[Rock Castle]

A man hung upside down in the underground chamber of Duke Kelvin’s castle. Cuts riddled his muscular body, with bruises all over. Half his face was swollen, and a fresh burn mark ran across his chest.

“Not going to talk, huh?” snarled the tormentor. He slapped the whip on the man’s face, and a crisp sound reverberated through the chamber. The torches on the walls flickered for a moment, casting dancing shadows in the room.

The tormentor continued whipping the man, asking questions in between strikes. Still, the captive refused to speak.

Duke Kelvin sat silently nearby as the interrogation continued. Minutes passed. He finally spoke. “Enough. Take them out.”

The tormentor bowed. “As you wish.” To his subordinates he said, “You heard the duke! Take them out!”

Several men entered the chamber, carrying two unconscious women with them. They placed the bodies in front of the man. The tied captive seemed shocked to see them; his eyes almost popped out of their sockets. His face turned pallid, then quickly red with rage.

“You! Touch them and I’ll kill you! I’ll fucking kill you!” For the first time, the man finally spoke. Hearing this, the tormentor and Duke Kelvin grinned.

“Do it,” said the duke.

The tormentor grabbed his axe and struck the wrist of the younger of the two women. A loud thud echoed as the blade hit the ground, quickly followed by a scream of pure agony. She instantly woke and rolled around in pain.

The blood from her severed arm flowed profusely, blanketing the ground. The other woman remained unconscious.

“Bastard! What did you do to my daughter! I’ll kill you! I’ll fucking kill you!” He tried unshackling himself, but failed.

“I’m not going to repeat this,” said Duke Kelvin. “For every minute that you refuse to speak, we’ll cut off a limb from these two. Once we’re done with them, we’ll feed the pieces to the hounds outside. I’m getting tired of waiting for you to open your damn mouth. This is your last chance.”

The man’s face twitched. He looked at the woman sobbing on the floor, then at the duke. “Promise me…”

The duke raised an eyebrow.

“Promise me you’ll set them free after I tell you everything,” said the captive.

“Of course.” Duke Kelvin smiled. He said to the tormentor, “Stand back.”

The tormentor lowered the axe on the ground and stepped aside.

“So, tell me. Why did you infiltrate this city?” The torches cast a shadow upon the duke’s stubby body. “There’s no point in denying it. We know that you’re all soldiers from the Marcus Duchy.”

The man hesitated for a moment. He swallowed. “This city wasn’t our original goal. Our group’s true destination is Blackstone Town. A town located in the far east, several days away from Lion City.”

“Blackstone Town?” repeated the duke. It was not even listed on the map. He had never heard of it.

The man, still tied upside down, nodded. “Yes. We’re headed there after receiving orders from the Silver War God.”

“So, you’re telling me that you just happened to be passing through this city on your way?” said the duke.

His men had captured about fifty soldiers a week ago. After some interrogation, they learned the soldiers were all from the Marcus Duchy, under the direct command of Lui Marcus— the Silver War God that had defeated the empire.

Just like this man, the other soldiers refused to speak despite the torture they were put through. Most of them died without uttering a single word despite the atrocious injuries and pain they were subjected to. Still, some finally spoke in the end. And this man was one of them.

Luckily, this was the city the man had grown up in. Using his family as leverage, they were able to coerce him to spill the beans.

This man’s story corroborated the story of the other soldiers.

“Yes.” The captive coughed out blood. “We’re tasked to protect the young master. The second son of Duke Drakus.”

This was the third time he’d heard this story, but Duke Kelvin still found it amusing. He knew very well of how the second son of the Marcus family had been thrown away by his own father. He could not see why Lui Marcus bothered sending soldiers to protect that brat. It seemed like a waste of resources.

The criteria for choosing the successor to the throne is clear enough. I don’t see why the Marcus family bothers to protect that brat. Out of all the candidates, he has the least chance of winning the competition. Even Duke Youchester knows that.

Duke Kelvin was not sure if it was a stroke of luck, but he had managed to annihilate the soldiers that were supposed to protect Lark Marcus. It had been foolish for them to pass through his city on their way to Blackstone Town.

A shadowy figure appeared next to the duke.

“My lord, the information merchant has submitted his report.”

The duke nodded. “Give it to me.”

He was handed a thick stack of parchment. After skimming through it, he licked his lips and grinned. “Good work. With this, we no longer have to force these soldiers to talk. Gather your men. I have a task for everyone.”

“As you wish.” The figure bowed, then disappeared.

“I’ll be returning to my room,” said the duke as he exited. “Burn the bodies. Make sure there are no traces.”

Hearing that, the captive shouted desperately, “Wait! You promised to free my wife and daughter! You promised!”

The duke chuckled. “Did I?” He looked at the tormentor. “Did I make a promise like that?”

The tormentor, still wearing a leather mask, shook his head. “No, my lord.”

Rage filled the eyes of the captive. He spat out, “You fucking pig! You promised! You fucking promised that—”

A fist struck his face and he shut up. The tormentor laughed. “You’re the toughest of the soldiers we captured this week. As expected of a captain.” He grabbed the man’s hair and yanked it, removing several strands. The man groaned in pain. He could hardly open his eyes from all the blood and bruising.

The duke took one last look at the captain of the captured soldiers. “I’m no demon. So, I’ll give you a parting gift.” He directed the tormentor, “Kill the wife and the daughter in front of him. Make sure he sees everything.”

The duke chuckled. “It’s nice, isn’t it? To see the end of your most precious family.” Amidst the shouts and curses, Duke Kelvin left the underground chamber.

***

Inside his room, Duke Kelvin read through the documents. He had to admit that he hadn’t expected the merchant to gather this much information in just a few weeks. With all this intelligence, he would be even closer to winning the throne.

“As expected, Lui Marcus will be the toughest one,” he mumbled. “Rumors say he’s as strong as five knights combined.” He slammed the documents onto the table. “Black Midas.”

Around a dozen shadows appeared inside the room. They knelt in unison. “Yes, lord.”

“What do you think? Can you take down the Silver War God?”

The leader of Black Midas replied, “It should be possible, my lord, but—”

“But what?”

The leader paused. “We’d probably lose half of our men in the process. The Silver War God is capable of both martial arts and magic. He’s literally a knight and a sage at the same time. It’ll be impossible to assassinate him without great casualties.”

“Half your men?” The duke smirked. “So, what? Would that be an issue?”

The leader of Black Midas lowered his head. “Of course not. We live for the sake of the duke. Our lives are yours to decide.”

Duke Kelvin was satisfied with the answer. He had raised over a hundred assassins since they were young just for moments like this. If the Marcus family boasted of their overwhelming military might, then the strength of his house were the shadows lurking in the background, waiting for a moment of carelessness to kill their prey.

“My lord, if you would allow this servant to speak,” said the leader of Black Midas. The duke gestured for him to continue. “I think we should use this opportunity to send some assassins to that small town. Where the second son of Duke Drakus lives.”

Duke Kelvin frowned. “Are you stupid? That brat has no chance of winning the competition. There’s no point in killing him.”

“But, my lord, we received a report,” said the leader. “That might not be entirely true.”

The leader of Black Midas usually accepted his task without protest. This was one of the few times that the leader of the assassin group tried giving his own suggestions. Duke Kelvin decided to at least hear him out.

“Speak.”

“We’ve gathered information that Lui Marcus prevented his younger brother from being exiled completely. That’s why he was sent to that faraway town instead of being exiled to a neighboring country.”

Duke Kelvin’s eyes widened. He understood the implications if this information was true. Most of the nobles thought that Duke Drakus and Lui Marcus had disowned the second son of their family. Duke Kelvin did not even bother targeting the pathetic kid that had been exiled. But what if the Silver War God was actually a caring brother?

The total opposite of what the House of Marcus was trying to convey?

If this information was true, then they would be able to obtain a crucial weapon against the kingdom’s hero.

“Duke Drakus tried his best to suppress rumors from spreading, but two years ago, Lui Marcus knelt to plead forgiveness for his brother’s misdeeds.”

“Have you confirmed this?” The duke could not imagine that formidable warrior kneeling in front of anyone.

“Yes. This came from the mouth of one of the servants himself, moments before his death. We are sure of it.”

Silence covered the room. Duke Kelvin stared out the window, his face twitching in glee. A maniacal chuckle escaped his lips. “Change of plan. We shall include that brat in our list of targets.”

Duke Kelvin grabbed the pile of parchment on the desk and flipped through it. “Kalavinka Deposo, Reid Deposo, Yunan Deposo, and Lark Marcus. I want these four dead this year.”

“As you wish,” the leader said. “And what about the Silver War God?”

“Lui Marcus?” said the duke. “Forget it. He’s too dangerous to target right now. After we take care of his brother, he’ll come out on his own. An enraged beast is easier to ensnare.”

After killing those four, Duke Kelvin would set his eyes on the Silver War God. Once these men had been killed, there would be no one to stop the ascent of his son to the throne.

Duke Kelvin looked forward to that day, four years from now. The day their house ruled over the entire kingdom.