Duke Callisto held the head of King Caldor in his hand.
Blood dripped from the severed head and onto the floor.
"KYAAH!" Elena screamed in fear at the sight. Even the crown prince was frozen in his seat while staring at the scene before them.
It was horrifying. The mere sight of a king's head in someone else's grasp was frightening enough for their guts to tremble.
"CALLISTO!" Henry was filled with shock as well. His hands and entire body shivered.
"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!" He raged and tried to stand up but a sword was immediately pointed on his neck by one of the knights that came inside.
That made the king stop moving.
"If he moves even an inch, severe his head just like this dead king right here," Duke Callisto ordered and the knight nodded his head before inching the weapon's blade closer to the king's head.
They knew the threats that could be imposed by the king. If they were to allow even the slightest movement from him, they would all surely come kneeling to the ground without any hopes of getting up.
Raphael's father.
Duke of the Sentinio Duchy and one of King Henry's strongest supporters when he was still a prince. He never imagined that his trusted subordinate would soon turn his loyalty against him.
What's worse is that...
"The... invasion..." He trailed off in despair and Duke Callisto gave him a sinister smile.
"Come on, Henry! It had been such a long time since the kingdom last experienced an invasion from a stronger enemy, no?" He laughed as he spoke the words and continued holding the already dead king's head.
King Caldor's head swayed from side to side as the innocent and seemingly pleasant duke grinned like a lunatic.
"It's time for Taron to fall in the hands of a better territory," He spoke and King Henry gulped in anxiousness since the knight's blade started to dig in his skin.
They were betrayed.
King Henry thought that it was the greatest surprise of the century but Duke Callisto added another phrase.
"Except for the lady, Marquis Scotch requests for her safety in the Cresencia Empire."
Everyone in the room widened their eyes and they all turned towards Elena who had the same expression as them.
"No..." She took a step back but bumped into a knight waiting behind her.
"Come on, Princess. Stop acting," Duke Callisto spoke and Elena's spine shivered at how sinister the man had suddenly become.
"D-Duke..." She trailed off and caught the gaze of the man beside her.
Asher was staring at her as if she had grown two heads and that made Elena's heart pound more.
"Do you want Asher to die first?" Duke Callisto asked and she shook her head.
In an instant, Elena's eyes and body stopped trembling. She lowered her head and a few seconds passed, raised her gaze again.
The switch of emotions and expression was astounding enough that Asher who had been frozen in his seat due to the countless swords pointed at his body stiffened further.
"My lady..." He trailed off and the expression of being betrayed was present in his face.
What does this mean? He was having so much confusion within him.
The Duke of the Sentinio Duchy where his trusted confidant had come from has started a revolution against the king?
No, it wasn't even a revolution, to begin with.
"You see, Henry, I have been offered a better position in Cresencia. I would become the ruler of Taron once we successfully invade this place." The duke laughed and the royalties inside the room all glared at the man.
"And what do we have here?" He turned to look at a man with golden hair.
"A royalty from Belmaid!" The excitement in his voice was evident and Faust gritted his teeth when Duke Callisto started to head his way while holding the sword and King Caldor's head.
"I wonder if your head is enough to trade for Belmaid Empire?" Duke Callisto then compared King Caldor's head and Faust's by nearing the severed head in Faust's direction.
The man flinched and a knight's sword dug in his side.
"Hehe. Look at this, I already have the head of Heron Kingdom's king and now I will soon have the head of Belmaid's second prince." He chuckled and continued to walk on top of the large table that wasn't destroyed by the chandelier.
"But first, we need to get rid of any unnecessary individuals." Callisto snapped his fingers and, in an instant, a scream erupted inside the conference room.
"GAAAARGH!" It was the Count.
Rion Morata's neck was being sliced off like a piece of meat by a knight's sword.
Faust, Asher, and Henry trembled in fear at the sight of Rion's neck getting severed from his body.
The sight was extremely gruesome.
Blood was pouring out like a fountain as the knight held Rion's head on the table and using his sword like a knife slicing a piece of bread.
His gurgled screams continued to resonate inside the room.
"STOP! PLEASE STOP!" He tried to beg but no one was listening.
The conference room was filled with knights from the duke's forces and they were only observing as his neck was being sliced off.
It did not even take them an entire minute for Count Rion's head to come off with the knight holding it like what Duke Callisto did with King Caldor's head.
"Hehe, look at this old man's head. He's quite funny, don't you think?" Duke Callisto laughed again and the expression of anxiousness and fear was evident in the remaining three royals inside the room.
Now there was only Faust, Asher, and King Henry.
They were being massacred inside the conference room and it won't take long until one of the three dies as well.
"Is your position of becoming Taron's ruler better than the years you've spent as the king's confidant, Duke Callisto?" They all turned their heads towards the man who spoke.
Despite his bleeding side due to the sword penetrating his skin, Faust still held his head high and did not cower against the enemies pointing their swords on his neck.
"That's common sense, your highness. Everyone would desire something better for themselves!" Callisto pointed his sword at Faust's neck once more and the urge to stab it without hesitations came crashing in like a tidal wave.
"Elena..." Asher lowered his head and Elena who was silent beside him turned to look at him too.
"Why..."
"Your highness..." She trailed off and her hands started shaking again.
"I... I promise no one will end your life, your highness!" She reassured him but that did not help Asher even for a single moment.
The betrayal cast upon him by the woman he had protected all this time was too much that his chest started to hurt.
"Elena!" They both heard the duke call for her and Elena nodded her head.
With a nervous glance, she started to walk in the king's direction.
"I... I will become the princess of Taron... I will marry his highness after that..." Her hands were shaking as she spoke the words.
"Give her a sword." One of the knights offered her a sword and Elena accepted it without any hints of hesitations.
She held the weapon with both hands and due to her pretty stout height, the sword grazed the floor. It made a screeching sound as the tip hit the tiled floor and King Henry glared at the lady.
"I see. This is what you desire." He gritted his teeth upon seeing the woman he never liked for his son.
"No wonder Pier will always be better than you-."
Stab!
Elena stabbed the king's hands and Henry howled in pain.
"NO ONE IS BETTER THAN ME! THAT... THAT LOSER AND PATHETIC BITCH OF A YOUNG MASTER WILL NEVER BE BETTER THAN ME!" She raged. Her eyes were full of anger and animosity.
"I WILL KILL HIM. I WILL KILL HIM AS WE CAPTURE THIS KINGDOM. RIGHT IN FRONT OF EVERYONE, I WILL MAKE HIM BLEED!" She screeched and added more pressure to the sword stabbing King Henry's hand.
"Years... years of being looked down on by everyone because I am only the Marquis' daughter..." She was speaking in lapses and some sentences were incomprehensible.
"Years of being looked down on by you... Just because I am not from the House of Masters..." She gritted her teeth and her eyes flared in anger.
"FATHER!" Asher tried to move but a sword grazed his shoulders.
"Don't hurt him!" Elena uttered and the knight that wounded the prince backed off. However, the sword still was pointed in different parts of his body.
"YOUR MAJESTY! THE FORCES... THE FORCES FROM THE CRESENCIA EMPIRE ARE MARCHING TOWARDS OUR WALLS!" They all closed their mouths and looked at the door of the conference room where a servant had come in.
"Your... majesty..." The poor servant trailed off but stopped when he saw the sight inside the area.
A giant chandelier fell from the ceiling and onto the table destroying it.
Two dead and headless bodies were lying on the destroyed table.
Prince Faust, Prince Asher, and King Henry are all standing there stiff with swords pointed on their necks, hands, arms, legs... everywhere.
"Yes, our forces are coming. Thank you for informing us." Duke Callisto grinned widely before slashing his sword and King Caldor's blood was removed.
He started to march towards the servant and the man could only tremble in fear.
Right in his sight, he already saw the future of the kingdom.
The King had been seized and an immeasurable number of enemies were marching to their walls from every direction.
"The kingdom has fallen..." He whispered and Duke Callisto heard the sentiments of the servant.
"Fallen? You're wrong. More like, transferred to the hands of someone stronger." He laughed and continued stepping towards the servant.
"The gods have punished us for driving the saint away..." He whispered again and Callisto raised his eyebrow.
Saint.
That irked him so much that he did not think twice about stabbing his sword directly to the servant's chest and piercing his head.
He hated the word so much.
"Disgusting." The servant peed himself in horror and even after death, the poor man still wetted himself.
"Throw that body off the window." He removed his sword and blood gushed out of the servant's chest like a fountain.
A knight came to carry the servant's body and throw it off the conference room's window.
It was on the palace's second floor and they all watched as the knight discarded it like a garbage bag.
"ARGH!" The King groaned in pain when Elena removed the sword from stabbing his hand.
"That saint is sure is annoying." He sighed and went to sit on a stool after closing the door of the conference room.
---
"PREPARE YOUR SWORDS!" The head knight screamed and the others who were stationed in the walls of the kingdom followed. Unsheathing the weapons, they held their hearts in their chest and toughened their postures.
Mages at the backline also prepared themselves to cast magic spells as they defended the territory.
The premonition that something bad would happen finally came true.
"We should have accepted the alliance from the Kingdom of Mir the moment they saved us!" Everyone trembled in fear.
"LOAD THE CANNONS!" The others who were guarding on the highest positions of the walls followed the head knight's commands.
They were under pressure.
No one could take an easy breath and with every move, their spines shivered.
How wouldn't they fear such a thing? Right on the horizon ahead of them, a mountain of armies including giant monsters were marching towards them.
---
"There are beastmasters?" He asked and Chray nodded his head.
"Yes, your majesty. Beastmasters are accompanying the forces of Cresencia and they have many tamed monsters along with their forces." The vampire responded wherein he chuckled.
"Beastmasters..." His smile widened as he wore the cloak.
"How many died in the conference room already?" He asked and Chray stiffened for a moment.
"Two. His Majesty's shadow fairy and a count named Rion Morata," He reported.
Pier made a face when he thought about the count he never met.
"I'm pretty sure they'll hold out longer there." He opened his palm and bright magic circles appeared on his feet.
"Farewell, Chray." He attached the hood of his cloak and turned his back from the vampire. Chray could only gulp in anxiousness as he watched his king's back.
"Farewell, your majesty."
A bright light engulfed Pier and he disappeared from the throne room.
---
"I'm here," Pier announced and everyone turned their heads towards him.
"Your Majesty." Everyone, except for one lowered themselves on the ground and bent their knees.
"Pier." Ciaran greeted him and immediately embraced the white-haired king. Burying his nose in the young man's neck, Ciaran grazed his lips over Pier's skin.
"Idiot. Get off." He pushed him lightly and Ciaran chuckled before they separated.
"Eliminate the guards and destroy as many houses as you can."
That was the only instruction Pier gave them and all the vampires nodded their heads.
Right in front of the young king, Pier was faced with more than five hundred forces and they were standing right in the borders of one empire.
Cresencia.
In the game of checkers, you cannot move unless you lose some of your pieces. You need to think properly about your moves and how you can surpass your enemies by eliminating all of their pieces off the board or either making them surrender.
Pier was playing right now.
He cannot invade Cresencia without sacrificing another.
Taron.
"Did you move one of the pieces again?" Ciaran asked and Pier nodded his head slyly.
"I placed Taron in front of the enemies so they can eat the kingdom." He laughed.
Good thing was that Prince Tyron had been too scared with Pier's predictions. Instead of the day after tomorrow, he surprised Taron by invading during the most unexpected dates where they couldn't prepare yet.
Pier used Taron as bait for his enemies to make way for something bigger.
The king's piece is on the opposite side of the board.
Taron and Heron Kingdom are too enticing for them to ignore and that would mean they needed a bigger force.
"Cresencia's force is currently divided into three right now. Half is clashing against the Belmaid Empire while a quarter is heading towards Taron and another is heading towards Heron." Pier explained and they all understood what he was trying to explain.
It wasn't the Taron Kingdom, Heron Kingdom, or the Belmaid Empire which are the most vulnerable right now.
"Cresencia is doing this all-out attack and risking their territory."
That's right.
The empire in front of them is currently empty and was only left with the minimal forces guarding them.
"My people." Pier raised his arms.
"Go." And at a single word, all of the five hundred vampires dispersed.
Like thick fogs, they disappeared on sight and were now heading straight towards the empire.
"How about us?" Ciaran asked him and inched himself close to Pier again.
"You know what to do, my love." Pier gently laughed and Ciaran blushed before shaking his head to remove the undesirable effect of Pier's laugh on him.
"Gather."
The clouds started to turn black.
It was already in a melancholic state due to the winter but with Ciaran manifesting his magic, the skies turned darker and the smell of death lingered in the air.
Soon, black magic circles appeared in every spot that they could see.
One by one, shadow monsters rose from the depths of Ciaran's void and they crawled out of the darkness.
It was horrifying.
Pier on the other hand was amused with Ciaran's magic.
'He's like one of the protagonists on that manhwa with a leveling system.' He chuckled at the thought.
Each shadow monster that got out of Ciaran's magic circles was towering the trees.
The ground trembled and fissures appeared as every single one of them had monstrous power that can destroy anything in their paths.
That's right. There are sacrifices to be made and Pier was willing to do it as long as his people are not affected.
He wasn't benevolent, he wasn't good.
The white-haired king had the mind of a manipulator and the actions of a psychopath if provoked.
"We will get Taron later, no?" Pier asked him and Ciaran nodded his head.
It felt like they were choosing things to buy in the market.
"But we need to give them first to the enemies. Let's have something bigger." Ciaran responded and Pier clapped his hands in excitement.
"Yey!" He raised his hands in the air and flame magic manifested in his palms.
There, Ciaran's unending waves of giant monsters stood like towering fortresses that contained the meaning of death.
Along with Pier's flame magic, the vampire king's shadows were surrounded by it.
Only holy magic can stop Ciaran's shadows. However, along with a phoenix's flames that are higher than holy magic itself, none could rival them.
Ciaran's shadows right now are unstoppable.
"Your children look cute." Pier teased and Ciaran grimaced at the mention of 'his children'. The shadows on his void are and will never be his children.
"Yeah, with their other father's flame magic surrounding them, they will be able to cause chaos, no?" He teased back and Pier laughed loudly.
"Let our kids run free, Ciaran." Pier rested his head in Ciaran's arm and the vampire king fully embraced him.
"The kings from this Empire aren't the only ones striking their enemies," Ciaran whispered in his ear and Pier nodded his head.
"Let's strike too since we're kings," He uttered and they both laughed.
Ciaran pointed his fingers at the enormous territory before them.
"Invade the Cresencia Empire."
The game of kings has begun.