Graven found the nervous-looking Sally in the living room. "Where is my wife!?" he asked.

"My Lord, your brother, Lord Luke arrived yesterday. I thought Lady Laura and him were just talking to each other inside the room but the two of them disappeared from the house including the carriage without informing me where they're going," Sally replied with fear in her eyes, hands trembling in fright. ​​

Graven groaned and shut his eyes for a few seconds.

Damn!

His brother took his wife away!

He left the living room and climbs the stairs going back to his room.

Inside the room, he was wracking his brain thinking of a place where his brother will hide his wife.

His brother traveled a lot all over the country, he has some properties in other areas that he was not aware of.

Where to find them?

He just hopes that his brother didn't hurt his beloved wife or else...

He gritted his teeth in anger. He recalled that his brother already severed their sibling ties and give up on Laura. Did he mean that or he just told him that just to deceive him so that he will lower his guard down?

Shiit!

His brother has been planning on abducting Laura all along!

He was just pretending that he no longer cares about Laura! But it was just a trap to trick him!

Now his problem is adding up!

He will find them no matter where they're hiding and he will take his wife back!

But he has to prioritize his safety and that of his men first, Luke will never hurt Laura to death, that is one thing he was sure of despite his anger and jealousy.

He needs to visit the healer now!

The matter about the black liquid needs to be given utmost importance because it can kill him and his men and make them at the beck and call of the cursed King.

He initiated the teleportation process in his mind going to the healer's place in the deep of the forest.

He arrived at the area hovering in the air a few seconds later.

The healer was sitting on the wooden chair facing the bonfire in the middle of the night.

Sounds of crickets and insects can be heard across the forest.

The healer is from the secretive and mysterious Eternal Healer Clan seek by many in the worlds of non-human beings due to his expertise in concocting effective medicine against all types of illness and maladies that no human medicine can ever cure. He goes by the name Terros. He resides alone in the middle of the forest - away from the crowds.

Graven landed on the ground quietly. "Good evening, Terros!" he announced his presence by greeting the old man.

The healer looked at him briefly. "Son, what brings you here in the middle of the night?" he asked and shifted his attention back on the fire.

"I have a big problem!" Graven said.

"What kind of problem, related to an illness or disease?" Terros asked.

"We stumbled on this cursed King beneath the ground of an abandoned crumbling castle. He was imprisoned there for 1000 years by his arch-enemy, this King captured me and my men and submerged us in this sticky black liquid, I don't know how long we're submerged in that black pool..."

Terros eyes widened. "Continue..."

"But the next time we opened our eyes we're already back in the surface but there's no trace of black sticky liquid on our clothes and our bodies," Graven explained.

Terros stroke his long beard. "You are under his spell? How come he got hold of you and your men? Did your powers fail you?"

Graven sighed. "When I was trying to connect and find the origin of the powerful vampire scent, I was frozen and put in a trance which I'm powerless to break, and then suddenly the ground where I stood opened up and swallowed me. The next time I opened my eyes... I and my men's hands were already bound by chains to the walls and we're submerged in the black odorless liquid from our neck down to our toes..."

"And what the cursed King wants from you and your men?" Terros asked.

"He wants us to capture a woman who's been his soulmate, and that particular woman has been reincarnated a dozen times and got intimate with other men in her different lives, it so happens that woman is my current wife now and he wants her back because my wife's blood is the only thing that can cure his curse and free him from his imprisonment in the ground below the castle..."

"Interesting... go on... tell me everything!" Terros got fascinated by the cursed King's tale. He cleared his throat. "Once upon a time, there were rumors that never dies about a powerful and evil vampire king who can bring the world to its knees... well...that was just a legend long time ago... it looks like you and your men stumbled an old legend that took place 1000 years ago!"

Graven got curious. "Tell me more...maybe the vampire King in the legend is the one I and my men accidentally discovered below the ground of the crumbling castle!"

Terros nods his head. "Looks like he is the one, but we're not sure yet," he said and looked heavenward, staring at the bright northern lights shimmering in the horizon. "So... he is powerless and can't leave the place where he was currently imprisoned?"

"Yeah, that's right! The black liquid was the one that sustains his life. The black liquid can only stay in the area where the crumbling castle was located. If the cursed King leaves the castle he will die because he can't bring his life force with him. In short, the black liquid who give life to the cursed King can only remain abundantly in the premises of the castle, it can't be taken out," Graven explained.

Terros stroked his beard again. "Interesting! There must be a powerful enchantment cast upon the whole area preventing the cursed King from leaving the place in the form of the black liquid. And the only one who can break the curse is the woman? What's his name in this lifetime?"

"Laura... that is my wife's name," Graven replied.

A faint smile appeared on Terros's lips. "Hmm... Laura is such a beautiful name... If possible can I see her?" he muses. "This woman must not end up in the cursed King's hands because the moment he will escape from his confinement the whole human world is in danger, he will unleash death and chaos to the human world!" he declared.

Graven's face turned sad. "Regarding your request of seeing my wife, I'm sorry, she's not on my side right now. She was abducted by my twin brother who also falls in love with her, so our situation is kind of tricky right now. I still need to find where my brother hides my wife," Graven said in a distraught voice.

Terros looked at the suffering man in front of him. "Oh, so I guess the King's soulmate is quite a beauty that can attract men easily-?"

Graven nods his head. "Yeah... she is a beautiful magnet that is hard to resist..." he replied and smiled a little, his eyes soften.

Terros grinned. "Surprisingly, the cursed King doesn't kill you yet for marrying his soulmate-?" he asked.

"He knows everything... he saw that I married his soulmate but he didn't kill me yet. He wants me to hand my wife to him - which I will never do over my dead body!" he said fiercely.

Terros nodded his head. "Of course, I understand your side. I will never hand my beloved wife to anyone especially that cursed King!" he said sympathizing with the man's dilemma. "But let's get back to the topic. Your wife was kidnaped by your twin brother who is also bewitched by her beauty. You and your men are poisoned by the black liquid, am I right?"

Graven nodded his head. "Correct! The cursed King submerged us in the black liquid for a few minutes entering our body through our nose mouth and ears and we lose consciousness after that..."

"What happened next?" Terros asked.

"He warned us that if we didn't return once a month to the castle to report to him about his task of bringing Laura to him, the black liquid inside our body will start poisoning our internal organs and we will die a painful death. He told us that if we can bring Laura to his side he will reward us greatly and make us his trusted men that will help him dominate the whole world."

"I see... to make sure that you will come back to the castle and do his bidding he put you all under his power! Such a wise King! He finally had a puppet outside his prison room!" Terros observed.

Graven's eyes darkened. "My men and I will never become his subject!" he denied.

"Let see after one month, we will know if the King is joking or telling the truth," Terros said. "But I think, you and your men are under his power now!" he declared.

"That is the reason why I'm here to seek a cure before the King's words will come true. I want to counter it before it happens. I want to get rid of the black liquid from our bodies! Can you find a cure for us, old man?" Graven asked.

Terros looked heavenward. "I don't back out from any challenges that come my way. The composition of the black liquid intrigued me tremendously. I want you to go back to the castle and bring me a sample of the black liquid. If you can bring me two bottles that would be awesome. That is enough for my experiment. I have to study the black liquid first before I can create any cure. But I'm not promising you anything, I can only try my best..."

"Sure. I'll go back to the castle and get some sample," Graven replied.

"And one more thing... make sure that your wife won't be near anywhere the castle! Or else the cursed King will break free from his confinement and the precious peace valued by humans will be disrupted," Terros reminded him.

Graven agreed to the healer's judgment. "That is also my opinion. The Cursed King is a grave threat to the human world," he spoke. "I'm going to leave now and I'll come back after I secure a sample of the black liquid..."

"Okay, you may go now!" Terros said while adding more dry twigs to the bonfire.

Graven activated the teleportation process in his mind and disappeared from the area.

Terros looked behind him, there is only darkness. "Did you hear everything?" he asked no one in particular.

"Yes... we are facing such interesting times!" a female voice that originated from the darkness responded.

"Indeed!" Terros murmured and picked up the stick and began poking the twigs that were burning brightly in the bonfire.