Chapter 324: The Rat In The Tower
In a dilapidated castle near the dormant volcanic range, within the highest chamber of a crumbling tower, a thin breeze drifted through a single stony window. It touched the face of a woman whose head was bowed, her long brown hair falling forward and veiling most of her features.
As the breeze caressed her face, her thick, long eyelashes fluttered. A crease formed on her forehead, a telltale sign of her returning consciousness. When her eyelids finally opened, they revealed clear blue eyes that blinked through the haze clouding her vision.
Lifting her head weakly, she scanned her surroundings.
A pinkish-red hue filtered through the lone window, illuminating the dark, dingy chamber of black brick. Aside from a single chair placed directly in front of her, the room was empty, save for the presence of squeaky rats.
She looked down to see one of them gnawing at the hem of the simple, dark blue dress she had been wearing the day they stepped out of the academy and into the market.
With a start, she kicked forward, sending the rat scurrying away in a fright. That was when she felt the heaviness at her ankles and the rattling of metal.
She looked to her sides and realized that her arms were stretched wide, her wrists clasped in black metal cuffs attached to chains anchored to the walls on either side. When she tried to move her legs, she found the same binders locked around her ankles as well.
She used what remained of her strength, which was already feeling dangerously low, to pull against the chains, but they did not budge an inch.
’Well, what did you expect?’ she mumbled to herself. ’Obviously, they won’t just break unless you turned into an ultra-strong being overnight.’
There was only one thing left to do: use her powers to break free. As soon as her eyes turned golden, the thick cuffs, each engraved with an Omega symbol that shone with a sudden light.
A searing, burning pain shot through her wrists and ankles, and she felt her power drain away instantly.
She hissed in pain and immediately stopped the flow of her magic.
Sweat trickled down her face from the sheer exertion and pain. The scent of her own scorched skin, mingled with the putrid stench of death and decay, filled the chamber that turned her stomach.
She struggled to suppress the bile rising in her throat as the heavy black door, which seemed to camouflage perfectly with the dark brick walls, groaned before yawning open as if it hadn’t been moved in centuries.
Eve’s eyes snapped toward the sound. Her entire body went taut at the echo of boots against the filthy, dark floor.
Soon, a figure emerged, the cast of reddish-pink light fell across his features, making him look like a devil who had come to collect her soul.
Her eyes burned with rage at the sight of the man who had proven to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It wasn’t that Eve had ever truly believed his act, but the question still remained.
What was his motive for all of this? What could he possibly gain by bringing her in a place like this? She had no idea where she was. Through the window, all she could see was the ominous, reddish-pink glow of the unknown sky.
As Rowan stepped closer, his grey eyes raked over her bound body. He looked at her like a beast that had been left to starve for too long and was now finally salivating at the sight of the prey it had caught at long last.
Stopping just before her, he met her glaring eyes, a devilish grin slowly spreading across his handsome face, the kind of grin that would have driven most women to distraction, yet to Eve, it was so utterly repulsive that she could only think of clawing his face off.
"My dear Evelyn... do not look at me like that," he said, his deep voice, laced with dark desire, echoing through the empty chamber.
Standing a mere step away from her, he continued, "After all, this is meant to be a joyous occasion for us... a reunion I have awaited for a very, very long time."
The word ’reunion’ made her falter, her thoughts of violence momentarily interrupted as her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Ah, yes... a reunion. You heard correctly," he replied smoothly, as though answering her unspoken question.
He then turned towards the window and walked to it, his gaze drifting outside. The breeze slipped into the chamber, stirring his long grey hair as it swayed with the wind, while his grey eyes gleamed faintly, as though lost in distant memories.
"To the world outside, I am now Prince Rowan, the second prince in line to the chaotic throne of Valkharis..."
Turning his head to meet her eyes, he continued, "...but on the inside, I will always be the man who lost everything and was forgotten after his family was branded as traitors."
A growing sense of foreboding settled over Evelyn as she listened to him speak.
She remembered the first day he had entered the classroom, how something about him had felt wrong from the very beginning.
That strange gleam in his eyes when their gazes had briefly met was not something she had ever been able to brush aside. Her instincts had warned her then, whispering that she knew him, that he was dangerous, and now, with every word he spoke, that dread only tightened its hold.
Rowan noticed the shift in her expression as realisation slowly dawned upon her.
The grin that had vanished from his face moments earlier returned, sharper than before, and a flicker of satisfaction gleamed in his steely grey eyes as he realised she was finally recognising him.
"Yes, Princess... I always knew you were a perceptive one from the very first moment I laid eyes on you walking through the academy courtyard on your first day, moving with the confidence of a natural temptress, captivating me, tormenting me with every step you took. From that moment, I desired you. From that moment, all I ever wanted was to claim you, to mark you, to bind you to me and make you scream my name again and again until I was the only one you remembered... not that cursed prince!"
In an instant, his lust-filled gaze darkened, twisting into something far more dangerous, brimming with fury and malice.
He began advancing towards her, each step tightening the knot of dread in Evelyn’s chest as her instincts screamed at her to flee from the unhinged man before her.
Yet she could do nothing.
Her body remained frozen in place as he closed the distance, his voice continuing its venomous tirade.
"I saw you first! You were supposed to be mine... only mine! I watched you, I tried to be kind to you, yet you still chose to fall into that prince’s arms, did you not? I was forced to lace your drink with a potion, but even then, that man appeared before I could act.
I still tried to help you, but you rejected every hand I extended towards you. When you refused, I had no choice but to create an opportunity that would compel you to accept my assistance, yet fate was not on my side. The Darkrots took you away instead."
His crazed eyes locked onto her stunned gaze as he stepped closer, inch by inch, until he loomed over her, leaving barely any space between them.
"I tried, Evelyn... I truly did. But when my family was branded as traitors, I was forced to flee. I had to accept their offer. I had to endure months of separation, months of suffering, all for this moment... to finally have you here, within my reach."
Slowly, he lifted his hand, his cold fingers brushing against her cheek.
"I can finally touch you."
He shivered at the contact of her skin and leaned closer to her lips. "Oh, Evelyn... I can finally feel those lovely lips of yours, and no one will ever come between us again," he whispered, his voice thick with raw need.
The moment he lowered his lips to claim hers, a sharp blow struck his nose, sending him staggering backwards as his hand flew up to clutch it.
A warm liquid oozed between his fingers as pain shot through his skull. Groaning, he pulled his hand away, only to find it smeared with his own blood.
His eyes snapped back to Evelyn and realised she had just....headbutted him.
She stood there, her chest rising and falling with fury, glaring at him with such venomous disdain as if he was nothing more than a filthy rat.
Her eyes flared golden for a fleeting instant before fading, the omega symbols on her restraints glowing a menacing orange.
She gritted her teeth and finally spoke, ignoring the searing burn that rippled through her limbs with the brief use of her power.
"So this is where you have been hiding all this time, Drake Viremont. I cannot say I am surprised." She tilted her head slightly, her gaze never wavering. "Nothing more could be expected from a filthy rat that scurries into a hole at the first sign of calamity."
