The group of teenagers went quiet. The ones sitting around watching the show also sobered up and stood as well.
Don’t be fooled by the ever-present smile on Paul’s father’s face. This old king was not someone to mess with. His methods aside, he was once a prince, but not born of the empress. Originally not particularly outstanding among his siblings, he ascended the throne thanks to the backing of his wife’s powerful family and his own ambitions and means.
He had a good relationship with his wife and they had many children, the most favoured of which was Paul’s eldest brother, who was raised as the heir from birth. However, after the empress passed away two years ago, the old king immediately dropped the act, abolished his eldest brother’s psychic power, and exiled him to the Exile Sectors.
In the Klai Empire, this punishment was offered as an alternative to those on death row before their execution. Paul’s eldest brother was the only death row convict in the last century to choose exile, even if his crime was merely a vaguely contrary remark.
Thereafter, all of the old king’s other adult children were also suppressed one by one, leaving only those still underage. This included Paul.
Paul lowered his head in a show of deep respect. “No, Father. It’s but a minor issue. We can sort it out ourselves.”
He quickly changed the topic, speaking so quickly that anyone could tell he was very nervous, “No one notified me that you and your guests would be coming over. My apologies for making everyone see behaving so disrespectfully. I hope I have not made a bad impression on any of you.”
The planet on which this meeting was taking place originally belonged to the Klai Empire, who ‘donated’ it to the organizers. They decided to hold the meeting here this year because this planet was located in a spot easy for the participating countries to travel to. The Klai Empire might have ‘donated’ this planet, but it was still under their jurisdiction from day to day. They also greeted the other participants this time as the assumed host.
Which was why everyone else remained quiet at first.
The old king’s smile slowly faded. He was very calm. “Don’t try to hide it from me. I don’t want the other guests to laugh. We heard everything. You’re angry, right? I know you’re a good child. you wouldn’t get angry over nothing.”
Paul’s hands behind his back clenched before loosening. His expression was also quite contrite, as if he was the one in the wrong before. He let out a light sigh after a few second and admitted, “Yes, I’m angry. He suddenly appeared in the beast duelling colosseum with a lion.”
Ye Muo hadn’t figured out what was going on yet. He walked over with Pangzhua. “I’m sorry, it’s my fault. I interrupted their game. I didn’t mean to, sir.”
The old king smiled faintly again. “I would very much like to believe you, my child, but I have an obligation to my guests here. How am I to know if you intruded by mistake? Every so often, spies will attempt to infiltrate this place using all sorts of disguises. You may need to be placed under investigation for a while. And what is that I see behind you? If I’m not mistaken, it’s quite capable of harming other people.”
Ye Muo tried his best to take a step forward and shield Pangzhua from sight. “It’s wearing a muzzle. I just happened to lose track of it. I’m so sorry. This is all my fault. I just followed the road and ended up inside…”
“Is that so?”
Norton Grantz interrupted him, retracting his gaze from the colosseum below to look at Ye Muo. Those two fierce beasts were still roaming around down there. Many slabs of meat still covered in fresh blood had been tossed down onto the field, presumably to appease them.
Norton was originally surrounded by the crowd and followed by Secretary-General Lin and the imperial guard. The moment he stepped forward, the other leaders and heads of state parted like the Red Sea. Norton stood out even among them.
“You went in while those two little things were still in there?”
Norton Grantz looked straight at Ye Muo. It was obvious who he was asking.
Ye Muo subconsciously straightened his back and looked down at the ground. He seemed to want to say something else, but finally admitted, “Yes.”
Norton Grantz remained silent. He just regarded Ye Muo quietly. It was Secretary-General Lin behind Norton Grantz who reminded Ye Muo, “The salutation.”
So Ye Muo spoke again, “Yes…”
He repeated clearly with everyone’s attention on him, “Yes. I’m sorry, Father.”
The quiet shuffling and whispers in their vicinity came to a sudden halt.
Only then did Norton Grantz speak, “I’ve reminded you many times. Don’t forget again.”
Norton ignored him. He extended a hand to Ye Muo. “Come here. You are not to leave my sight before we leave this place.”
When Ye Muo came over to him, Norton didn’t even need to speak before a nearby guard took Pangzhua’s leash from Ye Muo’s hand. Another guard quickly went downstairs, obviously to investigate.
The atmosphere instantly froze over. Paul and the other teen who shot the arrows were covered in cold sweat.
A child of the Grantz.
A tall woman suddenly stepped out of the crowd. She was the mother of the other young archer. Keenly aware of there being more to this story, she harshly barked at her child, “Come here!”
When that child went over, she quickly slapped him. “Why didn’t you inspect the place?”
Her child understood immediately. “I was just invited as a guest, Mother.”
The old king also said, “Paul, you were too wilful.”
Paul immediately dropped down to one knee. “Many apologies.”
Then, he quickly turned to Ye Muo. “Many apologies. I left a bad impression on you, Your Highness.”
Ye Muo looked at Norton, wanting to say something.
Secretary-General Lin bowed slightly. “The medical team is ready.”
Norton silently left with Ye Muo.
Secretary-General Lin stayed behind. He pushed his glasses up. “We will proceed with our investigation, Klai Emperor. A copy of the report will be delivered to you once the results are out.”
The old king nodded and slowly stated, “I believe in Grantz.”
Secretary-General Lin immediately headed off after Norton. The old king seemed to pretend like nothing had happened as he invited his guests upstairs. A few minutes later, Paul and the others were the only ones left.
All the thoughts they had been holding back came out in a deluge.
“A Grantz! A young Grantz! I should have known based on his dark hair and eyes and how handsome he is.”
“A lot of people will not be sleeping well for some time. After all this time, a new generation of Grantz has appeared. Who knows when the magnificent sight of so many Grantz from the last generation will be recreated?”
“Why haven’t I heard a peep about this? They haven’t publicly acknowledged this little Grantz yet. Is this something that needs to be kept secret? But they weren’t hiding it from us earlier at all. Is the news about to be made public?”
Everyone here was smart enough to draw their own conclusions. Perhaps news of this suspected little Grantz has already been distributed to their sources and analysts.
“I don’t know. My mother told me before that, although no assassination on a Grantz has ever succeeded, they took first place for number of attempts hands down based on available data.
Even the person who answered was a little uncertain, “So is it for safety?”
It was a while before Paul got up again. He clicked his tongue.
The child who had been slapped by the tall woman glanced at him but remained silent.
However, Paul walked to the balcony soon after getting up. He threw himself carelessly onto the sofa there and wiped his cheek forcefully. He cursed under his breath, “That damned geezer used me again.
“
The wolf in the colosseum was still tearing into the slabs of meat which his father had sent over after hearing about the incident.
Although Paul might seem calm on the surface, he was still very shaken. He couldn’t help but curse again. “Damn it…I have to contact my maternal uncle’s side soon.”
The Grantz. The Grantz.
That old geezer really was malicious, using him to test the waters.
……
“A Grantz. He actually turned out to be a Grantz.”
The old king had a dark expression as he sat on the sofa.
Seated across from him in this dimly lit room was a man in a mask. Not the type that covered half the face like Ano’s, but one that firmly covered every bit of skin.
The old king also knew that, even if the mask was to be removed, the face under the mask would just be a high quality artificial one.
The man spoke in a synthesized electronic voice. “Don’t fret just yet. Wait and see what happens.”
The old king slapped the sofa’s armrest heavily. “Haven’t I waited long enough?? I’ve waited until there was only one Grantz, and you’re telling me to keep waiting?!”
“It was you who told me Norton wouldn’t allow the Grantz bloodline to grow. It was you who told him this clan, including Norton himself, would disappear in the next few decades!”
The man didn’t even shift. His synthesized voice did not fluctuate, “Don’t get agitated. I want to see the Grantz disappear even more than you. Still, getting angry won’t change the fact that a little Grantz has appeared.”
“While an adult Grantz is undefeatable, their children are much more vulnerable. Remember decades ago when the Grantz suddenly went to thoroughly purge the Exile Sectors for no obvious reason?”
The old king calmed down somewhat. He did remember. At that time, it was almost all anyone could talk about on the galactic network.
Although it was still reported from time to time how chaotic a place the Exile Sectors were, how it was a literal hell ruled by criminals, the Exile Sectors decades ago were truly hell.
After the purge lasting several months, Grantz’s flags flew across the Exile Sectors. The move was criticized by many media networks for a very long time. They accused the Grantz of being domineering barbarians who executed galactic pirates without giving them a fair trial.
Many photos and videos of the time were still left. Ironically, the reason the starships of those media networks dared to enter Exile Sector territory was because Grantz warships were there to ward off any galactic pirates.
Others almost thought that Grantz was planning to annex the Exile Sectors. The place was relatively peaceful for a long time afterwards. The ordinary residents there were overjoyed, for the galactic pirates stopped operating there for quite some time. Gradually, several morally gray, local organizations formed. Although the Exile Sectors were still infamously chaotic today, they were much more stable than before.
The man only continued when the old king calmed down.
“The reason they conducted the purge remains a highly speculated subject to this day, but the truth is very simple. A young Grantz was attacked and nearly died. Many of the culprits were captured and killed on the spot while some fled to the Exile Sectors.”
Thus, the furious Grantz remained hot on their trails until they were dead. The galactic pirates operating in the Exile Sectors were even investigating their own members and frantically searching their own territories for the culprits the Grantz were looking for.
But the man didn’t mention these details. He just shrugged and downplayed it all, “You see? A Grantz can be killed too.”
The old king looked at the man in astonishment. “But Norton is extraordinary even for a Grantz. He killed all the remaining Grantz back then, after all. He will not be easy to deal with.”
The man did not deny it, “Why must you face Norton? He’s not the one we’re going to kill, and I will be helping you. “
The old king fell into deep contemplation. His brows scrunched tightly together.
The man laughed and looked quite at ease. “What are you afraid of? A few decades ago, the Grantz were in their prime. Now all you have to face is one adult Grantz. You could have even ended their bloodline today if you went the extra mile and sacrificed a child at most to disguise it as an accident. It’s not as difficult as you might think.”
He offered further temptation, “Especially a young, immature Grantz. We just need a few reliable assassins and patience. Then, even that Grantz will only be able to vent his anger towards the Exile Sectors.”
