I and Elena were forced on our knees and made to watch as the entire village was set on fire.
The corpse of mothers, fathers, and children lay around in the rising dust and smoke.
Tears filled my eye as I stared at the horrible scene.
The soldiers of Valtoria had completely destroyed this once beautiful place.
A place that once resonated with the laughter of children, and the joyful singing of the Argarian people, now echoed with the crackling sound of burning wood and metal.
The smell of flesh and blood spread through the atmosphere like death’s perfume, leaving nothing but despair in its wake.
After the soldiers were done with their task, I and Elena were forced back on our feet and lead by them through the burning fields to the camp where prince Damian waited.
Elena just stared at the ground silently as the soldiers pulled her through the camp.
Her eyes looked almost lifeless and the thoughts she kept hidden in her heart weighed heavily on her.
She had already accepted her fate and was ready to meet her end, and I on the other hand, wasn’t.
I didn’t know how, or even have a plan, but for some reason I was certain that I would come out of this alive.
I turned left through right, scanning through the red tents that were set up in different positions in the camp.
The tents carried the Valtorian symbol between their curtains, and Valtorian soldiers sat in front of them roasting meat in camp fires, laughing and spoke about how they destroyed the other Argarian villages and killed the people.
“Keep your head down!” One of the soldiers who pulled the rope around my hand ordered, slamming his right palm into my head, forcing me to lower my gaze.
My brows furrowed and I let out a sigh.
There was really nothing I could do at this point but wait for whoever would to come to my rescue again.
There was no way of reaching Sir Steven now that I was on the solar side, and the female that saved my life in the forest was nowhere to be found.
Maybe she was just a forest creature that decided to help me, or maybe she was still following me secretly, waiting for the right time to show up.
Moriah walked toward the tent the prince resided in and stopped.
“Lord Damian, your most loyal servant, Moriah, has returned,” she said with a calm tone.
She waited silently for a response, and not too long after, Damian’s voice sounded, cold and emotionless like Rowan’s.
“Come in,” he said.
Moriah pushed the curtains open and stepped into the tent.
Her brows rose as she saw the prince sitting in a position unfit for a prince.
He sat with both of his legs rested on one of the throne’s armrests, and his head rested on the other.
He wore light clothing that included a leather top that stuck tightly to his torso, but was loose around his arms, thick cotton braies and a pair of dark brown sandals that extended from his feet to his upper shins. Get faster updates on g.com.
A bowl of grapes sat on his stomach, and he used his right hand to pick them one by one and place in his mouth.
Moriah wasn’t too surprised as she knew the kind of person her master was.
Prince Damian was only seventeen and wasn’t as interested in his royal position as his brothers were.
He was the youngest amongst the three, so the chances of him being king of Valtoria one day were very slim.
This was why he focused on traveling when he could and learning as much as he could about the world.
Moriah, although a cold hearted, merciless killer, was loyal to him regardless, and was ready to follow him wherever he went.
“How was your mission?” Damian asked.
He didn’t even bother to turn to her, he just stared at the roof of the tent endlessly.
“It went smoothly, my lord.
All the villagers have been killed and the seventh Argarian field has been burnt to the ground,” Moriah replied proudly.
“You burnt the field?” Prince Damian asked, holding a grape above his lips.
“Well, yes.
You asked us to destroy everything they had so I figured you included the field,” Moriah replied nervously.
Damian let out a sigh and dropped the grape back into the bowl.
He sat up, locked his fingers and rested his chin on the resulting interlace.
His eyes moved up until they locked with Moriah’s.
“When we visited the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth Argaria, did we burn down their farms?” Damian asked.
“N… No, but…” Moriah muttered.
“But Nothing, Moriah.
Do you realize what you’ve done?
All the other kingdoms feed off the Argarian fields, and without the season’s harvest from all seven fields, there will be a shortage, and what do you think will happen when the council of kings notices a shortage,” Damian said with a calm tone, he wasn’t one who enjoyed showing his anger by raising his voice.
Moriah remained quiet, her confident look suddenly shifting into a worried one.
“It’s fine.
The kings won’t do anything too drastic because we now have ownership over all the Argarian fields.
This could potentially lead to war, but only if the other kings have some other source of food.
What I’m really worried about now is how father will take this,” Damian explained.
“If I may, I personally think your father will be delighted to know that you have done something all the other kings have been afraid to do for years,” Moriah said with a smile.
“Moriah, that is exactly what I’m afraid of,” Damian replied, staring directly into Moriah’s eyes.
Damian got up from his seat and walked over to a rack where he hung his cape.
He took the cape off the rack and threw it around his shoulder.
After clicking it in place, he turned back to Moriah, and continued, “You don’t have to be worried.
You obeyed your orders as were given to you, and I’m proud.
Once we get back to Valtoria, you’ll have dinner with me privately after my father’s welcome ceremony.”
”It would be my pleasure, lord Damian.” Moriah bowed slightly, closing her eyes in respect.
She raised her head again and continued, “Just so you know, I brought two Argarians here for you to personally punish.
I know you do not like to soil your hands with blood, so you can either choose to turn them into your slaves or, a much better option, ask me to take their lives for you.”
”Two Argarian villagers?
Why didn’t you kill them where you found them?” Damian asked.
“I was going to, but I was told you were calling so I decided to gift them to you so you would decide the fate of the two lovebirds yourself,” Moriah replied.
Damian remained silent for a moment, then walked toward Moriah, saying, “Alright then, let’s go see who these two Argarians are.
I have nothing else to do for the rest of the night anyway.”
Damian and Moriah stepped out of the tent, Damian walking in front.
Moriah kept her hands at her back, following behind her prince silently.
Damian walked to a wooden seat that was prepared for him outside the tent.
The seat was covered in multiple layers of furry animal skin to make it comfortable and throne like.
Damian sat down in front of a camp fire, and Moriah walked to where I and Elena were kept.
She picked up the ends of the ropes used to tie our hands and pulled us until we were in the prince’s view.
“These are the last remaining Argarians, do with them as you see fit, my lord,” Moriah said, lowering her head.
Damian stared at Elena for a moment, then turned to me.
My brows furrowed as my eyes met his.
From the look in his eyes, I could tell this was definitely the end for me.
This was a merciless prince that caused the genocide of the entire Argarian clan, there was no way he would spare two more.
His eyes remained locked with mine for some reason.
It was like he had found something, and would lose it if he dared to break eye contact with me.
After staring at me for a few minutes, his lips curled into a smile, his once rigid facial expression shifting into a curious one.
“Interesting,” he said.