New Gods of North America

The sermon in the prayer hall was subtly giving off a vibe that "no one was listening."

The middle-aged pastor on the stage, who was explaining the scriptures of the "Holy Book" to the believers, was quite experienced. After noticing that the whispering among the believers in the hall was becoming more and more frequent,

He jokingly said that he seemed to hear "the restlessness of souls," and then took the opportunity to quote a scripture and make a small joke, which made the believers consciously quiet down after laughing it off.

Wayne wasn't sitting very comfortably in the corner either, always feeling gazes from near and far looking in his direction.

After enduring the service and saying goodbye to the pastor, Wayne put on a calm and confident demeanor and walked out of the cathedral to find the detective agency's carriage.

He also looked at Liam, who seemed to be celebrating Wayne's "triumphant return," feeling a mix of being unable to praise him and unwilling to hit him.

It was still quite early for the duel, and Wayne and the others had rushed over mainly because they were worried that the extraordinary materials they had sent over would "spoil."

However, they couldn't stay at the cathedral any longer, lest they continue to be surrounded.

So Wayne had Conner drive the carriage around Richmond, and even found a place to slowly eat an early lunch.

They dawdled until it was almost time before heading to the suburban location that the other party had publicly stated in the newspaper as the place where they would accept the duel.

The custom of "dueling" has a long history. Its earliest popularity can be traced back to the "judicial duels" of the Middle Ages in the Old Continent.

Back then, they played it even wilder. Taking the laws of the Holy Roman Empire as an example, in some lawsuits where there were no witnesses or evidence, the judge would require both parties to the lawsuit to engage in a "judicial duel," on the grounds that the righteous party would receive the "protection of the Holy Spirit" and would often be "more courageous."

Then, the victor of the "judicial duel" would be judged by the judge to be the "correct" party. This also gave rise to "professional proxy duelists" who specialized in conducting judicial duels for others.

In that era, if the defendant still did not appear in court after being summoned three times, the plaintiff could even take the initiative to attack the defendant when he "wanted to and had the opportunity," and doing so would be regarded as a "victory."

The America Federation today, in a sense, prides itself on inheriting the Roman Empire,

So it's not surprising that the folk customs would become like this…

However, once "customs" like this spread, it is inevitable that some "localization" evolutions will occur, and in the end, it may become almost completely different from the "original version."

For example, in the South of America, the rules of dueling now seem fussy and long-winded.

Wayne first publicly initiated the duel, so the time and place of the duel became the other party's decision. In addition, there are various small details, which are theoretically to show fairness, so they are decided by both parties in turn.

Wayne and the others arrived at the duel site not too early. It was a large intersection outside the city, with a large open space and woods next to it, which was considered a "public area" for road facilities.

It could be considered part of Richmond, or the county's responsibility, or even the state government's responsibility.

So everyone should be in charge, which is equivalent to no one being in charge.

The other party's choice to play "close to the edge" here shows that his lawyer is quite professional.

Before the carriage even reached its destination, Wayne poked his head out of the carriage to take a look,

Well…

It's not surprising that there would be onlookers, after all, the detective agency has been promoting it overtly and covertly for so long, and the result of the duel is directly linked to the lottery prize, which is also "related to the interests" of many people.

But how the hell are there so many people?!

Wayne got out of the carriage, slightly dumbfounded. Malcolm Baker, who was surrounded by the crowd a little further away, also seemed a little out of it.

At this time, the most active people on the scene were not the large crowd of onlookers, nor the ladies and young ladies who formed a beautiful scenery line with their gorgeous parasols,

But a small group of seemingly very enthusiastic "gentlemen."

As soon as Wayne's feet landed, several butler-like people greeted him, and surrounded Wayne as they walked towards the center of the "dueling ground."

The pile of gentlemen who were originally surrounding that "Mr. Baker" also brought the other party over, taking advantage of the situation.

The one with the highest status among the butlers on the scene also introduced Wayne to these gentlemen one by one,

Good heavens,

The former former former governor who had been out of office for many years, a member of the state legislature from who-knows-where, the old man from this wealthy family, the honorary director of that association… and even staff members who were pulled out from the state government to "witness" the event.

These people are not here to "mediate" or to "judge."

They are here specifically to teach the two duelists how to "duel correctly."

Wayne was impressed after listening.

I know you Southerners are keen on duels, but I really didn't expect you to be so keen…

For so many years, everyone has been dueling secretly. I've never seen anyone openly conduct one in such a flamboyant manner, so now you've all come to join in the fun, right?

Then, when both parties arrived, the duel officially began to prepare.

There were even a large number of servants brought by them to help maintain order. Where the ladies and young ladies should gather, where the gentlemen should stand, and what range the ordinary citizens should stay outside of were all organized in an orderly manner.

A small table was placed by the servants near the center of the "venue,"

One of the guys who had gained the collective trust of the gentlemen and was still relatively young and strong, had already automatically become the recognized "referee" of the scene without the consent of Wayne and that Mr. Baker.

The referee confirmed the identities of both parties, and also confirmed the assistants selected by both parties, and began to have both parties sign the "life and death contract,"

Oh? Neither of you prepared?

It doesn't matter, we knew that you young people nowadays are unprofessional, we have already prepared in advance,

If you are not satisfied, there are lawyers on the scene over there, you can call them over to draft another one on the spot.

Ah? You are both using your own guns?

How can this work, duels are all about fairness, the weapons must be as identical as possible,

Fortunately, Mr. Biden was thoughtful and even brought his "dueling pistols" that he now keeps at home.

Wayne watched as the old man's butler quickly brought over an exquisite wooden box,

When he opened it, there were a pair of shiny pistols inside, and even the bullets were placed next to them, ready to be loaded…

Wayne and that Mr. Baker were urged by the gentlemen next to them to guess heads or tails, and then selected the guns one after another, and loaded a single bullet.

The referee originally wanted to ask both parties what kind of dueling method they would choose, but the gentlemen all spoke at once, all feeling that the method in their minds was fairer,

So, with the double approval of the old governor and the old man, the plan of "both parties standing in place and shooting each other" was ruled out,

And it became a mode of "Wayne and that Mr. Baker standing back to back, then walking forward separately, and turning around to shoot after hearing the referee's gunshot."

No,

Who is dueling with whom today?!

Aren't you considering the opinions of the parties involved?

The two were also taught a lot of "precautions" for duels, such as one side being shot counts as a victory, both sides missing will continue, and if both sides are shot, the party with the more serious injury will be judged to have lost,

As for things like "continuous shooting," the gentlemen on the scene directly controlled the bullets, so even if they wanted to violate the rules, they couldn't.

This is actually one of the reasons why there are many ladies and young ladies present,

Ladies of the upper class may not be afraid of "seeing blood," but they often don't like to "face life and death directly."

Wayne felt a little indifferent at this time, and just wanted to "end it quickly."

Finally, when the referee really announced the start,

"Both parties prepare!"

Wayne and that Mr. Baker, who also looked like he had no love for life, stood back to back in the center of the venue - by the way, even the direction was decided by guessing heads or tails, and it was the kind of game where "the person who throws guesses later."

Some of the onlookers who had been waiting for a long time began to scream and cheer.

"Wow - it's finally starting!"

"Mr. Wayne, go for it—"

"Bullshit! I bought all Mr. Baker, Mr. Baker will win!"

Unfortunately, the gentlemen's "teaching" was not over yet,

"Check weapons!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

Wayne and the other party raised the guns in their hands speechlessly, and each fired a shot into the sky.

Then, with the assistance of their assistants, the two took the bullets and reloaded. This time, the gentlemen hid at a safe distance behind the servants,

Waiting for the referee to give an order, and then the duel will be officially ready to begin.

"Wait a minute!"

Wayne raised a hand in the attention of the crowd, eliciting a curious surprise and some insidious doubts.

You've all messed around, now it's my turn to do something, right?

Wayne put the gun under his arm and tore off the silk scarf from his chest pocket,

The chest scarf shook in mid-air, and then was rolled up and covered Wayne's eyes:

"Out of my personal contempt for Mr. Baker's character, I decided to duel with him blindfolded!"

The surrounding exclamations instantly sounded into one piece,

Wayne saw the silhouette of the referee turn and twist with a minimalist line of sight, seemingly asking the "highly respected" gentlemen on the scene for instructions.

In the end, no one stopped it, and the duel continued.

With Wayne's move, the scene suddenly became quiet.

The referee gave an order,

The two began to pace forward.

One, two, three, four, five… why hasn't it started yet? Has your gun misfired, referee?

"Bang!"

At this time, the gunshot finally came from behind,

Wayne quickly turned around, aimed at the other party's waist and pulled the trigger - the other party's hand happened to be shaking here,

"Bang—"

The gunshot sounded, and the gun in the other party's hand was shot away, followed by a sissy groan.

Wayne didn't even look at the other party, who was kneeling on one knee clutching his abdomen, but tried to strike a handsome pose,

Raising his hand and tearing off the chest scarf on his head, and letting it fall in the wind.

"Wow—"

In the cheers of some gentlemen, servants, and citizens, a pile of parasols next to them were also thrown into the air, like a pile of small mushrooms flying up.

Wayne noticed at this time that Miss Olivia, who was still holding an umbrella and smiling in a pile of "flying mushrooms", as well as the common Miss Russell and Miss Mary,

Yo, you are here too.