❗❗ 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆❗❗
𝐶𝑜𝑝𝑦𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 ~ 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐈𝐒𝐍'𝐓 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐂𝐎𝐏𝐘RI𝐇T 𝐎𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐄𝐗𝐂𝐄𝐏𝐓 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐑'𝐒 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍.
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Remember to comment something meaningful.
As Zaniel got down and followed the lead of the jittery auctioneer, he went to enter a room that the man explained as the room of the head slave merchant, Turisk. Alex followed him from behind. At this point, the young man had resigned himself and decided to lend Zaniel a hand so he could finish whatever "shopping" he mentioned and got back before another troublesome matter would brew.
Turisk being an illegal slave merchant couldn't say anything much and stayed in silence after offering the Lord a seat. He inclined his chin, ordering the beat-up female servant to serve the Lord a tea. Immediately, the servant pulled herself, clinking the metallic chain and collars that took Alex's attention into a frown. When the servant noticed this, she bundled her long chain in order not to make any noise as it would seem these two particular people sitting in front of Turisk is someone that's greatly important. The blobbing sound as the scalding tea being poured down to the white teacup brought a prolonged sound to the grave silence in Turisk's office.
Zaniel crossed his legs and sat leisurely on the couch with an unfading traces of smirks in his face while waiting for Turisk's subordinate to bring back Kimberly and the slave contract.
In front of him, Turisk who always haughtily screamed at his subordinates now kept on fidgeting on his seat like a fish on land. Zaniel was certainly looking in a good mood but the man was known for his fickleness, if one dared to do something that offended him who knows what fate would they meet.
Zaniel glanced at the servant who served him the tea. Her gaunt face was filled with bruises and injuries, the type of injury that she would have received from a beating. 'Mr. Sieve possessed a sadistic nature', he thought with a chuckle to himself. It was always humorous to see someone who love to strike his servants being overly scared with him now.
Humans never changed, he thought to himself. They love to see others in pain but would never want to receive a similar pain. An egoistic nature that had never and would never change.
The female servant ran away to the corner of the room, thinking that Zaniel was irritated by her stealing glances. For once, Turisk felt lucky to become the servant who could tuck their tail from the man as they had carried out their job.
Other than them, Alex was also in the room. He didn't sit next to Zaniel and stood behind, exploring the room which had preserved the animal heads hanged around the hall with a hum. "Hunting must be your hobby, Mr. Seive," Alex commented.
Turisk Seive pulled the corner of his lips with a hard struggle to smile. "Yes, it is."
"That sound nice, have you ever go to the North? That's the best place for hunting." Alex replied, making a small conversation that could lighten the tense mood.
"N- No... I haven't." Turisk felt a bit calmer after hearing Alex's easy-going conversation but soon he regretted for thinking such a thing.
"Well, you should. But like hunting in the North I thought slavery is forbidden now. I never knew they are still open for business." A grim sneer slipped out of Alex's mouth. He wasn't in a certainty a bad person if he had to say for himself, however, he could see just how malicious this man Turisk is and couldn't help himself from antagonizing the foul man. Alex had disliked this slave trafficking since he was a child even though he was also a noble. He found this hobby of the nobles to be utterly disgusting and hateful.
The proud nobility excepting him couldn't care less about these slaves since the slave trafficking had started long when the Empire had just founded and the people who profited the most from these slaves are the nobles. This misfortune had run too deep that no one could do justice for these people.
Tursik looked down fidgeting in agitation without a word. The man beside Lord Zaniel wasn't a sane person he thought or hope for. Like Zaniel , Alex has his own enjoyment in seeing people in fear.
"Shush-" Zaniel whispered with a finger acrossed his lips. "I'm here to buy one. If you come out and say this, wouldn't I become his partner in crime?"
"You don't have to worry, Zaniel. You're Zaniel Reghar, the Lord of Wales after all. Who would say anything that you do?" Alex taunted.
Zaniel took the teacup and sniffed the vanilla fragrance with a cold chuckle. "I guess you are right. But I wouldn't also like rumors to fly around." He turned his eyes toward Tursik in a meaningful glance. "But I believe that you are very tight-lipped, right Mr. Sieve?"
"Y- Y- YES, I will make sure no one would ever hear a wind out of this!" Turisk swore with an exaggerated nod. Zaniel Reghar, the Lord of Wales, who wouldn't know his name in this whole empire? Even the most frightening and hideous mythical beings that stayed in the abandoned land of Marshfoth knew well what to do when they heard his name. And that was to run away! He didn't kill people due to his amusement and Wales the land he was responsible for never suffered from anything. Instead, the land was far prosperous for over centuries. But the man had the least humane heart. He would kill people he disliked with only one word, "I don't like his face" no one knew what he meant or what kind of face that he disliked, but they knew they should avoid him. And what was more mysterious to Lord Zaniel was that no one knew who he is, whether he is a human or a sorcerer or whether he is a mythical being.
Right after Tursik spoke, his subordinate came back with Kimberly on the side and after some knock, they entered the room to see Turisk clenching his jaw while Alex smiling beyond joy. Zaniel turned his face toward the new guest and fixed his eyes on the young teenage girl who kept on stealing glances to him meekly.
"This is the slave contract, my lord." The subordinate came as he placed the paper across the table with an ink and fountain pen.
Kimberly saw Zaniel, her new buyer who she should call now as 'Master'. After signing the last line on the paper and placed down the pen Zaniel rose up from the seat. His long legs brought him faster to the girl.
The shadow in front of her increased in size before eventually decrease when Zaniel bend his back to level his sight with the girl. He wanted to greet the girl and wash her out of her fear, but he spotted the collar on her neck and felt his tongue clicked on its own.
"It seemed that my puppy is collared by someone else-" Zaniel's hand tracked across the heavy collar in distaste. His eyes flickered with a light, having a cold piercing look yet at the same time holding a scalding-fury that came out of nowhere. "-A collar that is not to my taste." as he spoke, the chain crumbled into small particles that were akin to ashes.
Kimberly's eyes widened in surprise, she ran down her fingers across her neck and hand to feel for herself that the heavy collars had really disappeared without a trace! She rejoiced that the collar was gone from her neck but now only fear could be seen in her face.
"A sorcerer" She murmured as she took a step back in a startle. Her last wish was to be taken in by a sorcerer, but her misfortune struck a jackpot and served her with the last boss who probably would want to use her as a sacrifice! She knew she had very bad luck and often met misfortune but today, this misfortune was a thousand, no a million folds worse than ever!
Turisk, the guard, and the bruised servant had the same aghast face. Turisk and the guard had a grimmer face as they couldn't believe the collar made by the sorcerer of the tower for a very expensive price could come undone in a few seconds. Not only that he was able to enter the protection magic circle that was placed on the stage, but he could also turn the magical device into ashes!
"Should we go now, my puppy?" Zaniel said as he spread his palm for the girl to take in.
Kimberly who was still imagining what kind of sacrifice she would end with felt pressured to place her trembling hand on the palm and stood without doing anything.
Seeing Kimberly's hesitation that was impudent for a lowly slave, the slave guard shouted. "What are you doing?! Your master is ordering you! Take his hand now!"
Kimberly jumped and took Zaniel's hand with glassy eyes. Biting her lips, her face grew paler each second. As Zaniel saw her glassy eyes and the red lips with she bit on. A rustic blood scent wafted to his nose in sequence. His brows knitted in a tune, he looked at the girl which was filled with wounds, but the scent of sap was stronger from her back.
Quickly, he turned the girl around to look at Kimberly's back which had a diagonal whip wound. Almost instantly, his eyes turned cold with bloodthirsty glint hovering to the deep golden eyes that turned to red.
One who saw his eyes at the moment would know exactly how the tremendous fright was. He knew these scars with only a glance, it was a wound made by a whip. A long time ago, he had seen this, and now seeing the wound he could feel something snapped in the back of his mind.
〰️〰️〰️〰️
"Do you know what mistake you just did?" A sharp cold voice came from Zaniel. Kimberly's eyes shook with horror that her knees grew limp. She collapsed down to the floor. She had heard many of curses coming out from her aunt's mouth, but it was her first time to ever heard such a horrifyingly vacant tone reverberating without a single good emotion. The man was angry!
"Yes! You stupid slave did you forgot what they teach you as a slave? You should forever abide by your master's order!" Turisk shouted to the girl to see the man part his hand with the girl and snapped his Crimson eyes to them.
"I'm not saying it to her. You two. Did you know what in the hell's name you have done?" Following his words, Kimberly saw the fresh flower in the vases grew dull in color before eventually turning black and crisp as it wilted. Across the room, the cup of tea, table, and the frames on the wall shook along with his word. The preserved animal's heads were far frightening than the other things to Kimberly. As it shook as though it was alive without the rest of the body.
An uncontrollable rage has filled Zaniel. Someone had harmed his belonging in a way that he detested the most. He wasn't a kind person who would ignore someone harming the little puppy that he had just bought and made her cry. A wound, a wound that was enough to frighten his puppy down to the core, making her to spare tears for damned hooligans.
Alex had his eyes on Zaniel, "Shit!" He murmured, he forgot that Zaniel had immense hate to whip wounds! Why does it have to be today when he had just found something amusing? Shit! He cursed again in his thought and ran to take the girl and shield her in case his anger would burst out.
Turisk and the slave guard couldn't understand what mistake they did, the only thing they knew was Lord Zaniel's anger and instantly plead for their lives.
"F- Forgive us, my lor...d We-"
"Silence." Zaniel cut in between before running his hand across the guardsman's eyes who shouted on his belonging. "The eyes you used for making her cry and the arm which whipped her. Should I make you cripple for the rest of your life? But surely that's too merciful for you. I should take care of your soul before the grim reaper took it." He whispered with a dark humor rippling.
A shrilling scream was about to ring aloud when he heard Alex's clear voice halting him. "Zaniel! The girl is here! Stop your damned madness now!"
Zaniel's hand froze stiffly and the shaking on the whole room also stopped. He turned his eyes to the girl whose face had paled and clicked his tongue. He can't make her more scared of him..
"Alex. Give them the money-" Zaniel said as he retracted back his hand to his waist. Alex had a little bewildered expression. He was deeply angered a moment ago and yet now, he had a rather calmed voice. Alex didn't know why but roughly he guessed it must've because the girl was too frightened by what happened before and he didn't want to make her even more frightened. "-Cut it by three thousand." Suddenly Zaniel spoke again.
"Huh?" The two men who had been cowering his face exclaimed aloud after knowing the man had cut three thousand gold, leaving them with only a thousand.
"B- But... you said four thousand."
Zaniel swept his eyes toward Alex and hint him to bring back the girl to the carriage ahead. Alex nodded and held the girl shoulder and coaxed the girl who had been trembling like a leaf to exit the room.
After the loud thud of the door, Zaniel took off his mask, dropping it off to the rounded desk and pulled his malicious grin as he whispered. "You should be grateful that I would give you a thousand coins for your family to hold a funeral, but greediness truly knows no bound."
Turisk hands moved to back to crawl and saw Zaniel placing his hand on the guardsman's neck that dared to raise its volume, he clenched and hoisted his body to the air before the man itself could grasp his surroundings.
"Whipping and then screaming to my puppy is enough offense for you to pay with your lives." Turisk heard his sentence ended along with a cold crack from his subordinate's neck. Zaniel felt it wasn't enough to let him die peacefully and made the man broke only a few bones on his neck.
Zaniel narrowed his still red eyes, pushing his fingers deep to the slave guard's rib cage. He continued to push further, piercing the flesh and nerves until he felt a thumping heart between his flesh. With an unchanging smile, he pulled the heart out giving it a pressuring grip as it burst. The man was still alive for a moment ago, seeing his own heart on Zaniel's hand his face grew bluer before all the light from his eyes disappeared by the time his heart burst.
Putting aside the corpse under his feet, Zaniel shifted his murderous eyes toward Turisk.
"I... I have made a grave mistake... please forgive me, my lord!" Although Turisk couldn't understand why the lord suddenly became angry, he immediately cast all his pride aside, crawling to the floor near Zaniel's shoe sole.
"Mistake? Forgive? That's funny. My little puppy had been wounded. I would only forgive you in two ways. Make her wound disappear in a blink of an eye or your life. I doubt you could do the first one. So I will collect your soul now. Let's see-" his words trailed as he explored the room with his eyes.
Tear stream down over Turisk's ugly expression that always looked over people like money and lust objects. In the corner of the room, the previous servant with a wounded face was also one of his creations after venting his anger to the ill-looking female servant.
"That wound," Zaniel who spotted the servant on the floor spoke. "Was made by him, am I right?"
The servant nodded as she opened her sunk in cheek to show her mouth which was absent from the tongue.
"He also cut your tongue out?" To this, the servant replied with tears. Just a stream of tears and Zaniel could see all her suffering under Turisk's violent assaults.
"Huh... How amusing." Zaniel praised as he walked glanced over his shoulder where a long thin dagger was placed on top of the cabinet. unsheathing the dagger, he slid his fingers across the sharp area to inspect whether it was sharp enough to cut off a tongue.
"I have found my idea." He smiled like a child who had gotten a very exciting game. "Let's test whether this dagger is sharp enough to cut a tongue, shall we?"
"N- N- No!! Please I beg your mercy.... spare my life, Lord Zaniel!"
"How funny, when you took that servant's tongue, she also begged for your mercy didn't she? "
Tursik's eyes widened, the teeth he grounded clicked from the lower jaw as Zaniel pulled his chin up and haul his tongue with the dagger. What came the next after the icy dagger was the burning feeling tearing apart his tongue. Fresh red liquid stream down from Turisk's jaw, lining his neck and coloring the navy color into black.
Zaniel who usually was efficient in doing his service, took his time with patience, making the man felt torture as he dug his fingernails unto the cushioned chair.
When he was done with his punishment, Zaniel threw the bloodied tongue across the floor slanting his chin to the servant behind him and walked to place his index finger on the collar to destroy it into small particles like snow. "I helped you with your revenge, now it's your turn to do so."
Zaniel tossed the dagger for the servant to catch on before shutting the room that echoed with gibberish pleading and shout of death as someone lost their life. Grinning for a moment, he wore his mask once again.