Chapter 235: The Curse They Spoke Of (2)
Even those who had been murmuring among themselves lowered their heads, while the rebels alone continued glaring without remorse.
The hall fell silent as Rowan looked from one face to another. None of them showed even the slightest trace of remorse. Even now they stood with their heads raised, their eyes filled with defiance instead of fear.
"Not one of you has the right to speak my wife’s name," Rowan said, his cold gaze sweeping across every one of them. "You know nothing about her, yet you repeat lies as though you witnessed them yourselves. Now you dare speak of my unborn child with such disgraceful words. Tell me why I shouldn’t have your heads hanging outside these palace walls for the rest of your people to witness."
"I offered every one of you the chance to make amends, yet even now your hearts remain filled with hatred. Instead of showing remorse for the innocent lives you have ruined, you continue to spread lies and poison the minds of others. Men like you are not merely rebels; you are the reason peace cannot return to this kingdom."
This time, none of the rebels laughed. They merely stared back at him with the same stubborn expressions, yet the hatred in their eyes had been replaced by the faint realization that the king had truly reached the end of his patience.
"You have spread unrest, panic, and fear throughout Eryndor. You have burned homes, destroyed farmlands, murdered innocent people, and convinced yourselves that the man leading you stands on the side of justice. After committing all these crimes, can you truly not see that everything you have done is nothing but wickedness?"
For the first time, uncertainty appeared on a few of their faces. Some lowered their eyes, while others exchanged uneasy glances, as though hearing their own crimes spoken aloud forced them to confront the reality they had been avoiding.
"Where are the rest of your people?" He questioned one last time.
The woman who had first accused Rosalind remained stubborn, and the man beside her continued glaring defiantly at Rowan.
Silence answered the king.
The tough rebels neither stepped forward nor changed their expressions.
"Very well," Rowan said at last. "Prepare them for execution immediately."
The entire hall seemed to freeze.
Many of the council members looked at Rowan in surprise because they had never heard him pass judgment so swiftly before.
He had always believed in giving people an opportunity to repent and make amends for their crimes, yet this time he had sentenced them without hesitation.
The truth, however, was that Rowan already understood people like them. No matter what he said, their hearts would not change.
They refused to kneel, refused to bow, and refused to acknowledge his authority in any way.
Even as the guards stepped forward to lead them away, none of them cried, begged, or pleaded for mercy. Instead, they walked with the same stubborn expressions they had worn since entering the hall, as though they had already accepted death long before they were captured.
It made Rowan wonder how people could willingly throw away their lives for a cause so deeply rooted in injustice.
Yet he also knew he could not leave them alive to continue poisoning others because a handful of rotten fruit was capable of spoiling an entire harvest, and he would not allow the kingdom to suffer for the sake of a few people who refused to abandon their hatred.
Meanwhile, Rosalind had already returned to her chamber after everything that had happened in the grand hall. She kept telling herself that she was fine, that everything would eventually be fine, yet no matter how many times she repeated those words in her mind, they refused to comfort her.
’They’re talking about my baby’ She thought as the accusations still echoed inside her head, from being called a foreign whore to hearing strangers condemn the innocent child she carried without knowing a single thing about either of them.
Rosalind tried to convince herself that they were only trying to provoke Rowan.
"But what if people believe them?" She thought to herself.
Those thoughts progressed. "What if everyone starts looking at my child that way?"
She tried to steady her breathing, yet every breath felt heavier than the last, and she could only clench her teeth as she fought to keep herself composed.
How could people be so quick to judge when they knew nothing of the truth?
Perhaps a bath would help calm her mind.
Perhaps if she rested afterward, she could forget the nightmare that had unfolded inside the hall.
"Your Majesty, do you need anything?" Freya asked gently.
She and Kira had accompanied Rosalind back to her chamber after she left the hall because both of them had seen how shaken she was. Neither maid had dared speak much since then because they feared saying the wrong thing and upsetting her further.
"I’d like to take a bath," Rosalind replied quietly.
Freya and Kira immediately began preparing the bath, moving around the chamber with practiced efficiency, and before long they finished pouring the warm water.
"It is ready, Your Majesty," they said together.
"Thank you," Rosalind answered, forcing a faint smile onto her face, although it disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared beneath the weight pressing against her heart.
"Do you require anything else?" Freya asked while Kira looked at her expectantly.
Rosalind gently shook her head, and the two maids respectfully stepped aside to give her privacy.
She slowly removed her gown before slipping out of the rest of her clothes, intending to ease herself into the warm bath. However, just as she was about to step into the water, something warm trickled down the inside of her thigh.
Her movement stopped.
Frowning slightly, she lowered her hand and touched it, unsure whether she had imagined it. When she looked down at her fingertips, the color drained from her face.
They were stained red.
Her entire body froze.
Was... was this supposed to happen?
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