Chapter 72: Punishment

Stepping his foot into the underground dim-lit dungeon of the Palace, accompanied by one of the guards incharge of overlooking the tortures of the place, Ivan’s crimson eyes glowered with an eerie intensity upon sighting the rows of deplorable felons who had been shackled to the cold walls.

They appear to be in a terrible condition as a result of the torture they had experienced, and Ivan could see it as their mercy that his uncle wasn’t available to deal with them like proper animals. Aside from the Royal Fletcher who had been shackled separately, the remaining men were moles caught by his guards who patrolled the main capital of EmptyHollow, and from the faint energy he picked around their presence, he could tell they were the witches’ minions, thus, he sighed wearily as if bored of having to deal with these people.

His crimson eyes swept through each one of them, his cold gaze unwavering, and as if sensing the intimidating presence of someone standing in front of them, the mens in shackles lifted their heads weakly, and an intense fear coursed through their veins when they locked gaze with the one and only notorious Vampire Lord. The cold walls echoe with each step of Ivan’s graceful stride, and he smiled aggressively, sensing their unhidden fears before uttering softly.

"Hope you’re enjoying your stay?"

"Please have mercy on me My Lord!" The royal Fletcher immediately seeked for Ivan’s mercy, whilst lowering his head in shame. His voice trembled with fear to the point he began to sweat uncontrollably. "I have committed a heinous crime, My Lord, and my actions have led to the untimely death of the Queen Mother. I accept all punishment handed to me, but please spare my Family! I beg of you!"

"Hold on, it’s not your turn." Snapping his fingers, the guard that escorted him quickly went to grab a chair for the Vampire Lord to seat. When the royal Fletcher found enough courage to look up at Ivan, the Vampire Lord had his ominous gaze fixed on the moles who trembled in fear, one of them already wet his pants just from the sight of Ivan looking at him, and that action didn’t go unnoticed.

"What is this? I haven’t even said a word." Ivan facepalmed, getting half-irritated before letting out a long sigh. "I’m unarmed as you can see, I’m only here to ask a few questions and if you answer them honestly, I won’t torture you." His tone was earnest, but the gentle smile on his lips made them quiver in fear. "I’ll ask again, what does your kingdom want from mine? I want nothing but the truth."

"We-we were only following orders!" One of the moles hesitantly confessed with his head lowered, unable to stand the spiteful eyes that pierced through his gaze. "She wants your Kingdom because it has....it has the population of humans she needs. I don’t know why she needs them! We’re nothing but servants sent to fulfill our mission so we have no rights to question her! Please let us go and we promise never to return."

"How many humans does she need?" Ivan questioned further, his eyebrows knitting into a frown as he turned deaf ears to their pleas, and the four moles exchanged hesitant glances, as if contemplating on whether they should reveal it or not, but when Ivan slammed his fist to the arm of the chair, the sound reverberating across the dungeon maliciously, one of the moles could hardly stop himself from blurting out the word.

"Twelve humans."

"And how many humans have she abducted?"

"We...we cannot tell you.....!" Before one of the mole could prove stubbornness, his eyeballs immediately widened in sheer horror when he could no longer speak. It felt like he was being choked when an invisible force tightened around his neck, closing up his throat. Looking straight into the crimson eyes of Ivan, he noticed the strange shimmering that swirled within his irises and immediately knew he was being choked to death.

"Come again?" Ivan questioned softly.

"Four.... Four humans!" He whispered through harsh breathing, and only after responding honestly to Ivan’s question did the painful choking release from his neck, and he coughed harshly, his head falling forward as if the little strength in him had been drained from his brother, whilst the royal Fletcher watched with visible fear in his eyes.

"And they’re still alive?"

"Yes." One of the moles didn’t hesitate before responding. "They’re still alive in our Kingdom, but we have no knowledge of our Queen’s plan, we were only following orders!"

"Witches, warlocks, which one are you?"

"Warlocks."

"We’re done here."

Shifting his attention to the royal Fletcher who instantly cowered in fear, Ivan simply asked. "Who did you hand your royalty post to? This hunter, are you sure you remember exactly what he looked like? By that I mean, if I show you a drawing of someone, will you be able to identify him?"

"Yes, My Lord." The Royal Fletcher answered.

Bringing out the bloody-stained parchment, Ivan showed it to the royal Fletcher who had to gaze at it from where he was shackled. "The young man sketched on this parchment, does he look familiar to you or not? Don’t lie, I can tell when you do." He reminded the fellow Vampire before he could even think about it.

Gulping nervously at his own dried saliva, the royal Fletcher studied the young man that had been sketched onto the parchment, and after some seconds, his eyes widened in disbelief when the young man on the parchment looked more than familiar.

"Yes! That’s him!" The royal Fletcher pointed a finger at the drawing, "that’s... that’s him... but how did you get that drawing?"

"And how dare you question me?"

"Forgive my manners!" He lowered his head in shame.

Rising to his feet, Ivan took a step closer to the cell before speaking with a no-nonsense expression on his face.

"Setting a good example to the people of EmptyHollow should have been your aim, but are you aware that your actions can tarnish the name of our Kingdom? A Royal Fletcher, paying secret visits to gambling houses and still losing every dime you had to those people? Why not save the money for your family? Not only did you put your life at stake but you put the life of your families at stake! And here you are pleading for them?!"

"I am ashamed."

"You’re not." Ivan shook his head in disappointment, seeing through the royal Fletcher’s facade. "As for your punishment, you shall be flogged according to the Palace rules." Snapping his fingers, the guard incharge of the dungeon came to stand at his side.

"Yes, My Lord?"

"Take him to the punishment room, and make sure he receives a hundred lashes of the whip."

"And the moles?"

Ivan’s gaze shifted to the Moles who were already in a terrible condition. When the moles assumed he would spare their lives after revealing that much to him, their expressions blanched when they heard him say.

"Put an end to their misery." And he exited the dungeon, turning deaf ears to their pleas.

Herbert waited outside for Ivan, and when he stepped out of the dungeon, he gave his third command. "Lead a few guards to the gambling houses and confiscate the building including everyone in it."

"Of course My Lord." Herbert affirmed it with a nod.

Staring at the image of the boy on the parchment, Ivan had second-guessed Alistair’s idea of going to question the Fletchers in the village. He wondered where Whiskers got the sketch from, but judging from the Royal Fletcher’s sudden panic, it made it super clear that he was the owner of the drawing.

He must have kept it as a form of blackmail.

Fortunately, Ivan knew of two skilled Vampire brothers who would be more than capable of tracking this hunter down.

"The stress..." he sighed wearily, pushing his Midnight-black hair back away from his face and taking the stairs.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read