Chapter 396: The Beginning of the Game

Beyer looked at Arthen confirmedly and smiled, "This is a great opportunity for me to face a real fight, and as a knight, this is always what I have been pursuing. I am here as a knight, not a prince."

Then, he turned to the duke, "Uncle Ulrich, since you have let Sophia in, I believe that you won't turn me down, right? I have won my father's permission as well."

The old duke sighed, "You young people... Alright..."

His lowered his gaze, and all his emotions were hidden in his blue eyes.

Nuremburk laughed, "Good for you, Beyer. A knight shall face the real fight. If I had not gone to the north and joined the battle against Schachran Empire, probably I would've never had the chance of becoming a radiant knight. The blood and fights taught me how to become a radiant knight."

"You've always been my role model, uncle Nuremburk." Beyer grinned. Then, he turned around and walked to Arthen. Very casually, he said, "My friend, I hope we can fight together."

Arthen suddenly looked very excited. He went down on one knee and said respectfully, "This is my great honor, my prince. I am your knight forever."

All the nobles on Arthen's side became excited as well. Gaining the power of the prince had given them the faith again that they would win!

This was why Arthen was so excited. The presence of the prince had brought him great hope again!

Lucien was a bit concerned. Seeing the look on Beaulac's face, Sophia smiled, "This is getting more interesting. Without my brother, the game would be unfair for them."

Right now, Arthen was only a level-three grand knight.

"Unfair..." Lucien was a bit amused by Sophia's words. He looked over Sophia's nose and observed the look on Claire's and Relph's faces.

Claire was biting her lips unconsciously, and her eyes had lost their focus. Relph's right hand was holding tight in a fist against his mouth. Both of them looked a bit disappointed. Obviously, the prince's presence greatly discouraged them.

At this time, a young man, around seventeen or eighteen, among the rest of the nobles stood out, "Sir, I wish to resign."

Ulrich looked at him seriously.

The young noble said in a very depressed way, "They are too powerful. There is no way that I can win."

"Very smart," said Duda in a triumphant tone.

Ulrich did not comment on it. Sometimes quitting did not suggest one's cowardice, but intelligence.

Following him, the rest of the candidates except for Arthen, Beaulac, Claire, and Relph had all decided to quit.

"Your momentum is overwhelming, Your Highness," said Andris in a very pleasing manner. "You're the most talented knight among the younger generation."

The blessed family owned the blood power called Seraph, but each of the family members had different powers. Some were better at close combat, some specialized in casting, and some were good at both. The blood power of Rudolf II was quite balanced, called the Angel King. Sophia's blood power called the Angel of Wind had turned her into an alchemist specializing in casting, and Beyer's blood power named the Angel of Justice made him very competitive in close combat.

Beyer shook his head and said, "Although I am quite confident, I have to say that I am not the most talented knight in our generation. Princess Natasha in the Duchy of Violet became a radiant knight at the age of twenty-six. This is even very rare in history. She possesses the two top blood powers at the same time, and with that willpower, she is totally capable of becoming a gold knight. I admire her very much, but I know right now I am still not good enough for her. I hope that I can become a radiant knight as soon as possible, so I can go to Aalto to see her one day... I wonder if the legends about her are true..."

Beyer said so very straightforwardly. Obviously, Natasha was a role model and dream lady to him.

"Maybe Natasha will be the future queen of our empire," said Andris.

Lucien rubbed his chin and watched them meaningfully.

"My brother's dream will never come true. The church will never let the Duchy of Violet go back to our empire again. You gotta know that Princess Natasha is already the Countess of Violet," said Sophia in low voice, smiling.

Deniz combed the hair on his forehead with his hand, "It's hard to say. Love can turn people into idiots. If both the empire and the duchy show the same firm attitude, the church cannot make the decision."

"Then it's all up to Beyer now." Sophia giggled.

Lucien thought to himself that Sophia's bother would be rather hopeless in front of Natasha. He would say that Sophia would have a greater chance.

It was close to the time. Ulrich, the Gorse duke declared,

"The competition has started. The first candidate among you four who can enter the secret chamber hanged with the paintings of our family's ancestors is the winner. If no one can reach the chamber, the one who can make it until the end wins. Remember, the underground palace is always changing. No matter how much money you spent buying the maps, they are useless. Also, once you enter the palace, you will be sent to different locations. Don't stay where you are. It's a waste of time."

No rules. Basically, there were no rules in the underground palace. However, in the competition, no one could bring his or her attendant, and their blood power had to be examined in case someone had hired a radiant knight to play his or her role through transformation.

The weird stone gate behind Ulrich slowly turned black, like the open mouth of a monster. Arthen was the first one standing in front of it.

Count Nuremburk took out a Gorse pin and stabbed it in the back of Arthen's hand.

Lucien knew that it was for testing his blood power. He was a bit concerned as he wondered if the transformation mask was capable of hiding him from it.

A drop of blood hung at the pinpoint and was quickly absorbed.

Nuremburk slightly nodded, "You can go in now, Arthen."

Arthen walked to the gate. Before entering the palace, he looked back at Beaulac in a provoking manner and swung his fist. Before Lucien responded, Arthen had disappeared in the darkness.

Then it was Lucien's turn.

Lucien reached out his left hand calmly, trying his best to control his heartbeat and muscle. Lucien felt a slight electric shock when the pin stuck into his skin.

Once the pin left his hand, Lucien suddenly became very alert. If he was identified, he would seize the best chance holding Sophia as his hostage to leave that place.

The drop of blood looked like a mini silver moon, and the moonlight was gentle and soft. It trembled slightly at the pinpoint, and Lucien's heart missed a beat.

A second later, the drop of blood was absorbed.

"You may go in now, Beaulac," said the count, "but where are your weapon and armor?"

Lucien pointed at his pouch and answered respectfully, "They are all here."

Nuremburk nodded and did not ask further. At the same time, Relph and Claire who were standing behind Lucien looked a bit surprised.

They could tell that Beaulac had awakened the blood power called Silver Moon.

Without looking back, Lucien walked into the darkness very calmly.

...

It felt that he had gone through a thick and cold layer of mist. Lucien now found himself in a spacious servant room placed with rows of wood beds and several old wardrobes.

Lucien put on Fire Weaver's Bracelet, Sidestep Boots, Transformation Robe, and Ogre Glove. Then, he turned his magic robe into a silver armor. Holding the sword named Frost in his hand, Lucien left the room and stepped into the corridor. Using the information given by Rhine, he started looking for the secret chamber.

Lucien was told that once there was an alchemical life in this underground palace, but somehow it had disappeared. Thus this palace was under the constant change following its own instinct, and the order resembled Thanos' horoscope.

Lucien walked slowly in the underground palace, observing the flow of energy.

Since he had no idea if the duke and the rest of the nobles could see what was going on down there, Lucien was being very cautious. He never extended his spiritual power.

Turning around the corner, Lucien ran right into Andris and Jocelyn in the open room in front of him.

"Haha, you useless waste! Where is your princess? Where are your helpers?" Andris laughed hard, wearing his black armor. "It seems that God has abandoned you!"

Andris held his heavy sword high and rushed directly at Beaulac.

Jocelyn and the helpers felt quite lucky. Running into Beaulac when he was alone was a great opportunity for them. Once he found the princess and Deniz, Beaulac would be big trouble to them.

At the same time, Jocelyn also showed mercy in her eyes. After all, Beaulac had loved her for so long.

Maybe Beaulac was held still by the fear, as he did not move at all. Andris jumped up high and launched a fierce hack at Beaulac.

"Go to hell!" yelled Andris.

Suddenly, a pair of silver hands stopped his heavy sword.

The hands were rather cold, but they were powerful enough to stop Andris' momentum, who was right now hanging in the air like a helpless frog.

Jocelyn and the rest of the nobles were totally shocked, having no idea what to do.

Andris looked into Beaulac's blue eyes, and somehow a great fear seized him.

The light of a sword flashed, and Andris felt a chill. His armor cracked open right in the middle, including the inner shirt. When his armor and clothes fell on the ground in halves, Andris became totally naked.

If the power went in an inch further... Andris dared not to think. Losing all the strength in his legs, he kneeled down on the ground.

"I said... Don't beg for my mercy in front of me." Lucien shook his head.