Kingdom's Bloodline Chapter 4

Chapter IV - Accidents always come suddenly

"Yara! Black pine wine! Again - another cup!"

In the noisy, gloomy Sunset bar, gasping while lying on the bar, Clyde grabbed one cup after another and send them all to his mouth.

"Hey big guy, if you don't pay, there won't be any black pine wine!"

Standing behind the bar with an uncomfortable look, Yara, brought up two big cups of black pine wine and bluntly put them on the bar, " For your father's sake, this is the last two cups! I give you thirty seconds, finish your drink then quickly get your ass out of here for me! If you sit there for another hour, the profit of our bar, no, of the entire Underground Street will go down by 10%!

Clyde already felt a bit dizzy due to the drinks, but even inside this noisy bar Yara's strong voice could be heard from faraway. Feeling the gazes of other customers and possibly their grins around him, Clyde's heart emerged a fire.

That year, he himself made the whole Undercity districts scared shitless when they heard of the "Bloody Axe" - Clyde Rhode. If it was not for… if it was not for that accident - how would a mere bargirl be able to bully me now?

Even the one who debuted two years later than me, baldhead Sebas, dared to ridicule me in front of the beggar children and laugh at my childlike "pee pee thingy" down there -

Fuck it!

"Quiet you narrow-minded bitch!" Clyde bit his teeth and heavily shook his head. He got up, grabbed Yara's hand and dragged her toward him from behind the bar, fiercely roared: "I said! Another cup of black pine wine!

The whole bar went quiet.

The Aloftstar City's most famous lawless land is the Undercity District; while this district's most famous lawless land is the Underground Street - especially after the Black Street Brotherhood took over a decade ago. And then there's the Sunset bar, the hub of this chaotic land. In it, basically if one wasn't subordinates of the Brotherhood of Black Street, then he was there to find the subordinates of the Brotherhood.

So when Clyde grabbed Yara's hand and roared, all the people in the bar had a look as if they were watching a comedy show and didn't raise a voice nor try to stop the scene.

Clyde's mind was getting more and more dizzy, but he still felt that the wrist he had held was slippery but so tender, so soft, and the scent on Yara's body came to him slowly. Under the dim light of the bar's candlelight, Yara was closed, her short brown hair was neat, the smooth skin of her face and her delicate figure seemed clearer than usual. That made Clyde's mind lost in thought for a moment.

Yare also seemed to be scared by him. She surprisingly looked at the man who once was a prominent golden thug, but now only a dispirited drunkard.

As the noise of the quirky customers vanished, the dizzied Clyde seemed very satisfied since he felt like his actions deserved the due attention of these people.

But soon, when he shifted his gaze to Yara he slowly waked up from his drunkenness.

The desperation for pleasure just now gradually became fear and shivers.

Yara Surrey, Clyde was one of the few people who know her full name. This pretty woman, Clyde started to recall from his mind that his father has told him to "stay away from her", and along with what he witnessed several times at the Sunset Bar…

And this pungent and attractive "bargirl" was having her pondering eyes set on his at that moment.

Clyde's chin began to unconsciously tremble:

"Yara, that, I'm not ..."

But before Clyde could react -

"Snapped!"

The hand of him that grabbing Yara was fiercely counter - grabbed then gently squeezed by the latter!

After one second, Clyde's middle finger and forefinger were reversed in the opposite direction!

Followed by a heart-wrenching pain.

"Argh!"

Clyde squealed in agony while his face deformed.

But it had not yet been finished, Yara, with an iced-cold expression, severely held his left arm out and twitched it to the opposite direction of its elbow for a heavy pull!

"Cracked!"

"Ahhhh! No! Yara! My dear sister Yara! I - I was wrong - I should not - ah!"

The sound of the dislocated elbow came with the scream of Clyde at the same time.

Clyde didn't have the chance to finish his beg for mercy.

The agile woman leaned back to create a momentum, swung across the bar her slender left leg that wore a super-short leather pant, and fiercely trampled on Clyde's neck!

"Well done little Yara! You didn't make the boss lose his face!"

"Such skills, such movements, you can apply for Terminate Swordsman's training course!"

"How could you wear a safety pant!"

"I swear I saw it! I bet that she was wearing black!"

In the blink of an eye, the alcoholic customers surrounding recovered their boisterous drinking atmosphere, one by one they cheered to Yara.

"Listen, you gorilla!"

Yara stared at the exhausted Clyde who had difficulty breathing due to being pressed. Standing behind the bar on a single leg while her left foot stepped on Clyde and her right hand pinned his other unbent arm, the sight of her graceful slender body could be seen without hiding anything.

She slowly pulled out from the leather holster on her left boots a weird looking knife - the knife's blade and the handle were not in a straight line, it looked like the claw of a wolf.

Then, with her expression unchanged, she stabbed straight right into Clyde's hand!

A sharpen blade was nailed onto the bar.

The sound of noisy customers got louder.

"Erk, erk!" Even Clyde's tears were squeezed out, but with his neck being stepped on, he could only squeal like a pig.

Yara slowly lowered her upper body, performed her perfect flexibility to move close to Clyde's tearful face, whistled and putted on a smile.

Right after, her sharp face turned iced-cold and murderous-looking, she used a rich tonal and amorous voice (which people still cannot help but feel the chill) to clearly spit out each of her words:

"Clyde Rhode -"

"I do not care who is your father, nor I need to know what kind of beggar boss you are, or if you were a thug who collect dirty money -"

"But you motherfucker better listen to me -"

"From now on, until the end of the world -"

"If you dare again, appear in this madam's bar -"

"I'll pull out that, pee, pee, thingy, down, there -"

"Piece by piece -"

"Chop it into minced meat -"

"Dip it into the wine -"

"Then a bit and a bit-"

"Pour that down for you -"

"Do you understand? You fucking garbage!"

Clyde cried out loud, under the alcoholic customers' laughter and Yara's despised eyes, he covered the pierced right hand and ran out of Sunset bar. Only then, Yara rubbed her hands, disgustingly wiped off the blood on her Wolfclaw knife as if it wasn't blood but mucus of some hellish fiend.

Yara unpleasantly turned around only to see those drunkards still staring at the bar, many of them had ulterior motives and eyes full of impure desires.

"What you looking at! Who dare to look again shall get his payment doubled!"

After leaving a pungent speech and shifting the attention of the customers from her body to their wine, Yara fiercely threw down the cleaning towel and went into the kitchen behind.

"So this is enough, right? I did as what you said, intentionally mentioned his "pee pee thingy" stuff."

Yara grabbed a bottle of white-grape wine, on her left hand suddenly appeared a multi-purpose knife, she neatly drew the cork.

"Indeed, indeed, Miss Yara." In the kitchen, the assistant of Clyde, the de facto administrator of the beggar business, Nell Rick, gently lifted the black hat on his head and nodded with a smile: "I hope he will be a bit more humble after this. From the incontinences drinking to the nonstop and mercilessly abusing of beggars, the Brotherhood cannot keep cleaning his ass for him.

"You were right, you can't keep cleaning his ass all the time." Yara quickly gulped a mouthful of wine, as Rick suddenly felt that this rude action making Yara's delicate figure appeared to be more curvaceous and seductive.

"You could say so, the Brotherhood's interests are my interests." Rick smiled, unconsciously touched the back of his neck.

"Are you sure doing this will work? Why do I felt like he, being that kind of person, would cause even bigger troubles after going back? Such as venting out his anger on your beggars?"

You really did understand him, Rick thought.

"Actually, I don't know if it would work because I do not know him that well either. But -" Rick shook his head helplessly - it was his signature move to show an innocent, cooperative and compassionate heart - and said:" Recently he has gone worse. There days ago, for a ridiculous reason he gave an important seed of mine a terrible beating. If it wasn't for that child being quite a clever kid, one more seed could have died in the hand of Clyde. "

I do not know that you are such a generous and righteous man, Yara rolled her eyes inside of her mind.

Speaking of that, Rick's eyes suddenly became decisive.

"So I have decided that things cannot continue like this. He had to be warned - otherwise, sooner or later he would murder the business I poured so much work and time into."

"Very well, you don't have to explain to me that much about the reasons for "I'm only compelled to get rid of my boss."

Yara yawned and waved to tell Rick to leave.

"I didn't say I must get rid of him -"

"As I said, be hurry and pay the agreed remuneration already. Remember, I only received cash," Yara cut off Rick while she lazily finished her bottle of white-grape wine. Unsatisfied, she stuck out her tongue and licked the last drop on the top of the bottle - this action left another stir in Rick's heart - "Moreover, today he owed the money for alcohol again, so you still have to pay for that."

And particularly - Yara squinted her eyes slightly, watching as Rick walked away after he tipped his hat as to say farewell - Do not think that I don't know about you switching Clyde's drinks today.

Others may not recognize it, but I, Yara of the Sunset Bar, saw everything clearly; all the liquors Clyde drank tonight were the highly intoxicating and more expensive Chaka brandy.

Unlike those alcohols that only make the drunks unconscious, Chaka brandy is for the western battlefield, as it is often given to the chained prisoners in preparation before their assaults. The drunks have no problem moving around but their minds aren't very clear.

So, Nell Rick - are you sure it's just you having too much money to waste, and not you wanting to get rid of that man?

-------------------

When Clyde, whose heart was full of shame, misery, and still felt drunk, came back to the huge stone door in front of The Ruin - he did not live in the headquarter of Black Street. Clyde felt that whenever anyone with some insights to his situation faced him, they were all looking at the lower part of his body - two hurried thugs just happened to walk toward him from behind the wall as the sound of their gossips came from far away.

"Have you heard it? A rumor was spread from the beggars said that Boss Clyde is no longer a man -"

"What do you mean? It's not like he can become a woman right?"

"Stupid, it means that Clyde was castrated! I heard that a few years ago when he was in Calima Street to collect some loan sharks, in a haunted house - the dilapidated house where Count Norfolk and his family were hanged - he encountered a supernatural event. Everyone said a ghost lady in red has cut off that part of him clean."

Suddenly, Clyde felt the blood in his whole body poured into his head.

The next moment, losing control, he roared, rushed out from behind the wall and tightly strangled the throat of one of the thugs!

"WHO? Who said so? Which bastard said so?"

"WHICH BASTARD?"

"I'm going to kill him!"

The other thug stumbled back a few steps.

Clyde severely pressed the man in his hand onto the ground, tighten the grab, it was just that his pierced right hand still couldn't use too much force.

He was, after all, the Brotherhood's well-known boss and one of the best warriors at mortal level, even though  the decadence over the years made him physically weaker and his skill gone backward, as long as it wasn't going against that crazy bitch of house Surrey from just now, he could still win over all these common lackeys. Especially that moment, Clyde felt that the anger from head to toe have become a perpetual force.

"Boss Clyde - just now it was only a rumor, we do not believe any- ah!" Clyde, like a beast, suddenly looked up!

The explaining thug was severely scared and took another step back.

He immediately saw that his other companion had turned pale while trying to gasp in some fresh air.

Unceasingly retreating further to avoid Clyde's fierce gaze, the thug's face was full of fear: "Ah! It was all because of the rumors those beggars spread, boss. It really isn't our fault. You, you will know once you ask those beggar children!

"Snapped!" That was the sound of a broken neck.

The thug, who was strangled by Clyde stopped breathing.

As Clyde slowly stood up from the ground, his eyes were full of fierce gazes that could consume anyone. The toxic of that night's drinks worked slowly but hit hard, he was gradually losing his last bit of reasoning.

The survived thug whose whole body was still shivering, seeing that the situation wasn't very good since he was the only one left, cried out loud while scrambled to escape.

Clyde wanted to chase, but reeking of alcohol and staggering he simply couldn't to run after the man.

He fiercely released two breaths. Looking at the body near his foot, he still felt angry and gave it a few kicked before he shook his head and walked toward the direction of over 20 shabby houses.

Clyde didn't wonder why any other thugs that were supposed to be patrolling inside (which is extremely vital to keep the beggars in watched) did not show up that night. He only had one intention in his mind, to find those who ridiculed him.

Then torture them one by one to death.

Clyde, who had just killed a man, felt like a long-lost shackle had been loosen in his heart and returned him to the day when he lived by his blades.

Damn you petty thieves, he fiercely thought, since you dared to pass those rumors I shall make you pay a heavy price.

You damn petty thieves deserved to die.

The escaped thug tremblingly rushed out of the huge stone door and saw Rick standing near a tree outside The Ruin.

"Rick!" The thugs, as if seeing a savior, shouted" Boss Clyde - Clyde has gone crazy! Didn't you say, didn't you say that we'll able to run away? In the end we still haven't finished out words then Clyde already - "The thug who has been overwhelmed with fear couldn't even speak properly.

"Pearson didn't escape? And he, he was killed by Clyde?" Rick looked like he was taken aback.

After getting the crying thug's confirmation, Rick sadly shook his head: "It was my mistake. I thought after hearing that Clyde will go to hide out of shame - There's no other solution now, you, lock the stone door, trap Clyde in The Ruin's area. Then prepare the carriage, we must set out immediately. "

"Okay - Mr. Rick, where are we going?" The still frighten thugs, upon hearing that they were to leave, repeatedly nodded, and did not even think about what all the beggars who were inside could possible do in that situation.

"To our headquarter and look for Boss Morris."

Watching as the thug leaped to the stone door, stretched out his hand to push it closed then locked it, Rick's face suddenly become serious.

This time, Clyde will be looking for all the beggars, of whom there must be the person that "ghost" want.

Earlier today I have already deal with the beggars' rest time myself, the sky hasn't gone all dark, Clyde will have most of the night to cook them well.

Whether it's viciously beating or murder, they're what that ghost, that assassin, needs to be concerned about. Since he is interested in those beggars, what would he do when they suffered such a catastrophe?

Well first of all, certainly he will have no time to look for me.

If he came to find a beggar, Clyde will be killed by him before he could potential touch that beggar. So when the Brotherhood of Black Street will take over here tomorrow, there won't be any affair anymore.

If he were to kill a beggar, he might simply watch (which is most likely what would happen, never underestimate the filth and corruption within an aristocratic family) as Clyde murders all the beggars, any existed affair will be solved on its own.

In short, that affair, the problem of that great man, the chill behind my neck, all will be solved tonight.

Otherwise, one day, that ghost who couldn't find its target will come to him personally. Rick didn't think that these big family's lackeys will have good temper; or that after they have finally met face to face, he could live to see the light of another day.

It wasn't like Rick had never thought about faking an illness for a month, or simply asked to be transferred to other departments, just to escape that terrible ghost as far as he could until it found what it wanted.

However, if a day before the still going and kicking Rick suddenly and strangely fell ill or transferred, wouldn't it be like explaining to the ghost, "I know of your existence", and then gambling his live on that ghost's "innocent and kindness"?

There must be a safer way, a non-suspicious scapegoat to pierce out that ghost's attempt.

So Clyde, my boss - sorry to trouble you again! Rick thought faintly.

Regrettably though, this group of beggar children, that Thales, and there is that boy Karl. And also my business after this, chance is it would suffer some consequences because of the poor management's excuse. But this, compared with my own life and future career -

At that moment, the thug who was lucky enough to escape came back from a distance and brought along the carriage.

Rick nodded toward him, giving him a smile of encouragement and comfort, and went to the carriage.

Then, he pulled out from his shirt a miniature crossbow, and accurately pin a bolt which was bathed in the deadly Bluegrass poison into the surprised thug's open mouth.

------------------

After Rick made that - never known to the world yet still profoundly affected the fate of the kingdom - decision, the night fell and due to sooner rest time, all the beggars of the sixth house, led by Thales, was sitting next to a fireplace that took quite some effort to made, tallying that day's harvest.

"That woman in black gave us eight copper coins - I heard that her youngest son died of typhoid fever not long ago, no wonder she was so generous."

"Mirabella, with her ears folded, gave us the rest of the groceries money - eh, just two coins."

Clint, who had a smiley face, picked out the coins one by one to count and piled them up to his left hand, Thales nodded, grabbed a pointy piece of rock and wrote the word "positive" on the ground twice.

"The thin man in highland boots didn't want to give any money, so I and Ryan taught him and a small lesson."

Kelly tossed out a card and distressfully looked at the writing on it: "Thing is, I don't know what this card he only had on his chest is for."

"It's an egress certification for the National Institute of Science and Technology's Stella Great Library, which was from the Uppercity district, five blocks from us," Thales said after looking at the card. "That thin man is definitely a scholar from an outside institute - I don't know if he is whether a philosopher or a scientist - but since the way he looked was abject, maybe an art student."

"Wow, Thales, you can actually recognize words!" Both Carina and Ned looked at Thales adoringly.

"How could it be!" Thales shrugged, looking at the diminutive hopes in the eyes of the two children, "Until now nobody has ever taught us to read and count - I have to see the Book emblem on the back of the card to know."

However, Thales was already learning words on his own, such as "Sunset Bar," "Grove Pharmacy," and "National Institute of Science and Technology", all those sign boards' words. His past memory gave him inexplicable respect and admiration toward knowledge, which is why he didn't pass any opportunity to study and accumulate experience.

Being able to freely sit at your desk to learn from your predecessors' wisdom - Thales raised his dusty hands, looked at the calluses that already formed a long time ago due to the heavy works days and nights, touched the stomach that basically wasn't full, and sighted - is really a blessing.

Thales did not remember the situation before he transmigrated. To be exact, those memories before the transmigration were gradually recovered bit by bit along with the growth of the toddle Thales and the developing of his brain.

His memory from two to three years old was messy and sparse, just like a real two-year-old child. He remembered only a sticky and thick "bloody" red (he didn't know how a color can be described as "sticky"), the Blackrock House filled with babies crying, a skinny woman - later he knew that she was "wicked widow" Berth, the female boss in charge of nourishing young children who just came to the Brotherhood.

Thales was taken to The Ruin at the age of three, and since then memories of his past life have become clearer. The flashbacks that appeared the most in his mind were when he was sitting at a desk, eyes troublingly wandering between some books and a computer; or in the classroom, discussing something with a dozen or so different-dressed young people (or a middle-aged or elderly professor).

But that was all but illusions now.

In the past four years, while the beggars in the Undercity district were living a life full of beatings, bullying, darkness, sin and death, Thales managed to maintain the surviving of the beggars in the sixth house.

Compared to the post-graduate student whose brain was bigger than muscle, four years of beggar's career brought Thales many new skills, such as playing an act to acquit sympathy, stealing and scavenging without a single soul noticing, eavesdropping cleverly and leisurely for information with calm, cooperating with others on the street to frame competitors, and so on.

In the meantime, Thales also made many preparations exceeding a beggar's definition, such as keeping  closed relationships with people from different classes (in the Undercity district, "different classes" are probably just "different lower classes"), secretly probing Brotherhood's secrets, arranging a few secret locations, stocking up some hidden possessions (on this point, Clyde was really not mistaken) and so on.

Yes, Thales is not ready to obediently accept the fate given to him by this world. He will not be a self-serving beggar, nor a lackey of a brotherhood, nor a thief, nor to play something like "the legendary gangsters" in Aloftstar City.

He wants to run away.

And then, to hold his own life in his hand and be a free man.

At least there will be more freedom compared to now.

Step by step, just by following my well-putted plan - Thales looked to the corner where there was an inconspicuous stone slab.

I can -

"No! Cade!"

At that moment, the seventeenth house next door suddenly exclaimed a sound of fear and panic.

Soon, Thales will learn the most important lesson after he transmigrated, that is: accidents, always, come, suddenly.

End of chapter IV　

Chapter end