Steel and Sorrow: Rise of the Mercenary king

Chapter 215: Family's issue

Chapter 215: Family's issue

Keval strode through the garden, his face twisted with barely concealed fury. Each step he took was firm, his posture rigid, as he advanced toward the secluded section of the palace grounds—a five-meter square hidden among tall hedges and delicate stone sculptures. In the center lay a body clad in the unmistakable armor of the royal guard, a crimson pool seeping onto the ground below.

He stopped abruptly, staring down at the fallen figure, a cold rage darkening his eyes. Slowly, he turned, his gaze snapping onto Vrator, his nephew and head of the palace garrison. Vrator stood a few paces back, tense and silent, as if bracing himself against the oncoming storm of Keval's anger.

"Explain this," Keval demanded, his voice low but seething, making Vrator think that his cousin looked more like his uncle than he let on.

Vrator met Keval's fiery gaze and swallowed, his voice steady but somber. ''While the young emperor was at leisure in the garden, he was set upon by a group of guards under his mother's orders."

Keval's expression darkened further, a tempest of emotions raging behind his eyes as Vrator continued. "One of the emperor's men rushed inside to raise the alarm, while the other remained at his side, buying what time he could in a desperate bid to protect him. But when the palace guards finally arrived, they found the garden in utter disarray. The Empress and her guards had vanished, along with the emperor himself. Lying on the ground was one of her men, dead, and the emperor's remaining guard, Alaric, left unconscious."

Keval's voice cut through the air like a blade, sharp and unforgiving. "Why did you not close the palace gates the moment the attack was known?"

Vrator shifted uncomfortably, the tension between them palpable. "The Empress Mother exited through the main avenue immediately after the assault. She left in a carriage," he explained, keeping his tone calm despite the gravity of the situation.