After just a short mont, I slow down my run when the white hallway changes. Big paintings join the fabric and cloth decorations hanging on the walls. The mont I notice the first one, it makes frown a little and I stop to observe it and the ones further behind.
Each picture shows a beautiful woman of one of the humanoid races. The issue is, all of them are presented in full nude and often in very suggestive poses. They are drawn leaning onto a wall, putting one foot on a chair, which reveals their privates, or even straight-up bending over furniture and exposing themselves to the viewer.
Ignoring the fact that there are plenty of races other than Humans in this long passage, I would have thought that they would be a bit more covered, perhaps with various styles and designs of underwear and lingerie. But, I guess this supports the assumption that Brother wasn’t so passionate and shy about it.
I continue through this suggestive and erotic gallery until my eyes catch on to sothing familiar.
If there still have been any doubts in my mind, I’m pretty sure they are completely gone now. The painting hanging right in front of depicts the timid, scared, anxious girl I visited just recently, who finally agreed to talk about Brother with and showed her scars.
The image portrays her naked just like the other works. There are no bruises or even scratches on her petite body and she wears a cute smile, twirling a lock of her hair while standing in an adorable pose.
As I stare at her figure, the mory of her current state flashes through my mind, overlapping itself with the image in front of . I blink to get rid of it but the harder I try the more realistic it becos. A scene of my brother whipping the poor girl suddenly surfaces in my thoughts and I turn my head aside, closing my eyes.
My fingers grip the tal staff stronger and I take a deep breath before opening them again. Trying not to look at that particular painting anymore, I leave its spot with a quick step, refocusing on exploring every corner of this so-called workshop to learn the truth.
Which might be already known to . As much as I truly wouldn’t want to be right this ti.
I don’t get to cover much distance before sothing catches my attention again. Without stopping this ti, I glance to the side and find another painting of a woman I recognize from an inn we stopped at to eat a few tis with Brother in the past.
Getting the sa uncomfortable feeling in my chest as when looking at the previous person, I increase the pace of my steps to get away from it as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, the familiar figures don’t end there.
As I walk faster and faster, various won I suddenly start to rember flash through my mind as their paintings appear in the far corner of my vision even though I’m trying my best to look only ahead.
Soon, it can’t be called walking anymore. I break into a run as even sounds and noises of their suffering begin echoing in my head each ti I pass by a woman I saw sowhere at least once when spending ti around Brother.
Desperate to get rid of it, I sprint forward, hoping to reach the end of the display. Perhaps it takes just a few seconds for to enter a rectangular chamber with a coffee table, four sofas around it, and various furniture placed by the walls, including a heavy desk, but it truly felt like hours.
I stop at the entrance to the room and try to catch my breath, leaning onto the nearby desk.
“Damn it!” I slam my fist into its surface, panting roughly. “Why did you have to be like that…”
After a short while, I regain my composure and take a closer look around the chamber I just entered. There isn’t anything special about it. Dark brown furniture with royal red cushions dominates the sight, just like on the entire way here. There are two exits leading out of it, with no doors either.
Expecting to see more paintings and drawings of naked won inside the desk, I pull out one of the drawers just to wince and instantly close it. I don’t have to look for long to understand what I have just seen. This wasn’t any close to anything erotic. Utterly sadistic would be a better term.
“How did it co to this? When did you beco like that, Brother? Why?”
There are countless questions floating in my mind as I try to pinpoint any specific mont in our past when sothing could have changed. Unable to do so, I shake my head to clear it of pointless thoughts and look between the two passages going out of the room. There is no indication of where they might lead.
Since I have wasted enough ti already, I don’t waste any more of it hesitating about which way to choose and quickly jog towards the closer hallway. Fortunately, this one doesn’t have paintings so I can move through it pretty much undisturbed.
After about fifteen seconds, I stumble on the first door since the very entrance. A quite sizable single gate blocks my path. Pushing the knob reveals that it’s locked, as expected. I don’t think I will be able to easily find the key so my only option is to get through it.
Even though it doesn’t look to be enchanted or riddled with defensive arrays like the main gate, I decide to take a safe distance before sending a weak spell towards it to probe the tal door. The sharp rock I send at it hits the surface with an echoing clang and nothing happens.
Trying to destroy or push it in might be a little dangerous in this narrow passage so I first choose to try scanning the surroundings with a very useful spell. Standing right in front of the door, I raise my staff up a little and hit the floor with its butt.
Multiple waves of yellow energy are released in circles from the point of impact and disappear into the walls surrounding . With each passing ring, the structure of the nearby bedrock is revealed to in a much clearer ntal picture.
It looks like there aren’t any adjacent rooms by the sides of this corridor which I could easily break into and the only options are to either dig out the ground or dislocate the door. Since I won’t be able to gather much more from my scanning, I cancel it and glance at the obstruction in front of .
“Let’s try this with precision, then.”
I start a simple dance while spinning my staff. Grazing its tip over the floor in an arc, I condense part of my mana to draw in so of the material from the ground. A small ball of marble forms at the end of my weapon, leaving a shallow trench behind.
With a quick turn, I fling the projectile towards the keyhole. It changes shape mid-flight and turns into a spike that lodges itself in the tiny breach. This much isn’t enough to deal with the lock and I’ve been quite aware of it.
That’s what the next step is for.
As I make so more stylish movents, the marble nail begins to thicken and expand, reforming itself into sothing akin to a wedge with a flat head aid towards my side of the door, taking up as much space inside the keyhole as it’s physically possible.
After it’s finished, I put much more mana into my magic and attract a huge chunk of marble to the tip of my staff this ti. It soon takes the shape of a big and beautiful hamr of white stone. If I wasn’t so pressed on ti, I would love to examine it carefully and marvel over its looks.
But, the longer I am here the more the urge to discover everything rises in my heart. Sothing pushes forward, telling to not stop until I get to the bottom of this. Perhaps so tiny part of my consciousness is still hoping to find an explanation and proof that it wasn’t my brother who hurt all those won.
With all steps prepared, I set myself near the door and pull the hamr to the side.
“Alright. I hope this works.”
With a loud shout, I swing the marble hamr towards the created wedge, assisting myself with the application of magnetic enchantnt I can apply to the ores and minerals under my control. The chunk in the door attracts the hamr strongly, giving my strike even more power as I smash the hamrhead into the thick nail.
A deafening clang echoes through the passage, accompanied by the noise of tal relenting under the heavy pressure of the received blow. The part around the keyhole gets heavily dented, with the wedge pushed into the hole almost the entire way through.
It was enough. While the blow wasn’t able to completely dislocate the lock, it pushed part of the door back just enough to create a gap between it and the door fra.
To increase it further, I puml the wedge a few more tis. Destroying this sturdy chanism could take quite a long ti so it’s not exactly what I’m going for. I just need a bit more space and we’ll be good.
After achieving a satisfactory result, I squeeze my staff even stronger and make another swing. This ti, though, the hamr doesn’t fly towards the nail stuck in the lock but part of the wall just by the door fra where the tal gate was pushed back enough to show an opening.
Having a clear strike at the edge, I hit it without an issue and it breaks off easily. I could have tried that with the door present in its original position, but this way is just much less tiring. With a few well-aid blows, I create a hole big enough for myself to fit through, without having to spend a lot of mana on stone-manipulating spells of bigger calibre.
I throw my staff in after releasing the gathered marble and climb through the gap, watching out not to injure myself by accident. It takes a bit of effort since the hole isn’t too wide and comfortable but I manage to wiggle my way through into the next room.
The mont I drop onto the ground and raise myself to a knee, I finally notice the sudden change in style. This part of the underground complex isn’t made of marble anymore. Dark grey stone blocks make up the walls, ceiling and floor. There are no decorations here except for dim torches with orange crystals, glowing much weaker than their counterparts from the other side.
Having a really bad premonition, I quickly recollect myself and run towards the only tunnel leading out of this small chamber with nothing in it. The monotone corridor continues for about fifty tres before it starts splitting to the sides at regular intervals.
Picking the left turn at the first intersection, I slow down and move forward while paying attention to my surroundings.
Then, it hits .
“Ugh. Urp.”
I drop my staff and barely hold myself back from throwing up as an unbearable stench fills my nostrils, forcing to use the nearby wall for support. I have noticed the faint unpleasant sll in the main tunnel but thought it was just from not having anyone clean the place up.
Unfortunately, the powerful repugnant odour present in this branching corridor can be associated with only one thing. Sothing I had a chance to experience now and then during my life as an adventurer. As much as I don’t want it to be true, another explanation is just too improbable right now.
Spending a minute getting accustod to the powerful sll and bringing a handkerchief to my face, I walk forward. Not forgetting to pick up my staff, of course.
And, with just a few more steps, the first room shows up on my right. A tal gate with thick vertical bars serves as a door to what clearly is a prison cell, just as I partially expected.
I gag again when my eyes fall onto a body in a late stage of decay, forcing to look away in a desperate attempt to avoid emptying my stomach right here. I’m fortunate enough to have experienced a fair share of such sights and slls not to instantly vomit or faint but it’s still difficult to handle.
“Damn it!” I curse again, hitting the bars. “We should have opened it just like Dad wanted! Damn it, damn it, damn it!”
Accidentally inhaling a bigger chunk of the rotten air, I fail to control myself in ti and quickly crouch down by the cell to let the rushing liquid out, too late to stop it anymore. Wiping my mouth, I stand up again and look around.
If every single path leads to these cells, there’s no way anyone survived to this day. Even so, I still continue forward in hope of a miracle. Perhaps soone was left with access to so more food and water than the few small bottles I notice in so cells now and then.
Unfortunately, only decomposing bodies fill the tal cages. It’s not hard to identify all of them as won. They are of different races, thus varying in their state of decay. This whole section of Brother’s workshop isn’t that big but the cells can be counted in tens for sure.
What a tragedy.
After checking the last one, I return to the empty room with the damaged tal door and climb through it again. Nothing else to see in this part of the workshop.
I sigh after getting through. “I’m worried what terrible things I might find in the other section…”
Reaching the main intersection, I stop for a mont and hesitate. I’ve seen enough already. I understand that I was wrong, that I knew nothing about my brother.
「Is there a reason to continue this? Father and the knights will soon start entering too. They can deal with it instead.」
Glancing to the corridor in front of , I shake my head.
「No, I can’t stop halfway. There’s still a chance soone might be alive on the other side, where the second hallway leads. I shouldn’t assu things but act while I can.」
Preparing the handkerchief again, just in case that for whatever reason, there would be two prison blocks in this place, I rush towards the only other path. After a brief mont, it turns right and runs far, far straight. Tens of wooden doors are present on both sides.
Slowing down, I examine the first one. Contrary to the previous, tal gate, this door is made of simple, dark wood, similar to the furniture in the main lobby. It’s locked too, obviously.
But, wood is much simpler to deal with than tal and I easily punch the whole lock inside with a well-aid hamr strike, creating a small hole where the knob and keyhole are. With nothing holding it in place anymore, I carefully push the door inside.
A small, well-decorated bedroom enters my sight. There’s a single sofa on one side with a coffee table in front of it, a few bookcases, and a big, king-sized bed on the other side, with fancy canopies in dark red colour.
No one is inside and the room looks pretty much untouched. It’s possible to spot a layer of dust here and there but it has been unoccupied since the day Brother left this place for the last ti.
Unless he wasn’t the only one with access to it.
Managing a mansion-like underground complex surely couldn’t have been easy with so many rooms, cells, and people inside. I don’t rember ever seeing him smuggle food or other supplies down there more than what is a normal amount for a single person.
Well, there’s no use thinking about this right now. If he had any accomplices, we’ll definitely need to find them and punish them for all those atrocities they committed toward the won imprisoned there. And not only them.
Ronerulle is very strict with its law and the royal family isn’t completely above it. If this had leaked out to the public and we had learned about this vile place, I’m not so sure if Brother would have avoided capital punishnt.
And that thought brings up another problem. People wouldn’t care if he did everything alone, without us knowing about a single thing. He was a prince, part of the ruling family. There’s no doubt we could even see a revolution to overthrow Father and Mother and hold them accountable for his deeds. Myself included, most likely.
As much as it pains , we can’t reveal the existence of this complex to the people. It could end badly for everyone. I hate lying to them but we have no choice here. They wouldn’t listen to our explanations. It saddens greatly but I can’t risk the safety of my family even if I know it was our negligence that led to this.
I need to quickly inform Father to bring only trusted n in here. He is surely on his way already, perhaps even inside the first hallway.
Fortunately, there are books in this room.
I quickly move to one of the bookcases and smash the glass panel to gain access to it since it looks to be locked. Bringing one to out, I quickly open it and tear off a partially blank page at the very beginning of the book.
The paper is here but what about sothing to write with?
That appears to be a bit more complex issue. I have no ti to search every cupboard and drawer. My eyes fall onto the shattered glass and I sigh heavily.
“I’m already going to suffer for the sins of my brother.”
Picking up a sharp-looking piece, I stare at it briefly, contemplating the choice. Before using it, though, I get another idea inspired by it and use a simple earth manipulation spell to create a small knife out of the marble wall, with its other end as closely resembling a quill as possible.
I create a tiny cut on my forearm and let the blood drip onto the nearby dresser without hesitation. Using the quill-like end, I try my best to write a ssage to Father.
It’s not easy and the script cos out as jagged and horribly awful. But, it’s not the ti to think about finesse and style. After finishing my note, I address it on the back and fold it into two.
Leaving the room in a hurry, I return to the main chamber and approach the desk. Placing the piece of paper on its surface, I stab the knife I made earlier into the wood next to it. This should be enough to grab soone’s attention since nothing else stands out in this room.
After that, I run back to the long hallway with many doors and start checking every room one by one. Not a single door is open, for whatever reason. I could understand why he or soone else would want to lock those with people inside, but why have all the rooms locked throughout the whole complex?
Seven rooms after the first one don’t look that much different from it. They are all bedrooms at the core, with slightly altered colours, decorations, furniture, and the general atmosphere.
Unfortunately, in the eighth one, I finally stumble on a deceased person. The sll hits the mont I break the lock and it just gets worse afterwards. That bedroom is utterly demolished and the door has countless scratch marks from the inside.
It’s clear that whoever was left here to die, tried whatever they could to escape. But, considering that they might have been a slave, or at least had a mark on them, their strength must have definitely been limited.
Those poor won. My heart aches every ti I think about what they were going through here.
Shaking my head, I leave the damaged room and continue further. The colour of the doors changes at this point. They beco lighter, assuming a bright shade. They clearly stand out from the previous ones and there has to be a reason for that.
My assumption is proven correct the mont I break into the first chamber with a different door.
I wince at the sight. There are no bodies inside but much worse things stand all around the room and by its walls. Plenty of different contraptions and devices which could easily rival those ant for torture or interrogation are set up here, ready to be used at any ti.
Even though I really wanted to ignore it, I had a feeling that sothing like this would be found here. That adorable girl from earlier definitely didn’t get her scars and bruises through normal ans or a bit rougher play between two people.
With this, it’s pretty much confird. There will be no studio ant to produce lingerie anywhere in this hidden dungeon. It was a lie, from the very beginning. We’ve been fed nothing but misinformation for who knows how long.
I grip my staff harder, clenching my teeth. So much pain and suffering right under our noses, right under the royal castle. I slept above these people’s heads, unaware of anything that was happening here.
Alastair was right. He knew Brother much better than I did while speaking with him just for a brief mont. There’s no lingerie collection. The only things Brother was collecting were those won in the cages.
He might be a better judge of character than I thought. First, figuring out my brother’s true nature at a mont’s notice, and second, knowing that I would definitely keep my word and wouldn’t attack him right after being set free.
His last words ring in my head.
‘Life for a life. Rember that.’
What if it’s not one but countless lives? What happens then? Will he demand our lives?
I shake my head to clear my thoughts. I've been led astray by my emotions since the mont I left his mansion, and even more since setting foot in this place. I should stop getting distracted all the ti and leave worrying about the future for later.
The few next rooms with the sa shade of wood have various contraptions inside too. I’m fairly sure they served as storage chambers. Unless Brother really used them with everything present inside. It’s hard to imagine but there’s nothing about him that would surprise anymore.
Then, the doors change back to the dark wood and continue until the end of the hallway. I keep making my way through them chanically now, with all the faintest traces of hope already long gone.
I won’t find anyone alive. This place is a graveyard.
Breaking another lock, I push the door inside and enter another bedroom. The stench of decomposing bodies hits much harder than in any previous chambers and I quickly cover my nose and mouth with the handkerchief.
Looking around, I spot four bodies, with more hidden behind the bed and the furniture, possibly. This room is completely devastated too and it’s not a surprise. I can’t even imagine what the thoughts of these won were when they starved to death here.
As I’m leaving the room, sothing makes a noise, instantly catching my attention. My head snaps towards the nearby wardrobe which has just released a wooden squeak and my eyes widen to the brim.
Barely in ti, I manage to dodge aside as sothing leaps at from its top, screeching loudly. Spinning around, I ready myself to defend against the unidentified monster and freeze on the spot.
This is no monster.
A half-blood Beastkin woman stares back at from near the ground. She has cat-like features so I assu she’s so kind of a Catkin.
But, that’s not the reason behind my reaction.
Her skin is ghostly pale and her eyes are completely bloodshot. A feral expression paints her face as she growls at ferociously. Dried-off blood stains her mouth, the skin around her entire body, and the skimpy clothes.
“Wait! I’m here to help—”
I try to speak but she launches herself at again, aiming for my throat with her long nails. Forced to defend myself, I redirect her attack to the side with a spin of my staff and increase the distance between us.
“Please, listen! I will free you! Everything will be fine no—”
Again, she completely ignores my words and cos at slashing her hands through the air.
It’s no use. She's clearly lost her mind. If I’m not mistaken, she might have actually been forced to eat her own flesh, judging from the marks and wounds on her body. And, before that, she might have been forced into cannibalism by her instincts to survive.
Only now I begin to notice that so of the damage on the walls and furniture seems different than in other rooms. There’s much more old blood and claw marks. Instead of an attempt to escape, it’s more probable that a fight broke out here.
A fight to the death.
She doesn’t give any room for breathing and keeps violently throwing animalistic attacks at my vitals, without any clear thought behind them. I would have no problem defeating her, but even if she’s exerting quite so strength, she’s clearly weakened and I could kill her in the process.
I really don’t want to do that but she’s not giving a choice. With just a single mistake, I’ll be dead. There’s not much space to dodge here and she will catch up to if I try to run for sure.
Another swipe passes just right by my throat. I step aside but she's already after again, mouth wide open, lunging at it once more, aiming to sink her teeth in my skin this ti. I dodge to the back, leaning away from her face.
Then, the mont I attempt to block another attack, my foot runs into sothing which I quickly recognize as a deceased person's body. My eyes widen as I watch my staff swing with an altered trajectory due to the loss of balance, missing the woman's hands and hitting her in the side of her head. A quiet crunch follows and she falls to the ground with a thud.
“Oh no…”
I poke her a few tis just to be completely safe before kneeling by her side. A quick check confirms the worst. Her skull must have grown really weak during the ti she was locked here, forced to do everything she could to stay alive.
“I… I killed her…”
I stare at the poor woman, lying dead in front of , knowing that it was who took the life of an innocent person. It wasn’t the first ti I faced humanoid opponents or mbers of other races, but I’ve never raised a hand at soone undeserving.
No, I had.
Back in Alastair’s mansion. I let my emotions control and almost hurt him without even listening to what he had to say. He was the real victim and I almost struck him down. Did I start changing for the worse too before I noticed?
A few minutes later, Father arrives in the room with still kneeling by the woman’s body. He tells to return to the surface and leave everything to him.
I want to protest and finish what I have started but he stares down until I no longer look like I’m going to argue with him. He assigns soone to escort back and I slowly leave my brother’s workshop.
We stumble on Mother shortly after getting out of the castle’s dungeons. She has been waiting for either of us to return. Noticing my expression, she quickly pulls into a hug and tries her best to console without even knowing anything. She’s always been this kind and caring.
She leads to my bedchamber and I explain everything to her, from start to finish. As expected, she often shakes her head, saying that it’s not possible for Brother to do such things but falls silent the mont I reach the part with the Beastkin woman and what happened to her.
Ignoring the problem of my brother, for now, she keeps rubbing my arm and repeating that it’s not my fault and that everyone has the right to defend themselves.
I know that, obviously, but that woman must have gone through so much. She was in a state so bad it shouldn’t even count as self-defence anymore. I killed her. Her and all the others. With my blindness and negligence. That’s not how the future ruler should be.
Still within my mother’s embrace, I don’t even notice when I fall asleep.
I wake up the next morning, already changed into my pyjamas and lying under the covers of my bed. Sitting up and looking around, I notice a note on the nightstand. It asks to co to speak with Mother and Father when I’m well enough.
A little afraid of the discussion that awaits us, I remain on the bed for around half an hour more before finally regathering my wits. I can’t stay here forever. I knew we would be having this conversation sooner or later.
After asking a servant in the hallways, I’m led to my parents. They both have grim expressions and it looks like Mother has accepted the truth in the end. We sit together in silence for a few minutes before she starts to speak, surprising both and Father.
Even though it’s visibly extrely hard for her, Mother tries to think about the well-being of our kingdom and its people in the current situation. We all agree that revealing the information about this unfortunate incident could end badly for everyone and should be avoided at all costs.
We talk for hours, jumping between the topic of Brother, his true nature, how we could have let all of this happen, and what we should do now. Father didn’t find any other survivors in the other rooms I haven’t explored yet when he arrived.
In the end, just like Mother said and acted, we will have to sohow move on while thinking about our people. It won’t be easy. Especially for her. I can already tell she is going to bla herself for all the atrocities Brother committed.
Days pass quickly as we try to focus on recovering the bodies and giving everyone a proper burial. All we can do for them is to dedicate so space in the castle’s royal graveyard for the naless tombstones in their mory.
There have been so ntions of nas amongst the papers and notebooks Father and his trusted n found in Brother’s dungeon but it wasn’t possible to identify anyone with just that. We have no idea if they had any families or living relatives. Although, almost everyone was a slave.
After a few more days, we finish cleaning the place up and decide to seal it again. Burying it would be too dangerous and risky. Our Court Magician takes care of it, putting a simple barrier around the new entrance we set up.
The promise I made with Alastair can’t leave my mind. I have to return and apologise, but the more I think about it, the worse I feel. No matter what, the future queen can’t let such mundane things scare her. Without Brother, that’s almost certainly going to be .
I return to Evaneheim and head straight for Alastair’s mansion. They start work in the evenings so it shouldn’t be a problem for to pay him a visit during the day. Afterwards, I will et with King Rossberg too to apologise for my rude behaviour.
The gates to Alastair’s estate are open so I walk to the main entrance. Before I can even knock, the doors open and Lady Cornelia shows up in front of .
She smiles warmly. “You don’t look so good, Princess Vanessa. Alastair is unfortunately out of the city at this mont, but please, co in and stay with us for a mont. You are welco to remain here until he returns.”
I nod at her hesitantly and enter the mansion.
I can now only wait for his judgnt.
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