Venomous Lullaby

A chilling gust of wind whipped through the shattered window, lashing the room with icy tendrils.

Karyan stood up, his muscles tensing as he moved toward the bed.

He sank onto the edge and let out a long, heavy sigh, his breath carrying the weight of the world as he collapsed against the pillows.

"There's no time, actually. I need a sorcerer…"

Karyan looked at the ceiling, his mind mixed with possibilities and questions of where to find one.

"Gahla?"

It was a neighboring country, known for its own treasure and threats.

They had demons and a lot of demon hunters thirsty to sacrifice themselves for their power, for a sorcerer's power.

"Maybe there I should find one?"

As Karyan was pointing out his future goals, he realized one little thing: he had no allies and no one to trust this time.

He could send a letter, but to whom? As soon as they hear that he was reborn, his neck would probably be blessed by the same blade twice.

So, for the first time, Karyan felt alone…

Not that it could've stopped him from achieving any of his goals, but the empty dark room seemed to have the same future behind the door.

"What should I do then?"

He asked out loud, hoping for an answer from someone, maybe Lanta?

But to his surprise, even Sera was quiet, "Maybe she got offended when I shushed her away?"

He stood up. "Sera!" His tone was demanding.

She showed up. "I have something fun for us. Do you wanna make poison?"

She tilted her head and lowered it; it was a yes.

An excitement-like vibration went through his veins, "I have something fun in my mind."

Karyan carefully extracted the venom from Sera's fangs, his hands steady despite the fact that it had been a while since he made poison instead of an antidote.

Beneath the bed, he nurtured a collection of exotic leaves, their dark green colors still visible even at night.

To conceal their telltale scent, Karyan devised a clever system of ventilation, channeling the odors through a maze of hidden passages and out into the open air.

As he meticulously blended the ingredients, an air of iciness shrouded his movements, each step taken with cautious precision.

The simmering concoction released no hint of its deadly potential; Karyan's skill in the art of poison was on a whole new level.

"There… a little bit of fun we're going to have now." He glanced at Sera, who had no idea what this human was going to do now.

Silently, Karyan slipped out of the room, the snake coiled around his arm like a living bracelet. The mansion exuded an eerie stillness, its dark corridors amplifying the weight of its history.

Reaching Maiko's son's bedroom, Karyan slid through the door like a wraith, his presence barely disturbing the air.

The moonlight cast an ethereal glow upon the room, illuminating the sleeping figure of his target.

Every creak of the floorboards seemed magnified, yet Karyan moved with a predator's grace, his senses keenly attuned to the task at hand.

"Let's start," he whispered to Sera, and leaning closer to the few months old baby, he stared at him.

It slept peacefully and unbothered, looking as though he had already achieved everything in life he ever wanted, just by being born.

Karyan's chest lifted and lowered; he furrowed his eyebrows and then relaxed them.

This baby was just there, resting like the kingdom's biggest treasure.

Karyan stood in awe as he gazed at Maiko's newborn clothes. Everything looked so posh and covered in gold. 

The fancy golden crib stood in the center of the room, gleaming under the soft glow of the room's crystal chandelier. 

The crib was adorned with intricate carvings of animals and flowers, and the golden bars were draped with delicate lace curtains that swayed gently in the breeze from the open window.

On the plush mattress inside the crib lay the softest blankets Karyan had ever seen, each one embroidered with the Maiko's family crest in shimmering gold thread.

The toys scattered around the room were no ordinary playthings—they had been gifted by the king himself.

Karyan marveled at the exquisite craftsmanship of the wooden rocking horse, its mane made of real horsehair and its eyes sparkling with tiny sapphires.

Beside it, a set of hand-carved building blocks awaited the time when the baby would be old enough to stack them into towers.

The walls of the nursery were adorned with delicate tapestries depicting scenes from ancient folklore, their golden threads catching the light and casting warm.

A regal armchair sat in one corner, upholstered in the finest velvet and adorned with golden tassels.

Karyan imagined Maiko sitting there, holding his newborn, surrounded by luxury and love.

As he took in the view of the room, Karyan couldn't help but feel the heat inside his head, like it was stroking his neck and then going down to his shoes. 

He disliked the innocent baby too.

It was a world far removed from his own, where a simple meal was a feast, water or even milk was almost far beyond his reach.

They wore dirty clothes all the time, and diapers... that was a whole new torture...

Yet, as he looked at the tiny, sleeping baby in the crib, he knew that the most important things in life were power and money…

"I'm just getting at your father, no personal feelings," he told the baby as he wetted its lips with the "snow" poison he had just made.

"You see, when I was about your age, your father tried to poison me and my brother too, so I'm just repaying the favor back."

"Sssshhh…"

"I know, it should finish him in an hour."

As the baby started to feel a sharp sting on its lips and a painful jab in its tongue, it opened its eyes to see a pair of scary, red-like-fire eyes looking down. 

Before the baby could wail, Karyan quickly covered the baby's mouth with his hands, whispering, "hush now, little one," in a calm and deep tone, as he put more of the poison near the baby's nose, letting the darkness take him.

Karyan gently applied more poison to the baby's lips, observing as it took effect, causing a noticeable change in the color of the skin.

"Don't worry, you can get back at me in your next life," Karyan stated.

"Sssshhh…"

"Let's go now in case he starts crying again," he looked at the baby one more time, "tomorrow, everyone will mourn inside the mansion, for you…"