Slash!
A young man stood in his place as he noticed the intruder before him fell down. his breathing had turned rough after several hours fighting, but there didn’t seem to be any end of the enemies.
“Kill him!”
“He’s nothing more than a small guard. What the hell are you waiting for?”
The young man looked up and saw the same commander whom he had been practicing with just a few hours ago. It was hard to believe that the man whom he trusted so much would end up being the one to instigate his own dead.
“General Wang, what’s the meaning of this?” Gritting his teeth, the young man asked slowly. his mouth felt dry as he hadn’t drink anything for the past few hours. However, there was no time to care for that.
General Wang laughed at his question. He had large body, far larger than normal soldiers. As he laughed, the young man could notice that his stomach moved up and down as if it was also mocking him along with his laugh.
“Xiao Ren, do you really think that everyone is so naïve like you?”
His gaze hardened. Xiao Ren could see that a soldier was rushing towards him, trying to launch a sneak attack. Xiao Ren was trying to buy time because his stamina was depleted after hours of fighting, but it seemed that his plan was foiled.
Clang!
His sword quickly moved to block the attack. At the same time, Xiao Ren switched his stance and kicked up, which pushed the soldier to the back. He brandished his sword, piercing through the soldier’s armor and created a large wound on his chest.
Another one died.
Xiao Ren looked back at General Wang. There were already so many people died in his hand today and all of them were soldiers of Zhao Kingdom. They should have all stand on the same side to protect the king and the kingdom, but here they were, pointing sword at one another.
“Tsk, truly worthy of a slave raised by King Zhending.”
King Zhending is the twenty eightieth king of Zhao Dynasty and sixteenth king of Eastern Zhao Dynasty. Zhao Dynasty was divided into two eras and this was year 441 BC, the year filled with schemes and blood.
King Zhending had died just three months ago and his first son, King Ai inherited the throne. Today, King Ai was visiting the smaller city with his consorts and Xiao Ren come to accompany him, but they were ambushed.
No.
Xiao Ren narrowed his eyes as he looked straight at General Wang. It was not an ambush. It’s betrayal.
“Why?”
General Wang looked at Xiao Ren with mockery visible in his eyes. Probably, for him, Xiao Ren must be the most laughable person in the entire world. He didn’t care for Xiao Ren in the slightest bit and only wished for him to die.
Xiao Ren gripped his sword tighter, still feeling unconvinced for everything that happened here. As a former slave, his rank was low, but King Zhending trusted him to be one of the leaders of his personal soldier. He spent years in the battlefield, fighting until his body was bathed in blood in order to rack achievement and become leader.
King Zhending gave him this chance and ordered him to be the one to protect his successor. How can he just give up so easily?
“His Highness Ji Shu is more suitable to the throne.”
Xiao Ren’s eyes widened at General Wang’s answer. Ji Shu is the name of King Zhending’s second son. King Zhending had four sons in total, but aside from King Ai, the rest should have become dukes and governed some cities far away from the capital city.
Now, Xiao Ren understood.
Ji Shu wanted to be the king. He was dissatisfied with the arrangement from his father to go to city… he couldn’t remember. Xiao Ren was not a scholar, so he didn’t really know much about His Highness decree unless it was related to military.
“His Majesty King Ai is the most suitable for the throne!” Xiao Ren nearly shouted.
From the corner of his eyes, Xiao Ren could see several soldiers coming towards him. Xiao Ren gritted his teeth as he moved his body to evade the blow.
Swish!
The distance between his eyes and the tip of the blade was only a few millimeters away. However, Xiao Ren tilted his body to evade in the nick of time. Twisting his body, he stabbed his sword forward, stabbing directly to the soldier’s shoulder.
As soon as Xiao Ren feel the force, he pulled back and twist his body to the side.
Clang!
Xiao Ren swing his sword as hard as possible and slashed through the armor of the two incoming soldiers.
Slash!
General Wang was still a distance away, watching his pitiful resistance. Xiao Ren could see that his comrades were falling one by one, but Xiao Ren couldn’t possibly give up. his friends were trying to protect King Ai as much as possible.
Slash!
Without caring to the pain his muscle has been giving him, Xiao Ren rushed forward.
Bang!
There was an impact as Xiao Ren was pushed back. Pushing his body to move, Xiao Ren rolled on the ground and readied his sword again. General Wang is standing just a few meters away from Xiao Ren. His hand was holding onto a large shield that’s far bigger than any shield Xiao Ren have ever seen.
Xiao Ren gritted his teeth. With General Wang’s large body, Xiao Ren truly not a match when it came to physical strength.
“Xiao Ren, don’t be stupid.” General Wang walked forward, a smile plastered on his lips. “You’re a great commander. If you choose to help me instead, I’ll make sure that you can become a general in just a few years. Think about it. You’re only 20 years old and your future is long. Do you really want to waste it by protecting that useless King Ai?”
Useless?
Xiao Ren’s eyes narrowed. He knew that King Ai had his own faults, but he was the one with the right to the throne because he’s the first son. In history, it was the norm that the first son became the crown prince and inherit the throne.
“King Ai is the one rightful to the throne.”
“Really?” General Wang asked back as he lowered his blade.
Looking at his stance, Xiao Ren was anxious. He had been practicing with General Wang for years, so he understood that General Wang was getting ready to attack again. And this time, it would be a much larger attack than before.
“KING AI HAD DIED!”
The shout shook Xiao Ren.
‘No, that’s not possible.’
General Wang noticed Xiao Ren’s state and rushed forward. His large blade came towards Xiao Ren as his lips curled up.
“Goodbye, Xiao Ren.”
Bang!
Xiao Ren felt as if his entire body was cracked with force as he was sent dozen meters away from the side. His head was spinning, but he still managed to notice that the soldiers who were supposed to be protecting King Ai had scattered.
He noticed that a soldier was coming at him and rolled his body over.
Splash!
‘River?’
He had forgotten that this place was near Huang River. Xiao Ren felt his vision turned blurry as he watched the soldiers and people slowly disappeared from his sight because of the fast water current.
…
