Marina's sword blade was very cold, especially when it was pressed against her throat.
From that bloody battle where he was forced to be sandwiched between the Fallen Stars and the Death Crows, and in the end all three parties used their cards, Thales could feel his improvement: he reacted better and moved faster when faced with actual combat.
The power of termination flows more freely.
but……
Thales couldn't help but look at Ricky's indifferent expression and his calm attitude, and his neck had to move with the opponent's blade.
hateful.
From the sudden outburst of the prince to Ricky's successful counterattack, the confrontation between the two sides was just one face-to-face encounter, and the sudden change from the rabbit to the falcon lasted less than two seconds.
Quick Rope and Dean, who were covering for Thales, were firmly pinned to the ground by numerous opponents, unable to move, with painful expressions on their faces. Many mercenaries still maintained their posture of preparing for battle, looking at the situation that was instantly reversed in surprise.
"Obviously, someone needs to teach our prince when and what not to do." Clay snorted disdainfully and put the lightning-fast light back into its scabbard.
"I told you," the former Baron Russell, who calmed down after being surprised, looked at the Swords of Disaster around him with dissatisfaction: "This prince is very troublesome..."
The driller frowned and looked at Thales, who failed to fight back: "You're a restless little guy, aren't you?"
"Bastard..." Marina gritted her teeth, her face flushed, and walked forward with a single sword in hand, ready to capture the daring prince and teach him a lesson.
But right now.
Snapped!
The prince turned over regardless, stretched out his right arm, and firmly grasped the enemy's sword hand.
Ricky's expression changed, and he looked at Thales in surprise.
Even Marina's steps were stunned.
"Hey, Swords of Disaster."
Thales's arm muscles tightened and he desperately pushed the sword edge away from his throat. His voice trembled slightly during the struggle: "It's not... over yet..."
However, at that moment, the prince felt that the other party's wrist was like a thousand-year-old tree with roots, or like a huge boulder sinking into the ground.
If you push it, it won't move, if you shake it, it won't shake.
"I heard that you are very interested in the Black Sword, right?" Thales tried his best not to think about the cold blade on his neck and forced a smile: "What a coincidence, I am also very interested in him..."
Ricky looked at the opponent's final trapped beast fight and frowned, seemingly dissatisfied.
"A wise man should know when to give up..."
Following Ricky's words, a strange force continuously came from the opponent's wrist!
Thales suddenly changed color!
At that moment, Ricky's power of termination flowed into Thales's body through his palm.
Thales felt as if he had been thrown into a large pot, covered with a lid, and set on a flame.
piping hot.
Tingling.
Thick.
In a daze, his blood made an uneasy sound, his skin felt a little irritated, and all the bones in his body could not move, as if he was being tightly bound and under heavy pressure.
In the senses of hell, the power of termination in Ricky's body is like countless deep whirlpools, swallowing up everything in the rolling undercurrent that never ends.
Once trapped, there is no way to escape and no way to leave.
What on earth was Thales thinking painfully?
At this time, Ricky's cold voice slowly reached Thales's ears:
"...such as you."
Ricky watched with satisfaction as Thales's face turned from red to white, his breathing became stagnant, and he watched as the other man's eyes were lost under his terrifying power, he was trembling slightly, and his palms were loose.
every time.
Ricky curled up the corner of his mouth and thought boringly and indifferently.
It's like this every time.
When their finishing power pours into the opponent's body...
He shook his head disdainfully, but just as Ricky was about to push away Thales, who was unable to resist, the prey under the sword suddenly trembled slightly.
Boom!
Under everyone's gaze, the prince, who was at the end of his strength, suddenly took a sharp breath, stretched out his left hand, and firmly grabbed Ricky's collar!
Ricky's pupils shrank instantly.
Thales gritted his teeth and exerted force on his hands to close the distance between the two.
Ricky stared blankly at Thales in front of him, slightly questioning: "You, can you still move?"
"As a leader, you are really special, Ricky." Thales' breathing became more and more rapid, sweat dripping from his forehead, but his face was rosy and his words were smooth: "They are all cold and violent, but you...
"
Ricky shuddered: "What?"
"Yours is hot, oppressive, heavy, and overwhelming, like a terrifying whirlpool that cannot be escaped." Thales smiled with sweating profusely, feeling the power of termination in his body rising up inch by inch, as if he was conscious of it.
Expel and clean up the alien forces that have invaded the body:
"But the ominous energy is still the same."
"The Swords of Disaster."
The power of termination began to fill Thales' brain, boiling and exciting.
After hearing Thales' words, Ricky's eyes widened in surprise:
"You...how did you..."
Thales pinched the opponent's wrist and collar tightly, resisting the influence of the power of termination on himself, suppressing the impulse and desire to fight back immediately.
hateful.
Not enough, not enough.
He still... doesn't believe it!
Needs...more!
While thinking about it, Thales groaned while sweating profusely.
He observed the characteristics of Ricky's power of termination, urging the power in his body to change just like he imitated the twist of fate not long ago.
scorching hot.
As Thales thought this, the sin of the Hell River in his body began to flow spontaneously, emitting a terrifying high temperature in his consciousness.
Depressed.
The power of termination roared, covering blood vessels, muscles, bones, and almost all human tissues, like dark clouds covering the sun, leaving no gaps.
heavy.
Inexplicable pressure came to Thales' body, becoming more and more obvious with the change of power, as if it had substance.
Covering the sky and blocking out the sun.
Soon, the Sin of the Hell River began to swirl around a center, as if it was about to tear apart, and at the same time as if it was about to swallow everything. At that moment, Thales had the illusion that no matter what kind of attack it was, as long as he was still immersed in this
In the whirlpool composed of the power of termination, it can be easily caught.
Thales exhaled a painful breath: he vaguely heard that his body was like an overwhelmed machine, protesting again and again amidst the chilling friction sounds.
No one knew that in less than a second, he experienced terrifying ups and downs from the peak to the deep valley, and from the ground to the clouds.
Compared with the fateful twists and turns that were almost "easy to handle", this time, the transformation of the crime of Prison River gave him a greater load and price than he imagined.
but……
Thales tried his best to cheer up and looked at the enemy in front of him.
The young man took a deep breath, tightened his fingers on the other person's wrist, and smiled with relief:
"like this?"
Soon, the sin of the new Hell River, which had been transformed in a trance, poured back into Ricky's body.
Ricky looked confused at first, but as that unusually familiar power gradually came to him, the man's breathing became more and more rapid.
"This is……"
scorching hot.
Depressed.
heavy.
Covering the sky and blocking out the sun.
Like...
Like...
Looking at Thales' smile and feeling the feeling coming from his body, there are no words that can describe Ricky's current expression.
"No……"
He widened his eyes and shook his head subconsciously, as if he couldn't believe the facts in front of him:
"impossible……"
Thales coughed in pain, and the immature power of termination immediately dissipated.
His hand left Ricky's collar and hung down weakly.
The people watching did not know the truth, and listened to the conversation between the two people, with expressions of surprise on their faces.
Anxious Sonny wanted to step forward, but Ricky waved him away.
"What's wrong, Ricky?" Clay asked tentatively.
But the leader of the Sword of Disaster only shook his head slightly and did not answer. He was immersed in unbelievable surprise.
"I know."
Thales seemed to be dying. His expression was confused, and he gritted his teeth and said, "I know why you want the black sword."
Ricky's shock slowly disappeared, but his brows furrowed tighter and tighter.
He began to face the facts before him.
"Who are you?" Crassus of the Sword of Disaster asked in a deep voice.
But Thales just took a deep breath and shook his head.
"Believe me, Ricky, you don't want the Black Sword," the prince said with a tired look on his face.
"You want me."
"The one you really need."
The young man looked at each other steadily:
"I."
The lights in the tavern were much dimmer than before, making Ricky's face look extremely solemn.
On the other side, the Blade of Shadow Shield coughed, reminding the people of Sword of Disaster.
"What are they doing?" Russell urged impatiently: "Chatting?"
The masked man looked at Ricky worriedly, looking at his motionless figure suppressing the prince: "Ricky, we should take action..."
He waved to Sonny and Marina, and the latter two walked forward cautiously or gritted their teeth.
But Ricky suddenly raised his head!
"Back off!"
The leader of the Sword of Disaster has never been so serious.
He looked coldly at the subordinates around him who were preparing to capture the prince, and said coldly: "All of you."
The mercenaries were all stunned.
But before they could react, Ricky withdrew the sword in his right hand, grabbed Thales' collar with his powerful left hand, lifted him from the ground, and slammed him onto the table next to him! Bang!
Amidst the loud noise, Thales lay on his back on the table in pain and groaned.
But before he could react, Ricky reversed the blade of his sword, broke the air, and stabbed him in the head out of thin air!
call out!
Thales' mind went blank.
Boom!
With a muffled sound, the tip of the sword almost passed Thales' scalp and was nailed deeply into the table.
It was only an inch away from Thales' forehead.
The prince glanced at the cold light of the sword's edge with his peripheral vision, and looked into Ricky's eyes in shock with his heart pounding.
"Hey, look out!"
The driller's eyes widened, he stretched out his hand and said in a low voice: "We don't want to get a corpse..."
But Ricky ignored him, and the masked man stopped him coldly, preventing him from taking a step forward.
The leader of the Sword of Disaster slowly bent down and approached the frightened Thales.
"tell me."
His hand was still holding the hilt of the sword, twisting the blade, making a frightening friction sound in the pierced wood: "Your Highness, the arrogant prince."
Ricky said carefully: "Have you... tasted death?"
His eyes were like ice, and even the light reflected in his pupils was full of chill.
At that moment, both the masked man and Clay opened their eyes wide and looked at each other.
It's like I know something.
Thales stared at the other person's eyes, digesting the other person's words.
The taste of death.
The other party understood.
Thales breathed a sigh of relief.
His goal was achieved.
But obviously, others didn't understand.
"Dear Crassus, with all due respect, maybe he has offended you, but the prince in your hands is extremely valuable..." The drill seemed to be worried about the meaning in Ricky's tone, and he saw an anxious expression on his face.
Holding up his hands: "If you have any dissatisfaction with him..."
Ricky suddenly turned around, his eyes widened angrily, and he shouted fiercely:
"Shut up!"
The son became mute, and the rest of the words were blocked in his mouth.
The next second, Ricky turned his head, continued to stare at Thales on the table, and said sternly: "Answer me, prince."
He breathed rapidly: "Have you ever seen death?"
At this moment, Ricky was like a ferocious beast with sharp claws and an angry beard. He no longer had the calmness and indifference he had when they first met.
die.
Thales frowned, his thoughts drifting away.
【Only those who have survived death are qualified to use and control it.】
[The moment it becomes one with you, you are wandering between life and death, blurring the boundary between life and death.]
Chewing on the past scenes, the prince clenched his fists while recovering from the previous consumption.
But Ricky still held him hostage, not relaxing at all.
The whispers in the tavern slowly disappeared. Although the mercenaries were puzzled, they still stood firm and waited for the leader's decision.
A few seconds passed.
"Of course," the prince gritted his teeth and said with disordered breathing, "I have seen it."
"More than you think."
Ricky's brows slowly relaxed.
"But you're alive." He said slowly, his anger and shock slowly disappearing.
This is not a question.
"Yes."
Thales repeated his words with a forced smile.
"Although I can't remember clearly, but..." Thales took a deep breath and didn't look at the sword edge that stopped at his forehead: "Yes, I'm back, I come back every time."
He raised his right hand tremblingly and tapped his chest:
"Go with it."
Ricky's brows relaxed completely and he stopped twisting the sword blade on the table.
"How did you know?"
His tone was cautious:
"About us, about..."
Ricky's eyes followed Thales's fingers and he said the next word solemnly and solemnly: "It?"
Thales breathed out a hard breath.
"Don't forget, I am Canxing," the prince smiled weakly, "We know everything."
Ricky's expression froze and his eyes narrowed.
"Bright Star..."
"Horace Bright Star?"
Ricky took a deep breath, and his tone dropped along with his head: "Is it him?"
"He...knows all this from the Tower of the End?"
Thales was slightly startled.
What?
"Whether it's him or not..." Thales swallowed his throat and determined to get through the crisis at hand first: "But you want me."
He stared directly at the slightly confused Ricky: "You want me more than anything else."
"Because I represent the miracles and opportunities you dream of," Thales whispered as he repeated their previous words:
"It is the end of the old era and the beginning of the new century."
Following Thales' words, Ricky's expression slowly faded away from confusion.
He looked up.
"Yes," Ricky looked at the prince in front of him, sighed and said with relief:
"I want you."
His words are quite meaningful.
The next second, Ricky used his right hand to pull out the sword blade from the table and turned it towards the others.
Thales was left alone, lying on his back on the table, gasping in shock.
"Be polite when you take him down." Ricky flicked the sword and threw it back to Marina who was unwilling to take it away and stared at Thales intently.
Sonny nodded and stepped forward.
"Get ready." At that moment, it was as if Ricky had turned into the calm, indifferent leader before: "Let's start the next step."
Clay and the masked man looked at each other, glanced at Thales uneasily, and nodded in unison.
The mercenaries took action one after another.
"Now that we have subdued this naughty prince," Zhuozi coughed, reminding him of his presence, "then let us take him away, at least to a safe place..."
But Ricky suddenly raised his head and spoke, interrupting him.
"The prince must remain in our hands as a pledge."
His decisive words made the driller stunned.
"Until we complete our goal and evacuate the camp," Ricky said lightly, "then we can leave it to you."
As soon as these words came out, both Dozi and Russell's eyes widened.
Thales exhaled a breath and felt a little at ease.
finally……
Quick Rope and Dean, who were subdued on the ground, became more and more confused. Like the mercenaries, they were confused.
"etc!"
The driller looked at Ricky from a distance and said in an unbelievable tone: "I gave you such a big guarantee, but you still insist on the status quo?"
He pointed at Tails, who was roughly dragged off the table by Sonny.
But Ricky just snorted.
"You haven't given me anything, Shazi. The Shadow Shield is the enemy of the stars." The leader of the Sword of Disaster said coldly: "Even if that letter is exposed, it will only put you on the enemy list of the Secret Department."
Just a few people ahead of time."
The man's face turned cold.
The blood vessels on his hands are looming.
"So, the letter I gave you was wasted?"
The son's tone slowly tightened along with his expression: "This is not the way to do business."
He put his hands in his robe and walked forward slowly.
The masked man consciously stood in front of him.
The mercenaries felt the vague tension, and without any reminder, they consciously entered into pre-war preparations, and stood in formation, alert to the enemies hidden outside the eaves.
"We mercenaries have our own way of doing business."
Ricky said nonchalantly: "Accept it, or screw it up, it's your choice."
The boy's eyes became extremely cold.
"Screw it?" The guest of Shadow Shield gritted his teeth and his words became cold.
"Everyone," Russell saw that the situation was about to reach a stalemate again and spoke quickly: "This camp is full of Star people's troops. If we hold each other back, no one will be able to get out of here safely, regardless of whether we can achieve our goal."
Ricky smiled back.
"We have fulfilled the agreement we promised you, and the prince is here."
"I think you don't mind if we hold the goods temporarily," Ricky said loudly, but intentionally or unintentionally glanced at a few corners on the top of the pub: "Until you pay the balance?"
The drill became stiff.
He knew that wherever Ricky looked just now, the Shadow Shield assassins had been hiding outside the house for a long time, ready to attack at any time.
but……
The drill boy clenched his fists unwillingly.
"You don't think I'm blind, do you?"
The driller gritted his teeth and said, "Just now, you and that prince were whispering over there for so long..."
Thales was being roughly tied up by Sonny. He noticed that he was carrying his luggage on his back and was startled when he heard this.
The driller glared at Ricky who was leisurely in front of him: "You are not really tempted by this prince and have reached some kind of deal with him, are you?"
"For example... certain transactions between you and the Kingdom of Stars, such as the Prison of Bones?"
Ricky stopped what he was doing.
Russell stopped talking. He looked at the others with deep distrust in his eyes.
The masked man frowned.
"That's ugly," said the driller coldly: "Do you think Shadow Shield will come all the way here just to allow you to take away our goal so easily?"
Ricky took a deep breath, turned around, and looked at the masked man.
He smiled.
"Ha ha ha ha……"
The masked man also laughed.
It was like hearing the biggest joke in the world.
"I can understand that you were unwilling to give out the letter, and you felt like you were being eaten for free..." Ricky smiled happily and waved his hand: "You are also worried that we will assess the situation.
, and turned to collude with Xingchen?"
"Let you fall short of your success?"
The boy's face became increasingly ugly.
Ricky stepped forward, passed the masked man, and came to the driller.
"But what I want to say is that, like you, we were destined to be enemies of the stars a long time ago."
The driller was slightly startled.
Ricky stared at him and said calmly: "As a letter to you, as a reward for your 'sincerity'..."
He curled his fingers behind him with a calm expression:
"Samuel?"
Amidst the doubts of Dozi, Russell, and Thales and others, the masked man snorted coldly and stepped forward.
He reached out and pulled off his mask without hesitation.
The lights flickered, making the masked man's face shadowy.
It was a face that had gone through many vicissitudes of life. This man was in his forties or fifties, with high cheekbones and gray hair on his temples.
The driller looked at him with a puzzled look on his face, as if he didn't know what he was doing.
"Who are you……"
The masked man shook his head disdainfully.
But Russell's expression next to the drill changed!
"That's..." The former Baron of Exeter stared at the other party and trembled slightly.
Including Quick Rope, many mercenaries looked at each other in confusion, extremely puzzled.
Thales stretched his neck as hard as he could, but could only see the profile of the masked man.
hateful……
Who is that guy...
But Thales was stunned immediately.
Side face.
That's right, he could only see the masked man's profile.
But that's enough.
I saw an obvious and ferocious mark on half of the opponent's face, from his chin to his cheekbones.
The skin and flesh are turned out and bloody.
Like...
Thales stared blankly at the mark on the other person's face.
Just like six years ago, the two brands on the wrist of Raphael Lindbergh from the secret department said the Allender family...
But the prince was shocked again immediately!
He recognized it.
The marks on the masked man's face are regular and shaped...
That is……
Thales couldn't believe his eyes.
But the masked man spoke quickly, ending Thales' questions.
"This is the ancient empire letter 's', which represents the Bright Star Royal Family. It was branded on it a long time ago." He gently touched the ugly and terrifying age-old brand on his face and said coldly.
The drill trembled suddenly!
The masked man said coldly: "Those who are branded with this brand are sinners who have been punished by the Supreme King of the Stars. They bear the shame and sin that will never be forgiven and will never be redeemed for life."
The drill took a step back with a surprised expression.
Ricky crossed his arms and sneered slightly, while Clay looked like he had known about it for a long time and was not surprised.
Marina looked at the masked man's confession with a complicated expression.
Thales looked at the man named Samir blankly.
The driller remembered something and asked uncertainly: "You said your name is Samuel? Are you..."
Samir, who was no longer masked, snorted softly.
"As you said, everyone has a past."
Selmi turned around and faced the entire tavern.
"After the war eighteen years ago, in addition to you assassins who deserve death... there are also a group of people in Yongxing City who were questioned and imprisoned by the newly crowned King Kessel."
Samir walked up slowly, his tone cold.
"They are all warriors with unique skills, rich experience, high strength, and noble origins. They have sworn a glorious oath to protect the most noble blood descendants in this kingdom."
Samir turned his head suddenly and looked at Thales, which shocked the latter.
Under the illumination of the light, the mark on the other party's face became more obvious and more terrifying.
Samuel spoke slowly: "But because of that failure and humiliation that was known to the whole world, they suffered unjust injustice in the wrath of the new king, and were burdened with heavy crimes. From then on, they could only waste their lives in the miserable underground.
"
"You will never be free forever, and you will never see the light of day."
Selmi raised his head, his tone half proud and half painful.
"I am Colin Semel, from Eternal Star City, the youngest son of Viscount Luca Semel."
He said sadly.
"I was the second flag officer of the Star Royal Guards, a personal guard of His Majesty the late King Eddy II, and the glorious 'Emperor's Guard'."
He stared at Thales with extremely complicated expressions: "He is also a member of the royal guard who guarded the Fuxing Palace during the Year of Blood."
Thales stared back at him blankly, feeling confused.
Royal Guard?
Isn't that just...
I saw Samuel gritting his teeth, clenching his fists, and said angrily in the almost suffocating atmosphere: "It was also after an unfair trial that forty-six royals were sentenced to life-long imprisonment in the Bone Cage for refusing to plead guilty.
Among the members of the Guard, he was the only lucky one to escape on the way."
"He is a sinner who has no place in the entire Star Kingdom."
The drill stopped talking, he just looked at Samir with a deep look.
There was silence in the tavern.
Until Ricky spoke again: "Compared to your letter that was more gimmick than reality, this is our guarantee, son of a bitch."
"It is impossible for us to cooperate with the Kingdom of Stars."
"So the prince will stay in our hands and even move with us," Ricky said coldly: "His safety and whether he can be successfully handed over to your hands... completely depends on our next actions.
Go well or not."
"And here I am, thanking both of you in advance for your generous help?"
Ricky spoke suggestively.
Drill and Russell frowned.
Ricky snorted, turned his head, and ignored them.
"Now."
The leader of the Sword of Disaster glanced at a circle of serious mercenaries, his eyes especially crossing the face of Thales who was in a complicated mood: