Living Heart

Inside the courtroom, King Vladimir was sitting majestically on his throne. On his side was a small throne that was meant for the queen to sit but he got only a wife and not a queen.

The magistrate and Lords were all present, addressing one issue or the other.

"Your Majesty, our rival Kingdom are planning on their next attack." One of the magistrates addressed.

King Vladimir looked up to the magistrate and smirked, knowing fully well who his rival was.

"Those people don't know when to give up. Don't they?" He asked, clasping his finger.

The magistrate nodded in approval. "The King had sent two thousand soldiers and some spies, camping next to Vallat."

"Why are they camping next to Vallat?" Lord Orpheus asked curiously. None of it made sense to him.

The other Lords kept a straight face, Lord Raul was absent and hadn't recovered from the punishment that was given to him by his punisher; Amira.

"In other to make their next move." The magistrate confirmed.

The King listened patiently to what the magistrate said.

"Two thousand soldiers." He laughed. "Send out the bowmen, knights, and five thousand armies. We'll show them that we're ready for the war." King Vladimir said smiling mischievously.

"The King would be involved in the fight." Lord Louisville said firmly.

King Vladimir shifted his gaze to the Lord who just spoke with so much interest.

"Really? It won't hurt if the news got viral that the King of my rival Kingdom got killed by Vallat's Knight." The mysterious King of Vallat chuckled.

The magistrate and a few nobles of Vallat agreed to what their King had just said. It won't hurt but it would be a slap on their face. King Vladimir was too powerful to be engaged in such a war with ordinary beings.

"Bring me Scott!" They heard the King's orders and immediately a servant named Scott was brought out from the dungeon where he was locked.

This lowly servant betrayed the King and sold some weapons of Vallat to the rival Kingdom. He was been beaten almost to death after sustaining major injuries without telling who his ally was.

The king walked down from his throne and stared at Scott for a while. The prisoner didn't know what was on his mind but he knew he wasn't safe.

Every part of him was bruised and he felt so sick that he couldn't even feel scared. Then the question he expected was asked by the king.

"Are you ready to tell us who the ally was?" King Vladimir asked calmly but the servant didn't respond and just laid helplessly on the floor before the King.

The others that were present in the courtroom looked so serious, they were all contemplating who the ally was.

Scott had the nerve to betray the King and go against the law of Vallat. His offense was punishable by death but King Vladimir insisted on torturing him before death. He needed to say who his ally was first.

"You're not ready to speak?"

On the other hand, Ariel was so bored to the extent that she strode over the castle walls without her maids knowing. Her supreme husband had already told her to stay in her room till her come to fetch her.

If her maids knew that she was not in her room, they'd pester her to death and she didn't want anything like that. She forbade the idea of going to the East Wing even though she could outsmart the guards and pass through them with ease.

She passed through the hallway and heard some voices coming out from a particular hall. Ariel was curious to know what was going on since she heard serious voices.

A part of her wanted to leave was the other was so curious to go inside and peep. She had come a long way to the place and going back won't be a great idea.

Ariel entered the hall and discovered that it was the courtroom since it was different from the other halls and the way it was built was spectacular. Ariel hid by the wooden corner where she got to see what was happening inside the room.

First, her gaze met with the servant that was lying helplessly on the floor.

She heard her husband's voice echoing in the room.

"Do you know, anyone who betrays the King and the whole Vallat at large would be punished by death?" King Vladimir asked the servant who manages to answer him with a shaky voice.

Ariel pitied the helpless fella but she couldn't do anything but watch the scene. At one point she thought it was boring and wanted to leave but she heard something that would make the whole thing interesting.

"Theo, bring me an axe and a raw pepper." The King who was ready for some action ordered, stepping down from his throne elegantly with his fine golden royal robe.

The man named Theo brought the axe and the raw ground pepper for the king as instructed.

Ariel wondered what he was going to use the things for but she patiently watched.

The king studied the pepper and glanced at the prisoner with a wicked grin and then he frowned. "Why don't you make life easy for yourself by telling me what I want to know?" He asked. "I know you know how much pain you'll go through if I spray this on you," he pushed closer and Scott shuddered at his approach.

After waiting, the king touched his wound with the pepper and the sound of misery coming out of Scott's mouth was satisfying to the king because the man was already angering him by staying quiet to his demand.

The lowly servant named Scott cried, and wailed in agony for the torture he was receiving. Ariel was surprised and wanted to burst into tears because of the cruel thing her husband was doing.

"Are you ready to speak now?" He asked pausing from pouring the last pepper into the servant's most major wound.

"Never!" The servant managed to yell almost with his last breath.

The angered King was pissed by the servant's loyalty and committed to his ally inside of his hometown; Vallat. Would his ally be from Vallat?

Nobody knew who the ally was and was curious, including the king himself.

Now, he couldn't contain his anger, he glared at the man in danger and his heart beat fast because of his attempt. It happened so fast that the next moment, the alive heart of Scott was lying in his palm.

She gasped at her sight. She didn't want to believe what she saw but the more cruelty the king showed to the prisoner got her shaking. Her eyes dropped tears as her heart weakened at what she witness.

So this was the type of person the king was? He was cruel and her body felt weak, she felt sad and the image couldn't leave her head.

The moment she led her legs out wasn't aware to her, she just ran giving the king a view of her.