Her Graceful War Song by Summer's Blaze

Chapter 1606

The men I had summoned worked quickly. By the time Stephen opened his eyes, the instruments of punishment had already been brought in. A brazier had been lit, with iron tongs resting in the flames, and a bloodstained whip cracked through the air with a sharp snap. It crackled and echoed loudly, sounding like thunder before a storm.

Ultimately, Stephen had killed before, so his nerves were steady.

Without so much as a blink, he said, "This is unlawful detention and interrogation -a capital offense. Do you not fear the law?"

Some men were like that. They believed the law existed to bind others, but never themselves. He had broken the law without care, yet now tried to shield himself behind it.

There was no point arguing with such a man. Words would only give him more chances to twist the truth. Instead, I took the red-hot tongs and pressed them to his arm. As the iron clamped down, his sleeve burned through at once, and his flesh sizzled beneath with a sickening hiss.

A terrible scream burst from his throat.

It didn't matter. The cellar was deep and hidden; he could scream until his voice broke and no one would hear him.

Even the strongest resolve could be broken with the right tools. I hadn't even started to pull out his nails when he gave in and confessed everything.

It was true that the two families had once been close. The parents and the children had all gotten on well. Stephen had been especially friendly with Rhea's elder brother, Darian Brook. One studied literature, while the other ran a business. They often joked together in harmless ways.

But when Stephen failed the national examination, it struck him harder than he let on. Though he laughed it off, saying he was still young and could try again, he couldn't sleep at night and his hair began to fall out in handfuls.

in books all these months, yet you still failed. Wasn't that a

night, he turned

the urge to kill, he couldn't shake it. But he knew he couldn't defeat Darian in a fair fight, so he would have to outsmart his

him out under the guise of a friendly outing, hoping to find a chance

national examination once already. Shouldn't you be studying harder?

but Stephen took it as yet another insult, as though his failure were

the

and son-returned home quite drunk after an evening of drinking. As they passed by Stephen's home, he watched them stumble through their own gate without so much as locking

house go out one by one. He waited a long while before he finally moved. He took a cleaver

well, it wasn't pitch black, and weth though it was dim, he could still makeout shapes. He walked to the bed

Darian's neck.

to slice through bones. The first

raise the blade again, he realized there was someone else lying in the

stirred and drowsily asked, "Who's

It seemed the two had been too drunk, so they had simply settled down in the

overtook Stephen. He raised the cleaver

with the stench of blood. At first, there were muffled groans, but before long,