The Damned Demon

Chapter 755  A Hundred Years of Silence, One Moment of Chaos

The low murmur of voices in the courtyard between Kira and Zu came to an abrupt halt when the distant sound of screams split the air. The cries of her people, sharp and agonized, sent a ripple of unease through the moment. Kira's expression shifted, her frown deepening as her sharp gaze flickered toward the source of the commotion.

Zu's voice carried a heavy edge, "It's coming from the prison... where that prince is kept."

Without hesitation, Kira's form blurred, her movements faster than the eye could follow. The world around her twisted into streaks of muted colors until she came to an abrupt stop before the stone building. The scene before her made her stomach twist.

She started, her voice firm, "What's going—" but her words caught in her throat. Her gaze fell upon the lifeless body of one of her own, his neck slashed, blood pooling beneath him like a crimson halo. Around him, her people sobbed, their cries filled with raw grief and pain.

Zu caught up moments later, his expression heavy, his eyes dark as they moved from the corpse to the sight of two more bodies being carried out. A heavy silence hung between them before he spoke, his voice laced with worry and concern, "Our place has been exposed. Somebody powerful must have sneaked in to save that prince, and he must have been a decoy who somehow exposed our location. We aren't safe here anymore."

Kira's fists clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned pale, her entire body trembling with a volatile mix of rage and grief. Her emerald eyes, usually burning with confidence, now simmered with unyielding fury as they lingered on the three fallen.

"How dare they come here..." Her voice was low, venomous. She turned to Zu, her tone shifting to one of unshakable determination, "It doesn't matter, Father Zu. They won't be a problem anymore... not after today." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

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Far beyond the Wretched Lands, Rebecca descended from the skies to a halt, her breaths coming in labored gasps as she gently lowered Oberon from her arms. The oppressive weight of the Wretched Lands lifted slightly by now, though her shoulders sagged with exhaustion.

"Are you okay, my son?" she asked, her voice tinged with weariness as she bent slightly to meet his eyes, "They wouldn't dare try to chase us outside with such few numbers."

Oberon nodded weakly, his lips trembling as he gazed at her. Tears welled up in his eyes, spilling over before he could stop them, "I—I thought I would never see you again, Mother…"

Rebecca's chest tightened painfully at the sight of her son's tears. She wiped them away with trembling fingers, her own eyes glistening as she whispered, "Don't cry, Oberon. You know I will always come for you. I would never abandon you. But…" Her voice quivered as she continued, "I can't forgive you for running off alone, taking up such a dangerous mission without telling me. Do you have any idea how worried I was?"

Her chin trembled, her voice cracking with emotion. She wanted to be angry at him but couldn't bring herself to, not after seeing how hurt he was.

Oberon pressed his lips together, shame overtaking his features. His voice was hoarse, laden with regret, "F-Forgive me, Mother. This ungrateful son has wronged you so much. I never did anything right in my life, but I at least wanted to do something right by you. I… I wanted to protect you with whatever strength I had left. I-I wanted to save you from him."

Rebecca froze, her eyes widening. Her worst fears were confirmed. He knew—knew of Asher's grip on her and that she was his slave.

But as she stared at Oberon's face, she realized he had misunderstood far more than she'd imagined.

"About him…" she began carefully, gripping his arms firmly, "You didn't have to worry. I can handle him fine. I told you to not worry about him again. Why would you even think that doing this would somehow protect me?"

Oberon let out a shaky sigh, his weak smile tinged with relief, "It doesn't matter... He will now keep his word and let you go. That makes this worth it."

Rebecca's eyes flickered with a storm of emotions. She muttered under her breath, her voice barely audible, "Let me go?…" But then she recovered her senses quickly and asked, "Wait...he told you that if you do this, he would let me go? Is that why you did this?" Rebecca clenched her jaw as she realized that bastard went behind her back to trap her son like this!

Oberon kept shaking his head and said, "Why does it matter anymore? What matters is that...I succeeded," He then asked, his voice filled with quiet disbelief, "But... how did you find me? He wouldn't have let you come and save me."

Rebecca averted her gaze briefly, her jaw tightening before she replied, "Hmph... he was the one who told me when I asked him for permission to save you. I was also surprised he didn't hesitate much before letting me go. But of course...that doesn't mean I can forgive him for making you go through all this in the first place. I didn't care if he messed with me...but to mess with you even after giving me his word...How dare he..." She muttered with a look of disappointment and anger.

Oberon's face contorted with confusion, his disbelief etched into every line, "He… He really did that?" he asked, as if the idea was impossible to grasp. A moment later, his expression darkened, "Maybe he was expecting you to die trying to save me. That must be it."

Rebecca shook her head, her face filled with half anger yet half conviction, "No… He didn't seem to have any malice when he let me go..." Rebecca mumbled as she tried to process that fact despite the anger she was feeling toward him. He wouldn't have let her go if he didn't care about her. Whatever! Why was she even trying to defend him??

"He ordered me to come back in one piece, and because of the damn sla-erhm, I will have to obey his orders for some time. And that is what I must do now. I will take you somewhere safe, and then I will return to our kingdom. Tsk, those filthy draconians might be attacking us any moment soon," Rebecca said with a annoyed click of her tongue.

Oberon's eyes widened at his mother's words, his hand shooting out to grab hers, his grip firm yet trembling, as if he feared she might vanish into thin air. "No!" he exclaimed, his voice taut with desperation, "You can't go back! There will be nothing to go back to!"

Rebecca's brows furrowed, her eyes narrowing as she looked at him intently, "Don't worry," she replied, her voice steady but laced with concern, "Those stupid draconians still need time to cover such a vast distance to reach our kingdom. I'm surprised they didn't even lay siege to our borders months in advance."

Oberon shook his head, his expression riddled with anxiety, "Because they don't have to," he said, his voice dropping as his grip on her hands tightened, "Kira will help them destroy our kingdom in just a single day. She's already set things in motion… She gloated about it while torturing me. She's been planning this for a hundred years."

Rebecca's expression darkened, her eyes glinting with a dangerous light, "What do you mean by that?" she asked, her tone anxious and sharp, "What has she planned?"

Oberon hesitated, his face tightening as if the weight of what he had to reveal horrified him by just thinking about it.

Finally, he spoke, his words slow and heavy, each one dragging her deeper into the depths of shock and disbelief. Her hands trembled as her eyes widened, her chest tightening as the enormity of Kira's scheme sank in. It was something she never saw coming.

—

Meanwhile, far away in the grand war room of the Bloodburn Kingdom, Rowena's piercing gaze locked onto Vernon, her eyes shimmering with disbelief, "Did you confirm this with Naida?" she asked, her tone firm, though a hint of unease crept into her words, "She's the one keeping track of their movements."

Vernon's face paled slightly, his stiffened expression betraying his unease.

Rowena's frown deepened, the weight of her suspicion growing, "What is it?" she demanded, her voice cutting through the air like a blade.

Vernon exhaled a heavy sigh, his shoulders sagging under the pressure, "Naida…" he began hesitantly, "...She has left, Your Majesty."

Rowena's brows knit together, her voice sharpening. "Left? What do you mean by that? Where did she go? Is she planning to do something? And why am I only hearing about this now?" Her tone was icy, her words pressing Vernon to the edge of his nerves.

Vernon bowed his head, his voice apologetic, "Forgive me, Your Majesty. It only happened before I came here. I was about to tell you—"

Before he could finish, a voice from behind cut through, "Your Majesty, an urgent word with you," Seron called, his expression grim as he lowered the Whisper Stone in his hand. Ceti was also standing beside him, as if she wanted to consult Rowena together with Seron.

Rowena cast Vernon one last withering look before striding toward Seron, "What is it?" she asked, her tone clipped.

Seron leaned in slightly, his voice low and grave, "I just received information about movements among the werewolf clans. It might be nothing, but our spies report that they've never seen such activity before."

Ceti chimed in with a worried look, "It's as if they're preparing to leave their lands… perhaps for somewhere far or here..."

Rowena's expression remained steady, her voice calm but decisive, "It can't be here. The Moon Guardian may be many things, but he isn't one to break his word. If he wanted to attack us, he would have done so long ago."

"Perhaps," Seron said cautiously, "but there's another matter. It concerns our own people… our soldiers, and all the nobles. They're growing anxious, restless. The absence of His Majesty is weighing heavily on them. Our people worship him for everything he's done to protect and strengthen this kingdom, especially against the draconians. I don't know what to tell them to ease their worries even though they look up to you for strength as well."

Rowena's face hardened, memories of Asher's deeds flickering in her mind. She couldn't deny how much he had done to strengthen the kingdom. Yet, her father's face haunted her thoughts, the pain it brought bubbling to the surface, especially after knowing who he truly was.

Ceti hesitated before speaking, "May I ask, Your Majesty… will His Majesty return in time to fight with us? Perhaps you could call him back, given the emergency situation. Whatever reason he might have left for...I am sure he will return if we let him know how much we need him..." Ceti then added in a low voice which only Rowena could hear, "...how much you need him."

Rowena's eyes flickered as a storm of emotions brewed in her heart. But before she could think further, Lord Stormrider's voice cut through the room, his Whisper Stone clattering against the table, "Your Majesty!" he cried, his face pale and stricken, "We're under attack!"

The room froze, the air thick with tension. Rowena spun toward him, her tone calm and commanding. "Under attack? From where? They couldn't have gotten here this quickly."

Stormrider's jaw clenched, his voice strained, "Tens of thousands of draconian soldiers are pouring into our kingdom through teleportation portals that just activated within our borders!!"

The moment he finished, they felt the ground trembling as the darkness outside was shattered by dark red pillars erupting into the sky—one after another.

"Oh no..." Ceti gasped in shock and despair upon seeing all those pillars, which were a prelude to the manifestation of teleportation portals.

Silence fell as they watched these pillars afar through the windows. Despair swept over the gathered council, their faces falling one by one. Where did these portals even come from??

"What… what should we do, Your Majesty?" Stormrider asked, his voice trembling as his eyes sought hers.

Rowena's mind raced, but despair began to creep into her eyes. The realization of how deep their enemies' plans ran struck her like a dagger. And for the first time, the room saw a flicker of fear in their queen.