The “final boss” of Sig the Rebel was a man of overpowering charisma and cruelty—a ruler who ruthlessly toyed with and tormented his own kingdom. He was the only man Heinreid, the Venom of the Nation, would bow his head to: King Eberhart Amagis Lansbury, the Tyrant of the Century.
At first glance, he was just a strikingly beautiful man, but his mere presence bloomed and swirled with malice.
“Did Karl Anker not tell you of my arrival?” he replied with a picture-perfect sinister smirk. “I’ve been here from the very beginning. I’d thought I might hide and surprise you, and yet somehow, I found myself taken by surprise instead...”
Eberhart walked across the room, deliberately stepping on my discarded jacket and scarf as he made his way over to sit on my bed—right above where I’d just been.
There’s a sofa right over here! Why the hell are you sitting there, you sick freak?!
Trying and failing to wipe the grimace off my face, I somehow managed to put words together. “What...brings you here, my liege?”
“I wrote in my letter that I would be paying you a visit soon, did I not? Oh, how I worried for my dear, pitiful fool of a duke after his fall down the stairs. And yet this is how I find you, Heinreid?”
Yeah, you wrote that. You sure did write it.
“As I explained in my reply, my liege, I’m quite all right. There’s truly no need...”
“Indeed,” he said, laughing. “You made that abundantly clear in your letter. And thus, all the more reason for me to come.”
So you’re just doing this to harass me?
As I stared blankly across the room at him, stunned by his total shamelessness, he tossed something over to me. I fumbled to catch it and opened my hands to find a small box.
Matches?
I looked over at Eberhart in confusion. He’d produced a cigar from somewhere, and he held it in his mouth, swishing it up and down.
“Light it.”
“My liege.”
Frankly, I didn’t want to go anywhere near him, but I couldn’t disobey his command. I reluctantly walked back to the bed and lit the cigar. He took a puff, savoring it with a relaxed air. Then he glanced over at me and blew a cloud of smoke right in my face. The thick fumes stung at my eyes and lungs. As I helplessly coughed and choked, I heard him call my name.
“Why are you still standing there? Kneel. You are my right hand, and yet not only do you subject me to an utterly shameful display, but now you look down on me as well? You’re lucky you still have your head.”
His voice was cloyingly sweet but cold as ice. I couldn’t detect any anger in his tone. But even if he wasn’t angry at all, even if I was in his good favor, he’d kill me without a second thought—just like Heinreid himself. I could clearly feel death in the air, and with a quiet gulp, I did as I was commanded. I took a half step back from Eberhart, got down on one knee, and bowed my head.
Immediately, something sharply thudded onto the back of my skull—Eberhart’s boot. I let out a pained groan, but he just mercilessly ground his heel into my scalp, pushing my head down further.
Owwww! Stop it! You’re gonna give me a bald spot!
He chuckled. “What an excellent footrest. Ah, right there—perfect. Don’t move a single inch.”
The pressure finally let up a little—when the carpet was right in front of my face.
Actually, this feels like the hardest possible position for me to hold still in. Is this guy a born sadist?
My arms quivered and shook as they supported my weight.
“Well? What is it that excited you so?” Eberhart asked.
Shit, he’s digging into that? It sounds like he doesn’t know anything about Sig yet. Maybe I can fudge things and get him to come up with an answer for me...?
After a moment’s thought, I responded to his question with a question.
“Surely a man such as yourself would already know, would you not, my liege?”
“Don’t waste my time with your wordplay, Heinreid,” he shot back. “Were this any other occasion, I’d gladly play along. But I slipped away from some urgent business to pay you a visit, and my time is short. Answer my question.”
No dice. I’m not dealing with Craig here—there’s no fooling the final boss. Right now, he’s the one who can throw his weight around and make threats. If I try to cover up the truth, it’ll just backfire on me... Fine. He was going to find out sooner or later anyway; I’ll just tell it to him straight.
“Your brother and the Lion Princess of Mokhia were caught trespassing in my duchy.”
“Sighart...” The foot resting on my head twitched slightly. A faint hint of discomfort began to bleed into the king’s voice. “I see. My people have been busy dealing with fires near the border lately—that must be how the rats slipped their way in. And? You’ve disposed of them, haven’t you?”
“Yes, my liege. My guard captain, Craig Bauer, eliminated both of them on my orders. The former prince was swept away in the Pieira River while gravely wounded, and the Lion Princess with him. By now, the pair will already have breathed their last.”
“Craig Bauer?” Eberhart repeated the name to himself. Then, he began to roar with laughter at the top of his lungs, unable to contain his mirth. “Oh, Heinreid, you sick, twisted man! You never fail to delight! Ha! I would punish you for failing to bring me their heads, but very well! For such a magnificent work of villainy, you have earned my mercy.”
“Thank you for your kind words, my liege,” I said slowly.
“So that’s why you deliberately allowed Craig to witness your indecent display,” he mused. “What a toll it must have taken on him—forced to cut down his former master and then to behold his present master’s arousal at the deed! Oh, how I wish I could have seen the look on his face...”