Silent Crown

by Feng Yue

  Bai Xi hesitated before replying honestly, “Pretty much.”

  “Nice. Can you tell me about it?” He patted the chair beside the bed, his eyes genuine. He suddenly wanted to know more about the East that his father had always spoke of. Maybe it was that strange dream, or maybe he just wanted someone to talk to. “My father got married after coming to Avalon so I’ve never been to the East. Everyone thinks that I’m an Easterner, but I don’t know anything about it.”

  “It’s probably…like here?” Bai Xi was still unwilling to speak, but she obediently sat onto the chair. “But the good thing is that people put free food on the streets. You would not be hungry.”

  “Really?”

  “Of course. Why would I lie?” The little girl rolled her eyes. “People once revolted because they didn’t like the meat that the Emperor handed out. They wanted to eat steamed buns and noodles. In the end, a general poisoned the Emperor’s meat pie and killed the Emperor.”

  “It must be hard work to be the Emperor of the East.”

  “The Emperor is just a figurehead. The people that like to eat wheat follow one feudal lord. People who want to eat rice follow another lord. There’s one lord that likes to eat potatoes. So everyone that likes sweet potatoes is forced out. Sometimes, the lords will fight over whether they want to eat sweet or savory food.”

  “Why do they fight when there’s so much food?” Ye asked.

  “Doesn’t Avalon have people who point and judge because they don’t like to eat pork?”

  “I haven’t seen that before, but you make it sound annoying.”

  “Yeah, yeah, because they are,” Bai Xi replied sassily.

  See Bai Xi’s earnest expression, Ye Qingxuan could not help but chuckle.

  37 Strange Kindness

  Halfway through the conversation, Old Phil came out from under the bed. He lept up and occupied half of the bed as if he owned it, then lied down and gave a look to signal his two errand boys to scratch his tummy.

  Bai Xi reached out to scratch Old Phil. He was so excited, he started to roll on the floor.

  Old Phil sneered at Ye Qingxuan, giving him a triumphant look that indicated how much he liked Bai Xi’s touch, and that he was reconsidering keeping Ye as his errand boy.

  Ye Qingxuan could not help but want to cover his face and sigh.

  Bai Xi was holding Old Phil, scratching its ears carefully. The yellow dog rolled around on her lap with enthusiasm. It was both cheap and ugly. It was almost unbearable to watch for Ye Qingxuan.

  “Why is he called Old Phil?” Bai Xi asked curiously, grabbing the dog’s ears.

  “Well …” Ye Qingxuan pondered, “The explanation is somewhat complicated.”

  “Show off, and I told you so much about the East!”

  “Alright alright.” Ye Qingxuan patted his forehead with his bandaged hand. He reluctantly spoke, “You know, Old Phil always thought that he was the most powerful in the world, so he always had a tough look. When I first met Old Phil, that had been the way it was. He did not want to do anything, nor did he get close to anyone. All the street thugs called him ‘Fei Wu’…”

  “Ah?” Bai Xi was surprised for a moment.

  “That’s the problem. And then, not sure why, but he thought Fei Wu meant ‘king of dogs,’ so if I called him by other names, he would ignore me.” The name Fei Wu is not really nice, right? I had to change it to a nickname.” Ye Qingxuan sighed, “Fortunately, he now thinks that Old Phil sounds more powerful than Fei Wu. Otherwise, if you call out Fei Wu for dinner, he would run to you from across the town.”

  Bai Xi could not help herself, she laughed. But soon she went back to her straight face, like the laughter had never happened.

  “Still a child.” Ye Qingxuan whispered.

  “Hmm?” Bai Xi looked up.

  “Ye Qingxuan smiled and shook his head, “Tell me something else.” The whole night, Ye Qingxuan had lied in his hard bed, covered with bandages, quietly listening to Bai Xi’s stories of the East. The little girl was really nothing like a little girl, her tone was not soft, it was full of thorns. She spoke foul words when she got to the exciting part of the stories, even pointed fingers. She was more of a rogue kid than even Victor was. But somehow, he felt better. As long as someone had kept him company, the pain was no longer so unbearable. Even his body, full of wounds, was not so bad anymore. At least he did not need to think of the past, and did not have to think of the future. But in his heart, there was always a voice wondering inside, “Ye Qingxuan, you cannot become a musician anymore.”

  -

  The inexplicable bleeding had made Ye Qingxuan rest in bed for a whole day. Drowsy and sleepy, he thought he had slept for a long time. In his long and broken dreams, there had seemed to be nothing but the broken pieces of the past, and some bizarre and indescribable moments. In those broken dreams, there was always someone whispering, the sound gave him a splitting headache.

  On the third day, when he finally got out of the bed, it was already noon. Setton did not rush him to work right away, but when he leaned against wall, and tried to walk downstairs step by step, he saw Setton’s face twitching behind the counter, with a cigarette in his hand.

  His eyes were bloodshot. He obviously had reached the edge of an breakdown. This monster-like man was so angry, all of his muscles were trembling with anger, and at his feet, a dictionary was shredded to pieces.

  “Uh, what’s the matter?” Ye Qingxuan was confused.

  Setton pointed at the counter, expressionless. A letter had been delivered by the messenger, and a small box was lying on top. That crumpled letter seemed to be made differently from regular paper, more like something that was written on a piece of excellent quality leather. It was difficult to tear, but had many cracks made by someone.

  “It’s to you, read it yourself.” Setton grabbed some money from the drawer, slammed the door and went out for drinks.

  Ye Qingxuan grabbed the letter, confused, then he was shocked. It was a letter addressed to him…

  -

  “To my dearest employee Ye:

  Heard you were ill, I’ve been worried sick. Although we have not yet met, I have the deepest concerns and worries for your well-being. Perhaps this is what the Easterners meant by ‘fate’?

  Along with the letter is a bottle of medicine, rest well after you take it, and don’t worry about the shop. I will reimburse you for all your medical expenses.

  PS. Please take care of Setton, as he’s not well disciplined. If he does something wrong, please feel free to criticize and punish him, like punishing the tiger that does not obey the ringmasters command.

  PPS. Please give my regards to the new employee, Miss Bai Xi, and also give me her measurements if it’s not too much trouble. I’d like to give her a dress as a present when we meet.

  Your friend: Hermes.”

  -

  At the end of the letter there was also an emblem to identify the nobility of the sender, but the emblem was particularly strange. It was unlike any that Ye Qingxuan had ever seen in the church’s pedigree. It was like two snakes wrapped on a strange cane. The letter was filled with warmth and kindness. Other than the fact that it had almost blown Setton away, you could almost see a noble gentleman who was kind, polite, and generous, who worried about Ye with sincerity. He also had a same name as a famous artist from a hundred years ago.

  The special concern from the boss had given Ye Qingxuan a chill. He looked at Bai Xi, “This is from the boss?”

  Bai Xi’s expression was also odd, “yes.”

  “He wants your measurements…”

  “Tell him to go to hell!” Bai Xi answered like a sharp slap, making Ye Qingxuan give up the idea of writing a reply.

  Ye Qingxuan picked up the small box on the cupboard, and was startled after he opened it, “What is this?”

  In the wooden box, there was a slender test tube buried in thick cotton pads, filled with rose red liquid, reflecting a magnificent light.

  Bai Xi was stunne
d when she saw the tube. She gave Ye Qingxuan a strange look, “Hey, do you think the boss fancies you?”

  “Umm, fancy?”

  “Yes, “fancy,” Bai Xi lifted her eyebrows, her expression was odd. “I heard that many old ladies like fresh young boys.”

  “What are you talking about? I haven’t even met the owner yet. And if you don’t want to say my name, you can call me cousin, not just ‘hey,’ like you were my creditor.”

  “Want to take advantage of me? No way.” Bai Xi sneered at him, “This is a cure, made by the church, excellent for treating external wounds. The price is almost as expensive as a brick of black gold.”

  Her last sentence had Ye Qingxuan’s hands shaking. He stared at the test tube in his hands, “That expensive?”

  In addition to their respective issued currencies, countries would trade with each other using a common currency of black gold, made by the church. Presently, Anglo’s currency had been continuously declining, so that the price of the black gold had continuously jumped up. Roughly, one test tube would be over sixty thousand pounds. Ye Qingxuan felt depressed.

  “How expensive! Couldn’t he have just given me the money?”

  “I’d drink this as soon as possible if I were you. This thing loses its effect ten minutes after exposure to the sun.” Bai Xi’s words had awakened Ye Qingxuan so he quickly pulled out the stopper, and poured the liquid into his mouth.

  When he was done, he smacked his lips, seemingly not tasting everything. But soon he felt an extreme coldness spread inside his body. It was like the moment of an explosion of freezing bombs. He was dizz, and almost fell to the ground, but quickly his senses came back. The strong pain in his body had rapidly depleted, almost as if they were not even there.

  “So effective.” He muttered, feeling like the world was shaking.

  “There are side effects, and you probably won’t have any strength for the rest of the afternoon. And there was a trace of mandala inside the drug.” Bai Xi had a deceitful look on her face. Her smile was sweet and innocent, “Cousin, cousin, let’s play cards?”

  “Play cards?” Ye Qingxuan tried to suppress the feeling of dizziness, “What are you playing at? Every time you call me cousin, it’s nothing good!”

  “Why, a small amount of gambling is entertaining, I’m concerned for you!” Bai Xi took a pair of cards out of nowhere, then shuffled skillfully. “We can stick white paper on the face instead of playing for money, want to warm up with a five card draw?”

  Ye Qingxuan could not help but sigh, “Very skillful shuffling. You made money with this, didn’t you?”

  “Skills to make a living, of course. How about I won’t cheat?” Bai Xi smiled harmlessly, exceptionally sweet, “Come on cousin, let’s play!”

  “Can I not play?”

  “It counts as a loss if you don’t play.”

  Ye Qingxuan sighed and picked up the cards, but when he was shuffling, he saw the strange picture on the cards, “What is this?”

  Unlike the other cards with only pictures on the king and queen cards, this deck had own pictures on cards one through ten. It seemed to be someone from a strange story, but the style was extremely gloomy, making people shudder.

  “This deck was the Avalon’s legendary commemorative edition. On the cover was the most famous legend of Avalon. It was said to be very popular.”

  “Legend?” Ye Qingxuan seemed confused, “When did that happen?” He picked one up randomly and asked, “What is this?”

  The card was painted with an old man wearing a feather crown. His hand was holding a broken heart, his eyes gloomy.

  “It is said that he was the controller of all of Avalon. He hid behind the curtain, and controlled the underground world. He sounded like a very powerful man, but many people have said there was no such person. And others said that they had seen him, but no one could describe what he looked like. People who had met him called him ‘Shaman,’ and when Shaman issued an order, no one dared to oppose.”

  “Shaman?” Ye Qingxuan thought the name sounded familiar, like he had heard it somewhere before.

  38 The Marketplace Legend

  “That was the Shaman. What about this one?” Ye Qingxuan flipped over the second card. On this card was a man wearing a hat. His golden locks reached his waist, and he stood on a pile of gold, silver, and wealth. Jewels fell from his hands like sand.

  “The Trader. Apparently, you can buy anything from him as long as you have money. Even the impossible is possible with him.” Bai Xi lowered her voice, “Some people also say that Anglo’s throne was bought from him by King Arthur with his treasured sword.”

  “How is that possible?” Ye Qingxuan laughed. “Even if it is true, he can’t live this long, right?”

  “You never know. If he really does have everything, it wouldn’t be weird if he has the secret to immortality.”

  “…That kind of makes sense.” Ye Qingxuan flipped another card. “What is this?”

  The card’s background was blood red. Within the broken and bodiless limbs, there seemed to be a shadow. Everything was bloody and dark.

  “Oh, that is the killer. He has disappeared now, but apparently he killed for money and he took every type of job—even the assassinations of high officials. When he’s in action, he leaves no witnesses alive. Anyone who sees him will get their heads yanked off. Someone gave him the nickname Bloody Butcher because the scene he leaves behind is like a slaughterhouse.”

  The white wraiths in the church—the Soul Eater; the psychotic killer who massacred in the deep night—the Ripper; the women who kidnapped children to feed devils—Hariti; the living dead who wandered in the graveyard and feasted on fresh blood—the vampires; the debt collector who could take souls with his hand—the Ghost Hand; the black shadow that flew across the sky at midnight—the Phantom Carriage. These were Avalon’s top ten legends.

  “Wait, but there’s only nine,” Ye Qingxuan counted with his fingers and realized that there truly was only nine.

  “Oh, there’s another one.” At the mention of this, the excited Bai Xi suddenly lost all interest. She revealed the last card.

  On this card was the silhouette of the clock tower at midnight. In the darkness, there was something squirming and running by. “This is the last legend. It’s the Naked Man who runs through the streets of Avalon at midnight.”

  Ye Qingxuan was instantly awake.

  “You look funny. Are you okay?”

  “I’m scared.” He was too embarrassed to say that he had seen this crazy man before.

  The first nine of the top ten Avalonian legends were so powerful and impressive, but this last one was just wretched. Running around nude while singing at midnight. A crazy man with bird-nest hair! What was wrong with the aesthetic standards of the Avalonian people?

  “What’s the last ghost card?” Ye Qingxuan looked at the two ghost cards. But rather than a clown, there were strange and ferocious buildings. The black card had a high tower. But when reflected into the water, the tower turned into a pile of bones. It stretched endlessly, going towards Hell.

  “The Bloody Shadow.” Bai Xi said, “Legend says that this road is hidden inside Avalon. It leads straight to the backside of Avalon. If you walk down it, you’ll see the city’s true appearance.”

  “Then what about the red one?” The red card in his hand depicted a large but abandoned city. It was covered with cobwebs and scorch marks. The giant city was choked with dust, as if it was already dead.

  “This is the Avalon in the legends.” Bai Xi paused and added, “The real Avalon.”

  —

  It had been three-hundred years since the end of the dark ages.

  Two hundred and seventy years ago, King Arthur refused the holy name given by the Sacred City. He came here instead and created sacred Anglo’s first city. This was the earliest legend of Avalon.

  No longer did people know what this place had been before that.

  Some scholars dug through the remains of the ancient books an
d came up with this strange conclusion: three-hundred years ago, Avalon was six-hundred meters below sea level. This meant that the island was supposed to be sleeping at the bottom of the ocean.

  But according to the aether levels of ancient Avalonian buildings, they have existed for more than one thousand years. The scholars did not know what to do with the contradicting information. In the end, this debate could only be buried under the countless other research. But this legend had been passed on until now, becoming more and more detailed.

  Some said that Avalon was originally a city controlled by Satan. It lay at the bottom of the ocean for eternity. It floated up during the War of Glory, and the world was about to be destroyed. But then Hyakume was seriously injured and left its lair. But its secret was still hidden inside the city.

  Other said that this was the Burgundians’ conspiracy. But some also support the more recent continental drift theory, believing that Avalon was an island that floated from elsewhere.

  “None of these are reliable. Avalonians have too much time on their hands,” Ye Qingxuan dismissed these theories.

  “Yeah. Let’s just play cards.” Bai Xi shuffled the cards, her features dancing. “I’ll go easy on you for the first round, and we’ll start small. Twenty dollars for the first round.”

  His face expressionless, Ye Qingxuan reached over and took out the card she hid inside her sleeve. “I said before, you can’t cheat…”

  Half an hour later, Ye Qingxuan was getting drowsier and it was hard to focus. It felt like he had a hangover, like alcohol was playing with him—making him overexcited, and then taking away self-control. Thankfully, he could still think. Thankfully…

  “Okay. Hand over the money.” He showed his card, and stretched out his palm with a smile. “Or else I’m going to put on a strip of paper.”

  There was only complete and utter silence. Past the tick-tocks, one could only hear Bai Xi’s angry pants.

  The strips of paper all over her face moved as she breathed, like the legendary Wendigo. In thirty minutes, she had already lost her salary for the next three years—if she was going to get any salary.