CHAPTER 2: SILVERT REKTER

An angry demon with shiny black hair, long to his waist, cut the two other demon's heads with his sword. Because they were supposed to be watching his son!

Other demons who watched it were afraid and paled at his cruelty. Their eyes scattered away from seeing it further. Not because they were sick of the punishment but because they didn't want the angry demon to notice them next.

"I won't take ’not found’ as an answer to my son's disappearance! Either you all find him or die!"

The angry demon roared as he swung his blood-covered black diamond blade, making the blood on his blade splatter to the dark floor beside him. His glowing red vertical eyes glared at the demons in his throne chamber.

Nekruis Asterostes, Flink Kingdom's king and father to Zeliker Asterostes. He wore an all-black long breaker cardigan on him. Like Zeliker, he has pale skin but a breathtakingly beautiful appearance.

Only demons nor humans will not appreciate it once they knew who he was. As for his appearance, he just looks like a human in his mid-thirty but his age was already more than sixty years old.

"Your Majesty." Silvert approached him slowly as he kneeled to him.

Nekruis's gaze went to him. His stares almost make Silvert tremble but he can't show his fear to his king or he might get killed like the guards.

Everyone there breathes in and out quietly while keeping silent. They admired Silvert's braveness to approach their angry king. Not like them who didn't dare to confront the enraged Nekruis, which ended one of them dead all the time when he snapped like that.

"The human who kidnapped Prince Zeliker had a helping hand from a demon, my liege," Silvert told the truth and made Nekruis' eyes blaze brighter.

Instantly, an ominous dark aura was released by him. All of them quickly kneel to him.

"Calm your anger, Your Majesty!" They simultaneously said.

They were afraid that if Nekruis was still like this, this chamber might be destroyed again. Nekruis did this once before because a human spits his blood on him. He destroyed the human along with his throne chamber, burying some unlucky demon along.

Nekruis growled. He put his dark aura away. Thinking back, it wasn't the first betrayal from their race. He grabs Silvert's collar to meet his eyes.

"Where did they take him?!"

Silvert swallowed.

"A human palace was last seen by our trackers through a dimensional portal before the prince was gone, Your Majesty."

He answered calmly but he didn't dare look directly into Nekruis's eyes. He had fear toward Nekruis because their king holds tremendous power and strength.

All demon kings had that fierce aura on them that anyone, even humans, could feel the chills when they were close by. He knows Nekruis won't take that as an excuse and he wasn't going to be a coward if Nekruis wanted to punish him.

A demon has pride. And he was one of the demon generals, to begin with.

"Which kingdom?!"

"It was the Eskimos Kingdom. Rumours spread that from the nine human kingdoms there's only one kingdom, Eskimos that allows betrayal of our race to live in. Prince Zeliker should be in that kingdom since the other kingdom won't bother needing a demon to help capture the prince."

Silvert was relieved he didn't stutter when he explained since it could piss off Nekruis even more.

"Prepare our soldiers! I want Eskimos Kingdom to disappear!" Nekruis ordered.

"Please wait, Your Majesty!"

Silvert gulped as he knew that no one would dare ask for their king to stop when he had already given a command but... He wants Nekruis to listen to his suggestion first.

"Who're you to stop me, Silvert?!" Nekruis narrowed his eyes.

"I'm not stopping you, Your Majesty, but I had a delusion that Eskimos might already be preparing a war against us. We can't blindly attack them. And, even if I'm right that Eskimos took the prince, I am still not sure if he was still there or not. I suggest that we investigate first. If they harm the prince, a war we go, and if not, we will rescue him and bring him back here."

The demons in the chamber agreed with him. They know the outcome if they attack blindly. They will lose more soldiers and even give room to other demon kingdoms who want to widen their territory to raid them.

Nekruis seems to take note of it as everyone sees him calm down. He let go of Silvert harshly to the floor and walked to his throne. He sits on it as he crosses one leg over the other while his eyes return to their normal blackish. Letting his kingdom at risk wasn't in the plan. Then, a thought came to him.

"Zapter sent my words to everyone. Whoever can bring my son home, will be rewarded," he ordered his personal guard to spread his command.

"But, Your Majesty, won't it be bad if other kingdoms had their hand on the prince first? Losing him will end your bloodline," Silvert reminds the worst thing that would happen if Nekruis orders everyone to find Zeliker.

And again, he's stopping Nekruis' command. Everyone's eyes twitched.

Does he want to die that badly?!

Instead of killing him, Nekruis gives him a smirk. "What I'm waiting for is not the return of a regular prince, but another different one."

"What does Your Majesty mean...?" Everyone looks confused.

Silvert lowered his head. He might know what Nekruis means. Zeliker's personality does need a change.

Two years ago, after returning from a war, a bleak atmosphere was found on the prince. From that moment on, Zeliker won't participate in any war or meetings. It's like he was hiding in a shell. The reason was unknown.

"You all can participate and the reward I give to the one who can bring my son back is Eleise," Nekruis told them.

Everyone stifled when they heard it.

Eleise was a bangle that give power to immortality. Well, as long as the holder wears it. It also means nothing can hurt or damage the holders. It was a rare item that only a few people had. It cannot be broken, crushed, or melted by the greatest fire.

Eleise was known to anyone as the goddess helping hand or devil destruction. Nobody knows who created it in the first place since it's already been in the hands of man centuries ago.

None can create another Eleise. Demons or humans would kill themselves to possess it. Despite that, for Nekruis to have possessed one was unthinkable.

"You are dismissed," Nekruis then disappeared from his throne.

After he left, everyone began questioning how or where the king found Eleise and also whether the king possess it or did he lie about it. Silvert left them with Gaiana Francia, one of the generals.

"I still wonder why you're not chosen to be the hand of our king," Gaiana teased as they walked in the hall between two palace buildings.

"What do you mean? No one can be trusted by our king that easily," Silvert shrugged.

They had already talked about this topic before and ended up in a quarrel with each other.

‘It will happen again…’

Silvert was annoyed with this female demon.

‘Can't she stop following me? I already refused her advance…’

He contemplates whether to run away or jump to the roof to escape her.

"Well, because you're the only one who can face Your Majesty's wrath. Sometimes, your bravery is too much and everyone wonders why Your Majesty hasn't killed you yet. Not to mention, you are very annoying too. But I'll give you credit for being able to manipulate his words into another strategy. You have a high IQ inside here." Gaiana pats his head.

"I don't know if you are complimenting me or jesting me."

He pushes Gaiana's hand from his head.

"I have things to do. I won't be home for a few months."

"Where are you going? Oh, I know! You want to find Prince Zeliker and have all the reward for yourself, huh?" Gaiana curls her mouth. "I won't-..."

"I'm not interested in the item! I'm going to find him and keep him safe from everyone, even you!"

Silvert cut her words and made an absolute vow. He was angry with Gaiana's inadequate exclaims.

"Huh? Are you stupid? If you find him, just bring him home. Why the need to protect that spoiled prince."

‘That's it!’

In a blink of an eye, Silvert pins her to the wall beside them with furious glowing red eyes. She was shocked by his outburst.

"Don't you dare mock him! You don't know him better than I do! If I hear another disgusting word from you, I'll kill you. Anyone who dares to say ill about him, I'll make sure they don't see another day ever again," Silvert snarls between his clenched teeth before he releases Gaiana and walks away.

"What about him that you care so much about?!" Gaiana shouted but Silvert ignored her.

It was never alright between them.

Somewhere else in a peaceful environment, Zeliker watched the beautiful sunrise coming from the window room he was in. He already awoke for a few minutes. He felt his left eye and body were wrapped with bandages.

He sighs. It was such a long time that he felt so relaxed. The white bed he was laying down on was soft and fluffy. Moreover, the pains in his body already subsided a bit.

"If the wound already heals this much, that means I've been unconscious for more than a day." He thought.

He's also wearing a new clean black singlet with black trousers. It seems someone has pitied him and changed his old bloody garments.

‘How nice…’

With one eye, he looked across the room. The room has only a table, a chair, a closet and a bed. The room was also quite small compared to the room in the palace. He slowly moves up.

"Hm?" He felt something on his neck and moved his hand to touch it.

A thick iron collar band. Although he can't see it clearly, he knows what it was used for.

"Demon slavery device? Who put this stupid thing on me? Don't they know it is useless to put it on a demon royal?"

Zeliker was speechless.

"Or is it already modified to control a demon royal? If it does... That's great!" He thought while trying to use his power.

"Ah, it seems it works after all. These humans are becoming clever day by day. But, why didn't they kill me? Do they want to...?"

He wishes the humans didn't try what he thought. Putting him into becoming a hostage won't work on Flink.

‘Father might not even care about my well-being…’

The thought saddened him. A few moments later, he brushed off thinking about Nekruis and his home. Such weakness was not needed for someone like him.

Since he was not chained to anything, he got out of bed and looked outside through the window. His eyes widened at the sight of so many sunflower blossoms around the house.

Moreover, he felt a fresh morning breeze blowing into his face. He jumped out of the room and approached a single sunflower. He sniffed the scent of the sunflower and slowly a smile bloomed on his pale lips.

"This fragrance... It's a sunflower. My favourite!"

Gizelis, who had just returned from a hunt, found Zeliker outside with his feet exposed to the ground. He was stunned but didn't dare come closer. He watches Zeliker from afar. On his shoulder, a dead deer was hanging loosely. Knife wounds can be seen on its neck.

"Ah, he can smile genuinely too. Does he like the sunflowers?"

Huh? Huh?! Ehh?!

He was shocked to see Zeliker eating one of the picked sunflowers.

"Hm?"

Zeliker already realised Gizelis was there while chewing the sunflower in his mouth. He looked at Gizelis with hatred as he remembered he was tortured by Gizelis' blood.

Gizelis understood the gaze. He slowly walked near and lowered his prey in front of his house, the one seen beyond Zeliker's portal before. In front of Zeliker, he cut the deer into multiple pieces.

"Want some? It seems to me you are hungry now."

After all, Zeliker has been in a comatose state for almost a week. Hunger should strike him already.

Truly, Zeliker was a strong demon. Hunger won't make him weak at all. If he's not mistaken, demons can hold their hunger for a few months to a year.

It if was human, they would be dead earlier in the first week. This shows how fearsome a demon was. Humans were weaker than them.

Gizelis put a piece of raw meat on a plate he took from his kitchen and handed it to him. But, Zeliker ignores him.

He went to eat another sunflower. Since Gizelis didn't order the device to restrict his movement, he can do whatever he wants. It's just that he can't escape if the device was still on him. Who knows what it might do?

Gizelis chuckled. Zeliker might still hate him for kidnapping him a week ago.

"You don't want it? Could it be that you have turned into a vegetarian?"

Zeliker was too lazy to answer but instead ate another sunflower.

"You look like a rabbit."

Gizelis laughed looking at Zeliker's chewing style.

‘Rabbit?!’

Zeliker glared at him.

"Man, everyone won't believe it if they see this. A demon prince is turning into a cute little black rabbit." Gizelis laughed until tears formed in his eyes.

Zeliker rolled his eyes at him.

‘Whatever.’

He didn't even care what people thought of him. A moment of seriousness came upon him.

"Why are you letting me live?" He needs an answer.

Gizelis stopped laughing and smiled at him awkwardly.

Now, how should he answer this question?