Harem Tournament of Champions

Raising the pendant so Gad could have a better view of it, Kritz gritted his teeth as he yelled, "what the hell is this doing in your possession?!"

Gad raised a brow and bit down on his bottom lip to stifle a laugh.

"You tried to kill me because of that trinket?"

'Trinket?!' Kritz's brows twitched and involuntarily let out a laugh in disbelief.

The very object that would help his lord in his search for Dalsa, yet a guard had made a degrading remark?

Inhaling and exhaling, Kritz forced a smile, "could you tell me how this had gotten into your possession?"

Rubbing his chin, Gad narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Why do I feel like this is worth something?"

"It would be in your interest if you answer the question I ask so politely." Kritz countered.

Clicking his tongue and knowing he stood no chance in dueling to keep the information to himself, he offered his hand to propose a deal.

"If I do tell you, you have to give me five thousand silver coins a month from now."

Kritz's brows creased at the condition, "are you trying to make some sort of transaction for information?"

Shrugging, Gad grinned. "Let's just put it up as a price for the damages I had sustained from you in just a few days. Besides, you have lots of spare money that you could waste on me."

"Weak! Robbery!" Kritz snarled under his breath.

Cupping his ear, Gad pretended as though he couldn't pick up on what had been said and asked him for a repeat.

"You're playing with fire..." Kritz warned, shaking his head at how dangerously low he was going in testing his patience.

He began to question why he had chosen to visit Gad at the time, staring at him as he contemplated his next step.

"You do know I don't fear death, it's inevitable, or else how would I and the others have been chosen to serve our lord?" Gad reminded with a wiggle of his brows.

Letting out a sigh, Kritz shook his head. "You really are as cunning as before."

Giving a mocking bow to Kritz, he raised his head and smiled. "How else would a moron like me survive amongst you prodigies?"

Scoffing at his attempt to get in his good book, Kritz readily agreed in exchange for precise information and why he has the pendant.

"Let's shake on it." Gad opened his palm, with his palm glowing with his Sux coating them.

This was an unbreakable bond between the two parties until both sides fulfilled their end of the bargain.

Kritz stared at his hand, "you really prepared ahead of time."

Shaking his hand, Gad eagerly awaited his response. "This shouldn't be too hard, red eyes!"

"You could be dead if I wanted to." Kritz sneered with a ruse smile.

Cringing to how disturbing that was, he masked his nervousness with a low chuckle.

Reluctantly doing the same to his palm, Kritz shook his hand with a crooked smile.

Gad had not realized what he planned on doing until he felt his vice-like grip tighten.

"Hey! Hey! I said shake not squ....eeeeeeze!" He exclaimed as soon as Kritz let go finally.

"Now spill!"

Exhaling and facepalming, Gad wasn't all too pleased with how quickly Kritz needed the information and how he was oblivious to the truth.

"Remember when you went on a rampage?"

Kritz folded his arm and had a deadpanned look.

He was in a feral state, that had temporarily blocked out his reasoning, there was no way he could remember anything apart from what he had been told.

The very part in his life that made him feel vulnerable just like he had felt as a child with no memory of where he had been or who he was.

Nodding his head, Gad looked awkwardly to the side. "That's right, you couldn't."

Wheezing at how Kritz took his words, he gulped the moment he felt the chilly environment seething off Kritz.

Comporting himself, he cleared his throat. "You gave me the pendant."

Sweat dropping at how well Kritz would take the information, he switched his gaze every once in a while to his wall or the ceiling.

"What rubbish are you spilling?" Kritz snarled.

"Woah! Woah! Take it easy, red eyes, I said nothing but the truth." Gad raised his hands in surrender.

His heart pounding at how sinister Kritz looked, 'I was meant to be resting up, a good nice bath if possible!'

"If it's the truth, how the hell could I have been the one who would give you the pendant?!"

"You're asking me?!" Gad barked, sick and tired of being doubted and accused.

He had remembered when he had tried to approach Kritz as did Loid. At the last second did they realize that was one of the worst decisions.

"You had grabbed my neck as you had done," Gad held his neck as he remembered. "I'm starting to wonder if that's your best move!"

Kritz snarled at his mocking words and took a step forward.

Gad pushed back, laughing at how Kritz had been triggered. "All I can say is that you had pulled me far into the forest and you shoved the pendant into my pocket..."

Kritz rubbed his chin, shocked at the revelation and confused by what he was listening to.

"... I had thought you wanted me to keep it safe for you and probably you were in your right senses–no offense!"

"Offense none taken." Kritz hissed with uninterested eyes.

Exhaling, he shook his head as he attempted to continue with his explanation.

"I had wanted to ask what it was, but then you pulled your special move on me," Gad had his palm around his neck to mimic the gesture.

Rolling his eyes, Kritz coated his hand with his Sux and glared, "Any more of that, and I assure you that would be your last!"

Gulp!

"Well, that was the last thing I remembered before waking up at the infirmary. Figure out the rest of the missing puzzle that had put me in danger, smartass." Gad shrugged.

Kritz raised the pendant in his palm and a newfound mystery had unfolded–how was he in the possession of something that had been lost?

"Now do you understand why I charged you for my 'truth'?!" Gad scoffed, raising his chin in pride at getting him in such a confused state.

Kritz nodded involuntarily, still in a daze at the information.

"Are you alright, though?" Gad asked as he tilted his head in worry.

'What the heck is wrong with you? He tried to kill you for the second time!'

"Could I take this with me?" Kritz inquired.

'If I do say no, what's the assurance that it wouldn't mean I lose a limb?' Gad thought in fear.

"I had charged you for that while we made the deal, it's all yours for the keeping," Gad replied.

"Right choice," Kritz said with a smirk.

Gad did a double take on its meaning, "it was a test?"

"Our deal is settled," Kritz replied

"What?" Gad scrunched up his nose in confusion.

Without another word, Kritz turned around to leave.

Whoosh!

He disappeared with a cloud of black smoke in his wake.

Cough!

Cough!

Gad blew on the residue of black smoke and frowned at how rude that was.

"You feral b–" He paused the moment he caught sight of stacks of silver coins where Kritz had stood.

Crawling down his bed, he gawked at the height and width. 'Is this...'

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, he picked one to check its authenticity by biting on it. "It freaking is!"

Pulling the coins to his side to hug the huge pile, he laughed hysterically and was overjoyed by his quick way of gaining something better than the pendant.

"You can take the stupid pendant, it wasn't mine anyways!" He laughed out loud, looking at the coins with pride.

*****

Walking through the hallways, Kritz continuously stared at the pendant, racking his thoughts on numerous possible outcomes.

It was a lot harder trying to get those who had been able to work their way into his head and manipulate him to do such while he was in a blank state.

'Did someone take advantage of my feral state? Was I controlled for a bigger purpose than what meets the eye? What was the reason it was given to Gad?'

Shaking these thoughts off him, he sighed, uncomfortable with how confused he was about what was going on with him.

'Start from the very beginning!' He chanted in his thoughts, thinking of the one person who might know.

*****

A/N

¶ Who do you think is behind how Gad was in possession of the pendant?

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