The End of Your Arrogance - Chapter 57

Ilya and Stas descended the stairs leading to the underground prison of the main estate. Stas, holding a lantern, shivered as he walked ahead into the dim and gloomy interior.

“This place always sends shivers down my spine,” he muttered.

“I know what you mean; the air here feels suffocating,” Ilya replied.

They briskly descended the spiral staircase leading underground. As the stairs ended, they began to see rows of closely spaced iron bars. A pungent and unpleasant odor filled the air, causing them to cover their noses and walk faster.

“Get us out of here!”

“For the love of all that’s holy, release us!”

Prisoners inside the iron cells crowded around the bars, shouting for freedom. The guards were frantically trying to calm the agitated inmates, their brows beaded with sweat.

Ignoring the commotion, they walked for a while until the solitary confinement cells came into view. Upon reaching the entrance of the last cell, a guard stationed there nodded in greeting.

“Your Highness, have you arrived?”

Ilya acknowledged the greeting with a curt nod and cast his gaze into the cell. A form that resembled a human caught his attention. When the figure inside noticed Ilya and Stas, it slowly began to move toward the bars without a word. As it came closer, a foul odor grew more pronounced.

“Judging by its approach, it seems to have all its limbs intact,” Ilya remarked dispassionately.

“Are you lamenting my lack of injuries?” the man behind the bars muttered, holding onto the iron bars for support.

His face, covered in a mix of dirt, sweat, and blood, had turned a sickly shade of dark. He scratched at his hair, which had become stiff and dry like rocks. Stas grimaced as he watched the dust fall from the man’s hair.

“Your Highness, I fear I might faint from the distance. My constitution is rather delicate,” the man uttered.

“Very well,” Ilya replied.

Ilya’s gaze once again settled on the man behind the bars. Piercing eyes emitted a sharp glint as they met Ilya’s head-on.

“Can you endure this?” Ilya asked.

“Every day feels like yesterday, and today is no different from tomorrow. I just want to die quickly,” the man replied.

Despite his unkempt appearance, the man’s speech was refined and neat. However, his voice cracked like that of an adolescent going through puberty.

“You’re quite something too. Marquis Marduse not only abandoned us but also his own family’s knights,” he continued.

When Marquis Marduse’s eldest son betrayed their allies in the Tartar Gorge, the gorge wasn’t solely populated by the Blackwood Knights. While they were a minority, there were also knights from the Mardus family.

A little later, upon discovering the betrayal by Mardus, the surviving Blackwood Knights eliminated them all.

The only one who survived until the end of the war was the man before them.

The reason he had been spared was simple; he hadn’t been officially knighted.

Whether he was a squire or a servant boy tasked with running errands, no one could tell for sure. But he certainly didn’t look like a knight.

When negotiating with Marquis Mardus, Ilya had proposed to return the boy if a suitable price was paid. It wasn’t an exorbitant sum.

However, Marquis Maduse politely declined.

“All the knights of House Maduse perished in the gorge,” he had repeated mechanically, sending shivers down Ilya’s spine.

“Please, just kill me,” the man implored, gripping the iron bars with both hands and staring up at Ilya with desperate eyes.

“No, I can’t do that,” Ilya replied.

The man shook the bars with his emaciated fingers and begged, “I’m asking you to kill me! Spare me your futile pity!”

Ilya retorted sharply, “You’re deluded if you think I have any emotions for you. I’ve kept you alive because I believe you might be useful in the future, nothing more.”

Despair filled the man’s eyes.

“Don’t you want to leave here? If you wish, I can arrange for your return to your homeland.”

The man’s eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“If this is a joke, spare me.”

“Do you think Duke Ajauntice has nothing better to do than play jokes like this?” Ilya took a step closer to the bars. In the darkness, he smirked.

“I can arrange for your return to Acrid Castle, but you’ll go as an envoy of Azantis.”

The man behind the bars pondered this carefully.

“In one way or another, death is coming. But if I have to die, it’s better to do it in my homeland.”

Ilya offered words of solace, genuine in his intent.

“Still, your master won’t be able to kill you easily this time. There are witnesses, you know. Trust me.”

With that, Ilya turned without lingering. Stas followed closely behind.

As they walked toward the exit of the prison, the screams of the prisoners once again filled the air, making their ears ring.

Amid the chaos, the man behind the bars never took his eyes off Ilya’s back.

A few days later, the awaited message came from Rene. Evelyn had set out for the tower with Arthur and the eagle.

Rene, along with the lawmaker Debbi, whom they had met before, welcomed Evelyn and her party.

“Rene, Debbi, thank you for your efforts.”

“Don’t mention it. This child here, she’s really resilient. Her will to survive is strong,” Debbi said, pointing to a fish swimming in a large fish tank with a smile.

“Oh, what a lovely home you have.”

“This is a gift from me, my lady,” Rene chuckled.

“Would you like to take a closer look?”

“Yes, Rene.”

Evelyn, feeling giddy, approached the fish tank. The fish seemed to recognize her and swayed its tail in the water.

Evelyn chuckled softly, but Rene suddenly produced a crimson ring out of nowhere and extended it playfully toward her. Startled, Evelyn looked at her, and Rene wore a mischievous grin.

“My lady, we’ve discovered something quite amusing, and we thought you might like to know.”

“Something amusing?” Evelyn inquired, her expression still puzzled.

“This necklace and ring here, they’re rather intriguing. My lady, please try putting on the ring first.”

Evelyn wordlessly slipped the crimson ring onto her ring finger. It felt unique, unlike any other ring she had worn, as she had sensed even back in Blackwood.

“Now, my lady, try giving a command to the fish.”

Evelyn, still staring at the ring, raised her head sharply.

“A command… to the fish?”

“Yes, you did it before, didn’t you? Just do the same.”

“When did I ever give a command to a fish?”

“Could you all help me find the necklace and ring? Can you do that? They look just like this.”

“Oh my goodness! I casually said that at the pond, and it was a command?”

Evelyn looked at Rene in astonishment. René grinned widely and nodded.

“What should I command?” Evelyn hesitated for a moment.

A little while later, she made up her mind and spoke, “Rise above the water’s surface like a whale.”

With a hearty laugh, the eagle teased Evelyn.

“Splish-splash.”

The fish splashed around and leaped above the water’s surface before disappearing back into the depths.

“Eagle, did you see that? Did you just see that?”

“I did, human. Try something more interesting.”

Mischievousness sparkled in Evelyn’s eyes as she glanced at the eagle and gave a slight nod of her head.

“Eagle, please come closer to the fish tank,” Evelyn requested.

The eagle approached the tank without any suspicion.

“Create a fountain.”

“Human, how can a fish create a fountain?”

Splash!

The fish leaped much higher than before, soaring a hand’s span above the eagle’s head. Just before it descended, it forcefully spewed the water it had held in its mouth onto the eagle’s head.

“Ah! This blasted fish!”

Before the eagle could start leaping around, the fish quickly disappeared back into the tank. Everyone burst into laughter at the sight of the eagle drenched from head to toe.

“I was going to catch and roast that wretched fish!”

Leaving the still-aggrieved Eagle behind, René gestured for Evelyn and Debi to join her. On the table, a beautiful plate was filled with Renee’s favorite sweets. Renee poured red tea for Evelyn into her cup.

“My lady, snacks are the best way to soothe a startled heart.”

“Hehe, you’re right.”

Evelyn nibbled on a cookie made from dried fruit. After she had swallowed the cookie, she looked at René.

“This ring and the fish obeying my command… they’re related, aren’t they?”

René pointed to the crimson ring Evelyn was wearing. Debbie, who was sitting next to Rene, picked up the necklace from the table.

“These rings and necklaces are enchanted with dark magic.”

“What?”

Evelyn was taken aback and stood up. The eagle, who had been turning its head, was startled and flew over to land next to Evelyn.

“D-Dark magic?”

“Yes, my lady.”

Evelyn sat back down, her heart pounding.

“Let me explain. This ring is worn by the one who gives commands, and the necklace is worn by the one who obeys.”

Evelyn and the eagle turned pale.

“What Lord Odin gave me was the necklace,” Evelyn said. She hadn’t expected any compassion from her father and stepmother, but this did weigh heavily on her heart. The necklace she had received, even after her mother was sold, had ultimately been a slave’s necklace.

The eagle sensed the unsettling atmosphere and gently tapped Evelyn’s arm with its wing.

“My lady, dark magic isn’t just automatic. It requires a conduit.”

A conduit? Evelyn wore a puzzled expression.

“When you first received the necklace, did you happen to shed blood?”

Evelyn rummaged through her memories of when Odin had come to the North. Before hanging the necklace around her neck, Odin had struck Sophie’s cheek. Angry, Evelyn used the necklace to scratch Odin’s face. Odin’s blood had tainted the necklace when it flowed from his cheek, and then blood had dripped from Evelyn’s hand as she held the necklace.

“Both Lord Odin and I shed blood,” Evelyn confessed, her complexion darkening. After a moment, she asked Renee, “Is there a conduit only in the necklace?”

This time, Debbie, the lawmaker sitting next to Rene, spoke up.

“No, there isn’t. The ring also requires blood to be shed initially.”

“When I put on the ring, I didn’t shed any blood.”

Debbie lifted the crimson ring she held and placed it on her left palm. As René recited something, the ring enlarged. Evelyn and the Eagle exchanged alarmed glances, alternating between staring at the ring and René.

“It’s easier to see when it’s bigger,” René explained.

As René finished speaking, a thin, sharp needle protruded from the top of the ring’s innermost part. Evelyn and the eagle stifled their screams.