Marina's blade was cold, especially as it pressed against her own throat.

After the bloody battle between the Starfall and the Death Raven, and the last three cards were exhausted, Tails could feel his improvement: he reacted better in the face of actual combat, moved faster, and the finishing power flowed more freely.

But......

Tails looked at Ricky's indifferent expression and his relaxed attitude unwillingly, and his neck had to move with the other man's blade.

Damn it.

From the sudden outburst of the prince to Ricky's successful counterresponse, the two sides fought only one face-to-face, and the panic of the rabbit's fall lasted less than two seconds.

Fast Rope and Dean, who were covering for Tails, were firmly pinned to the ground by multiple opponents, unable to move, their faces painful, and many of the mercenaries were still in a posture of preparing for battle, watching in amazement as the situation reversed in an instant.

"Clearly, someone has to teach our prince what not to do. Clay, who was on the side, snorted disdainfully and withdrew the lightning-fast glow back into his scabbard.

"I told you," said the former Baron Russell, who calmed down in shock, looked at the Swords of Calamity around him dissatisfiedly, "This prince is tricky......"

And the drill frowned at Tails, who failed to counterattack: "Restless little guy, isn't it?"

"Bastard ......" gritted her teeth, and Marina, whose face was flushed, walked forward with a single sword in her hand, ready to take down the daring prince and teach him a lesson by the way.

But at this very moment.

Syllable!

I saw that the prince turned over without hesitation, and his right arm was relaxed, and he firmly grasped the enemy's sword hand.

Ricky's face moved, and he looked at Tails in surprise.

Even Marina's footsteps were stunned.

"Hey, Swords of Calamity. ”

Tails' arm muscles tensed, and he desperately pushed the blade away from his throat, his voice trembling slightly in the wrestling: "Not yet...... The end of it......"

However, at that moment, the prince felt that the other party's wrist was like a thousand-year-old tree that had taken root, and it was like a 10,000-pound boulder sinking into the ground.

Push it without moving, shake it without shaking.

"I heard you're interested in the black sword, right," Tails struggled not to think about the cold blade around his neck, and forced out a smile, "It's unfortunate that I'm interested in him too......"

Ricky looked at the other party's final trapped beast fight, frowning, and seemed very dissatisfied.

"A wise man should know when to give up ......"

With Ricky's words, a strange power came from the other party's wrist!

Tails suddenly changed color!

At that moment, Ricky's finishing power flowed through Tails' palm into his body.

Tails felt like he had been thrown into a cauldron, lid on, flames on the shelf.

Boiling hot.

Sting.

Massiness.

In a trance, his blood made an uneasy muffled sound, there was a little stimulation on his skin, and the bones in his body couldn't move, as if he had been tightly bound to death and under heavy pressure.

In the senses of hell, the power of the end in Ricky's body is like a myriad of deep whirlpools, devouring everything in the rolling undercurrent that has lasted for thousands of years.

Once you are caught in it, you can't escape, you can't leave.

What the hell is this—Tails thought bitterly—what?

At this time, Ricky's cold voice slowly reached Tails's ears:

“...... Like you. ”

Ricky watched with satisfaction as Tails' face turned from red to white, his breathing stagnant, and he watched as the other man's eyes were distracted and trembling slightly under his terrifying power, and his palms were loose.

Every time.

Ricky pursed the corners of his lips, thinking boredly and indifferently.

Every time.

When their finishing power pours into their opponents' bodies......

He shook his head disdainfully, but just as Ricky was about to push Tails, who was powerless to resist, the prey under the blade suddenly trembled slightly.

Boom!

Under everyone's gaze, the prince, who was already at the end of his crossbow, suddenly took a sharp breath, stretched out his left hand, and clasped Ricky's collar!

Ricky's pupils diminished instantly.

Tails gritted his teeth and exerted force in his hands, closing the distance between the two.

Ricky looked at Tails in front of him in a daze, and asked slightly, "You, can you still move?"

"As a leader, you're really special, Ricky," Tails' breathing became more and more rapid, sweat oozing from his forehead, but his face was ruddy, and his words were smooth: "They are all cold and violent, and you ......"

Ricky shuddered, "What?"

"Yours is scorching, oppressive, heavy, obscuring the sky and the sun, like a horrible vortex of terror that cannot be escaped," Tails smiled profusely, feeling the power of the end in his body surging up inch by inch, as if he had a consciousness to expel and cleanse the alien forces that had invaded his body:

"But that ominous momentum is still the same. ”

"Swords of Calamity. ”

The power of the end began to flood Tails' brain, boiling and excited.

Listening to Tails' words, Ricky's eyes widened in surprise:

"You...... How did you ......"

Tails pinched the opponent's wrist and collar, forcibly enduring the impact of the finishing force on him, suppressing the urge and desire to fight back immediately.

Damn it.

Not enough, not enough.

He also ...... Didn't believe it!

...... is needed More!

As he thought about it, Tails snorted profusely in sweat.

He observed the characteristics of Ricky's finishing power, urging the power in his body to change as he had imitated the twist of fate not long ago.

Hot.

Tails thought so, and the sin of the Prison River in his body consciously rushed, emitting a terrifying heat in his consciousness.

Repression.

The power of the end roared, covering the blood vessels, muscles, bones, and almost all human tissues, like dark clouds covering the sun, leaving no gaps.

Heaviness.

An inexplicable pressure descended on Tails's body, becoming more and more evident with the change of power, such as substance.

Obscuring the sky.

Soon, the Sins of the Hellriver swirled around a center, as if it was about to tear apart, as if it was about to consume everything—and at that moment, Tails had the illusion that whatever kind of attack he was still immersed in the vortex of the power of the end, it could be easily taken.

Tails exhaled in pain: he could vaguely hear his body protest as an overwhelmed machine, amidst chilling friction.

No one knew that in less than a second before and after, he had experienced terrifying ups and downs from the summit to the deep valley, and from the ground to the clouds.

Compared with the twist of fate that is similar to "mastery", this time, the transformation of the crime of the Prison River has given him a greater burden and price than he imagined.

But......

Tails struggled to brace himself and looked at the enemy in front of him.

The young man took a deep breath, the fingers holding the other party's wrist were slightly forced, and he smiled with relief:

"Like that?"

Soon, the sins of the newborn Prison River, which had completed its transformation in a trance, poured into Ricky's body.

Ricky's face was confused at first, but the man's breathing grew faster and faster as the unusually familiar power came.

"It's ......"

Hot.

Repression.

Heaviness.

Obscuring the sky.

It's like......

It's like......

Looking at Tails' smile and feeling the sensation coming from the other person's body, there were no words to describe Ricky's face now.

"No ......"

His eyes widened and he shook his head subconsciously, as if he couldn't believe the facts in front of him:

"Impossible......"

Tails coughed in pain, and the childish finishing power dissipated.

His hand left Ricky's collar and hung limply.

The onlookers did not know the truth, and listened to the conversation between the two, their faces were suspicious.

An anxious Sonny tries to step forward, but is waved back by Ricky.

"What's wrong, Ricky?" asked Clay tentatively.

But the leader of the Sword of Calamity only shook his head slightly, and did not answer, especially in disbelief.

"I know. ”

Tails was a little dying, his expression was confused, and he gritted his teeth and said, "I know why you want the black sword. ”

Ricky's shock slowly faded, but his brow furrowed more and more.

He began to face up to the facts.

"Who the hell are you?" asked Crassus, the Sword of Calamity, in a deep voice.

But Tails just took a hard breath and shook his head.

"Trust me, Ricky, you don't want the black sword," the prince said, tired.

"You want me. ”

"The people you really need. ”

The young man looked at each other fixedly:

"Me. ”

The lights in the tavern were much dimmer than before, and Ricky's face was extremely solemn.

On the other side, the Shadow Shield's hammer coughed, alerting the people of the Sword of Calamity.

"What are they doing?" Russell urges impatiently, "Chat?"

The masked man looked at Ricky worriedly, looking at his formless as he suppressed the prince: "Ricky, it's time for us to act......"

He waved at Sonny and Marina, who stepped forward, either cautiously or through gritted teeth.

But Ricky jerked his head up!

"Stand back!"

The leader of the Sword of Calamity has never been more serious.

He looked coldly at the subordinates around him who were about to come up and capture the prince, and said coldly, "All of you." ”

The mercenaries were stunned.

But before they could react, Ricky withdrew the blade of his right hand, grabbed Tails's collar with his powerful left hand, lifted him off the ground, and slammed him onto the table next to him!

In the midst of the loud bang, Tails lay on his back on the table and groaned in pain.

But before he could react, Ricky reversed the blade, broke through the air, and stabbed him in the head!

Shout!

Tails was empty.

Boom!

With a muffled thud, the tip of the sword grazed Tails' scalp and slammed deep into the table.

It was only an inch from Tails' forehead.

The prince's afterglow glanced at the cold light of the blade, and in the pounding heartbeat, he looked into Ricky's eyes in shock.

"Hey, be careful!"

The hammer's eyes widened, and he reached out and said in a lost voice, "We don't want to get a corpse......"

But Ricky ignored him, and the masked man coldly stopped him in front of the hammer, preventing him from taking a step forward.

The leader of the Sword of Calamity slowly bent down and approached the terrified Tails.

"Tell me. ”

His hand still held the hilt of the sword, twisting the blade and making a terrifying grinding sound in the punctured wood: "Your Highness the Arrogant Prince." ”

Ricky said word by word: "You...... Have you ever tasted death?"

His eyes were like ice, and even the light reflected in his pupils was cold.

At that moment, the masked man and Krezzi looked at each other with wide eyes.

It's like knowing something.

Tails stared at the other man's eyes, digesting the other's words.

The taste of death.

The other party understood.

Tails breathed a sigh of relief.

His purpose was achieved.

But apparently, the others did not understand.

"Dear Crassus, with all due respect, he may have angered you, but this prince in your hands is extremely valuable......" The hammer seemed to be worried about the meaning of Ricky's tone, and saw him raise his hands anxiously: "If you are unhappy with him......"

Ricky suddenly turned his head, his eyes widened with anger, and he drank fiercely and coldly:

"Shut up!"

The chisel was dumbfounded, and the rest of the words were choked in his mouth.

The next second, Ricky turned his head and continued to stare at Tails on the table, and said sharply, "Answer me, Prince." ”

He was short of breath: "You, have you ever seen death?"

At this moment, Ricky is like a fierce beast with sharp claws and angry teeth, and he no longer has the calmness and indifference when he first saw him.

Death.

Tails 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 separated between life and death, blurring the boundary between existence and death. 】

Chewing on the past scenes, the prince clenched his fists as he recovered his exertion.

And Ricky still held him hostage, and he didn't relax at all.

The whispers in the tavern slowly faded away, and the mercenaries, though puzzled, remained in their positions, waiting for the leader's decision.

Seconds passed.

"Of course," I saw the prince gritting his teeth and his breath was disordered, "I have seen it." ”

"More than you think. ”

Ricky's brow slowly loosened.

"But you live. He said softly, anger and shock slowly vanishing.

This is not a question.

"Yes. ”

Tails repeated his words, smiling reluctantly.

"I don't remember exactly, but ......" Tails took a deep breath and stopped at the blade of the sword that stopped on his forehead without looking, "yes, I'm back, every time." ”

He raised his right hand tremblingly and tapped his chest:

"With it. ”

Ricky's brow furrowed completely, and he no longer twisted the blade on the table.

"How do you know?"

His tone was cautious:

"About us, about ......"

Ricky's gaze moved with Tails' fingers, and he said the next word solemnly and solemnly: "It?"

Tails exhaled hard.

"Don't forget, I'm Bright Star," 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 lowered his voice with his head, "Is that him?"

"He ...... from the Tower of the End Know all this?"

Tails was slightly stunned.

What the?

"Whether it's him or not......" Tails swallowed his throat, determined to get through the crisis first, "But you want me." ”

He stared straight at Ricky, who was a little confused: "You want me, more than anything else." ”

"Because I represent the miracle and opportunity you have always dreamed of," Tails whispered as he repeated their words:

"It is the end of the old era and the beginning of the new century. ”

With Tails' words, Ricky's expression slowly faded into confusion.

He looked up.

"Yes," Ricky said with a sigh of relief, looking at the prince in front of him:

"I want you. ”

His words were profound.

In the next second, Ricky pulled the blade out of the table with his right hand and turned it to the others.

Leaving Tails alone, lying on his back on the table, gasping for breath in horror.

"Take him down—to be polite. Ricky flicked the sword and threw it back from a distance to Marina, who was staring at Tails intently.

Sonny nodded and stepped forward.

"Get ready," at that moment, as if Ricky had become the unfazed and indifferent leader he had been, "let's take the next step." ”

Clay and the masked man looked at each other, glanced at Tails uneasily, and nodded in unison.

The mercenaries sprang into action.

"Now that this mischievous prince has been subdued," the chisel coughed, suggesting his presence, "then let's take him away, at least to a safe place......

But Ricky suddenly looked up and interrupted him.

"The prince must remain in our hands as collateral. ”

His categorical words made the chisel stunned.

"Until we complete our goal and withdraw from the camp," Ricky said lightly, "I won't be able to hand it over to you." ”

As soon as these words came out, both the chisel and Russell widened their eyes.

Tails exhaled, his heart calming for a moment.

Finally......

Swiftrope and Dean, who were subdued on the ground, became more and more confused, just like the mercenaries, for unknown reasons.

"Wait!"

The chisel looked at Ricky from afar, and his tone was incredulous: "I gave you such a big guarantee, and you still insist on the status quo?"

He pointed to Tails, who had been roughly dragged off the table by Sonny.

But Ricky just snorted.

"You didn't give me anything, Hammer, the Shadow Shield was originally an enemy of the stars," the leader of the Sword of Calamity said coldly, "Even if that letter is exposed, it will only put you a few points ahead of the list of enemies in the secret department." ”

The drill was cold.

The veins in his hands loomed.

"So, the letter I gave you is tantamount to a waste?"

The tone of the drill slowly tightened along with his expression: "This is not the way to do business. ”

He put his hands in his robe and paced slowly.

The masked man consciously stood in front of him.

The mercenaries felt the tension that was vague, and without warning, they consciously entered the pre-battle preparations, and stood in formation one after another, alerting the enemy hidden outside the eaves.

"We-mercenaries have our own way of doing business. ”

Ricky said nonchalantly, "Take it, or screw it up, it's your choice." ”

The eyes of the drill became extremely cold.

"Mess it up?" the Shadow Shield's guest gritted his teeth, his words chilling.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Russell hurriedly spoke, seeing that the situation was about to stalemate again, "this camp is full of Stellar troops, and if we drag each other back, no one will be able to get out of here safely, let alone achieve our goal." ”

Ricky smiled.

"The agreement we promised you has been fulfilled, and the prince is here. ”

"I don't think you mind if we hold the goods for a while," Ricky said, glancing at the top corners of the tavern, intentionally or not, "until you pay the balance?"

The chisel stiffened.

He knew that the place where Ricky had just looked was full of the Shadowshield Assassins who had been hiding outside the house for a long time, ready to assault at any moment.

But......

The chisel clenched his fist unwillingly.

"You don't think I'm blind, do you?"

The chisel gritted his teeth and said, "Just now, you and that prince have been whispering over there for so long......"

Tails was being roughly tied up by Sonny, and he was stunned to hear that he was carrying his bag on his back.

The hammer glared at Ricky, who had been in front of him for a long time: "You won't really be tempted by this prince's words and make some kind of deal with him, right?"

"For example...... Some of your deals with the Kingdom of Stars, such as the Prison of Bones?"

Ricky stopped what he was doing.

Russell stopped talking, his eyes filled with deep distrust as he looked at the others.

The masked man frowned.

"That's ugly," said the hammer coldly, "You think that the Shadow Shield will come all the way so that you can take away our target so easily?"

Ricky took a deep breath and turned to make eye contact with the masked man.

He smiled.

"Hahahaha......"

The masked man smiled too.

It's like hearing the biggest joke in the world.

"I can understand, you gave that letter, so you were very unwilling, it feels like someone was eating nothing......" Ricky smiled happily, he waved his hand, "Are you still worried that we will judge the situation and turn to the stars in cahoots?"

"Leaving you up short?"

The face of the drill is getting more and more ugly.

Ricky stepped forward, past the masked man, and into front of the drill.

"But I will say, Hammer, like you, that we were destined to be enemies of the stars a long time ago. ”

The chisel was slightly stunned.

Ricky stared at him and said lightly: "As that letter to you, as a reward for your 'sincerity'......"

With a calm expression, he hooked his finger behind him:

"Semir?"

In the confusion of Tyers and Russell, and also in the confusion of Tails and the others, the masked man snorted coldly and stepped forward.

He reached out and pulled down his mask without hesitation.

The lights flickered, reflecting the masked man's face.

It was a face that had gone through the vicissitudes of life, this man was forty or fifty years old, with high cheekbones and faintly visible white temples.

The drill looked at him, his face puzzled, as if he didn't know what to do for a while.

"You ......"

The masked man shook his head disdainfully.

But Russell, who was next to the drill, had a change in complexion!

"That's ......" Exter's former baron stared at each other, shuddering slightly.

Including the fast rope, many mercenaries looked at each other in confusion, extremely puzzled.

Tails craned his neck, but all he could see was the side of the masked man's face.

Damn it......

What the hell is that guy......

But Tails was stunned.

Side face.

That's right, he could only see the side of the masked man's face.

But that's enough.

I saw that half of the other party's side face, from the chin to the cheekbone, left a clear and hideous imprint.

The skin and flesh are turned out, and the blood is vertical and horizontal.

It's like......

Tails stared at the imprint on the other man's face in a daze.

Just like the two imprints on the wrists of Raphael Lindbergh from the secret department six years ago, with the ...... of the Aarend family written on them

But the prince was followed by another shock!

He recognized it.

The imprint on the face of the masked man, that is regular, has a shape......

Is that......

Tails couldn't believe his eyes.

But the masked man spoke quickly, ending Tails' doubts.

"This is the ancient imperial letter 'S', which stands for the Bright Star Royal Family, which was branded a long time ago. He lightly touched the ugly and terrible imprint of years on his face, and said coldly.

The drill shuddered!

The masked man said in a cold voice: "The person who is branded with this brand is a sinner who has been punished by the Supreme King of the Stars himself, and bears the shame and sin of eternal forgiveness and eternal atonement. ”

The drill took a step back, his expression surprised.

Ricky folded his arms and sneered slightly, and Clay looked like he had known for a long time, not surprised.

Marina looked at the masked man's confession with a complicated expression.

Tails looked at the man named Semir in a daze.

Remembering something, he asked uncertainly, "You say, your name is Semir, and you are ......?"

Semir, who was no longer masked, snorted softly.

"As you say, all people have a past. ”

Selmi turned and faced the entire tavern crowd.

"After the Great War eighteen years ago, apart from you Assassins who deserve death...... In Yongxing City, there are also a group of people who were questioned and imprisoned by the newly crowned King Kessel. ”

Semir paced slowly, his tone cold.

"They are all warriors of great skill, experience, strength, and noble birth, who have made a glorious oath to defend the noblest blood of this kingdom. ”

Semir jerked his head and looked at Tails, startling the latter.

Under the reflection of the light, the imprint on the other party's face became more and more obvious and terrifying.

Semir spoke slowly: "But because of that well-known defeat and disgrace, they have suffered unjustly in the wrath of the new king, and have been burdened with grave crimes, and have since wasted their lives in the miserable underground. ”

"Never be free, never see the light of day. ”

Selmi looked up, his tone half proud, half pained.

"I am Colin Semir, from Eternal Star City, the youngest son of Viscount Luca Semir. ”

He said bitterly.

"I was the second flag bearer of the Stellar Royal Guard, the personal guard of His Majesty King Eddy II, and the glorious 'Imperial Guard'. ”

He stared at Tails with an incomparably complicated look: "In the bloody year, he was a member of the royal guards guarding the Fuxing Palace." ”

Tails looked back at him in a daze, in a distraught mood.

Royal Guard?

Isn't that ......

I saw Semir gritting his teeth, clenching his fists, and said angrily in an atmosphere of almost suffocation: "It is also the only lucky person who escaped on the way among the forty-six members of the royal guard who were sentenced to life imprisonment in the prison of bones for refusing to admit their guilt after an unfair trial. ”

"There is no place in the whole kingdom of stars—sinners. ”

The chisel stopped talking, he just looked at Semir with a deep gaze.

There was silence in the tavern.

Until Ricky spoke again: "Compared to your gimmick, which is bigger than the actual letter, this is our guarantee, the hammer." ”

"There's no way we're going to work with the Kingdom of Stars. ”

"So the prince will remain in our hands, and even move with us," Ricky said coldly, "his safety, and whether he can be smoothly handed over to you...... It all depends on how well we move next. ”

"And I'm here, thank you both in advance for your generosity?"

Ricky is alluding to authenticity.

Drills and Russell frowned.

Ricky snorted and turned his head, ignoring them.

"Now. ”

The leader of the Sword of Calamity glanced at the stern mercenaries, his gaze narrowing over the face of Tyles, who was in a complicated mood:

"Let's go. ”

"The target—the Prison of Bones. ”

(End of chapter)