’What the fuck?’
Florian didn’t know whether to be horrified or relieved as he stepped closer to the bound figure kneeling at the center of the dungeon.
His stomach twisted, not with fear—but with dread. Cold, creeping dread.
This wasn’t someone he trusted. In fact, Florian would’ve never guessed her. Never.And that in itself was terrifying.
Because someone else in this room did trust her. Not just trust. Respected.
Florian’s gaze slid slowly toward Heinz.
The king, so rarely shaken, was trembling. His crimson eyes—usually so composed, sharp, and unreadable—were wide and unfocused, as if struggling to process what lay before him. His hands, clenched so tightly that his knuckles paled, trembled at his sides.
The moment Heinz took a step forward, the entire dungeon began to rumble.
Small cracks slithered across the stone beneath their feet like veins of fury, webbing outward from his boots.
"This is the reason we had to honor her request," Lucius said firmly, not even blinking as dust rained down from above. The ceiling creaked ominously with the sheer pressure of Heinz’s rising power.
He said it like it was a simple truth. Cold.
And Florian—gods help him—was grateful.
Because if they hadn’t listened to her request, if they hadn’t waited, if this had come out at the wrong moment... there was no telling what would’ve been destroyed.
Florian’s eyes darted back to the ground, now splintering beneath Heinz’s boots. Every step was like thunder. Controlled devastation.
"Why?" Heinz’s voice was low, strained. Each syllable reverberated across the stone walls. "Why would you do this...?"
Another crack shot forward across the dungeon floor like lightning.
"Delilah?" he said her name, almost like he didn’t believe it.
Delilah, the woman in question, stood stiff and still—but her eyes were lifeless. Hollow. Her mouth was set into a tight line, like a doll that had been stripped of its strings. She didn’t look up when Heinz called her.
Didn’t flinch.
"I was only looking out for you, Your Majesty," she said at last, her voice trembling but laced with conviction. "That prince... something is off. Something has been off ever since that small accident. His sudden change, the way he speaks, the way he acts... I just wanted to uncover—"
"AND I TOLD YOU TO LISTEN TO ME!"
Heinz’s roar shattered the air like a cannon blast.
A shockwave exploded outward from him, tearing through the space around Delilah. The force slammed into the ground beside her, rattling the walls. Two knights standing near her were thrown back, barely catching their balance as they skidded across the stone floor.
Lucius and Lancelot didn’t move.
They didn’t dare.
Florian stumbled from the impact, the world tilting. He nearly crashed to the ground—but a steady hand caught him. Lucius, expression unreadable, held him by the arm until he regained his footing.
Florian blinked. "Thank you," he mumbled under his breath.
Lucius gave a slight nod, eyes never leaving Delilah.
"Was everything you?" Heinz asked again, quieter this time—but no less dangerous. His voice was smoke and stormclouds, ready to erupt.
Florian could practically hear the unspoken words that lingered in the silence.
’Were you the one who killed me?’
’Did you orchestrate the rebellions? The rogues?’
But Heinz couldn’t say it aloud. It hadn’t happened yet. Speaking of it now would raise questions he couldn’t afford.
’So she wasn’t the one who killed Heinz...’
That brought some relief—but also a new kind of fear. There were others out there. More dangerous. More cunning.
And now, Lucius and Lancelot both knew it. Delilah hadn’t acted alone. Florian had two enemies in this life. Maybe more.
Still, Heinz’s fury didn’t wane. If anything, it grew.
Because this betrayal—this wound—was personal.
She had been his lifeline.
"It’s all his fault," Delilah hissed suddenly, her eyes snapping toward Florian. Full of hate. "Your Majesty, the prince is manipulating you. Don’t you see? You couldn’t even look him in the eyes just months ago! And now... now you protect him? We don’t know the history of his fallen kingdom. Who knows what witchcraft they had? What spells or curses they cast? I only did what I did out of love for you. To protect you—"
’Is she being serious?’ Florian’s thoughts buzzed with disbelief. ’How is ruining my plans for this kingdom supposed to prove that I was manipulating Heinz?’
And Delilah’s lips sealed shut.
"Mmmh! Mmph! Mmm!" she panicked, clawing at her mouth, trying to scream, trying to explain.
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The readers' comments on the novel: Please get me out of this BL novel...I'm straight!