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Chapter Fifty-Four: I Saved You, Spare Them
Zhang Qiu followed Prince Banan down from the rooftop. At the foot of the stairs stood guards who saluted Prince Banan. He nodded slightly, and the guards led the way. They descended the spiral staircase until they reached the basement level of the Royal Palace. Two large iron doors painted in smoky colors sealed off the passage, guarded by four Security Personnel armed with assault rifles.
One guard placed a hand on his rifle while the other reached inside his clothing to reveal identification, saying, "Open the door, Prince Banan is here to handle the prisoners."
The Security Personnel stepped forward to salute Prince Banan, and together they pulled open the heavy iron doors with a loud scraping sound that echoed throughout the space. Inside the doors, a row of iron bars stood erect, with gaps barely wide enough for an arm. In the center of the bars was a door secured by a brass lock wrapped in chains.
A guard retrieved a set of keys from his waist and approached the bars, unlocking the door with a clank. "Prince Banan, please come this way."
Zhang Qiu, Lucia, and Azure Hawk closely followed Prince Banan. The corridor was dimly lit by low-wattage bulbs, creating an overall gloomy atmosphere. After walking several steps, rooms began to appear on either side, each door made of forged steel with yellowed labels affixed to them. Prince Banan introduced to Zhang Qiu, "This is one of my father's places for storing treasures, containing precious jewels, famous calligraphy and paintings, as well as large amounts of gold and silver."
Zhang Qiu looked at the treasure vault hidden beneath the Temporary Palace but had no concept of it. There were no visible gold or jewels; only closed heavy iron doors lay before him. "Aren't we here to deal with the War Maniacs?" Zhang Qiu asked, as this was what he was concerned about.
"Don't worry, they're just ahead; my father has locked them up here."
Turning a corner, the corridor's lighting brightened. Outside a storage room stood New Soldiers meticulously guarding both sides while a team of soldiers patrolled back and forth in the corridor. Upon Prince Banan's arrival, all soldiers turned to salute and respectfully called out, "Your Highness!"
Prince Banan nodded and looked toward one of the rooms, asking, "They're all inside?"
"Yes, Your Highness!" one soldier replied. "The king discovered they were behind your assassination attempt and locked them up here. This afternoon, we took over the Temporary Palace along with them and awaited your orders."
"Good," Prince Banan nodded approvingly as his gaze shifted to the heavy iron door. "Open the window."
There was an observation window on the iron door; after receiving orders, a soldier stepped forward to open it. Inside was devoid of sunlight and unlit; it appeared dark and ghostly as if inhabited by spirits. The corridor's light streamed through the window onto the floor, casting a bright patch where floating dust danced in the beam. Before Prince Banan could approach closely, he heard loud shouting from within.
"Dammit, let us out now!"
"Do you know who we are? Do you dare to capture us? You must want to die!"
"Fuck your mother, open the damn door!"
"…"
The light and the sound of the window opening startled the people inside. The War Maniacs surged to the door, cursing loudly. Prince Banan was confused, standing there in a fog. "What are they saying?" Prince Banan turned to Zhang Qiu.
"They're cursing," Zhang Qiu replied, clearly hearing every word. "At this point, they still haven't realized their mistakes. It's time to teach these reckless people a lesson."
"Let them know today that there are some things they cannot do and some people they cannot provoke!" Prince Banan angrily walked to the door and shouted, "Open the door!"
"Yes!"
A squad of patrolling soldiers came over, standing between Prince Banan and the iron gate. Prince Banan tried to push past them, but the soldiers stopped him: "Your Highness, those inside have received military training. You should not come into direct contact with them; let us ensure your safety."
Prince Banan nodded. In the past, he would have disregarded the soldiers' warnings and faced them directly, but not now. He was not alone; the future of Tanzania rested on his shoulders, and he could not afford to be careless.
The gate opened, and the War Maniacs rushed out. The soldiers raised their weapons and struck down mercilessly until the War Maniacs obediently stayed inside without further movement. The soldiers pulled open the electric gate, and the room was instantly illuminated. Zhang Qiu squinted; the entire room had only hard concrete walls, with nothing else in sight.
In the center of the room stood six men; this was Zhang Qiu's first direct encounter with the War Maniacs. Until now, it had always been Zhang Qiu in control while they lurked in the shadows. The six War Maniacs appeared to be around twenty-five years old, wearing dirty, wrinkled designer jackets and suits. Two of them had injuries on their faces, with dried blood caked on their grimy skin. Despite this, there was still a rebellious glint in their eyes.
"Zhao Yuanjia, I didn't expect we would meet like this!" Prince Banan shouted sharply, his piercing gaze fixed on the War Maniacs.
Zhang Qiu had heard from Prince Banan that Zhao Yuanjia was the leader of the War Maniacs. At that moment, as Prince Banan spoke, Zhang Qiu observed which of the six would react first. A thin young man with messy slicked-back hair sneered and said, "I advise you to release us immediately."
"You want to kill me but expect me to let you go? Think about whether that's even possible!"
"Nothing is impossible. You can't kill me, and you wouldn't dare to. In Tanzania, a large number of weapons were provided by me to you; shouldn't you be grateful?" Zhao Yuanjia, trapped in a predicament, remained confident as if he faced no danger.
"Do you still want me to be grateful?" Prince Banan glared at his enemy, his eyes filled with rage.
Zhao Yuanjia chuckled mockingly, and Prince Banan snatched an assault rifle from a nearby guard, racking the bolt with a click and pointing the smoking muzzle directly at Zhao Yuanjia. He shouted angrily, "Since you say that, I'll use the weapons you sold to thank you!"
As soon as Prince Banan finished speaking, he pulled the trigger. At that moment, a flicker of fear crossed Zhao Yuanjia's eyes as he stared in disbelief at the furious Prince Banan.
With a bang, a bullet struck the ground just beneath Zhao Yuanjia's feet. Startled, he and those around him instinctively recoiled. Prince Banan, Zhang Qiu, and Lucia looked in surprise at Azure Hawk; had he not lowered the gun at the critical moment, Zhao Yuanjia would have already become a corpse.
"Aazure Hawk, what are you doing!" Prince Banan questioned furiously.
The guards beside Prince Banan raised their rifles at Azure Hawk, but Azure Hawk remained unfazed by the guns pointed at him and said to Prince Banan, "You can't kill them."
"Give me a reason!"
"You can't afford to offend their families. If you take action against any one of them, it will bring heavy disaster to Tanzania." Azure Hawk's words were not alarmist; none of these second-generation elites were easy targets. Those who could do arms business in Africa had significant backing.
"That's not a reason that can convince me!" Prince Banan roared at Azure Hawk, pointing at Zhao Yuanjia and shouting, "They all must be severely punished!"
"Impossible, unless I die!"
Azure Hawk spread his arms to shield Zhao Yuanjia. On this principle issue, Azure Hawk was exceptionally firm. Before the White Wolf Special Assault Team departed, Professor Bai Jingwei repeatedly instructed them to ensure these individuals' safety. Despite the War Maniacs being adversaries of Professor Bai and their actions inciting anger in many, Bai Jingwei could not ignore them. This was politics—delicate politics—where breaking the balance could lead to severe consequences.
"Azure Hawk!" Prince Banan trembled as he raised his assault rifle. "Get out of my way; this has nothing to do with you. Don't force me to act." By the end, his voice shook, revealing his reluctance to point the gun at Azure Hawk. After all, he was his savior.
Azure Hawk stood firm while Zhao Yuanjia and the others hid behind him like they had found a lifeline. Lucia grabbed Prince Banan's arm and shouted, "No, don't shoot."
"Prince Banan, put down the gun first." Zhang Qiu gradually lowered Prince Banan's gun while saying to Azure Hawk, "Have you lost your mind, helping them?"
Azure Hawk had his own reasons and didn't want to explain too much to Zhang Qiu. A command was a command, and even if he was unwilling, he would still obey resolutely. Azure Hawk stared motionlessly at Prince Banan and slowly said, "Your Highness, I once saved you. If you spare them today, it will be your way of thanking me."
Prince Banan was taken aback, looking at Azure Hawk with a complex expression. How should one choose when their savior risks their life to protect their enemy?
The atmosphere was tense and strange. The two clearly defined factions suddenly divided into several groups, silently communicating with each other through their gazes. Zhang Qiu, from Azure Hawk's words and his understanding of the War Maniacs, vaguely grasped the reason behind his actions. Understanding aside, Zhang Qiu strongly disagreed with Azure Hawk's approach and said sternly, "Azure Hawk, what you're doing is a crime!"
"I am preventing a crime!" Azure Hawk shot a fierce look at Zhang Qiu.
"What a joke! Others may not know, but do you really not know?" Zhang Qiu scoffed at Azure Hawk's defense and countered, "What will happen after you let them go? More weapons will spread to other areas. Each bullet could take a life; are you really ignoring all this?"
Azure Hawk stared at Zhang Qiu, his lips trembling. The usually decisive Azure Hawk struggled to find words and finally said, "What if they can guarantee they won't sell arms again?"
"Is that even possible?" Zhang Qiu didn't believe that these War Maniacs would give up.
"Can you promise that?" Azure Hawk turned around and shouted at the six people.
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