As the guard brought down his sword, Mike created chains binding his own wrists, and used them to block the sword.
"How !?" the guard exclaimed.
While he was wondering how he did it, Mike got up and headbutted him, knocking him back a few steps. Mike then picked up his orichus bar and, without even giving the guard time to regain his senses, knocked him out with a blow to the head. Clarc, who had joined him in the meantime, sighed with relief when he saw Mike unharmed.
"The winner of this practice fight is our guest, Mike!" Clarc proclaimed as if he were the referee of a wrestling match- or an illegal dog fight. "Now that it's said…"
He grabbed the still unconscious knight who had tried to kill Mike by the ankle and began to drag him with him, dragging him along the ground like a rag doll.
"I think I'm going to have a few things to sort out with this dear friend here, don't wait for us for dinner, it might be a little long"
Mike sincerely pitied this man for incurring Clarc's wrath, even though he had tried to kill him.
As he returned to his room, Mike accidentally bumped into someone, and looked down to see who it was:
"Oh sorry, I'm sorry, I'm quite clumsy and- Wait, Sora?"
By pure chance, he had just come across Sora, who had avoided him during the last few weeks.
"Hehe, it's funny, I'm not the only one bumps into something every five minutes anymore Mr. Mike" the kid said.
It was the perfect opportunity to try to reconcile with him, so Mike didn't miss his chance:
"Sora, I'm sorry if me being friends with Clarc bothers you and-"
This is the gloss:
"Hehe, I saw your match, Mr. Mike. I also saw you tell "dad" to stop apologizing, but you do it even more often, it's funny"
What surprised Mike, more than the fact that Sora managed to infiltrate the guard training room on his own, was the fact that he called Clarc "daddy".
"Sora, I..."
Mike couldn't find the right words.
"Do you want me to reconcile with dad?" Sora asked with a carefree look.
Mike nodded.
"Haha, you guys must really be great friends" Sora said. "As for me, there is no one my age to play with and, in the whole castle, there is only one person who was willing to play with me. But daddy kept trying to play with me so I should say yes, right?"
To help Clarc, Mike really just wanted to say yes. But, to be sure that Sora wasn't going to force himself, he chose his words carefully:
"Don't say yes because you need someone to play with or because I asked you to" Mike said. "Say yes because he's your father, he loves you and he's sorry."
Sora pretended to think before answering:
"Okay, Mr. Mike!"
Then he turned around and started to walk away:
"I have work to do, but I promise I will come see you tomorrow. I even prepared a great surprise, you'll see!"
With these words, Sora left, and Mike returned to his room.
Later, about an hour after Mike had gone back to his room and had dinner, Clarc knocked on the door and came back in when Mike told him to do so.
"Did he say anything in particular?" Mike asked.
"No, just that he had snappeddown because he was tired of being "invaded in his territory by this infamous guest'" Clarc answered. "I swear, some people really aren't ashamed of anything"
"Heh, you talk a bit like a boomer here"
"A what?"
"Um, forget it. Anyway, did he really just try to kill me because my presence annoyed him?"
That's what he said at first, but after a while of talking calmly, he ended up giving me more interesting information.
Mike felt curious: what could have made this guard want his life?
"Which ones?" he asked.
"Apparently someone came to him at night to suggest he get rid of you" Clarc replied.
"And he accepted just like that?"
"Apparently, this someone claimed to have heard the king say that he would stop the games and the destruction of worlds if you "disappeared". This guard's mother lives in one of the worlds that will be destroyed if you lose your next games, so it's understandable"
"Ah, now I feel a little bad for him. What happened to him?" Mike asked.
"Don't worry, I took that into account and just had him kicked out of the castle without any more serious punishment. He is missing a few teeth, but he will survive"
Mike was quite satisfied with this punishment but he asked:
Few teeth missing? Was my swing that strong?
No, replied Clarc. But I guess my punch was.
You broke his teeth. Wow, you really are a thick brute.
Only with those who threaten the people I care about.
Mike chuckled a little:
"Haha, so I'm someone you care about?"
He had asked this question as a joke, but Clarc answered in a very serious tone:
"Mike, my wife is dead, so is my former best friend, and I have no family, at least that I know of. My only remaining loved ones are Sora, who continues to ignore my existence, and my new best friend, you. Do you really think I don't care about you?"
Mike was taken aback, but still managed to formulate an answer:
"No, I know, I don't have many close friends too, even if it's not as serious as it is for you. I just have my mother and my friends Chloé, Frey and Lum. But honestly, I have no idea what happened to them while I was here. I'm scared, actually. But hey, I can hold on thanks to you and Sora"
Mike smiled:
"And speaking of him, he kindly agreed to come see us tomorrow to play"
Clarc's eyes suddenly widened as he raised his eyebrows, as if he had just remembered something.
"Is there a problem?" Mike asked, intrigued.
"Actually…"
Clarc hesitated, but ended up admitting to him:
"In fact yesterday I heard King Shinki talking about resuming games with servants, he said. I'm not 100% sure but... I think it will start again tomorrow"
"Tomorrow !? So, does that mean all this destruction will start again!?" Mike exclaimed.
But he quickly recovered his composure:
"No, actually, forget what I said. There will be no more worlds destroyed, for the simple reason that, from tomorrow's game, I intend to win and put an end to all this" Mike declared.
"It's the right mentality" Clarc said. "Do you want me to help you review the game one last time?"
"It'd be my pleasure"
Both of them therefore began to work on this famous game one last time. One last time. However, this last time lasted so long that at three in the morning they were still there. Mike ends up falling asleep standing up.
'Haha, he looks so much more peaceful when he sleeps' Clarc thought.
The latter carried Mike to his bed and installed him, before leaving the room as discreetly as possible, and also going to bed.
The next day, Mike woke up to find a note at the entrance to his room, slipped under his door during the night, indicating that the games had resumed, with the same rules as before. Mike took a deep breath before starting to walk towards the game room.
'Come on, here we go' he thought.
Once there, he came across King Shinki, and thought that he had not missed seeing his face.
"Good to see you, Mike" Shinki greeted with his usual smile. "So, what game are you going to choose today? It's been so long, I dare to expect something original from you"
Without a word to him, Mike walked over to the table and grabbed just some pens and paper, before throwing everything else on the floor.
"Today we're going to play the true or false game" Mike declared. "It can be played with just these pens and papers that were on the table, so I guess it follows your rules?"
"Haha, you intrigue me" Shinki said. "Tell me more, how does it play out?"
Mike started explaining the rules:
"There are six rounds in total. Each player will have three rounds where they must give a statement, and then mark on their sheet whether it is a "lie" or a "truth". The other must guess it within five minutes. Of course, we do not have to mark "truth" even if the statement is true or "lie" even if it is false. The important thing is to know what the other person wrote on their paper. Are these rules valid?"
"They are, it's an excellent choice too" Shinki replied, still smiling. "Do you want to start now? Or maybe you want to listen to my suggestion for a little bonus rule? It is not obligatory but I have the feeling that it will interest you"
"A bonus rule? What is it?" Mike asked, both suspicious and intrigued.
At the time, Mike didn't know it yet, but the worst was yet to come.