“What are you guys even doing?” Thirteen asked the two guards who were standing at the gates of the city. “There’s a barrier protecting your city, but the two of you are still guarding it? Isn’t that useless?”
“You’ve come again, Lowborn.” One of the Guards clicked his tongue in frustration after seeing the teenage boy for the third day in a row.
“I’m just genuinely curious,” Thirteen said as he casually sat on a foldable chair he had brought with him. “Why is your King doing something like this?”
“Lowborns like you don’t need to understand what our King is trying to achieve,” the second Guard sneered. “But after he’s done with the summoning, the one who will die first is you.”
“Wow, scary~” Thirteen smirked. “If your King is so strong, why can’t he kill me now? He’s just all talk, like you guys.”
“You filthy Lowborn, stop talking!” the first Guard shouted.
“Eh? I don’t want to,” Thirteen replied while arranging some wooden branches to start a fire. “Talking to lowly dogs like you is quite fun.”
“Sh*t!” one of the Guards was really tempted to give the teenage boy a good smacking.
But he could only swallow his anger, knowing that touching the barrier even once would obliterate his hand, crippling him for life.
The other Guard wasn’t faring too well either. Every time the teenage boy visited them, he would taunt them repeatedly, making them suffer from high blood pressure.
A minute later, a crackling sound reached their ears as the wooden branches started to burn.
Thirteen then took out a few meat skewers and started to roast them over the campfire.
He even brought a fan to make sure that the smell reached the two guards, making them angrier and hungrier at the same time.
Suddenly, the gate opened, and someone whom he didn’t expect to see appeared in front of him.
“Well, hello there, Hybrid King,” Thirteen said with a smile. “Fancy meeting you here.”
King Xanmara scoffed as he, too, sat on a chair, brought to him by one of his Aides.
“I just received confirmation that you were the one who ruined my plan in the Goblin Lands,” King Xanmara said.
“That’s right,” Thirteen replied.
The King, who had short blonde hair and golden eyes, frowned. He still couldn’t accept that a weakling like Thirteen managed to defeat the Goblin Emperor in battle.
Although it wasn’t a one-on-one fight, the fact remained that he won against a Rank 8 monster, which should’ve been very unlikely to happen.
The subordinate he had sent to become Lord Zorca’s assistant had watched the battle from start to end, and even that man couldn’t understand what kind of sorcery the teenage boy used to win.
“When I saw you, I thought you were simply arrogant,” King Xanmara said. “But it seems that you have what it takes to back that arrogance of yours.”
“I know right?” Thirteen smirked. “But look at the bright side. You’re next in line for a good beating.”
King Xanmara sneered. “I’m not like the stupid goblin that you killed.”
“Well, from where I stand, you look just as ugly as that one,” Thirteen commented. “Now that I’ve taken a good look at you, I suddenly realized that the Goblin Emperor was more handsome than you.”
“Empty talk for someone who will be dying very soon,” King Xanmara stated. “I’ll make sure to torture you until you beg me to kil—”
“One moment, the meat is almost done,” Thirteen interrupted as he turned the skewers to make sure that they were cooked evenly. “Okay, what were you saying again? You’ll torture me until I beg you to kill me?”
King Xanmara nodded. “That’s right.”
Thirteen chuckled before using his thumb to point at something behind me.
“Do you see that?” Thirteen asked.
“Yes,” King Xanmara replied.
“That wall will be destroyed by tomorrow,” Thirteen declared. “That will be my present to you.”
The King of Seneros arched an eyebrow, finding the young man’s words very funny.
Even the Jinns on the other side weren’t capable of destroying the Great Wall.
Of course, he couldn’t do it either.
In fact, even if the most powerful warriors of the Hybrid Absolutes, Ratmen, Lizardmen, and Goblins were to attack the walls at the same time, they would not be able to destroy it.
Heck, they would not even be able to put a dent in it. ?????ρΥ?.???
That was how powerful the wall was. After all, it had been imbued with Ancient Technology that remained active since the wall was built.
“Empty threat,” King Xanmara said. “You don’t have the ability to do that.”
“You’ll find out tomorrow whether I’m bluffing or not.”
“If you can really do it, why wait for tomorrow? Why not do it now?”
Thirteen once again flipped the meat skewers before answering the King’s question.
“Tomorrow, the Moon of Chandrea will have a full moon,” Thirteen replied. “I think it will be good to start a festival at that time. Truth be told, I don’t really hold any grudge against you guys. At most, you just need to cancel your summoning ceremony, and we can all be friends.”
“Friends?” King Xanmara shook his head. “I don’t want to be friends with Filthy Lowborns. Mark my words—the moment we are done with our preparations, you and the rest of the world outside of that wall will kneel before the Absolute.”
Thirteen shrugged. “It seems that the negotiations have failed. You are really hell-bent on the path of destruction.”
“Not destruction,” King Xanmara countered. “We will just get our rightful place in the world. Inferior species like you guys should be honored that someone capable will rule over you.”
This time, it was Thirteen who shook his head.
“It seems like you’ve been trapped in this place way too long that you and your people have become arrogant and ignorant,” Thirteen said. “The outside world is scarier than you can think.
“Let’s say you succeed in summoning a creature stronger than a Majin Prince, which is not only capable of breaking that wall but also slaying all the monsters on the other side.
“Even then, you guys will still not be able to rule over the world because there exist beings that stand at the apex of the world. They are the Seven Celestials and the Seven Fiends. They can easily pinch your summoned creature to oblivion if they wish.”
King Xanmara nodded. “What you say is true, but the world is a big place. Even if these fourteen beings are just as strong as you say, they can’t possibly cover the entire world. Also, I doubt that they will have the time to deal with someone like me, who will use diplomacy to prevent conflicts from happening.”
Thirteen took the meat skewers off the fire and placed them on top of a chopping board that he had prepared beforehand.
“I see. So you have everything figured out,” Thirteen commented. “I don’t know if I should praise you or commend you for looking that far in the future.”
“A King must plan ahead,” King Xanmara replied. “Since my people believe in me, it is my duty to usher them to greatness. We have suffered long enough, and we will suffer no more.”
Thirteen listened to the King as he dipped the meat that he had cooked in the special sauce that he prepared before eating it.
He then handed a piece to Tiona, which the black snake ate with gusto.
“Why don’t we have a compromise?” Thirteen asked after he finished eating. “Cancel your summoning ceremony, and I will break down that wall for you. Also, I will help you with the Monster Stampede that will head toward your city.”
“Is this your last attempt to plead for your life?” King Xanmara chuckled. “While I am surprised that you managed to defeat the Goblin Emperor, I am not interested in your offer. Just wash your neck until our summoning ceremony is over. When the time comes, I’ll torture you and cut off your limbs bit by bit while making sure you live through it.
“That way, you will see with your own eyes as my people trample over Lowborns like you on the other side of the wall.”
Thirteen sighed because, in his point of view, King Xanmara was simply a frog in the well.
The King’s delusions of grandeur might become a reality if this event happened without his knowledge.
The teenage boy knew that the moment he became serious, King Xanmara’s delusions would start crumbling down in the face of reality.
He simply ate his food until he finished eating all the meat skewers.
Once he was done, he stood up and glanced at the King, who had his arms crossed over his chest.
“You told me that I am arrogant, and I have what it takes to back that arrogance,” Thirteen said. “Tomorrow, I will put your arrogance to the test. Whether you truly manage to lead your people to greater heights or not, will be revealed the moment the Moon of Chandrea appears in the sky.”
“I’ll be waiting then,” King Xanmara replied. “We’ll see if a puny Lowborn like you can threaten the King of the Absolute.”
Thirteen no longer bothered to talk with the arrogant King and simply walked away without looking back.
Since everything would be settled tomorrow, he would check the preparations done by the Wanderers, and see if they have gathered enough food to survive for several days underground.
But he only managed to walk a few steps when he noticed a young lady, whose long black hair was tied up by a purple hairpin, standing several meters away from him.
Her green eyes, similar to the teenage boy’s eyes, looked at the young man as if trying to understand what he was thinking at the moment.
Thirteen, on the other hand, stared at the young lady in front of him, who was as beautiful as a painting, and frowned.
A glance was enough to make him understand what kind of person was standing in front of him, which made Thirteen click his tongue.
Despite the fact that he was only seeing her for the first time in his life, the teenage boy knew then and there that the young lady in front of him was one of the people whom he hated the most in his life.