In the dark dungeon, a dim light cast a shadow on the wall as the captive dangled from the ceiling. The shadow flickered and swayed like a forked tree branch.
The prisoner did not struggle, nor did she utter a yelp or beg for mercy. She only produced an almost inaudible moan when the whip landed on her skin.
But that was soon drowned out by the following lashes.
Crack!
Crack!
The candlelight wavered and flickered as it played with the swaying shadow as it moved across the ceiling. The dull sound of a whipcrack cut through the gruesome silence of the dungeon.
After around ten lashes, Earl Lorenzo said,
Enough. Take a break!
Yes, my lord.
The executioner withdrew.
Blood trickled down the female prisoner’s back. There were new and old whipmarks all over her body. Apparently, this was not her first time being tortured. Beads of sweat stood out from the tip of her nose and arms. Obviously, she was suffering great pain, but she forced herself not to cry out.
So, are you still not going to tell me where the Holy Book is?
The earl walked up to the woman and grabbed her by the chin, forcing her to look at him. It was a pretty face, despite the constant torture the woman had been going through. As a matter of fact, her damp skin and bright eyes made her even more attractive.
The church is over, Farrina. Do you still want to plot against me? You should at least think about your companions if not about yourself.
Those damn church dregs!
Lorenzo thought savagely.
There are many places they could have chosen to live in the Kingdom of Wolfheart. Why did they have to pick Archduke Island? I made it very clear when I executed the messengers that I want them to leave me alone. Plus, they have a group of God’s Punishment Warriors and could have picked anywhere to settle down as long as they stay as far away from Graycastle as possible. Why did they attempt to murder me? If I didn’t ask Pope Mayne to give me some guards to protect me as a precaution, they would have mounted my head on the city wall by now.
At this thought, Lorenzo felt the side of his missing left ear throb again.
When the two groups of God’s Punishment Army had fought that day, Farrina had nearly killed him. Fortunately, his guard had blocked her strike. He survived but had also lost his left ear.
Lorenzo was actually more upset about the loss of the God’s Punishment Warriors than his missing ear. Out of the 20 God’s Punishment Warriors, only two to three were capable of fighting now. The others had either died during the battle or had lost limbs. It was impossible for them to fight again.
Yet he relied on those God’s Punishment Warriors to secure his position on Archduke Island!
The nobles in the Kingdom of Wolfheart did not come back to him not because of the change in his status from a bishop to a noble, but because of their fear of the God’s Punishment Warriors. If they knew he had only a few capable God’s Punishment Warriors left, they would probably strip him of his earl title immediately.
Lorenzo was so tempted to cut Farrina into pieces.
But he could not do that.
Not before he knew where the Holy Book was.
I’m not sure whether the church is over, but I know you are… Earl Lorenzo, no, I should call you a traitor,
After a moment of silence, Farrina said quietly.
My biggest mistake was that I underestimated your God’s Punishment Warriors, but there are few you can use now, right? Otherwise, you wouldn’t need the Holy Book so badly. You want to know the secret passing down among the popes, which is how to create the God’s Punishment Army, so that you can keep your pitiable position…
Smack!
The earl boxed her ears.
You’d better tell me what I want!
Lorenzo threatened through his teeth.
Tell me, where is the Holy Book?
Blood dripped down from the corner of the prisoner’s mouth. Farrina said,
I don’t know…
That’s really a pity.
The earl eyed the executioner.
Chop off a leg. Pick anyone you like. I want her companions…
Stop acting.
Farrina interrupted Lorenzo feebly in a derisive tone.
You remember the finger you sent me last time? The blood had darkened. Do you still want to play the same trick? It seems that the comfortable life here has made our bishop forget the difference between a living man and a dead one. You chopped it off from a body, right? You killed them a long time ago, traitor!
Lorenzo’s face clouded over.
I’m not even an acting pope. How would I know where the Holy Book is? Pope Tucker Thor might know it, but he never told me. Nobody in this world would ever know how to create a God’s Punishment Army now.
You’re lying!
Lorenzo went livid.
Tucker Thor asked you to come to rebuild the church in the Kingdom of Wolfheart and revenge Hermes! Without the Holy Book, how can the church compete against Graycastle?
Haha…
To Lorenzo’s surprise, Farrina laughed.
With a God’s Punishment Army, the church can’t compete against Graycastle either. The acting pope simply wanted to save us and for everybody to spend the rest of their lives peacefully.
This is absurd! Do you think I’ll believe you?
The earl roared.
If you planned to settle down, why did you attack Archduke Island? Didn’t you attempt to steal the wealth, the food, the armors and the weapons here? Tucker entrusted the God’s Punishment Warriors to you, and he just wanted you to live a happy life? Nonsense!
Believe it or not, but this is the truth,
Farrina said indifferently.
I also want to tell you something else. If you didn’t kill the messengers but treated them fairly, we would have probably chosen somewhere else to settle down. But you made the worst decision. You know what kind of people I despise? Those double crossers like you!
You—
You failed Pope O’Brien, so you don’t deserve the life Pope Tucker Thor earned for us.
There was a faint starchiness in Farrina’s voice.
It’s a shame that I didn’t kill you, but the nobles in the Kingdom of Wolfheart would eventually know who you are. Even if you have washed your hands off the whole matter and have nothing to do with the church, you’ll never become a true noble! You’re just a traitor living on borrowed time!
Lorenzo took a deep breath, trying to suppress his anger. He growled,
I know exactly what your little scheme is. You just attempted to provoke me into killing you so that the whereabouts of the Holy Book would remain as a secret forever. But I can make you spit it out. There are not only supplies in here but also a lot of instruments of torture which we normally use on witches. I wonder if you would hold up better than those Fallens.
He cast a glance at Farrina’s feet and said,
Let’s start with your toenails… I hope you could still play tough when I rip them off.
…
After returning to the castle hall, Lorenzo could not contain himself any longer. He smashed the tea set onto the floor.
Damn, damn, damn Farrina !
He had armed himself with a mask of cruelty to conceal his inner uncertainty. In fact, Lorenzo had no idea how long it would take Farrina to yield. As a member of the Judgement Army, she had an exceptionally strong willpower. Perhaps, it would not be that easy to get something out of her.
He could not just close the port and announce a trade ban all of a sudden, for that would immediately raise suspicions among the nobles. If he, however, left Archduke Island as it was, there was a big chance that the nobles would appoint merchants to spy on him. Therefore, he needed more God’s Punishment Warriors to protect him before it was too late!
But Farrina, a person he loathed so much, refused to tell him that key information.
This is so frustrating!
Just then, his butler came in.
Your lordship, I’ve heard something interesting recently…
Get out of here. I’m not in the mood for some trivial gossip!
The butler looked at the broken crockery and said patiently,
It may be helpful in solving your problem.
What?
Lorenzo looked up instantly.
What is it?
After he became an earl and the lord of Archduke Island, his followers also became his
family members
. Hagrid, the butler, was one of his henchmen. As a former priest, he sometimes provided Lorenzo with counsels.
The border of the Kingdom of Dawn has been a little unstable lately. It seems that they plan to head to Cage Mountain.
What does it have to do with us?
Lorenzo scowled.
Archduke Island won’t gain anything from it, no matter who takes Cage Mountain.
I’m not talking about the operation itself, but the person behind this…
Hagrid paused for a second and continued,
Your lordship, I’ve heard that the King of Graycastle is behind this.
