Kingdom's Bloodline, page 481
"'Good question. You're approaching the truth of the world, Your Highness."'
Thales was stunned.
He understood something.
Then, Ricky's vague words traveled into his ears.
"After the war, after they paid a devastating price, the heroes of mankind verified a fact: the existing legendary anti-mystic equipment could not seal Blood Spike and Hellen."
Samel raised his eyebrows.
Ricky laughed and threw the torch. "Yes, the most powerful weapon in the Battle of Eradication could seal almost every Mystic, end the disasters they brought, but it could not hurt even a single hair on their creators' heads."
The torch fell to the floor, and sparks flew all over the place. The torch gradually grew dimmer as it rolled around until it could only create faint light and heat.
"I mean, of course, that would happen. If I were them, why would I create something that would harm myself?"
Ricky looked up and sighed softly in the much darker Black Prison.
"So Blood Spike and Hellen, the two Magic Empresses, were the most powerful Mystics in the world. They were the only two Mystics who could not be sealed and they were like two taboo forces that couldn't be defeated. They ruled over the world.
"For many years, no one could control them. They stood above all as beings that transcended all forms of existence. They formed a frightening balance, which lasted for seven centuries in Errol. All countries and all races were silent. They did not dare voice their anger."
As he listened to Ricky's words, Thales' thoughts started to churn faster as faint astonishment and vague understanding formed in him.
The words of one of his mysterious teachers sounded again.
"'But, the secret of the legendary anti-mystic equipment has always been in the Two Empresses' hands. We've never been able to find out, even now.
"'This is a yoke that's been pressing down on our shoulders for almost seven hundred years.
"'We still can't figure it out."'
That instant, he found many of the mysteries in the world solved after he went there. Many of the questions he had were answered.
He was not the only one who had such a thought.
Samel's cheeks moved slightly.
He looked as if he had realized something. He lifted his head abruptly.
"Wait, the Dragon Breaker was not a legendary anti… Eighteen years ago… That means…"
Samel's words came to a halt. They froze along with the expression on his face.
Ricky threw his head back and laughed. His laughter echoed throughout the hall.
"Yes, though we don't know the details, if our guess is correct…"
Ricky took a deep breath and lowered his head.
Samel's torch was reflected off his eyes in the darkness. It instantly caused his gaze to sharpen as if he was a wild beast out for a hunt.
"Eighteen years ago, with the Dragon Breaker as its base, the first and only legendary anti-mystic equipment not created by the Magic Empresses…
"...was created in Constellation, though with great difficulty."
He sounded like a bard sitting near a fire in the night. The rhythm of his words was orderly, and he sounded mysterious.
Samel was frozen.
The atmosphere in Black Prison was never as horrifying as it was the moment Ricky's words spread. It seemed like they were talking about the most unbearable secret in the world.
Thales looked at the piece of paper flutter in the air before it fell on the barely-burning torch on the floor.
"Eighteen years ago, the King of Eternal Rule, Aydi Jadestar the Second and Constellation recreated the miracle of our predecessors, which occurred during the Battle of Eradication. They created an unprecedented, forbidden weapon."
Ricky's voice became fierce and solemn. It sent a slight chill down Thales' spine.
It was a legendary anti-mystic equipment without any limits or restrictions."
The flames from the torch licked the paper with the well-drawn sketch of the Dragon Breaker. It was now scorched black due to the embers remaining on the torch.
It was thicker and darker than the surrounding color in Black Prison.
"A secret weapon that can completely seal Blood Spike and Hellen…"
Ricky's voice was cold, and every word was accompanied by the faint crackle of the burning paper.
"One that can completely end their reign of terror for seven centuries…
"The perfect anti-mystic equipment..."
*Clack!*
The embers trembled, and sparks flew out from it.
Thales' mind almost froze. He felt his breathing become stagnant. His hands and feet were also cold.
The Black Prophet's strange attitude...
Asda's fervent ardor...
The Duke of the Northern Territory's hysteria before his imprisonment...
King Nuven's thought-provoking attitude when he told him the truth...
Little Rascal's hesitation to speak before they parted...
And… the secret of the Bloody Year.
Countless terrible answers and questions rose made themselvess known his mind.
Ricky sneered and said, "Naturally, it's also the ferry bell that rang for the entire Jadestar Royal Family before they collectively went to Hell's River during the Bloody Year."
In the darkness, the Knight of Judgment's trembling voice slowly rose into the air. "No…"
Thales suddenly felt that the area around him was very dark, still, and chilly.
Ricky cackled, serving as a foil against Zakriel's faint weeping.
"It's simply hard to imagine. Aydi the Second, a seemingly mediocre king who practically had no achievements to claim and whom the people of the world regarded as having done nothing for them..."
Multiple layers of shadows appeared on Ricky's face in the dark. Then, it spread out gradually along with his voice, which carried endless lament and mockery.
"He was probably... the first king of mankind since the Battle of Eradication who dared stomp on the calamities' might and strength, as well as the Two Empresses' power and pride at the same time."
*Puff!*
A soft noise chimed in. The last spark from the torch on the floor flew into the air
The unique and strange shortsword on the drawing paper was reduced to ashes.
It crumbled inch by inch and drowned in the boundless darkness.
Chapter 421: Knew Clearly |
The ominous and horrifying atmosphere lingered for a long time in the black prison.
Even after Ricky's laughter and Zakriel's sobs had both faded, Thales still sensed the frightful atmosphere in the air that could make someone's hair stand on end.
'The Bloody Year. Aydi the Second. The Jadestar Royal Family... and the only perfect, anti-mystic equipment that could threaten the Magic Empresses…'
Thales breathed absentmindedly. He had just realized that his hands and feet were shaking. The secret he obtained just now shocked the prince too greatly.
Thales lowered his head and looked at his left hand. There were still a few faint scars on his palm that were hardly discernible if he did not look closely for them.
Six years ago, he used this hand to hold the forbidden weapon and sealed Giza away... It was the Blade of Purification which, quite likely, had been the culprit that destroyed the Jadestar Royal Family.
When he remembered its name (probably not a coincidental name) and how it had called out to him in that bizarre manner, as thought it had sentience. Thales could not help but clench his fists as his chest tightened.
'What the hell was that thing?'
Numerous questions surged through his mind. Goosebumps broke out on his skin as well.
"We should go."
Beside him, Ricky put away the happy expression, born from his reminiscence. The indifferent look returned to his face again. "We'll stop here for today."
However, just as he was about to turn around...
"Wait, Ricky."
Samel, similarly astonished, sighed and looked inside the cell at Zakriel. "One last question."
Under the dim light, the Knight of Judgment sat on the floor dejectedly. He was filled with sadness. Ricky frowned slightly, but did not say anything in the end.
Samel stepped towards the prison bars, the shadows from the bars were forced towards Zakriel by the light, approaching the corner where he was hiding.
Samel sucked in a deep breath, he seemed to be hesitating.
"Zakriel, just now, Barney told me that there was a traitor among the Royal Guards that year who betrayed His Majesty, and His Highness."
Zakriel trembled in the cell. He looked up with a glazed look in his eyes; his gaze was unfocused.
Thales forcefully put away the complex thoughts in his mind and watched them.
"Barney gave an exaggerated account of things, but he sounded quite logical." When he thought of the scenario from earlier, pain appeared on Samel's face. "Something about our people working together with the forces outside, delivering a false order from the the crown prince, deliberately leading us in circles, and then lurking among us after the entire accident… nonsense like that."
Zakriel sat leaning against the wall. He looked at Samel quietly, but he lowered his face slightly so that it was immersed in the shadows and could not be seen properly.
Samel chuckled lightly, though no one knew whether it was out of mockery or self-deprecation.
"It seems that a traitor really did exist." There was indescribable grief in Samel's voice. "So long as he is found, Barney and the others can free themselves of their burden, or at the very least, be able to atone for their sins."
Zakriel sighed as though he had not recovered from the shock he had received just now.
However, at least he spoke, and he sounded casual, like he was sleep-talking. "Is it?"
Samel tensed up. Then, he seemed to have made up his mind. He gritted his teeth and said, "So, Zakriel, I must ask this: Was it you? That year, the traitor... was it you?"
This question brought on different reactions on Thales and Ricky's faces: The former fell silent, the latter was indifferent.
Zakriel reacted like a slow old man and only reacted after a few seconds. He slowly raised his head, and looked at Samel from the dark corner where even the light found hard to reach.
"That year, we were in a critical situation. We were surrounded by enemies." Samel exhaled and gritted his teeth. He seemed to be forcing out his words. "Captain Cullen, Barney Senior, and Tony unconcernedly let you take charge of the main elite forces of the guards at the palace gates, and in the Hall of Stars. That main elite force was the forty-six people whom were later sentenced to imprisonment. They either watched you leave, or hoped that you would provide them with support..."
He clenched his fists subconsciously.
"Because they all know and believe that no matter how powerful the enemies were, if the Knight of Judgment—the next Captain of the Guards they placed their hopes on—led the team, then they would be able to resolve all dangers, and everything will be fine."
Samel turned his head away, as if he could not bear to see the deeply shaken and utterly defeated man before him. "Unless... unless he is a traitor."
The flag bearer gently closed his eyes. "Was it you, Zakriel?"
Both Thales and Ricky listened quietly.
In the cell, Zakriel breathed several times and slowly raised his head. "Was it me?" he repeated dumbly. He looked lost.
Samel opened his eyes slowly. There might be some reluctance in his eyes, but his tone was still firm.
"Zakriel, you may not be good at falsifying documents or spying, but you are the confidant of the crown prince, and you were even second-to-none when it came to fighting, not to mention that you also served as the chief flag bearer."
The corners of Zakriel's mouth twitched to form the ghost of a smile. As the light was quite dim, Thales could not see the exact expression above his mouth.
"Was it... me?" he repeated absentmindedly again and again.
Samel sighed. He did not seem to have any confidence that Zakriel would answer him in his current state. However, he paused for a few seconds before he spoke again firmly.
The flag bearer said through gnashing teeth, "Zakriel, I know that your mind is not clear, but it doesn't matter. I believe, like many people, like me, there is only one thing in your memory that never fades."
*Boom!*
Samel raised his fist and hit his chest forcefully. It caused the other three people in the hall unable to help but look at him.
"Swear, Zakriel, in front of me, swear before the blood of a Jadestar." Samel said firmly, his eyes shining with a cold glare. "With your honor, your dignity, your sword, your ancestors, your family, a Rudollian noble family which has a long-lasting legacy of swearing fealty to the throne since the Age of the Empire; swear, in the name of the Zakriel Family!"
Finally, when Zakriel heard these words, he trembled. The Knight of Judgment slowly stood up, revealing his branded face in the dim fire. His eyes slowly refocused.
Ricky seemed to be deep in thought.
Samel was breathing quickly. He continued while there was agony on his face. "Swear solemnly, Zakriel... that throughout your entire life, you have never betrayed the Jadestar Royal Family, never betrayed the Royal Guards, and never betrayed the oath of the Praetorian Guards!"
Zakriel's face slowly grew dignified. The interval between Thales' breathing became shorter.
"Tell me, tell me in person that you were not the traitor," Samel said softly. There was a sense of helplessness in his voice. "Tell me."
However, Zakriel did not answer, he just stared at Samel from a distance, his eyes cold.
For a period of time, only the breaths of the four people in the hall were heard. But in the next second...
*Thud!*
Samel was seen stomping forward. He grabbed the bars of Zakriel's cell. Ricky's face changed slightly.
"I beg you!" Samel's back was turned to Thales so his expression could not be seen. He sounded like he was gnashing his teeth.
Still, Zakriel stayed silent and just stared at him.
"Please, answer me, Knight of Judgment," he said once more. This time, there was a pleading tone in Samel's words. "This is too important." His hands which held the bars began to tremble.
Finally, Zakriel snorted. The unfocused look disappeared, and lucidity returned to his eyes.
"Too important? They… Why did Barney suspect you, Samel?" He curved the corner of his lips and shook his head silently. "Why did he ask you whether you were a traitor?"
Samel's face went pale. He unknowingly let go of his grip on the bars though no one knew whether it was due to pain or other reasons. He took a step back, palms trembling.
"And you... Do you wish for me to be the traitor, or do you wish that I was not?" the Knight of Judgment laughed.
The hall was quiet for a long time. Samel's head was bowed deeply. However, before long, a quiet sigh rose in the darkness.
Unexpectedly, Zakriel's voice gradually rose. It increased in volume and in pitch.
He said indifferently, "I swear. I, Immanuel Zakriel, solemnly swear by my honor, my dignity, my sword, my ancestors, and the name of the Zakriel Family who have sworn fealty to the throne since the Age of the Empire…"
Samel seemed encouraged. He lifted his head with a complicated look in his eyes.
As his speech progressed, Zakriel's tone became more and more solemn. "In all my life, I have never betrayed the Jadestar Royal Family, and have never betrayed the oath of the Praetorian Guards."
Thales' eyebrows twitched. He seemed to have missed something.
Sure enough, Zakriel's sigh traveled into his ears again. "The only ones I've let down is all of you."
Samel's breathing seemed to have been cut off. The Knight of Judgment's dispirited and sorrowful voice continued rising into the air.
"I have let down Captain Cullen, Tony, Morion, Beldin, Kamil, Rogo, Tardin, Bruley, Naer, and you, Samel... I have let all my brothers in the Royal Guards down."
Zakriel sounded like an old man in his twilight years repenting for the sins he had committed during his youth with his heart full of despair. Samel did not move.
"As a person who had high hopes placed on me, I was incompetent in the face of that storm, and I was powerless to protect all of you, help you, lead you, and fight through the obstacles with you all to win against danger." Zakriel stared at Samel. He stared at the brand on his face and said with a glazed look in his eyes.
"I can only sit here, day after day, year after year, watching you all sink into obscurity here, and suffer endlessly."
Thales turned his head and remembered the thirty-seven Emperor's Praetorian Guards who died in the Prison of Bones. He remembered their gazes, either sluggish, desolate, free of burden, or crazed. He then looked at the unshaven Zakriel... and felt horrible.
Zakriel closed his eyes gently and forced out a single word which he had kept in his heart for years.
"Sorry." He fell silent again.
Samel's expression remained unchanged for a long time, but he slowly turned his head away.
"So, the traitor wasn't you." The flag bearer trembled lightly. "Perhaps the traitor has already died in prison... Or perhaps, there was no traitor at all. No one betrayed His Majesty and his family."
Samel turned his head around at once. There was a faint pleading tone in his voice. "Maybe… Maybe everything was just Barney's delusions, since he's a conspiracy theorist."
Zakriel did not answer him immediately. Instead, he moved forward quietly to sit down in his original spot, which was surrounded by an air of desolation. After a long while, a faint sigh rose into the air.
"Maybe there was."
Samel was somewhat surprised. "What?"
Zakriel had his head lean against the wall. The focus in his eyes seemed to have disappeared again.
"I think, perhaps… there was a traitor."
Once he said this, Samel, Thales, and even Ricky's expression changed. Zakriel continued speaking, "But the traitor is not just anyone. They have neither face nor name."
Samel frowned. "What do you mean?"
Zakriel shook his head with a resigned and hollow smile. "Our brothers of the Royal Guards came from noble families living in the capital of the kingdom." He stared at the ceiling as if he could see the past there. The intonation in his voice began to fluctuate, and the rhythm of his words was steady.
