Chapter 230: The End is only the Beginning

Thud.

A lifeless body dropped to the ground in one of the dark alleys in Evardin’s town. The body belonged to an adult male. His eyes were wide open and a distinct mark was on his neck.

The mark of a vampire’s bite.

In the shadows, a pair of malevolent crimson eyes stood out in the dark. The vampire, standing before the body of the poor human he had killed, licked the trace of blood on his bottom lip as his gaze shifted to the other person in the alley.

The man who appeared to be no less than a mere commoner stood there trembling in fear after he witnessed the murder of his companion. He was ready to splinter, but it did not take a second for the vampire to pin him on the dirty wall, his neck wrapped with his oppressor’s hand in a chokehold.

"I don’t know why filthy beings like you manage to live till this age," the vampire’s voice came out velvety and low. "You don’t deserve to live this long. Now I am going to send you to the devil down there."

The vicious vampire snapped the man’s neck like a twig and threw him above the other body in the alley.

He pulled out a handkerchief from his coat’s pockets and wiped the trace of blood from his fingers. At the corner of his eye, he noticed a silhouette in the shadows.

"Stalking me again, Matthias?"

The other vampire came forward. He cleared his throat and bowed to his liege.

"Pardon me. I am only worried that..."

"That I might massacre the whole town?"

"That is not what I am trying to say, Your Majesty."

"An important meeting shall be held tomorrow morning. As I am a loyal subject of the court, I only want to know your whereabouts to make sure you return on time."

The handkerchief Alec used blazed with fire. He threw it at the dead bodies and the bodies were swallowed by blue fire, reducing them to ashes in just a matter of seconds.

"You should not worry about that, Matthias. I shall return on time," he said in a dismissive tone, eyeing his subordinate seriously. "Return to the palace at once."

Matthias was rather hesitant, but with Alec’s absolute power, he did not dare go against his word.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Matthias bowed, ready to leave, yet before he could lift his head, Alec had vanished in front of him.

He sighed and looked up at the crescent moon above.

The truth was, he wasn’t worried that Alec might not be able to return by tomorrow morning’s court meeting. It had been five years since the queen had died and Alec had never been the same after what happened.

Matthias could still vividly remember what took place that day...

"You don’t know how I have yearned for this moment to come, mother. I have always wanted to meet you again," said Lauren in a soft voice, a glimpse of her emotions showing on her face. "But forgive me. I cannot give you what you want. I will put an end to this."

No one expected what was about to transpire. No one saw it coming, not even Alec who was standing by his wife’s side.

Lauren started to cough so much blood the next moment. Her knees had gone numb, but Alec was there to catch her on time before she fell.

The time seemed to stop for Alec. His eyes were wide open, his lips ajar, and his breathing had ceased.

"No, no...hold on, Lauren."

Matthias dropped to his knee and touched the blood on the ground Lauren had vomited. His body turned rigid at the realization.

"A poison spell was cast on the queen, Your Majesty. The blood she vomited has remnants of it."

"Call for a healer mage!" Alec’s voice boomed.

"Who did this to you, Lauren? Who the fuck did this to you?"

With the remaining strength Lauren had, she smiled and shook her head. Her sight was a blur now, yet she could still recognize the figure of Alec’s face peering down at her.

She couldn’t see his eyes clearly, but the thought that his steely orbs must be filled with dread and frustration made her heart ache.

"I-I cast it on myself..." she managed to say.

The realization dawned on Alec.

At that moment, Vincent was standing next to the couple, beside where Darius was. Darius had crushed the hilt of the sword he held, his eyes bloodshot. Meanwhile, Vincent could not seem to grasp the situation.

Alec set aside everything, thinking nothing else but Lauren’s condition. Without minding the battle going on, he opened his portal right there and crossed it with Lauren in his arms.

"She cast a poison spell on herself. Do something!" Alec said to the council doctor who was surprised when the couple appeared out of nowhere in his laboratory.

Alec could not calm down as he put Lauren in bed so Doctor Bentley could examine her.

"No, her heart had stopped beating..." He muttered a series of profanities as he tried to revive Lauren’s heart with his blue fire magic while Dr. Bentley was getting something.

"Why isn’t it working!"

Dr. Bentley injected a drug into Lauren’s neck while Alec continued trying to make Lauren’s heart beat again.

"A poison spell is ten times stronger when it is cast on oneself," Dr. Bentley said. "I can feel how sapped her vitality is, Your Majesty. I don’t think we can still save-"

Alec grabbed the doctor by his collar. "You are the greatest doctor in this land, right? That is why you were employed by the council! Now do your job!"

Using healing magic, Doctor Bentley tried to fix Lauren’s vitality even if he could no longer feel life in her body.

Until minutes turned to hours.

"You are not allowed to stop!"

"But we have been trying to revive the queen for a couple of hours, Your Majesty. She is dead-"

"She is not!" Alec’s boomed like thunder. Some glasses around him had exploded because of his powers going out of control.

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A/N: Hi! This is the end of the first volume. Don’t be too sad 🙂 So, stay tuned!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read