Kizeler Kingsword

"Cut the crap, I got here first, and you have no rights to say that I don't have the qualifications to join this tournament," Priscilla yelled, while Trix was hugging her from behind.

"Just let it go, Pris, we can register after him," Trix said, doing her best to calm her companion.

All of the eyes were looking at the commotion happening not far from the end of the line; they even stopped their tasks for a moment to watch how things would unfold.

"No! Who is he to spout nonsense like that?" Priscilla snorted while her eyes were glaring at the person in front of her.

However, the man laughed at her words. He had a muscular build, which was supported by his incredible height; then, his black hair was tied at the top of his head.

"Listen here, woman!" He exclaimed after stomping the shaft of his spear on the concrete ground.

"A sapphire-class mercenary has no place in this event; get out of here if you don't want to die," he continued to provoke Priscilla.

"There's no rule that prevents the lower classes from joining; shut that worthless mouth of yours!" She yelled, her voice filled with anger.

The man knitted his brows and clenched his fist. It was he who started the provocation, yet he couldn't handle his temper properly.

"You! I'll show all of you here why you guys must not join this event," he said, then he lifted his arm and punched Priscilla, but his fist was blocked by a sword sheath.

Kizeler leaped in front of his friend as soon as he heard her voice; he unshackled the sword along with its scabbard from his leg and stopped the man's attack by placing it between them. 

"Have you forgotten your dignity somewhere in your home? Harassing women in broad daylight," Kizeler said. Then he pushed the man's fist away with his sword and turned to Priscilla to check her out.

"What a gentleman! But don't get in my way!" The man exclaimed, then let go of his spear and threw another punch, aiming for Kizeler's head.

"Behind you!" Priscilla screamed to notify her friend.

However, Kizeler stood still and smiled at Priscilla before he looked behind him; he glared at the man's eyes, then something changed: his left eye's pupil turned purple, then a strange white hexagram pattern appeared on it that made his eye resemble a magic circle.

In the next few seconds, the man suddenly fell to his knees, kneeling in front of Kizeler. His arms were hanging at his sides.

"What have you done?" He asked, trying to get up and move his limbs, but he couldn't feel them; his whole body was paralyzed except for his head.

Kizeler turned around to face him; his eye was back to its normal black color, and then he gave him a kick. His right leg slammed into the man's head, and the infused energy mixed in with his attack sent the man flying through the streets. 

The crowd was astonished by Kizeler's actions; they cheered and yelled to support him.

However, knights came running. They pointed their weapons at Kizeler.

"Hands up! Drop your sword!" One of the knights yelled.

"Hey, we're not in the wrong here!" Priscilla protested, but Kizeler stepped closer, raised his hands like the knights wanted, and let go of his sword.

"Don't worry. I will just have a light talk with their commander; let's see each other at the residence," he said while walking closer to the group of men clad in blue armor.

The knights arrested and cuffed Kizeler, and the rest of them picked up the man lying unconscious on the ground.

"Fights are forbidden in the streets of this city; if you really want to, please do that in the arena," the same knight who shouted earlier said.

Subsequently, they started to leave the place. Zeno was leaning on a building when all of that happened. Then, the knights passed him by along with Kizeler.

"That's a formidable Legacy, you've got there," he uttered in silence, yet made sure that Kizeler heard him clearly.

'Not formidable enough to deal with you though,' he thought while shaking his head.

Then the lively atmosphere returned after the scuffle, the registration resumed and after several minutes of waiting, Priscilla got herself registered.

She and Trix spotted Zeno standing not far from the line of participants.

They were surprised and looked at each other; they didn't want to approach the demon without Kizeler, but they felt bad upon realizing that he waited for them to finish.

So, they went to him even if it were against their will; just thinking about making him wait and leaving him alone without notice sent shivers down their bodies. They didn't want to experience the demon's wrath.

Zeno walked towards Priscilla and Trix as he saw them coming out of the crowd.

"H-hello, w-we're glad that you're still here, but, you know, you can stroll the city on your own without wasting your time waiting for us," Priscilla said, trying to cover up the fear that she was feeling with a smile.

"You were so brave earlier, yet you always stuttered when speaking to me," Zeno commented, which made Priscilla bow her head, and she blushed a little due to shame. 

Trix was busy hiding behind Priscilla; she didn't know what to say, and she didn't want to offend Zeno with her words.

Then Zeno left them without saying anything, upon seeing their reactions.

The two women stared at his back; they should be happy that the demon went away, but there was this strange sadness looming in their hearts as they saw him disappear into the sea of people.

. . . . .

Kizeler was dragged into the kingdom's detention area near the castle grounds. His offense was not that serious to put him in the underground prison; however, the room he was locked up in was still dark. It had no windows, and a smell of stagnant water filled the space.

He was sitting there for about an hour and a half. Thoughts regarding Priscilla circulated in his mind; he wondered if she was doing okay and if the demon was still with them.

Afterward, he heard several footsteps outside the area. Then the clacking of shoes stopped when it reached his room, and the door gave an eerie sound as it hit its metal frame.

The door opened, and a person dressed in a coat entered. He had black eyes and hair like Kizeler, and his long beard was well groomed.

"Uncle!" Kizeler said upon seeing the man.

The man hugged him in his arms as he stood up, and Kizeler returned his embrace.

"You're back; the family is waiting for you," the man said. "You should have informed us earlier."

"I'm sorry," Kizeler said softly, his voice trying to erase the awkward tension between them, but the man just tapped his back as a reply. 

Then they let go of each other, walked out of the room, and bid their farewells to the knights.

A carriage with a crest made of a sword with a hexagram as its background was waiting for them outside. The street was so crowded that they got stuck in heavy traffic. After an hour of travel, they arrived at a large mansion. It was located on the outskirts of the capital.

Two maids opened the gate as they saw the carriage in front, and they bowed before it entered the premises.

The inside of the place was spacious; beside the large mansion, there were only small cabins that looked like the maid's and butler's quarters.

Kizeler hopped down from the vehicle and walked up the stairs leading to the main door.

Then, the door opened as soon as he was just a meter away from it.

"We greet the young master for his safe arrival." Several voices rang in the air at the same moment.

Almost a hundred people were kneeling on one knee; there were butlers, maids, and soldiers. All of their heads were bowed down, and their eyes were staring at the floor. Even Priscilla and Trix were at the farthest part of the hall, and they were kneeling like the others.

Despite their actions, extreme joy was painted on their faces.

Kizeler stepped forward on the purple carpet, then he spoke.

"I'm not worthy of this warm welcome, but," he paused and expressed his gratitude while gesturing for the people to stand up.

"I, the Kingsword's patriarch, have returned," he said, and applause filled the mansion.

. . . . .

Zeno strolled the capital; he was bored to death. Nothing good caught his interest. He tried looking for different merchandise, hoping that there were better weapons inside the city, but then again, he was dissatisfied as he appraised each item.

'Maybe I should just go straight to the imperial palace," he thought, but forgot about it when he remembered that his main purpose for staying here was to see the tournament. 

Then he went to food stalls to fill up his belly; he was not in the mood to drink in the middle of the day. 

He was about to order food when he noticed something odd.

'What is that thing?' He thought upon seeing a maroon-colored umbrella floating above the sky.

He stared at it for almost a minute, but it just remained hanging up there, so he didn't bother himself to know what it was. He even thought that maybe it would be used later in the festival. 

Moments later, he was done eating, and he stood up to leave the place, but a woman bumped into him and fell to the ground.

"Ouch," she said and rubbed her butt that hit the solid pavement.

Zeno extended his hand to help her stand. The first thing that he noticed about the woman was the red highlights in front of her white hair that perfectly matched her peach-colored eyes.

"I'm sorry, I didn't noti-" He was about to apologize when he realized why he didn't feel the woman's presence. Then he looked around him and was surprised to see that the surroundings had changed.

The fluctuations of energy and the different kinds of souls that he normally sees disappeared, as it was replaced by a grayscale world, robbed of its time.

Then he felt the dice on his ear was spinning nonstop, and the skulls on all of its surface were glowing.

"This will be fun," he said, smirking and he whispered. "Eliana,"

A white line emerged from his body, then it covered the dull-colored world. Eliana's Legacy helped him grasp the surroundings, even though he still couldn't discern the things that he had normally seen.

"How? How are you not affected by my domain?" the woman asked after she stood up. Her eyes were glaring at Zeno, looking for answers.

. . . . .