With the King’s silent command, the guards stepped forward, blocking Rebedina and Minister Karon’s path or whoever tried to get close to Ren.
Lord Alekin didn’t even flinch at the sight of his daughter’s massive bleeding. The indifference in his eyes stunned Dankin, who sat nearby, frozen in place. He frowned, a storm of confusion stirring within him, but he said nothing. Did their father ever love them, even once? And yet, look at Ren. Treated like trash for years, especially by Araben, and still, she was the one trying to save her. And neither of these people cared about him. He didn’t exist to any of them.
"What are you doing to my daughter, you vicious witch?" Rebedina shrieked.
"Watch your mouth, human. You insult my wife again and we will see more bloodshed tonight!" Kai warned the woman, standing before her like a tower.
Aunt Everin couldn’t bear it any longer. She marched toward Rebedina, seized her by the shoulder, and spun her around. The crack of a hard slap rang out like thunder, cutting through the hall and silencing every breath. The air shattered into stillness.
Aunt Everin shouted, her voice trembling with rage, "Bring the maiden forward, let her speak of what your daughter has done!"
The attention shifted from Ren and Gloria to the young woman who had slit Araben’s throat.
The guards stepped forward, dragging the maiden into view and forcing her to her knees.
Minister Karon unsheathed his dagger with a sharp hiss. "Speak, you wicked whore!"
But before he could move further, the King strode forward, his voice firm and commanding. "Minister Karon, mind your behavior."
Karon’s jaw clenched. He shut his eyes, forcing down the surge of fury burning behind them.
Josa knelt still as stone. She felt nothing, only the numbness that had consud her since she’d read the letter. Revenge had beco her only anchor. She rembered her sister’s radiant smile when Josa first told her she’d found work in the royal castle of Zillgaira, serving Princess Araben. Their parents’ hope had flickered to life, dreaming of paid debts and a new beginning. But now, all of it had withered into ash.
Each ti she looked at Araben, she saw only that slender neck, and in her mind, she slit it again and again, just as Araben had butchered her family. She could see how her n did it, seizing their humble cottage, first killing her father, second was her mother, and then the last was her running sister.
Tears welled up in her eyes, burning down her cheeks.
Then a few days ago, the King summoned her.
He told her she could carry out retribution, exactly as she wished, and that he would not stop her.
Josa had fallen to her knees, unable to contain the rush of disbelief and purpose. It was a chance she would never let slip through her fingers. She had seen what Araben and her mother had done to Reneira, witnessed it all with her own eyes, and retold every horror to the King. He could have executed them both, she knew that. But instead, he made a crueler choice that Josa loved the most. One would live to bear the weight of the other’s death. And for a mother, that was a punishnt far worse than dying.
"I was her maiden," Josa began, her voice calm but trembling beneath the surface, "and one day a nobleman approached , just to ask a question. The next day, she sold to a brothel."
Gasps filled the hall. Josa didn’t flinch. She was done with this.
"Later, when my family ca looking for in Zillgaira and couldn’t find , she killed them, just to make sure they wouldn’t discover what had happened to , or bring sha to her na. She was afraid of slander."
"And only days ago, she ca to that brothel. She asked to seduce the Alpha King of Thegara, so she could wound Princess Reneira’s heart. Araben wanted to drive her into despair. When Reneira was broken enough, Araben planned to kill her... and stage it as a suicide. All to make it look like Reneira had taken her own life after being betrayed by her husband."
Josa dragged in a long breath, "I witnessed her cruelty firsthand," Josa continued, her voice gaining strength, sharp as broken glass. "She hurt and killed people like they were nothing more than buzzing insects. Princess Reneira was her sister, her own blood, but you cannot imagine how many tis Araben broke her bones, or locked her away in filthy dungeons while Lord Alekin was gone. Even Minister Karon knew. He knew, and still, he said nothing. He never lifted a finger to punish her."
Josa’s eyes darkened with mory.
"Then, that night, when she brought back to the castle, she ordered her guards to destroy the brothel. The entire building exploded, with people still inside. I can still hear the screams... the fire devouring them... the cries of the burning. How could I not punish her?"
A cold hush fell over the room.
The King turned to Rebedina, his face carved in stone. "Is this true?"
Rebedina’s eyes blazed with desperation. She shook her head violently and shouted, "Of course not! She’s lying, to save herself!"
But Minister Karon didn’t wait. He stord toward the guards, shoving them aside with blind fury. Without a word, he drove the dagger into Josa’s chest and twisted it.
"This is how you deal with a lying whore," Minister Karon spat.
The King didn’t stop him. He simply turned his gaze toward Ren, watching, waiting, for her response.
Gloria, acting on instinct, reached out and grabbed Ren’s wrist, halting her.
"Don’t save her," she said, her voice fierce, her expression burning with righteous fire.
Ren pulled her hand free, slowly rising to her feet. Her eyes locked onto Araben, who lay gasping for breath, her life slipping away in ragged seconds.
"Minister Karon," Ren said coldly, "you shouldn’t have killed that maiden. Now, watch your granddaughter die."
She turned her back on them and walked to her husband’s side, her posture calm, unshaken, cruel in its finality. Together, they stood, watching as panic overtook the minister. He and Rebedina rushed to Araben, lifting her trembling, blood-soaked body, their hands slick with the cost of their sins.
Reviews
All reviews (0)