22: His Wrath

"All of you leave. I wished to have a private conversation with my son." With a wave of her hand, the three maids that were with her, as well as her guards, bowed at the two of them before leaving the vicinity.

Finally left alone, the Queen turned to face the boy.

"Are you not going to show some respect for your mother?" The Queen spoke in a sweet manner; however, the cold glint in her eyes spoke everything that her mouth could not say.

If they were not within the palace, then the situation could have been different. Knowing that the Emperor's ears and eyes were everywhere, she had to act accordingly. However, if she was given a chance, then she would kill the boy right then and there.

"You flattered yourself too much, woman. You actually have the nerve to call yourself my mother? Have you forgotten that you are merely a lowly slave whom my father, the Emperor, brought back from a fallen kingdom?" Rowan suddenly wore a mischievous grin as he gazed directly at the Queen.

"Such a big tone!" After hearing this remark, the Queen angrily shouted. She clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. His words hit a soft spot that she tried to bury deep within her mind.

"I guessed you are so preoccupied with your new status that you failed to realise that I am always like this, woman. However, I would give you a chance. I know that you have a lot to say right now, so go ahead. Enlighten me. This may be your only chance to talk to me like this. I would make sure that the next time we met, your head would merely be a decorative object for my blade," Rowan nonchalantly replied.

"You!" The Queen almost spat out venom as she glared menacingly at the boy. Anger flared across her face at his pithy insults. Her knuckles whitened while she clenched her fists tightly.

In the end, the Queen took a few deep breaths, trying to suppress her trembling body in anger. She knew that she would be in trouble should this continue.

Forcing a smile, she once again faced the boy with a calm demeanour. "My Prince. You are courageous indeed. You really are Princess Ophelia's son. You know, sometimes I wondered what it was like if you became my son instead." The Queen flattered her long lashes, as if trying to seduce a grown man.

Seeing this, Rowan could not help but smile even more. Though he came here with different thoughts in mind, he found himself in a situation that he had never dreamed of.

"If I might ask, what happened to the sweet boy who used to hide behind his mother's dress whenever we met?" The Queen enquired, noticing that the air around the boy had completely changed. Even the way he spoke and held himself was not what she remembered him to be.

"You seemed…" she paused, her eyes scrutinising every detail of the boy. "Different."

"Is that so?" Rowan responded, still unperturbed about how the woman gazed at him.

"Did you come here to seek revenge for your mother? If so, then come. I would give you the opportunity to do that." The Queen closed her eyes upon saying this. She even spread her arms, anticipating the pain that would accompany her when the boy made his move.

However, moments later, nothing came. When she opened her eyes, she found the boy still standing in front of her. He had not moved an inch. He only stared at her with a stoic face, devoid of any emotions. His gaze actually sent shivers down her spine.

"What are you doing? Take advantage of this golden opportunity before I change my mind."

"Even without your consent, claiming your lowly existence would be an easy feat. For someone like you, death would actually be a mercy. However, killing you on the spot would not be able to quench my thirst for vengeance, and I am even willing to let bygones be bygones for ruining my mother. However…" Rowan paused for a moment. His eyes suddenly shone with wrath as a powerful wave of violent fury rose inside of him. His whole body quivered with rage as he eyed the Queen in front of him.

"I am willing to go as far as to forget everything; however, you made one grave and terrible mistake. You actually dared to touch what's mine!"

"What? What are you talking about?" The Queen was taken aback. Her brows immediately met in the center, and her face contorted into confusion. She stared at the boy like he had grown a third head.

Rowan, on the other hand, gritted his teeth. He met her gaze with a menacing glare. "You might not know this, but your wicked schemes claimed the life of someone very important to me." Unable to control his emotions, his eyes glowed crimson as his mana suddenly surged. It almost pierce through the clouds above.

The queen staggered backwards by the sudden surge of mana. Her eyes snapped open when she sensed the powerful killer intent that was directed at her.

With a loud cough, she fell to the ground while clutching her neck. She gasped for air. It felt like an invincible force gripped her neck, making it impossible to breathe.

Realising that she could not get out of her situation, she suddenly laughed like a madwoman.

"Even if you kill me right now, it would not change the fact that your mother, as well as the person, whoever he was, wouldn't come back to life. There would be no miracle!" The queen managed to shout in between gasps of air.

"Mommy?"

The two were suddenly interrupted when they heard a small voice. The Queen quickly snapped her head back to see her son staring at her with an innocent gaze.

"Mommy? Big Bwader Rowan?"

"My baby! Urgh!" She tried to stand however; the invincible force became even stronger.

With a loud thud, she once again fell to the ground. This time, her knees were almost crushed upon impact.

Suddenly, the force that bound her slowly loosened. When she felt it, she quickly turned around and saw Rowan, who was now looking at her son with a menacing glint in his eyes. Her eyes immediately widened when realisation hit her like tons of bricks.

"No! Don't you dare!"

Bang!

Before the Queen could even move, a loud bang suddenly echoed in the area. Her eyes widened like saucer plates. She felt like time itself slowed down as she looked back at her son.

What she saw almost made her heart jump out of her chest. Her beloved prince was already on the ground, unconscious. The rapid dripping of crimson liquid from his head was the final trigger.

"No! How dare you! I would kill you!" The scene in front of her was like a torment in her mind. All her muscles tense up, followed by her inability to think clearly.

At that moment, the normally rational and calm Queen now looked like a ferocious beast. She had lost her liberal viewpoints and her capacity for subtlety.

Her fists curled tightly into a ball.

An uncontrollable rage blinded her. Suddenly, dark mana enveloped her whole body, and her six inner circles glowed brilliantly as they circulated around her heart. However, before she could take any action, the invincible force once again made its way to her neck. Despite her strength, the invincible force pinned her to the ground, rendering her powerless.

"Let me go, now! I swear I would kill you, even if it were the last thing I ever did!" Some saliva flew out of her mouth, but she did not care. All she knew was the rage that was burning within her.

"I wouldn't kill you, but I would ensure that you yearn for death every single day. I would let you experience the agony of losing someone dear to you."

"Don't you dare! No! I swear, I would turn you into a bloody pulp once I am finished with you! Let me go, now!" The Queen squirmed vigorously, trying to escape the force that bound her, but to no avail. She could only watch as Rowan walked past her and towards her still unconscious son.

"What are you going to do? Please! Not my baby! I would not be able to live without him! No!"

The Queen's voice was now considerably lowered as she pleaded for her son's life. However, Rowan just stared at the bloodied boy with an emotionless face.

He would play with the child whenever he had time. After all, he was still an innocent child and had no idea what his mother was like. Unfortunately, at this moment, Rowan could not find it in himself to spare his life. He just stared at his motionless body with an expressionless face. It seemed that all of his emotions had gone away with Kalliste's death. All that was left for him was a hollow feeling that slowly engulfed his soul.

Without any hesitation, Rowan summoned a sword.

When she saw this, the Queen screamed like a madwoman as she once again squirmed out of the invisible force, only to fail miserably.

Rowan just glanced in her direction before speaking, "I wanted you to watch how I would kill your beloved son. Feel what I felt as you slowly and painfully lose your sanity. And when you reached the point where death was your sweetest escape, I would find your soul from hell, drag you back, and torture you again and again and again," he slowly said with a dead voice.

There was a sharp emphasis with his every word that pierced straight through her soul. However, she could not do anything. She was helpless against the overwhelming power that forced her to complete submission. Tears finally ran down her face as she was forced to watch how Rowan gripped her son's neck, almost crushing it in the process.

"What is going on here? Third Prince Rowan! Let your brother go! Now!"

A new ray of hope emerged when the Queen suddenly heard the Emperor's voice. She quickly looked back and saw the Emperor approaching them. "Your Majesty! I beg of you. Please rescue our son! The prince had gone insane and wanted to kill my son! Urgh!" The Queen struggled to move, ignoring her bones being crushed.

Seeing the situation, the Emperor narrowed his eyes upon his sons. One was already on the verge of death, while the other one was like a madman.

"Prince Rowan. As your Emperor, I command you to let them go, or you will receive punishment!" The Emperor roared; his voice could be heard all over the palace.

However, Rowan merely looked past his shoulders. The moment their eyes met, the Emperor suddenly stepped backwards.

'Those eyes! What in the world happened for him to have such a gaze? Those were the eyes of someone who gave up their worldly emotions just to gain overwhelming power and might! But how?'

"No! Your Majesty! You have to do something! My baby!"

The Queen's loud voice brought him back to reality. He gritted his teeth as he was forced to intervene.

'It would be hard to defeat someone who already reached a level of such caliber. However, it would be manageable to force him to sleep," At that thought, the Emperor concentrated his powers on the prince.

"Magnienis Agoetus!" Just as the words escaped his lips, a cluttered, bronze blaze of fragments suddenly enveloped Rowan's whole body.

Rowan snapped his head toward his father, realising what the Emperor wanted to do.

"Stay out of my business!" He roared and was about to attack his father when he suddenly felt drowsy. His body became heavy, and his eyelids slowly dropped.

Before he knew it, the welcoming darkness hugged his consciousness, but not before hearing the words of his father.

"Redectum Vexelio."