Chapter 16: Chapter 16
Making his way into his assigned room, Douglas slammed the room door behind him and turned the key to bolt it.
The room was spacious, airy and neatly arranged. A king sized bed was stationed in the middle, with white, expensive, linen sheets, as its covering. Douglas didn't mind this bed, or the hospitality in general.
He had been sleeping on grassy plains and in bushes, since he had begun his two month long trek to the capital. He had next to nothing on him to hire a vehicle or a wagon, and neither could he afford to rest in an inn. The little he had, was spent on food, and that even ran out, like a week ago. He had to hunt and feed on rabbits, snakes and any other bush animals he could lay his hands. So, such comfort and hospitality from the capital was welcoming.
Free food, free accommodations; when he heard that line, it was like music to his ears. He was already planning and racking his brain on how he would convince Jason to allow him squat and freeload from him, throughout the duration of his stay in the capital.
It was truly a welcoming development.
He was been treated like a king here. There was even a bell connected to an outlet on the wall, right above his bed, which would draw the attention of an attendant to his room, to take care of his needs.
Any needs.
Except for ones that were injurious or life threatening, but any other needs.
Yes, any needs, including ones that were of the sexual nature!
All free! All paid for!
Well, of course, this was under the premise that one still remained in the tournament. Upon eviction, if one were still interested in viewing the outcome of the tournament, and was still interested in residing in the Ashanti Palace, services would have to be paid for, like all the other guests.
Pushing the humiliating events of earlier past his mind, Douglas swiftly removed his soiled clothes, and placed them at a corner. He would have to request for it to be washed and ironed. Though, he had never intended to disturb the cleaning staffs, but since it had come to this and it was free service, he might as well use it.
He untied his thick, black hair and let it cascade down to his neck. He then moved into the washroom, embedded in the leftmost corner of the room.
The moment he turned on the faucet, he felt a sting on his right hand, as the water from the shower flushed down on him. He grimaced slightly. He observed the slight burns on certain areas of his palm and his skin. If it were someone else significantly weaker, a slight contact with the flames, and the hand would have been cooked so bad, it would have turned been unrecognizable. The skin might not have even remained!
That was how terrifying Jason's red flames were. He just escaped with some little burns here and there. Burns that would heal up, before the start of tomorrow.
A warm smile, then proceeded from his lips. Jason almost lost his slot to disqualification, because of him. Because, he wanted to defend his honor and dignity.
He didn't have a lot of friends. He only had Jason, Anna and now Illenia. They were all he had. But, he was grateful for each one of them. They were his treasures.
Then the smile vanished. His expression morphed into one of sadness and grief. His eyes suddenly became wet. An emotion he never showed to the public or to his friends, uncontrollably streamed forth. As the water splashed on him, tears began to pour down freely.
He wished he could just sit back, relax and genuinely have fun with his friends in this tournament. He wished he could just treat this tournament, as what it was; a tournament to test one's skills against the very best of youths in the nation. And, not a means to an end.
Yes, it was all just a means to an end.
He had to avenge them.
Their ghosts wouldn't let him rest.
Since he was six years of age, they had always been there.
In the night.
In his dreams.
Always wailing.
Always suffering.
Always cursing their misfortune.
Always pleading for vengeance.
They wouldn't let him sleep.
Because of that scene.
That gruesome and heart wrenching scene.
That scene, playing over and over and over and over.
The never ending agony. The screams.
Oh gods, the screams!!!
The tears poured down more torrentially.
The ghosts were there to constantly remind him of his duty. Any normal mind would have gone insane by this. Or perhaps he had already lost his sanity, and he didn't just know it yet. But, he knew for a fact, that he had to avenge them, so they could finally rest in peace.
He had to avenge him.
Or die trying.
This was the heavy burden he alone had to bear. His duty to the dead.
The first phase had succeeded. His master's connections had gotten him into the tournament.
Now, he had to get the second phase over the line. He had to go all the way and win the tournament. The third and final phase solely hinges on that.
His revenge.
His duty.
The water washed away the soup soil and did it's best to wash away the nagging pain in his heart. He had just finished up, when he suddenly heard something.
TAP! TAP! TAP!
He couldn't make out exactly what he heard, so he turned off the faucet and paid more rapt attention.
TAP! TAP! TAP! TAP!
It was clearer now. There was no mistaking it.
It was the sound of leather boots, tapping on the tiled flooring of his room.
Which meant that he wasn't alone! Someone had snuck inside his room!!
The room doors had an inbuilt alarm that would go off, the second one tried tampering with the doors. The locks on the door were also security proof. This locks were made from mana stones. Even an expert thief with a lifetime of experience wouldn't be able to bypass such locks.
The windows weren't an option either. They were way too narrow for even a newborn baby to pass through and they were protected by an invisible sheen of mana.
And even if one were able to miraculously make his way through all this, undetected, there is no way, he wouldn't have noticed such person's aura. They were so close, so he would have definitely detected it, even if it were just a single, minute leak. Because such person would have to use mana to bypass the security on the doors and windows.
But, he felt nothing.
How was this possible? How did this intruder make his way into his room undetected?!
His mind raced.
His first thought was Philemon Hendrickson, breaking in to enact his threats and cause him great harm. But, he immediately dismissed this thought. The guy didn't seem like the dangerously smart, sneaky type. Besides, the guy felt he was so superior to him and he was so overconfident about tomorrow, so why would such a guy use such a dirty, shameless tactic?
Then, maybe one of the other contestants or maybe one of the guests from one the provinces? Someone might have decided to take things to the extreme to eradicate the unsavory Bermudian, with his own hands. But, Douglas dismissed this too. This was the first time the Ashanti palace was open to outsiders from beyond the capital. No way any of them had the knowledge or expertise of breaking into the room of a never before seen establishment. Especially a well-guarded establishment such as this.
Then, perhaps maybe an official of the capital? Sure, he did use an unsavory method of registering his name into the tournament, but he didn't think any official would even care so much as to be wrongly rubbed by this. It was totally beneath them to do such. If the officials had even really cared so much about the tournament in the first place, they would have double or even triple checked the names, before the announcement. Before changes would be impossible to correct.
Maybe a common thief, then? He had only a small bag of clothes and his broadsword, as his belongings. And neither of them had good commercial value. Well, maybe the broadsword, but he was positive that anyone that had decided to take on thieving as his profession, would find it extremely difficult to make away with his weapon. He wouldn't even be able to lift it. And the broadsword was too conspicuous anyway.
Nah.
If it were a thief, he would have been long gone by now, after discovering nothing of value. But he could still hear the tapping clearly. It was even getting more rhythmic. Like one was tap dancing with one leg or something.
Douglas picked up the white towel on the railing and dried his body. If the person's intention had been to harm him, the person would have attacked by now. But, it seemed the person was just waiting on him. Instead of guessing and racking his brain too hard, he might as well go and have a looksee and honor the visitation. There was no harm in it. Besides, he had nowhere else to go or nothing to hide from.
He wrapped the towel around his waist and stepped out of the washroom.
A man was seated cross-legged on his bed. He looked middle-aged, was bald, heavily bearded and was dressed smartly in the apparel of the Zion's military top officials, Douglas saw in the Amphitheatre.
When the man noticed Douglas's presence, he grinned broadly, exposing a gap tooth in the center of his brown teeth. Douglas responded to his grin, with a frown and then a hiss. He was familiar with this uninvited guest.
"What are you doing here and how the hell did you get into my room?" Douglas coldly asked, as he proceeded towards his bag of clothes.
"Really? No, hello? No, it's nice to see you once again? Or better yet, better yet, No, thank you very much for coming through? None huh? You ungrateful twat!!" With a deep, sonorous voice, the man uttered in displeasure.
"I might have said all that and more, if you hadn't broken into my room."
"Hmmmph! With what I have done for you at the risk of my life and career, you should be licking my boots in appreciation."
"I shouldn't be thanking you for shit!! You owed a debt to my master, Jehoshaphat, and you simply honored it by paying it to me. Don't make it seem like you were doing me a favor." Douglas scowled, while grunting in displeasure
"You've got some nerve, kid. You know, you should have been dead by now. I would have had to kill you and your two merry friends!"
"What do you mean?" Douglas growled slightly, as he paused with putting on his T-shirt.
He had on, a hostile expression, but this was only face value. Inside of him, he was terrified as hell. His heart was beating wildly and sweat was beginning to form on his brows. This man was not to be trifled with. And he wasn't the type that bluffs. He was nowhere comparable with him. If the man truly meant what he said, he, as well as, Jason and Illenia would have truly died without even given the chance to struggle for their lives.
"When that girl, what's her name, again? Illenia, was it? Yeah, yeah, Illenia. When she inquired about how you managed to qualify to participate in the tournament, I thought you were going to spill the beans to her. To them both. If I had been exposed, then surely, you all would have been goners by now. But, you were smart, I will give you that. You didn't give me a reason to. You navigated the conversation well and you didn't reveal too much. You are ungrateful, but at least you are smart. That doesn't mean I trust you though. But at least, I know you aren't stupid. I can let you off the hook for a bit."
Douglas stiffened, as the man revealed. The fear he was hiding inside of him, threatened to betray him and expose itself. His voice trembled, as he stammered, "H-how did you l-l-learn about our discussio-on?"
The man played with his fingers for a bit, before, he casually dropped the bombshell, "Kid, I have had my eyes on you, ever since you three left the Amphitheater! I have been right behind you, listening in on your conversations and monitoring every event, until you made it into this room!
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone