The Tyrant's Pet

Carlos led his soldiers to raid a particular establishment in the eighth district. As soon as he kicked the entrance open with a bang, everyone inside halted as they gaze at the door at the same time.

"Someone had tipped us regarding these illegal operations…" Carlos stated the reason for their arrival with a voice coming from his chest. "… this place is now seized under the imperial law… failure to comply will face grave punishments…"

As the eighth prince spoke, some who were far away from the entrance immediately scurried away to save themselves from getting arrested. Not just a few of them, but even before Carlos could finish speaking about the reason for this raid, chaos already ensued. Some gamblers couldn't move a muscle upon being caught in the act, others blatantly screamed and ran away to save themselves from being seized.

Having expected this sort of reaction, Carlos glanced over his shoulders.

"Don't let anyone get away. Those who don't comply, you know what to do," he ordered.

"Yes, Your Highness!"

With that being said, knights under the command of the eighth prince marched past him, causing even more chaos inside the establishments. Knights subdued those who were trying to fight and flee the place. Some, however, immediately complied, afraid they would meet a fate harsher than death.

As the chaos continued, desperate screams and pleading, and angry yells echoed across the entire establishment. The place soon turned upside down. Carlos stayed still on the spot, watching everything unfold right before his eyes. Right now, Ismael was meeting with the chief of the supreme court. He needed to have this place under his control, knowing there were more bits and pieces of evidence they could collect.

And he was correct.

Just minutes after the raid occurred, a knight came running up to him. Carlos looked at him as the knight made his report, causing his eyes to glint as he nod.

"Lead the way," said the eighth prince to the knight, following the latter as he led him to the underground basement.

In the underground basement, large crates were found. Carlos passed by a few knights who immediately found the goods. Standing in front of the stacked-up crates, he jerked his chin up, hinting to the knight to open them to see the content.

The knight bowed and, as instructed, he opened the crate that was on top of the rest, revealing what seemed to be an illegal substance. Carlos, who was also the chief of defense, knew this drug very well. He had a taste of it in the past, and if not for Ismael, he would've been addicted to it as well.

Fortunately, Ismael wasn't the type to condemn such actions. The reason the third prince didn't say anything about Carlos' addiction to women since that was the eighth prince's way to stay clean from the use of drugs.

"Seize everything. They'll be used as evidence once the trial is approved." He gazed at the knights, dusting off his hands to remove the residues upon touching to confirm the drugs kept inside the crate.

"Yes, Your Highness."

The eighth prince nodded in satisfaction as the knights bowed, walking away from the basement as there was more place to search. The drug trade and the illegal operation of the casino were just the tips of the iceberg. There were far more evil deeds Joaquin was involved in, and that included prostitution, human trafficking, and the list goes on.

They had to gain even more solid evidence to incite public anger and pin Joaquin to the point he wouldn't recover. This was just the beginning. Carlos's eyes glinted as he walked through the hallway, heading towards the offices in this establishment.

However, the second he arrived back in the lobby as it was the only way to check the second floor, he stopped at the sudden appearance of another force. Just like how he kicked the door open and stood by it while announcing the raid, the chief knight of the crown prince also did the same.

The chief knight, who was also the crown prince's sword, and his brother, the seventh prince Roman Imperial, in his full armor, just like the knights with him, stood on the exact spot he stood and spewed the exact same words the eighth prince did. The only difference was their ending remarks.

"Therefore, by the order of the crown prince, we will seize this place and arrest the man in charge of the illegal operations." Carlos's eyes dilated as soon as the chief knight gazed in his direction. "Your Highness, the eighth prince, you are under arrest for felony…"

<strong>'No.' </strong>Carlos looked at the man's eyes behind his metal helm and he knew Roman, the seventh prince was sneering while he read the long list of crimes tied in Carlos' name. <strong>'Ismael… brother, we're fucked.'</strong>

It was a setup.

"Since you are part of the royal family, you will face a proper and fair trial. So, please cooperate." Roman raised his hand and waved it forward, the knight's cue to march past their captain to seize the eighth prince.

"No!" Carlos, in defense, drew his sword before the knight could reach him. "Roman!! What the hell are you doing?!"

His voice shook, his face flashed in red, smoldering in anger at this mockery. Every single one in this establishment knew the truth and yet, Roman didn't even falter while speaking about all the crimes that were supposed to be read to the crown prince.

The knights, who paused after drawing their swords, looked back at Roman, waiting for his green signal. But Roman kept his focus on Carlos, removing his helm to reveal a face of a scarred man, with his long dark auburn hair which was leaning more to the color of the earth.

He waved his hand. "Put your swords down," he ordered, and the knights automatically took a step back while putting their swords back into their sheath.

"The eighth prince, although being charged with numerous felonies, is still a part of the royal family, and is also a master swordsman. Continue the raid and drag everyone out of the establishment." Roman held the handle of his sword and, with a piercing sound of metal being drawn, he added. "I will handle him."

"You…!" Carlos seethed as his entire body trembled in anger. "Alright. If that is what you want. It seems you had forgotten where that scar on your face came from."

Roman remained unfazed, but the tone of his voice dropped to negative zero. "I will never forget who did this to my face. Never."