[LitF] 54. The Chaos Before the Storm (Patreon)

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[A/N: Happy New Year!

\o/

Ensuring this chapter came out this year was tough, but here it is, as promised!

As stated in the author's notes for the previous chapter, this is the last chapter I owe you.

Vacations, here I come!

Notice: The next Lost in the Future chapter will be on 01/13. In other words, I'll take a week off. I feel more tired each day and believe it's the right thing to do. It's been forever since I took a real vacation to decompress.

If you want a refund this month, just comment below or DM me. No questions asked, no hard feelings.]

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"How are you feeling?" Arthur asked after freeing the grand knight from the bathtub and lying him on the double bed.

His senses told him Graham was still weak in a way he couldn't pinpoint. On top of that, he was also tired because the coma-like state he had been in wasn't like having a good night's sleep. Arthur thought that perhaps the weakness had improved slightly, but no hard evidence pointed that way. The man's body and stats were as fine as always.

"Not well, sir," the knight replied.

Those few words took a lot out of him. His breathing grew heavy, and for a moment, the prince thought he would faint.

"Talking will do you no good," Arthur stated the obvious. "If there's nothing critical for you to say, focus on resting. I can put you to sleep."

Graham opened his mouth to say something, thought better of it, then slightly shook his head. The prince took it to mean he wanted to say something, but he needed time to catch his breath first.

Arthur would fill the silence with some information. "High House Boria declared war on Blaze Terrell and the League."

There was no reason to tell the man about the details of the ongoing war, but the knight had to know his liege's enemies might come for him. It was also a way to see how Graham reacted to the news. Experimenting with a patient was bad practice but justified when the healer had no idea how bad their condition was and no other way of learning more except attempting different things to collect data.

The news soured Graham's mood even further. He became sadder, distraught, and, more than that, self-condemning. He hated being useless while his liege was at war, especially after hiding in the dungeon while the Golden Kingdom ceased to be.

Still, other than emotionally, little changed. His heart beat a little faster, and that was it. Evidently, negative emotions didn't affect his soul's condition.

Arthur continued, "I'm not sure what's wrong with you, but a few pieces of evidence point at your soul—"

He stopped talking when he felt the knight's heart beat even faster. Graham's eyes widened as he nodded ever so slightly. The strong reaction suggested the thing he wanted to talk about was this.

The small movements hastened his breathing again, and he closed his eyes, tired, focusing on pulling air in and out of his lungs.

Arthur smiled and waited for the knight to calm down before resuming, "Good to know I was on the right track. I increased your vitality and mana stats without your consent because I feared for your life. A higher vitality was irrelevant, but higher mana stats stabilized your condition. I'm assuming mana and souls are intrinsically connected..."

He trailed off, seeking any reaction from the knight, but found none. Graham knew his long-range teleportation had injured his soul, but not whether mana and soul were liked in any way, not even his stats.

The prince added, "I don't have enough tools or knowledge for a proper diagnosis, but you waking up is a good sign. I think I can feel some improvement on you, but it might be wishful thinking."

He paused, then decided to do another test. He would check whether good emotions might cause further harm to his injured soul. As stupid as it sounded, Arthur knew nothing about souls. Who knew if it was diametrically opposed to the body, which did improve with chemicals from positive emotions?

"I'm currently at war, but I'm investing some time now and then on improving how far I can push your mana stats. Stay strong, persevere, and be patient. Trust me, and I'll heal you in due time."

Arthur's words seemed to calm him a little, but once more, there was no measurable effect on his strange weakness.

Then again, the minute happiness and hope from his encouragement were short-lived. The knight opened his mouth to say something, though better of it again, and sighed.

The prince could imagine how terrible it felt for a grand knight to live his last days on a bed with little prospects. Arthur was strong, but healing the soul sounded far-fetched even to him.

He changed the subject, still trying to produce positive emotions. "Part of me feared bringing you to a low-mana region would worsen your condition. I had to risk it due to the war, but I had a good theoretical basis to believe you would be safe. You taught me well."

Researchers in the past had concluded that the body received similar sustenance from either pure mana it took from the environment or, when in a low-mana region, from their mana pools. It was just that elemental mana was impure and released toxins when used.

The compliment filled the knight with bitter-sweetness. He was glad he had taught Arthur well but sad he could do nothing more for his liege.

Arthur would disabuse Graham of that false notion promptly. The knight could help without moving a single muscle.

"High House Boria would like to officially request House Graham's financial support," Arthur said. "Tamara and I lost our storage rings in the nuclear explosion. The war just started, and we don't require anything, but some resources could simplify things. I'm seeking mainly money and enchanted artifacts. I would like your permission to take and use your storage ring. I'll not take anything from it without your explicit permission."

Some magic items might make things much more convenient for Arthur. Armor, at the very least, would help, and he knew the man had more sorcerer's robes and grand knight armor stored for the prince's usage.

A grand knight's armor had a superior defense than a robe. Arthur hadn't used the former in the past because he lacked the body stats, but that was no longer an issue. He had increased each of Tamara, Sophie, and his body stats to 1,725 points while they planned for the war.

His plan was to wear a set of armor above the other. The sorcerer's robe would go below, then a layer of as much bulletproof fiber as he could fit in between layers, a layer of unenchanted metal, and the grand knight armor. If voidsteel pierced the external armor, it might be stopped by the mundane defense below, especially the metal he could strengthen with his domain. Then, although the enchantments of the external armor would be gone, the sorcerer's robe would remain for some extra measure of magic protection.

The prince was at war. It would be too much arrogance to believe he could avoid all the punches his enemies threw at him. Moreover, armor also added a layer of possible shrewdness to his battles. It might let him pretend to be more injured than he actually was.

But what he really wanted were artifacts to help him hide from or detect enemy surveillance. Graham should have some of those, considering he had gone on a rampage against the Golden Kingdom's enemies with only his wife and Stinson a little before she passed away. Even if that wasn't the case, he had been protecting Arthur in the dungeon and should have a way of bypassing monsters if things went awry.

The request, phrased that way, finally produced more happiness than sadness in Graham. He felt good about himself because he could do something. It still had no discernible effect on his soul's weakness, suggesting that any emotion was irrelevant.

"Permission unneeded," the knight moaned, then added with gritted teeth. "All yours."

Graham had it so hard after those words that Arthur thought he would faint. However, he just closed his eyes and breathed haggardly for a very long time. That was enough for his body to calm down eventually, though it felt tense in a way that, again, the prince couldn't pinpoint.

Arthur waited for the man's condition to stabilize before replying, "Thank you, Grand Knight Graham. High House Boria will not forget your generosity." He gently took the man's ring off, put it on his finger, and extended his arm sideways to open the window to the spatial fold.

The grand knight hadn't expected to pass his ring to anyone, so there was no convenient notebook listing everything inside. Instead, Arthur used a metal net to scoop everything out of the five-yard-wide sphere and pile it on the floor.

Notebook or not, Graham was very organized. He kept things in labeled wooden boxes. Arthur gently put the box labeled "Charlotte" back in the ring as soon as it was out, much to the knight's relief. Despite his earlier assent, some things were still too personal to let someone else touch.

A box labeled "Money" contained the modern paper money he had exchanged, two dozen leather bags with coins, and a couple bags with gemstones. Arthur nodded to the knight and also put that box back in the storage ring. He would remember where it was for later use.

A big box had clothes, another had a few sleeping bags, yet another had legal documents that were useless to Arthur, and a fourth one had objects for personal hygiene, none enchanted. One box was filled with miscellaneous things like paper and pencil, including a dozen sheets with doodles. A box of books contained only entertainment romances that Arthur had never seen Graham read. And so on.

Everything was what one might expect to find in the spatial storage of a random awakener who had left their home—if you didn't know said awakener was a grand knight.

Despite the man having once complained about lacking funds when he married Charlotte, he had had a long time to change that. Charlotte herself was also a grand knight. They had power and prestige that even Stinson couldn't completely stomp out, and they could use it for their benefit.

So, the prince wasn't surprised when he found not only one but two storage safes in the ring. Graham kept the important things there. Any time the knight seemed to take something useful out of his ring, he actually quickly inputted the password in the right safe and took it from there.

The two wooden-looking metallic cubes were similar, but one was more battered than the other. Arthur recognized the better-conserved safe as the one given to Graham by the Golden King, containing the things the knight used to train Arthur. It should also have potions, armor pieces, and similar things supposed to assist the prince—or so he expected.

Arthur really should stop postponing doing an inventory of everything he owned. Dealing with accounting felt annoying, but being unsure about how many things he had was a bit pathetic during times like this.

He recalled when his father told Graham the password was Charlotte's knight code. Every knight in the kingdom had a unique, random number to identify them. Arthur had learned Charlotte's after Graham continued to input it over the years inside the dungeon: 7-993-511-989.

Unlike Graham's ring, everything in that safe was listed. The things inside were just like Arthur expected, except that it contained many more potions and armor pieces than he thought there would be. He took a sorcerer's robe and a grand knight armor and wore them on top of each other, with an unenchanted metal layer in the middle. He would add the bulletproof vest later.

The things he really wanted, however, were in the second safe. He knew that because five artifacts that should have been in the first safe were missing. Graham had moved them, likely for organizational purposes. One such item was the earth-pushing cave-forming plate he had lent to Tamara so she could use it to better identify voidsteel.

It took Graham two hours to reveal his personal safe's ten-digit password. He took long pauses between every number. The more he exerted himself, the worse it became the next time he did anything. The prince decided that meant his soul needed the body to rest. Also, unlike emotions, conscious physical actions took a toll on the soul for some reason.

After the knight said the last number, Arthur declared, "No more speaking unless it's a matter of life and death. On top of that, unless you are much more stupid than I think, you'll let me put you to sleep after I'm done with this safe. I'll wake you up again in a few days."

The knight wasn't willing but understood the need and ended up nodding. Barely.

Arthur nodded back and opened the second safe. It was much smaller than the other but filled with artifacts that might be useful for someone not seeking to train a child awakener.

To begin with, it contained Graham's official grand knight sword and a backup grand knight armor. Only knights who greatly distinguished themselves could get a second set from the kingdom. The prince suspected it had been part of the payment for accepting to protect him in the dungeon.

The safe also had two dozen potions of multiple kinds, a few dozen pills— including four blue ones labeled "Everlasting Vigor" that made Graham blush—and seventeen magic trinkets. Thirteen belonged to Graham, and four to Arthur. Each had a paper sheet with a short description.

Eleven of Graham's artifacts were useless to Arthur.

The first was House Graham's Seal, a small grey metal piece with a tribal flower, House Graham's insignia. It was enchanted for resistance and to last long.

Second, the Arousing Times, a black incense that burned without ever getting consumed, with pinky symbols. It released smoke that excited people within a short range. Graham also blushed when he saw that one. He obviously had been as passionate about his wife as she had once told her father.

Third, a Swift Whetstone, a blue whetstone with green symbols. It sharpened any blade to the max in a single passing.

Fourth, an Equipment Cleaner. It was a white silky cloth the size of a face towel with red symbols. It took the grime off any surface in a single swoop.

Fifth, the Bloodthirsty Edge, a red longsword that absorbed blood—slowly. It wasn't handy at all but certainly had sentimental value, considering Charlotte had been a vampire.

Sixth, a pair of Crushing Knuckles made of black metal with red spikes. Graham had likely used them before he became a grand knight and got his armor. The weapon didn't fit the gauntlets, which were more resistant anyway and only lacked the spikes.

Seventh, a Food Tester. The long grey needle had a small white crystal on one end. The crystal glowed when it found one of many kinds of poisonous substances.

Eighth, a pair of Unbreakable Manacles, each consisting of two brown metal shackles welded together. They were meant to hinder someone's arms and legs. Despite its name, and though enchanted for excellent resistance, they were only really useful against weak awakeners or the unawakened. Arthur could produce a more resistant metal with his domain.

Ninth, the Swift Ender, an unassuming, small gray metal sphere with black symbols. If one pushed their mana into it and didn't resist, it allowed the awakener to die instantly. Although an awakener with reasonable body control could stop their hearts, and anyone could lethally hurt themselves, the artifact was quicker, just like its name suggested. Some awakeners who went behind enemy lines and might get captured brought one such method of swift death.

Tenth, a Last Resort Ball, a watermelon-sized red crystal sphere with black symbols, packed with glowing white mist. It could produce a powerful explosion but had no built-in protection for the one who activated it. The blast range was only a few dozen yards, but it could break through grand knight armor and a little more. It was indeed a last resort.

The eleventh and final useless item for Arthur was the Eternal Memorizer, the most expensive thing contained in Graham's storage ring. The small silvery and blue metal cube could record a moment of a few seconds as its wielder lived it, and there was no replacing it later. The enchantment connected directly to the wielder's brain when recording or displaying the scene. It allowed them to relive the memory at any time, including giving the sense of touch, taste, and smell.

Arthur didn't need to be a genius to guess Charlotte was recorded there. He wished he had something similar to also remember Charlotte or his mother, but his father evidently hadn't considered it a worthwhile investment.

Then again, he felt like a spoiled boy complaining that his Locket of Everlasting Memories wasn't better.

One of the knight's artifacts was very convenient. The Dry Soap, as its name implied, looked like a silvery and white metal soap. When activated in contact with the skin, it cleansed one's body, pulling all grime and dirt into a ball. Arthur usually cleaned himself with fast movements or scrubbed himself with metal bits, but the item would be much better.

Lastly, Graham's final magic item would be helpful. It was an Awakener Sonar, a foot-wise metal disk covered with tiny white crystals. It released a mana wave that went up to a mile when used. If the mana wave found any awakener, it returned to the disk, and a crystal lit up relative to the distance.

Just like Arthur's items, some of Graham's were manufactured, while others were dungeon rewards. For instance, the Sonar and even the Dry Soap were too advanced. They had come directly from Fate.

Arthur's four items were all labeled "RETURN TO THE PRINCE," evidencing the grand knight hadn't tried to steal them. Not that Graham had much to gain from it. Those items were meant for the knight to give to Arthur in an emergency.

One was a useless Life-Saving Pellet. The absurdly expensive and rare white round and golden pill could instantly regenerate an injured brain or heart if consumed up to thirty seconds after the injury, leaving no sequelae. It was one of the things Graham would only reveal to save Arthur's life to prevent any enemy from knowing about and preparing against it—just like instant, portal-less, long-range teleportation.

Two artifacts might come in handy: a Life Stabilizer Wristband and a Distracting Burst.

The wristband was a delicate golden chain with interwoven green crystals that kept the heart beating steadily and the body alive as long as there was life. The exception was if the brain or heart were injured, which was covered by the Life-Saving Pellet. It was meant as a temporary solution for severe injuries until Graham could get Arthur to Tamara or another biomancer. The prince would test it on Graham if his condition worsened.

The Distracting Burst was a stone cube with brown symbols. When activated, it produced a lot of noise for a minute. That could give Arthur an opening at the right time.

The cube was a perfect match to the final item, which was of the kind Arthur wanted the most.

The Unseen Presence was a black and silvery dagger-shaped metal brooch. It looked nice, and its functions were even better. It wasn't meant for groups, but the individual effects were just what Arthur wanted.

The brooch had to pierce the wielder's skin to recognize them. Once activated, a magic barrier surrounded the wearer up to a foot away from them, depending on how much mana was injected. The only exception was downwards from the boots, which stopped a few inches. It wasn't perfect, but it was great.

No one outside the barrier could see, hear, or smell anything inside. Heat sensors would also only detect ambient temperatures. Mana wouldn't be felt or spotted by skills.

It would make Arthur invisible to most foes.

The Unseen Presence was introduced as the reward for killing the last boss of a level 85 dungeon. The expedition to destroy that core had claimed the lives of many, and the lackluster reward made numerous people upset. For most awakeners, things like Arthur's now-gone fire sword were better than an assassination tool. They sought to protect the world from monsters, while bypassing dungeon rooms was only so beneficial for them.

The brooch would also be of limited use against awakeners. It didn't block the ability to see the level of the one inside. That weakness felt weird to Arthur, as you could only see the levels of things on sight, but it was well-documented. So, even if someone used it to successfully assassinate someone, any random awakener could spot them afterward as long as they willed Fate to show the levels of everything in their field of view.

In other words, outside of dungeons, the item's main functions were killing lonely targets and infiltration for information-gathering purposes—and the latter only in places with low security.

It was still the best stealth artifact the king could get his hands on that might be useful for a child, meant to save Arthur in a crisis. Graham was expected to distract any strong monster if they blocked the way while Arthur sneaked away.

For the current Arthur, the Unseen Presence was perfect. He didn't need it to hide anyone else, like Tamara's skill did, because he could remain underground when moving Emily and Graham. Instead, he would use it when traveling alone for guerilla operations against Terrell. It would also help him escape as long as he killed every awakener in sight, which he could locate with the Sonar even if his Mana Sight failed him.

Unless, of course, magitech surprised him—hence the stacked defensive equipment.

"This is just what I needed," he told Graham. "Thank you. Are you ready to take a nap?"

The grand knight was still unwilling but accepted his fate.

Arthur put him back in the bathtub. The tub was connected to the bathroom's structure, so removing it would take extra effort and hopefully cause a big commotion. Also, if someone found the metal box in a place where humans bathed, they would be more careful about finding a person inside than if he just left a big metal box in the bedroom.

With that taken care of, the prince thought about the night's events, meditated on his elements, cast some alert spells around the room, and went to sleep.

Tomorrow would be a long day.

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Magitech was widespread worldwide, but in unawakened cities, only a select few had access to the latest innovations. The further away from a high-mana region you were, the harder it was to get access to the latest releases. Moreover, not all high-mana areas were created equally; some places were more advanced than others. Avaria, for instance, was highly developed technologically because of the Institute and all the research it used to have.

Margrave was rich, but so were other people in places closer to a high-mana region. Therefore, commercial TVs weren't a thing there. Some high-end hotels and casinos did have a TV in the bedroom, but the entertainment was limited, to say the least. It was either a few news—repeating things from past days and reading newspapers, with the odd flash news—or ads.

Well, there was also a form of crass voyeurism that the prince refused to acknowledge could exist and be so readily accepted in polite society, no matter how depraved everything else in Margrave was.

Instead of regular entertainment, most screens in the city displayed what security cameras transmitted. According to Tamara's investigation, even said cameras hadn't been that common in Margrave before Arthur entered the Institute's dungeon. They were a recent development.

Therefore, Arthur heard Terrell's response to his challenge not on TV but on the radio.

The prince had let go of his defensive equipment to investigate a little before he attacked. This morning, he was disguised as an average-looking middle-aged man wearing dirtied painter's clothes. The dinner he picked first was in a less-wealthy neighborhood of Margrave. The small place had a dozen tables, but about half the clients and all staff were gathered around a radio on the counter. The other half was also silently listening in.

"...after killing innocents in Kalis, this cruel murderer is now coming to our beloved Margrave," said a man whose voice Arthur didn't recognize. "We will not bow to this absurdity. The law will never bow to threats from cheap criminals! I have talked to my good friend, the Secretary of Security, and he assured me not even a needle can get anywhere close to our good citizens. All businesses are to remain open. Stay calm. We will protect you."

There was a short sound effect, and another male said, "There you have it, folks. If you paid close attention, Mayor Vincent's speech doesn't explain why the good people of Margrave, the common class, the ones that make things done around here, are being harassed by the police. Why are they looking for an awakener among our good construction workers? Do they think we're hiding criminals in our pockets? Mayor, Secretary, if you're listening to this, let me teach you something for free: our pockets are not as deep as yours. There's nothing for you to find there. No one.

"And I'm not exaggerating about the harassment. I wish I were. We just received our thirtieth report this morning. If you can go home, let me tell you, go. Get away from this mess. I heard some things about this Arthur Boria from an anonymous source, and it doesn't sound good. I can't say more, but let's say things aren't the sunshine the Mayor tried to paint for us. You don't want to get caught in the crossfire..."

The prince sat by a table and waited a little. The radio kept more or less repeating the same things but slightly escalating the panic as time passed. People discussed among themselves in rushed tones. Terrell's plan for this place was obviously to make Arthur look even worse and blame the sense of insecurity on him.

After a few minutes of being ignored by the staff, he cleared his throat. A waitress gave him a nasty look and ignored him. Arthur complained under his breath and stood up to leave.

That's when three cops in black riot gear came in, two male and a female. They were all no older than twenty-five and walking with swag, clearly drunk in their power.

A male said loudly, "We got a report that Arthur Boria was seen here."

His lie was blatant, and he didn't try to pretend. Everyone looked at him, and from their looks, they didn't expect anything good—especially not after the dire news on the radio.

"Everyone to your knees," he said slyly. "Hands behind your head."

Arthur could make things easier for the people in the diner right now, but it would only make it worse for them later. The newscaster had revealed that one of the cab drivers from the day before was found brutally murdered, which was blamed on Arthur, and the other was imprisoned for being suspected of being Arthur's associate. If the prince did anything here, everyone would likely die later.

He wouldn't let that stop him from doing what needed to be done. But even if whatever happened later would be Terrell's fault, not his, he also wouldn't ignore the collateral damage his actions caused. Not when all it demanded from him was to swallow his pride a little.

So, he kneeled.

The eleven people there, plus the prince, were ordered to make a line on the ground. The cops didn't ask any questions. A male police officer patted the females where they shouldn't and said vulgar things, including suggesting they get to a private place with him. At the very least, he didn't force them to go after they refused, two crying in panic.

The female cop pretended she saw nothing and walked behind the counter. She randomly smashed glasses and plates with her baton for a while, eventually saying stuff like, "Look, a lead!" and "Where could this trail possibly lead me to?" Ultimately, she reached the cash register, opened the drawer, and looted the money.

"I found dirty money here, Sarge," the woman said as she put the money in her pocket and approached the first guy to speak, who only watched. "There's a lot of evidence that Arthur Boria was here and paid with this money."

"I'm so disappointed," the leader replied lazily, shaking his head. "Good people should not associate themselves with criminals. But I'm feeling lenient today. We'll leave with a warning. Let's go."

"Just a second, Sergeant," the patting male said.

He was crouched behind a young woman, the last female he had to "check for weapons." She was crying and begging him to stop, but he ignored it. He slowly finished his check before giving her a kiss on the nape and standing up.

"All clear, Sergeant," he declared and approached the others.

Arthur had heard that some places had a militarized police force. It felt the most sensible to him, who was used to awakeners keeping the peace. However, witnessing this scene made him wonder if there shouldn't be a division between civilian and military forces among the unawakened.

Then again, would it change how much ill-intentioned police officers abused their power? They did have a monopoly on lawfully using force against civilians.

Whatever the case, he didn't dwell on that. It was something to think about when he had the time. He lacked too much data and context to reach an informed conclusion.

The girl sobbed even harder from sheer relief after the sex offender let go of her.

At long last, the three left the dinner.

The prince was filled with cold, silent fury. His only consolation was that the cancer the guy had just developed was in an advanced stage and would kill him in a couple of days. And within hours, the organ he liked the most would stop working.

That might be traced back to this place, but it was unlikely. The guy was surely doing the same thing in multiple locations, considering his colleagues hadn't found it strange. The locals would be safe enough.

Speaking of the colleagues, they would suffer a little more, a few weeks, before their cancer killed them. Only a biomancer as good as Tamara, or highly expensive alchemy, could save them.

Arthur didn't mind attacking them. It was retaliation during a war. They were acting against him, and so, fair game. Although they hadn't directly attacked him, he wouldn't be merciful towards unawakened like them.

His greatest worry was that this little episode felt like too much of a coincidence, almost staged. The cops had arrived a little after he did, and if all police officers in the city were like that, people would've rioted already. The prince took it to mean someone had a way to figure out he had entered the city in that general area, and now they were trying to force a reaction from him.

The people in a black van outside, watching the place and seeing who left quickly, added to that impression, as there could not be such surveillance everywhere in the city.

When the cops left, things became hectic. A few people left the dinner at once—the guys in the van took note of that—while the others complained among themselves. An angry waitress yelled at the male cook, who was revealed to be the restaurant owner. He had done nothing to protect his staff and felt terrible already. Her tirade made it even worse for him. But the truth was that it would only be worse for everyone involved if he had done anything.

Arthur got together with the group and said some empty words. They looked weirdly at him, but the observers outside didn't notice.

He left fifteen minutes later when the van parked two blocks away.

The prince had planned on letting Terrell and his allies feel worried for a little longer, maybe wondering if Arthur would even act. But the prince's enemy was a good strategist. Whenever Arthur went, people would suffer, and the longer Arthur was believed to be in a place, the worse it would be for the populace—and his image. It would be a bad tactical decision for Arthur to delay.

More importantly, while these people's suffering wasn't his fault, he refused to be used by his foe as an excuse to do such evil.

Terrell would profit from it anyway. If he played his cards right, he could at least ensure Arthur fell with him in the end. That should be his backup plan if all else failed.

The prince had no choice but to attack until Terrell was gone. He would deal with the aftermath when the time came. Clearing his name would be much easier after his foe was dead. For now, he could only reveal some truths here and there to serve as supporting pillars later, like how he wrote down that he only wanted to attack Terrell.

Arthur got to a public bathroom, changed his clothes for his robe, unenchanted plate, and grand knight armor, flew into the skies, and went straight to the first casino.

Terrell was spreading panic among the ordinary people?

Well, it was time for Arthur to sow the seeds of terror among Terrell's allies.

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[A/N: See you next year!]

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