As Kiyoshi and Nia returned to their own chambers, they exchanged worried glances.
"It has to be Daemon," he sighed, sitting heavily on the bed.
"But Kiyoshi," she said, her voice soft, "how could he? He may be ambition driven and ruthless, but to kill his own wife..." She trailed off, shaking her head.
"He had a motive, Nia," he said, his voice low. "Remember when he stormed into my study, fuming about me supposedly embarrassing him in front of the council?"
Nia nodded slowly; her brow furrowed in thought. "Yes, I remember. But that wasn't…"
"In a fit of anger, I exposed Elspeth's affair with a servant. It did not go over well. He might've seen it as an insult to his manhood. He could not get the throne and he could not control his wife. Perhaps he saw this as an opportunity to regain some power." Nia leaned against the wall, considering this new information.
"But to commit murder," Nia protested, shaking her head. "That is truly terrifying to think about." She paused; her eyes distant as she tried to comprehend the depths of Daemon's rage.
A deep sigh escaped Kiyoshi's lips. He understood Nia's scepticism. She always saw the best in people, even those who did not deserve it. However, Kiyoshi had seen the darker side of Daemon's character many times before. It wasn't impossible that he could have snapped and committed such a terrible act. Kiyoshi, overwhelmed by a sudden surge of protectiveness, walked up to Nia and took her hand in his.
"Nia," he began, his voice gentle, "this whole situation… it scares me. Elspeth's death, Daemon's accusations… I fear for your safety." He paused, meeting her eyes.
Nia met his gaze, her eyes searching his. "Kiyoshi," she started, "we talked about this before. Remember my promise?"
A memory washed over Kiyoshi – their tender goodbyes, filled with bittersweet words of separation and promises. His heart ached at the recollection.
"Promise me," Nia's voice echoed in his mind, "that after all this is over, you will never leave my side again. You will come back to me, and we will build our life together, here in the palace. We will have children of our own, and we will love them with all our hearts."
Kiyoshi squeezed her hand gently. "I will never forget that promise," he said, his voice husky with emotion. "But this is different. The situation has escalated. I cannot bear the thought of anything happening to you. You are my life, Nia. My heart. My everything." He cupped her face in his hands, his thumbs brushing away a stray tear from her cheek. "I need you to be careful. I need you to promise me that you won't go anywhere alone."
"And I wouldn't want to be anywhere else, Kiyoshi," she replied softly, leaning into his touch. "I will be careful, I promise. But... you must also promise me something."
He frowned, not quite understanding. "What is it?"
"Promise me that you will be careful too. That you won't do anything reckless or put yourself in danger. I cannot bear the thought of losing you either. We need to keep each other safe."
He nodded solemnly, taking her words to heart. "I promise, Nia. I will be careful. For both of us."
An unsettling silence hung in the air of the throne room as Kiyoshi sat on his throne. The weight of recent events – Elspeth's death, Daemon's accusations, and the unsettling mystery surrounding them all – had taken its toll on him. He could feel the tension in his shoulders, the ache in his muscles. His mind raced with thoughts of Nia's safety.
He looked at his council, whose faces were usually filled with knowledge and wisdom, but now held concern and fear. Suddenly, the heavy oak doors burst open and in came Captain Loran, his face pale and his expression grim.
"Your Highness," he gasped, his voice barely a whisper, "there's… there's been another report."
Kiyoshi's heart skipped a beat. Anxiety flooded his veins as he quickly rose from his throne. "What is it, Captain?" he asked, his voice shaky with fear. "What has happened?"
Captain Loran took a deep breath, struggling to find the words. "More children, Your Majesty. They… they found them near the abandoned mine south of the city. Dead." His voice broke, and a tear trickled down his cheek. "They were drained, just like the others."
A collective gasp filled the throne room as Captain Loran finished his grim report. Kiyoshi felt as if the air had been sucked out of the room, leaving everyone breathless and horrified. Disbelief, horror, and anger filled the air, making it almost unbearable to breathe.
"This cannot go on!" a councillor, old and wise, cried out, his voice filled with anguish. "How many more innocent lives must be lost before this madness ends?"
Kiyoshi's heart ached as he listened to the cries of despair and anger. He felt a surge of helplessness wash over him, making it difficult to breathe. He struggled to maintain his composure, to keep his voice steady as he addressed his council. "Captain Loran," he said, "see to it that the bodies are taken care of, and the mine is sealed off. I want a thorough investigation conducted immediately. I will not rest until those responsible are brought to justice."
His words were met with a chorus of agreement, but there was a sense of hopelessness in the air. King Grawl's death should have signaled the end of this nightmare, but the killings continued. Kiyoshi's heart ached as he struggled to comprehend the depths of depravity to which their enemies had sunk. He had to find the other accomplice...
Kiyoshi rose from his throne, his expression grim as he addressed his council. He, the king, had sworn to protect his people, yet they continued to suffer. He would not allow this to continue. He would find those responsible, and he would bring them to justice, no matter the cost.
"Silence!" he thundered, his voice echoing through the throne room. "Double the patrols, triple them if necessary. Let it be known that we will not be cowed by these cowards. Our city will not be afraid to walk the streets, not while I, your king, is alive." The members of the council exchanged glances, some nodding in agreement, others looking more uncertain. But Kiyoshi saw the resolve in their eyes, the determination to stand by him and fight for their people.
He turned to Captain Loran once more. "And Captain, I want you to personally lead the investigation. I will not accept anything less than the truth. Bring those responsible before me, and I swear, they will face justice." The captain's gaze met his own, unflinching and unyielding. "It will be done, Your Majesty."
With that, the council was dismissed, each member filing out of the throne room, their steps weighted with the heavy knowledge of the task at hand. Kiyoshi remained on his throne, his mind racing with thoughts of Nia and the danger she might be in. He could not shake the feeling that there was something more to this than met the eye, something that went beyond the petty squabbles of court politics.
Kiyoshi paced restlessly in his study; his mind consumed with the horrors that had plagued his kingdom. His brow furrowed in deep concentration as he examined the various parchments and reports scattered across his desk. Each document held a piece of the puzzle, each clue leading him further down a dark and twisted path. The more he learned, the more he realized that the enemy he faced was not a single person, but a network of evil that stretched far and wide.
"Three," he muttered to himself, tapping his index finger against his lips. "There are three people involved in this. The butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker. But who are they really? What is their connection to one another? And why would they resort to such brutal methods?"
He pointed a finger at a report, its parchment yellowed and fragile with age. "Grawl," he said, "he was the baker. He used the children, profited from their suffering, and now… he is dead." Kiyoshi's voice cracked, his throat raw from the pain. "But who was the butcher? And who is the candlestick maker?"
His gaze shifted to another document, a crumpled piece of parchment, a single word scrawled across the page in thick, black ink: "vengeance".
"The anonymous letter," he murmured. "A twisted soul seeking retribution, using innocent lives as pawns in their sick game."
"There's… there's a third player," he muttered to himself, his voice barely a whisper. This unknown person, this "candlestick maker," was playing a different role. They weren't directly involved in the trafficking, but their actions served a distinct purpose – distraction.
"Someone who's good at playing both sides," Kiyoshi mused, his eyes distant. "Someone who knows how to manipulate people, to make them believe what they want to hear, and to use their own fears against them." He paused, deep in thought. "They could be someone from the court, someone with influence and connections. Or maybe even someone outside of it, someone who has managed to remain hidden in plain sight."
He slammed his fist against the desk, the force of the impact echoing through the study. He had finally confirmed that there was a traitor among them... Just as Kiyoshi was about to delve deeper into the investigation, a sudden crash from the window sent a shiver down his spine. He whirled around, his hand instinctively reaching for the hilt of his sword as he scanned the room.
His breath caught in his throat as he saw a dark object lying on the floor, a messenger pigeon, its leg tied with a note. With shaking hands, he picked it up and unfurled the parchment, his heart pounding in his chest. The words written there sent a chill down his spine...
"Again."