Louis's Anger & Helena's Sacrifice

Helena looked at Harika, looking with a look of disdain. For Louis' attitude of the maid, who she considered a friend and family.

It was clear that Harika was in pain. How could Louis' big and strong leather shoes still be on Harika's back? The pressing of the feet made by Louis made Harika continue to prostrate helplessly.

"Please pardon me, Your Highness, King Louis," Harika said with a pitiful hoarse voice.

Helena's eyes were already teary, but what could she do to help Harika? Recently Helena knew that King Aarez had a dangerous nature.

She had felt the pain of the whip that had touched the surface of the skin on Helena's back.

"How presumptuous of you! A lowly servant who dared to take the royal consort out without permission. Are you a spy and an enemy of the state?" asked Louis with a sinister face, and he kept pressing his foot on Harika's back.

"Your Majesty King Louis!" cried Helena and couldn't contain herself anymore.

Her cry managed to make Louis turn to Helena. But the evil gaze was still shown by the king.

Helena shifted quickly towards Harika. For a moment, she saw Harika slightly raised her face. And saw Harika's eyes moving, as if to say,

"Don't defend me, Empress Helena."

"What else now?" asked Louis in a big, deep voice.

"It's all my fault. I beg you for pardoning me, King Louis. Don't blame Harika. All of this is purely my carelessness." Helena even held Louis' feet, cupping her hands in hopes of getting Louis' sympathy.

"I never said you weren't wrong, Empress Helena." Said Louis.

Finally, he lowered one leg from Harika's back. But he slightly rebuffed Helena's hand that was holding him. His gaze had changed to a look of disdain.

Harika had straightened her face, although she was still sitting on her knees with great fear. Helena was beside her and held Harika's hand, making a firm grip so that she could show her empathy at that time.

"Cih... disgusting... are you two showing that you are stronger than me?" asked Louis with an annoyed look, seeing Helena's grip on Harika.

"King Louis, I..." Helena had to stop for a moment from her words. Even fear had reached her constantly nervous lips.

"I... didn't mean to challenge you, Your Highness. I beg of you. This is not Harika's fault." Helena continued with a scarred face.

"I told you before, Empress. So as not to test my patience, but... it seems you want to experience how a King Aarez can be angry?" Louis approached Helena. One hand was already holding the tip of Helena's chin.

Helena's face, which had been looking down, was forced to look up. So, that Louis could see clearly, a pair of blue eyes that reminded him of Revania.

"Now answer my question, how come the watch that belonged to Revania that he gave you to a thief? Answer me honestly because the thief said he knew you very well, Empress Helena," asked Louis and was still nearby.

"Your Highness... Jack didn't steal it! He didn't steal the watch at all." Answer Helena

But before Helena finished explaining, Louis had spoken again, and this time his eyes stared suspiciously at Helena's statement just now.

"Wow... you even know the name of that guy. Are you related to him? Ah.., let me guess. Was he your lover before you married me, Empress Helena? Or both of you are a lover?" asked Louis with a sinister grin.

"Your Highness? No! I couldn't have done that to you." Helena said in a hoarse voice because this time Louis' hands had dropped to his neck.

"Your Highness? Please, stop. What Empress Helena said is true. She can't possibly betray you. I beg you ... hk... hk... Your Highness ..." Harika couldn't bear it either when she saw Helena being treated rudely.

Harika bowed again, trying to get a pardon from the king. Harika's tears continued to flow profusely. She wanted to be able to relieve the king's anger and emotions.

Louis looks unconcerned with what Harika is doing. Was it emotion, was it disbelief, was it just anger. What is clear at this time, he keeps strangling Helena's neck.

"Tell me, is the man from the same city is your lover, Empress Helena?" asked a furious Louis.

With a muffled voice and a sense of suffocation, with a hard breath. Helena could only shake her head, and both of Helena's hands tried to open Louis' strong hand, which was still gripping her neck tightly.

A pair of blue eyes that were already welling with tears. Finally managed to escape through Helena's eyelids. Helena kept shaking her head slowly, and no sound could come out of her throat.

"DAMN!!" Louis cursed, finally letting go of Helena's neck.

"Huk... Huk... Huk..."

Helena coughed loudly as she massaged her neck and inhaled as much air as possible. So she could fill her lungs that were in so much pain like they were burning from inside her body.

Harika approached Helena immediately. She held Helena's shoulders tightly.

"Empress Helena, are you alright?" asked a worried Harika, and Helena answered with a quick nod.

"There is only one way to make you admit it. You forced me to do it, Empress Helena. Even though I gave you the opportunity so that you admit your mistake!" Louis said.

In her mind, Helena was annoyed with Louis's attitude because he didn't want to hear the explanation.

Helena dared to straighten her face, which was still red.

"I've told you the truth, Your Highness. But, why you don't want to hear it?" Helena said, and she had managed to muster up her courage by then.

"Alright, Empress Helena. We'll see... how it goes... are you still going to lie and defend a servant as well as a thief. Or... you're going to ask me for forgiveness instead." Louis replied threateningly.

***

Punishment Room - Aarez Palace.

Helena recognized the room where she received the whip punishment. The punishment room she should have avoided. She was currently sitting cross-legged with two bodyguards flanking her.

While Louis sat on a big chair, his throne. He stared coldly, showing no mercy at all.

Harika?

The maid, of course, was no longer with Helena. The two were deliberately separated. Helena could only hear if Louis give an order that Harika be placed in the Aarez Kingdom's dungeon.

The atmosphere became tense when no one spoke, as everyone was focused on King Aarez's orders.

"So... don't you want to tell the truth yet, Empress Helena? Are you going to be quiet? I could have used a lie detector. But you know what, if I prefer to use the old way, deterrent effect." Said Louis looking at Helena, who had straightened her face.

The two of them stared at each other, and Helena couldn't help but gasp as she said...

"What I said is true, and there is no way I would betray you, Your Highness," Helena answered firmly and confidently.

"ENOUGH! ENOUGH WITH ALL YOUR LIE WORDS!"

Louis' yell made Helena close her eyes for a few seconds, and after that, she smiled at the King.

"If you don't believe me, then... do things that will make you believe," said Helena boldly.

Louis laughed loudly, not because he was happy. But because he felt challenged by Helena's statement just now.

"You are too brave, Empress Helena. Do you think... a King Louis would be weak in front of a woman? Cih... of course not."

"Guards! Take the finger clamp. And punish Empress Helena." Louis ordered loudly.

"Very well, Your Majesty the King."

One guard went to take a tool that Helena didn't know about it.

It was seen that tool was on a long iron shelf. Where on the shelf there is much dangerous equipment, which Helena doesn't know what kind.

While another guard took a short wooden box that looked like a table. The bodyguard took Helena's hand roughly and placed it on the wooden box.

The other bodyguards had returned with something shaped like a scroll, made of bamboo that had a rough texture. Then he stretched, and each row of bamboo had a small gap.

Again, Helena's hands were firmly gripped. And the guards who were holding the bamboo finger clamps began to insert Helena's fingers one by one in each narrow gap.

Helena was already biting her lip, for she could already imagine how the punishment tool would work on her fingers.

"Ahh..!" Helena moaned softly when all her fingers had entered every very narrow bamboo slit. She could feel her fingers unable to move as all of her fingers were caught by the bamboo scroll.

"Are you afraid, Empress Helena?" asked Louis with a sinister chuckle.

Helena didn't answer. She just put on a brave face and continued to stick to her true principles.

"Hh... well... DO IT NOW!" Louis ordered with annoyance.

The bodyguard in front of Helena began to reach for the rope that connected the bamboo scroll. And began to pull so hard that Helena could feel each of her fingers being squeezed tightly against each other.

The pain was unbearable, making Helena couldn't help but scream.

"Argghhh...!!!"

It felt like Helena could feel her skin starting to sting because the strong little bamboo continued to squeeze tightly.

The more Helena screamed, the more pain she felt. Even Helena thought that maybe her finger bones would crack.

Shout after scream continued to sound. Helena had to endure it all. Even though she had to show it in front of King Aarez, showing that she wasn't lying about her own words.