Emperor's Reckoning

The king furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at the young man. He didn't even know when did Gungnir escaped from his hand and ended up on Lyon's.

The wild black sparks periodically appeared as the bearing of a deity was exuded. Lyon stood as the combination of True Dragon Blessing and Gungnir made the calm sky filled with thunders.

"The Ruler of Luderia must be able to conquer Gungnir, that is the rule passed down for generations," mused the king.

This information was top secret, only during the elections shall it be known. However, since the situation had escalated to such and the commoners were all passed out, there was no point in hiding it.

"In other words, an outsider should be eligible to try to conquer Gungnir," said Lyon with a smirk.

The king kept silent as he heard what the young man said.

"Then might as well do it now," said Lyon as he lightly threw the black spear toward Prince Frey.

*stab

Gungnir penetrated the ground while seeping black sparks.

"They are not ready yet," said the king calmly. He knew well that these two were far beyond ready to conquer Gungnir.

Lyon shook his head, "No, you are wrong, the one who decides they are ready or not is Gungnir itself."

The prince gulped as all his vision landed on the weapon that exuded a mighty bearing. In front of him was the chance he had been waiting for, scheming, planning and it all came down to this moment.

"Be careful, that weapon has sentient, if it's a matter of wielding it than everybody can as long as the weapon itself allows it. However, to conquer it, you must connect with it," said the king.

A sentient weapon was more valuable than an ordinary weapon. It could change a man's fate for better or worse, once he had one. However, not any blacksmith could create such a masterpiece, that's why it was almost priceless.

Just because one cultivation was higher than the other, it didn't mean that the weapon would accept the stronger. There were factors that need to be fulfilled and all of that differs from one weapon to the other.

The prince was a careful man, he was thinking of how to approach the said weapon and the percentage of him conquering it. (What is Gungnir wants? Power? Intelligence? A leader?) thought Prince Frey.

He slowly placed his hand on the black spear as he tried to connect with it. A black dot of light appeared on the spear as it moved through the spot between Prince Frey's eyes, catching him off guard.

As the black dot traveled the sea of memories, the prince had his eyes closed on the outside.

"I also notice one more thing, old man," said Lyon to the king.

The king looked at the man that killed his son with calm eyes. He couldn't risk taking revenge with Luderia as the price, besides, based on the information so far, his own son was at fault. With his experience in the past time, he made the decision to let it go.

"You never did conquer Gungnir, didn't you?" asked Lyon.

His question made Princess Aelina's eyes opened wide as she looked at her father.

"Young man, no, young noble, not only you are strong, but you are also sharp. I will acknowledge with my pride as a king that you are without a doubt the strongest in the generation," said the king as he cupped his hands toward Lyon.

Aelina covered her gaped mouth with her hand as she heard what his father before saying, "Does that mean?"

"Yes, my dear, I was and still am, not acknowledge by Gungnir as its partner," said the king as he became gloomy.

"Not even your grandfather did," continued the king as he revealed another truth.

"T-then who was the one that able to do the feat?" asked the princess agitatedly.

For as long as she lived, she knew that Gungnir was the core treasure that made Luderia possible. Of course one would think that the king would be the holder of such a weapon. However, the truth was different, his father only 'borrowed' it because Gungnir itself let him.

The king shook his head in response to her question.

The princess instinctively took a step back as she thought (No one? So the very first ancestor also borrowed it too?).

"No wonder, you did not bring out any of Gungnir's art during our exchange, it is because you can't fully utilize it," said Lyon.

*bang

Prince Frey suddenly propelled from an impact and rolled on the ground. There was a tick of blood from the right edge of his mouth as he tried to get up.

Wiping the blood with his arm, he said, "Does that mean I failed?"

The king nodded in response. The harsh truth must be revealed for that was fertilizer for one's growth.

"Damn it, what am I lacking... if only the weapon could explain," sighed the prince. However, the chance of him being the ruler of Luderia was still there. If the princess also failed, then his father had no choice but chose the next ruler by himself.

Lyon suddenly appeared beside Aelina as he took Fenrir from her hand and put the lazy black-furball on top of his head, He lightly pushed the nervous princess forward, heading to the black spear.

Aelina put her hand on her chest as she nodded, "En!"

She steeled her heart as her hand grabbed the black spear. The black dot shot itself toward the spot between her eyes as it traveled her sea memories.

*bang

The princess was quickly propelled before Lyon gently caught her. The panting sounds were heard as Aelina strugglingly trying to keep calm.

The king sighed as he thought (Hah, in this generation too). He was hoping that there would be a figure from his family that finally could conquer or subdue Gungnir as their partner, alas the reality was so.

The two candidates failed the final test, now was the time for the king to make the crucial decision.