Chapter 58

"Right, just like that, from now on, the Gongsun family and the Megan family will be mortal enemies." Nalasha also shouted in agreement.

The surrounding crowd was in an uproar.

No one in the capital had expected Gongsun Murong and Nalasha to be so resolute.

They didn't even bet on money; they came straight to betting their lives.

Moreover, they declared war on another family in the name of their own family.

Ted, who had come out to challenge, couldn't help but break into a sweat, unsure of what to do for a moment.

The situation had escalated, but no one stepped in to stop it, each person watching with different intentions.

The people from the Gels Principality were not only not nervous, but also showed an eager expression.

They were very eager to see Gongsun Murong and Nalasha in action.

They had seen before how Gongsun Murong displayed countless figures in the forbidden magic field.

They were very curious to see what a real battle would look like.

As for people from other places, they wanted to gauge the approximate strength of the Gels Principality participants. They could tell that Gongsun Murong and Nalasha were among them.

As for the locals in the capital, they viewed the conflict between people from smaller regions as mere entertainment.

The locals were actually somewhat uncomfortable. Why should a family from a small principality dare to use the sunflower as a noble emblem?

Just as the people of the capital city felt a natural superiority over those from remote provinces, the people of the capital also felt this way about the people from the capital city of the principality.

Now, seeing someone challenge, they hoped for a good fight.

"If you don't speak up, I'll take it as your agreement. So now..." Gongsun Murong was about to make a move.

"Wait, it's not that I don't want to duel with you, and it's not that I'm afraid of death. You must know, a true hero faces death bravely." Ted quickly interrupted.

He added, "But you can't include my family in this. You see, it's my personal challenge, and it has nothing to do with the Megan family."

"I think it's that Megan Marquis who sent you to cause trouble," Gongsun Murong said.

"No, no one sent me. It's me on my own," Ted defended.

Gongsun Murong and Nalasha nodded in unison, "Oh! Just you? What qualifications do you have to challenge a noble? Get lost! Go, go register."

The last sentence was directed at the team leader, James.

"Follow me," James waved his hand and led the team out of the square, where various vehicles were waiting to pick up the participants from the principality.

Everyone set off together, and as for Ted, no one paid him any attention.

The people in the capital were also disappointed. They couldn't see the duel, and indeed, as the two people said, what qualifications did a noble's guard have to directly challenge another noble, even if his master was a marquis and the other was a count?

Ted stood there, his face grim, not moving. He felt humiliated, but he also knew that if the other party fought him, it would be a humiliation to them.

Many people looked at him with different thoughts. Some thought he was hateful, challenging a noble without his master's command?

Others thought he was pitiful. Status, you might be an eighth-level eighth-rank warrior, but without noble status, you can't fairly challenge a noble, even if you are a hundred times stronger than the other person.

******

Leaving the square, Gongsun Murong and Nalasha exchanged a smile, showing a look of satisfaction.

They did it on purpose. If noble status wasn't important, why would they strive so hard to obtain it?

The smart butler had said that as long as individual abilities differ, the amount of resources controlled will differ. As long as the resources controlled differ, there will be classes, and as long as there are classes, there will be privileges.

Individual abilities differ, and martial power is one, wisdom is another.

But the ultimate victor will always be wisdom. If you find that a powerful martial person wins one day, it can only mean that they have gained wisdom.

Gongsun Murong and Nalasha hadn't forgotten this, so they felt they had used wisdom to defeat the other party.

Moreover, Gongsun Murong hadn't intended to really duel with the other party from the beginning. Victory was certain, but defeating an eighth-level eighth-rank warrior without a match?

The two were also hoping to make money. Yes, make money, and they already had a plan.

Team leader James sighed with relief, looking at Gongsun Murong, who had almost fought just now, and smiled, feeling increasingly reassured.

He didn't want the future hope of the principality to be a rash existence.

It should be a powerful, calm, and wise existence, with a strong character and tenacious fighting spirit.

From the looks of it, the Gongsun Count was doing well, and he really didn't know who had raised him.

The team members were somewhat disappointed. They had wanted to see Gongsun Murong quickly dispose of the other party.

They had a look of hoping for chaos.

******

The Rexlar Empire has fifteen principalities, so fifteen large courtyards were arranged for them.

Each principality has a communication department stationed in the empire, and the Gels Principality is no exception.

When the group arrived outside the square, the local official came to greet them.

Behind him was a row of carriages, a type of horse suitable for city roads, without horseshoes.

Gongsun Murong and Nalasha had already noticed this and considered whether to use it to make money or provide it to the Duke of Gels to secretly arm a cavalry.

It was hard to decide, mainly because in battles, everyone used martial power and magic, so the role of cavalry wasn't significant, suitable for ordinary troops or long-distance transport.

The horses they saw now had thick hooves, which wouldn't wear out quickly on the stone roads of the capital.

The leader of the welcoming party was named Yves, who had been stationed in the capital for twenty years. He had a team of important mages and a long-distance communication device. In case of emergencies, he would send messages to the principality, each time at a considerable cost.

Yves had a high status. In the past, people from the principality would give him gifts, even money.

He used this money to give gifts and form relationships with the nobles in the capital.

It was inevitable that Yves had his own selfish desires and enjoyed life, and with power in his hands, he often showed a superior attitude to most people from the principality.

"Please come this way, follow me, you've worked hard." Yves smiled, bent over, and respectfully led everyone to the carriages.

Clearly, today he didn't show the arrogance he usually did when meeting other nobles from the principality.

He knew very well who was coming: half of the principality's elite combat force, forty talented children, the oldest not exceeding twenty. Though fifteen was considered adulthood, in his eyes, they were still children.

Such a lineup didn't allow him to show any arrogance.

He had already received the news and sent it to the principality, about the children being ambushed outside the city and successfully eliminating the enemy, even in the presence of the forbidden magic field.

It showed how strong the team's combat power was.

"This is the Gongsun Count of the principality, and the beautiful and lovely Princess Nalasha." Before getting into the carriage, team leader James introduced them to Yves.

Yves's smile became even more friendly, his eyes fixed on the sunflower, his palms sweating.

His information was well-informed, knowing that the two people in front of him could go anywhere in the principality, even the palace, without anyone daring to question them.

Nalasha took something from her Murong brother and handed it over, "Yves, who has guarded the capital for the principality for twenty years, your qualities are worthy of our admiration. This is a gift I brought for you, a piece of armor from a Riptooth Sand Ironclad Beast."

When Yves heard about the gift, he was stunned, his eyes lighting up as he reached out to take it.

He said excitedly, "What an incredible gift, Princess Nalasha, you've come at just the right time. The deputy military and political officer of the capital needs a hard object for his grandson's armor, and I can't think of anything more suitable than this."

Yves didn't hide his intentions, improving relations with the nobles was also serving the principality.

Gongsun Murong spoke up, "Yves, due to the sunflower emblem, Nalasha and I will encounter many unnecessary troubles. We're not afraid of trouble, but sometimes such troubles aren't worth our effort, wasting our energy and time.

So, see what else the people in the capital need, make a list, and send it to our resting place. We'll try to gather the items for you or find suitable replacements."

"As you wish, Count," Yves didn't refuse. He knew what kind of troubles they would face and that gifts were needed to smooth things over.

With the sound of hooves, two and a half hours later, the team finally arrived at their prepared location.

The people sent by Emperor Rexlar were waiting, not specifically to welcome them.

James stepped forward to hand over the components of the forbidden magic field, a written explanation, a long spear, a pistol, and some bullets.

It was necessary for the Emperor to know what weapons had proven effective in that situation.

If the empire needed to use them, they would have to give Gongsun Murong a satisfactory reward, not just take them and use them, which would be a failure for the Emperor.

"Perhaps, I say perhaps, the Emperor might summon the Gongsun Count. Please be prepared," the person said to James, then smiled friendly at Gongsun Murong, nodding, and ignored the fawning Yves.

The person left, and Yves sighed, his status still wasn't high enough.

"Yves, don't worry, we'll work hard," Nalasha comforted him.

Yves was deeply grateful. He understood Nalasha's meaning; his status depended on the Gels Principality's position among the other principalities.

The principality's status, besides overall national strength, also depended on the ranking of the children participating in the selection. If someone could achieve a top three ranking, the palace steward wouldn't ignore him so easily.

Top three out of three hundred, or top three out of one hundred fifty in different age groups, the difficulty...