Go on.

"Shall we begin then," Arthur declared, rising from his knees with a commanding presence. His towering figure cast a shadow over the trembling man, and the frantic cries of the captive maidens reverberated through the air like haunting echoes.

"These women right in front of you… where did you get them?" Arthur's voice cut through the forest's silence, his eyes narrowing with deadly intent. His gaze bore into the man, as if trying to unravel the secrets hidden deep within.

"I .I don't understand what you mean… they were brought up in the village like every other person here…." The accused man stammered, beads of sweat glistening on his forehead, his eyes darting around in fear.

His trembling hand instinctively reached for a small stone behind him. It was as if his body moved of its own accord.

"Eh?" The man's voice quivered as his left hand instinctively gripped a jagged stone, while his right hand lay trembling on the forest floor before him.

Without a shred of warning, his desperation overcame reason, and he brought the stone crashing down upon his own fingers. A sickening crack resonated through the forest, the gruesome sound reverberating in the ears of all who bore witness.

"Ahhhh! My fingers! I broke my fingers!" The man's anguished cry pierced the air, his face twisted in pain and anguish. Tears streamed down his cheeks, mingling with the sweat and dirt, yet he remained rooted to the spot.

His bloodied fingers clutched the stone once more, a macabre tableau of agony and resolve against the backdrop of the ancient forest. The shadows danced around him as the sun's rays filtered through the leaves, casting an eerie glow on the scene.

Smash!

The brutal sound of stone meeting flesh and bone echoed through the ancient forest once more. The man's tortured cry tore through the air, a guttural wail of agony that seemed to reach deep into the heart of the woodland.

His gasps for air were drowned out by the relentless cascade of tears streaming heavily down his dirt-streaked cheeks.

As the stone met the remnants of his crushed fingers, blood oozed from the wounds, leaving a gruesome trail on the rough surface.

The ground beneath him bore witness to this gruesome spectacle, marred by the scattered fragments of his shattered fingers, a horrifying mosaic of blood and ripped flesh.

"Go on now… I never said you could stop," Arthur's voice cut through the torment like a knife, his tone calm and unyielding. He surveyed the onlookers, his eyes probing their reactions with an intensity that matched the scene unfolding before them.

The man's cries continued to fill the forest as he kept breaking his bones with the small rock, each agonized scream a desperate plea for mercy that went unanswered. "Ahhhh!!" he wailed, the pain driving him to the brink of madness.

"Why am I… Ahhhhh!!" His words were fragmented, a disjointed plea for respite.

"Make it stop! Make it stop!!!" He begged, his voice a pitiful symphony of suffering.

The once defiant maidens, who had struggled moments ago to free themselves from their makeshift prison, now laid frozen in terror.

Their eyes, wide with shock, remained fixed on the harrowing spectacle before them. The villagers, who had gathered to watch the proceedings, were equally gripped by a collective fear, their expressions reflecting a mix of horror and morbid curiosity.

The man's relentless cries, punctuated by the sickening sound of stone meeting bone, sent shivers through the onlookers.

"Please… Plesssssssse!!!" The man's voice cracked with desperation as the stone descended once more, this time onto his toes. The excruciating pain surged through him like a tidal wave, and in an instant, his anguished cries were silenced as he blacked out.

Raiden's wide eyes mirrored the terror that had gripped her. She was at the edge of the unfolding nightmare, her heart pounding in her chest as she watched Arthur's slow, deliberate movements.

With an iron grip, he seized the village head by the hair, raising the man's head with a cruel determination that sent shivers down her spine.

'W…what kind of monster is he? Even I am afraid of him. What's going on here?' she whispered to herself, her voice trembling in sync with her fear.

As the man's head was raised, Arthur's demand cut through the oppressive silence like a blade. "Where did you get these girls from?"

The man, his face a mask of weakness and terror, managed to speak, his eyes barely open as if unable to withstand the weight of his confession. "I… I abducted them!!" His admission, torn from him with a desperate yell, hung in the air like a damning verdict.

A small, sinister grin curled on Arthur's face as he spoke, his satisfaction palpable. "Very good… now it wasn't that hard, was it?" His voice held a chilling edge, a hint of triumph at having extracted the truth from the trembling man.

"Roof! Roof!!!" The man's desperate response came in the form of an animalistic bark, his tongue lolling out as he began to pant like a dog. His eyes were wide with panic, and he knew, deep down, that his life was irrevocably over.

A strange stillness settled over the crowd that had gathered to witness this grim spectacle. The villagers, who had been gripped by fear and anticipation moments ago, now wore expressions of disbelief and bewilderment.

Their village head, a figure of authority and respect, had been reduced to barking like a madman to a stranger. It was a surreal and unsettling sight that left them stunned.

Amidst the sea of bewildered faces, the girls stood apart, their expressions a mix of shock, confusion, and slowly dawning realization. The truth about their ordeal was a heavy burden to bear, and the revelation hung over them like a dark cloud.

"Kunis! What do you mean abduct?!" Mona's voice erupted in a yell, her eyes blazing with anger and disbelief. She grunted with effort, struggling against the unforgiving chains that bound her.

Her fellow maidens mirrored her expressions, their faces etched with confusion and curiosity, emotions they had long suppressed in fear of this very topic.

"Go on… explain to them," Arthur urged, his voice deceptively calm as he continued to pet the man on the head, an unsettling display of encouragement.

The man hesitated, beads of sweat forming on his trembling brow. "It… it happened 24 years ago… I can't really remember," he stammered, his voice strained. "Our village was supposed to deliver trades..." His words hung in the air, a cryptic beginning to a tale.