"My prince, what is your command?" The old gentleman that had previously been talking with the prince asked as he gracefully bowed down.
"Ah, those cunts finally left." The prince suddenly said in an uncharacteristic voice as he ran his hand through his hair.
"W-what?" The nobles asked in confusion as they weren't used to hearing such words coming from the prince himself.
"I said those bastards who will die in the following couple of days have finally left, you lot should feel happy, however, as your crimes were light enough for me to consider a different form of punishment for you." The prince suddenly said before sighing and looking down at them.
This time, the look he was giving wasn't one that a prince would give to those below him, but what a powerful being would give to ants who were walking down on the ground beneath him.
It was a look borne from incredible arrogance, one that the prince would rarely show to people with whom he wasn't close. Even his late teacher, the god of war had never seen him show such a look.
'I always thought there was something eerie hidden beneath that mask of justice and those eyes, prince Sied.' Lyle said in his head as he observed what was happening in the hall.
Lyle had previously talked with the prince who was still wearing his knight outfit. Even he had no idea that he was talking with the third prince himself as he didn't really know the man.
He did have a nagging feeling that the person was familiar, but he wasn't certain why so.
He had previously gone back to the inn before changing his look and going out. He had a lot of time before morning and he wanted to relax a bit, perhaps even visit a brothel as well.
During his walk, he came across some minor nobles who were talking about how they needed to return home as the third prince had suddenly appeared and was calling them all to the hall. That was when things suddenly clicked in Lyle's head, he finally realized why the knight was familiar.
He had seen the prince a couple of times, most of them being inside the headquarters of the organization.
As Lyle was a member of the higher ranks of the organization, he was privy to more information than most. He knew the deal that the empire and organization had, and would regularly see some higher-ups of the empire visiting the headquarters through secret entrances.
The prince was one of them, as were all the other princes and princesses of the empire. They all had their own subordinates inside the organization, and the higher ranks were also in cahoots with them.
Lyle was one of the rare ones that never took a side as he didn't wish to get involved in politics, he wasn't interested in holding power in the empire either.
Lyle waited until one of the nobles went home and made his way to the hall before knocking him unconscious and taking his clothes. He blended into the crowd and went in, eager to find out what this whole thing was about.
Upon seeing the prince, Lyle had a bad feeling about what was happening. His attitude and the way he simply gave orders to the nobles without punishing them were completely out of character for him.
Lyle knew that something was definitely going to happen, something big.
Upon seeing that a couple of the nobles were picked out of the crowd to stay, Lyle knew that the prince would probably show his true colors behind closed doors.
Even though Lyle had never seen the prince acting in any suspicious way, and had seen and heard of his good deeds and chivalrous acts, he never believed that it was all true.
Every single time he would see the prince, he would get a feeling of looking into the abyss.
"D-die, what are you saying your majesty, why would they-" Before a noble could continue talking, the cold stare of the prince made him freeze.
It was pure bloodlust and arrogance that could be seen in the deep blue eyes the prince had.
"From today onwards, you are my dogs," Sied said as he glared at each one of the nobles.
"There will be no bargains, no deals, just servitude."
"You will bark when I say you bark, run when I say you run, and follow all my commands without any complaints, if not, I will kill you right now and order to soldiers to take over your possessions, your families will be sent to the dungeon, the females will be violated, as will the men." Sied suddenly started talking with a chilling voice that was unlike how any had heard him talk before.
"The women will be then sent to work as common prostitutes in the worst brothels while the men will be sent to work in the mines as criminals, I won't even let the children walk away from the crimes your families have committed." Suddenly Sied got up before disappearing from the chair and appearing in front of the nobles who were now petrified in fear and shock.
"The ones that I have let go will face that destiny, some will have it easier, but some will have it even worse, I won't even let them die before all members of their families have been violated in front of them and their dead bodies delivered in the cells."
"You dared to not only kiss up to that bastard who had killed my teacher, his own father, but you took advantage and abused your positions, acting as if you were the ones that control the empire!!" Sied's thunderous roar echoed inside the hall but was blocked from coming out by an array that had been created below the hall.
The nobles didn't speak.
Not even a sound escaped their lips as they stared at the man who was loved throughout the whole empire because of his charisma, talent, and benevolence.
To think that such a person was actually so demented, so cruel that he would say such things.
No, it wasn't just saying them, they were all 100% certain that he would do all the things he just said he would.
As for Lyle, even he who had some doubts about the prince and his true nature was shocked after hearing the words he spoke.
'Shit, shit, shit!' Lyle thought as he didn't move an inch.
'Why did I have to listen in, if I get caught, no way that my life will be safe, he won't stop until he kills me, that damn maniac, I don't care about those bastards dying, but the whole family, shit!' Lyle cursed in his head.
'You had to go and listen in Lyle, you couldn't just let it go, damn it, me and my idiotic mind!'
"M-m-my prince, I … you-" The noble wasn't even able to speak in front of the prince whose murderous intent had covered the whole hall.
There had previously been soldiers stationed inside the hall, but the prince had ordered them to leave.
"As I said, there will be no bargaining, you either bend the knee, swear your loyalty to me and the crown, or you die," Sied said as he grabbed his sword before pulling it out.
'The Shadowless Blade'
That was the name of the sword the prince wielded. A masterwork of craftsmanship that the old duke had ordered to be made specifically for the prince. It was a custom-made sword that was said to be blood-bound to the prince so that only he could wield it.
Upon seeing the sword that had been pointed at them, the nobles were all scared senseless.
None of them were strong, they were either merchants who became incredibly wealthy or had been a noble house for many generations and were more focused on politics than those that served below them in their houses and trained.
That was the usual noble, the leaders usually weren't strong as they didn't have time to train, while the second-in-command and lower were the powerhouses that the house would send out if there was any need for it.
Of course, exceptions did exist, like the old duke and a couple of other noble houses that were made out of warriors and never stopped training and developing themselves.
Those noble houses, even though they didn't have a lot of political influence in the empire, were incredibly powerful and none dared disrespect them.
The royal family was such a family.
In the history of the royal family, there were only 3 emperors who had inherited the throne only thanks to their great intellect or leadership skills while having poor strength themselves.
The others were all powerful warriors on their own, just like the current emperor who was a Titled Knight.
"This one greets his lord." One of the nobles said as he quickly kneeled down and stared at the floor.
The others all soon followed, and even though there was some hesitation and unwillingness in their eyes, there was nothing else they could do right now except to kneel down and swear their loyalty to the prince.