Chapter 106: New Year Conflict

On the last day of May, the author humbly requests your recommendation votes!

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Time turns back to the moment the Black Tiger Family’s New Year banquet had just begun.

Candlelight blazed. Thick, silver candles, as broad as a man’s arm, sat in candelabras of pure gold and silver, encrusted with countless gemstones and pearls. They cast a dazzling radiance that turned the massive banquet hall as bright as day. Important members of the Black Tiger Family, dressed in magnificent attire, gathered to drink their fill and feast on a vast array of delicacies, the atmosphere reaching a boiling point.

The central hall hosted the formal New Year’s celebration dinner, while the side halls were reserved for more lively and relaxed buffet parties and New Year’s dances. The middle and lower-ranking members of the Black Tiger Family—the family’s rising generation—gathered there to enjoy one of the few carefree and joyous moments of the year.

Lin Qi, carrying a jar of wine and accompanied by Enzo, wandered through the various halls. As the sole heir of the Black Tiger Family, Blackbeard had selected a group of young people when Lin Qi was a child to grow up alongside him. Having endured hardships together since youth, Lin Qi had forged deep friendships with these individuals—indeed, these youths had often served as accomplices in the reckless antics Lin Qi pulled within the social circles of Dunkirk.

During the three years Lin Qi spent studying in the Imperial Capital, these youths had been sent by Blackbeard to various outposts along the northern coastline controlled by the Black Tiger Family, where they were tempered through brutal combat. It was only with the arrival of the New Year that Blackbeard had ordered them to be recalled.

There were over three hundred of them. They had their own parents, lovers, and friends. They were dispersed throughout the halls, indulging in the simple family joys they had been denied for an entire year.

Lin Qi went from person to person, clinking his wine jar against theirs. Three years apart, these youths who had grown up with him were now as tall and sturdy as the black pines in the forest, having completed their transition from boys to men amidst blood and turmoil. Some of the more outstanding among them even carried a layer of gloomy, murderous intent, much like the aura possessed by Hammer and Butcher.

After three years of separation, these youths were overjoyed to see Lin Qi. They enthusiastically downed cup after cup of fine wine with him before Lin Qi signaled for them to return to their families, while he and Enzo staggered through the halls.

Having just shared a drink with a staunch brother who had taken the fall for him more than once, Lin Qi burst into the dance hall with a laugh.

Hundreds of Black Tiger Family youths were dancing the joyous "Storm Dance."

This was a dance inherited from the eccentric Goblins; whenever a storm struck, those Goblins would sing and dance in the wind. The dance was incredibly passionate and cheerful, characterized by bold, uninhibited movements full of raw vitality. While the members of noble, high-society families looked down upon such dances, they were welcomed by all the commoners across the Western Continent.

Hundreds of gorgeously dressed young men and women formed concentric circles that swirled like a tornado. They shouted with joy; the maidens spun lightly, their massive skirts reflecting halos of light like blooming flowers under the lamps. The young men stomped their hard-soled boots frantically, the rhythmic collision of palms and boots creating thunderous "claps."

Like thunder amidst a gale, like lightning within a hurricane, like the legendary storm sprites, hundreds of sweat-drenched youths danced to their hearts' content. The teams, composed of a dozen concentric circles, surged rapidly. Long hair flew, and glistening beads of sweat scattered into the air. In the corner of the hall, a dozen musicians played their flutes with the shrill intensity of a gale and beat their leather drums with the resonance of rolling thunder.

Lin Qi laughed heartily, dropped his wine jar, and plunged into the crowd, wiggling his hips randomly.

Enzo also laughed aloud. This unbridled youthful vitality, this aura of unrestrained freedom—this was the rising generation of the Black Tiger Family. Enzo felt his muscles trembling; he, too, wanted to join this feverish dance. Having lost his parents at a young age, when had Enzo ever seen such a joyous, frenzied communal celebration?

Just as Enzo was about to pull a girl nearby into the dance, Lin Qi suddenly stumbled out of the rapidly spinning formation. He was laughing, though the rapid spinning and the excessive alcohol had left him a bit dizzy. He grabbed Enzo and pointed to the corner of the hall, saying with a grin, "That is Maria, my former personal maid. Standing next to her is her husband, my good brother Leo!"

Enzo looked over. Maria was a girl of modest height, slender, and with a delicate, beautiful face. She had a pair of lovely green eyes and light golden hair draped softly behind her—clearly a gentle and kind-hearted girl.

Beside her stood Leo, who was nearly two heads taller than Maria. He was a sturdy, handsome young man as robust as a mountain. His thick arms were crossed over his chest, and he was chewing on something heartily. He turned his head from time to time to share a laugh with Maria. Both of them looked so relaxed and happy, as if a halo called "happiness" surrounded them.

"Haha, Maria! Leo! When did you two get back?"

Having been cared for by Maria since childhood, and with Leo having served as his personal bodyguard for as long as Lin Qi could remember, their union was a natural outcome. It was no wonder that when Arthur had targeted Maria, it had provoked such a violent reaction from Lin Qi.

Humming the cheerful Goblin tune "Storm Ballad," Lin Qi walked toward the corner where Maria and Leo stood. "Leo is a genius at cultivating Battle Qi," he said with a laugh as he walked. "Three years ago, when I left Dunkirk for the Imperial Capital, he was already a Mid-Rank Knight! Haha, I wonder how strong he is now."

With a quirky grin, Lin Qi muttered, "I really owe him for knocking out the guards of Jin, Angel, and Anlin back then. Otherwise, how could I have fished so many lovely, golden 'clinking coins' out of their pockets?"

Enzo’s face darkened. So, Leo was actually an accomplice to Lin Qi’s robberies?

Just as Lin Qi was about to reach Maria and Leo, several figures suddenly darted out from the crowd.

Dressed in a magnificent golden robe and holding a string of sandalwood prayer beads from the East in his left hand, Arthur stood in front of Lin Qi, his one good eye narrowed.

"Lin Qi, I hear you’ve done some remarkable things these past few days. You killed a Barbarian Berserker? Truly impressive!"

Arthur’s voice was filled with mockery and suspicion. He tilted his head, looked at Lin Qi, and whispered with a laugh, "You aren't just bragging, are you?"

Lin Qi looked at the obstructing Arthur and, without a word, kicked him directly in the crotch.