Will of the Battlefield

There was a moment of silence in the corridor, hearing all the talks about legends Thane chuckled. "So, I am Pichu and you are Huma Bird, the next king, haha."

Max sighed. "The proficiency of your brain amuses me, you are Pixiu, not Pichu. And I am Huma Bird, I will not be a king, I make kings. That’s the theme, the roles, the folklore."

Thane questioned again, his smile vanished a bit. "Isn’t that a revolting thought, making a new king?"

Max shook his head. "A king doesn’t need a crown. A man who has money, connections and a personal army is not below king in any measure. A crown is a burden to head, what one needs is power. And power alone."

He smiled at Thane and continued. "You can be that person as well, your father is already a count. Your clan is a legend on its own."

Thane was taken aback. "How did you know?" He unconsciously clenched his fists.

Max quickly raised his hands. "Hey hey, easy. Your bracelet sold you the moment I saw it."

That unique bracelet and sigil belongs to the Ironforge clan, one of the very few top tier blacksmith clans in this continent, anyone can recognise it."

Thane clicked his tongue. "Tsk, bracelet again."

"What? Someone else caught your identity?" Max inquired.

Thane waved his hand. "It’s nothing."

Max sighed and looked straight into Thane’s eyes. "Listen Thane, I really want to befriend you. I’ve never had a friend, and neither was I planning to make one.

"But... you are honest. You are not the one who will eye my status or wealth and want a portion for yourself out of pure greed. Those who have the same status as yours usually look down upon me just because I am 17th son. A late born who has no real power in my family other than a small chunk of money.

That’s why I want to be your friend. We both aim for the aspirant test. Why not help each other out?, You keep bullies away from me with your barbaric size and I’ll help you manage your finances. What do you say?"

Thane stayed quiet for some time before opening his mouth. "Alright, you will be my 1st friend in the capital then." He chuckled and extended his hand.

Max smiled back and stepped forward to shake hands. "Just to show my sincerity, I’ll let you know that you are the only one other than my father who knows about this. So keep your lips tight and take off that bracelet."

Thane was not dumb enough to not understand the meaning behind his words, so he took off the bracelet and carefully placed it in his pocket.

With that settled, Max turned back towards the metallic door. "Behold the sight of my underground empire." He said as he opened the door, and a ray of bright light blinded Thane.

It took a few seconds for Thane’s eyes to adjust, and what he took in was nothing less than a new world.

It was a massive mind blowing two story gambling establishment. It was an architectural masterpiece of art and crafts, as if it was carefully designed by experts. Featuring a unique combination of wood, art, glass and meticulous craftsmanship.

Thane could feel the quality of the custom designed furniture, all shaped after some legendary beasts. Each carried a significant meaning, especially the 3 two meter tall statues. Thane somehow recognised them. One was a flying vulture faced statue, similar to Max’s mask.

"This one must be The Huma Bird." He mumbled and looked at the other. It was none other than the statue of Pixiu, a dragon faced lion with wings.

Thane turned his gaze at the 3rd statue. A toad with red rubies serving as its red eyes, it had three legs and his mouth held a golden coin.

Thane was still in daze when Max’s voice came. "This is Jin Chan. The Money Frog". It’s said to appear near homes or businesses that will soon receive good news, often wealth-related."

Thane nodded his head in bewilderment, he acknowledged the craze of his new friend. "Do you have a mask for it as well?" Thane asked.

"Yes" he said. "I gave it to my father."

It was then, Thane understood the importance of the mask he wore. One of the 3 statues that stood prominently carried a significant value to Max’s life. He gave one to himself, the 2nd to his father, and the last remaining one to him. A boy he just met a few hours ago.

For some reason, instead of being suspicious, Thane was moved.

But before he could say anything, a man with a mask came over to greet them. "Greetings, Sir Huma Bird." He bowed to Max and pivoted towards Thane. "Greetings, Sir Pixiu."

"How is it going, Hawk?" Asked Max.

The man wore a mask of hawk and attire that mostly butlers wear. "Thriving as always sir." He then looked at Thane with a side-eye and continued. "Congratulations on finding the owner of the Pixiu mask, sir."

"You’re welcome, treat him as you treat me, you know the rules and-"

Before Max could finish Hawk answered, "I’ll prepare the tea."

"Haha, good job." Max praised.

Thane was standing still like the other 3 statues. The door they came through led to the top floor, directly into the office. The whole office was made of a one-way glass which provided visibility from one side while blocking it from the other, but only when the exterior was brighter than the interior.

"Do you like my lifelong achievement? I put all my fortune on it. I named it ’Den of Legends’. Stupid, I know but I couldn’t think of any other name."

Thane finally came back to his senses and shook his head. "No, it’s a perfect name, with all these mythical custom arts, it’s a worthy name I say."

He gulped his dry throat. "I can never build something like this."

Max didn’t wait and grabbed Thane’s arm, sizing it up all the way to his bicep and then sized his arm in a similar way. "Everyone has their own strengths Thane. I could never be as strong and bold as you.

That’s why I want to be with you, my mind is saying that we can hide each other’s weaknesses."

"This..." he pointed towards the gambling house, full of masked men and women, busy in their betting. "This is just a start."