The Damned Demon

Chapter 750  A Father’s Words, A Daughter’s Strength

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Sabina, Silvia, Ceti, and Merina approached Rowena's study with a mix of determination and concern, their footsteps echoing down the hall. As they neared the door, they were immediately stopped by four Bloodborn Guards blocking the entrance, their eyes cold and unmoving. Sabina, growing impatient, placed her hands on her hips and shot them a glare.

"We are here to talk about some important matters with Her Majesty. Give way already," she said with a disgruntled expression, her voice laced with authority.

The guards remained unfazed, not budging an inch. Sabina's glare sharpened, but before she could press the matter, a regal voice echoed from within the study.

"Let them in."

Sabina narrowed her eyes in pique, but the guards stepped aside to allow them entrance. Merina, always a bit more reserved, tugged at Ceti's hand, her voice hesitant, "I think I should stay outside lest I disturb Her Majesty."

"No, it's fine, mother. Otherwise, she wouldn't have allowed us to come in, including you," Ceti encouraged, her voice steady as she led the way, and Merina nervously nodded, following her daughter into the study.

As the heavy doors creaked open, they were met with the sight of Rowena, hunched over her desk, scanning over intricate maps and battle formations. The atmosphere in the room felt colder than usual, a heavy silence hanging in the air, as though the weight of impending war pressed down on all of them. Even Sabina, normally brimming with confidence, couldn't help but feel the tension in the air.

"Whatever you have to say, make it fast. We don't have time to waste," Rowena said without looking up, her voice calm yet distant, the cold edge of authority evident.

Ceti felt a strange unease bubbling in her chest, an instinct telling her something was off after seeing how Rowena was unusually distant and cold, but she remained silent for a moment. Sabina, however, wasn't so patient.

"Alright," Sabina said, stepping forward with a furrowed brow, "We only want to know where our husband is and why he exactly disappeared. I am sure there must be a good reason why you couldn't tell our people, but you can at least tell us."

Rowena's crimson eyes flickered briefly, her gaze sharp as a knife, but she remained silent for a moment longer before responding, her voice as frigid as ever.

"There is nothing to explain. What you heard is the only reason you will get from me."

Sabina's jaw clenched in frustration, her fists balling at her sides, "You can't be serious, Your Majesty," she said through gritted teeth, her voice rising with anger, "Our kingdom is going to get attacked any time soon, and you still want us to believe that our husband would just leave us here, disappearing for some 'duty' he has to do elsewhere? Forgive us, but as his consorts, we can't accept such a reason, nor will our people for long."

Ceti stood silently by, her eyes flickering between the two women, sensing the growing tension in the room but reluctant to escalate things. Silvia, her eyes brimming with unshed tears, stepped forward, her voice quivering with emotion and gathering whatever courage she could,

"Y-Your Majesty," she said softly, her words edged with desperation, "Silvia understands that we may not know the full picture, but to cut us off from him entirely? You know how much we all mean to him and how much he means to us. I-If something has happened, shouldn't we—"

Rowena's eyes snapped to them, and the air in the room chilled further. Her sharp, cutting gaze silenced Silvia immediately. Rowena's voice, low and biting, cut through the tension like a blade.

"What you 'understand' doesn't matter. What you should be concerned about is being ready for war, not Asher. You serve me, and you will follow my command. That is all you need to know."

Sabina's temper flared, her voice rising once again, "No longer our concern? With all due respect, Your Majesty, we can't just stand here and accept that without an explanation. If something happened to him, we have the right to know. He's not just a king to us—he's family!"

Rowena stood abruptly, her presence towering over them like a tempest. She stepped forward, her gaze cold, her every movement exuding authority, "Family?" she asked in a frigid voice, "Do not forget who your queen is, Sabina. Do not overstep your bounds in the name of sentiment. Asher is no longer your concern."

Sabina's mouth fell open, but Rowena's next words came swiftly, like a whip, "I understand your loyalty to him, but loyalty to your kingdom must come first. Disobedience, even under the guise of concern, will be treated as treason. If you cannot abide by this, you will be punished accordingly."

The room fell silent, the weight of Rowena's words hanging in the air. Sabina's fiery demeanor faltered as she took a step back, her hands trembling at her sides, "Treason?" she whispered, a mixture of shock and disbelief in her eyes, "You can't be serious, Rowena. What has gotten into you? You know none of us would betray you or him—"

Rowena's voice cut through the air like a storm, her authority undeniable, "Enough!" she bellowed, the force of her words sending a shockwave through the room, "Don't forget your place. You think you know what's best, but you have no idea. Question me again, and you will regret it. That is my final word on this matter."

The room was deathly still, the air thick with tension. Ceti stood frozen, her heart heavy with the weight of Rowena's words. She had known Rowena as a child and yet never seen Rowena like this before except when her father died…but not to this extent.

The silence stretched on, and Sabina, Silvia, and Merina stood rooted in place, stunned by the sudden outburst and the coldness that had overtaken Rowena.

Finally, Rowena turned her back to them, her voice low and final, "Leave me now. Prepare for war. There is nothing more to discuss."

And with that, she turned her back on them completely, her regal silhouette casting a long shadow over the chamber.

The thick silence of the study hall was broken only by the soft voice of Merina, sensing the depth of Rowena's turmoil, whispering gently, "We should leave Her Majesty alone." Her voice was barely audible, yet it carried a tenderness that seemed to pierce through the heavy atmosphere.

Sabina's face tightened, her jaw clenching as she fought to hold back her emotions. She wanted to argue, to demand answers from Rowena, but she knew there was no point in pushing further. The air between them had grown too cold, too final. With a disgruntled grunt, she turned on her heel and stormed out of the room, her frustration evident in every step. Silvia, her face pinched with worry and sadness, followed closely behind, her shoulders hunched as if the weight of the queen's words on top of her husband's disappearance had taken a physical toll on her.

Ceti lingered for a moment, her gaze flickering toward Rowena. She wanted to say something, to offer comfort, but she could feel the walls Rowena had built around herself—walls that would not be breached, not now. With a heavy heart, Ceti gave one last glance to the queen before nodding silently at her mother and stepping out of the room, leaving Rowena alone in the dimly lit study.

The moment the door clicked shut behind them, the tension in the room seemed to intensify. Rowena's vision suddenly blurred, her body seized with a sudden wave of pain that shot through her chest. She gasped, her heart aching with an unbearable weight. Her hand instinctively pressed against her stomach, as if holding the child inside her could anchor her to reality. Tears, hot and unchecked, began to flow down her cheeks, dripping onto the cold surface of the table.

Her other hand clenched into a fist, the nails biting into her palm as the pain of everything—her father's death, Asher's betrayal, the burden of the crown—everything she had been holding back came crashing down on her.

The anguish twisted her features, her once cold and calculating expression now contorted in sorrow. She knew she couldn't afford to break down, but it felt as though the floodgates had been opened, and she couldn't stop the tide.

She still couldn't help but play back the moments when she saw everything in that Sight Stone. At first, she didn't dare to believe it and wanted to think that it was all made up to fool her.

But then she began to put two and two together, especially the moments where Asher hid the truth from her whenever she asked him what he was doing in the Severed Realm.

She always found it strange that he was spending too much time over there but didn't think too much about it due to the trust she had in him. She always believed he only interacted with those Hunters as their master to make them do his bidding. Nothing more.

But what hurt her the most was when the final projection of the Sight Stone revealed a message of his true identity...Cedric, or Golden Prince, as the humans once knew him.

It was absurd...That was what she thought when she first saw it. How could a demon possibly be a Hunter in disguise? A Hunter who was dead for years?

But then she remembered how he persuaded her to never check the memories in that severed head and how hard he tried to prevent the head from reaching her hands in the first place. It all was making sense in a way that unsettled her heart. But she still didn't want to believe it.

Even till the last moment, when she showed him the projections from the Sight Stone and asked him if he was Golden Prince, she was praying he would tell her it was all an outrageous lie. And yet his silence at that moment shattered her heart as she realized the truth.

Never before had she felt such pain in her life...a pain she didn't know how to make it go away. She didn't even know what she was supposed to do with his unborn child in her belly.

As per the laws of this kingdom, a queen wasn't supposed to keep the unborn child of someone who wasn't king anymore. And yet...the thought of destroying this growing thing in her belly gnawed at her heart, especially when she already started to cherish it. She wasn't strong enough to make any such decision.

But then she realized...what was the point thinking about it when the future held only despair and darkness for her?

She was even forced to lie to her people, something she never thought she would have to do. She gave them false hope just to make sure her kingdom would have a semblance of chance at survival.

How far had she fallen as a queen to let all this happen to her? Or maybe...she was never fit enough to be one...Her father must have chosen wrong.

She also knew that whoever exposed Asher to her never did so with kind intentions and maybe wanted this outcome...But that realization did nothing to change the fact that she couldn't stand his presence anymore...not after what he did. The last thing she would do was continue to disgrace her kingdom and her father's memory, no matter the consequences. Her hands gripped the edges of the table as she tried to steady her breath and slowly looked up at her father's portrait hanging on the wall, the one she had always turned to for strength before even Asher came along.

However, seeing the painting of his, her mind flashed back to a memory she had buried deep within her.

A young Rowena sat on the floor, her small hands clutching an old painting of her mother, her face stained with tears just a day after hearing the news of her mother's death. Her father had crouched in front of her, his large, imposing figure now softened with care. He had taken her hands in his, his voice gentle but firm, "Rona, I know how much pain and sadness you are feeling now," he had said, his dark eyes steady and unwavering, "But remember, never show your emotions to anyone or anything that makes you appear vulnerable. If you want to cry, you should do so alone. But nevertheless, I, your father, will love and protect you until the end of time. I promise you will never be left alone. Now stand strong and proud for you, my daughter, and the future queen of this kingdom. Everyone will depend on you."

Those words rang through her mind now, louder than ever. Slowly, she wiped away her tears, her face hardening, the walls she had once built around herself rising once more. Rowena stood tall, her expression cooling as she regained control over her emotions, hiding the pain deep within. She was the queen. She had to be to protect her people and honor her father's sacrifice and those who died for this kingdom.

Just as she regained her composure, a knock echoed from the door.

"Your Majesty," came the guard's voice from the other side, "Consort Isola urgently wishes to speak to you and has been requesting for a while. Should we let her in?"

Rowena's cold gaze fixed on the door as her fingers clenched around the edges of the table. Without hesitation, her voice was sharp and final, "No. Make her leave and make sure I don't see her face."

The guard hesitated for a moment, sensing the command behind her words, before bowing and retreating from the door.

Rowena's back straightened, her posture regal once more, as she turned her gaze to the darkened window. The storm was far from over, and she couldn't afford to falter now.