The rebellious prince looked at his father with genuine shock clearly visible upon his face, as though the words he had heard moments ago were something impossible to believe.
His crimson eyes slowly widened before he spoke in a low, shaken voice:
"Is… is my aunt really dead?"
The king stared at his son for a long moment, then let out a deep sigh without answering immediately.
He slowly raised his hand and began muttering several ancient magical words. The moment he finished speaking them, the transparent barrier suddenly vanished.
The magical chains disappeared.
The seals disappeared.
And the prison that had confined the prince for so many years disappeared as well.
The prince froze in place from sheer shock.
He had never expected his father to remove the barrier so easily.
Under any other circumstances, he would have immediately rushed to attack his father because of the years of imprisonment, rage, and hatred that had accumulated within him…
But he did not move.
He simply stood there, staring at his father in disbelief.
Then tears slowly gathered in his eyes against his will as he whispered with a trembling voice:
"She… died?"
He fell silent for a brief moment.
Then his head lowered suddenly.
"So… she really died."
And he began to cry.
The prince cried intensely, in a way the king had never imagined he would witness.
It was genuine, painful crying, as though something inside him had completely shattered.
Because his aunt had been the only person in that cruel world who truly cared about him.
The only one who visited him despite everyone else fearing him.
The only one who spoke to him like a human being instead of a monster.
As for the king, he simply watched him silently for a long time before finally saying in a heavy, quiet voice:
"She did not merely die, my son… she was murdered."
The moment those words were spoken…
The sound of crying vanished completely.
Everything inside the chamber changed in an instant.
A terrifying wave of energy exploded from the prince's body, causing the stone walls to shake violently and the ground beneath them to tremble.
Then a monstrous roar erupted from him—a roar filled with rage, savagery, and hatred.
The entire prison chamber shook from that horrifying sound.
The prince slowly raised his head, his crimson eyes glowing like burning blood.
Then he looked at his father and spoke in a terrifying voice:
"Who did it…?"
His tone grew even more dangerous as he growled:
"And why… did you fail to protect her?"
The king felt the weight of those words, but he maintained his calm and replied:
"The enemy was cunning and manipulative."
Then he continued quietly:
"They exploited our distraction with another matter… and carried out their plan."
The prince gave no immediate response.
Instead, he suddenly closed his eyes and began trying to control himself.
His breathing became heavy, and his monstrous instincts pushed him toward destruction, slaughter, and madness.
Yet despite all of that…
He tried to calm down.
Very slowly, the horrifying pressure filling the chamber began fading little by little.
The king looked at his son with genuine surprise.
He had learned.
During the long years of imprisonment, his son had not merely been locked away…
He had been learning to control his power.
Several seconds later, the killing intent completely vanished from the room.
The prince suddenly opened his eyes…
Then disappeared from his spot.
The king's eyes widened in shock, and he vanished as well, quickly chasing after his son out of fear that he might do something reckless.
But after only a few moments…
The king realized the truth.
His son had not gone out to destroy the kingdom.
Nor had he gone out to kill.
There was only one place he had gone.
The royal family cemetery.
The prince stood silently before his aunt's grave for a long time.
Cold winds passed between the black trees surrounding the cemetery while he remained motionless.
Then he sighed deeply with sorrow and whispered:
"She really died…"
He closed his eyes briefly before continuing in a broken voice:
"That old man… wasn't lying."
He had already sensed his aunt's scent within the soil.
The scent of death.
And the scent of a decaying body.
At that moment, he realized his old fears had finally come true.
He had truly lost her.
The prince then turned toward his father, who had arrived behind him, and said coldly:
"I will find whoever did this."
His gaze sharpened as he continued:
"And when I find them… I will take my revenge."
He paused briefly.
Then added without taking his eyes off his father:
"And afterward… I will return to you, so we can settle our own score."
The moment he turned to leave…
The king suddenly grabbed him by the arm.
The king quickly shook his head and said in a worried tone rarely heard from him:
"No… don't leave yet."
The prince frowned and looked at him coldly while the king continued rapidly:
"The kingdom needs you."
Then he sighed and added:
"I have already sent envoys to the dwarves to obtain an artifact that will help us search."
The king lowered his gaze slightly before saying:
"I have already searched throughout the entire kingdom… and found no trace of the killer."
The prince, who had been about to leave, immediately stopped the moment he heard his father's final words.
He had actually been preparing to mock him, because he had begun feeling that his father had grown weaker than before, and that he was no longer capable of controlling the kingdom as he once had.
But before he could say anything…
He suddenly frowned.
Then slowly raised his hand and waved it through the air.
In the next instant, a sharp white light formed in the shape of a gigantic claw.
That claw shot forward with terrifying speed toward one of the nearby trees beside the cemetery, piercing straight through it and slicing it apart instantly.
The ground trembled slightly as the massive tree collapsed.
But the matter did not end there.
The moment the tree shattered…
A strange pool of blood appeared beneath it.
The king's eyes widened instantly, and he immediately rushed toward the spot to inspect what had happened.
And when he approached…
He saw the truth.
The crushed corpse of a Dark Elf was hidden beneath the fallen tree, completely destroyed by the prince's light claw.
The king froze momentarily from shock.
The spy had been hiding there the entire time…
Yet nobody had sensed him.
Not even the king himself.
The king looked at his son with genuine astonishment and asked:
"How did you find him… when even I couldn't sense him at all?"
The prince let out a mocking laugh before replying while staring at the corpse with disdain:
"Because you've started relying too much on swords… and fighting like humans, Father."
Then he raised his eyes toward the king and continued coldly:
"And you forgot that we are monsters."
Silence filled the air for a moment while the prince continued sharply:
"Our true weapons are our claws… not swords and spears."
Then he gestured toward his body.
"And our armor is our fur and skin… not those ridiculous human metal armors."
He stepped closer to his father while his voice became even colder and harsher:
"The more I see you, the more you resemble humans, Your Majesty."
Then he narrowed his eyes and added:
"You even forgot what our kind is famous for… our instincts and senses that never fail."
The king felt the weight of those words.
And for the first time in a very long while…
He found himself unable to answer.
Because his son was right.
Throughout the years of his reign, he had tried to become a civilized king who resembled humans so much that he had slowly drifted away from his original nature.
The nature of monsters.
The king sighed silently before quickly changing the subject:
"Do you see now? Even those dishonorable rats from the Dark Elves have begun daring to infiltrate the palace itself."
Then he looked directly at his son and added:
"Will you leave your old father to face all of this alone?"
The prince glared at his father with obvious irritation.
He hated the way the king tried to manipulate his emotions.
Yet despite that, he also felt insulted by his words.
Then he snapped angrily:
"How dare you, old man, allow those weak, defeated fools to infiltrate your kingdom… and even your palace?"
His gaze sharpened further as he continued:
"Have you truly become weak?"
But while speaking…
He looked carefully at his father.
And despite everything, he could still see the truth.
His father had not become weak.
On the contrary…
He had become far stronger than before.
But that strength had changed.
It was no longer the savage power of monsters that the prince once knew.
The king had chosen a different path.
The path of civilization, laws, weapons, and armies.
The path of humans.
As for him…
He still walked the path of monsters.
The prince finally sighed, then realized that his revenge against his aunt's killer—and even settling matters with his father—could wait a little longer.
So he said quietly:
"I will remain inside the royal palace."
Then he glanced toward the hidden corpse and added coldly:
"And I will dispose of those filthy rats hiding here… until the searching artifact arrives."
The moment the king heard those words…
A small smile appeared upon his face for the first time in a long while.
Part of the sorrow and gloom filling his expression vanished as he replied calmly:
"You will not regret this decision… my son."
But the prince immediately felt something unpleasant inside his chest.
He felt…
That he had been manipulated.
And that his father had succeeded, at least a little, in pulling him back once again into the affairs of the kingdom he had spent years trying to escape.
(Author's Note):
Hello everyone! Thank you for your continuous support of this novel; your comments and interactions mean the world to me.
Stepping away from our story here for a moment, I wanted to share another project I've been working on with great passion. I have started publishing a webtoon (comic) on the Webtoon platform titled "Me and the Wolf."
It is a [Comedy / Fantasy] story about a miserable young man and a cunning wolf who is constantly getting him into trouble! If you enjoy my writing style and the way I build scenarios, I promise you're going to love this comic.
I would be so grateful if you could go check it out, subscribe to the series, and let me know what you think in the comments there!
🔍 Search on the Webtoon app for: [Me and the Wolf]