The Tyrant's Pet

[ Mainland: Royal Palace ]

Although the fight between Abel and Maximus was silent, the opposite wing was the total opposite. Gustav and Suzanne wreak havoc because they had to free all of Aries's people. Except for Suzanne and Gustav, Aries and the witches were held captive.

Aries might be the queen and held significant powers. However, the witches from the Haimirich Empire were all imprisoned. Some of them were able to escape, but the majority of them, including the night council, were imprisoned.

"It's been a while, Your Holiness." Suzanne lowered her head slightly at the witch who came out of the cell last. "Her Majesty would be pleased to see you again."

Marcia Graves, a member of the night council, gazed at Suzanne from up and down.

"How about the king?" was the first question the witch asked the queen's trusted lady-in-waiting.

"He was currently fighting with the emperor."

Marcia Graves let out a deep exhale, but she couldn't discern if that were a sigh of relief or something else.

"Do not worry. We prepared a place for the witches. Meet Sir Gustav at the end of the queen's wing. He'll meet you all there," Suzanne instructed, but the high priestess of the night council shook her head.

"No." Marcia shook her head. "We have to stop His Majesty. I think there's something wrong in this place."

Suzanne furrowed her brows before she blurted out. "There is, for sure, and that was the king. Your Holiness, we do not have time. Please, if you want to get out of here and still see Her Majesty, follow my instruction."

The old witch's lips parted, but she ended up closing them again. Her hesitation was the most significant sign she should follow Suzanne's instructions. After all, Marcia wasn't sure herself.

Suzanne ushered all the captive witches outside of the castle where they were imprisoned, keeping quiet as they passed through the dead knights loitering the hall. When they were outside, Suzanne gazed up at the sky and let out a deep exhale.

'I wonder if the Marquess found it.'

*********

Dexter stood quietly in a room that was highly secured by Maleficent's powers. He had been standing outside for quite some time after helping Suzanne and Gustav rescue the witches. One thing the marquess knew was that when Abel slain Maximus, the wall before him would reveal the hidden door.

And it did.

Only after several minutes, the wall slowly revealed the door no one could see because Aries concealed it.

There was only one thing Dexter wanted, and that was to kill Maximus. However, since Abel would be handling the said man, he had to do something that would be beneficial to their side.

Little did Dexter know he was in for a surprise.

"Marsella…" whispered Dexter, staring into the unlocked chains in the corner of the room. "... who freed her?"

Dexter didn't look around at the dark room where not a single candelabra was lit. He didn't need to. Marsella's scent lingered, but her presence wasn't around anymore. Dexter marched towards the chains and cuffs left on the floor that were still attached to the wall, squatting down to touch the droplets of blood on the floor.

Using two fingers, Dexter touched the blood and rubbed it against his finger.

The blood was still fresh.

His eyes followed the trails of blood, only to be left disappointed. The blood trail only lead a few steps from where Marsella was held captive before it stopped there.

Dexter sniffed hard to get a whiff of another lingering scent. It was faint, but distinct. And for obvious reasons, his heart thudded. Aside from the fact Marsella was freed or abducted, how the culprit behind this was able to get into this room was someone they couldn't underestimate.

"This is bad," whispered Dexter, rising from his spot to walk to where the blood trail stopped.

Were those people Marsella's friends? Or were they another faction who were against the Grimsbanne? What would they gain from Marsella? The possibilities and questions were unlimited, and soon Dexter figured it was pointless to ponder about it.

He set his eyes back to where Marsella was held captive, gripping his sword tightly. "This… is tiring."

*********

Meanwhile…

Careful footsteps resonated in the narrow and dark staircase as Fabian took a step down. His steps, although calm and slow, were unfaltering. Despite the pitch darkness ahead, he walked as though he wasn't afraid of meeting a dead end or bumping into something.

His expression was plain and dull, taking the long stairs going down. Soon, he reached a hallway where he waltzed through in silence. Soon, he reached two gigantic doors as if it was meant for a colossal creature to use.

Fabian stopped before it, gazing up at it until his head was completely tossed back. If the gates of hell were true, it wouldn't be farfetched to think it would look something like this. Except, the gates of hell were supposed to be engulfed by an eternal fire of damnation.

"How huge," he commented about the door that existed under the royal palace grounds. "Intriguing."

Fabian raised his arm ever so slowly, planting his palm on the surface of the door. With how gigantic the doors were that he appeared like an ant, he assumed it would take a lifetime of strength to open him. Surprisingly, though, he didn't need to exert so much effort as the door creaked extremely loudly. Just its creak alone was enough to send a chill down one's spine, but not a person like Fabian.

The door just slightly opened, but Fabian could fit through without a problem. When he stepped inside the other side of the door, everything was just bright. It was the complete opposite of the path on the way here, where it was engulfed by nothing but darkness.

Fabian lifted his eyes, looking around at his surrounding.

The space beyond the enormous doors and underground the palace grounds was a vast space built on white marble and jade. There were pillars around, forming a circle with huge spaces in between. But what caught Fabian's eyes were the huge chains attached to each pillar, now dangling on the side, and that stone altar in the middle of the pillars.

Fabian marched toward it at his own discretion, stopping beside the altar. When his eyes fell on it, his expression turned cold. He caressed the edges of the altar, only to see snippets of someone struggling while people were cruelly pinning her on this very altar.

After a second, Fabian snatched his hand back as if he touched a hot surface, hissing heavily.

"A sacrificial altar," he murmured, gazing at the altar that had dried blood on it. He lifted his head, recalling the snippets he just saw. In those visions, he caught something huge hovering over this altar. "Where did it go?"

With all the missing things and people on the night of Maximus's death, deep in everyone's hearts, they knew things were far from over. Maximus wasn't the least of their concerns, but those who had been hiding behind the power of the king to move freely without getting noticed. o