Chapter 30
Hendrick glided noiselessly under the cloak of night. He was surrounded by people on either side as they walked by, unaware that the person beside them was actually the ruler of their land.
He came out of the alley and was met with a devastating sight; his brows furrowed. Houses made of mud with hay serving as roofs, dilapidated roads — even though the night was quite young, the inhabitants of the town were already in their homes, lighting fires that seemed so fickle that an infant's breath could extinguish them.
Hendrick felt his heart throb in pain. He had always thought he was the perfect ruler, one who cherished his subjects and made sure each and every one of them lived like respectable humans, but reality was cruel.
Is this what Minos has been doing? The millions of suns budgeted is for this?
His hands clenched at his sides; he couldn't believe that he had been fooled for over two decades. How could he not realize that the person destroying his reign was actually under his roof?
He sighed and looked up at the moon; an inexplicable emotion echoed on his tattered countenance. Perhaps he had seen it, perhaps he had purposely turned a blind eye. The entire charade was probably caused by a tiny speck of his heart not wanting to be let down again.
After Veronica's death, he had done a lot of things he was not happy to talk about, but they at least helped him take his mind off the cruel pain gnawing at him.
He sighed once more, finally stepping out of the maze of villages. His eyes turned cold at the sight of the endless desert sprawled before him.
The moon was aligned perfectly at the centre of the sky. In a world like theirs where various creatures roam free, it wouldn't be impossible to find one that could realign the laws of reality. His blue eyes glowed slightly, and there in the middle of the desert he saw a slight ripple in the very fabric of existence.
Suddenly, he started to glow with a vibrant purple colour tinged with blue.
He had been a lot of things — a bad father, a coward — but before his death he had to right something.
He could feel his leg freezing in place, but that didn't stop him. He stomped his feet and punched forward, causing a loud gush of air in the atmosphere.
Suddenly the air rippled and a violent rift tore open in the sky.
Hendrick's face turned cold as he released his full power. He began glowing with an eerie indigo light. He passed through the rift and, ahead of him, was a large mansion painted black.
"It's good I made the appointment in advance."
Every step he took made the world quake. The people in the mansion began to shiver, mostly from fear — a primordial sense of the fear of death. They immediately stopped what they were doing and lined up in formation; a succubus led the team, her eyes glowing pink.
They all knew they were no match for a Great Human, but they wanted to fight — they needed to fight.
Hendrick entered the mansion and the entire atmosphere became oppressive. The formation quivered and soon all of them were falling flat on their faces. His gaze swept across the sea of black clothes and the mansion.
He could smell death in the air, but nothing else.
Hendrick frowned. He had made sure his appointment was treated with urgency to make all the top bosses appear, but here he was, unable to detect any of them.
His cold gaze looked up and he could feel motion above him.
The mansion was already molten hot, but the moment his gaze landed back on the squirming assassins, he sneered.
These were the people that dared to touch his son. With a thought, he increased the temperature; the smell of burning flesh wafted in the air, but there was no sound except the occasional groan.
Hendrick couldn't help but afford them a cruel praise. He didn't know if it was because they were assassins or because many were demihumans, but most people began screaming at this stage.
He could see the unwillingness in their eyes and he smirked.
"Are you coming down, or should I burn your headquarters down?" Hendrick demanded; his voice was even but it travelled through the entire mansion.
Soon the team's bodies turned black from the incessant heat and the majority of them had already fainted.
"1, 2, 3, 4… 9…"
"Hold it, King Hendrick!" a hoarse voice echoed in the room. Three individuals came into view. They had covered their entire bodies; however, they also reeked of death.
Hendrick grinned. The three heads of the Shadowy Hands. Three Great Humans.
"What are you doing, Eldorian King?"
"Are you sure you want to break the pact between us?"
"Can your kingdom suffer the consequences?"
The three asked in perfect order, and Hendrick's grin widened impossibly. Even though most struggled to tell them apart,he could do that easily. Even though they were triplets, he knew enough to know who was who. His pale blue eyes gleamed dangerously.
They subconsciously took a step back when they saw the hollow in his eyes. It was deep and inviting, as though wanting to ravage them all in madness.
The figure in the middle felt her heart skip a beat and she was shocked. This was the first time since becoming a Head that she actually felt fear–raw, unadulterated fear.
Every old person had heard of the mad King of the centre; they said that after his wife's death his strength exploded, pushing him to become a Great Human — the first among the five kingdoms.
However, no matter how powerful he was, they were not sure he was willing to break the pact between the Assembly and the Hands and suffer the consequences. The Shadowy Hands was not simply a regional power!
Hendrick stared at their calm faces and felt his vein bulge. It was not out of anger but pure excitement. He enjoyed raining hell on those who wronged him — technically.
"Where is the bastard who harmed my son?" Hendrick growled.
The three looked at one another, confused and irritated. The woman questioned first, her brows arched.
"Are you sure you got it right, Eldorian King? No one here would harm any royal as part of the pact. You probably mixed it up, King of the centre."
They spoke in order once more, and Hendrick felt his body ravaged by madness.
He smiled on the surface while the walls caught fire. The entire mansion was burning; the team was burned to crisp.
Looking at the damage done to them, the woman felt her heart burn with fury, she ignited her aura and glowed with a white aura–ironic for a bringer of death. The others followed suit.
The three powers imploded with fury, each igniting their aura.
"How dare you!" they said in unison. They were all Great Humans and knew that no matter how strong the other party was, he was merely one person while they were three, and they were definitely not letting him leave unscathed. Even though training had rid them of most emotions, they were still prideful beings and couldn't allow any random person to come and wreck their territory.
"Eldorian King, we warned you!"
"Are you all talk and no action? I came here to raze this place down, so let's get to it."
Without waiting for a reply, Hendrick exploded with strength and sped towards them, throwing a blow.
The three attacked simultaneously and soon the entire mansion was razed to the ground. The earth quaked and splintered. The heavens seemed to tremble while the entire area was a mess of elements: one part literally melting, another frozen cold, another exploding with sand.
Hendrick was pulled back and he stared at the trio. From the short bout he had with them, he had concluded that they were very strong, even as Great Humans. The woman in the middle eyes was white and lightning danced around her while the figure on her left and right were a sand Human and the last.
Hendrick exhaled, the battle might have been tough but with the inclusion of an incubus Great Human, he had to think of a way.
All of his thought process took less than a second in real life but the trio were not ready to make him think,the middle woman upon realizing that they were no match for him individually made them hold hands.
'Sand, while we merge, keep a body to spare.'
'Aye!'
Their auras combined and burst forth in a blinding coalesce of light. The atmosphere groaned as though it was carrying a heavy weight and the earth developed deep cracks.
The battle raged on, and at the crack of dawn the blinding display of colours paused. Hendrick walked out. He looked battered and wet, as if someone had poured water all over him.
His face was deathly pale as he limped out of the crater they had made.
The three were lying on the ground in worse condition than Hendrick. Two of them were burnt beyond recognition while the last was simply a skeleton.
Hendrick sighed and slumped onto the floor, his gaze sweeping the area, taking note of the destruction they had made. Luckily there were no villages around since they were in unclaimed land between the five kingdoms.
He exhaled, taking a look through the holes in his shirt; he could see grey skin worming up.
"Don't… think… this… is… the… end…" Lightening stuttered; blood was oozing from every orifice. She looked at her side and saw Sand turned to ash but she didn't feel anything. This was what they signed up for.
Hendrick didn't respond. With his last shred of strength, he punched the atmosphere hard. A crack soon appeared in the air and, like the sound of falling glass, they fell.
"I know."
His aura flickered weakly around him and he sped off, leaving the once-secured underground organisation razed to the floor.
He knew this was definitely going to get the attention of the other kingdoms — and that was exactly what he wanted.
The minute the veil fell, the entire Southern Region quaked. Every monarch on their way to the Assembly had different expressions. Some genuinely intrigued and others, enthralled by fear and ambition.
Nevertheless,they could feel it,the winds of change had finally blown over their lands. The fragile balance that had kept them holding was cracking up.
Hendrick smiled as he sped past the trees.