Josh knelt on the rough wooden platform, his head resting on the worn-out chopping block. The air was heavy with the scent of damp earth and blood. His arms, restrained between two unyielding wooden poles, hung limp as if life had already drained from his body. The crowd around him jeered and whispered, but he was deaf to their noise. His decision was made. If his sacrifice could spare an innocent man, then so be it.
"My name is Conrad Stan...." Josh heard a hoarse voice from his side. He turned and smiled at the man as he recognized him to be the man whom he was replacing on the death sentence contraption.
Josh had a smile on his face and had no worries. Josh's smile lingered as his gaze drifted upward. The clear blue sky above seemed peaceful, a sharp contrast to the storm raging within the crowd. For once, his mind felt free. No more scheming siblings vying for the throne. No conniving concubines plotting in the shadows. No cold, calculating father looming over him. If there was anyone he'd miss, it would be Lola, the only person who had ever shown him true kindness.
The executioner moved with mechanical precision, gripping the heavy, rusted machete with hands hardened by years of death. His face betrayed no emotion as he raised the blade high, the sunlight glinting off its edge.
Josh closed his eyes.
The blade descended.
The crowd gasped as the prince's head separated cleanly from his shoulders, rolling to the ground with a soft thud. A serene smile remained frozen on his face.
A deafening roar tore through the heavens. Dark clouds gathered at unnatural speed, swirling and twisting as if summoned by an unseen force. Lightning forked across the sky, painting the faces of the onlookers in ghostly white. Thunder boomed, a sound so powerful it rattled bones and sent birds scattering in fear.
Before the crowd could react, Josh's body and severed head began to shimmer. A faint glow surrounded him, growing brighter and brighter until both vanished in a blinding flash of light.
The executioner stumbled backward, his hands trembling. His eyes darted to the empty chopping block, then to the storm above. "What… what just happened?" he stammered, his voice barely audible.
The crowd erupted in chaos. Cries of fear and confusion filled the air. Had the gods intervened? Was this a curse? The executioner dropped the machete, its clang echoing ominously, and staggered away, muttering incoherently.
———
While the commotion was going on, on the executioner ground, The Emperor, Groa Aratat rushed towards the fate priestess temple in curiousity.
Everytime thunder struck in this manner, it was usually a message from the gods to the emperor. They believed that the gods themselves protected the emperor and would often times leave messages for them, and it was the work of the chief priestess to interprete the messages and tell the emperor.
Through this means, a lot of uprising and co-op had been thwarted before they even began to bud and this discouraged a lot of ambitious tigers to be careful when dealing with Groa Aratat.
However this message seemed different from the other thunder sttikes, it had a tinge of retribution in it.
Groa entered the temple and saw the chief priestess already expecting him. This had been done so many times it was almost second nature.
"Priestesses..." Groa Aratat acknowledge their presence but he— an emperor would never bow to mere servants of the gods, this was the best he could do.
"Lord Emperor, reign forever..." The chief priestess and the other priestesses bowed in return.
"What message does the gods have for me this time?" Groa Aratat cuts right to the chase.
The chief priestess by the name Sarzi Uno had a slightly uncomfortable expression. He remembered how the mother of Prince Josh had died. He only told the king the truth and she didn't expect he would be that ruthless, now this message was about the son.
She would be damned by the gods if she were to cause his death too, but she couldn't outrightly lie to the emperor because, the emperor has an ability that makes him detect when one is lying, so what should she do?
Chief priestess Sarzi Uno sighed, 'I might as well just tell him the truth' she thought regrettably.
"Oh King May you reign forever..." Chief priestess Sarzi Uno started to speak, while weighing her words carefully.
"A new challenger for your throne has been born. And he comes for retribution and vengeance..." Sarzi Uno said carefully.
Emperor Groa noticed the unusual behavior of Sarzi Uno, he could tell that something was amiss, although she wasn't lying, she wasn't being totally open either, he just shrugged it off as she not wanting him to be angry.
"So who is it, is the empire of the northern border or those in the south? Is it king James, or King Grant?" Emperor Groa started guessing as he had done in the past, but this time, the Chief priestess shook her head in response.
This made Emperor Groa to be a bit more serious. "Who is it?"
Sigh.... "It would be one of your sons..." Sarzi Uno responded while trying to avoid facial contact with Emperor Groa.
"Which of them...." The Emperor said with a deeper level of curiosity.
"The 8th son..." Sarzi Uno answered.
"You mean Josh..?.":the Emperor asked with a sneer.
"Yess..." The priestess answered with a slightly surprised theme.
The Emperor burst into the loudest laughter that the temple has heard in a while. For the next 5 minutes he had to compose himself to stop himself from rolling on the floor.
He suddenly stopped and spoke. "I've never doubted you Sarzi but this time, you heard wrong. Josh is the most usueless of all my sons, He can't even fight a fly if his life depends on it, how much more come for retribution. Please go back and inquire of the gods, I will await your presence in my palace." After saying that the King turned and left.
———
All across the land, people began to notice the strange thunderclap that reverberated through the skies. Discussions erupted in various regions, each person speculating about the unusual phenomenon.
Back at the scene where Josh's body had vanished, a woman was frantically searching the area. She was Lola, the imperial maid. Josh had instructed her to wait at the entrance of Region 32, but after waiting for what seemed like an eternity without seeing him, she decided to search for him herself.
When she arrived at the spot where Josh had been executed, the grim crowd informed her of what had transpired. Upon hearing the news, Lola's face contorted in anguish, and she let out a heart-wrenching cry. "You fools! You just murdered the 8th prince of the empire!" she screamed, her voice trembling with fury.
Her words caused the executioner to falter momentarily. His sneer returned as he retorted, "The 8th prince? Do you take me for an idiot? And you must be his imperial maid judging by your reaction? What nonsense! Leave this place now before I decide to make you my concubine."
Lola collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down her face. She wept bitterly, mourning Josh's death, when a figure suddenly knelt before her. Startled, she wiped her tears and asked, "Who are you?"
The man looked at her solemnly and replied, "Conrad Stan. I am the man for whom the noble prince gave his life. I swore to serve him until my dying breath. That promise now extends to you, as his trusted maid."
Lola's red-rimmed eyes searched his face. "You believe me?" she asked, her voice cracking with desperation.
Conrad nodded. "How could I not? The conviction in your eyes, the prince's sacrifice—it's all too real. But listen carefully: I don't believe he's truly gone. I can't explain it, but something tells me he's still alive."
Lola hesitated for a moment before nodding. She stood and followed Conrad as he led her to another part of Region 32, determined to uncover the truth.
Meanwhile, a shocking piece of news swept across the empire:
"The 8th prince is dead, and his body has mysteriously disappeared…"