Chapter 331 Day 4
Even as the crowd roared under him at the amazing performance of the Lanthanor Kingdom, Daneel thought back to that broad back that had been shaking with an emotion that he couldn't understand when he had asked the master of the training hall how he was in possession of this world-changing technique.
In response, he had only received a single statement, but that had been enough for him to take this decision to reveal it to the world.
"Daneel… You're not the only one who wants to save this continent. This technique needs to be known by the world, as Angaria has forgotten about it, and that might prove fatal in the long run. There is no better opportunity to make this happen. I only ask you to trust me when I say that the chances of this continent surviving the attack of the Church will increase if all mages become aware that this is a way in which they can be defeated. You don't need to worry about your soldiers: they have other trump cards which will still give them an edge on any battlefield: I can assure you of that. Just… Trust me."
"Daneel!"
Being awakened from that memory by the urgent voice of his friend, Daneel shook his head and said, "Just trust me. It needed to be revealed, and there are still a lot of things which are hidden about them."
Hearing this answer which didn't really address any of his questions, Faxul only shook his head and sat back down with an irritated expression on his face.
Meanwhile, the mage who accompanied Norcet was another one who had just had his mind blown and was staring at the proceedings on the ground with stammering lips, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't get himself to.
As for Norcet himself, he had no idea about this, but his face was ashen while looking at his son for a different reason.
That speech would have to be postponed again.
As the final scores of the day started to be displayed on the board, he looked at his son and wondered whether he had been the dumb one to not trust his king who had already been the cause of many miracles on this continent.
Duel, First Stage-
Lanthanor: 14
Black Raven Kingdom:5
Arafell:6
Axelor:11
Eldinor: 14
Kendra, who was also looking at the scoreboard, actually had to visibly control her anger and the wish to just attack these damn black-robed men who had disrupted the entire plan of Eldinor.
A tie! A god damn tie between the kingdom which was supposed to be the strongest in the continent in the area of magic and a kingdom which until just recently had been at their whim!
She just couldn't reconcile herself with this fact that their statuses had changed so much, and that too in such a short period of time.
This feeling was actually also common in all those who had looked down on the Kingdom of Lanthanor, thinking that there was no way for it to cause another upset.
By now, they started to realize that they were probably all at the whim of the host of this tournament whose preparation seemed to be so elaborate that everything was under his control.
Day five of the Olympics also went ahead with the same trend, with the only difference being that the odds against Lanthanor had drastically changed, making all those who hadn't bet on it yet regret.
All the mages who had been witness to that inconceivable technique had had time to think about how to counter it, but they were still helpless because the duel was the perfect situation where this technique would have the maximum effect.
They couldn't move from their position, and if they tried to use weaker attacks to defeat the black-robed men, they got a taste of their own medicine as these men also seemed to be capable of casting complex spells using which they defeated their opponents.
Of course, only in fights like those against mages like Kendra where there was too much of a difference between the power levels would they be proven ineffective.
Still, the overall result turned out as expected, and at the end of day 4, everyone looked at the final scores and couldn't control their excitement for the final two days which would decide everything.
Final Scores at the End of Day 4:
Lanthanor: 43+9=52 Points(1 point from Wrestling, 6 points from Duel)
Black Raven Kingdom:23+3=28 Points(1 point from Wrestling, 2 points from Duel)
Arafell:26+20=46 Points(16 points from Wrestling, 2 points from Duel)
Axelor:70+5=75 Points(1 point from Wrestling, 4 points from Duel)
Eldinor: 38+6=44 Points(0 points from Wrestling, 6 points from Duel).
…
In the quarters assigned to the Kingdom of Axelor, King Safiros was currently punching a metal pillar with all his might.
His punches weren't meant to move the pillar. Instead, they only served to put more and more dents which soon began to turn bloody as his skin had started to peel off of his hand.
Impervious to this, the King repeatedly punched and punched until he couldn't even feel his hands anymore.
"My King!"
Hearing this shout from the door, the king finally came out of the trance he had entered before and looked down to see his fingers where almost nothing except bones was left.
Yet, instead of grimacing at the pain that he had now started to become aware of, he looked up and started to laugh hysterically.
This went on for a few minutes, after which the laughter finally subsided and was replaced by a cold tone with which he ordered the Minister who was still waiting at the door.
"Bring the healing solution."
With a nod, the minister ran to his room before coming back a few minutes later holding a bowl in his hands in which there seemed to be some sort of silvery glowing liquid.
After it reached him, the king plunged his hands into the solution and closed his eyes as the pain shooting through his body multiplied by many times.
It was almost as if somebody was repeatedly crushing his fingers again and again and again, but only a hiss escaped his lips which were tightly closed together.
"I don't understand, my King. We are still in the lead, and although they have lessened the gap slightly, we will definitely increase it again in the Fighter Handball tournament. Victory is almost certainly ours."
In response, the king only looked to the Minister with bloodshot eyes for a few moments before saying, "Almost. I HATE that word. We cannot 'almost' certainly win. We MUST win! We CANNOT lose! Otherwise, I think you must be aware that there will be a lot of lives lost. Go to my quarters in the Kingdom. Inside the Treasury, in a hidden compartment four tiles from the left of the room in the corner, there will be a small cage with a golden mosquito inside. Cloak its existence with all the trinkets we have, and get it here. Be discrete."
Hearing the strange instructions, the Minister blinked his eyes before saying, "Golden mosquito, my King?"
"YES! GO!"
With that scream, the minister scurried away from the room, leaving the king who kept his hands in the solution for a little more time before getting up and going back to that pillar which was almost unrecognizable now.
A face of a young man wearing robes with a dragon entwined around them came into his mind, and he aligned this face with the pillar, once again continuing his actions from before while the blood and flesh which had just been regenerated due to the solution once again started to fall off.
…
Meanwhile, in a room just four buildings away from where the King of Axelor was mutilating himself, two woman were sitting side by side while looking out of a window at the boisterous streets where people were unable to contain their enthusiasm and anticipation for the most blood boiling competition of all that would take place tomorrow.
Their long hair was strewn across their backs, and two hairbrushes were floating in the air and repeatedly brushing this hair.
"What did the Matron say, Sister Xuan?"
"She said that it is something known to the Big Four, and that it had even been prevalent across the Central Continent many centuries ago. She told me to watch and observe these people, and she also said she would personally come to watch the finale, as even the leaders of the Big Four are afraid that the Church really might target this place. How is he always able to surprise everyone around him?"
"I don't know, why don't you ask again directly?"
Turning around and glaring at Molan who was chuckling to herself, Sister Xuan sighed and said, "This event really exceeded my expectations. Just like those people, even I really looking forward to the last two competitions. Everything comes down to them, and I hope there will be a great show."
In response, Molan only nodded before taking out a pouch and starting to count the number of Gold Lans she had.
Seeing this, Sister Xuan couldn't help but ask, "What are you doing?"
The answer made her pause and think for a while, before she also went to her cupboard to get her purse to start doing the same thing.
"Getting ready to bet everything on Lanthanor, of course."