The Requiem of the Nobility (1)
Altonius, the former Emperor of the Fildmerk Empire, was tasting hell.
The judgment issued by the Salbuveirs was “Burning at stake after month-long torture”, a sentence of an unbelievable degree.
Altonius had no allies around him, far from that, there were no living people around in the first place.
Torture… just that word alone had Altonius trembling.
The first day of torture began with the breaking of both his hands and feet. The Salbuveirs pinned down Altonius and relentlessly smashed his hands and feet with a war hammer. Altonius screamed due to the terrible pain, but the Salbuveirs continued torturing him without paying any attention to his screams.
After his both hands and feet were crushed, he was forcibly pulled up, chained to the wall, where the real torture began.
The Salbuveir act of violence inflicted exquisite pain. The expression ‘exquisite pain’ sounds strange, but Altonius got bestowed agony until he could barely endure. Of course, the inflicted pain was controlled so that Altonius wouldn’t die, and even Altonius understood that there were measures taken so that his spirit wouldn’t be destroyed, which added to the hopelessness he was made to savor.
Gyaaaaaaaaaaaargghhhh!!
Altonius’s torture paused only during the executions and when the cries of death passed, his torture was resumed once again.
Eventually, Altonius was eagerly waiting for his execution. He understood that it was wrong for him to feel that way, but it might have been inevitable for his heart to feel relief once these painful times would get interrupted.
After several interruptions, the patriarch of the Salbuveir clan, Ortho, appeared before him.
“The execution of the Queen and Side Consort finished just now.”
Ortho’s voice contained no emotions. That was the most terrifying thing to Altonius.
“Right now, you are the only remaining living person in this entire Fildmerk Empire.”
Altonius was silent. Even though his family was murdered, Altonius did not feel any emotions.
(The only remaining living person… does that mean I will be tortured without interruption?)
To Altonius, the fact that he would be tortured continuously without a break he has gotten thanks to the executions was more important.
“Exactly.”
Ortho grinned and said with an ambiguous meaning. When he tried to find out the meaning behind Ortho’s words, Ortho conveyed his intentions to Altonius.
“You seem far more concerned about the interruption of your torture than the death of your family.”
Altonius got panicked by Ortho’s voice that contained scorn from the bottom of his heart. Altonius felt that he was cursed “You are a scum” when Ortho guessed his true feelings.
“Y, you are wrong!!”
Altonius couldn’t bear to show the ugliness of his heart and yelled in denial.
“Don’t try to smooth things over now. You are that kind of person. The only person you find precious is yourself. It doesn’t concern you how much others suffer. Even your family. You are a truly unsightly creature.”
“A, as if!”
Bang!
Ortho swung his cane, directly striking Altonius’s face, causing blood and teeth scattering from his mouth.
“Altonius, you have my heartfelt sympathy for going to be tortured for another twenty-eight days.”
Ortho said he sympathized with Altonius, but his facial expression and tone of voice denied it. His voice and expression seemed to be very happy, and Altonius’s discomfort increased by leaps and bounds.
“There might be a lot of Salbuveirs gathered in the capital, but many were left behind. We have to leave your poor sight for them too. Don’t kick the bucket selfishly, alright?”
Ortho said so and left before Altonius could retort.
For the next month, Altonius continued receiving torture without being allowed to lose his life and spirit.
However, everyone knew that this did not mean the hell was over for Altonius.