That Prince Is A Girl The Vicious King's Captive Slave Mate novel Chapter 342

Chapter 342
Four months later.

GRAND KING DAEMONIKAI

Screams echoed all around him. The dungeon reeked of old blood and scorched flesh.

“I shall ask again,” Vladya snarled, dipping a branding iron into the bed of hot coals until it gleamed red with heat. “What can you tell me about the dark mage who dared to tamper with the mind of Urekai’s ultimate ruler?”

The iron hissed as he raised it, reflecting a glow in the wide, terror-stricken eyes of the male shackled before him.

The prisoner shook his head hard. “I don’t know! I swear it! I don’t know anything!”

“Wrong answer.” Vladya pressed the iron to the mage’s bare chest.

The sizzle of burning flesh came as the prisoner’s screams pierced the air.

Grand King Daemonikai turned away, striding for the dungeon’s arched entrance, leaving Vladya to his work. They'd swept through the city and rounded up every mage in Urai, and it was the same useless answer for over a month now,

Fifty mages they had taken, but only three had been dark mages. All held in dungeons where no light touched and no sound escaped, tortured day and night. Yet, none gave him the answers he needed.

His eyes drifted to one of the cells as he passed. A mage strung upside down, a ruin of welts and open wounds on his body. Blood dripped from his back as the whip cracked against him again. The mage’s roars would last no more than another few hours before his body gave out. Iron collars at his neck, wrists, and ankles rendered his magic useless, as it had for all of them.

Usually, Daemonikai was a ruler of patience. He had no taste for punishing the many in pursuit of the one, but that was before.

He was desperate, furious at the world and himself. He was a male on the verge of yet another madness, and he was running out of time.

The guards pushed the heavy iron gates, and he stepped out, the gates clanging shut behind him. “Keep me informed of any new developments."

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Yaz bowed low.

Still nothing new. No news on the dark mage. No evidence that tied any of it to Zaiper. The Oracle was still away from Urai, handling 'loose ends,' as she had put it. All remained stagnant.

The only thing different was the passage of time and his increasingly darkening heart.

His blood boiled. Rage, his new companion walked alongside him.

••••

Everyone stood as Daemonikai entered the arena.

Cheers and applause swelled, hands clapping in unison, voices raised in praise. His people waved banners, flowers scattering through the breeze as he made his way to the high dais.

The Grand Rulers were standing, arrayed in their ceremonial regalia, every color and crest shining in the afternoon sun. Reaching his seat, Daemonikai turned to face his people.

“Greatest citizens of Urai,” his voice rang clear. “We stand before you today to celebrate this momentous occasion. The day your First Ruler,” he gestured briefly toward himself. “And his Third—” His gaze found Vladya, who gave a firm nod before flashing a brief smile to the crowd. “—proudly stand before you to announce we are free of mindlessness.”

The roar of the crowd was ear-splitting. Shouts of victory. Fists raised in triumph.

Daemonikai let them revel in it for a moment before he raised his hand for quiet.

“You asked for this day, and so here it is,” he said smoothly. “Drink, dance, and celebrate, knowing your rulers stand fully restored, minds unclouded. Our focus solely upon you, our people. We will carry this kingdom to its next greatness, without the dark thoughts of madness in the shadows of our minds!”

The lies came easily now. He had practiced them until they became second nature. For a male who had despised deception, he had grown skilled in it.