The Crown's Fire - Chapter 72

Chapter 72: Break Her Spirit
Stepping out of the portal, Tarah steeled herself for her inevitable conversation with Devon. It was always a worry for her whenever she did this, interacting with the Demon King, but it was a necessary evil if she wanted to keep her brother Levi safe.

“You’re finally here,” Devon greeted her with a confident smirk. “I’ve been waiting for word from you.”

“Apologies, My Lord. I was busy making sure that things were going according to plan,” she meekly replied, making sure to bow deeply to the Demon King. “The situation is moving forward at a steady pace. We just need a bit more time before we can proceed.”

“Time again… Why can’t we just pull out the damn dragon’s soul already so that I can finally harness its power?”

Tarah inwardly bit her lip. She was more than ready to answer this question. But somehow, she still felt like she was about to get punished for what little she managed to do. She was the cause of the delays, after all, which was all that she could do to ensure that the Demon King wouldn’t be able to get to the dragon’s power.

“My Lord, unfortunately, the dragon’s spirit is currently merging with Prince Ezekiel’s,” she carefully explained, making sure that each word she spoke sounded as apologetic as possible. “There is little we can do while we wait for the process to finish.”

“Little? Why can’t we just force the issue then?” Devon questioned, his tone lowering with every syllable. “This sounds like you’re just making excuses.”

“I am telling the truth,” she insisted. “Extracting Vulcan from the Prince’s body now would only lead to more problems, and that is on top of it being impossible in the first place. Queen Dana had already attempted to do so, and she too failed because of this phenomenon.”

Devon fumed in his seat, and Tarah was already tensing up at the prospect of being made a plaything again. He was bound to take out some of his frustrations on her once she was done explaining things, and she was sure that she was going to be hurting for the next few days after this.

“I see… Then supposing that you’re not lying, when can I expect you to make your moves?”

Tarah gritted her teeth before letting out a deep breath to calm herself. “I shall make my move once the merging process between Ezekiel and the dragon’s spirits are complete. Only then would we be able to extract Vulcan from his body,” she calmly explained, suppressing her guilt and disgust at having to talk about betraying Ezekiel like this. “It would take some time, however, but rest assured that I will deliver him to you once the time finally comes.”

“Is that so? Very well, I shall accept your explanation.”

Unconsciously, Tarah let out a small sigh of relief. It would seem that he didn’t notice anything from her, which meant that she was still in the clear in terms of being able to move freely on her own.

“However, you do know what comes next now, right?”

But just as Tarah thought she could relax, Devon was already upon her, his malicious grin sending shivers down her spine as she did her best to remain calm.

“Y-Yes, My Lord,” Tarah gulped as she forced herself to nod.

“Very well,” Devon cackled. “Let’s get to it.”

***

Tarah suppressed a shiver as she dressed herself. As usual, Devon had his way with her, making sure to try and break her spirit through any means necessary beyond just outright taking her purity. And while she was used to it, it would never change the fact that she always felt dirty everytime she had to suffer through his ministrations.

Still, she had a plan in place. She had to meet with her brother.

‘Just a bit more,’ she thought to herself…

Giving herself a bit of reassurance, Tarah made her way to her brother’s room. She made sure to look as inconspicuous as possible, ensuring that her actions wouldn’t be questioned until she was finally in the privacy of Levi’s chamber.

“Sister!”

“Levi…”

Like a balm soothing her soul, Tarah let herself relax the moment she felt Levi’s embrace wrap around her. Likewise, holding onto him like this reassured her that everything would be fine. That things were still moving according to plan and that she was still succeeding in keeping her brother safe.

“Ah, you’ve returned,” Asura greeted her with a smile. “I hope you’ve been well.”

“I am,” Tarah nodded back before turning her attention back to Levi. “Anyway, how have you been?”

“I’ve been doing well,” her brother beamed at her. “Lady Asura’s been taking care of me well, and she’s great.”

Looking back up, Tarah couldn’t help but smile at her friend’s efforts. It would seem that having Asura look after her brother was the right move after all.

“I’ve done my best, my lady,” Asura softly bowed to her. “I know things are hard, but I’ve managed.”

“And I thank you for your efforts, Asura,” Tarah gratefully nodded back as she closed the distance between them. “Although, perhaps there are some other things that need to be addressed.”

Vaguely, Tarah passed a pair of enchanted missives to Asura’s hand. One was meant for the woman herself, while the other was for Luis. They were both rigged to burst into flames if they were ever opened by other people, ensuring that her message would never get into the wrong hands.

“I see,” Asura nodded while quietly stowing away the missives into her pocket. “I shall make sure that they are done in a timely manner.”

“Thank you, Asura,” Tarah nodded back. “And make sure to say my regards to Luis. He might miss me coming through here.”

“I shall see to it, my lady,” her friend curtly blinked, the hidden message in their words clearly heard. “Will you be staying for long then?”

“We’ll see,” Tarah vaguely replied. “Regardless, I’ll do my best to spend some time with you both.”

And with that, the pieces were set. The only thing she could do now was hope that things would work out exactly as she hoped they would.