1854 Water to a Fish (Part 2)
"You gave it to me! What kind of father forgets the name of his own son?" With each word, Orpal slapped his father again, forcing Raaz's head to turn left and right non-stop.
The sudden movements blurred his vision and the pain was so intense that it almost made him faint.
Almost.
"You are not my son. I disowned you years ago and every single one of your depraved actions reassures me that I did the right thing." Raaz said with a cold voice, just before spitting a mix of saliva and blood on Orpal's face.
"I saw how you looked at Elina and what you tried to do to Lith. Do you have no shame?"
Orpal slowly wiped the bloody lump of saliva with his hand, licking it to let his Vampire side relish the nectar in it.
"In my defense, I haven't seen Mom in years and I grew up without her. To me, now she's nothing but a nice piece of ass." He said, laughing at Raaz's outrage and foolish attempts to get free from his bindings.
"You should thank me, Dad. I allowed you to watch the fall of your family. Even though they were just holograms, I hope you told them your goodbyes because you'll never see them again."
"Didn't you say that you would kill us last?" Raaz asked with a tinge of fear in his voice.
"That was the original plan, but after seeing Leech's ability to manipulate souls, I need to perform a few experiments and you will help me." The Dead King replied.
"Do your worst. I'm not going to beg for my life or reveal anything I know to you." Raaz steeled his resolve, fearing that a moment of weakness could doom the rest of his family.
"You don't have to say anything, Dad. I only need you to suffer and potentially die. I want to check how strong the link between Leech and the blood members of our family is.
"Once I'm done with my experiments, I'll entrust you with a message. Try to stay alive and if you don't, please stick around as a soul, or I'll have to capture someone else. Maybe Rena. Oh, the fun that I would have with her!" Orpal said as his hand slowly pierced through Raaz's flesh.
***
City of Valeron, Royal Court Hall, right after the Royal decree.
"What is this madness? I knew that you were an incompetent fool, Morn, but I would have never thought that you were also this stupid." Archon Jirni Ernas, Archduchess of the Ernas region, walked into the room, looking at the General like a worm in the mud.
"How dare you-" Morn choked on his words as one after the other several important figures of the Kingdom followed Jirni, each one of them staring at him in hatred.
First came the Commander of the Knight Guard, Orion Ernas. Then, the Royal Healer, Quylla Ernas. Then, two Headmasters of the six great academies, Marth and Ainz, followed by his wife, Brinja Distar.
Last, but not least, came the god of the battlefield, the Highmaster and unsung hero Zogar Vastor, accompanied by his sister-in-law, Constable Yehval. Alone he emitted an aura of dread that covered all those on the opposing side in a cold sweat.
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His fury was almost tangible, making their mouths turn dry and their lips unable to move. His grip was so strong that his Yggdrasill Staff cracked and self-repaired in an endless cycle.
Jirni knew that she needed as much backing as she could for her power move. Contacting Orion and Quylla had been easy since they lived in her same home. Yet she would have never made it so quickly if the rest of the team hadn't already been assembled by Kamila.
The moment she had regained her cool, she had contacted Vastor and Brinja, explaining the situation to them. Both had a Headmaster on their speed dial and weren't afraid to call them.
"How can you have taken such an important decision without summoning the entire inner council?" Jirni continued. "You have put at risk the safety of the Kingdom and the fate of the war in one fell swoop.
"Look past your fear and envy. Archmage Verhen destroyed and humiliated the leader of the Undead Courts and Manohar's killer in front of the entire Kingdom. If we played it well, it would have boosted the morale of our troops and served as the start of our counterattack."
"But-" Morn attempted to rebuke, but the collective killing intent that assailed him barely let him breathe.
"We have finally learned how Verhen destroyed not one, but two Lost Cities. How he held his ground multiple times against the Horsemen, and what do you do? You severed our link with the only Divine Beast that openly sided with the Kingdom!
"How do you plan to make up for that loss? Are you powerful enough to fill his shoes?"
"Verhen is a threat to the Kingdom. He uses undead. He's no better than the Dead King." Morn replied, stuttering every word to fight against the mana suffocating him.
"That's not true!" Kamila stepped forward.Do you want to read more chapters? Come to p a n d a - n ovel,c.o.m "If that really was the case, Lith would have used his shadows to attack the people of the Kingdom, to drive away all of its forces from Lutia to claim it as his own fief.
"Instead, even when he unleashed his powers on Derios, only the members of the Undead Courts were harmed. The proof is that Derios was the only city that didn't suffer an attack when Thrud made her move."
The Royal Court mumbled loudly as the events of that night finally made sense and Kamila's words drove a wedge in the wall of their fears.
"Shut up, woman! A mere Constable and an accomplice of Verhen has no right to address the Court." Morn said, eager to discredit her. "Or would you like us to believe that after sticking with him for three years you had no idea of his true nature?"
"If you are talking about his identity as Tiamat, I didn't. Just like everyone else in this room." Kamila lied through her teeth, making Jirni proud as she waved at Quylla, Marth, and Vastor.
"If even the greatest healers in the Kingdom couldn't notice it, how could a mere Constable succeed?" She took a brief pause allowing them to nod and confirm her words.
Two out of three were lying as well, but nodding didn't take much skill, and doubting their testimony was beyond reason.
"As for his true nature, you are right, I know it well. Archmage Verhen is a shrewd, manipulative bag of secrets, but he also never turned his back on the Kingdom. He had no reason to destroy the Lost Cities at great personal risk, yet he did.
"He had no reason to come back here from the Desert and foil Syrook's plan, delaying Thrud for precious months that allowed the army to survive her attack. He had no reason to help Manohar spot the Skinwalkers if not for his loyalty to us all.
"If Lith really was the threat you say he is, he would have already learned everything he could during these 19 years and sold everything to Salaark in exchange for a seat in her Royal Court."
