Book 2 - Chapter 33

Book 2 - Chapter 33
Chapter 33 – The Queen Gains a Dagger


It was a party, but Solene couldn’t find any enjoyment in it. Zaraat had already declared her his next target. Hope was out there looking for her. She shouldn’t be sitting here and glaring at the guests. It was a waste of valuable time, but Caym was still beside her, and he expressly stated earlier he wanted her to stay until the end of the party. This meant evening. And this meant only a few hours before the second round starts.

The other winners were still at the party too, so Solene couldn’t help but think, was this his way of testing them? If so, then she had better luck. She wasn’t drinking their wine too much. She was still of sane mind, while some of her humanoid counterparts were about to crawl on the floor.

A soldier covered in metallic dark red armor approached the demon lord a few hours later. Solene wanted to know what they were discussing, but the soldier lowered his head to speak in a whisper.

At once, Caym stood up and signaled his guests. “Continue. Just ignore me. I will return after a certain issue is resolved.”

Everyone inside the grand hall took this to heart. They continued their boisterous laughter, drinking and blatant fucking on their tables. They didn’t mind what this ‘issue’ was about, but to Solene, it was of interest. What if it was about Hope?

She stood up too, but Caym lifted a hand to stop her. “No, stay here or you forfeit your entry into the second round.”

Shit.

She gritted her teeth at his command. ′Ok. Alright. Fine!′ She sent him a glare, but she returned to her seat in the end.

“Good,” he flashed a grin. “I’ll be back. Don’t worry. I can’t leave such a beautiful companion alone for so long.” He caressed her chin, but Solene quickly jerked away to disconnect it.

“Hmf,” Caym chuckled and left his table.

Solene counted his absence of only about twenty minutes. When he came back, he was still wearing a smug smile, but she sensed it had reason this time.

“I met your friend,” he leaned closer to her and informed.

Solene stiffened. She had only one ‘friend’ in Gehenna and it was Hope. Slowly, so as not to arouse suspicion, she forked a piece of fruit and slid it inside her mouth.

“She was sneaking inside the seventh tower just to find you,” Caym added. “What a dedicated friend you have.”

Solene was able to chew the damn thing, but because of his words, it tasted stale against her tongue and she had a difficult time swallowing it.

Caym snorted and returned to his seat.

“Either she is suicidal or there are other hidden reasons I don’t know about. I am yet to find the truth about your circumstance here in Gehenna, after all. Do you remember it now, Solene?”

Remember...

She was having difficulties remembering her past life after recognizing her husband in Hope. She deemed herself lucky even to have actually remembered him in the first place. The last memory she got was about her training and her mentor, who had the best fighting skills. Again, it was lucky for her to remember it during her hours of need.

She shook her head in reply, since well, she truly hadn’t remembered that particular moment of her death. But if she already did, she wouldn’t tell him. She couldn’t let him use it to his advantage.

“Well,“—Caym took his newly filled wine flute up and swirled it—“because she killed so many of my men, she had to be punished.”

Worried, surprised eyes immediately clashed with his cool ones. The word ‘punished’ lingered in Solene’s head, so much so that it made her hands tremble.

′No...oh god, no. It’s impossible she would allow herself to get caught that easily!′ Solene’s mind expressed.

“Oh, is that a look of concern I see in your eyes, Solene?” Caym muttered, his red orbs glowing with pleasure. “You care for her too, huh?”

′Yes! So much!′ she answered in her mind.

And she loved her...or him. God, Solene loved everything about him. Henri sacrificed his status as King of the Underworld, he changed into a female form, and he became a bloody concubine just to save her. He had done so much for her. Now, she has to do something in order to help him!

“Don’t worry. You’ll see her soon if you survive the second round,” Caym stated after a big gulp of his wine. “She wants to be included in the tournament too.”

Wants to be included? In the tournament? Solene wasn’t sure if this was good news, but anything to be close to Hope again, she would accept.

But before that happens, she knew she had to survive.

′I will survive,′ she chanted in her head as her vision fell on Zaraat who was still frolicking with his women.

“Ah, that’s it,” Caym fully shifted his attention to her and gave her a toast. “I’m sensing a stronger will from you, Solene. Survive. I genuinely want you to survive.”



When the hour of the tournament drew to a close, the winners started leaving the hall one by one. Zaraat, looking mildly inebriated, made a sickening gesture to Solene before departing. He threw one of his daggers onto her table and this cut her plate in half. He earned a quick sharp look from her, but he dismissed it, laughing as he strode out of the room.

“His gift perhaps,” Caym mocked as he rose to his feet. “I’ll see you in the arena, my Lady Grim Reaper.”

She sent him the same glare before he disappeared right before her eyes.

Only a few guests and concubines remained inside the hall, but their attention still weighed heavily on Solene as she stood up and passed the aisle. It was as if they were both condemning and praising her.

Condemning her for being a woman warrior instead of a lover in bed and praising her for efforts in the first round.

She held her head up high though and walked with fluid grace and confidence.

“Wait, milady, you should bring this!” Solene paused when she heard these words from behind her. She turned around and saw this wiry-haired woman dressed in the same gown and mask standing near the very table she dined at earlier. In her hand was Zaraat’s blade, the handle pointed to her.

“You’re going to need it when you battle that man,” the woman stated.

‘Who are you and why are you helping me?’ These were Solene’s questions if she had her voice. Instead, she neared the woman and took the dagger from her.

“I’m Clarita, and I am your husband’s ally,” was the woman’s reply as if she knew what Solene was thinking. “I wish you great luck on the contest.”

Solene on the other hand was taken aback. She didn’t expect they would get an ally in this place, more so someone who knew their secret, but this was a pleasant revelation to chew on.

They exchanged nods, each with deeper meaning than just a greeting, and then Solene returned to the aisle. She gripped the dagger’s handle with her right hand, making a mental note to return this to the owner.

Lodged in his throat, preferably.



A loud banging noise welcomed Solene even before she entered the arena. This one didn’t come from Caym’s people. It came from the audience themselves, likely impatient of the fights. Her helmet was already on and her armor set in place when she entered the building. She walked through another gloomy hallway until she reached the entrance to the battleground. This said entrance was for her alone, or at least that was what the shadow man in a black robe said. He was standing before the steel gate as if he was guarding it from unauthorized entry.

He also gave her Caym’s message, and it was about her scythe. His words only made sense when the steel gate drew up, revealing the location for the second round.

Solene’s breath paused for a moment when she took in the scene before her. No wonder Caym had to throw a celebration for the winners earlier. He needed time to make this impossible setting real.

Was this an arena in the first place? She thought it looked like a whole new continent now.

From where she stood, a stretch of low land welcomed her. It revealed a maze made of glaring red walls. It had twists and turns, ominous pathways leading to caves and rivers and forests. Solene couldn’t detail out the ground, for her eyes couldn’t reach the ground. Only darkness lined the paths, and this made her shiver.

‘Find your scythe where the smoke meets lava,’ that was Caym’s words. Solene watched the center of the maze and it showed a perfectly coned volcano spewing ash, smoke and well, lava.

‘Great,’ she thought. Not only was she going to protect herself from her opponents and from Zaraat, she needed to also protect herself from Gehenna’s wrath.