131:
Shelley looked at the ashes scattering in the wind and sighed. He raised the untouched glass of red wine and drained it in one gulp. Then he forcefully smashed the glass.
“…Farewell.”
The door behind him opened. Elena silently walked over and took Shelley’s left hand.
“Didn’t I tell you to wait for me in my room?”
Holding Shelley’s hand tightly, Elena looked at the two remaining wooden stakes and said in a low voice, “I… was very worried about you.”
“Mm.”
He nodded at Lilith, who was looking at him with the same worried eyes. Squeezing Elena’s hand, Shelley turned his head to look at the rising sun on the horizon. He narrowed his eyes slightly and said softly, “The heroes have passed… then the pests must also perish.”
“Mm.”
…
Kerry felt like he was about to break down. This place was completely different from what he had imagined. After the initial punishment, he had been thrown in here. No one paid him any attention. No food, no water, no questioning… there wasn’t even anyone here.
“Who is it!? I must escape.”
“I will make you pay!”
His eyes began to turn red, and a faint evil aura appeared on his body.
“You’re really useless. You can’t even turn into a rat and escape in this situation?”
A mocking voice sounded from behind him. He looked back in terror and saw Shelley appear on one side of the cage, looking down at him and shaking his head gently.
“Shelley Bell! It’s you?”
“How are you still alive!?”
“What are you trying to do?”
“How dare you kidnap a… mmph!”
Kerry’s angry shouts stopped. A floating, dirty rag was stuffed into his mouth. He wanted to spit it out, but he couldn’t. Kerry felt his stomach churn. He wanted to vomit but couldn’t.
“Don’t talk anymore. You’re very noisy.”
“I’m in a bit of a bad mood.”
Shelley’s expression was not as cheerful and sunny as Kerry remembered, but had a hint of gloom. He quickly kicked Kerry’s kneecaps, making him kneel in pain before him.
“It doesn’t matter to me how a person like you dies.”
“But my father… he said he wants you to pay the price. He wants you to die a very painful death.”
Bruno!? That old thing!?
“And before you die, I want to ask you some things.”
“I’ll promise you one thing. If you tell me everything, I’ll give you a not-so-miserable death.”
“But if you don’t tell me, I will make you experience the greatest pain in this world.”
With wide eyes, Kerry wanted to speak but couldn’t make a sound.
“Wuwu! Wuwuwu!”
“Not talking… good, very good.”
Ignoring Kerry’s wide eyes, Shelley revealed a cruel smile. He reached out and grabbed Kerry’s red-and-gray hair, dragging him to a room full of torture instruments. He threw Kerry in. Shelley’s figure, illuminated by the faint light from the doorway, looked like a heinous murderer.
His blue eyes were stained with blood. Shelley stared at Kerry coldly.
“I hope you can last longer than Congreve.”
“After all, you are his father.”
In Kerry’s desperate and disbelieving eyes, the door behind Shelley slammed shut.
“Now… let’s begin.”
…
“Your Majesty! This is the latest news from Lunt.”
Nadia nodded, signaling for the guard to withdraw. At this time, Nadia in the study looked different from usual. She wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses and a magic robe with magnificent patterns. Her temperament was similar to when Shelley had first met her, calm with a hint of majesty.
She picked up the reports and read them one by one.
The first one: “Robb Pitt assassinated the Bishop of the Temple of Justice, was tried by the religious inquisition, and sentenced to death.”
“The Pitt family objected and attempted a jailbreak.”
“They were attacked by the Temple of Justice, and evidence of their collusion with an evil god was found.”
“The entire Duke Pitt family has been removed from the records of Fente.”
She turned to the next one: “Prince Kerry Fente controlled King Monroe Fente and attempted to usurp the throne.”
“He secretly murdered the two princes, the little princess, and the king’s concubines.”
“But in the end, he was discovered by the First Princess, and his plan was foiled.”
“He was also the one who planned the royal bloodbath three years ago.”
“Kerry has been beheaded in the square, with Princess Elena personally carrying out the execution.”
“His head has been cast in a bronze statue and placed in the royal cemetery.”
“His body has been fixed to a cross in the center of the square for the birds to peck at.”
Just then, Lydia walked in with a pot of black tea and saw her teacher shaking her head. She put down the teapot and was just about to speak when she heard Nadia let out a hateful snort.
“Hmph!”
The sudden burst of aura from Nadia startled Lydia. The papers before Nadia also flew up in the wind. One of them landed on the floor in front of Lydia. She bent down to pick it up and saw that it said, “Elena Fente, as the sole member of the royal family, has ascended the throne in Lunt, becoming the new Queen of Fente.”
“And on the same day, she announced that Shelley Bell is her Prince Consort, bestowed upon him the title of Prince, and…”
Lydia’s small mouth grew wider and wider. She looked at the handwriting in disbelief.
“Changed his name to… Shelley Fente!”
Ah!? Master Shelley changed his name!? This…
Lydia carefully looked at Nadia, who was sitting on the stool, and shrank her shoulders.
“Something big is about to happen…”
That’s right. Something big is about to happen.
At this moment, what Nadia was thinking about was not that Shelley Bell had become Shelley Fente. She was thinking… if Ir sent troops now, how long would it take to conquer the Kingdom of Fente.
“Damned little girl!”
“How dare she!”
“Hmph!”
Her heart was filled with hatred, but Nadia’s expression didn’t show much. Lydia only felt the temperature in the room gradually drop. She shivered and sneezed. It was this sneeze that brought Nadia back to her senses.
Taking a deep breath, Nadia stood up and said to Lydia, “I’m going out for a bit…”
“If anyone asks for me, tell them not to worry.”
With that, without waiting for Lydia’s reply, she opened a portal and disappeared before her eyes.
“Teacher…”
Lydia’s outstretched right hand gradually fell. She thought with some worry, “Please don’t let anything happen…”
“And… is Master Shelley coming back?”
…
And at this time, Shelley was sitting on the bed in the queen’s bedchamber, looking at the crowned Elena kneeling restlessly on the floor.
Shelley leaned over and poked Elena’s forehead, saying softly, “Well, what are you going to do?”
