The room was filled with anticipation and awe. People surrounded me. Cameras stared at me. The news stations pushed mics into my face.
But I continued to sit on my throne, continuously flipping a coin, slowly looking up at the girl who decided to challenge me. She was fully cloaked, not letting any light reach her face.
"You're bold... I'll give you that," I said, rising from my throne. "But even the bold know when to shut their mouths."
I stopped flipping the coin, turning my head to the crowd of people.
"One of you. Bring up the stadium."
The crowd screamed as one of the priests, who had brought the girl to my throne, clicked a button.
The stadium slowly arose from the center of the floor.
"Once you step in, the deal is done. You do understand that?" I questioned as I went back to flipping the coin.
"I understand," she replied, her voice sounding mature.
Once the stadium was finally stationary, we stepped in simultaneously.
The priest walked inside the stadium, deciding to be the referee for the flip.
"One round. As I'm a very busy person," I calmly added, flashing the cocky smile that made me so endearing to one's eyes.
"You speak like you've already won. How come?" she asked.
"Because I am the best."
The round started as I tucked the coin underneath my thumb, imbuing the coin with my luck. Light beamed out of my hand, growing brighter and brighter. The air, once calm like a lake, now rushed around the room like a hurricane.
"So this is the king's luck..." a bystander said, falling to their knees due to pure, unadulterated awe.
The comment made me smirk once more as the light shined to its maximum potential. Then, the coin bolted out from my thumb, flipping high into the sky.
The cameras that once stared at me now stared at the coin that had broken the atmosphere.
"Going all out..." the girl muttered, snickering under that hood of hers.
"A king shows his power to all!" I yelled, and with a single, quick descent of my hand, the coin started to fall to the ground. Its entry back into the atmosphere caused it to burn, like the flames of my pride inside me.
Seventy feet... fifty feet... twenty feet...
BOOM!
Dust filled the stadium, filling everybody's lungs.
"ACK! ACK!"
The coughs filled the room like a symphony before the dust settled.
"Damn..." I wiped the tears from my eyes before looking at the priest. "What did it land on?"
"I don't know, my lord. It seems the coin caused a major crater in the ground. It'll take a while for me to get it out," he nervously replied.
"Then get to it."
The priest quickly jumped into the crater, holding a simple hammer and chisel.
An hour later, the priest popped his head out of the crater, his hair covered in dirt and concrete.
"Did you find it?"
"Y-Yes, my lord."
There was a slight stutter in his voice, but I paid it no mind.
"Do you want me to bring the coin up, my lord?"
"Just tell me what it landed on! I know when you're sugarcoating something."
Tears started to stream down the priest's eyes as he replied,
"T-Tails..."
I felt my heartbeat increase, stepping back from the crater. My tongue was now dry, my mouth gaped open, and the crowd seemed to share a similar feeling.
"H-How?" I stammered as the girl pushed past me, causing the crown I once held dearly to fall off my head. "It was guaranteed! Everything was perfect!"
I tapped my pocket as a large screen slowly descended from the roof. It flickered to life, showing the data of the air's current status.
"See!? Perfect air conditions!" I said, tapping on the screen to show more, but it didn't move. "Why isn't it working!?" I tapped more aggressively before it finally unfroze.
And I was taken aback. Everything... was, in fact, not perfect. The air. The friction. Even the coin. All was imperfect.
"I regret to tell you this, my lord," the priest sighed, "but the data froze a week ago... what you saw was last week's data."
I fell to my knees as I could hear the cackling of the girl wrapped in her cloak.
"It seems this kingdom is mine to rule," she said, grabbing my crown off the floor and placing it on her head. Then, to add insult to the wound, she sat upon the throne that was once mine.
"You did something. You did something for you to win!" I yelled as I got up from the floor, clenching my fist. "You're scum. Bottom of the barrel." My voice was now raspy as tears streamed down my ears.
"Guards! We have a trespasser!" she mocked as the guards grabbed me by my shoulders.
"I'm sorry... but the rules are the rules."
I was dragged throughout the palace, feeling the glares of the maids I once owned. Thrown out into the cold, dark night. I swore to myself I would get my kingdom back.
"Just you wait... Mystery Girl."