(A.N : This chapter has some content that may be upsetting to some readers. I am not trying to upset any community or people through this. It is advised that only the strong-willed move ahead from this point on)
Luca and the kids after covering a certain amount of distance decided to take a break and wait for Elenor and Zalack. Besides, they were at a crossroad and didn't know where to go either way.
'They sure are taking their sweet time' thought Luca as he was gazing in the direction of the entrance.
'Wait! Don't tell me she is cheating on me?!' A ridiculous thought came into Luca's head when they haven't even started dating yet.
'No, no, no, that's impossible. Elenor isn't that sort of person....or is she?' Luca went on with his crazy thoughts.
But in reality, he was really anxious. The sudden attack, his father's disappearance and even Elenor's delayed arrival...all these thoughts were weighing down on him. He was trying his best to distract himself...but it doesn't seem to be working so well.
As he was trying to come up with even more crazy thoughts, footsteps could be heard from the entrance of the cave.
The kids started panicking while Luca took on a defensive stance with a drop of swaet on his forehead.
'Who is it? Friend or foe....' thought Luca ready for the worst-case scenario while covering the anxious children.
*Thud Thud
A lean shadow was visible as Luca got ready to pounce on the unknown entity.
The next second, Luca saw someone extremely familiar to her.
"Zalack! make some noise, will you?! I swear you'll be the death of me! " he exclaimed looking in disbelief at the person standing at the corner of the wall with an unfocused look on his face.
Luca then started looking behind him as if looking for someone.
"Where's sis Elenor? Is she still at a lookout near the entrance?" asked Luca still looking for her.
Zalack frowned. The questions Luca is asking were like knives stabbing at his heart.
Luca also felt something was wrong seeing that Zalack wasn't responding.
"What's wrong? Is something wrong?..." He asked but Zalack was still silent.
Finally, Zalack let out a big sigh and said, "I sorry" And started explaining what had transpired a few minutes ago...
After hearing the details, the children were shocked ans started crying.
Luca, on the other hand was fuming in anger and looked at Zalack with a hateful expression
"So...you just came back after she ran away?!" asked Luca shocked by Zalack's actions.
"You think I didn't want to follow her?! I....." said Zalack. He seemed to regreting his decision.
Seeing him like that, Luca didn't want to continue.
"I'm going after her" he said and tried to head out but was blocked by Zalack.
"I made a mistake letting Elenor run off like that. I won't repeat it again" said Zalack preventing Luca from going any further.
"Don't stop me Zalack! I need to save her!" he said with a resolute look in his eyes.
"And what can you even do? You can't even protect yourself, how will you protect her?" questioned Zalack. It didn't seem like he was going to budge from his spot.
"You...."
'Stop!...Calm down. Anger will cloud your jugement' thought Luca and took a deep breath to calm himself. He then looked at Zalack again.
'He won't budge if I don't give him a valid reason. Then....'
"Those bastards won't harm me. For what it's worth, I am the clan leader's son. They don't want to lose a precious hostage now do they?" said Luca as if stating facts.
Zalack too hesitated as what Luca had said was a valid point.
Luca seeing that he was hesitating decided to push him even further.
"Also Elenor may be one of the most talented prodigy of the younger generation, but she does not have any value as a hostage. Even if she did, do you think those fuckers would just let her go?" said Luca as if hinting at a hidden meaning.
Zalack understood as his face sank. He seemed to regret even more the fact that he let Elenor go.
"Fine. But I am coming with you" He said. He just couldn't let Luca head towards the danger alone.
"No. If you come with me, they can threaten me with both Elenor and your life putting us at a disadvantage" said Luca resolutely. He didn't want to any more problems on his plate.
"But-" Zalack tried to say but Luca interjected him.
"No buts. Besides, the children will be alone so someone must be there with them. So don't worry and let me-"
"I don't think you need to worry since all of you lots are captured"
Suddenly, a voice came from behind which interrupted Luca. Everyone were shocked that they hadn't noticed this person at all.
The figure of a three-feet tall beastman covered in armour from head to toe with a opening for a mouth was visible.
Zalack didn't waste any time and started casting a spell to slow down the unknown enemy giving them enough time to escape.
"Luca! Duck!" he shouted as he shot out a green ball of energy towards Luca.
Luca ducked and the energy ball hit the beastman which on impact turned into vines surrounding his body to immobilize him.
"Hmph! Petty tricks!" said the beastman as he tore down the vines with just his physical strength without any energy.
He then disappeared from his position and appeared behind Zalack. With a single strike, the beastman pinned down his head into the ground which bleeded profusely. Zalack had been immobilized with a single strike.
'Fuck! This guy is no joke! Even without the suppression barrier, Zalack would have been owned by him!' thought Luca as he steadily moved back, trying to find an opportunity to escape.
It may be cruel, but he needed to survive. If he, the clan leader's son survives, they may have a chance for a comeback.
'Hmm...trying to escape? Smart, but aren't you underestimating a bit too much?!" said the beastman who was now standing behind Luca.
Before Luca could turn back, he felt a heavy strike on his head as the world around him turned dark....
****
*Splash*
*Cough! **Cough!*
"Wakey! Wakey! Have you woken up, little prince?!" asked the person to the boy who was tied up in front of him.
This was none other than Luca who now found himself in an unknown location.
He tried to move but found his hands and legs tied up to a tree. No matter how much he tried, he was not able to break free from them.
He tried to look around but froze when he looked at the person standing in front of him.
"Y-Y-You..... How.....?" asked Luca as he couldn't believe his eyes. The person in front of him looked extremely familiar to him.
"Hahahaa! Surprised?! I knew it would be funny to see your reaction!" said the person with a maniacal smile on his face.
This was none other than the knight from before who was harrasing Elenor and then got killed by his father.
But now he was standing in front of him as if nothing had happened.
"Ahhhh! Why does this wound still hurts?! Didn't they say all wounds will be healed in the zone?!"
.....Well... Not completely fine.
There was a huge scar on his face running from one end to another as if someone had previously sliced his face into two.
This should be the wound his father left on the knight.
But last time he clearly saw his face and entire face sliced into pieces. How is he here, standing alive in front of him right now?
Meanwhile, the knight was going completely crazy scratching his face and launching waves of fire everywhere like a madman.
But Luca couldn't care any less about that crazy bastard as the scene in front of him shocked him to the core.
He was surrounded by the intruders and his clansmen who were kneeling on the ground with a metal collar with ancient runes binding their neck.
But the most shocking scene was right in front of him.
A woman in her teens whose hands and legs were bound with metallic chains. Her silky white hair was covered in dust having lost their lustre. Her milky white skin was covered in various whip wounds all over her body which would make even a stranger feel bad and would want to fell her.
Luca's eyes seeing the scene in front of him turned bloodshot and roared to the peak of his voice,
"YOU ANIMALS!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER?!!!"
If a person's gaze could kill, all these people would be long dead by now.
The scene in front of him was too horrendous and cruel. The glorious and beautiful Elenor whom he respected and loved so much being reduced to such a state was too much to handle.
The knight who heard Luca's cry started snickering just thinking about the brilliant idea in his mind.
He took a whip lying on the ground and started beating Elenor with it.
"Aahhhhh!!"
He heartwrenching cries audible throughout the forest made the clansmen cry helplessly due to their inability to save her.
Luca was also horrified seeing this.
"You motherf**ker! What are you doing?"
To this, the knight began laughing loudly seemingly pleased with his work.
"What do you think? I'm torturing her, of course! How do you think I felt when your bloody father cut me into pieces, huh?!!"
said knight as he increased the force of the lashing which made Elenor cry out even more loudly.
"Now I will continue to whip....and whip...and whip her until you and all your freak family beg for it to stop! Hahaha!!!" exclaimed the knight and went on with his disgusting hobby.
Luca and all the clan members cried out for him to stop but all their pleas went on to deaf ears as the madman went on with sadistic tactics.
Several minutes passed by and Elenor's heartwrenching cries became more and more unbearable to hear.
Not being able to bear any longer, Luca finally cried out,
"Stop! Please...just stop! I would do anything! So...please..."
He couldn't bear to see Elenor being hurt any more just because of his petty pride.
The knight who had heard his flea looked at him with a satisfied smile on his face.
"Finally gave in? Took you long enough! But..."
He hit Elenor with the whip again but this time, it was coated in flames.
"AAAHHHHHHH!!!"
"....I just don't wanna stop!"
A nasty burn mark appeared on Elenor's body with even the blood drying out due to the intense heat. Tears appeared in her eyes due to get intense pain and sadness she was feeling in her current predicament.
"You bastard! Are you even human?! How could you show such cruelty towards fellow living beings?!" said Luca.
As a person who had once lived in a peaceful world, such level of cruelty is unprecedented.
"Luca...don't...wo..rry...I...am...fi-" before Elenor could finish, another strike hit another which resulted in her crying out even more miserably.
"ELENOR!! You....sir, please stop. If you want to hit someone, please hit me. You have shown more than enough cruelty towards us..." said Luca.
"Enough....Enough you say?!! Not even close" said the knight as he broke the chains binding Elenor with the whip.
Elenor fell on the ground but didn't have energy to move even a finger.
The knight slowly walked towards her with his iconic smile plastered across his face.
"Do you know what is the most cruel torture for a woman?" asked the knight.
Luca had a bad premonition. He felt like something bad was about to happen and called out, "W-Wait-"
But the knight acting as if he didn't hear anything extended his hand towards Elenor and tore her dress, leaving just her undergarments and the milky white skin riddled in horrible wounds.
"It's having her chastity forcibly taken. In other words...rape!" said the knight who was laughing even more loudly seeing the shocked expressions on the tribesmen's faces.
"N-Nooooo!!" Elenor cried out in shock.
First she was attacked, then captured and finally beaten to near death. She thought that her hell was finally over.
But to her dismay, another cruel and horrible fate was coming towards her.
To have her chastity taken by some lowlifes, she would never be able to live peacefully.
She would never allow these bastards to touch that one thing sacred to her...even at life the cost of her life!
She looked at Luca and their eyes met. He eyes filled with guilt as if accusing themselves for her misery.
'I'm sorry...'
She struck her tongue out, ready to bite at any time but...found herself unable to move her body.
Seeing Elenor struggling to move, the knight just smirked not surprised at her failed attempt at suicide.
He grabbed her by the hair which made Elenor whimper out in pain.
"You think I am a fool....not expecting your miserable attempt to escape your undeniable faith?!!" he asked in a furious manner.
But the next second started laughing again as if the previous charade was nothing but an act.
"You must be...confused! Thinking, what can't I move? How is this happening? Well...I may or may not have planted a curse seal on every one of our preys present here!!" he said and a red ancient seal appeared on the back of his hand.
As soon as he channelled energy through it, a somewhat similar seal appeared on the neck of Elenor and all the Ingrid clan members. The seal started shining which burnt their skin which caused everyone, from children to the elderly to scream in agony due to the intense pain they were experiencing.
Luca was shocked to see everyone on the ground screaming and gasping for air.
This scene just made the knight and his companions to laugh at their misery.
The knight then seeing the look on Luca's face said, "Just so you are wondering, we didn't place a seal on you. Can't afford to waste resources on a half-blood mongrel"
Hearing his remarks just made Luca more angry.
"Stop it. You are damaging my goods!" a voice came from behind Luca which seemed too familiar to him.
When the person in question was in his field of vision, his hair stood on and every single pore of his body was in an excited state due to the shock he was experiencing right now.
But soon, that shock turned into anger and he roared with all his power,
"ZALACK!! HOW COULD YOU?!!!"
(##Hello guys(or ladies if there are any), I am Qvite. The writer of this to-be-crazy novel 'Rakshasa'.
First of all, I would like to apologize to everyone who had been reading my book from day 1 and others who joined soon after. My original plan was to address you guys after ending the prologue but I still wanted to apologize for this delay.
Due to some personal reasons, I couldn't write for so long.
I would try my best to update regularly from this point on.
Please keep supporting my work.
THANK YOU!!!)