Chapter 48: Visiting Kensington Palace
William was so disgusted by his encounter with Arthur that night that he didn't even have the heart to see the beautiful Tina. He felt a little helpless. Why did trouble always seem to find him?
It seemed to be the same in every world. Once you reached a certain level, trouble would follow. It was probably even worse in a world based on movies, because the villains here were over-the-top, brain-dead, and crazy, always wanting to destroy the world for no good reason.
So, after leaving the bar last night, William found the best shooting club in the city. He needed to vent, and he needed to practice his shooting skills.
Although William had the shooting skills and experience of gun masters like Bullseye and the Punisher stored in the system—Bullseye could even kill people by throwing ordinary objects—he knew it wasn't enough.
Theory without practice is useless. No matter how much you know about shooting, true skill is forged with real bullets. People with high talent simply learn faster, react quicker, and shoot with greater speed.
He had to master guns and throwing knives. He couldn't use magic openly, and he had no real power or influence, so he could only rely on himself.
He even considered that if someone pushed him too far, he would resort to assassination. He knew teleportation magic, which would allow him to create a perfect alibi.
He could teleport to a place thousands of kilometers away in seconds, and teleport back immediately after killing someone. No judge or jury would ever believe that William could travel thousands of kilometers and back in just ten minutes.
He was just an ordinary person in his previous life. Now that he was rich, he just wanted to enjoy life. He was a loser with no grand ambitions; he only wanted to live a good life. He never thought about ruling the world or anything like that. He had neither the ability nor the ambition.
He was like that in his previous life, and he was still like that now. The only difference was that he was an ordinary person then, and a rich man now. When ordinary people become rich, they care even more about living a good life.
He would kill anyone who got in the way of him enjoying this colorful world.
He would kill all the crazy psychopaths who wanted to destroy the world. Peace was wonderful; it allowed him to live and play as he wished.
William practiced for several hours in the shooting gallery, and his skills improved sharply. After three hours, he could hit the bullseye with every shot.
His abnormal physique meant he didn't feel tired even after firing nearly 500 rounds. He then practiced throwing knives for two hours. By the end, he could hit the bullseye with speed and accuracy.
It was fun, but the bill made him wince. He had spent nearly £10,000 in just a few hours. Damn it, each bullet cost almost £10. This place was really making a killing. America was better; you could buy guns and ammo freely. He could have saved at least £7,000 there.
As he was checking out, he looked at the boss's greedy smile and thought to himself, *Damn you, I'm not coming back here again. Don't think I don't know how much of a markup you're charging.*
When he got home, Lina was already asleep, so William quietly washed up and went to bed.
He woke up early at 8 o'clock the next day, remembering his appointment with Prince Wilson. After showering and putting on a decent set of clothes, William drove to his mother's café for breakfast. Fortunately, Lina wasn't there; otherwise, she might have kicked him out.
William flirted with Tina for a while, as she wasn't busy. Looking at the tender and delicate beauty, William felt a stir of desire but didn't dare act on it. Tina was just over sixteen, not yet eighteen, and he couldn't bring himself to cross that line.
Besides, William was terrified of Aunt Mary. The thought of being hunted down by her sent a chill down his spine.
After chatting with Tina until 9:20, William got up and left for Kensington Palace.
Tina walked William to the door, her slightly flushed face full of expectation, hoping for a goodbye kiss. William looked at her hopeful face but shook his head; he just couldn't do it. Instead, he gave her a quick hug, said goodbye, and got into his car.
Standing at the door, Tina watched him leave before returning to the café with a hint of disappointment. She wondered if she should be more proactive next time.
Kensington Palace was in the center of London, so William arrived in less than twenty minutes. He sat in his car and waited, and at 10 a.m. sharp, he drove to the gate and rang the doorbell. Prince Wilson's face appeared on the screen by the gate.
Seeing it was William, Wilson opened the gate, and William drove into the palace grounds.
After parking his car, William saw Wilson waiting for him at the entrance with Prince Harry, a housekeeper, and a maid.
William hugged and greeted the two princes, presenting them with the gifts he had brought: a walkthrough for the *Plants vs. Zombies* game that he had written that morning, and a bottle of 1982 Lafite.
The two princes were thrilled to receive the game walkthrough from its creator, and the housekeeper gave a subtle nod of approval at the 1982 Lafite. In his opinion, it was a very appropriate gift.
In the year 2000, a 1982 Lafite was not as outrageously expensive as it would become. It cost just over £1,000, not yet having been hyped up to tens of thousands of pounds a bottle as it would be in later years.
The two princes led William into Kensington Palace. Inside, William met Princess Diana. He was unversed in royal etiquette and could only greet her normally, but the princess didn't seem to mind. The royal family was trying to appear more down-to-earth, at least on the surface.
After the greeting, the princess told her sons to take good care of William and then excused herself.
William was Prince Wilson's guest, so the princess had only appeared to greet him as a mother would. It was the princes' job to entertain him, and she felt her presence would make William feel constrained.
After the princess left, the two princes gave William a tour of Kensington Palace.
William had been an ordinary person in his previous life and had never been to Europe. This was his first time seeing a European royal residence. Although it wasn't as grand as the Forbidden City, it was a lived-in home.
The atmosphere of life was stronger here than in the empty Forbidden City. Large oil paintings and murals adorned the walls, interspersed with many family photos. The rooms were filled with books, magazines, and household items like candles and green plants. The design was elegant, yet it felt like a home.
At noon, Prince Charles and Princess Diana joined them for the lunch the two princes had prepared for William.
Although William was a novice in royal etiquette, his conversation and breadth of knowledge were a novelty to Prince Charles and Princess Diana. William often said extraordinary things, and they didn't understand a lot of the high-tech concepts he spoke about.
William often mentioned forward-looking technologies that surprised the princess and the two young princes, who wondered how such things could be possible.
For example, William said that in the future, mobile phones would not only be for calls and texts but would also replace computers.
He described large-screen mobile phones that could be used to surf the internet, shop, watch movies, make video calls, chat, trade stocks, and even make payments. All of this sounded novel and incredible to the royal family.
A dozen years later, Princess Diana would publish a book in which she recalled how William, during his visit to Kensington Palace in 2000, had described many of the popular technologies of her time.
The public would then realize how early William Devinshire had planned his path to success, and it would be no wonder that he became the world's richest man.
Lunch stretched on for two hours, and even then, Prince Charles was reluctant to leave for work with the princess. Before he left, he insisted that William stay for dinner at Kensington Palace, saying he hadn't finished their conversation.
The princess playfully chided Prince Charles, urging him to get to work. But even as he left, the prince repeatedly reminded William to stay.
It was February in London, and the weather was still very cold, unsuitable for outdoor sports.
After a half-hour rest following lunch, the two princes took William to their indoor riding arena.
With his brain and body enhanced by the system, William was able to learn to ride a horse and was jogging slowly around the arena within half an hour.
Although it was just a jog, Prince Harry said he didn't believe William had never ridden before. However, remembering that William hadn't even known how to mount the horse just moments earlier and had to be taught by a jockey, he began to believe it.
Harry just couldn't accept that a genius like William really existed in the world. He learned everything so quickly, which made the sixteen-year-old prince feel immense pressure when he was around him.
Just as William was enjoying his newfound equestrian skill, the phone in his pocket suddenly rang.
He took it out and saw it was Diana Rigg, whom he hadn't seen in several days. He answered the call casually.
"Hi, Diana. What's up? Missed me after just a few days?" William teased.
"I did not miss you, William! Did you forget what you promised me? God, I knew you didn't take me seriously at all. William, you're a jerk!" Diana Rigg complained.
Of course, William remembered, but he had been busy. Still, a beautiful woman was worth coaxing. "My dear, of course I remember, but I've been so busy. Don't worry, I won't forget what I promised you. Darling, I've been missing you every day. Baby, let's meet up tonight, okay?"
"Hmph, I'm not falling for that, you player. Don't think I don't know what you really want when you see me," Diana Rigg said, laughing as she scolded him.
After a moment of affectionate banter, Diana suddenly exclaimed, "William, what are you doing? I hear the sound of horse hooves. Oh, I see, William Devinshire. You have time to go riding, but you don't have time to see me! Jerk! I'm breaking up with you!"
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