All Chapters of The Last Golden Eagle : Chapter 21
- Chapter 30
50 chapters
Chapter 21- Red saris
"Take it," Blade insisted.Darian felt his arms stiffening.Blade eyed him cautiously. He put back the scroll and folded his arms across his chest.Darian narrowed his eyes. "My parents are long dead. I also hate to talk about my past. I prefer to keep it." He suddenly felt bad about his answer and hung his head.Blade dropped both hands to his side. "That's how to answer a question that deeply affects your heart."Darian's head shot up. There was a puzzled expression on his face."You were not expecting my answer. I know," Blade said. He rose to his feet and folded both hands behind his back. "When your heart has secret wounds, you guard them until you heal. You do not need to tell anyone anything if you do not want to."Darian opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. He closed his mouth and nodded his head.Blade continued, "I do not care if you have a past to hide. I just sense there is something special about you."He walked towards Darian and patted him on the shoulder t
Chapter 22 - The Assassin's Gambit
Darian side stepped with a swift, practiced motion, the assassin's knife flashing past his ear. He had seen the move coming. He dodged her second lunge, weaving back and forth like a shadow. He waited for the right moment, a subtle shift in her balance as she prepared for a third strike. Just as she attempted, Darian's foot found a small rock on the ground and he kicked it hard. It didn’t hit her, but the sound was enough of a distraction. She faltered for a fraction of a second, and that was all Darian needed.He moved in, not to attack, but to disarm. He grabbed her wrist, twisting it just so, and with a quick, fluid motion, he snatched the knife from her hand. The girl gasped.He sent two kicks to her belly and gave her a shove that floored her. Before she could regain composure, he was towering over her. The knife was pointed in her face. "Move a bit, and you will see your insides pour out. I promise you that."The girl could taste her own blood. She could also see the fury in Dar
Chapter 23 - The Unseen Threat
Dimitri was shocked by the intensity of Darian's strength. Darian moved Dimitri's hand away."You are so disrespectful," Dimitri yelled."And you are a mean bully," Darian replied.Dimitri's mouth opened to grope for words, but he found none. He nodded his head. "I see your true colors. Believe me when I say that I will teach you a lesson. The both of you."Darian left his path and Dimitri walked out.Noel sat in a chair and his eyes roamed the empty table."You can't be that hungry. You ate so much at the tavern," Darian said as he walked closer to Noel."When I was a slave, I thought everything would be great for me as long as I became free. But now... I am finally free. Thanks to you," Noel said with a forced smile.Darian patted his shoulder.Noel continued, "But I am still treated with little respect. I get tossed around and my food gets thrown away like I am less than a dog.""You hate Dimitri, right?" Darian asked.Noel nodded his head. "Is that a question?"Darian sat by Noel'
Chapter 24 - The Secret Ledger
Darian arranged all the books back the same way he had met them. The last thing he wanted was Dimitri noticing that he was searching for ancient sacred writings that hardly anyone in their generation knew about.Darian left the room and quickly went to the place where he had gotten the paper from. Dimitri was not there. Darian walked back to the spot he had taken it from, and kept it with the rest. As he walked out the door, he came face to face with Dimitri."And what are you doing here?" Dimitri asked looking down at him.Darian wore a confident posture. "I wanted to keep the list for yesterday's books 'read and bought'. You were not around, so I thought I would drop it on the table."Dimitri bent as if Darian would not hear him when he was standing, "Get lost."Darian met his gaze without flinching. Then he nodded his head and walked away without uttering a word.Darian found Noel cleaning some books in another room. He stood on a ladder with a rag in his hand. "Darian, are you tir
Chapter 25 - The Lesser of Two Evils
Dimitri paused for a moment to think. "Searching the bushes… The both of you are stupid! I wonder why the both of you were even hired.""Sorry, boss," they said in unison.Dimitri continued, "With the information the boys have now, they must have gone to meet Blade. We must find them before they meet Blade. Let us go."The men rode away.Darian and Noel stepped out from the bush. Noel's hand went to his chest. "I was so scared. What are we going to do now?""They are going to Blade's house to position their spys now. We can't go there anymore," Darian said."My thoughts exactly," Noel said as he stood straight."We just have to foil the whole plan then," Darian said as he clenched his jaw."We?" Noel raised an eyebrow.Darian sighed, "If you are scared, you can go to a hole and hide." Darian turned his back and began to walk away.Noel scratched behind his ear. "I don't want to be a coward anymore. I will go with you."Darian stopped in his tracks. "That is the best thing you could ha
Chapter 26 - The Wager of a Lifetime
Darian and Noel walked to the front of the Pearl household. On the walls were engraved images of fish and water. At the entrance of the mansion, two guards in armor stood with their spears and swords. Darian took out a scroll from beneath his sleeve. He walked towards the guards and said, "I bring a scroll from Master Blade to the young master of the Pearl mansion, Jean Pearl."One guard stretched his hand to collect it from Darian. Darian put back his hands. "Master Blade also wants me to show him some reference points privately. He also told me to make sure that the young master writes everything quickly and returns it back to him today."The two guards exchanged glances. They moved aside from the way and Darian walked in with Noel."That was really smart of you," Noel whispered."Don't blow our cover," Darian whispered back.The entrance led them to a big courtyard surrounded with several rooms. The floor was made of cut stones. Some parts of the floor shone as sunlight poured on i
Chapter 27 - The Prince and The Plot
Jean’s eyes were fixed on the female servant who was speaking. He was not considering her looks or attire, he was considering her words. For about a minute, he just stood there breathing. He placed one hand behind him and looked back at Darian. Darian raised his eyebrows.Jean turned back to the maid and said, “Carry all the items into the inner room. Remember to keep the recent activities of our household and visitors secret. Do not even let any servant of Prince Lucius in. We maintain our stance against Prince Lucius.”The servant bowed, took two steps back, then she turned to leave.Jean turned fully to face Darian. “I will want to invite you and Noel to have tea and biscuits. What do you say?”Darian smirked. He turned to face Noel. Noel responded, “I want a big table full of delicious food.”Darian nodded his head.Jean rubbed his temple. “It is fine.” He waved a hand to the servants standing by and they got to work immediately.The brown and yellow colored room danced with the s
Chapter 28 - The Turning Tide
Darian wondered how things were going inside. He wondered how soon the signal would come. Darian had told Noel to sit this one out in a safe place. Maybe he was with dirty Patrick at the moment.A man beside Darian was eating bananas. "Want some?" the man asked. The place was dark, so Darian could not really see his face. Before they had entered the chariot, Darian had remembered that he was bald with a tattoo on his head. Darian took the banana from him and peeled it slowly, then he ate it.***Lucius flung the book at the feet of Adam. “You look at the crimes and evidence against you! You can't even refute it!”“Would you let me do that?” Adam asked Lucius in a bold tone, still not losing his cool, but he was tasting a bit of anger.Lucius rose to his feet. He straightened his clothes and began pacing the platform. “I am so disappointed in you Minister Adam Pearl. For years, your family has been an anchor in the west border land, but it is a pity that decades of hard work are being
Chapter 29 - The Final Deception
“I crawled my way up to this throne. I took it away from your family,” Lucius bragged.“That was because you bribed your way through. For generations, the Pearl family has been in charge. Whatever happened to make you sit on that throne was a mistake,” Adam shot back.“In your face,” Lucius laughed again. “You can’t win me because you are about to die. Two days ago, I sent carts of green cooked cake over. The poison should be expired right about now.”At that moment, Deji Fountain gripped his chest and began to struggle with his breathing. After many attempts to breathe properly, he fell on the floor and closed his eyes.“Let me explain what just happened,” Jean said. “We discovered your plot and we sent the green cooked cake to Minister Deji Fountain’s house. We did it in such a way that he believed they were rewards from you. I believe he and his family have eaten it . They should be facing the same problem he is facing now.”Lucius leaned forward in desperation and balled his fists
Chapter 30 - The Unspoken Threat
Lucius suddenly became excited. “I know who you are. I know you! You should not be here! You are odd! I know you.” Lucius tried to hurriedly move forward on his knees. The guards hushed from behind him to pull him back.Adam's and Jean's attention was piqued. Jean leaned forward. Darian felt sweat break out from his brow. He wondered if Lucius meant what he said. Did he really know him? Darian could feel the echoed beating of his heart in his ears. He inhaled and exhaled slowly, careful not to give any idea that he was scared of revelation.At that moment, they heard a call from outside. “I hope I am missing nothing?” It was the familiar voice of Master Blade ringing from the pavement as he walked into the side hall.Lucius froze back immediately without much effort. Master Blade entered and Adam and Jean rose to give him a bow. Darian did the same. Blade moved to sit on a chair next to Adam. “At ease everyone,” Blade said.Adam and Jean took their seats.Blade cleared his throat. “I