Stolen by the Rebel King
Chapter 466: Grand Plans

Chapter 466: Grand Plans

"Then... then what are you planning to do?" Daphne asked, her voice shaking with fear and worry.

Her eyes were drawn to the small dagger in her husband’s hands. A month ago, she would never have believed he would use it on her. A month later, Daphne was quickly realizing that she didn’t know her husband at all.

Atticus flicked the knife. "Sunshine, don’t look so worried. There’s no need for me to use this on you just yet," Atticus said, the old nickname rolling off his mouth with practiced ease. "Don’t you trust me?"

Daphne flinched. Those words, paired with those mannerisms, made her think of Jean Nott and his manipulations. Was he haunting her husband beyond the grave?

"Atticus, I’m not sure if I even know you. Who is the man I married? What are you planning?"

"I’m still the same man you know and love," Atticus insisted, but Daphne was not reassured in the slightest, refusing to move away from where she was pressed against the headboard. "But if it helps you sleep better at night, I’ll tell you."

Daphne held her breath as Atticus revealed the truth.

"I’m going to rid this world of magic."

"...What?" Daphne could hardly believe her ears. "You want to take... all the magic away? Every bit of it?"

"Sunshine, don’t look so horrified," Atticus said, "You lived the first 18 years of your life without magic―"

"And I spent nearly all of it miserable!" Daphne burst out in disbelief.

Atticus was threatening to remove one of the best things in her life. How could she possibly go back to a life of lighting fires with flintstones, when she held a flickering flame in the palm of her own hand? How could she give up the ability to make water dance?

"You know it, you saw how my family treated me when I didn’t have it, I was nothing more than a pariah, a burden in their eyes! How could you want to remove―"

"You were miserable not because you didn’t have magic, but because your family were scumbags that did," Atticus interrupted her hotly. "Daphne, think about it for a minute. Once I enact my plan successfully, there will be no more children of royalty that would be ill-treated the way that you were because of something that was out of their control."

He continued, "How could they abuse you for a lack of magic ability when they too have none? You’ll be preventing a lot of tragedy down the road if you see the light in my plans."

"But magic is useful, you can’t just remove all of it! That’s a huge overreaction!" Daphne protested. She knew better than to think Atticus had cooked up this mad idea of his for her sake. He had been working on this plan for too long for it to be attributed to her.

Atticus scoffed, staring at her in abject disappointment.

"I would think you’ll be more agreeable since your dear friend Prince Nathaniel would undoubtedly benefit from the new world I’m creating. He’s an intelligent man who has pushed boundaries with his skills and experiments, but because of his lack of magic, he’ll be stuck looking over his shoulder for unforeseen threats for the rest of his life. Do you want this for him?"

"Don’t you dare make such a decision on his behalf! How dare you use his name this way?" Daphne’s eyes blazed.

"In a world without magic, he’d be a flawless king," Atticus continued as if he had not heard her.

If Atticus wanted to mention other people to sell his insane idea to her, she could do the same.

"Magic can be used for healing," Daphne began, her fingers bunching into the blankets, her hands shaking in fear and rage. "Look at Sirona, look at Queen Lavinia; their magic powers make it possible for them to help so many people!" Daphne pointed out. "To remove all the potential of magic is an utter waste of the world!"

Atticus was unfazed. "Sirona is a very skilled healer even without the use of magic. She doesn’t require this as a crutch. Besides, the commoners never had magic to heal themselves with, and they still survived and thrived in spite of it all. It’s not as though royal healers spend their time touring the kingdom to help the poor and sick."

Atticus’s lips curled in disdain. He knew better than anyone else how royalty treated those they deemed beneath their notice. He had once been scum on the bottom of the shoe, but now he was wearing the boot.

"If you care more about our people, sharing our medical knowledge would make more difference in their lives," Atticus added, daring his wife to contradict him.

"And Queen Lavinia? And what of King Calarian and Xahan?" Daphne asked in worry. "We devastated their kingdom. Now if we take away their magic, how will they possibly rebuild themselves?"

"Why, I’ll help them of course," Atticus said simply.

"But you won’t have magic either. What can you do?"

"Who said I wouldn’t have magic?" Atticus’s eyes gleamed.

"You... so you’re going to remove magic for everyone else but yourself?" Daphne shrieked in shock.

Atticus’s plans would make him an undefeatable person in the entire world. Even among magic users, Atticus was ridiculously strong on his own, and she was hard-pressed to think of any other magic users that could possibly hinder him.

The last one that did had died a gory death in Xahan.

If he removed magic completely from everyone else, he could raise and fell kingdoms on a whim. Her husband could effectively declare himself the ruler of the entire world, and no one would be able to contest his claim. He could go on rampages of conquest, with no one standing in his way.

Daphne’s blood chilled.

Maybe that was her husband’s plan all along. Forget all his words about helping the common people and men like Prince Nathaniel, all of this was to benefit one person― himself!

"You’re insane! That’s ridiculous! You’re just a warmonger!"