564. Preliminaries VI

564. Preliminaries VI

“Yeah, I think so,” Adam replied.

Jurot crossed his arms, wondering if they needed to do anything if the arena owner was going to threaten them. Since she hadn’t done anything to Adam, Jurot decided to let it go.

“I made bank,” Adam whispered, smiling. “I’m going to keep betting on us, though I don’t think that I’ll be able to make as much as I did today.”

“Blade could have taken one of the top three spots with Sir Roseia and Sir Karra,” Jurot said. “There were many who would have bet for her.”

“Does that mean they’ll bet for me if I face Sir Roseia?” Adam asked, frowning. ‘So I’ll make a lot less money.’

“The Aldish will think themselves above the Magisterium. They will bet on Sir Karra and Sir Roseia.”

“The Aldish still have their pride,” Jaygak added.

“Good.” Adam smirked wide, tasting the gold to be made. “I’ll milk their pride for all it’s worth.”

The farmers and the porters shared glances between one another. They, too, felt their pouches begin to grow heavy. Once they were at the guild, the farmers and porters met together.

“Do you follow the silver rule too?” Rick asked.

“We do.”

Rick bowed his head slowly. The silver rule was a rule owed to the Golden Lord, the Lord of Trade, Musa. Simply put, they would pool together their resources together, and would each take a share once the business was concluded. This included the time Adam had split them apart, so though the gold they had gained was different, it was split between them all the same.

“We should do the same with the bets,” Rick said. “How much have you bet so far?”

“Thirty gold on each of the older Iyrmen, including Timojin and Amokan,” Remy said.

“We did the same,” Rick admitted. “How much did you bet on Adam?”

“Thirty gold. You?”

Rick nodded. “Would you like to join our pot?”

“What are the rules?”

“We will all pool into the same pot to bet, and we will only bet with the lowest amount comfortable,” Rick said. “We will win the same and lose the same.”

Jeremy threw a look to his cousin, before the pair thought about what Rick was offering, and why. They didn’t need Rick to suggest something like that since they could have made the rule between themselves. However, if they joined the farmers, it would mean there were more people to caution them against betting too much. Rick was a father, and the most cautious among them all in the matter of gold, whereas the porters were cautious in the matters of blood.

Remy nodded to Jeremy, who returned with a nod. “We’ll join, but I have a condition.”

“What is it?”

“We always bet on Nobby.” Remy stared deep into Rick’s eyes, the porter’s glare unyielding. “It doesn’t have to be much, just a gold.”

“Nobby?”

“I’m sure he’ll place high, so we should bet on him too,” Remy said. “We’ve already placed twenty gold each on the boy to win.”

“The point of the group is to bet comfortably,” Rick replied. “Forcing us to bet goes against its principles.”

“Even if it’s one gold, we should bet on Nobby,” Remy said. “It’s not about whether he wins or loses, it’s about the principle. The boy’s been trained by the Iyrmen, and Adam.”

Rick exchanged a look with the farmers. “Even if we bet only one gold?”

“Yes.”

“Okay,” Rick said, extending a hand, shaking Remy’s forearm.

“Look at the monster we’ve raised,” Adam said, with far too light of a tone. “Do you know what the odds were, Sir Vonda? Twenty to one! Nobby’s going to make me rich once he wins! Well, maybe not rich, since I already have a fair amount of gold, but certainly more comfortable!”

The others around looked his way, wondering who the Half Elf was. Stating he was rich while surrounded by capable warriors certainly put a target on his back, even if he was settled beside a member of an order.

“We’re going to take first in at least two different segments,” Adam said. “Should we aim for three?”

Nobby and the Iyrmen made their way up to the group. The teen Iyrmen, who had shown themselves capable, caused the coveting gazes to back away.

Adam clasped Nobby on his shoulders. “Nobby, do you know how much I bet on you just now?”

“No.”

Adam smirked wider. “Five hundred gold, my boy.”

“Okay.”

Brittany wasn’t sure why Adam was lying, since five hundred was only half of the gold he had bet on Nobby.

“I bet some of the party fund too,” Adam said, patting Nobby on his back. “I’ll make sure to take a bit of my earnings and send them to your family.”

“Thank you, mister boss.”

“It’s the least I can, my towering muscle of gold,” Adam said.

“Number one enforcer.”

“That’s right!” Adam continued to laugh. “I’m sure you guys did well too?”

“We did,” Nirot replied.

“I thought so. You guys win too easily, so the bets don’t really favour you much.” Adam sighed, though his lips twitched into a smirk. “Oh well.”

The group remained together, as they had paid the gold required to remain to watch the fights the entire day. Jurot had made sure to pay for the first day with the party fund. He, too, had forgotten in his excitement to watch the tournament. They bought more food as time passed, spending silvers for the snacks.

The others weren’t sure how to feel since the party fund was paying for it all.

“How many people are in this room?” Adam asked a guard.

“A thousand?” the guard replied.

“Damn, that many, really?” Adam asked.

“Yes.”

“How much for a mug of ale?”

“Three coppers.”

Adam held out four gems to a nearby server. “If anyone orders a mug of ale, please take it from this first.”

“As you say,” the server replied, bowing their head. “Who should we refer to ask their benefactor?”

“I’m not sure if that’s quite up to the title of benefactor, but tell them that...” Adam thought about it. “The United Kindom.”

“As you wish.”

‘I wonder how much I should bet on Jurot and the others?’ Adam thought.

Enjoying the tournament by watching the fights? :/

Enjoying the tournament by taking all their gold? :)