Reaper's Crown

Ch. 89

The sound of a door opening caught Atomu's attention, and with a quick turn, his tired eyes landed on the well-known figure stepping out of the shadows, carrying a whip in his hand. He squinted his eyes. Not that he wanted to see, but knew that only pain came today.

The shadow moved, revealing Kania's crooked smile as his hand landed on the cold metal bars. Atomu didn't flinch, despite how fast his movements were, and the latter hastily opened the door, stepping in and closing.

"I knew you'd be attracted to the commotion," Kania uttered. "You long to kill all of that happiness, don't you?"

Atomu didn't answer. After all, everyone knows that there isn't something that could be called a good demon. He never struck back, he never complained, he never answered. He simply took it, knowing that nothing would change.

Kania's hand landed on Atomu's long hair, and the other found itself placed over his bare chest, sliding up his neck to temporarily choke him. " I'd love to go back to the day when you spilt everything like a brat who couldn't eat soup well enough. You've been very, very quiet since."

"I'm used to it." Atomu thought, his eyes reflecting absolutely no light, contrasting the twitching of Kania's. They were vibrant as if he took all of the pleasure in showing Atomu that humans are more powerful than one demon who never fights back.

Kania stepped to the side, forcing Atomu's hands back into those dirty cuffs hanging from the ceiling. His legs were already bound together with a tight rope, so there was no point in doing anything else. Atomu faced his oppressor once again, and Kania stepped back, taking a massive swing before landing a hit matching its power.

It hurt, as it usually did, but Atomu didn't even close his eyes.

Kania quickly broke a sweat, taking his shirt off. Maybe it was something with him trying to assert power. Kania's body and muscles looked much better than Atomu's beaten skin. He sat shirtless for months now. He used to be self-conscious about his general appearance, but that didn't matter anymore.

If he'd shown weakness, Kania would exploit it. Even if he didn't, he already found out by continuously asking questions without receiving any answers.

A few more hits, a few more swings, and soon it was over.

Kania generously let him go and Atomu crumbled to the floor. The pain seeped in greatly. It hurt. It continuously hurt.

"The King came back," Kania muttered, putting on his shirt again and breathing out. He dropped the whip outside Atomu's cramped chamber. "I wish though, for filth like you to only be endlessly tortured instead. Maybe with better weapons, something that'll finally hurt you."

"It always hurts." Atomu finally spoke.

Kania grinned. "Then I hope it can hurt more."

***

As per usual, the morning came with some sunlight shining through the corridors and into the many chambers. The walls aesthetically matched most of the district, with a torn white brick instead of the marble present inside. The bars were silver, and the general 'cells', if you could even call them, were rather spacious, with a big bed and some room for a table and a few holes serving as toilets.

At first, Rowan would refuse to reside in such conditions, but with time and Chyuuichi's words, the two eventually got used to something more luxurious, than, for example, the basements of Nuil's castle, but then again, this wasn't a typical prison. In general, the Mainland and most of Errarion didn't have a specific building created to house those wrongdoers and instead used already existing space as a means for quick travel towards the criminals.