Necromancer's Descent

80 - Fall From Grace

Henrietta Hydel's Point of View
Back at Avenfort - Just after ch 71

"What do you mean he's gone?!"

Claudius almost snaps mentally at the news of Alexis' escape. The way his eyes narrow, hints at the madness he hides just below the surface.

He almost puts Mia down, looking like he's going to tear the poor lad apart, but then controls himself, and instead holds Mia tighter.

You can almost see the calculations go through his head, as he scrambles to regain control.

Both Claudius and Alexis have the divine order ability, due to their royal blood and positions, and if you don't count the demons, then there's only four living people right now that can defy that order. Three that they know of.

Their respective brother, Mia, Rosalin and Theodore. Though, I suppose Theodore isn't technically living.

Alexis, Claudius and Mia have Eostra's protection against it... Theodore is dead. The spell only works on living targets, due to Eostra's nature... and finally, Rosalin is a child of Morset, not Eostra. She's not counted as a subject of the king of the children of Eostra, and thus immune to it.

Of course, this also means, that if Alexis wants to, he can have everyone at the frontline basically commit suicide by ordering them to charge at the shrine of ends and beginnings, using divine order, as long as Claudius isn't there to stop it.

While the divine order can't be used to make people directly commit suicide. It can send them into war. Which is in many ways exactly the same, when the opponent is the demon king himself, or someone like Estella.

It's how the Royal family manages to keep control of a country that ends up being at the brink of destruction almost every hundred years.

At least the control is affected by range and stops when the user isn't at that moment using the skill.

Basically, Claudius is trying to figure out what Alexis would be trying to do with his newly won freedom.

Alexis doesn't have his loyal subjects anymore, so he can't win a war. But ruining Claudius' victory is a viable strategy, although it would put him in a very bad light for taking back the throne.

"Henrietta."

Claudius' cold voice calls my name, and I brace myself, for a tricky conversation. While Claudius never had the talent that let him learn to tell lies from truths, Johannes who does, is still here. Though he's a mental wreck thanks to Theodore's merciless humiliation.

"Yes, your highness?"

"Your guards were supposed to watch the door. So how did he get out?"

Because I specifically told them to fetch him.

"My guards left their posts, when they saw Tristan unveiled as Theodore. They knew it would be a major issue, and ran to report it before things got out of hand. He must have gotten out after that."

I put on my most guilty looking expression.

"Behead them for abandoning their post."

No mercy. But not unexpected.

"Yes, your highness."

Those two already left with the Troyfort knights. Claudius won't know the difference, if I just take a couple of deserters from the village graveyard. Since they weren't good to Rosalin, I'm sure her little guard knight will be happy too.

I watch as Claudius' fingers almost dig into Mia's body from the sheer frustration of things going south after he was finally assured that the matter of his brother had been dealt with.