Finally, Eris got a good look at her captor. He was a burly man, middle-aged, with a rugged face that screamed danger. His disheveled appearance did little to hide the sharp glint of cruelty in his eyes.
With a malicious grin, he stepped forward and yanked the cloth from Eris's mouth. His tone was cold and commanding as he barked, "You'd better behave, or you'll regret it."
The moment her gag was removed, Eris wasted no time. Her voice rang out, loud and defiant:
"Who are you? You filthy scum! What do you think you're doing kidnapping me? Do you even know who I am? Untie me right now!"
Her voice boomed with unrestrained arrogance, a testament to her bold personality. Even after spending time under Roya's disciplined teachings, Eris still hadn't grasped the gravity of her current predicament.
Her words were a direct affront to the burly man's authority, akin to a slap across his face. His expression darkened as his temper flared.
Enraged, he grabbed a fistful of Eris's fiery hair and hoisted her into the air like she weighed nothing.
"You little brat!" He snarled, his voice thick with menace. "Did you think my words were just noise?"
With that, he slapped her hard across the face. He didn't hold back. The sheer strength of an adult man against a child was devastating.
Eris's cheek immediately swelled, turning red and hot from the sting of the blow. The sharp, searing pain was unlike anything she had ever experienced. She instinctively tried to curl away from him, her lips trembling as she murmured something under her breath.
The man, expecting her to beg for mercy, sneered.
"Oh? Finally ready to be reasonable?" He yanked her closer, leaning in with a cruel grin. "Now tell me, what do you want to say?"
Eris's voice was faint, but her words were clear:
"I'll kill you."
The man froze for a moment, his grin fading as her defiance registered. Then, fury erupted in his eyes. Without another word, he hurled Eris to the ground and began kicking her mercilessly.
He was deliberate in his brutality, targeting places that would inflict pain but not cause lasting damage. Eris curled into a ball, instinctively trying to shield herself, but the relentless blows left her gasping for air, teetering on the edge of consciousness.
Just as her vision began to blur, a voice came from outside the room, sharp and commanding.
"That's enough! Don't waste your energy on a child. If you damage the goods, their value will plummet."
The words carried weight, and the burly man reluctantly stepped back, scowling. With a dismissive grunt, he turned away from Eris, leaving her crumpled on the floor.
Nearby, Rudeus opened his eyes, stealing a cautious glance in Eris's direction.
Rudeus had woken up much earlier, jarred back to awareness when their crates had been jostled roughly during transport. Believing everything was proceeding according to plan, he had decided to feign unconsciousness.
But as he watched the brutal scene unfold before him, his heart sank. This was far from the carefully orchestrated scenario he'd envisioned.
Eris, the once-proud daughter of the Greyrat family, was now battered and barely conscious. Even with all her brashness, such violence seemed unimaginable. No one, not even in a staged kidnapping, should have endured what Eris just had.
The burly man, bored now, shifted his attention from Eris to Rudeus. His scarred face twisted into an unsettling smirk as he studied the boy.
For a brief moment, Rudeus froze. Then, summoning every ounce of composure, he forced a knowing smile onto his face—a silent expression that seemed to say, I'm in on it.
The man paused, confusion flickering across his rough features.
What's with this kid? he thought, scratching his head. The boy's strangely familiar demeanor didn't sit right with him.
But the earlier affront from Eris still festered in his mind, and his irritation needed a new outlet. He began walking toward Rudeus, looming over the blond-haired boy like a shadow.
As the man bent closer, Rudeus got a good look at him. The man was nearing forty, his rugged face marred by a long, jagged scar that stretched from his left eye to the corner of his mouth.
The scar twisted his features into something grotesque and intimidating, making the close-up encounter all the more unsettling. Rudeus braced himself, his mind racing to find a way out of this increasingly dire situation.
The man reeked of an unbearable stench—a foul mix of sweat and alcohol. As he leaned closer to Rudeus, the boy instinctively wrinkled his nose in disgust.
With a mocking smile, the burly man sneered, "You've been awake for a while, haven't you?"
He slapped Rudeus lightly on the cheek with his calloused hand. It wasn't a painful blow, but the humiliation stung far more than the physical contact.
If anything, it could be summed up as: not particularly harmful, but intensely degrading.
Rudeus forced a smile, one carefully crafted to appear meek and ingratiating. "What's going on here? This wasn't part of the plan, was it?"
The man froze for a moment, his eyes narrowing as he studied Rudeus. Without warning, his hand lashed out, delivering a brutal slap that sent Rudeus stumbling backward. He landed hard on the ground, dazed.
That slap shattered any lingering illusions Rudeus had. The truth hit him as clearly as the blow:
This wasn't a staged kidnapping anymore.
The "fake" scenario had spiraled into something real.
But where had it all gone wrong? How had a simple ruse turned into this nightmare?
The burly man loomed over Rudeus again, crouching to stare him down. His cold, piercing gaze locked onto the boy.
That slap had fully sobered Rudeus. Looking up at the towering figure—nearly two meters tall—he swallowed hard.
This man had killed before. That much was obvious.
Rudeus's mind raced, searching desperately for a way to handle the situation. Summoning his courage, he forced the same submissive smile back onto his face, tinged with just enough desperation to sell his act.
The man's initial amusement faded as he watched Rudeus's pathetic display. After a long, silent moment, he let out a derisive snort.
"Spineless." He muttered, his interest waning. Straightening up, he turned and walked away.
Stopping at the door, he glanced back over his shoulder and barked, "You'd better behave. Next time, you might not be so lucky."
With that, he slammed the iron door shut, the heavy clang of the lock echoing through the room.
Rudeus exhaled slowly, the tension in his body easing slightly now that the man was gone.
He was rattled—truly rattled—but he forced himself to focus. The situation was bad, no doubt, but at least Eris hadn't been taken away.
They couldn't win in a head-on fight, but escape was still possible. And if there was one thing Rudeus excelled at, it was finding a way out of tight situations.
Taking a deep breath, he visualized a blade of wind. He channeled his mana to his fingertips, and with a flick of his wrist, the ropes binding him were severed cleanly.
Free at last, he stood and crossed the room to where Eris lay trembling slightly, her body curled up in pain. For a moment, he looked down at her, her usual fiery spirit now battered and subdued.
Even Rudeus, despite himself, felt a pang of sympathy for her.
***
Bonus Chapter:
100 Power Stones = 1 BC
300 Power Stones = 2 BC
500 Power Stones = 3 BC
700 Power Stones = 4 BC
1000 Power Stones = 5 BC
***
If you want to read up to 70 chapters ahead, don't hesitate to visit our patron: pat reon . com / XElenea (remove space)