CHAPTER 10

He stopped them but he was at a loss as to what to do next. After all, he never thought he would be losing. The possibility of them giving up, to give him face and get on his good side, even crossed his mind as the highest possible outcome and yet, he lost? This was too hard for his brain to process. He was speechless. Unable to comprehend the situation and unable to devise a new move. He was at a loss in all aspects. It was the first time he, as the ninth prince, had lost in such an unsightly way. His face was down the drain. There was nothing left of it. He lost both a rank 4 armor and 20 liters of rarest beast blood. But he couldn’t leave it at that so he said:

“Let’s bet again.”

Mir turned around with a grin and answered him:

“What do you have left to bet with us, Mister ninth prince?”

He was ridiculing him, clearly. But the prince was powerless. He couldn’t just bicker with a child in front of so many powerful characters. He sighed, relaxed and said:

“How about a rank 4 weapon for my armor?

-What weapon?

-This one.”

At this moment, he took out a spear. It was a gold spear with decorative wings throughout the whole thing. There was a total of ten set of wings on the spear and both extremities were sharp murderous ends. It was a magnificent weapon. Clearly, it was a powerful one. it looked good and screamed nobility from its entire being. Every man, be they young or old, is interested in weapons. And right now, in this place, every individual was fascinated by the spear. The prince took his time to take in the sight of the spear and with a sigh he said:

“This is my last property I can gamble. It is the Golden Sparrow Spear. It comes from the Golden Sparrow set, just like the armor I lost to you guys previously. They were both made with the bones and feathers of a Divine Gold Sparrow long ago. This beast was personally killed by one of the previous kings and the set was made on his orders by a master craftsman. All items were then given out to cultivators who played an active role in subduing the beast. They are worth more than your average rank 4 items. I had a tough time collecting just those two… I wish to get back the armor and the only thing I can bet against it is this spear of mine. So, what will it be?

-Alright! Let’s play one more round!”

Mir was excited. He wasn’t the only one. elder Lan had stars in his eyes. However, seeing Mir, he understood something. Mir wanted the spear for himself and as an elder, he was only here as a bystander. He was there so Mir could play but he himself was just earning profits without doing anything. He swore to give the golden sparrow armor and spear to Mir, even though he coveted them. He also decided to take in Mir as a personal disciple, whatever the cost. So, he went back in front of the dice roll game and sat down with Mir. The prince sat down as well. The spear was placed at his side. It was giving off a beautiful light. Mir was captivated by that spear. It was so beautiful and its aura was incredible. He wanted it.

The game began. This time, after the pot was down, Mir said first without wait:

“Six, Three, One, One”

He didn’t leave a second for the Imposing Thunder Mountain School elder to ask elder Lan. He answered. The prince was shaken but after elder Lan nodded, he gave his own answer:

“Six, Three, Two, Four”

However, once the dice faces were revealed, the prince’s expression turned grim. He had lost the spear. One must know, the prince, while looking like a thirty or so man was more than two hundred years old. It took him a few dozen years to get that spear and he had lost it in a gamble with a five-year-old child. What he felt is impossible to describe in words. Mir took the spear from him without the prince moving. He looked at the spear while licking his lips and placed it in his space bag. Then, he went back to elder Lan and said:

“Let’s go elder Lan!

-Hmm.”

The both were leaving for good this time. The prince was on his knees in front of the revealed dices, paralyzed from grief and cursing at his own stupidity. The spectators were slowly dispersing as well. They had witnessed the fall of the ninth prince.

After some time, he was the only one left inside the third floor. There were still his guards but they would never disrespect him anyway. A few tears dripped down his face then he got himself back on track and said to one of his guard:

“Investigate that kid. I want to know everything there is to know about him. Don’t leave a single detail unraveled.

-Yes, prince!”

Then, he walked out and went to his personal guest pavilion.

The next morning, Boras was dead drunk so Mir left him sleep and went with elder Lan to the tournament. They left him a note. At the tournament, it was the same as before. Youngsters sending rows after rows of strange elemental attacks at one another in hope to demonstrate their worth and shake their opponent’s foundations. It was a show of strength. And today as well, Mir was betting and winning alongside the Burning Sea school students and elders. It was a bright day.

The prince however wasn’t enjoying himself. He was inside his pavilion and looking through files on Mir. There were no more than a few pages on the guard’s report. It wasn’t a surprise. After all, how much could a five-year-old kid have done? Still, there was more than enough. Particularly, the contents mentioned the kid winning through every bet he made. That’s when the prince got the hint. A small kid with peculiar eyes and an incredible luck at gambling…Basically, his eyes can see something that makes it sure for him to win bets. The prince wasn’t dumb. He had been fooled but he now understood the gist of it. He couldn’t help but laugh at his own rashness. He murmured to himself:

“I have lived so long as a prince that I became too complacent. I should remember this as a precious lesson… Now, how can I use this to profit myself?”

Time went by and a few days later, elder Lan and Mir received a dinner invitation by the Prince. Obviously, they were still rejoicing in their hearts about fooling this old prince into losing precious stuff so they didn’t think twice before accepting. And they ended up being led inside the inner court of the Thunder Mountain School. There, it was a place only the true VIPs could enter. Even elder Lan wasn’t supposed to. His status was high but not that high, only the headmasters had the rights to go there. Yet, here he was, with Mir, being led to the most sumptuous restaurant of the inner court. Kept by inner court disciples, the plates were full of delicacies. And here they were, dining with the ninth Prince. He was giving him off a different vibe than previously. He was smiling. Even though he should have been grieving… It made Mir shudder. He knew this expression. It was one of someone who was up to no good. And he was right. The prince said:

“I admit my losses. After thinking, I was a true fool. Your eyes, little friend Mir, are quite incredible. What power do they contain I wonder? And as for you elder Lan, you are quite cunning. To use a kid to gamble…But I lost so let the past stay in the past. I invited you today for something else. I wish to turn this previous misery into an opportunity.”

This was giving off a bad vibe to Mir. He knew this was going to be a pain. In the end, the fact that he was a weak child right now remained. He only acted like that previously because he had elder Lan protecting him. Still, it might have been a bad idea to mess with royalty so soon… If something bad happened, no one would be able to save him. Elder lan was however fine and eating to his heart’s contents. When the prince talked about an opportunity, he looked at him seriously and said:

“What are you scheming?

-Oh, elder Lan, we both know that you’re even more cunning than I am. That being said, it is true that I devised a nice scheme. In a few days, for the finals, a few brothers and sisters of mine are going to come to watch. I want to gamble with them and, I want to win. For that, I wish to receive little friend’s Mir help.

-You want to implicate a child in the royal family’s matters?! I can’t let it happen. This child has a bright future ahead of him, I am against it. It is too dangerous.

-Dangerous? It is only a few rounds of dice roll…

-Still. Assassination is not something new in the royal family matters. If I am not mistaken, you plan on betting the royal tokens, don’t you? This would be too big a burden on my shoulders, let alone on Mir’s!

-I am aware of the risks. That is why I prepared a mask. This can hide both your identities and conceal your auras. No more risks. What do you think, little friend Mir?

-…What are those royal tokens?”

The fact is, Mir was from another world and in this world, he was a farmer’s son. There was no way he would know about a royal token so he had to first ask about it. Seeing that, the prince frowned but nevertheless patiently explained:

“The royal family is big. Because our father, the king, like every previous king, is a powerful martial artist, he lives long. And so, he has lots of children. I am the ninth prince but there are more than fifty of us… The reality is that we can’t just decide on the future king by age only as our lifespans are in the hundreds, even thousands. So, a rule was invented. The token rules. A single royal token is given to every boy and girl at their birth. They are the symbol of their royalty. To be eligible for the candidacy as the next king, one needs to get ten of them. There are three ways. The first one is to get those from their brothers and sisters. The second one is to achieve something great enough that the king himself will reward a token. The third one is to be deemed worthy by an important figure of the previous generation as they have kept their own tokens. As of now, only the first, second and third sons are deemed eligible. I planned on gambling those tokens with my brothers and sisters and win, to become eligible.

-Why don’t you achieve something rather than tricking your family? Or get recognized by your peers?

-Elder Lan, please don’t joke. Our father has never handed a single token for achievement in a thousand years… And regarding being recognized, those old fools still believe they themselves can become the next king. I am the ninth. My only way is to get them from my brothers and sisters, even if sounds bad. Anyway, what do you think, little friend Mir, will you help me?

-Why should I? What do I get in return?

-Whatever you want.

-That’s too intangible. I won’t help you with just words.”

The prince was shaken. It is true he believed he would face some resistance from Elder Lan and maybe from Mir but he believed he could win over him by promising him the moon and the stars. However, this child was bulletproof. He was so wise for a kid it was terrifying. The prince decided to negotiate with him as if he was a grown-up since considering him a kid was what led him to a loss in the first place. The prince braced himself. It wasn’t easy for a conceited member of the royal family to place a kid as an equal, but he swallowed his pride and did it. He said:

“Then, tell me, name your price.

-What can you do for me? What do you have that I don’t and can’t get no matter how hard I try?

-…A handsome appearance? I can arrange for a master alchemist if that’s all there is to it.

-Elder Lan, did he just insult me? He did, didn’t he?

-Ahahah, sorry little friend Mir but I had to. It made me feel better to tease you a bit. Now, to answer your question, I believe it would be status, right?

-Exactly. I am no more than a farmer’s son. I want more.

-Hum…Right now, I can’t do more than give you the lowest nobility title, knight.

-That would do. I want it for elder Lan as well.

-For me? Little Mir, I thank you for your intention but it doesn’t mean much to me. As a school elder, a nobility title doesn’t mean much…”

Elder lan was glad. Seeing Mir seeking benefits for him made him have an even better impression of the kid. A five-year-old able to scheme with a prince…This kid, if he matures safely, what kind of monster would he become? Elder Lan was impatient to witness his growth. He stroked his beard ina delighted way. Then the prince spoke:

“Alright. I can name you both knights.

-My father too.

-Three knights…I can do it. So, do we have a deal?

-Of course not. That’s only the first requirement.

-What else do you want?