Chapter 323 - A New Kind of Torture (Part 2)

When they reached the dungeon, they saw Azer cooped up in a corner. His food was untouched and he seemed to be listless. The guard opened the door of the cell, and Azer did not even budge.

Zenia inspected the food, which she thought could have gone rancid. But, there was nothing wrong with the food. In fact, the dishes served to him were the ones that were served to her for breakfast. 

Zenia, Vaughn, and Redivo observed Azer. He was physically present but mentally out.

"Hey, Leader Azer!"

Zenia called out to him, but he did not even flinch or display a violent reaction. He did not seem to hear or see anything.

"What happened to him? Redivo, why is Azer like that?"

"I don't know. The guards and the maids have been treating him like a guest. The only thing that he is not allowed to do is leave his cell."

Zenia knitted her brows and asked, "Is it possible that he somehow escaped and left his body here? Should we call for Jorick to help us confirm?"

"I don't think that's the case. Look at how he behaves. He looks like he lost it. Is it more of a torture for him to be treated fairly than giving him a beating? I really don't know what goes on in that head of his."

"It is possible that he is used to being punished severely whenever he committed a mistake when he was serving the Dark Magic Lord. Being treated with kindness is something new to him. He must be thinking that he is experiencing something like calm before a storm."

Vaughn turned to Redivo and taunted, "You're lucky that your blunder turned into a new kind of torture for Azer."

Redivo simply looked at him and said nothing. He knew that it was best to keep his mouth shut at such a time. Vaughn would keep going if he uttered something back.

"How will we be able to extract the information we need from him if he is like that?"

Azer remained indifferent. It was as if he was in another world that he had created. He did not even look at his guests. The more Zenia looked at him, the more she thought that he looked crazy.

Vaughn looked at the untouched food and got suspicious. It was possible that Azer was not even eating his food. Being hungry for a long time could also drive one to the brink of insanity. In Azer's case, he chose to starve himself. Knowing his level of intelligence, he probably did not know that starving himself could drive him insane.

"How long has he been starving himself?"

"Starve?" Redivo could not understand why Vaughn asked such a question.

Zenia looked at Vaughn and understood.

"Call for the one responsible for bringing Azer's food here. We have some questions," Zenia ordered one of the guards.

"Yes, Your Highness."

They did not wait long, and the maid responsible for taking care of Azer's food was presented before them.

"Are you the one responsible for bringing Azer's food all the time?"

"Yes, Your Highness. The other maids fear that this prisoner might do something to them. Since I'm the oldest, I took responsibility."

"Are you also the one who takes away the used dishes?"

"Yes, but I noticed that he never touched his food lately. But, we keep giving him fresh ration."

"When did he stop eating his food?"

The maid looked at Vaughn and was wondering if she would be punished if she could not give the exact date that Azer stopped eating. But, she could not really remember. She had decided to come clean and just tell them that she had no idea.

"Your Highness, I hope I can remember the last time he ate his food, but I really can't recall. Perhaps it has been a few weeks already. But, I can assure you that we treated him like a guest and never failed to give him his meals on time. We discarded anything that he did not eat and gave him a new set of dishes every time we feed him. If it helps, he only took complete meals for a few days after he was detained. After that, he refused to eat anything. He ate some fruits instead, but he stopped doing that after a couple of days."

Vaughn turned to Zenia, who understood what he meant.

"Hmm, it seems it has been a long time. No wonder he went nuts." Zenia rubbed her chin just like an old man.

Vaughn shook his head when he saw his wife's reaction and asked, "What should we do now? At this rate, we won't be able to find out anything about the Dark Magic Lord's plans."

Zenia looked at Vaughn and grinned. She had an expression that told him that she already had a plan. He was afraid to ask whatever it was and chose to remain quiet. She would tell it anyway. 

"We can ask Dr. Hugo to give him a thorough examination. I don't think that starvation is the only reason for his breakdown. I think that it started when he was still in the Dark Magic Lord's place."

Vaughn did not of such a scenario, but it made sense. They've been there and saw the condition and demeanor of the men under the rule of Dark Magic Lord. Everyone in that place had a tendency to go insane.

"Let's do that then."

The trio left the cell, and Azer remained in his position without even blinking. The once-proud man was reduced into nothing more than an empty shell.

* * * * * 

Prince Roland sent a word to his grandfather that he had decided to practice in seclusion. He did not wish to be disturbed and even told the Dark Magic Lord to take care of his mother well. 

The Dark Magic Lord smiled when he learned about Roland's decision. He was certain that his chosen heir would never let him down. He completely erased Azer from his mind and did not bother sending a troop to rescue him. The Dark Magic Lord was expecting Azer to lose it in a matter of time. The Crown Prince of Tissuria would not be able to get anything from him.

"My Lord," one of the most trusted guards of the Dark Magic Lord came to report.

"What is it?"

"King Odhran wished to see you regarding his daughter's request."

The face of Marquis Quivel darkened upon hearing it. He already told King Odhran about Roland's warning. He was beginning to get more annoyed with Princess Odette. It was obvious that she was just using King Odhran and did not let a day passed without making the King of Prazia guilty for abandoning her when she was young.

"I already…" Marquis Quivel wanted to decline the request but changed his mind, "I will go there now."

King Odhran was still a reliable existence for the Dark Magic Lord. He just hoped that Odette did not make any absurd request again.

Odette paid the Palace a visit without informing King Odhran, but she did tell the First Concubine that she would come for a visit. Odette knew that the First Concubine was trying to get close to her. She grabbed the opportunity and made it look like she was siding with the First Concubine all the time. She even promised the First Concubine that she would do everything in her power to convince her father to betow the title of Queen Prazia to the First Concubine.

"Your Majesty, the First Princess just arrived at the Palace."

King Odhran was busy with his paperwork when an announcement came. 

"She's here? Now?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. It seems that the First Concubine is attending to her now."

King Odhran was suspicious of the First Concubine's intent, but he had already grasped how his daughter's mind works. She would not let anyone take advantage of her, unless that someone had some use to her. He had no idea what his daughter could possibly want from the First Concubine.

King Odhran was expecting a visit from Odette, but he did not think that she would use the pretext of visiting the First Concubine or got invited by the First Concubine as an excuse to go to the Palace. Odette knew that many of King Odhran's concubines were spreading malicious rumors about her. She knew that in the eyes of the people of Prazia, she was someone who wanted the throne all along. It was not far from the truth, but she hated being the talk of the town in an unfavorable light.

'Did she know that I summoned for the Dark Magic Lord? Does she possess magic?'

It was absurd to think that way, but King Odhran could not help thinking that his daughter could be someone with powerful magic in her. They just need to cultivate it.

In a short period, Odette was able to gather people by her side. It was something that King Odhran expected his daughter should do. Otherwise, he would begin investigating whether Odette was truly his daughter. If she lacked the will and tact to do things according to the way she wanted them to happen, she was no daughter of his. Luckily, she proved herself well. 

A few days ago, Odette told her father that she wanted to meet the Dark Magic Lord. She gathered from a reliable source that Roland was the Dark Magic Lord's grandson. She also learned that it could be possible that she had magic in her and just need the help of someone with powerful magic to unleash it for her. The unleashing could put her in danger, but she was determined to go through it all. She was confident that she had magic in her body.

The Dark Magic Lord arrived at the Palace shortly after Odette came. The First Concubine detained Odette in her garden to let the other concubines see how close they were. Odette did not oppose the idea and tried her best to look at ease around the First Concubine while enjoying her tea and their chat. 

For the first time in her life, Odette felt like she was going through a new kind of torture.