Don't mess with me.

Took Them By Suprise.

James strolled through the halls, a smirk on his face. It had been two years since he took the throne, and to him, everything was going perfectly. When he walked into town, all was silent. The whole court feared and respected him. There had been times when neighboring kingdoms attempted to invade, but not only were James' armies able to defeat and enslave the intruders, they had also managed to take over said kingdoms. Within two years, James was able to take over and rule the entirety of Europe, something his bumbling father and idiotic brother never could have accomplished, he thought with disdain.
How he had loathed the fools. Not only were they wasting resources on the peasants far below them, but they had no intention of attempting to gain more land. The thought of his bastard brother ruling his perfect kingdom made him ill. No doubt the idiot would take after the old coot, focusing on 'the safety of the village' as if the damn thing actually served a purpose. All it did was trade amongst itself, never acquiring more wealth for the kingdom. Not anymore though.
The entirety of the kingdom served a purpose, and that was to keep James happy. And James reveled in it., all the wealth and glory, the cries and screams of the things below a sweet music to his ears. Every day, James picked one of them out of a gathered crowd, and had them executed. It was a game to him, a thrilling performance, where each act was never the same. In one scene, a man is being buried alive as his family watched on, but the next the roles would be reversed as the man had to stand and do nothing as his wife and children burned alive. The entirety of the play was orchestrated by him, and was accompanied by the sounds of screams, cries, and torment. The scenery was painted crimson, and James had grown to love the color. In fact, he adored the color so much that he ordered that the steps be bathed in it. Everywhere you went, blood painted every surface, the floors, walls, ceilings, everything.
However, the only thing that intrigued James more than the sight of blood was the taste. The copper tang of the warm liquid filling his mouth was a drug to him. The feeling of it running down his chin and throat was ecstasy. And James preferred it fresh. And young.
James sat on his throne, growing more impatient by the second. His head guard was late. Finally, there was a loud echoing knock on the wooden doors, and soon a guard walked in, avoiding looking at the king and instead focusing on the line of bodies behind him. They were all female, ages thirteen to eighteen, with flawless skin. Each was wearing a thin linen garment that hung loosely on their thin frames and a silver pendant in their hair. The young king did not look at them, however, and instead turned his attention to the guard.
"Why, are you late?" James said in a gruff drawl, staring intently at the guard as though trying to determine whether or not he was prey, and with the kings recent diet, it could very likely be the former.
The guard stepped forward reluctantly but met the kings gaze and replied in a clear voice that "Some of the villagers turned violent when they came for collections, so they had to exterminate the threat."
James appeared to consider the explanation before snapping his fingers, two guards appearing seemingly from thin air and dragging the screaming guard away to await death. The king then ordered that the girls be sent to the dungeon and fed until they appeared to be in good health. James hated to waste his resources, but he simply detested the tasted of malnourished meat. It altered the flavor, and made the blood taste stale.