Witch's Daughter And The Devil's Son

After dismissing his men to do their respective tasks, Prince Theron cleared up the documents that needed his immediate attention. As soon as he was done, he left his study and brought two of his knights towards a certain area at the rear of the royal palace. Near the army barracks, a small squat building seemingly sculpted out of a rocky hill could be found.

The grey building itself held prison cells with narrow windows for those people held under suspicion of light offences or those who were currently under investigation but were highly likely innocent, while below the building, there were three floors built underground—the uppermost for the common criminals, the second level for the torture chamber and at the deepest level was the dungeons where the most heinous prisoners were kept.

The prison guards outside the entrance saluted upon seeing the Crown Prince.

"We greet His Highness the Crown Prince!"

Prince Theron gestured for them to rise. "The rebels?"

One of the guards responded, "They are currently in the torture chamber, Your Highness. Let me escort you there."

The guard led the Crown Prince to a certain iron door, knocked a certain pattern and opened it with a set of keys. As soon as the door was opened, the Crown Prince was greeted by a set of stairs leading underground, manned by another troop of prison guards.

As soon as Prince Theron stepped into the stairs, the iron door behind him was locked again, and another guard led him downstairs where he was met with another iron door as soon as he reached the end of the hallway. As the place where only criminals that threatened the royal family and the peace of the Kingdom of Megaris were held, it was to be expected that the security of this dungeon was strict.

The moment Prince Theron and his knights reached the second level underground, they could hear the mournful screams of several men echoing throughout the stone walls. There was no need for the Crown Prince to guess that those cries came from the rebels who were enjoying the royal treatment provided by the prison guards in charge of the torture chambers.

These criminals no doubt deserved death by execution for the crime of attempting to assassinate the Queen, but before they received the punishment they deserved, there was a need to pry their mouths open to make sure that not only the attackers, but the other criminals—be they the mastermind or accomplices—be captured as well.  Prince Theron was sure foul play was involved, as the route and schedule of the Queen's return to Blackhelm were confidential. It was impossible for these rebels to harm the Queen of Megaris without inside help.

'Is it the high nobles of the western territory trying to weaken the royal faction? Or maybe, the consorts of my father? Are they trying to get rid of the Queen so they could be promoted from being ordinary concubines?'

Other than that, Prince Theron had one more purpose: to get more information about that young lady called Esther, if they knew her and if she was sent to be part of a double-layered scheme just in case the river ambush fails.

There was no change in the young prince's cold expression as he approached the largest torture chamber on that floor that was currently empty. The Crown Prince sat in the chair kept in the centre of open space while the two knights escorting him went to talk towards the prison guards. They then brought the rebel leader inside the largest chamber and threw him on the floor in front of the Crown Prince. He looked down at the bloodied leader with a gaze that showed no sign of kindness or pity for him.

"You foul prince!" The leader of the rebels had his hands chained together, and his legs were broken. He could barely keep himself seated up as he glared at the brown-haired royal.  "If you think we are scared of you, then let me tell you that you are mistaken. This is not the end! Even if you kill me and my men now, more of us will come later and take revenge for us. We will make sure that you Ivanovs pay the price of destroying our kingdoms with your lives! Mark my words!"

Prince Theron didn't react to the man's curse words. It was as if he was not even bothered at all, as if what that rebel leader said was nothing but useless gibberish to him. After receiving a kick from one of the prison guards, causing the leader to finally shut up, Prince Theron finally opened his mouth to ask, "All I want to know is who is that young woman who acted to protect the Queen."

The rebel leader laughed and acted to spit in his direction. However, one of the Prince's knights slapped his mouth and the leader fell limply on the stone floor. He continued laughing like a crazy man.

"Why are you asking me? Are you curious? You are, aren't you?" the rebel leader taunted. "Even if I know, why would I tell you, the son of that mad king? Exactly because you are interested in knowing about her, I. Won't. Tell. You." The man laughed again, despite his mouth being filled with blood after losing a tooth from the knight's slap.

Seeing that the leader of the rebels was not afraid of offending him, the Crown Prince, it seemed like the moment they were caught—or perhaps the moment they hatched this plan—they had already thrown away their lives. These rebels were not afraid of dying.

Prince Theron looked straight into his eyes with a mocking gaze. "If you think I can't make you talk then… there are other mouths who will answer me, even if not willingly."

Even before Prince Theron could finish his sentence, his two knights dragged two more rebels who seemed even more gravely injured than the rebel leader. They look half-dead as if with one wrong push, they would be breathing their last.

"You have heard what the Crown Prince has asked your leader. I believe we don't have to repeat it to you again," said one of the royal knights.

Those two newcomers looked at their leader and said nothing about what the Crown Prince had asked.

The knight signalled one of the prison guards, who then brought a hot branding iron that had a long handle like a stick with a flat surface on one end, currently glowing red due to extensive heating. Without waiting for anyone to say more, another set of prison guards came forward and held one of the rebels.  The prison guard holding the iron branding stick placed the flat end of the stick on the rebel's torso, exactly on the part where a deep wound could be seen bleeding open.

"Ahhhhh!"

The roasted smell of skin burning filled the torture chamber, and everyone fell silent as they listened to the rebel screaming as loud as he could.

The guards let him go and the rebel fell on the stone floor with a powerless sob. His entire body could be seen convulsing, and he was foaming in the mouth. The guard with the iron branding stick went to a nearby coal furnace and heated the flat end of the iron branding stick. As soon as the flat end started glowing red, he walked towards the second rebel who was utterly terrified after he saw what happened to his comrade.

Before the guard could reach that terrified rebel, he started yelling,  "If it's just about the girl, I will tell! I will tell you! I won't ask that you let me live. Just kill me swiftly after! As long as you promise to not torture me and grant me a swift death, I will tell you about the girl!"

The rebel leader felt angry, but he could only gasp through his bloody mouth. "You…how can you give up? Are you really begging the dogs of the Ivanovs? These men destroyed our kingdom! They are the dogs of those who killed our families! And yet you are begging them?!?"

That rebel felt guilty in front of his leader and lowered his head, but he was not willing to go through more pain for someone who he didn't even know.

The knight looked at the guards and they took the leader away who was discouraging the rebel who was willing to confess. The knight then looked at that rebel and said, "I promise you I will give you a swift death if you tell us the identity of that woman. But if I find out that you are lying…" The gaze of the knight was threatening as he took a step towards the rebel.

"No…I will tell," the rebel said immediately. "I will tell you what I know. Please keep your promise!"

The guards no longer approached the sobbing rebel. The rebel then looked at the Crown Prince. "We…we don't know her…I promise! She has nothing to do with us! She appeared out of the blue and started fighting with us. If not for her, we might have succeeded—"

"I want the truth," the Crown Prince said coldly, not believing the rebel's words.

"I-I am telling the truth, P-Prince Theron!" the rebel cried out, seeing that the Crown Prince didn't believe him. "She's really not someone with us! I wouldn't be lying now since I want to just die. I don't know who or what she is, but…but she definitely possesses some wicked tricks."

This pricked Prince Theron's interest, and he asked, "What tricks?"