Stolen by the Rebel King
Chapter 201: Blue Kyanite

Chapter 201: Blue Kyanite

Blood splattered across the stone walls of the dungeon cells, immediately causing the familiar coppery scent to perfume the air.

Atticus heavily exhaled, flicking his hand to rid it of the red stains that had sullied his skin. Slowly, he crouched down so that he could face the man who was lying on the ground face-first in a pool of his own blood. The king sneered menacingly, using the back of his index finger to knock on the man’s head.

"I suggest you speak up before I decide to relieve you of your tongue," Atticus warned. "You seem to not like using it much, after all. I doubt you’ll miss it too much."

Lucien Seibert spat out the mouthful of blood before revealing a scarlet grin. One of his teeth had been knocked out by Atticus, now rolling in the pool of blood by a side.

"I might not," he said, "but the ladies definitely will."

Atticus coldly laughed. "Cheeky." Patting Lucien’s cheeks, Atticus’s grin turned colder by the second. "Guess your tongue really does need to go, then. We can’t have you sullying the women of my kingdom, now, can we."

Standing up, Atticus turned to walk to the chair right outside the cell. They had been here, interrogating these two men for hours. Yet, there weren’t any developments. Their lips were locked shut.

Right after Lucien Seibert and Benjamin Killiney had been arrested for the illegal smuggling and trade of gemstones back at the slums, Jonah’s knights had brought the men back to the dungeons while Atticus had rushed to the townsquare where the Spring Parade was held.

Only, what greeted him there was no beautiful parade but a whole disaster.

The roads of his kingdom’s capital had been in ruins, resembling what Atticus imagined a world ravaged by war would be like. There was a flood that rose all the way to his knees and he could only waddle forward a bit before turning to magic to fly himself across the body of water.

Debris floated everywhere― Atticus could spot scattered materials that were used to build the floats, along with charred or shriveled flowers of all sorts of colors. There were even random pieces of clothing like bonnets and shoes that were floating in the water, drifting along wherever the wind blew.

The entire street looked wartorn, the exact replica of how Vramid had looked when he first came to power. That was a dark memory that Atticus never wanted to revisit and there he was, as if peering right through a time machine.

He was unable to find Daphne in this mess. Even the other participants of the parade were gone, along with the citizens that normally filled this place. It took Atticus and Jonah another few hours before they eventually drained the water from the streets, somewhat returning it to the way it was before.

However, it would take weeks for the town to be repaired back to its original state, given the amount of damage done to it.

After handing his instructions to the local builders and leaving matters in Jonah’s hands, Atticus had rushed back to the palace. That was where he learned from Sirona that Daphne had been safely escorted back to her room.

Atticus would’ve loved to check in on her but he was informed that she wasn’t interested in seeing anyone right now. Thus, he decided there was no better place to vent his anger than in the dungeons where he had two fresh new victims to torment information out of.

Only, they weren’t very cooperative. Atticus was even more angered than before he had set foot into this musty place.

"I am not a very patient man," Atticus said. "This is your last chance to speak before I decide to just get information elsewhere."

This time, he directed his words to Benjamin Killiney. He wasn’t a prominent figure in society like Lucien Seibert was. However, the former was a rising merchant that had businesses recently blooming in Vramid, Reaweth, and Nedour. That meant that he most likely had his toes dipped in illegal trade in all three kingdoms, perhaps others as well.

"I am but a humble businessman, Your Majesty," Benjamin Killiney said, his voice quivering as he spoke. "Gemstones are a rarity, especially those who are good conduits for magic. I am sure you are aware of how much it sells for in the black market."

"So Jean Nott is merely a supplier?" Atticus asked.

Out of Atticus’s expectations, Lucien Seibert let out a scoff.

Atticus raised an eyebrow. "Am I wrong?"

"A supplier? Please." Lucien Seibert wore a sneer, his lips curving downward as he heaved loudly. "He is more like a bloodsucking vampire, with the way he works."

"At least you’re aware of that," Atticus commented. "You seem awfully disdainful of your own boss despite working for him. And, especially since you’ve both kept your lips shut for so long just to protect him."

"It was never for him," Lucien Seibert hissed.

"Then who?" When met with silence, Atticus pressed on. "Who?!"

Lucien Seibert, however, remained unmoved. He clenched his teeth tightly together, his jawline increasingly obvious as a result of his actions.

"Your Majesty." At the sound of Jonah’s voice, Atticus turned back. Jonah heavily panted, his steps slowing down as he neared where Atticus sat. "I’ve brought what you’ve requested."

"About damn time," Atticus mumbled under his breath. He ignored the nasty glare Jonah shot him and instead, he reached directly for the small box in Jonah’s hands.

Pulling the lid open, there sat two small pills, round and a deep blue in color. It had streaks of yellow mixed in with the cobalt blue, the lines jarring even with how small they were.

The polished blue kyanite pebbles had been specially requested by Atticus after the first ten minutes of interrogation. When it seemed like Lucien Seibert and Benjamin Killiney weren’t about to say anything anytime soon, Atticus had sent Jonah in search of blue kyanite. They were, after all, very powerful truth serums. When swallowed, the person who ingested the stone would not be able to tell a lie until the stone is passed out of the system. Any attempt to prevent speaking or avoiding the question will result in physical pain so bad that it could cause them stroke― it might even lead to death.

It seemed like at least Lucien Seibert was aware of the uses of blue kyanite as well since his face paled several shades upon catching sight of the stone in Atticus’s hands. He shuffled back a little where he was but all his attempts in escaping proved futile.

"Let’s not waste any more time."

Instantly, the obsidian ring on Atticus’s finger glowed a bright purple. He controlled the pill, prying Lucien’s mouth open with magic before forcing the pill into his mouth and down his throat. By the time Atticus released him of his magic, the stone was already in Lucien Seibert’s stomach.

Lucien slammed back onto the ground, coughing heavily from the intruding sensation. He grabbed at his throat, heaving dryly. Alas, the stone was too far in his stomach.

"Now, let’s try again." Atticus leaned back in his seat, interlocking his fingers as he placed his hands on his knee, relaxed. "Who is the supplier of these illegally traded gemstones?"