The air in the prince’s chamber was thick with the scent of
perfume and spilled wine.
The Third Prince, Lucius, leaned back in his chair, amusement playing across his face as he studied the
mysterious new maid
before him.
She sat with
unshaken poise
, her silver hair glimmering in the candlelight, and in her delicate hands, she shuffled a deck of
shimmering metallic cards.
"A game, you say?" Lucius drawled, swirling his wine. "You intrigue me, girl. What are the rules?"
Seraphis smiled—
a slow, knowing grin.
"Simple. You play… and you survive."
Then she snapped her fingers.
The Trap Closes
A
soft click
echoed through the room as the
doors sealed shut.
The windows
locked themselves
, and an
invisible barrier
shimmered into existence.
Lucius, still caught up in his own arrogance, chuckled.
"What a clever little trick," he mused. "Are you a mage, perhaps? Or just a girl with too much confidence?"
Seraphis only tilted her head.
"Would you like to find out?"
Before he could react,
her cards shot forward like blades.
One
sliced through his sleeve
, pinning it to the chair.
Another grazed his
cheek
, drawing a thin
red line.
His smirk
faltered.
"You—"
Seraphis
moved like a phantom
, appearing behind him before he could rise. With a single strike, she slammed his head against the table, his wine goblet
shattering against the wood.
His body went
slack for a moment
—not unconscious, but
dazed.
Before he could gather himself, he felt
cold steel around his wrists and ankles.
When his vision cleared, he found himself
strapped to the wall
, his arms spread apart by
invisible force.
Seraphis stood before him, twirling a playing card between her fingers.
"Now then," she mused,
her voice light, almost playful
, "shall we begin?"
A Game of Pain
The first card flew—
slashing across his forearm.
Lucius
hissed
, the sting shocking him more than the pain itself.
Another card followed—
this one missing by an inch.
Then another—
piercing the wall just beside his ribs.
He let out a sharp breath, his heartbeat
pounding against his chest.
Seraphis hummed.
"I must be out of practice. Such a shame," she sighed, stepping closer. "Perhaps I should try harder?"
Before he could
spit a curse
, she flicked her wrist.
The next card
buried itself into his thigh.
Lucius
screamed.
Blood
spilled
from the wound, staining the golden embroidery of his silk robe.
"Oh? That was quite the reaction," Seraphis noted, tapping her chin. "You must be sensitive. Let's test that a bit more, shall we?"
She
threw another card.
This time, it
struck his shoulder
, embedding itself deep.
Lucius
shook
, his breath ragged as
pain spread like fire through his veins.
"You—you psychotic—!"
Another card
sliced across his cheek
, cutting his insult short.
Seraphis’s eyes gleamed with
icy amusement.
"Careful now," she whispered. "Wouldn’t want to lose your tongue before the real fun begins."
The Final Cut
For the next few minutes, she
toyed with him.
Some strikes
missed on purpose
, letting him
flinch at the air.
Others
landed with brutal precision
, cutting
deep enough to bleed, but not enough to kill.
Lucius’s screams
grew hoarse.
His defiance
shattered
into gasps and choked sobs.
Seraphis sighed, rolling her neck.
"How boring. I thought you’d last longer."
Then—
without warning
—she flicked her wrist.
The final card
sliced downward—straight into his nether regions.
Lucius let out
a raw, inhuman wail.
His entire body
convulsed
, his fingers twitching against the restraints.
His
eyes rolled back
, pain consuming him whole.
Seraphis
smiled
.
"Oops."
She stepped forward, gripping his sweat-soaked hair, tilting his
tear-streaked face
up to hers.
"Now, for my grand finale."
The last card
shot through the air, straight into his throat.
Lucius
gurgled
, his body
thrashing against the wall
as blood poured from the wound.
Then—silence.
His head slumped forward.
His body hung
motionless
.
A Message to the King
Seraphis let go, watching Lucius’s
lifeless form
with mild interest.
Then, moving
calmly
, she retrieved her
blood-stained cards
one by one.
She reached for the nearest wall, dipped a
single finger into the pool of crimson
, and began to write.
"I know all of your secrets.
I hope you had fun, dear Lucius.
Enjoy the game, Your Majesty."
She stepped back,
admiring her handiwork.
Then—
without a second glance
, she disappeared into the shadows.
The Third Prince was dead.
And the
King’s nightmare
had only just begun.