Watching King of Terra's expression and listening to his tone, Keno knew that the king had murderous intent. He did not care at all about the benefits he could gain by exchanging Keno.
"I have a lot of money. Let Valantis ransom me! Besides the ransom, I can give you all my savings!" With death hanging over him, Keno could no longer remain calm. He was only in his thirties, already Valantis's greatest general and deeply trusted by the King of Valantis. He possessed vast wealth and a houseful of wives and concubines. He had not enjoyed enough of it all yet. He did not want to die.
Keno kept offering King of Terra all sorts of terms. As long as he survived, he would always have a chance to rise again after returning to Valantis. And perhaps one day, he might have another chance to attack Terra. When that time came, he would repay today's humiliation in full.
But no matter how many tempting terms he offered, King of Terra showed no reaction. He continued to stare at him with an icy expression.
"How ugly, Keno. I thought you would rather die than yield. As expected, the people of Valantis have no faith worth mentioning. Are you finished? If you are, I'll send you on your way!" After sneering at Keno, King of Terra prepared to cut off his head. Though King of Terra was old now, he had once been a renowned warrior of Terra, known alongside Hogul as Terra's Twin Heroes. He still had the strength to cut off a man's head.
"Wait! I am a noble. I cannot die under these circumstances. I demand a trial by combat. Let the Gods decide whether I live or die. This has been Slovak custom for thousands of years.