Chapter 32

the covetous heir
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​Nestled in the foothills of the dark mountains was the Forgotten Pit, an isolated tower that houses criminals. Undead who committed treasonous acts weren’t even allowed true death, but instead, they were left to rot in a treacherous labyrinth, forgotten by their peers, and punished for eternity.

Guarding the door were assassins under Kuzlav clans as they control half of the military force. One could not just enter the vicinity since these assassins were skilled enough to decapitate anyone in less than a second…but there were still exemptions.

​One of the most basic skills that master assassins should be proficient in was fending off one’s intimidation to avoid getting detected. However, with rage amplifying my intimidation, the two assassins hiding amongst the trees yelped in agony as their minds succumbed to their greatest fears. 

“Your Highness…”

I turned toward Moria and Irus who had worried looks on their faces. After I learned that Sigrid and Kei were brought to the Forgotten Pit after their summons, I ordered my remaining retainers to lead me here.

“Stay here and guard the vicinity,” I said.

“But Your Highness…”

“I will be fine.”

They obliged despite the apprehension while I stepped inside the tower.

True to the rumors, the Forgotten Pit was much colder…much sinister. I was plunged into a pitch-black pathway without any sources of light. Even for vampires who had superior night vision, this place was too dark. 

There were occasional wails and screams that could be heard through the thick walls as I descended the spiral stairs. The labyrinthine structure would be harder to navigate if it weren’t for Moria’s magic that allowed me to see through the dark mist.

I wasn’t sure how much time had passed when I finally arrived at the “true” entrance of the labyrinth. 

An array of floating braziers lined the entrance, illuminating the chamber ahead. It was the only source of light I had seen upon going inside, and it immediately showed me the unsparing punishment received by my retainers.

My presence caught the attention of Orell Kuzlav who was standing before the mangled bodies of Kei and Sigrid, along with two of his retainers who were both mages.

“Your Highness,” he called, both annoyance and worry in his voice.

Ignoring him, I walked toward my retainers.

Pools of blood had already accumulated on the concrete floor. Kei was missing both of his arms, while Sigrid had a huge hole in her abdomen that almost split her body apart.

The rage I had been quelling earlier bubbled in my chest. “Who are you to punish my retainers?”

Orell’s eyebrows twitched. “Pardon me, Your Highness, but as the general commander of our military knights, it is in my jurisdiction to discipline anyone from the force.”

“And I have complete authority over my retainers as the rightful heir to the throne,” I retorted. “You do not even know what truly transpired during the parley, yet you’re getting ahead of yourself with this unreasonable punishment.”

“They failed to protect a royal blood. It is only appropriate to punish them for oversight and negligence.”

An amused smile escaped my lips. “That’s funny. Now you’re treating Zaria as a royal blood when she’s already gone.”

“She was a—!”

“Silence.”

I was neither Zaria nor the queen, yet that single word worked like it was a charm, hushing the entirety of the chamber.

“Get up,” I ordered my retainers. “Come with me.”

Although their current conditions would warrant an immediate help from an arcane mage, the two managed to heed my order. If they were normal trackers, they wouldn’t be able to move, yet both of them stood with a determined look on their faces.

I started walking out of the chamber with the two following me behind but stopped short after passing by Orell.

“For a mere noble blood, you sure think you are above the royal house,” I remarked. “You’ve already crossed the line too many times. This is your final warning, Kuzlav.”

Before he could utter a reply, I started walking away along with my retainers.

***

Silence filled the main chamber of the arcane tower as Rurik tended to Kei and Sigrid’s injuries. They could wait for days to regenerate their missing parts but taking them to Rurik who could fix them in a few minutes was the most efficient option.

“This may take time to heal,” Rurik concluded, to my surprise.

“Why?”

Missing body parts were such an easy thing to heal for a skilled arcane mage like him. They had also trained hard enough for them to survive the king’s retainers, and that meant their regenerative skills had also evolved. But if Rurik needed more time to tend to them, then their injuries must have been graver than expected. 

“Seems like the weapons they used for torture were laced with lungwort and felty germander, plants that are moderately toxic to undead and can hinder regeneration in high dosages,” he explained. “I have to extract the toxic agents in their bodies or else they wouldn’t be able to restore their body to its original form.”

Veins bulged on my forehead as I listened to his explanation. Even Moria and Irus exuded overwhelming aura that made Rurik flinch. They did not even try to honor Zaria’s death, yet they were shamelessly using that to frame my retainers.

“I apologize, Your Highness—”

“Quiet,” I said, interrupting Kei who looked more worried about me than himself. “I do not want to hear any apology.”

Sure, they would be blamed as they were not able to protect the royals whom they swore to keep safe, but the situation didn’t even allow them to take measures. Those damn phantoms conspired with the magi, and even if both Kei and Sigrid managed to interfere, they just didn’t have enough strength to stop them.

My gaze shifted back to Rurik. “How long will it take for you to heal them?”

“Please give me about two days, Your Highness.”

“That long?” Moria intoned.

“It normally takes two hours,” murmured Irus.

“Then I will be leaving them in your care,” I said before looking at Sigrid and Kei. “Come to me when you’re fully healed.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” they answered in unison.

I left the tower with Moria and Irus trudging behind me but stopped short when I saw the head of the noble houses at the courtyard. From what I know, the royal court had yet to set the date to discuss what happened during the parley. Why were they here if not for a court meeting?

“I heard that the Dvorach house requested a court meeting to discuss the aftermath of the parley upon hearing that you have already regained consciousness,” whispered Moria.

Hah. I knew it.

It was only the night before that I woke up yet both the Dvorach and Kuzlav houses were already trying their hardest to destabilize the power of the throne. Worse, I couldn’t believe that the king approved of this request without communicating it to me.

“I see. Then I must go to the royal court, too. I have a lot of things to tell.”

***

My presence in the royal court brought an ominous tension among the attendees. It was if they weren’t even expecting me, which was amusing, given that I would be one of the subjects of this assembly.

The herald by the door also announced the arrival of the king and queen, prompting everyone to pay their respect.

Sinundan ko sila ng tingin pero hindi nila ito binigyang-pansin at nagtuluy-tuloy lang sa kanilang mga upuan. I was already feeling resentful for the blatant neglect of Zaria’s passing, but the attitude of the whole court toward the aftermath of the royal parley was truly disgusting.

Once everyone had settled in their respective seats, Troian began reading the tidings. He narrated the events that had transpired based on the logs written by Kei during our journey, but apprehension started showing on his face once it reached the confrontation with the magi.

“A coven of magi showed up riding their glidions, or winged stallions, and began casting holy magic aimed to the royal highnesses. Princess Zaria surmised they were from Romuna based on the details of their robes.”

“Romuna?” Laci Sereka interrupted. “That’s the coven monitoring the Remis kingdom, isn’t it? Why were they in the waters of Katur?”

“Reaching Katur without trespassing the territories of Remis means they have to take the roundabout route and that’ll take them about five days,” remarked Alastor Revali. “If they arrived at the same time as the envoys…”

The noble heads exchanged concerned looks, but they did not utter a single word as the king suddenly spoke.

“That damn Lilith clan broke the oath,” he remarked as the red markings around his eyes got more distinctive. “They dare conspire with those lowly magi.”

“Continue, Troian,” said the queen amidst the heightened tension.

The king narrowed his eyes at her, but did not say anything, and let Troian continue the narrative. For some reason, the king’s presence felt a bit underwhelming compared to the queen’s.

“The retainers present during the altercation said the time seemed to freeze for a moment, as there was a lapse in their memories after the head warlock ordered to cast a strong holy magic.”

Dmitri Estrei tilted his head in confusion. “What do you mean?”

Troian shifted his gaze at me before proceeding. “The holy magic seemed to be directed to Her Highness Vyrka, but the moment they regained their bearings, the retainers saw that Her Royal Highness Zaria has already received the brunt of the holy magic.”

“That sounds like…” Laci’s eyes wandered toward Kamilia and then to the queen.

Anyone already knew what she was pertaining to, but nobody dared speak it out loud.

“She used her charm,” I said, breaking the silence.

An array of reactions was seen from the attendees. Some were taken by surprise, while others were in utter disbelief. Meanwhile, both the queen and Kamilia remained indifferent, as if they already knew she inherited the bloodline ability of the Dvorach clan.

“Lies!” yelled Orell. “How come she suddenly became a charmer when she has been a schlab—!”

He never got to finish his sentence as it was replaced by his own scream. Blood spurted out of his eyes, nose, and mouth, even lacerating them due to the difference in pressure.

“Control your rage, child,” the queen suddenly said.

I wasn’t sure if she was speaking with charm, but her words abated the anger swirling in my chest. It took me a moment to realize that I was using my power against him, and I wouldn’t even bat an eye if he lost all his blood.

Orell glared at me as he wiped the blood off his face. Unfortunately, the Kuzlavs had the quickest regeneration due to their bloodline’s ability. The fresh cuts on his face instantly disappeared, but he still lost a significant amount of blood.

“I thought I have warned you enough, yet here you are, still adamant at flaunting your audacity and foolishness.” I subtly flicked my finger and the spilt blood whirled toward me. “Zaria has never been powerless. A lot of you are just swollen-headed that you failed to notice what she could do.”

“I see,” Laci chimed in. “Then that child must have inherited the ability of the Dvorach bloodline.”

“Not only was she a charmer, but Zaria was also well-versed in politics, unlike some of you who have been in this field for a lot longer, yet still couldn’t understand the severity of the situation.”

The air in the court room instantly turned colder. It was an irreverent remark, but I no longer cared about courtesy.

They didn’t even bother respecting the deceased, nor held any ceremony in Zaria’s honor, as if she was just an insignificant casualty from the magi’s assault yet was ready to use her death to justify their personal heinous agendas.

I was about to continue, but I felt an overwhelming pressure behind me. Casting a warning look was the queen who seemed vexed at the interruptions. Everyone was forced to keep quiet as she gestured for Troian to carry on with the report.

“Her Royal Highness Zaria started to disintegrate from the high-level holy magic, and the retainers saw a huge explosion of blood.” Troian’s eyes gleamed with foreboding as he glanced at me. “Ancient runes appeared on Her Highness Vyrka’s face and body.  Her hands turned into a gradient of crimson and black, with crimson lines lining her wrists. The blood surrounding her shapeshifted as a cloak, constantly shielding her, as if it has an awareness of its own. The remaining blood solidified into blades and rained down into the magi and the island of Katur…annihilating the entirety of the coven.”

The court fell in complete silence once he finished reading the content of the scroll. They must have finally realized what was happening as their gazes went back and forth to me and the king.

He had been the reigning monarch for a few centuries and had been the strongest undead in the land. However, once a royal blood’s heir fully awakened their power, the current sovereign would gradually lose theirs. And this must be the reason why he was aggravated by my presence.

Dmitri suddenly shifted in his seat amidst the heightened tension. “That’s strange,” he murmured. “Her Highness has been fully awakened before, yet it sounds like…”

He and Alastor exchanged curious looks, as if they just arrived at the same conclusion.

“Perhaps, a second awakening…” Alastor said, earning surprised gasps from the other nobles and courtiers present.

Maging ako ay nagulat sa narinig. However, the sudden surge of power within me, and my complete dominance over other’s blood that time finally made sense. This must also be why the king suddenly felt notably weaker compared to when we left Vrivarya.

This second awakening of mine had significantly reduced his power, to the point that he wasn’t fit to be a ruler any longer.

“You dare utter that nonsense in my presence?” the king regarded Alastor with cold eyes.

“Pardon my impertinence, Your Majesty,” he immediately replied. “But it is the only probable explanation of such power.”

“Silence, you imbecile!” he thundered, much to everyone’s surprise.

King Zemus had always been calm as his presence was enough to lord over anyone. Except for the queen, nobody would dare question his words and decisions because everyone knew he was the strongest undead in the land.

This kind of behavior was not only a first for almost everyone, but it was also an undeniable proof of his frustration due to his waning powers. 

My lips curved in slight amusement as I watched everyone’s expressions. It was painfully obvious how each of them was already planning something for the benefit of their respective houses upon learning the king’s condition.

Zaria’s death and my second awakening had drastically changed the political and power balance, not only within Vrivarya, but probably among the other races as well.

“And what would Your Majesty do, if it were true?” I asked, prompting everyone to look at me.

I would always feel intimidated whenever I was in his presence, yet this time, looking straight at the king’s cruel eyes felt like nothing.

He couldn’t utter a reply and only glared at me in return. Furious, he stood up from his highchair and began descending the dais.

A lot of thoughts swirled in my head. As soon as I woke up from unconsciousness, the only thing that was driving me to continue living in this wretched world was vengeance. I wanted everyone who made Zaria suffer to pay for their sins.

And I had been given the perfect opportunity to exact retribution.

An ominous smile escaped my lips as I remembered the prophecy that had terrified every vampyr kingdom for millenia: Bearing two heirs can raze the kingdom to the ground.

They were right. Vrivarya had lost its first heir, and I, who had become the sole heir, would avenge her death even if it meant laying waste to my own kingdom.

“Your Majesty,” I called. “There is something else I must claim from you before you go.”

My gaze slowly shifted to the vacant seat on the dais, and everyone gasped in chorus upon seeing where I was looking at.

“The throne,” I announced. “I shall claim it for myself.”

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Epilogue >>

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