Scene One – The Royal Stands
The arena roared with voices after Kota's fall, but the royal stands were no less turbulent.
Darius rose sharply from his seat, eyes blazing:
— "This is madness! The duel wasn't fair—if Kin hadn't thrown him his sword, that boy would be lying in his own blood!"
Every gaze turned to the fourth prince.
Kin leaned casually against his armrest, a calm smile painted on his lips, indifference radiating from his expression.
— "My sword? It merely slipped. Don't you believe me, brother?"
Darius slammed his hand against the armrest, the wood trembling beneath the force:
— "Enough of your nonsense! Do you think me blind? I saw you throw it with my own eyes!"
A small laugh escaped Kin's lips—more provoking than any confession.
— "Strange… I thought a knight would know the difference between chance and interference. Perhaps you were more nervous than I imagined?"
The clash between the two was seconds from boiling over, but Leon, the second prince, reclined with sly amusement, watching like a predator entertained by his siblings tearing into one another.
— "What a delightful play… the youngest daring to mock his elder. I fear the palace itself may burn before the festival ends."
Before the quarrel could ignite further, a single word cut through the tension:
Adrian, the eldest:
— "Enough."
It wasn't just a word—it was an explosion.
His silent, sharp gaze struck all three brothers at once. The very air seemed to shudder. A chill rippled through Leon, Darius, and Kin alike, as if an icy mountain had been dropped upon their chests.
Then came the king's voice, deep and commanding, ending all:
— "Silence."
Tongues stilled, but the fire in their eyes did not fade…
Darius's burned with rage, Kin's with defiant calm, Leon's with mischief, and Adrian's with an unreadable frost.
Scene Two – The Arena Floor
Below, the announcer's booming voice reclaimed the stage:
— "Ladies and gentlemen! What you have just witnessed is a duel for the ages! Gray, the nameless underdog, defeats the beast Kota and advances to the finals!"
The crowd split like a storm-tossed sea:
— "He only won by luck—Kin saved him!"
— "No, he fought with heart! Incredible!"
The other advancing knights exchanged glances—some with envy, others with suspicion.
— "Who is this boy? How did he topple Kota?"
Even the royal guards whispered at the edges of the arena:
— "If the fourth prince hadn't stepped in, the boy would be done for."
— "And yet… no one can deny the willpower he showed."
Scene Three – The Healing Tent
While the arena churned with noise, Gray sat on a modest cot in the healers' tent.
Fresh bandages wrapped his wounds, his face pale from blood loss, but his eyes still glimmered with an unyielding tension.
He raised a shaky hand to wipe sweat from his brow—then stopped when his gaze fell on Kin's sword, propped against the wall beside him.
Gray stared at it, eyes narrowing, before shutting them.
"If the fourth prince hadn't thrown me his sword… would I have lost? Was my victory even real?"
Silence.
Then he remembered Kin's look—no pity, no condescension, only that confident, knowing smile.
A strange, confusing sense of gratitude stirred within him… but he clenched his fist and whispered fiercely:
— "It doesn't matter. Whether he helped or not, the next fight will be mine alone. The finals will prove it… this time, no one will question my victory."
He lifted his gaze to the tent's wooden ceiling, sweat and tears mingling down his cheeks, but his inner voice burned stronger than ever:
"The next win is mine—not for Kin, not for the crowd… but for me."
Scene Four – Closing
The announcer's cry thundered once more through the arena:
— "Ladies and gentlemen! After a short intermission, tomorrow we witness the grand final—where the underdog knight Gray will face his ultimate opponent to decide his fate!"
The crowd erupted in applause and chants.
The camera of the tale drifted back to the royal stands:
Darius clenched his fist until veins bulged.
Leon smirked with his usual mischief.
Adrian remained still, as ever.
And the king… watched in silence, eyes like blades no one could read.
But Kin leaned forward in his seat, his gaze burning with a light no one else possessed—
the look of a man who knew the spark he had ignited might soon become a fire that would consume them all.
End of Chapter.