The crowd was stunned into dead silence. Even Kent’s pets paused, their eyes locked onto their final prey, waiting for a signal from their master.
Above, the baby dragon circled the arena with joyful cries, its small but powerful body almost dancing in the air. Some were more entranced by the dragon’s strength than Kent’s.
“Did you see that? That dragon is like a wild god!” Someone muttered.
“And that Phoenix, This is no ordinary beast fight. He brought an army from the heavens.” Another uttered.
The silence broke, and the whispers turned into shouts.
“He’s a Grim Reaper!” one of the Royal family members in the private room uttered with a deep look.
“This is what King Ragnar brought to the Trident Summit—a wild card! He’s going to reshape the battlefield!” Another voice bellowed from the royal balcony.
Kent, still standing tall before his golden throne, observed Goom Doom for a moment. He released the arrow to the sky, lightening the sky in colorful lights, signaling to his pets to stand down. They did so reluctantly, the baby dragon landing beside him with a final triumphant cry, sending ripples of awe through the crowd.
The arena, now mostly silent, stood in stark contrast to the beginning of the battle. Those who had trusted in the Doom family, who had bet their fortunes on their victory, now sat with faces ashen and hopeless.
“All because of one man…” someone whispered in disbelief.
“It was over before it even began,” another muttered, shaking their head.
“Damn the Doom family! A bunch of idiots!” Many people began cursing while stomping on Doom family banners.
The arena master, floating high above, looked down at the fallen Doom family fighters and the eerie quiet that followed their defeat. His voice broke through the silence as he declared, “Victory belongs to the Frost family!”
For today, a legend had been born—a legend that would haunt the dreams of many, and be whispered in the halls of power for battles to come.
Life drained from King Hoom Doom’s face as he sat frozen in disbelief. The humiliation and sheer weight of their loss pressed down on him like an unbearable burden. He had never imagined such a defeat, not in his wildest dreams.
His gaze was fixed on Goom Doom, still alive but barely clinging to consciousness—thanks only to Kent’s restraint. If not for Kent’s mercy, Goom Doom would have already been reduced to dust, like the rest of his forces.
Beside him, Princess Chuli had fallen back into her seat, her face pale and her hands trembling. Her eyes darted between the royal judges and Kent, who was now casually sitting on his golden throne, smiling as he caressed the baby dragon resting in his lap. The price they would have to pay for this defeat—it was going to be catastrophic.
“We… we care doomed,” Chuli whispered, her voice barely audible, as she stared at the vast arena, now echoing with chants for the Frost family. She tried to calm herself, but the looming financial and reputational damage overwhelmed her.
Meanwhile, in her luxurious viewing room, Queen Soya took one last look at Kent’s calm, smiling face before storming out of the arena. Her teeth ground in frustration, her eyes blazing with fury. The servants who followed her knew better than to speak, all of them feeling the intensity of her anger.
Down in the arena, banners of the Frost family fluttered triumphantly in the wind. Their supporters were celebrating wildly. Laughter, cheers, and cries of victory filled the air.
King Ragnar strode to the center of the arena alongside the arena master, his face glowing with pride. The golden throne floated behind him, bringing Kent to the center as well, the young man barely paying attention as he played with his pets.
“Don’t you think you overdid it?” King Ragnar asked Kent with an impatient face.
“What can I do? You said, the 7th realm supreme mages are some godly fighters. But they were weaker than the blue planet ones. Very Disappointed.” Kent replied with a dissatisfied face.
Lily, who heard their conversation, didn’t understand when her uncle and Kent became this close.
Soon, the three royal judges descended gracefully from their viewing seats. Their expressions were grim but composed as they called forward King Hoom Doom and Princess Chuli to join them.
Under the loud cursing of spectators, King Doom and Princes Chuli walked to the centre of Arena with dull faces.
“King Hoom Doom,” one of the judges said, his voice carrying the weight of finality, “as per the terms of the battle, you must now pay the agreed-upon sum as compensation for your loss.”
Hoom Doom swallowed, his throat dry. “What is the total amount?” His voice cracked as he spoke, each word dragging the weight of his failure with it.
The judges, without hesitation, turned to King Ragnar and began their calculations. The first judge spoke, his tone businesslike. “We will first calculate the one-year revenue of the Frost nation. After reviewing last year’s revenue report, we estimate it at 500 million superior mana stones and thousand baskets of elemental crystals.”
A ripple of shock passed through the crowd. Some of Doom’s family members slipped from their seats.
“Five… hundred million…” Princess Chuli muttered, her eyes wide in disbelief.
Gasps erupted from the audience. Even wealthy nobles were left stunned by the magnitude of the payment. Spectators whispered amongst themselves, unable to fathom how even the Doom family could meet such a demand.
“But that’s not all,” the third judge said, raising his hand as he held a miniature palace. “Young Kent, do you wish to reveal the true form of your Treasure Trove Palace?”
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Kent nodded with a smile. “Let it be seen.”
The judge released the miniature, and it floated into the air, growing and expanding until it towered above the arena, its golden surface shimmering with an otherworldly light. The tower stretched toward the skies, its hundreds of stories seemingly disappearing into the clouds. Its grandeur was overwhelming.
The audience stared in awe, mouths wide open, as the Treasure Trove Palace revealed its true form.
“That’s not just a tower…” one spectator murmured. “That’s a mountain of treasure.”
King Hoom Doom’s gaze traveled from the base of the tower to its impossible heights. He couldn’t even see the top. Shame and despair twisted in his stomach as he realized that he called it a trinket. What he had once dismissed as a mere trinket was now a monolith of fortune—an unpayable debt.
Princess Chuli’s head spun. She tried to calculate the worth of the palace, but her mind couldn’t comprehend the sheer magnitude of it. Her vision blurred, and she had to hold onto the arm of her father to steady herself.
The judges called upon the royal treasury in-charges to begin calculating the value of the Treasure Trove Palace and its contents. More than 8,000 officials entered the palace to assess its worth.
As each treasure is linked to Kent, he let the Royal treasury men to roam freely in the tower. The big aurora glass was displaying the drama happening inside the place. The sight of thousands of spirit treasures at each floor of tower, sent shockwaves through the spectators.
As the calculations began, Kent remained unfazed, lazily feeding his pets, entirely unconcerned with the drama unfolding around him. The Fire Kirin was sucking flames erupting from kent hand.
“How can he be so calm?” a nobleman whispered. “Does he even care about any of this?”
“He’s in a world of his own,” another remarked.
And in truth, Kent had already moved past this battle. His victory was absolute, and now he waited, his mind far away from the petty concerns of the Doom family’s debts.
Time ticked slowly and minutes turned into a full hour. But no one left the Arena as everyone was eager to know how the Doom family would pay their debts.
–
ThankYou 😉