Tales of Astora: Legacy

Chapter 49: Eve

Chapter 49: Eve

The elf king was currently inside a hidden dungeon of the Galahad castle. His court mage has recently had a few intriguing discoveries and has invited him to her lab for a small demonstration. Hearing this news made Aldol beaming with excitement. The young king has always been a fan of Astrea, or rather Odium's works. It wasn't just because many of these experiments helped improve their military power but also because the nature of these experiments, which was not for the faint of heart.

He has seen many of the subjects and each time their sufferings gave him a twisted sense of pleasure. To Aldol, the kingdom of Malatas was his playground and everyone was his toys. But now the toys were used and things started to become boring again. He needed new toys, with new environment.

Walking down the dark alley leading to the secret dungeon, Aldol could hear the moaning of the prisoners. But unlike a normal prison, the prisoners were not asking to be free. Instead, they were begging to be killed, to be free from their torment. In one cell on his right, a heinous creature with half of the body being a lump of rosy flesh and the other half still retaining his original form: an elf. A part of his face was melting into the bump of flesh with only the left side remaining unharmed. His words were almost intangibles due to the swelling on his neck, making it difficult to even breathe.

"Ki...Ki..llll.....mmmm....eeee!" the sad soul tried to form words with half of his mouth.

"Oh poor creature! So you failed to become something more and ended up with this ugly appearance. Perhaps I should grant you mercy....if you beg for it." Aldol grinned.

The poor creature repeatedly bowed his head until he kept hitting the ground. Blood spurted out of his flesh but he didn't stop. He just wanted this to end. This kind of pain was nothing compare to what he has endured so far.

"My my how diligent! Come here and I will give you what you want!"

Hearing this voice that seemed like the voice of an angel who has come to free him from this nightmare, the creature moved clumsily toward the cell's door. Because of this lump of flesh attached to his body, he could not walk properly and must crawl on the cold and stone hard ground. Crawling even faster, the creature tried to move his head through the bar of the cells but it was too big to pass through. Aldol's hand touched the visage of the creature playfully with just a finger, as if to ease the pain of this poor soul.

But when the beast looked up to Aldol with his only eye, the last thing he saw was a knife coming toward it. A dagger plunged into his socket as he shrieked in pain.

"Ha ha ha you stupid beast! You really think I will let you die that easily? Stay there and agonize for my amusement! Hahahaha!" Aldol laughed maniacally. If that was a normal person, the dagger would have been enough to finish him. However, the instinct to live, especially coming from a beast, was a frightening thing. Despite the wound and the blood it has lost, the beast still lived and moaned in pain, begging to be released from this world.

Many other cells were similar, filled with monstrosities no words could describe. Their moaning sufferings were like an orchestra, gentle music to the king's ears. Yet there was one totally different from the others.

The cell that caught Aldol's attention was a special one. Instead of metal bars, glass walls were covered in all directions like a tank, crafted by the best craftsmen in the kingdom. Often used to display a treasure of the royal family or a powerful artefact, at least that was what one would think of when seeing this kind of decoration. However not even their creators, in their wildest imaginations, would realize that they were now being used for such atrocities. Filled with a murky water, Aldol came closer to the glass and pinched his eyes to see what was inside.