Orpal threw Jirni’s business card at her.
It was just a small piece of paper, but after being infused with Spirit Magic it traveled as fast as a bullet. The business card was also sharp enough to pierce through the gravity sheathe of her armor and cut Jirni’s cheek.
If she hadn’t managed to sidestep it at the last second, the card would have shattered her teeth and gone down her throat, just like she had done to Orpal one year ago.
“Don’t bother calling for help. The entire place is sealed, the arrays are turned off, and the Warp Gate’s cables have been cut.” With each word, the intensity of his aura rose and with it the savage joy that made his heart pump.
“You can try sending some of you little slaves to call for help, but my soldiers are already outside, waiting. They could use an evening snack.”
“You have quite some nerve for being a coward.” The others in the room had already fallen to their knees, but Jirni’s willpower allowed her to resist. “You promised me that you would have killed me first.
“Yet here I am, over one year and several corpses later. I guess that Vastor and I must have beaten you so hard that it gave you amnesia. Or did it take you this long to find a crack big enough to crawl inside my home like the cockroach you are?”
“I’m not a coward, you are!” Orpal said, sounding like a five year old. “I would have attacked you and that egg-like man much earlier if only you had come out in the open.
“Instead, you two hid inside your homes all the time and were always accompanied by Royal Guards. I’m powerful, not suicidal!”
“Indeed.” Jirni nodded, buying herself some time while racking her brain to find a way out of that situation. “Yet here you are, targeting me instead of Vastor. A normal human instead of an Archmage. It doesn’t sound very brave to me.”
“Silence!” Orpal slammed Thorn against the ground, producing a shockwave that sent the house staff crashing against the walls and forced Jirni to crouch to not be sent flying.
“That’s a better position for you, woman. Kneeling.” His smile faded as soon as Jirni stood up again. “You know, I tried for months to infiltrate house Ernas, but those who had access to the arrays’ control system were beyond my reach.
“House Myrok, instead, proved to be much more malleable. None of this would have been possible if not for the help of your dear cousin, Dyta.”
“What?” Jirni’s eyes went wide open and seeing the first sign of emotion on her face rewarded the Dead King for all his efforts. “That’s impossible! We are like sisters. We-“
“What kind of sister forces the other to live in her shadow?” Orpal cut her short. “Did you really think that Dyta could be happy playing your double? She lived an insignificant life, while you, her successful cousin, got married, had a loving family, and rose to the highest honors of the Kingdom. Panda Novel
“Dyta is just like me and she was happy to help me, after a little persuasion, of course.” Actually, Dyta had been a very tough nut to crack.
Orpal first had to find out what kind of man she liked, then he had sent a natural-born honey-trap, a Banshee, to approach her. Even then, it had taken him the Banshee’s Charm ability, the Mesmerism of Vampires, and even Orpal’s mind links to plant suggestions in Dyta’s mind slowly erode her willpower and loyalty.
She had pushed Orpal’s and his Chosen’s skills to their limits, but after months of hard work, Dyta had fallen deeply in love with the Banshee and was willing to do anything in order to spend eternity with him.
“Now your cousin belongs to me in mind and body. It’s thanks to her if I managed to lure you with the pathetic excuse of your dying mother. It’s thanks to her that I got access to the arrays’ control room.”
“You are lying.” Jirni said, but her voice lacked conviction.
House Myrok was too hold and powerful to fall without an inside helper.
Also, now everything made sense. Why Vastor had failed to save Jirni’s mother, why he hadn’t even bothered contacting her, and why Dyta had rushed Jirni to come there in the middle of the night.
“I’m not.” Orpal gloated too much for it to just be a lie. “Thanks to my steed, the entire mansion is shrouded by my personal array, Full Domain! It allows energy to get in, but nothing can get out.”
After losing to Lith, Orpal had realized the huge flaw of Sealed Space that had caused his defeat. Limiting the flow of world energy limited Orpal’s power as well and neutralized Moonlight.
Without dimensional magic, Lith’s superior strength tipped the scales beyond saving and without world energy, his steed was just a pretty crystal statue. Full Domain solved all such problems, fueling Orpal’s powers while keeping his prey from escaping and calling for reinforcements.
“You should be honored to die at the hand of a powerful mage who possesses a legendary tower. Something that not even my dear brother owns.” Being superior to Lith made the Dead King walk on air, especially after his recent breakthrough into the blue core.
“But first, I want to have some fun with you. I put so much effort into this hunt, I worked so hard that I deserve to play a bit with my prey.” Orpal got off Moonlight, walking toward Jirni who stepped back until she hit the wall.
“I’ve heard a lot about you from Deirus. As his master, it’s my duty to fulfill the dying wish of a loyal servant. Am I right?” His Davross-coated hand grabbed the collar of her shirt and pulled.
Jirni grabbed his wrist, trying to twist it and using her other hand to strike at Orpal’s nerves. Yet he was too strong and hitting the Black Rose armor only made her fingers bleed.
The Dead King tore her deep violet Archon overcoat and her white shirt with ease, as if he was just unwrapping a gift. The magic of his armor was too powerful compared to Orion’s Featherwalker armor, especially with Moonlight standing right next to him.
“Gods, Deirus was right.” Orpal’s pupils dilated in excitement, a lustful grin on his face as he stared at Jirni’s pale skin and her soft bosom.
Between her rigorous training and Lith’s rejuvenation, her body didn’t look one day past thirty. Jirni wasn’t the most beautiful woman Orpal had ever seen by a long shot. Yet after haunting his dreams for so long, after the humiliation she had inflicted upon him, she was the one he desired the most.
Orpal grinned from ear to ear in anticipation to see the rest.
The fact that she wore a sports bra disappointed him, but only for a second. More clothes also meant more time to play. The Dead King kept tearing her clothes from top to bottom, feeling his arousal grow the more she struggled.
Jirni’s eyes were still defiant, but now that only the sports underwear still covered her, they became veiled with tears of frustration. She refused to cry or beg, but she had exhausted all the cards in her hand.
