In the imperial capital of the Stellar Empire, the palace castle where the old emperor resided had a grand exterior. The entire castle was constructed from precious bloodstone, presenting a luxurious blood-red hue on its surface, so this castle was also known as the Red Keep.
It was said that the Red Keep was built over a thousand years ago, when the Stellar Empire had only recently been founded. The empire’s first emperor was the infamous Tyrant King, who spent thirty years driving war captives and convicts to expend vast amounts of manpower and resources to create this red castle. When the castle was completed, the Tyrant King directly buried alive all those who had participated in its construction, the labourers, craftsmen, stonemasons, and even some magic guides, all to keep the Red Keep’s intricate network of secret passages unknown to outsiders.
Over a thousand years later, even now, some members of the imperial family or the maids and servants attending the Red Keep would occasionally stumble upon a mysterious passageway by accident. Its paths were labyrinthine, leading who knew where.
Atop the Red Keep’s tallest tower was a stone chamber with windows on all four sides. This place was known as the Emperor’s Eye, for standing there allowed one to overlook the entire imperial capital. It was also the tallest building in the whole capital. Emperors of past generations had mostly enjoyed lingering here in their idle moments. It served as something like a study and a place for discussing important confidential matters.
At this moment, as the morning light gradually brightened, there was suddenly a knock at the door of the Yellow Emperor’s Eye.
“Come in.” The old emperor, who was standing in front of the glass window directly to the west, said steadily.
The old emperor was now nearly eighty years old, with a corpulent build, white hair and beard, yet his face showed little sign of senility. It was very ruddy, and he was full of vigour. He wore a yellow robe, which naturally exuded an air of majesty. Rumours outside claimed the old emperor was gravely ill and nearing his end, but looking at his expression now, where did he resemble a sick person?
Among the successive emperors of the Stellar Empire, he was the one who had reigned the longest, having been emperor for over fifty years. Several of his heirs had already passed away, yet he still sat firmly in this position.
If Debbie were standing before him now, she would certainly recognise him as that little chubby boy she had often bullied in the past, the one whose “jj” she had flicked until he grew up. But the former little chubby boy had long shed his youthful innocence and transformed into the extremely dignified figure he was today.
The one who pushed the door open and entered was Prince Geller. He had only recently led the Black Armoured Army back from the borderlands. Among the many imperial family members, Prince Geller could be considered the one the old emperor trusted the most. Back when the empire was in turmoil, the fourth prince, who was not favoured by many, had ascended the throne and become Charles III. From that time, Prince Geller had already fought side by side with the old emperor, and over fifty years, they had built the closest and most trusting relationship.
“Fourth Brother, what did you call me here for?” Prince Geller asked.
“You know about the commotion in the capital last night, right?” The old emperor asked.
“I’m afraid no one didn’t hear that noise, along with the light from the west of the city and the intermittent cries. Hmph, it kept me up half the night. This morning I already sent people to investigate what exactly happened. Making such a huge racket is simply lawless!” Prince Geller said sternly. He asked the old emperor in surprise, “Fourth Brother, did you call me here because of this matter too?”
“You don’t need to investigate anymore. The ones who caused that trouble last night were no one else but those little ones from the Name-Your-Own Magic Guild.” The old emperor turned around, smiling as he looked at Prince Geller. When he mentioned those little ones, a trace of nostalgia appeared on his face. “Heh, Sister Debbie… is still as lawless as ever.”
“They, they actually came to the capital?” Prince Geller was stunned. These past days, he had been worried about the whereabouts of Ye Dui and the others, sending people to probe for their information, but to no avail. He had even begun to harbour the worst suspicions in his heart, thinking they had met a tragic end at someone’s hands. Yet now they had suddenly appeared in the capital, and that terrifying noise from last night had been made by them…
The old emperor’s intelligence network was very powerful, so his information would naturally not be wrong. After coming back to his senses, Prince Geller could not help but sigh, “They now… seem even stronger than when they left Fengyan City!”
“Yes, the Jores family’s Snake-Haired Yuren was nearly done in by Ye Dui, and now he’s in a heavy coma from his injuries. The Jores family is in complete chaos now and had no choice but to kill a fifth-tier magical beast to extract its magic core to prolong his life.” At this point, the old emperor suddenly burst into laughter. “Truly satisfying! Ha!”
The Jores family was known as the Magical Beast Family, and its members acted much like magical beasts, being extremely barbaric and ruthless. They had clashed with the old emperor multiple times, but their magical beast industry was immensely important to the empire’s power. Even though the old emperor wished he could eliminate them, he was powerless to do so. Now, he had finally vented some of his pent-up anger.
“So where are those few now?” Prince Geller thought of something and hurriedly asked, “They are wanted criminals. Coming to the capital without coming to find me, what if they fall into someone else’s hands? What then?”
“I don’t know where they are hiding.” The old emperor shook his head regretfully. “Actually, I also want to see Sister Debbie as soon as possible… The time left for us is not much.”
Prince Geller’s expression tightened slightly. He knew what the old emperor meant by that. It was the grand plan they had plotted for a long time… He did not want to dwell on this topic, so he said, “That lad Ye Dui’s title of All-Round Magic Guide is not for nothing. His magic guide book is also very strange, seeming to possess every kind of magic. Who knows where he obtained it from. I think he must have his own plans too. Him hiding now means he is definitely in an extremely secretive place. Fourth Brother, since your informants cannot find them, then no one can.”
In Prince Geller’s words, there was immense admiration for Ye Dui and the others, and his voice carried a hint of relief, relieved that these people were on their side. Otherwise, he and Fourth Brother’s grand plan would face many difficulties.
Ye Dui impersonating the illegitimate son had originally been a task taken on for Prince Geller, and now it seemed he had completed it very well. With the troubles Ye Dui had stirred up, Prince Geller had already accomplished many things.
“By the way.” The old emperor suddenly thought of something at this point, his expression shifting slightly, and he said, “The Second Prince came yesterday to invite me to his naming day banquet. Hmph, that boy resembles me the most in build, but unfortunately he is too muddle-headed in his actions, most fond of holding these extravagant banquets. He is absolutely not emperor material, yet he does not even realise he is called the Idiot Prince. I do not plan to attend this naming day banquet. You take me there instead. All the princes will be present then, so keep an eye on them. Do not let them cause any trouble.”
“Understood. The Second Prince invited me too.” At the mention of this, Prince Geller immediately revealed a smile. “These days of rushing about everywhere have left me feeling quite weary. I heard the Second Prince say he invited the currently popular Apple Circus, with their amusing circus performances. Heh, that should allow for a good relaxation. As for this Apple Circus, I am quite looking forward to it.”
Then they discussed this Apple Circus a bit. The old emperor even smiled and said to Prince Geller that if the circus was truly good, he would invite them to the palace later on. In recent years, the old emperor had few moments of relaxation. Making them court jesters would not be bad at all. After joking like this for a few sentences, the two thought of the matter regarding the Name-Your-Own Magic Guild again.
So they sighed together.
“I really do not know where they are hiding exactly. It is truly worrying for them…”
……
The fact that the Anduin family’s Hot Spring Manor had been blown up and that Snake-Haired Yuren was gravely injured and on the brink of death quickly spread throughout the entire capital. However, no one mentioned that the culprit was Ye Dui, this enemy of the empire, probably because the Jores Magical Beast Family had deliberately suppressed the information.
Ye Dui and the others rested for a day at the Heavy Wood Inn. In the afternoon, they even disguised themselves to go out and stroll around a bit. Upon returning, they went to bed early. Early the next morning, they continued with their disguises. Today was the Second Prince’s naming day banquet, and their Apple Circus would also head to the banquet for the performance.
Right after finishing breakfast early in the morning, a luxurious carriage appeared outside the inn. It was pulled by seven fine horses, and the carriage body was adorned with ornate patterns. This carriage had come to pick up Ye Dui and the others. It was the Second Prince’s exclusive luxury conveyance, equivalent to a Rolls-Royce Phantom extended limousine from another world.
Being able to ride in such a luxurious carriage was naturally the work of Xileth.
Sitting in the smooth-riding carriage, Ye Dui looked out the carriage window at the scenery, and suddenly he could not help but think, “Among our five people, everyone else has a performance act. As the ringmaster, should I not prepare a programme too?”
This was what they called loving one’s profession. Although just two days ago he had been in a bloody night battle with someone, today, since they were going to the banquet as a circus, Ye Dui could not help but start pondering this matter. Lessa’s singing, Grin’s brick trick, Guni’s eating performance, even Debbie could summon the Joker for a show.
The Joker spirit was somewhat special. Previously, in Ye Dui’s circus, they had not had Debbie summon the Joker spirit, fearing that it would link them to Clown Town. However, the Joker spirit’s appearance could change according to Debbie’s will. With Ye Dui’s help last night, they had successfully dressed up the Joker spirit’s joyful form, transforming it into a drag clown boss. It should not be easy to recognise, and this could count as a performance programme.
“I must prepare a programme too. But for banquet performances, besides clowns and juggling, what else can one perform?”
Ye Dui flipped through his magic guide book. This was a spur-of-the-moment idea, but he quickly thought of something.
“Right, banquet performances can also include animal taming…”
Animal taming performances were also a very special type of programme.
This kind of show had only become popular in the last few hundred years. Animal tamers trained wild beasts and animals to act according to their commands, entertaining the audience. It was said that this performance originated from some families that raised magical beasts.
After the fall of the gods, magical beasts had gone largely extinct on a massive scale. The remaining magical beasts were no longer something small families could afford to keep. So these families began taming ordinary wild beasts to fight for them. But ordinary wild beasts were far less intelligent and spirited than magical beasts. For those who used sword qi and magic, their combat power was almost negligible. Those in the trade gradually shifted to entertainment performances, and later it became hugely popular, with animal tamers emerging in droves.
There were even some renowned animal taming troupes performing across various places on the continent.
The Golden Lion Animal Taming Troupe was one such organisation. Now, they too had come to the Second Prince’s residence as performers invited by the Second Prince.
As a famous animal taming troupe, the members of the Golden Lions naturally had their own pride. They had already prepared to make a splash at this banquet, but at this moment, they discovered something that made them very displeased.
After their several performers disembarked from the carriage, they were surprised to find another carriage parked nearby theirs. That carriage was luxuriously superior to theirs by an unknown margin. This was not particularly surprising. At the Second Prince’s banquet, those who came were all either rich or noble, so seeing fine carriages should be no exception. But what shocked them was that the ones alighting from this carriage were not distinguished guests, but performers just like them!
How outrageous was this? Someone actually had even more flair than they did?
Upon inquiring, they learned it was just a circus that had appeared only about a month ago. At once, the Golden Lions’ members became even more unhappy.
“This is a disgrace to our Golden Lions. How many years have we been famous, yet our entourage is not even as grand as that of this little circus?”
“I must ask the Second Prince’s steward later what exactly is going on!”
They were all indignant one by one, but soon, something even more unbalanced occurred to them psychologically. The banquet had not yet begun, and the Second Prince’s residence had specially prepared resting rooms for them. The Golden Lions’ twelve members were invited to a guest room. Though somewhat cramped, it was not too shabby. But what they had not expected was that they saw the Apple Circus being invited to a tall pavilion next door with its own courtyard!
That scale, that grandeur, it was hardly inferior to the main family’s quarters. It was the room the Second Prince’s residence specially used to host distinguished guests!
At this, the entire Golden Lions exploded in outrage.
“The Second Prince is simply bullying us too much! We absolutely cannot swallow this insult!” A snake tamer from the Golden Lions said angrily to their leader.
The leader was a fat man with a full head of golden hair. He too had a face full of displeasure. “Hmph, this circus dares to steal our rice bowl. We must give them a lesson…” He looked at the snake tamer, a cold glint appearing on his face. “Bali, later you go and release a few venomous snakes into their quarters. Give them the command to bite anyone they see. I want to ensure they have no chance to perform on stage!”
“Heh heh, I understand.” The snake tamer named Bali immediately agreed. He hoisted an iron cage covered with a grey cloth onto his back. Through the small gaps in the grey cloth, one could see colourful venomous snakes inside, dozens of them in total! He sneered and slipped out of the room.
On the other side, Ye Dui was flipping through his magic guide book. He had already chosen his target. Because he had just fought a blood snake beast two days ago, he was now quite sensitive to snakes and was wondering if he could control snake-like animals.
“I originally wanted to search for the Indian snake charmer’s tune, but could not find it. Instead, I found this festive Golden Snake Dance tune. I wonder if this BGM can control snakes? Now I just need a few snakes to test it on…”
