The Hidden King's Stolen Wife-Chapter 266: Chains of Flesh II

Rafael had heard the commotion a little too late. By the time the first portion of the palace collapsed, he was already a good distance away, sent by his father to do his bidding. The second collapse happened when Rafael was already on the palace grounds, but he still wasn’t quick enough.

Dread flooded his veins when he felt the rush of panic through his ring, followed by a slow and steady stream of weakness. His body felt fine in itself, but his left hand, where his wedding ring was, felt so much weaker that there could only be one explanation for it.

Soleia.

His face quickly turned ashen as he rushed into the palace despite the stream of servants running in the opposite direction for their lives.

The coppery stench of blood reeked through the air, and on any other day, Rafael would’ve been thankful for the free resource he could use in battle. But this time, he didn’t know if this pool of blood contained that of Soleia, and judging by the amount that dyed the floors of the palace, pouring out of the debris as though it was a man-made waterfall, Rafael could only fear the worst.

"Shit," he cursed under his breath, panting as he sprinted straight for where Soleia felt the strongest.

His guess was that she was held in the throne room, and true enough, the closer he came to his destination, the stronger the connection he felt with Soleia.

However, even then, that connection wasn’t very strong. It was as though she was desperately clinging to the last sliver of life.

With a slam, Rafael pushed open the door that was still barely hanging onto its hinges. It slammed into the wall with a bang, revealing a sight that Rafael never thought he would ever witness.

Orion Elsher was on the floor, his clothing a bright scarlet due to the blood that was spilling from his back. His face was pale, and if it weren’t for the subtle rise and fall of his shoulders, Rafael would’ve never guessed he wasn’t already claimed by death.

Well, fuck. Rafael thought he had just stepped straight through a portal that led to an alternate dimension, because there was no way in hell his father was strong enough to overpower Orion Elsher, the man who — almost — single-handedly took down the strongest beast to ever scale the skies.

For all he remembered, that man had flesh that was as hard as steel, and a punch that was enough to shatter buildings. But here he was, lying in a pool of his own blood.

How the fuck did that happen?!

His question was quickly answered when his eyes then veered to a short distance further back into the room. King Recaldo stood right at the top of the steps, holding Soleia up by her throat. She was limp, her body twitching every once in a while, but even from where he stood, Rafael could tell that her face was starting to turn blue.

Fury shot through Rafael’s veins, his eyes bloodshot, and he acted before he could even think. His hand swept across him in a crescent shape, and all of the blood that had leaked out of the fallen bodies within that area, other than Orion’s, was swept into Rafael’s control.

"Let go of her!" he roared, sending the massive, spiked blood whip striking in his father’s direction.

King Recaldo clicked his tongue, scowling as he jumped out of the way. As a result, Rafael’s blood whip landed on the steps, cracking the structure ever so slightly before withdrawing back to his side.

He didn’t rest. Immediately after the whip was recalled, it repositioned itself and struck again. This time, Recaldo was a second too slow. It nicked him slightly, and he hissed in pain as his own blood began to pour from a cut on his thigh.

All throughout, however, he didn’t loosen his grip on Soleia. He merely carried her a little differently, but had not once placed her down on the ground and given Rafael the opportunity to snatch her out from under his nose.

King Recaldo said nothing. He merely sneered before throwing his hand forward. From behind him, several blood spikes were flung through the air, headed straight for Rafael’s head. A murderous glint shot through Recaldo’s eyes, but it wavered for a second when he felt a burst of weakness shoot through him.

He dropped to one knee, still clutching onto Soleia, as his face contorted in discomfort. His hands were trembling― one moment he was filled with power like never before, and another, he was stripped of all magic.

Rafael held his palms out the moment his father dropped down, using his magic to stop the spikes mid-air before they could hit him. Without his father controlling the spikes manually, allowing it to fly with natural force, it was much easier to defend himself.

Even then, he stumbled back just the slightest with the amount of force behind the blood spikes. Rafael gritted his teeth. His gut feeling was indeed right― there was something wrong.

His father was trained, yes, but he wasn’t gifted by any means. Recaldo’s training and years of battle knowledge were what gave him an edge, but even Ricard was far more talented a magical practitioner than their father ever was.

Unless...

Rafael’s eyes widened as he looked at Soleia in horror.

As Rafael slowly connected the dots, Soleia’s eyes slowly opened. They had been half-hooded for the longest time, but when she felt her ring pulse slightly on her finger, her eyes naturally fought to open.

She met Rafael’s gaze from across the room, with only time to witness his utter horror. His lips parted, and he seemed to be screaming something, his hand reaching for her, but she could hear nothing more than a sharp ringing.

Then, her eyes widened, a silent gasp slipping past her lips. Pain rushed through her abdomen, and Soleia jerkily looked down only to see that there was a blood spear right through her. Her mind went blank, and slowly, her eyes moved to look at the culprit, whose face was pressed so close to her that it was impossible to see the demon that hid behind those irises.

"You will die an honorable death by giving up your life for the king," Recaldo said with a sneer. "Consider yourself lucky."

Soon enough, against Soleia’s control, she felt the selenite on her newly-made earrings beginning to heat up.