Translator: Mukyuu
Editor: Mikyuu
Prilli summoned another bat and placed it in front of Baal. He placed the first bat he summoned in front of himself and then picked up the die and asked, “You first or me first?”
Baal reached for the die. “Me first.”
“Sure, please.” Prilli made a “go ahead” gesture.
Baal held the top and spun his fingers slightly.
The top began to spin slowly.
Wang Xiaoming and Prilli both focused their eyes on the changing numbers on the top.
Suddenly, when the number became 9, the top stopped without warning.
…
Prilli looked at Baal.
Baal declared, “Nine. Let’s go.”
“Uh,” Prilli licked his lips, “did you use a spell?” No matter how they looked at it, that top had stopped unnaturally, as if someone had forcefully pressed down on it.
“Freeze spell,” Baal explained good-naturedly.
“…” Prilli said subtly, “The rules don’t allow for spells.” If it wasn’t for Baal’s identity, Prilli would have jumped up and shouted. They had clearly said that no cheating was allowed and he was doing it so openly and so inelegantly!
“You summoning bats doesn’t count as a spell?” Baal was very unhappy with the double standard.
Prilli practically choked. “Bats are chess pieces. How about we let it go this time but not allow it in future rounds?”
“No.” Baal considered and then said, “At the most, we’ll start with the next game.”
…
Did that mean that Baal’s top would constantly display a 9 this game?
Fine, just getting a 9 wouldn’t guarantee victory.
Prilli soundlessly directed Baal’s bat to walk nine squares ahead.
Nothing happened.
Prilli squeezed the top. “My turn.”
Baal nooded.
Prilli focused intently on the top. As a loyal fan of Blood Chess, he had quite an understanding of how to spin the tops. He knew very well how much force and speed would result in how many turns. Baal could get a 9 using a spell and he could do it with skill.
Holding that thought, his fingers slowly turned.
But the scene of the top spinning wildly that he had imagined didn’t come to fruition. In reality, the top never even moved. The number jumped once and then stopped.
Baal watched Prilli stare wide-eyed at the top for a while before turning to look at him. Then Baal explained kindly, “Freeze spell.”
…
So the freeze spell during this game would not only always give Baal a 9 but would also always give him a 0?
Prilli’s mouth twitched and he said, “We said before we started that this should be fair and square.”
“Mmhmm.” Baal nodded. “So you mustn’t cheat.”
…
Prilli remembered the friends with whom he had played chess.
He had once scolded them to hell and back because they had cheated when directing their bats to make moves, because he thought they had completely betrayed the spirit of the game. But after meeting Baal today, he realized… that he had been too strict before. That guy had only cheated on the moves and had done so sneakily and quietly, showing that he had some shame. When compared to Baal, that had been a small misdemeanor compared to a crime.
“I’ll continue.” Without looking the slightest bit ashamed, Baal continued spinning the top until it landed on 9 and then urged his bat to continue flying forward.
As someone who knew he couldn’t win when it came to spells, Prilli could only selfishly hope that Baal would trigger traps.
Then, his hopes came true time after time.
Two dust storms, two black smokes, and a sharp sword at the end chased the bat he had lent Baal right off of the board.
Prilli almost jumped in joy but he quickly found himself incapable of laughing.
Because Baal casually grabbed another bat from his space. From the looks of it, that one was of an even higher level than his own.
“This is…” he paused and asked in surprise, “… Daniel’s bat? How do you have his bat?” Among the Kindred, the bats were considered someone’s energy and, aside from extreme situations, it would be impossible to have someone else’s bat.
“I just grabbed it,” Baal answered very innocently.
Prilli recalled the nauseating stench he had smelled when he first walked into the Harbor of Loners. “What happened to you guys at the bar?” Hopefully not what he was thinking.
Baal’s entire being was focused on the chessboard. “We’ll talk about that after the game.”
Prilli answered in vexation, “You won’t be able to command that bat.”
Baal asked, “Could you?”
“No,” Prilli answered and then followed up stubbornly, “I’m just a fifth generation Kindred.”
Baal stretched out a finger and poked the stiff bat on the butt.
With a squeak, the bat tumbled down from the air.
“…” Guess poking on the butt wasn’t a strategy that worked all the time.
Wang Xiaoming and Prilli looked silently at the bat that was playing dead on the chessboard.
Baal pursed his lips and asked Prilli, “What did you just ask?”
Wang Xiaoming feared that Baal would answer too vaguely, so he grabbed the opportunity and described everything that had happened at the bar, neither omitting nor exaggerating any details. Truthfully, even if he wanted to absolve any of Baal’s actions, it probably wouldn’t be easy just based on what Prilli had learned about Baal. It might even have the opposite effect. So he might as well tell the truth.
Prilli finished listening and his brows furrowed tightly together.
Wang Xiaoming cautiously asked, “Is that bad?”
“Very bad.” Prilli nodded. “I think Lord Baal must have heard about the Sacrificial Night of Fresh Blood, so then you must know how much the big clans value it. We could say that the victors of the Sacrificial Night of Fresh Blood have always been internally decided by the Elders of the thirteen clans through negotiations.”
Baal answered expressionlessly, “I don’t know.”
Prilli continued, “The Sacrificial Night of Fresh Blood is an excellent opportunity for Kindred members to get promoted. But the truth is that promotion is done through each clan’s Elders. If that’s the case, then why do the clans still participate in the Sacrificial Night of Fresh Blood instead of just having their own clan Elders promote them by exchanging blood?”
…
Wang Xiaoming asked in a daze, “That’s right, why?”
“That’s because changing blood directly with a clan Elder will cause an intolerable conflict in the blood, just like what happened to Xiang Wenjie.” He saw the surprised look on Wang Xiaoming’s face and explained, “He already told me in the letter.”
No wonder Edwin said Xiang Wenjie was an experiment. He had known there’d be danger before doing the experiment!
Prilli continued, “Every Kindred would fight to the death to win the Sacrificial Night of Fresh Blood because only the victors can get Lord Cain’s blood and be perfectly promoted.”
“Cain’s blood?” Baal’s ears perked up.
Prilli continued, “That’s why the thirteen clans put so much emphasis on the Sacrificial Night of Fresh Blood. As far as I know, because Lord Cain is still asleep, the amount of blood in the Elders’ possession is dwindling. The number of winners for each Sacrificial Night of Fresh Blood is also dwindling. There are only three this year.”
Wang Xiaoming cried out in disbelief, “Three?” Wasn’t this harder than getting into Qinghua University?
Baal asked with a frown, “What does that have to do with the very bad situation you just mentioned?”
Prilli answered, “I heard they hadn’t assigned the winners for this year yet. Originally, based on Edwin’s and my positions in the McAvery and Giovanni clans, we might have been able to petition a place for you. But since you’ve gotten on the bad side of Daniel… He’s one of the core members of the Torredo clan and, from any angle, the Torredo clan is not a reasonable clan. My guess is you’ll have a hard time getting on the list this time around.”
Baal asked, “You can’t go into Bloodnight Mountain without being on the list?” He started to consider fighting his way in. Worst came to worst, he’d put Wang Xiaoming somewhere and then drag Cain out.
Prilli answered, “The earmarked members will get all kinds of help and get through the challenges very easily. Those that are not… can only use their own skills. Of course, it’s not that this kind of Kindred doesn’t exist. It’s just that even if they succeed, they’d be isolated by the other members of their clan because they violated the Elders’ orders.”
Wang Xiaoming sighed, “That’s so unfair.”
“… Yes.” Prilli sighed. “The Kindred Realm is not a place where fairness rules.” He looked with utmost regret down at the Blood Chess board. “It’s even so hard to find a chess player who will follow the rules.”
A place who had been ruled for a very long time by the same organization would naturally develop many unspoken rules and cultural cues.
Wang Xiaoming found that he could start to understand why Prilli’s eyes lit up so brightly at the mention of Blood Chess.
Baal’s lips suddenly twitched upward into a chiling smile. “Based on their own skills?”
“Of course, your skills mean it won’t be hard to get through the various challenges, but…” Prilli paused here. “As soon as they discover that you’re not a Kindred, then not only will your qualification be cancelled, but Edwin, who recommended you, would also be punished.” That was also why Edwin had asked him to help cover for Baal.
Baal said impatiently, “The worst that happens is we don’t become Kindreds.” It wasn’t a hard thing for him to consider leaving Heaven or Hell.
…
Prilli and Wang Xiaoming simultaneously became incapable of responding.
Especially Wang Xiaoming, since he hadn’t forgotten that the entire reason Baal brought him to the Kindred Realm was so he could become a Kindred.
Wang Xiaoming saw Prilli’s agonized expression and advised, “I still hope to use the smartest way possible to solve the problem.”
“Use the smartest way?” Baal gave him a strange look.
Prilli immediately agreed, “That’s right. Your powers will make going through the challenges so easy. Getting through based on intelligence will make it so much more satisfying.”
Baal stated, “You mean that I’m not smart.”
Prilli chuckled awkwardly, “That’s not what I meant.”
“If I fall for your trap, that would demonstrate how not-smart I am,” Baal answered calmly.
Prilli didn’t dare say anything more.
“But a tiny competition among the tiny Kindreds really doesn’t need that much focus.” Baal looked down at Prilli and demanded, “Tell me, what else do Kindreds know aside from releasing bats?”
“A lot, such as turning into bats…”
“Nothing to do with bats.” Baal was afraid Prilli wouldn’t understand and added, “Something I can do.”
Instead of answering, Prilli asked with a sweatdrop, “What do you know?”
“A lot,” Baal paused, “except for anything that has to do with bats.”
