Chereads / Insidious Pleasures / Chapter 41 - The King's Punishment

Chapter 41 - The King's Punishment

Fujita wore a merchant attire and sat on a piece of a wooden rectangle at a height. He had a small fake moustache and a few hairs around his jawline.

Behind him, there was an additional space of rectangular wood on which, Nami sat.

Fujita was holding a rope with his two hands in such a way that gave him the impression that he was guiding some horses.

Nami wore a cloak that covered her body entirely. Nami acted as the maid, Angie while Fujita switched to his other role.

The kind merchant, 'Cain' had already appeared at around the beginning of the performance.

He was amongst the people that got help from Aros' early days when he awakened his powers.

Feeling indebted by Aros' aid, he would occasionally pass through his village and help the populace over there with items less than the expected price.

It was regarded as a huge discount but Cain shrugged it off. Because if Aros did not help him in the first place, he would have been at an irreversible loss.

He was on an important supply run so it was understandable.

Aros was impressed and felt comfortable with his behaviours. So over time, they became friends through their encounters.

At the moment, Cain was accompanied by Angie because she requested a lift. Her destination was at a certain city where Aros was deployed due to work.

Angie complained at the back.

"Can't you go any faster!"

"...Miss. This is a carriage for transporting goods. Not for racing. I am afraid that we have to go at this speed so that my goods do not get any damage."

"Tsk!"

"What is it, miss? Why are you in such a hurry?"

Angie would not disclose her reason for her impatience. Cain, though, tried to lift the mood.

"I think I know why you are headed over where I am going. You are dying to meet that famous Aros, right?"

Angie received a signal of shock. Seeing her not denying his assumptions, he continued with his hypothesis.

"I am not surprised that you are that desperate to meet him. I mean, he is handsome and popular. Just to be clear though, I am not into him so I am not your obstacle."

"....."

His comedic attitude loosened the atmosphere. Angie feeling a bit more comfortable being in his company.

"*Sigh* I wouldn't have known that that little boy from back then would be so popular."

As Cain reminisced his first encounter with Aros, Angie pried more on that matter.

"You have known him since his childhood?"

"I first met him when he was like 12 years old. Now he is an adult. Ah, how time passes."

Cain's smile emerged as he thought about Aros' growth.

He is now 18 in the story. So Cain would occasionally meet him for more than 5 years.

Angie was now thinking about unveiling the real reason why she wanted to meet Aros. However, she was still hesitant by the way she stuttered.

"...I-I.....I."

"Miss? Do you need water or something? It seems like your mouth is dried."

"N-No. I am fine..."

"Are you sure, miss?"

There was a slight pause in between them and Cain was getting worried. Angie raised her head and decided to divulge the burden she is carrying with her.

"Mr Cain..... Aros is in danger."

"What!?!"

His expression was visibly distorted with bewilderment as well as his voice.

"What do you mean by that!?"

"Aros' village is going to get attacked by the soldiers of the kingdom. Please, I have to inform Aros to stop their attack."

"...wh-....."

The shock did not leave his mind. Angie saw how agitated Cain became because of what she blurted.

"Mr Cain! Please! Let's hurry up and prevent the destruction of Aros' village!"

Cain gulped the saliva stuck in his throat and clenched the rein of the carriage harder.

"Why didn't you say it before!?"

After that, he frantically brought the chord up and down rapidly, implying that the carriage was moving quicker.

Angie was holding on to the edge of the carriage and bellowed.

"Mister, your goods are going to get damaged at this point!"

"Who do you think is the most important right now!!?"

Angie heard that and was relieved that she was right to have told him the real cause of her restless behaviour.

Those two travelled on the carriage, hoping to arrive there on time to warn Aros

As such the curtains dropped.

....

In the background, the lighting crew quickly set up a realistic-looking scenery of a village purged by fire.

The sound management group enveloped the stage with bellows of agonised people and the sizzling sound of the big fire. It was pre-recorded so all they had to do was input it on the speakers.

There stood Fujita disguised as Mak. He stood in the centre of this chaos created by himself.

However, his face was still in disarray.

'Did I do the right thing?' That thought exuded from his figure.

Still, if he hadn't have fulfilled the King's order, he would have been punished.

Although the punishment on Mak would be lighter since he is family but seeing his Father's rage, he doubted if anything like that would happen.

He stared over the flames thoughtlessly when suddenly, he heard a scream.

"MAAAAK!!!!!"

The rage-filled scream snapped Mak out of his guilty thoughts and focused on that figure that stood afloat.

It was Aros' angry face that loomed over Mak.

As Aros gazed at his destroyed village that he grew up in, his fear and furiousness were unfathomable.

"You heartless imbecile!! You dare to attack this village full of innocent souls!?!"

Aros landed on his two feet in front of Mak.

"My Father warned you many times before! But you did not heed to a single one of them! This is your fault!"

"Falling in love is my fault!?"

"Falling in love with Mikela is your fault."

Aros could not believe what he was hearing from Mak.

"Is it because I am a commoner?"

"That is precisely why. Finally, you understand but it is a bit too late for that."

Mak scanned the blazing scenery when he told off Aros. Now Aros was fuming. He lost control and bellowed.

"Mak!! You are going to pay for this!"

He sprinted to Mak and out of nowhere, 2 soldiers wearing black pieces of equipment. They had head equipment on so their face was hidden.

It was Daisuke and a member of the sound management group. Those two would choreograph fight scenes with Seita.

"Break his legs!" Mak ordered his soldiers.

The two soldiers proceeded to strike him first but Aros evaded them and battled them.

To make it seem like Aros was fighting with multiple soldiers, either Daisuke or the other member would disappear for a moment of the fight and just shortly after, he would reappear at a different approach.

That way they disappeared would be like Aros has killed them. In that manner, the audience, in other words, the judges will know how strong is Aros.

After a while of the choreographed fight, Aros was tired but he continued to push his enemies.

Suddenly, Mak called out to Aros.

"Aros. Stop this at once."

Aros veered his attention to where Mak is standing. His mind went blank.

"Aros! Save me!" Ariella's voice reached out to Aros.

Mak had a knife just inches away from Ariella's neck.

"If you do not want her neck to be sliced, then I suggest you stay idle."

Aros gritted his teeth and warned Mak with a terrifying glare.

"Mak. You are already treading beyond the limit... Do not make this the point of no return for you."

"Then you should help me do that. Stay still!"

The two soldiers approached Aros closer was about to beat him. However, Aros evaded them and used his power of the wind to soar through the enemy.

Eventually, he was close to Mak which made him startle.

Instinctively, Mak stepped back with Ariella still in his grasp but Aros would still get be able to get him.

"Ku-!"

In a state of panic, Mak moved his hand swiftly and sliced Ariella's throat.

*Splitch!*

"Gah-!?"

"...ARIELLAAAAAAAAAA!!!!"

He watched his sister slowly topple over with blood dripping from her neck. Her expression was grim and his body lifelessly dropped on the ground.

The knife slipped off of Mak's hand because he was too surprised by Aros' sudden charge so he lost grip.

Aros became overwhelmed with grief but inclined with anger towards Mak.

His bloodshot eyes were aimed at Mak who feared for his life. What was before him was not Aros anymore. It was the wind of death.

"S-Stay away!!"

Ignoring his cries, Aros immediately picked up the knife and dashed to Mak.

"NOO!!!"

*Splitch!*

He stabbed Mak's stomach and shoved him away. The soldiers were about to step in but Aros just glared at them, completely different than before.

The soldiers were no match, so they ran away from the situation.

Sensing that no prescence posed threats to him anymore, his lingered sadness filled the air. His bleak gaze fell on Ariella's dead body.

Not knowing what to do, he clenched his hands and lifted off the ground with the help of his powers.

In the background, the scenery was changed into the blue skies. The background was rolling, showing that Aros was going fast up in the air.

Kagome was only slowly lifting Seita but the rolling background made an impact of him rapidly lifting.

As he stopped there, Aros expressed his powerlessness due to his sister's death. And he turned that into the motivation for revenge.

That scene that made Nami, Fujita and Rina in awe with Seita's acting skills, was about to unfold.

...

The King and the Queen were sitting on their thrones. They were quietly sitting but not for long.

Abruptly, a soldier was thrown at their feet.

The King, offended by this behaviour, called out to whoever was responsible for this.

"Who the hell did this!? Show yourself!"

Aros came out of the dark and revealed his revengeful figure to the royal parent.

"You!?"

The King stood from his throne was disgusted by his presence.

"What are you doing here?"

Aros was not happy with the King's response. He did not want to engage in unnecessary blabbering.

All he wanted, was straight to the point.

"King. Did you order the massacre of my village that I grew in?"

His sombre voice made the King elated because he knew that Mak fulfilled his orders. Fearlessly, the King declared.

"I did. You, Aros, would not listen to a word I warned to you. Now, face the consequences of not listening to me."

The Queen felt threatened by Aros' aura as it grew to be more bloodthirsty.

"Why? Just because I fell in love, I was subjected to torture."

"Refrain from using vulgar language before me you commoner."

"...Again with that..."

He felt like he had enough of that talk.

"Mak is dead. And now you will also suffer the same state."

What the King heard infuriated him. His son was announced dead by Aros. But he did not have time to mourn over his death.

Aros sprinted to the King and a bloodied knife was in his hand.

He was planning on killing the King.

"Dear!!"

Quickly, the Queen stepped in front of the King and protected him from Aros. Nonetheless, the knife did not make contact with anything.

It was a hair breadth's away from the Queen's stomach.

The King was appalled by the chain of events that was happening. The Queen who was prepared for the pain to surge through her body looked at Aros.

He stopped his attack for some reason.

At the corner of their eyes, they saw their daughter, Mikela.

"Aros!!" Mikela shouted at Aros.

She frantically approached the three individuals and tried to stop the murder that would have happened.

"...Mikela..."

"Aros! What are you doing?"

"....."

Streams of tears from his eyes flowed. Mikela saw this and her heart ache all of a sudden.

"...A...riella.....is dead..."

Mikela gasped with shock. Aros them turned to the King and she followed suit.

"It is all his fault!"

Sweat was forming from the King's face as the blade was inches away from him.

"Father?... Is that true...?"

Mikela could not believe what Aros is saying. The King was finding it difficult to answer her daughter so he tried to deviate her focus.

"Mikela. You should not marry this dangerous peasant! Look at what he is doing!"

Mikela was surprised even as it left her speechless for a while. Worriedly, the King called out to her.

"Mikela?"

"So you are not denying Aros' allegation?"

The King was silent not knowing what to say. Mikela was distraught. She was frustrated that her Father has stoop that low to prevent Aros from meeting her.

Aros was listening to all of this, so he prepared to launch another knife attack.

The Queen again stepped in and pleaded.

"Please, Aros. I beg you. Please spare his life! I know that it would not amount to anything but on his behalf, I apologize."

".....For you have a loved one, I too had a loved one. But.....he snatched it from me."

The Queen still would not budge from her position as he resolved to get in the way of his attack.

Aros lifted his knife in the air to bring down to the King's body, yet it stayed up. That is because Mikela grabbed his arm.

"Mikela...?"

"Even though he killed your sister..., even though he is evil,....he is still my Father. I cannot ignore this..."

With tears, he tried to persuade Aros

"Please.... Do not forgive him but do not kill him...Please..."

As Aros gazed at Mikela's trembling hand, his eyes were dissipated from the furiousness.

"Mikela...I love you."

".....I love you too, Aros..."

He set the knife away from her parents. Still, it didn't spell the end for the King.

"You still need a punishment for your misdeeds."

Aros watched over the King with a condescending stare. The King gulped upon receiving those gaze.

"Your punishment is to get us married. Do you object?"

"....."

The Queen, Mikela and Aros waited for his response. The King hesitated to answer Aros but what he could do right now.

He cannot beat Aros. He and Mikela cannot be persuaded. The Queen too seems inclined with their decisions.

So he was left with no option.

"No, I do not have any objections."

With that, the King arranged Mikela's marriage with Aros. After their two souls were officially together, they went far away from the kingdom to settle in a small countryside.

They had a small house but they were happy. The hole that Aros was scarred with, Mikela helped in filling them with their moments together.

And they happily lived ever after.