A Cruel Crown 18+

Down in the darkened heart of Tartarus, behind a door lined with red lacquer and shadow-etched silver, Alden Cael moved like a storm in flesh.

The room was heavy with pinkish smoke, a haze of enchanted mist that dulled senses and heightened lust. It clung to the skin, curled in the corners, and made every moan echo as if the walls themselves pulsed.

A young maid—naked, moaning, dazed—was bent over the edge of a velvet chaise. Her wrists were bound by silk, her face flushed with sweat and magic. Her eyes were glassy from the smoke, but her body trembled with desire, her back arched in surrender.

Behind her, Alden grunted as he slammed into her pussy, fucking her with cruel, deliberate force. Each thrust was sharp, relentless, making her cry out, her voice a mix of pleasure and breathless haze.

His hands dug into her hips, fingers leaving bruises. Every time she moved or flinched, he growled. "Stay still."

The slap of skin against skin filled the chamber, punctuated by the maid's gasps and Alden's low snarls.

He was beautiful in a twisted way—sharp-jawed, broad-shouldered, eyes gleaming with something rotten beneath the gold. He didn't fuck for intimacy. He fucked to dominate. To own.

With a final, vicious thrust, Alden buried himself deep, groaning as he came inside her, fingers bruising her thighs as his cock twitched, unloading every drop of hot seed into her soaked cunt.

The maid moaned softly, body limp.

Alden shoved her forward, letting her collapse to the floor like used cloth.

He stood over her, chest heaving, fury simmering beneath his skin. Not at her. Never at her.

At everything else.

He turned away, reaching for a silk cloth to wipe himself, the pink mist beginning to fade as the magic lost its heat.

Then—

Knock. Knock.

A voice, muffled but shaking, came through the door.

"L-Lord Alden..."

He didn't respond.

"The Matriarch... Lady Adriana... requests your presence. Immediately."

Alden's jaw flexed.

"Of course she does," he muttered, stepping into his trousers, not bothering to button his shirt. He looked down at the maid's limp, trembling form.

"Clean her up. Then forget she exists."

He opened the door with a snap of his fingers, golden eyes burning.

"Let's see what Mother wants now."

---

The grand hall of the Cael estate was colder than usual, lit only by the pale, sickly glow of spellfire torches. Alden's boots echoed as he walked, the remnants of sex still clinging to his skin, his scent thick with sweat, sex, and power.

The doors to Adriana's private study creaked open without him touching them.

She sat there, poised, carved from marble and venom. Lady Adriana Cael, Matriarch, wore a dress blacker than void, her hair twisted into a crown of thorns and pearls. Her eyes locked onto her son with unfiltered disgust.

"You smell like a brothel floor," she said without greeting.

Alden smirked, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "Felt like one, too."

Her fingers twitched.

"You failed."

The amusement on his face faltered.

"You were given one task. Track them. Capture them. And yet here you stand, cock still wet and hands empty. One of your own Bladelings is dead."

Alden stiffened.

"They were stronger than expected. The ice Bitch is adapting.

"Silence."

Adriana stood, each movement sharp, lethal. Her presence filled the room like poison gas.

"I gave you command. I gave you soldiers. And what do you bring back to me? Loss. Weakness. Embarrassment."

Alden's jaw clenched. "I'll find them. I'll kill whoever stands in our way."

"You'll do nothing until you cleanse the filth from your body and the stupidity from your pride."

She stepped closer, her voice a blade.

"I will not tolerate another mistake. The next time you fail me, Alden, I will carve your legacy from history with my own hands. Do you understand me?"

He nodded stiffly.

Adriana leaned in, close enough for him to feel the chill of her breath.

"Now get out. And do not crawl back here reeking of whores and failure again."

Alden turned without another word.

But his eyes burned with something new.

With rage..