Realm Lord
Chapter 128: Castle of Memories

Chapter 128: Castle of Memories

The twins looked up at him with eyes that had lost much of their childhood innocence, their expressions reflecting a sadness that no child should ever have to bear.

"Okay," they said in unison, their voices lacking the enthusiasm that had once characterized their every word. There was no argument, no playful resistance—just the weary acceptance of children who had learned that the world was far more frightening and unpredictable than they had ever imagined.

But then, with the resilience that children sometimes display in the face of unimaginable hardship, one of them asked, "Can we take one of the sheepy?"

The innocent nickname they had given to the enchanted suits of armor brought a genuine chuckle from their father, the first real expression of joy Arthur had witnessed from the king in a while. Despite everything that had happened, his daughters could still find small comforts in the strangest places.

"Of course," he replied, and the girls’ faces brightened with slight smiles that warmed the king’s heart even as it was breaking.

Arthur watched as the twins approached one of the sheepmen and clung to its armored arms with the trust that only children can display. The empty suit seemed to accept its role as companion and protector, moving with careful precision to avoid accidentally harming the small figures that depended on it. Together, the three of them left the throne room, the girls chattering quietly to their metallic guardian as they made their way toward their chambers.

Once his daughters were safely out of sight, the king’s carefully maintained facade crumbled completely. His shoulders sagged under the weight of his burdens, and his face became a mask of grim determination as he addressed the two remaining sheepmen.

"Guard the library," he commanded one of them, his voice carrying the authority of a monarch even in his darkest hour. "And you," he said to the other, "watch over the altar room. Let no one enter either location."

The enchanted suits of armor acknowledged their orders with subtle nods before departing to take up their assigned positions. Arthur understood that the king was making his final preparations, ensuring that certain knowledge would remain protected even after he was gone.

What followed was perhaps the most complex magical working Arthur had ever witnessed. Using techniques that seemed to draw from the deepest wells of his knowledge, the king began to weave a spell that would transform him into the fifth and final totem of the castle’s protection system. The magic was intricate beyond belief, requiring precise gestures and incantations that took hours to complete.

As part of this final enchantment, the king linked the throne room door to the lives of the sheepmen, creating a magical lock that could only be opened by their destruction.

When the spell was complete, Arthur watched as the king settled himself upon the throne one final time. There he sat, unmoving and resolute, as the corruption that had been spreading through his body finally claimed its ultimate victory. The transformation was not violent or dramatic—it was simply inevitable, like the changing of seasons or the setting of the sun.

Arthur’s perspective suddenly shifted without warning, and he was horrified to find himself forced to witness the final, tragic Chapter of this story from a different vantage point. Through eyes that did not belong to the king, he watched as the twin daughters slowly succumbed to starvation in their beds, their small bodies growing weaker and thinner with each passing day.

The girls never understood why their parents had abandoned them, never comprehended the terrible sacrifices that had been made in misguided attempts to protect them. They simply grew hungrier and sadder, their bright spirits gradually dimming like candles running out of wax.

The sheepman assigned to guard them stood vigil until the very end, a silent sentinel watching over two innocent souls who deserved so much better than the fate that had befallen them.

Then, without warning, Arthur felt himself blink—not through the king’s eyes or anyone else’s, but through his own. When his vision cleared, he was back in the throne room, staring at the decayed body of the corrupted king that he and his companions had fought so hard to defeat.

Sweat was streaming down his face and his skin was shaking with the intensity of what he had experienced. The visions had felt more real than reality itself, each emotion and sensation burned into his memory with perfect clarity.

"Arthur!?" Lara’s voice cut through his disorientation like a blade, causing him to jump with surprise.

"W-w-what?" he stammered, his voice hoarse and his mind still reeling from the magnitude of what he had witnessed.

Lara and Aziel exchanged worried glances before Aziel stepped forward, his expression filled with concern for his friend.

"You okay, dude? You blanked out there," Aziel said, his casual tone doing little to mask his genuine worry.

Arthur looked around wildly, his hands moving frantically over his own body as he tried to convince himself that he was really himself again, that he was truly back in his own flesh and not trapped in someone else’s memories. The sensations were so vivid, so immediate, that it took several moments for him to accept that the visions had ended.

Finally, his legs gave out beneath him and he collapsed onto his rear, his heart racing and his mind filled with a dread so profound it seemed to have weight. When he finally managed to speak, his voice was barely more than a whisper.

"I... I saw the king’s memories."

Aziel and Lara looked at each other, eyebrows furrowed in confusion as they tried to understand what Arthur meant. Lara slowly looked back towards Atrthur hesitation in her words "what do you mean?"

Arthur, still looking at the ground below him as his rattled mind tried to calm down, he took a deep breath in an attempt to relax before speaking "I mean after the king died it was like I was suddenly teleported into his memories. It was like I was experiencing them through his eyes, I- It was horrible.’

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