Several disappearances and unexplained events have been registered shorty after the commercialization of an ancient statue linked to some legends from a mysterious place called "Reich der Finsternis" in eastern Germany, there is no know route leadin...
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The justice of Reich der Finsternis
The villagers' behavior seemed normal enough, but Anika's unease was palpable—like when they were on the verge of facing a monster. That feeling of imminent danger was contagious, making Liz's pulse quicken.
The crowd fell silent as an elegant carriage pulled by brown horses and driven by a coachman with his face obscured by a dark hood approached from the back of the cathedral. On the dais, a messenger stood at attention, waiting for the right moment to speak.
Shadows stretched towards the scaffold. It was then that Liz understood the cause of Anika's concern. Hunchbacked figures, clad in black cloaks, climbed onto the platform. They were the same sinister beings they had encountered at the courthouse. This time, they carried three gagged prisoners with their hands bound—two men and a woman dressed in tattered rags. One of them struggled desperately, trying to break free from his captors.
The prisoners were dragged to the center of the dais, where they were chained hand and foot to a wooden structure erected beside them. Despite their frantic resistance, the hooded figures displayed a terrifying, inhuman strength, subduing them effortlessly. The condemned screamed in despair, their faces twisted in heart-wrenching agony. Liz felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness—she could do nothing to save them.
"Achtung bitte!" the messenger called out. "Auf Befehl der Herzogin, Frau Beatrix Grünewald, versammeln wir uns hier auf dem Marktplatz, um das Urteil über diese Rebellen zu vollstrecken."
("By order of the Duchess, Frau Beatrix Grünewald, we gather here in the marketplace to execute judgment upon these rebels.")
He paused as several guards opened the carriage door. The messenger continued, "Meine Damen und Herren, die Herzogin!"
("Ladies and gentlemen, the Duchess!")
The crowd watched as the radiant woman ascended the dais with an elegant stride and a severe expression that radiated an aura of merciless authority. The onlookers bowed reverently, yet the messenger's gaze darted around as if something were amiss.
"Wo ist Justizminister Ludwig?" ("Where is Minister Ludwig?") he inquired, his voice tinged with uncertainty.
"Mein Sohn ist heute nicht bei uns." ("My son is not with us today.") The duchess's voice was stern, her pronunciation of the 'r' exaggerated.
The messenger launched into a lengthy reading in German, and Liz saw the prisoners' bewildered expressions—none of them comprehended what was happening. She recognized one of them. Though they had never spoken, she had seen him at the palace. Just as she was about to reach for her weapon, Nick clamped his hand around her wrist, his grip firm, his eyes a wordless warning.
"I can't just stand here and watch them do this," Liz muttered through clenched teeth.
"You can, and you will," Nick hissed back. "If you act, you'll put the girl in danger and start a war between us and hundreds of these things."
