CHAPTER 10: The Subterranean Altar and The Executioner’s Smile
1204 Words
The stone archway swallowed the dim daylight, plunging us into the damp, cold subterranean corridors of the Imperial Citadel.
Torches flamed with dark blue fire along the walls, casting long, dancing shadows across the ancient runes carved into the black rock floor.
The air here was suffocating, thick with the heavy scent of old blood and suppressed magic.
Standing in the center of the subterranean chamber was a massive, circular altar made of pure black marble.
In front of it stood a man wrapped in a heavy dark-blue mantle. His face was obscured by an intricate silver mask shaped like a weeping wolf, and in his right hand, he held a massive, double-headed executioner's broadsword that hummed with dark magic.
He turned toward us, his voice smoothly echoing off the damp walls.
"The Blood Purity Trial is ancient, High Overlord," the masked executioner spoke, his eyes gleaming behind the silver slashes of his mask.
"No one bypasses the Judgment of the Seven Elders. Not even your preferred bedwarmer."
Robin’s aura flared instantly, a wave of suffocating, murderous dark energy smashing into the chamber walls with enough force to crack the ancient stone.
"Watch your tongue, Lord Julian," Robin growled, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword, his voice an earth-shattering snarl.
"I gave you permission to administer trials for traitors, not to speak to my Queen."
Julian didn't flinch. He raised his heavy broadsword, pointing the razor-sharp tip directly at the black altar.
"If she is truly of the Royal Sun line, the altar will react to her blood and ignite the Eternal Flame," Julian said coldly.
"If she is a fake, a cursed omega trying to deceive the realm, the altar's blood-drain runes will consume her soul until nothing is left but ash. That is the imperial law."
Steward Vivienne stepped forward, a triumphant, cruel smile playing on her lips.
"Surely, if she is what you claim her to be, Sire, she has nothing to fear from the law?" Vivienne sneered softly.
I looked at the black marble altar.
Etched deep into its surface were intricate, glowing red runes designed to forcefully extract and test a wolf's spirit core.
For an ordinary wolf, or a weakened omega, stepping onto that circle meant guaranteed, painful death.
My chest tightened for a split second, but then I felt Robin’s large, warm hand cup the back of my neck.
He leaned down, his lips touching my temple, his deep voice brushing against my skin in a fierce, protective whisper.
"Say the word, Lilya," Robin murmured, his crimson eyes burning with absolute, terrifying devotion.
"Say the word, and I will paint this altar with their blood. We don't need their approval to burn the Senate to the ground."
I looked up into his crimson eyes, feeling the steady, fierce heartbeat beneath his dark armor.
He was ready to declare war on his own empire’s council just for me.
A wave of intense, sweet warmth flooded my chest, followed by a surge of unshakeable confidence.
"No, Robin," I whispered, resting my hand over his gauntlet. "Let them test me. I want them to see exactly who they are dealing with."
I pulled my hand back and stepped forward, my boots clicking firmly against the cold stone floor.
Julian raised his eyebrows behind his mask. "Brave words for a slave."
"I am Lilya, daughter of the High King of the Sun Wolves," I said, my voice echoing with an absolute, divine resonance that made the blue torches flicker wildly.
"And you are about to regret ever questioning my blood."
I stepped directly onto the center of the black marble altar.
CLANG!
Instantly, six heavy iron chains lined with dark suppression runes shot up from the floor, wrapping tightly around my ankles and wrists, locking me to the stone.
"Lilya!" Robin roared, stepping forward, his broadsword half-drawn.
"Stay back, Your Majesty!" Vivienne shouted, as a protective barrier of blue light slammed down around the altar, separating Robin from me. "The trial has begun! Interruption means high treason!"
The red runes on the marble floor flared brightly, pulsing like a dark, ravenous heart.
I felt a sudden, violent tug deep inside my chest as the altar began to aggressively siphon my blood and spirit energy.
The dark magic pierced my veins, trying to break my spirit, trying to force me onto my knees just like Max and the Bloodmoon Pack had done for years.
Pain. Cold, agonizing pain ripped through my body.
Julian let out a low, amused chuckle, raising his executioner's blade high above his head.
"As expected," Julian taunted, stepping toward the barrier. "The altar rejects the fake. Prepare to be cleansed, little slave—"
"Is that all you've got?" I choked out, a dark, breathless laugh escaping my lips.
I raised my head. My brown eyes completely vanished, replaced by a pair of blinding, molten-gold suns.
The pain in my chest didn't break me. It ignited the dormant inferno deep inside my soul.
BOOM!
A blinding column of golden solar fire erupted from my body, shattering the heavy iron chains into glowing dust.
The black marble altar shrieked under the immense heat, cracking violently from the center outward.
The blue protective barrier around the altar shattered like fragile glass, sending sharp shards of magic raining down onto the floor.
"WHAT?!" Julian gasped, stumbling backward as the sheer heat scorched his silver mask, forcing him to drop his broadsword.
Steward Vivienne shrieked in terror, throwing her hands up to cover her face as the solar shockwave blasted through the chamber, blowing out every single blue torch.
The dark chamber was instantly illuminated by the pure, blinding radiance of my divine core.
My inner white wolf let out a majestic, earth-shaking roar that echoed through the entire underground fortress.
I stood in the center of the shattered altar, golden flames dancing across my skin, my velvet cloak billowing around me like imperial wings.
I looked down at Julian, who was cowering on the floor, his silver mask cracked in half, revealing his pale, terrified face.
"Is my blood pure enough for you, Executioner?" I asked, my voice echoing with double-layered divine authority that forced Julian onto his hands and knees.
Julian trembled violently, unable to raise his head against the blinding solar pressure. "M-Mercy... My Queen... Pure! It is divine!"
Steward Vivienne fell to her knees as well, her face completely drained of color, shivering in terror as she stared at the cracked marble.
Robin walked through the golden sparks, stepping onto the ruined altar.
He didn't look at Julian or Vivienne. His crimson eyes were locked solely on me, burning with a dark, intoxicating, mad adoration.
He dropped to one knee right before me in the glowing ash, taking my hand and pressing his lips to my palm.
"My Queen," Robin growled softly, his voice trembling with reverent worship.
I smiled, looking at the grand Overlord kneeling at my feet.
But before I could speak, a deep, rhythmic clapping echoed from the dark stairwell behind us.
A tall man stepped out from the shadows, wearing golden imperial robes and a dark crown.
"Impressive... truly impressive, my dear niece," the man purred, his eyes gleaming with dark malice.
- Writer
