of the King change from one of happiness to extreme shock and fear, the old man started feeling sick satisfaction that actually helped to ignore the pain which had been affecting him since the morning.

Satisfaction of the mind really did result in satisfaction of the body, he mused, before deciding to continue and end the fairytale of this stupid King.

"If I had allowed it to do so, the last attack would have blown you away, resulting in your loss. To think that you extended a hand in 'friendship' to someone who was defeated by underhanded means. Pfft. It made me laugh."

Placing two and two together, the King realised that the old man certainly wasn't bluffing.

His world shattering around him, all he could do was stare dumbly as the old man smiled wide at his plight and laughed to himself before opening his mouth and saying, "Snap out of the delusion that you are something great. If I wanted to, I could get any other warrior and put him in your place. I'm only not doing so because it would be too much of a hassle to go through all the processes that I did with you when you took the deal. All you have to do is sit on the Throne and pass your time while carrying out the orders I give. Send more scouts to look for Ker Gem mines, and also contract a few mine hunters to look for a new mine ASAP. I don't care which division you decrease budget from to make it happen. Just do it."

Laughing again seeing the King who was still staring at him dumbstruck, the old man walked away, leaving a cackle in his wake.

It took a few minutes for the King to finally return to his senses. After he did so, he couldn't help but use both of his hands to slam the Throne, which ended up hurting him as the Throne was nigh indestructible.

Not caring that his arms were bleeding, the King kept reliving the moments after the fight where he had graciously extended the hand of 'friendship' with the hope that he could have many more fights like that.

Why hadn't the man said anything? Why had he accepted after only giving that silly condition?

He needed to know. Taking out a communication trinket, he said, "Call Eganev to the throne room immediately."

Index240 Spiderweb

Index

Book

In the situation room in the Kingdom of Lanthanor, Daneel, Luther, Robert, Cassandra, and Faxul were all seated in front of the display trinket which was linked to the one which had been given to Elanev by Daneel in the Black Raven Kingdom.

When the summons for him had come, he had immediately intimated the same to Kellor who was his point of contact.

During the fight, Daneel had felt something from one of the ends of the stadium when Elanev had collapsed to the ground after looking like he had been electrocuted.

This had nothing to do the system, which had only been assessing the moves of the two Fighters on the field with the fight had been going on. Instead, he had been the one to get the feeling that whoever had activated the trinket must have been located there.

Assessing the recent changes that happened to him, he realized that this was probably because of the breakthrough in comprehension level which had happened recently.

Still wishing that he had enough data to find out just what this level was, Daneel had understood that it was most probably the Mage who had accompanied the Black Raven King when he had met with him.

Yet, the expression on the face of the Black Raven King at the moment when he had won the fight had clearly been one of pride which came from winning something through using one's own ability.

This meant that there were two possibilities: either the King was a good enough actor to fake such an expression, or the Mage had acted without there being any reason to do so.

Daneel suspected that the latter was probably the truth, as he trusted his instinct which told him that that level of acting was definitely not something capable of the Black Raven King.

Hence, this meant that the King would definitely want an audience with Elanev for an explanation regarding why he had accepted the hand of friendship even though ulterior means had been used to obtain victory.

Of course, Daneel was assessing everything based on the limited information he had.

Hence, he had been looking forward to this interaction with the King which would definitely yield valuable data with which he could make plans regarding the Black Raven Kingdom.

After the image showed the hallways of the Palace, the enormous Raven in the Throne Room of the Kingdom appeared in front of them.

Although most of them including Daneel had expressions of surprise on their faces seeing the lifelike statue which looked like it would unfurl its wings and fly away at any moment, one among the group had tears in his eyes due to the memories that were flowing through his mind which had been invoked by this image.

"Why did you not say anything or reject when the rules of the match were so clearly broken by the attack at the end?"

If Daneel or the others had been in the room when the Black Raven King had been told about the fact that the old man had used the trinket to obtain victory, they would definitely have marveled at the self-control which the King now had as he had had some time to cool down.

Yet, it seemed that he had bottled up and swallowed down all the emotions of loss and pain from the dishonour that he had felt, resulting in his face being twisted in an expression of extreme seriousness.

"I was breaking the rules as well. Our match was supposed to be between two Eminent Human Fighters, but I was going to use a technique which would have temporarily resulted in me becoming an Exalted Human Fighter. So, I only thought that I was defeated by a similar technique from you. Was that not the case?"

Elanev had been instructed by Daneel to bring out as much emotion as possible in the King by acting as he saw fit.

To the people of the situation room, it became apparent that Elanev had noticed the expression of tight control on the Black Raven King's face, leading him to ask that last question in a slightly provocative tone.

After the question echoed in the room, a silence followed during which the King's face twisted into many expressions which were all carefully caught and analyzed by Daneel who was watching with wide open eyes.

Frustration.

Regret.

Pain.

Loss.

And, helplessness?

The first few emotions were indeed ones that would be felt by a warrior who got to know that he had been cheated out of a fair victory.

Yet, the last one was something which did not make any sense.

Why was the Black Raven King feeling… helpless?

Wasn't he the one who had led the coup to achieve much glory and adoration?

Wasn't he the one on top of everyone in the Black Raven Kingdom?

If so, what could possibly be the reason for him to feel helpless?

Unless… he wasn't actually the one on top?

This line of thought made Daneel reassess each and every memory he had which involved the Black Raven King.

In all of them, there was only one figure in common who stood out as someone who might be the reason for the Black Raven King being helpless: the old man who was always beside him.

Was he actually… under this old man's control?

This represented the terrifying possibility that the actual enemy had been hidden to them all along, stringing them along while making them think that the King was the one they had to target.

In this matter, Daneel definitely wasn't jumping to conclusions.

The sheer amount of helplessness meant that it was definitely not due to regretful thoughts of placing a countermeasure like that in the first place.

This helplessness was one that came from being unable to control one's own fate, which was something Daneel had seen before in Eldra's eyes.

Hence, there was no mistaking that the King was definitely a puppet.

Right now, it was as if they had been in an unseen web so far that had just become visible due to this realization.

Back in the throne room, the Black Raven King had finally begun to speak.

"Leave. I do not want to see your face again."

Anger was now apparent on his face, as every time he saw the one whom he had 'defeated', he was reminded of the incident which made him loathe himself to the core.

Meanwhile, Elanev had begun to slightly panic because he knew how important it was for him to stay in the Palace.

Thinking quickly, he said, "Oh? I thought your word meant something?"

Indeed, the Black Raven King had given his word that he would be allowed into the Palace for as long as he wanted.

Remembering this fact himself, the anger on the Black Raven King's face only increased before reaching a point and subsiding, like a balloon which had filled up and suddenly burst.

A defeated and completely hopeless expression replaced the anger, while the King leaned back and said, "It does. You can be in the Palace, but I just ... don't want to see you. Leave."

Knowing that it really was time for him to make an exit, Elanev only nodded and started walking in the opposite direction.

Yet, at the last moment before he left the throne room, he paused and turned around.

Not hearing the door close, the Black Raven King had also looked up to see what was the hold-up.

Looking straight into those eyes which looked oh so weary and tired right now, Elanev said, "King, forgive me if I speak out of turn, but I just thought I would say something that I have learned by traveling across the continent. A warrior is one who tries to do his best with what he can control, instead of worrying about the things which he can't. It is how much he can accomplish while doing so which decides exactly how great of a warrior he is. It's too bad. I was looking forward to sparring with someone whose skill I truly admired. Farewell."

Leaving these words, Elanev left and closed the doors of the Throne Room behind him.

As he did so, if he had seen the expression of the King which looked like that of someone who had found a rope to grab onto in an overwhelming storm which was threatening to drown him in its fury, he would definitely have known that he had accomplished what he had set out to do: to continue the friendship with the King in order to get enough information to serve the Kingdom of Lanthanor.

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