025 - Bet

In the hall of the Flamehearts,

There was absolute silence in the room as they looked at the boy with black hair, sapphire blue eyes, and dark skin. He stood next to a corpse, burned by lightning, black smoke exuding from it. The person who was sitting there before, full of life, had been turned into a charred corpse.

It had all transpired in a matter of seconds. The people present in the hall were at a loss for words as everything had happened too fast. However, it wasn't that they didn't understand the situation. All the knights had drawn their weapons to protect their masters.

"MY SON! WHAT ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR? KILL HIM!" Velma roared in fury. She stood there, unable to approach her child who had turned into charcoal, her eyes filled with contempt.

At her roar, everyone present was snapped out of their trance, and the knight next to her rushed at him. His heavy armor clacked as he moved with heavy steps. He swung his sword, coated with a white hue of sword aura, at Ze's neck. The sword drew an arc as it reached for his neck.

But the sword stopped... No, it was stopped by Ze, who caught it. His hand gripped the sword, which was only an inch away from his neck. The ambassadors had their jaws dropped as they looked at him.

Sword aura, a power similar to mana coating but stronger, only forms after swinging a sword tens of thousands of times, reaching an unprecedented realm of understanding. Only a first-rate swordsman can produce aura smoke. A sword coated with aura can cut through boulders like butter. But when reaching the realm of a sword master, it changes into a concept-defying power.

A power that could cut through boulders like butter was caught by a boy no more than fifteen years old. It was literally an action defying common sense. Ze looked at the knight with his cold gaze and increased his grip strength. With a cracking sound, the sword shattered. The knight's face showed an amount of shock as if he had seen a dragon breathing smoke instead of fire.

Ze took a soundless and swift step forward, standing next to the knight as if he had always been there. Raising his hand, he clenched the shocked knight's head and planted him in the ground. He then lifted the knight's arm, twisting it like a towel to remove water. The cracking sound of bones breaking came from his hand.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH."

The knight's agonizing cry filled the hall as his arm was twisted, his armor broke, and it fell to the floor. Ze raised his leg and stepped on the knight's chest, pinning him to the ground. He turned his head to the audience, a devilish grin adorning his lips as he pulled the knight's arm. With a ripping sound, the arm was torn away from his body.

The knight, unable to handle the pain, fainted. His blood pooled up and flowed down the steps. Ze stood, swinging the torn arm over his shoulder, and looked at the audience who watched him with cautious eyes. They were just watching him, not even bothering to help the pitiful knight who had tried to follow orders and now lay on the ground.

Ze, not minding their gazes, walked up to the head's throne and sat on it. The throne meant for the untitled king of the Arzen Empire suited him as if it was made for him. His posture showed confidence bordering on arrogance. With pride in himself, the boy... no, the king looked at the people who stood three steps below him.

They all had contorted faces as they watched him sit nonchalantly on the throne. They felt a pressure bearing down on them, asking them to kneel before the king. But the king who sat on the throne was no saint, but a devil looking at them as if they were something amusing, a prey, with his devilish smile showing his fangs.

He brought the torn arm and poured the blood onto his other arm. The blood flowed down and stopped mid-air as it gathered on his left arm. The blood gathered and moved like a snake, twisting and turning. The blood divided and formed small symbols as they arranged themselves to form a spell.

The spell completed, emitting a crimson light. Seeing that the spell was complete, he looked at them, their eyes gathered on him.

"Well, as you can see, it's a spell," he began his explanation. "I am well-versed in blood art and such. This spell here is one of my favourites. It's called Devil's Agony. It was woven for torture, not to extract information but for pure torture. It inflicts enough pain to break a strong-willed person and drive them mad."

He finished with a grin. All eyes focused on the spell as he finished explaining.

"So, who should we try it on?" he looked at Velma for her opinion.

"YOU DARE!" a shout came from the crowd.

Ignoring it as if he hadn't even heard it, Ze looked at Velma. Her eyes moved from her child's body to him, filled with hatred. She couldn't even go near her child, and her anger only grew as she looked at his mocking smile.

Noticing her hatred, his smile widened.

"What? Are you angry? Feeling the pain of being unable to do anything while your child lies there, waiting for his death?" He asked in a teasing tone, his gaze full of amusement. "You should have considered it before poisoning Callista. DO YOU FEEL THE PAIN... of the child not being able to do anything for his mother, the helplessness?"

His face showed no anger as he said those words but pleasure at her pain. It was clear from his expression that he was doing this with pleasure, seeking pure vengeance and giving back the pain he had experienced, doubled.

"Don't worry, he is not dead," he said cheerfully. "I just burned his Mana veins."

The eyes of the people widened at his words. He had destroyed the child's path to becoming a swordsman or mage, leaving him as a cripple. It was a punishment worse than death.

"You devil! How dare you?"

Ignoring the shout again, he continued,

"The same goes for me, whom you poisoned. Not only did I need to burn away my veins, but I also had to destroy my core."

His words shocked everyone present, but also raised a question.

"You ask how I can use mana? It's like," he asked, noticing their curious eyes, "you can go fu¢k yourselves."

He showed his middle finger to the people who were expecting an answer to the mystery.

"Why the fu¢k would I share it with pieces of shit like you?" He asked mockingly.

~Heheheh~

He couldn't help but chuckle at their twisted faces. It was amusing to see these fools make fools of themselves.

"Enough!" a third shout came from the audience, it thundered in the hall.

"Well, if it isn't Reid McCane, the retired sword master. I didn't see you there," he said in a surprised voice. But his crude act was full of sarcasm.

"You old coot, you were the one who suggested killing me off, weren't you? You were one of the members of the Round table at that time," he accused, still with a smile.

His remark was directed at a gray-haired man who stood before the ambassadors. The wrinkles on his face showed his old age, but his build was still broad, still as strong as in his prime. Veins bulged in his face as he heard Ze.

"You devil! Not only did you harm my grandson, but you blame us. If you want to blame something, blame the iniquitous birth. You are a bastard!"

"Well, if I am a bastard, then what will you call your grandson, who doesn't have a drop of Rykers blood in him?" His face had a smile, asking if he should reveal everything.

The onlookers were shocked by the information that was coming out of their mouths.

"You bastard! How dare you? Not only did we let you live, but we also tried to accept you. And yet, you dare to question my grandson's birth! Is this how you show your gratitude?" The swordmaster roared, angered.

"What should I be grateful for? You tried to kill me," he mocked, not caring about his anger.

The hall fell silent at his mockery. The old man's face contorted at his truthful question. The conversation was not going in the direction he wanted, and many secrets had flooded out. Looking at Ze's smile, he understood that this conversation was going as he wanted.

Taking a deep breath, he struck back.

"I heard you fell from the cliff, and judging by your power, you should have been possessed by a demon. You are one of those corrupted ones made by those demon worshippers, aren't you?"

"Seems your brain was damaged with your old age. If they had someone like me, they should go conquer the world, you tedious fool," Ze said arrogantly.

"You bastard! We should have never let you live! I shall take it upon myself to kill you here, you demon!" Veins bulged on his face.

"Give up, McCane. I have the higher ground," he said as he sat three steps above him. "You are the only sword master present here and you are old."

Veins bulged on the old man's face as it turned red with anger. His patience was at its end but Ze suddenly gave him an offer.

"Well, since you want to kill me here, I will make you an offer. Since you are a swordsman, let's fight. If you win, I will die by your hand. But if I win, everyone here will die. So you better give everything you have."

He stood up from his throne as he finished his sentence. He turned to the shadow who stood behind Velma.

"Go bring the old man a good sword," he commanded.

All of them turned to the man who they had forgotten because of his low presence. Velma too turned to him. He was the strongest person present in the room at the moment, with the exception of the sword master McCane.

"You! What are you doing when he harmed your master? Go kill him!" she roared in fury.

The shadow didn't move at her command, but he bowed his head and left the hall to fetch the sword, which only caused more confusion as to why he didn't obey when he was a loyal shadow who protected the Flamehearts from the shadows.

"He won't interfere. The moment I attacked your child, it became the battle of succession. And since I am clearly stronger, it makes Callista the matriarch of the Flamehearts. Do you understand?" he explained the disobedience.

The man returned with a sword in his hand and offered it to the retired sword master. He then walked and stood behind Ze as he watched McCane unsheathe his sword.

"You are a loyal dog who only follows his master, but a dog ought to know who its master is,"

At Ze's words, the man lowered his head.

"Now shall we fight?" Ze said to the sword master.

...

The swordmaster raised his sword, and a golden aura enveloped the blade as it solidified. The sword glowed with a golden light, while a tremendous pressure emanated from his body as he stood with his raised blade. His strength remained undiminished, even though he had laid down his sword.

The people standing nearby moved away, unable to bear the pressure. They created space for the fight, with the knight positioning himself as a protective wall in front of them.

Ze nonchalantly strode down the steps, his spell floating in his left hand, unaffected by the pressure. He folded his left hand behind his back and raised his right hand, assuming a battle stance.

Both contestants assumed their battle stances, and the atmosphere grew tense as sparks flew between them. This battle was a fight to the death, with everyone's lives at stake.

*****