The Blood King's Bride
Chapter Forty One

The Kingdom of Pres.

The King's castle...

The King's sat on his throne seat, leaning his head on his arm as he overlooked the throne room. His ministers were all there, studying the brooding strangers whose presence were overpowering. Since they came and stayed in the castle-after hearing that their leader was related to his wife-all the attacks on his kingdom had stopped. They had taken residence in his palace used it to their liking. Not that he was annoyed about it; after all, there were powerful people in his castle. His enemies would think twice before attacking him. But something about them gave him a nagging feeling, like a piece of the puzzle he was trying to fit in. But whenever he was about to fix it, it flew away, leaving his memory. In recent nights, he kept on dreaming about a woman. Her face was a blur, but something about her was so familiar, and he swore that his heart squeezed in pain whenever he thought of her. That didn't stop him, though, from looking forward to going to sleep just so he could dream about her. Her presence was calming, and he felt his mind was clearer than it had ever been when he was next to her. Still, whenever he dreamt about her, he felt that he had forgotten something important. The woman reminded him of someone, someone he was very familiar with. He wanted to ask his wife, but he quenched that thought after the dream he had the previous night. He didn't want his wife to think he had been unfaithful to her- and not because he had started becoming very suspicious of his wife. He didn't even know why. Just the presence of those men made him realize that there was something he was missing, that something was wrong in his marriage, but whatever it was, he was finding it hard to click it into place.

"My Lord, My Lord!" A guard ran into the palace. The ministers and the strange men all turned to face the guard. He was panting heavily, his sights set on the strange men instead of the King he had called out for. Immediately the King recognized who he was. His wife's brother had come to meet him the other day and offered him a proposal he felt he would find hard not to accept. He told him that he could help his kingdom become the greatest, even more significant than the blood kingdom. He showcased his magical power, using it as a means to prove his point. It was a scary experience the King couldn't deny. He could kill people where they stood just by moving his fingers. He could control every muscle, every breath a person took. He could make them fly and drop them to the ground. Immediately the King did not doubt his power and agreed immediately to help him. So as his first step towards achieving victory, the warrior had asked him to send a guard to spy on the Kingdom of Neba, the kingdom that would be the first to fall under his reign. To see the guard he sent coming back with fear etched all over his features showed that something terrible had happened, something that was not in his favor. "Speak. What has happened?" The King commanded. The guard faced everyone in the throne room before finally settling on the King.

"M-My lord, the men sent to take over the kingdom, they h-have been killed."

"What?" The King exclaimed. His ministers mumbled, their voices expressing one of concern and confusion. He immediately realized why. He had never taken any action without the advice of his ministers, and yet, he made a huge decision without ever consulting them. Something felt weird to him. He felt he wasn't himself for some reason, and that feeling of something missing came upon him again. His ministers all turned to face him, waiting for him to elaborate, but he set his sights on his wife's brother, as it was the warrior who had made the decision in the first place.

His face was a brooding mass of anger, and his voice sent chills to the spine of everyone as he spoke to the guard so calmly.

"Tell me what exactly happened."

"I-It's like they were warned. They were already prepared and had been for days, just

before the attack. They were able to decipher their weakness, able to find out what exactly stopped their power. The King's son delivered the final blow. He was able to kill one of them when the other put him down and dealt severely with him. But the other man.... t-the other m- man..."

"Speak up soldier!" The King shouted, not able to maintain his silence any longer. "What happened to the other man?"

The soldier gulped, then turned to face the warrior, fear etched as he recalled what had

happened. "He took what I think was a b-blood o-oath."

"What?" The King exclaimed again, this time shock over what he had just heard

overshadowing any other thoughts. His ministers had started to mumble again, this time louder

as he was sure they were as shocked as he was over what he had just heard.

A blood oath was a sacred ritual, the only piece of magic that had been in existence since the disappearance of all forms of magic. But the leaders of all the kingdoms had destroyed that magic as it did more harm than good. It gathered power from the soul and fed on it till the soul had vanquished. If a person cannot accomplish whatever he wishes before his soul runs out, he will die, but not before becoming a crazed person. Even if one can complete his task after swearing a blood oath, he would turn crazed, destroying anything and anyone in his vicinity before finally slumping to death due to losing his soul. For a man to be pushed into carrying out that action, he must have been desperate. Just who was the King of Neba? To be able to destroy warriors even he couldn't?

"What happened to him?" The warrior continued calmly, not a shred of emotion showing on his face.

"He was killed by another." The guard replied. The warrior remained silent, keeping his gaze on the guard who cowered in his front. The King could feel the pressure emanating from him, and even he couldn't wait to see next what action the warrior would take.

"You may leave." The warrior commanded. The guard looked up to the King as if seeking his permission, and when he nodded, he did just as he was told. Finally, the warrior

turned to look at the King.

"My Lord," he started. "Please allow me to tell our guests why they were all called here today." The King raised his hand, permitting him to go ahead. The man walked towards the King and stood at the first step to the throne, giving him a slightly higher view of the people in the whole room while making it easier for them to look at his face.

"Ministers of Pres, I greet you. I have been told by your King, who expresses the greatest pride in yourselves, that you are the wisest people in the whole kingdom. He also admitted that he doesn't make decisions without seeking your advice first. So I have come to you to introduce myself and offer you a proposal just as I have offered your King, who had expressed his interest in the idea." The mumbling began again, but it was a mix of curiosity and appeasement this time. "I have scoured through all the kingdoms, looking for who would work better with me to achieve a goal so much higher than everyone has ever dreamed off. I came to your kingdom, and I immediately knew at once, that it would be the perfect one for me. Here is my proposal. I would make your kingdom the most powerful of all four kingdoms- yes, the blood kingdom included."

The muttering became louder, all the ministers turning to look at themselves as they determined if what the man was saying was true. Finally, one came out and spoke. "How would you do that?" He asked, curiosity and suspicion dripping from his tone. The warrior did not shed a simple emotion and instead turned to look at the King. "My Lord, may I request a servant for a little demonstration?"

"You may, but do not hurt anyone."

"Understood." He turned to face the line of servants who stood behind the throne hidden from the throne room. Their primary purpose was to aid the King whenever he needed their help. "You," he called out, pointing to a woman. She had brown hair and wasn't young. The King surmised that she was a mother, as she had the whole aura surrounding her. Her face was roundish and her body petite, though hidden in the huge garb they wore as servant uniforms. She paled once she understood she had been summoned. The King couldn't blame her. Even he would be scared if he didn't know what was about to occur, with him as the center of the spectacle. The woman walked towards the warrior, trembling, her head faced down. "Stand in the middle of the hall." The warrior commanded once she reached him. She did exactly that, waiting for him to carry out his action.

"Everyone, this is just a small sample of what I can do. I can do much more, but I hope this would be enough to satisfy your curiosity." He raised his hands towards the woman, and after a short pause, he continued to raise his hands higher. The scream elicited by the maid forced those whose attention was on the warrior towards her. She was elevated, her whole body dangling from the air. They turned to look back at the warrior as he moved his raised hand to the right, and the woman followed his movement. He repeated the action, controlling the woman

through the air as if she was nothing but a feather. The King watched as his ministers were awed, though some of their expressions were tinged with fear. The warrior slowly brought the woman down, placing her gently on the ground. She was a hysteric mess, her body racking through tremors as she sorted to gain her balance. The King called for two other maids to escort her out of the throne room when it proved futile. They walked briskly over to the woman and carried her out just as quickly.

The hall was enveloped in thick silence, silence so thick it could be cut with a knife. The

King looked at his ministers, wondering about their next course of action.

"I had heard rumours of extraordinary men residing in the King's Palace. I didn't believe

it at first, thinking it was just a normal rumour used to extract money from stupid and expectant gossip mongers. But now...." He stopped, his voice filled with awe and fear.

"Just what else can you do?" Another called out.

"I can control someone at a much farther distance. All I just need to do is set my sights on him. I can control his limbs, his torso, even his blood. Imagine this scenario. If your kingdom goes against the blood kingdom, no matter how far apart we are, you have won the war just by me setting my sights on their King. I can kill him where he stands before even the war begins. Then you all will be the ministers of the mighty kingdom of Pres. You would be given power over every area of the four kingdoms, your might and power known all over the lands. People would hear your name and cower before you. Tell me, doesn't this interest you?" The ministers faced themselves and spoke in low murmurs, contemplating what they had just heard. Even the King couldn't deny the allure of being made to rule over the four kingdoms was very enticing, but like every good politician, he knew that there was a catch. "Why do you want to help us?" Someone suddenly called out as if reading the King's mind. "What do you gain by working with us?"

"Just exactly what you all are going to gain, power. All I ask is to be able to rule beside

the King, though he would remain in power over me. He would be the leader, creating the law

and order. I would be the one enforcing his law, carrying out the King's wrath on those who defy

it."

The murmuring continued before they finally faced him at once, having concluded. "Who are you?" One asked just as another questioned,

"What do you need?"

At that, the warrior smiled, an expression the King hadn't seen on the powerful warrior ever since he met him. The King focused raptly on the warrior because even he was curious about his name. Despite having stayed in the castle for a long while, his wife had never told him

his name except that he was her brother. He looked at the warrior intensely, waiting for his reply.

"I am Slovic," The warrior finally answered. "... and I need blood." He stated.

"Lots and lots of blood."