"Dong… dong… dong."
Luck snatched a die from the clown's hand, interrupting the rhythm of his juggling. The remaining three dice in his hand scattered like loose parts, falling to the ground with several dull thuds.
Looking at the iron sword, which emitted an unusual black light and floated not far in front of him, the clown's face, painted with white and red oil, was filled with a hint of astonishment.
After a while, he turned to look at Bai En in the crowd. "You used repulsion magic? No… my magic power is overflowing around here; it's more like the magic was analyzed and converted into magic power when it was cast."
It was very strange.
Hmm… not that the clown almost instantly analyzed the characteristics of Magic Conversion, but rather the clown's voice. It was completely different from his comical face—calm and gentle, like a profound adult.
"This…"
Fragil and Magna exchanged glances. The sudden contrast was like a beautifully dressed young girl opening her mouth to speak, only to have a rough, unrefined accent.
"Was that you talking just now?" Fragil asked cautiously.
The clown didn't overthink it and answered directly, "Of course. Besides me, no one else spoke just now. If not me, then who?"
"That's true…"
"So, you can talk? Why didn't you say anything earlier? I thought you were a doll." Luck directly picked up the clown, who was half a head shorter than him.
The clown, lifted into the air, twisted his body. "Let go, let go of me!"
"I can't handle you guys playing like this right now."
"Earlier… earlier, it was just because no one had come here for so long. I felt very bored and monotonous, so I thought of playing a game with you."
"A game?" Luck mumbled, casually putting the clown down. "Like chasing your dice just now? Although it's interesting, I feel like fighting is more satisfying, right?"
"How about we change the rules and have a fight instead? It'll definitely be much more fun than chasing dice!"
"How about it? How about it?"
The clown, back on the ground, twisted his small body and darted away, escaping Luck's clutches. He scurried to the center of the circular platform and said, "If we absolutely must fight, how about we do it as an extra match after my game is over?"
"Of course, the prerequisite for entering the extra match is that one of you must take a die from my hand."
"Doesn't that count?" Bai En suddenly spoke. "Luck already took a die from your hand."
"…" The clown became conflicted.
He really wanted to say it didn't count, that he wasn't ready, but the reality was that a die had already been snatched. He wasn't someone who liked to cheat.
The atmosphere fell silent.
"Luck, don't forget our objective. Games are a waste of time. We should first find the treasure vault in this Magic Palace." Magna said to Luck.
A Magic Palace… which is an ancient tomb where relics are buried, actually has a talking clown buried inside. How can that not seem suspicious?… Wait, could he be a monster sealed in the Magic Palace?
The so-called game is just an excuse to help him break the seal.
Magna's imagination ran wild.
"Eh? Magna… We finally encountered something so interesting, and we're leaving?" Luck's face showed some hesitation, but then Asta's declaration flashed through his mind, made under the moonlight to his unhealable left arm: "Even with only one hand, I can still become the Wizard King."
There was a touch of unstoppable sadness in the grandeur.
"We're good friends!"
Luck stopped thinking about fighting and games, preparing to leave with Magna to search for the treasure vault.
"Wait…"
Seeing the four turn their backs, the silent clown finally spoke, "If you're looking for the treasure vault, don't bother. Because there's nothing in this Magic Palace. Only I am buried here."
Before Bai En and the others could recover, the clown, his face covered in red and white oil paint, continued, "Or, to put it another way, I am the treasure vault of the Magic Palace. If I wish it, you can obtain the riches and magic here… But if I don't wish it, you will get nothing."
"This is… my tomb."
The faint yet casual words made Bai En and the other three, who were about to leave, feel as if their feet were nailed to the ground.
Bai En, who was the first to turn around and ask, didn't fully believe the clown's words. He asked, "You said there's no treasure vault here, so why did someone obtain a blood cup from this place?"
"With that guy's strength, he shouldn't have been able to pass your game, right?"
"blood cup?" The clown murmured, and the past memory quickly resurfaced in his mind. "Oh, you mean the Blood Chalice. Goth indeed didn't pass my game, but he told me some stories about what was happening outside. I found them very interesting, so I gave him the cup."
"I presume you've already met him, haven't you?"
"How is he? Did he make good use of the Blood Chalice I gave him? That's a considerably powerful magical tool."
"He… I killed him." Bai En said coldly. "That guy used the Blood Chalice to plunder nearby villages, kill people for their blood, constantly build up his forces, and attempted to incite war to seize national power through military means."
"Is that so?" The clown muttered softly. His painted face showed no joy or sorrow, neither calm nor indignation.
"You gave such a magical tool to him?"
"What do you mean?"
Bai En looked into the clown's eyes. "That magical tool can trigger a person's greed and infinitely amplify desires. I think this might also be the primary reason he embarked on this path of no return."
"Trigger greed?"
The clown looked up, meeting Bai En's gaze. "The main ability of the Blood Chalice is to increase a Mage's magic power and, on that basis, bestow them with new magic attributes… Of course, there are certain side effects, but I already told him about them when I gave him the Blood Chalice."
"As long as one's conviction is strong, they won't be affected."
A sigh sounded. "I thought he could overcome it and make good use of the Blood Chalice. I didn't expect so many things to happen."
'Yo~ So, according to you, you're a good person then?'
Just as Bai En was about to say something, the clown spoke first, "You are Magic Knights of the Clover Kingdom's Magic Knights, aren't you?"
The topic subtly shifted.
"It truly brings back memories."
"What? You know people from the Magic Knights?"
The clown rarely smiled, his bright red lips curving upwards. It wasn't off-putting; instead, it conveyed a genuine sense of relief. "In my era, the system of the Magic Knights had just been established."
"Speaking of which, I have a very deep connection with the Magic Knights."
...