Chapter 222: Chapter 221: Your Majesty, Hello! Chapter 222: Chapter 221: Your Majesty, Hello! In the blink of an eye, it was dawn, the day of the finals.
Lisben Island, Pu Aiji Kingdom, Kairo City Duel Arena.
Sunlight beat down fiercely from above, not a single cloud in the sky; dust rose in the arena like wisps of smoke, and the spectator stands were packed to capacity. On the separate Noble’s viewing platform too, there sat many nobles.
It was clear that the match had not yet begun, everyone was chattering away, waiting—waiting for the arrival of a certain important person.
As the sun climbed higher, tracing a path across a corner of the sky, the temperature surged abruptly, and the crowd started to simmer like water boiling in a bronze pot.
In a moment, the simmering could no longer be contained, and everyone rose to their feet, craning their necks toward the distant Noble’s viewing platform.
They saw, accompanied by a throng of people, the King of the entire Pu Aiji nation—Amon Huf Regidov—appear in the center of the arena and take his seat in the middle of the Noble’s viewing platform, the place reserved for the King.
“It’s His Majesty Hu Fu!”
“I knew the great Amon would come.”
“King Hu Fu loves this kind of competition, and it’s the finals, of course, he would come…”
The crowd buzzed with excitement and speculation.
“Quiet!” The presenter, in a light blue formal suit on the high platform, called out loudly, causing the clamor to dip slightly, then he turned towards King Hu Fu’s position, bowed deeply, and respectfully asked, “The most, most magnificent Your Majesty, may we begin the Youth Swordsmanship Tournament finals?”
The presenter had spoken, but King Hu Fu paid him no mind—which was a bit awkward.
The presenter kept bowing, his eyes straining upward towards King Hu Fu’s position, and the next moment, he suddenly felt the urge to slap himself. He saw King Hu Fu, at that point, frowning and speaking with a close confidant about some important matter.
Asking at such a time, it was natural he received no answer. So the question arose: should he ask again, or should he wait? To ask again, what if it upset the King? But waiting, for how long? His back was starting to ache…
King Hu Fu was unaware of the presenter’s contemplations; his brows were furrowed as he looked at a man beside him with a somewhat cold countenance—his Intelligence Minister, Cheker.
“Your Majesty, according to the messages from over there, those who wish you harm may have already arrived on the island and are likely trying to enter our borders.
I think, for the time being, Your Majesty might be better off not making public appearances, keeping your whereabouts secret. The fewer people who know, the better. Perhaps even using a few doubles as a cover, as we’ve done before.”
“Is the situation really that serious?” King Hu Fu frowned, “Besides, Cheker, are you sure the information you’ve received is accurate? Honestly, I’m still unclear about those people’s intentions—they’ve helped me a lot, but I feel they’re not sincere, more interested in using me.”
“But however it may be, Your Majesty has achieved your current status, and they certainly have made efforts.” Cheker spoke seriously, “Moreover, didn’t they mention before about Your Majesty preparing to establish a Wizard Country? They wouldn’t take action against Your Majesty lightly before things are finalized, right? Once it’s all settled, we should have the leverage to negotiate.”
“That’s…” King Hu Fu pondered, compulsively reaching towards his chin, only to come into contact with a full beard and immediately letting go with some irritation—he was very young, just twenty-seven, and by all accounts shouldn’t be sporting a beard.
But the problem was, at twenty-seven he was considered too young for a King’s position which made it difficult for him to command respect, necessitating such small measures to ensure he appeared more mature and imposing. But… he despised this façade—the King couldn’t always do as he pleased.
“Damn beard…” King Hu Fu muttered indistinctly, then after a moment’s thought, he looked toward Cheker, deciding it was best to err on the side of caution, “If that’s the case, then we’ll do as you suggest, Cheker. I won’t make an appearance for the Adult Swordsmanship Tournament.”
“And right now this…” Cheker inquired cautiously.
“For this youth finals, let me watch just a little longer,” said King Hu Fu, “If I really have to hide, who knows when I’ll be able to make a public appearance again? There should at least be some compensation. Even a prisoner facing execution gets to have a final meal, right?”
“Besides, Cheker, you mentioned earlier that those who wish me harm are likely trying to enter the border. That would mean they haven’t yet arrived in Kairo City, correct?”
“That’s…” Cheker’s eyes flickered for a moment.
He knew, regardless of whether the enemies had reached Kairo City, taking King Hu Fu away immediately would be the safest and wisest course of action. But doing so would undoubtedly dampen the King’s spirits, especially since King Hu Fu had been looking forward to this swordsmanship competition for a long time.
Withdrawing from the prime-age swordsmanship tournament was already a significant concession. If he persisted in pursuing the matter, he had confidence in convincing the King, who would understand him. However, in this process, some misgivings would inevitably arise in the King’s heart.
Some misgivings might seem insignificant, but the current King was only twenty-seven years old and, barring accidents, would rule for many decades to come. If one day the King grew tired of him, any slight misgiving could become a chip that might kill him.
As the Intelligence Minister, he had dealt with many dark affairs. He was well aware that sometimes it wasn’t enough just to do things right; what was more important was making the King happy.
Chelsea’s mind raced, analyzing all the intelligence he had previously gathered. After a moment, he looked towards King Hu Fu and spoke in a grave tone, “Your Majesty, rest assured that there are absolutely no traitors within Kairo City. You can enjoy the competition without worry.”
“That’s good to hear.” King Hu Fu replied with a smile, and then something occurred to him, “By the way, why hasn’t the contest started yet?”
The announcer on the high platform felt as if his back was about to break. After hearing King Hu Fu’s words, he quickly rose and responded, “Respected Your Majesty, everything is ready; we are just waiting for you to declare the start.”
“Ah, is that so.” King Hu Fu nodded in satisfaction, “Then let’s begin.”
“One more thing,” King Hu Fu added at the last moment, “Don’t bother with those tedious narrations, just let the two finest young swordsmen fight directly. You know I dislike complications.”
“Yes, yes,” the announcer hurriedly agreed. Though the King’s request was irregular, at the moment, the King was the rule.
Turning his head to look at the arena, the announcer pulled out a white handkerchief and threw it down, shouting, “Now, let the competition begin!”
The spirits of the numerous spectators were immediately lifted. All eyes turned in unison towards the center of the arena, where the two swordsmen qualified for the finals— a man and a woman— stepped out from the entrances of the Duel Arena.
The two approached the center of the arena, not seeming nervous in the slightest. As they slowly walked, they surveyed the surroundings.
Under the somewhat anxious gaze of the crowd, the two finally met in the middle of the arena, but instead of immediately bursting into battle, they started talking in low voices. It appeared as if they were taunting and insulting each other, which was within the realm of expectation.
Generally speaking, the longer the taunting and insulting lasted, the more thrilling the ensuing battle would be.
The crowd waited patiently.
Then one second, two seconds, three seconds passed…
Suddenly, the spectators became somewhat restless. Surely the taunting and insulting was taking too long? Why hadn’t they begun fighting after more than a minute had passed? The two seemed to bear no anger towards each other. Rather than taunting and insulting, it looked more like they were chatting.
Just then, someone timely shouted, “They are in league with each other!”
The crowd had a sudden realization.
Of course, the two swordsmen in the finals, according to the announcer’s earlier introduction, were both from Pompeitz City, hired by a noble named Jones. Since they were companions, naturally, they had no reason to fight to the death.
Were the two now conversing to decide who would concede the championship to the other and then simply surrender?
The spectators speculated, their expressions turning somewhat odd.
Seated in his chair, King Hu Fu’s brow furrowed as he looked towards the announcer, questioning, “What’s going on, why aren’t the swordsmen in the arena fighting? Just now, someone shouted ‘they are in league,’ what’s that about?”
“Uh, this…” The announcer began, beads of cold sweat forming, about to explain when suddenly a voice interrupted him.
“I would like, Your Majesty, to hear my explanation of this matter.”
King Hu Fu, along with many nobles in the noble’s gallery, turned towards the source of the voice and saw a person clad in white attire— white trousers, white boots, white hat— standing outside the noble’s gallery, being held back by several guards, with a respectful expression and a smile on his face.