Kai remained seated on the stone bench long after his unstable host departed.
Footsteps faded steadily up the winding stairwell until absolute silence reclaid the holding block.
This underground cell felt noticeably colder now, but that suited his magical core perfectly.
Dried blood cracked across his bare chest and arms every ti he shifted his weight.
He didn’t even bother washing it off.
That familiar copper tang reminded him exactly what kind of man he had beco to survive this city.
’She is hanging on by a very thin thread,’ Kai thought, staring right through the iron bars.
’Her mind is fracturing much faster than her mortal body can actually handle.’
’One more push will shatter her sanity into a million unrecoverable pieces.’
He closed his eyes and focused his attention inward.
He circulated his freezing mana through every vein and artery to soothe his aching muscles.
Cold energy felt remarkably sharper tonight, honed by the recent violence and the constant sexual denial.
His minor wounds had already sealed up tight, leaving only faint pink lines across his toned torso.
His system always rewarded his lethal patience.
A new translucent window appeared silently in his vision, casting a faint blue glow over the stone walls.
[System: Obsession Threshold Maxed – 100%]
[Hidden Quest: The Frozen Throne – Final Stage]
[Tomorrow night’s ritual will open a direct core link]
[Warning: Target’s ntal stability is critical]
[Unpredictable behavior highly expected]
Kai smirked in the shadows.
This interface was practically handing him the exact blueprint for her total destruction.
Hours passed in suffocating silence.
Guards stationed outside his cell changed their shifts twice.
They whispered nervously among themselves about the brutal massacre and their ruler’s rapidly growing madness.
"Did you see the way she looked at him," a young guard muttered to her partner.
"She looks ready to execute the entire court if they even breathe near his cage," the older guard replied.
"I heard she burned House Valerius to the ground just because they sent those assassins."
"She did."
"Every single mber of the family is dead because they tried to touch him."
"He must be so kind of demon in bed to earn that kind of protection."
None of those seasoned soldiers dared to speak a single word directly to him.
They treated him like a caged predator that could break free at any given mont.
Deep into the night, another soft rustle of fabric drifted down the stone stairs.
This ti it wasn’t the Scarlet Matriarch coming to beg for his touch.
A young female servant slipped past the distracted guards carrying a covered silver tray.
She kept her head bowed respectfully, trembling as she slid the food under the iron bars.
"Eat quickly, my lord," the servant whispered, her voice barely louder than a mouse.
"Are you afraid of ," Kai asked, not moving from the bench.
"I am afraid of her," the girl admitted, keeping her eyes glued to the stone floor.
"She kills anyone who looks at you too long."
"Then you better run," Kai suggested with a grim chuckle.
The girl didn’t need to be told twice, fleeing back up the stairs like a frightened rabbit.
Right on top of the roasted at and spiced wine sat a small, neatly folded piece of parchnt.
Kai waited until she scurried away before reaching down to pick it up.
He recognized Yena’s sharp, urgent handwriting instantly.
"Ritual confird for midnight tomorrow," the note read.
"She is sacrificing hundreds of slaves right now to charge the array."
"I have a group of rebels ready near the royal kitchens."
"Give one signal and we burn this place down with you."
"Do not die, you arrogant bastard."
Kai read the ssy ink twice to morize the tactical details.
He funneled a burst of freezing mana into his fingertips, freezing the parchnt solid before crushing it into white dust.
’She still thinks I actually want to run away,’ Kai thought, letting a cold smile form on his lips.
’I am not leaving this oasis until I sit on that polished bone throne.’
He picked up the silver fork and ate his al slowly.
He tasted nothing, letting his mind map every single detail he had gathered over the past week.
He knew the exact location of the main celestial array hidden deep beneath the palace.
He calculated the Scarlet Matriarch’s weakened ntal state and her desperate need for his ice.
He glanced down at the golden bracelet on his wrist that she used to track his every movent.
Everything had to align perfectly when the ritual finally began.
Morning light eventually crept down the narrow stairwell, signaling his final day in a cage.
Guards brought him fresh water and another set of expensive black silk robes.
"You are requested to wear this for the ceremony," the captain announced, tossing the clothes onto the bench.
"Tell your queen she has terrible taste in fashion," Kai replied, picking up the translucent fabric.
Kai dressed slowly, tying the golden sash but letting the fabric hang wide open across his chest.
He wanted his crazed host to see every single scar and bruise he had earned in her service.
"Is the outfit to your liking," the captain asked nervously from the other side of the bars.
"It is a bit dramatic," Kai noted, adjusting the collar.
"But I suppose a dramatic queen requires a dramatic consort."
"You should show more respect," the captain warned him quietly.
"She is risking her empire to bind you to her side."
"Her empire was already falling apart long before I walked through the gates," Kai countered.
"I am just here to speed up the process."
The captain frowned but didn’t argue, knowing the truth in his words.
The day dragged forward with tense, suffocating anticipation.
Servants actively avoided walking past his cell to avoid catching his glowing gaze.
Wealthy noblewon sent petty gifts and folded ssages begging for a private eting before the ceremony.
"I will pay you fifty gold coins just to let hold his hand," a Baroness pleaded with the guard captain upstairs.
"I cannot allow anyone near the holding block," the captain refused firmly.
"Please," another noblewoman begged, her voice echoing faintly down the stone stairwell.
"Just a lock of his hair for good luck."
"The Matriarch will have my head if I let you anywhere near him," the captain shouted, chasing them away.
Kai ignored all their desperate pleas from his underground cell.
He spent those long hours ditating, sharpening his mana control, and preparing for the exact mont she would open her core.
Late in the afternoon, the Matriarch sent for him one final ti before the ritual comnced.
Six elite guards marched him out of the holding block and through the winding palace corridors.
They escorted him toward her private, forbidden sanctum located at the highest peak of the tower.
Air grew noticeably denser the closer they got, humming with corrupted celestial energy.
When solid brass doors finally swung open, the Matriarch waited for him alone.
She wore a translucent crimson gown that left practically nothing to the imagination.
Glowing red veins pulsed vividly beneath her pale skin, mapping the chaotic flow of her stolen magic.
She looked exactly like a woman on the verge of spontaneous combustion.
"Leave us," she commanded her guards without even looking away from Kai’s face.
"Are you sure that is wise, my queen," the captain asked nervously.
"He killed twelve n with his bare hands."
"Get out before I burn your skin off," she hissed, her eyes flashing with a lethal red light.
"I do not need protection from my own consort."
The soldiers bowed quickly and locked the solid brass doors behind them.
She didn’t speak another word at first.
She simply walked up to him with a predator’s grace and pressed her hot body flush against his.
She kissed him with a frantic, possessive hunger that tasted like sweet wine and desperation.
Her hands road greedily over his exposed chest.
Sharp nails dug into his skin as if she were trying to mark him permanently as her property.
"Tomorrow night," she whispered breathlessly against his lips, her voice trembling with madness and raw lust.
"You will be mine forever, Kai."
"You talk a lot about forever," Kai replied smoothly, grabbing her waist to hold her steady.
"Are you sure you can even survive the night?"
"I will survive because I have you," she panted, grinding her hips against his thigh.
"Your ice will fix ."
"I will bind our cores together, and we will share this power."
Kai kissed her back, taking total control of the physical exchange.
He dominated her mouth, letting her feel his freezing mana push aggressively against her burning core.
He gripped her waist hard enough to leave deep bruises on her pale skin.
"You assu I want to share anything with you," Kai teased her, biting her lower lip gently.
"You will want it," she sobbed, throwing her head back as he kissed her exposed neck.
"I will give you so much pleasure you will forget how to breathe."
"Just give your ice."
"Please, Kai."
"Begging again?" Kai mocked softly, pushing a surge of euphoric cold right into her frantic nerves.
She shivered fiercely in his arms, caught between pure terror and overwhelming sexual desire.
"I am not begging," she gasped, trying to regain her regal composure while her body betrayed her.
"I am demanding your loyalty."
"Then you should try demanding it on your knees," Kai challenged her, his eyes burning with arrogant amusent.
"You arrogant city boy," she hissed, though she leaned harder into his touch.
"I will break that defiant streak out of you during the ritual."
"I will carve my na into your soul until you only know how to serve ."
"Be careful what you wish for, sweetheart," Kai whispered right against her ear, letting a layer of frost spread across her gown.
"You might find out that I am the one holding the leash."
She let out a frustrated whine, burying her flushed face in his strong shoulder.
She was so consud by her magical addiction she couldn’t even see the trap closing around her.
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