Chapter 179 Mystery In Stone Valley Part 9

(Dream) 

"Give it back to me," Bong shouted, his small voice echoing through the classroom, and the children began to laugh and applaud as they watched Bong running back and forth trying to snatch the perfume bag from the six princes. 

After a while, Gang and the five princes surrounded Bong, and they continued to throw the perfume bag that Gang had taken away from Bong back and forth between the six of them. 

"Protection and peace" Gang read with a smile. "Who will protect you?" 

"Yeah, who will protect you? Motherless child," said the other prince. 

"Just because father wants mother to take care of you, doesn't mean you are her child and my brother," Gang said, seeing Bong rushing over angrily, he quickly threw the perfume bag to the other prince opposite him. 

Bong rushed to the other side and tried to take his perfume bag, but the prince threw the perfume bag back to Gang. Gang caught the perfume bag and smiled. "This is just a stupid, useless pouch. My maid can make a better-looking pouch than this one," he said, staring at the perfume bag. 

Bong glared at Gang angrily. While others can make a better-looking perfume bag, the perfume bag Gang holds is special to Bong. It was the last item his mother gave him before she died in childbirth. Bong stood in the center of the circle surrounded by the six princes. He took a deep breath, anger welling up in him. He stared at Gang holding the perfume bag his mother made for him.

"If you don't give it back to me, I will...I will," Bong said angrily, breathing through his nostrils. 

"You will what? What can a child without a mother do? Huh?" As he spoke, Gang approached Bong and grabbed Bong's collar. 

Bong clenched his fists, and when Bong saw Gang laughing at him, he raised his hands and punched Gang in the face, causing Gang to stumble back to the others with a bloody nose. 

Gang pulled himself together and wiped the blood from his nose. He looked at Bong angrily. "How dare you hit me?" Gang said angrily. "I am going to kill you." 

The two princes quickly seized Bong by grabbing Bong's arms, while Gang rushed forward and aimed his fist at Bong's face. 

Bong knew that his face would be hit hard by Gang in the next second, and maybe he might lose two teeth this time, so he closed his eyes and prepared for the impact. He waited for a moment, but Gang's fist didn't touch his face. Then he slowly opened his eyes and found that Gang's hand was held by a tall and handsome young man. 

"Enough with his nonsense," Lixin pushed Gang aside. "The teacher will be here at any time." Lixin rolled his eyes coldly at Gang. 

Seeing Lixin in the classroom, the other princes swallowed their saliva and quickly took their seats. 

Gang walked up to Lixin angrily. He poked Lixin's chest with his finger and said angrily, "Slave... you should know your place." 

Lixin said coldly, "Do I care what you think?" He grabbed Gang's finger and bent it back hard. "You should also know your place." He pushed Gang's hand back to Gang's side. 

Through the door, Taió slowly approached Lixin and Gang. "Stop making a fuss," Taió said looking at Gang. "Mother said, if you make trouble again, she will make you kneel longer this time." He looked at Lixin and then at Gang. "Also, don't call Lixin a slave...if grandmother and father find out about this, the punishment will be even more severe." He smiled. "Now, apologize to Lixin." 

Knowing that there was nothing he could do, Gang put aside his pride and looked at Lixin. "I'm sorry to call you a slave," he said reluctantly. 

Lixin stretched out his hand and said, "Perfume bag." 

Gang put the perfume bag in Lixin's hand and angrily walked across the room to his seat with the other princes. 

Lixin walked up to Bong and said, "Your perfume bag." 

(Dream Ends) 

Bong slowly opened his eyes. He was still in a daze and was awakened by the sound of waves crashing on the shore. He slowly sat up, and then his head felt heavy, as if there was a stone pressing on his neck. The longer he sat, the dizzier he felt, so he decided to lie down again. He wasn't sure if he was dreaming. The last thing he remembered was yelling at Abrafo in the middle of the night. He tried to recall the details before he passed out, but the more he thought about it, the worse his headache became. So, he closed his eyes, breathed slowly, and continued to listen to the sound of calm waves lapping on the shore. Then he fell asleep. 

When Bong woke up for the second time, he heard the hissing of night crickets. "How annoying." He frowned and sat up. "Maid, brig me some water." Bong listened, but the only sound he heard was his own voice in the distance. "Are you all dead?" 

Bong's angry voice echoed through the tunnel. Hearing his own voice, Bong opened his eyes suddenly and found himself surrounded by darkness. At this time, Bong finally woke up completely and didn't know where he was. The only light he could see came from a small hole twenty feet away from him and more than a hundred feet above. 

Then Bong suddenly realizes that he is now trapped in a lava tube. The idea of being trapped in a lava tube suddenly frightened him because no one in the outside world knew where he was. Without food and water, and with the endless lava tubes that runs through Stone Valley and Beyond, death is inevitable. 

Bong tried to recall the last memories of last night. Then Bong suddenly remembered. 

 (Flashback)

"You..." Bong looked at the person looking at him in surprise. "Pointing your sword at me could lead to the demise of your entire clan." 

"Shh...make a sound and Your Highness will speak no more," Meng said with a smile. "Now walk." 

Bong asked, "And where are we going?" 

"Just go to the left," Meng said, his sword still pointed at Bong's back. 

Although Bong was a little drunk, his thoughts were still clear. Bong asked, "So, are you a woman or a man?" 

"I'm afraid I can't tell you," Meng said. 

Bong teased and said, "The only way to find out is if you take off your pants and let me confirm it." He started giggling, then suddenly stopped and vomited. 

"Stop playing tricks and keep walking," Meng said with gritted teeth. "I'm not fallen for any of your tricks." 

After vomiting, Bong felt better. He wiped his mouth and said, "You took me as a hostage and chose the wrong time. If you were smart, you should choose a different day." 

Bong glanced at Meng. Although he couldn't see Meng clearly, the moonlight allowed him to see clear enough. So, he quickly swung to the left, rushed back towards Meng, swung his left elbow, hit Meng's face, and knocked Meng away. He then began to flee from Meng into the dark wilderness. 

Bong ran as fast as he could, his coordination was off because he was still drunk, but he continues to run. After being chased by Meng for a while, and because he continued to look back to see how far behind Meng was. He failed to realize he had run straight into a lava tube opening. 

(Flash Back End)

Bong looked at the narrow clearing. When the faint moonlight shone into the dark lava tube, he lay down and continued to stare at the only light in the dark abyss. He exhaled calmly, realizing that although his situation was not good, he had somehow found peace. The silence of the night mixed with the sounds of nature really made him rethink the situation he had recently encountered. 

Although many bad and unfortunate events have occurred since Bong participated in this competition, one thing is for sure: he finally understood that although he is a prince with the highest status than most people, this does not mean that his title will make people like him and stand by him when he needs it most. Even if this competition taught him that he didn't have a good friend standing by his side, he learned to be more mature. 

Bong closed his eyes and sighed. "Who needs you when I can help myself?" he said to himself. 

Back at the Lai family tent, Yul sat around the table and kept looking at the door, wondering when Hajime would walk in, because Hajime had been gone for a long time, and he began to worry. 

Michio looked at Yul then at the door and said, "I wonder what took Hajime so long." 

U-ri poured a cup of water and handed it to Michio. "It takes a long time to cook, especially when cooking for many people," he said. 

Yul said, "Michio is right. I will go look for him." 

As soon as Yul stood up, Yun quickly grabbed Yul's wrist and stood up with him. 

U-ri looked at the embarrassing situation and said, "Yul, you and Lady Yun stay here while Michio goes find Hajime." He waved to Yul. "Sit down... sit...sit...sit..." 

Just as Michio was about to stand up, the door curtain was lifted, and it was Yue who smiled at Bi who walked into the tent. Seeing that Yun was fully awake and alert, Yue smiled at Bi and the others. Yue walked to the table and sat opposite Yun. 

Yue smiled at Yun and said, "I knew they could save you." 

Yun glanced at Yue coldly and said nothing.