Читать книгу Raven's Soul. Volume 1 - Анна Морион - Страница 5

– No, ask anything you want, but not my daughter! – Lamar exclaimed in horror.

– You don't seem to want peace as much as you claim," Derek grinned coldly.

The cold sword blade, covered with demon blood, was still touching the white neck of Princess Sylvia Rossi, but she was calm and only slightly frowned her beautiful forehead: why did this man want her? What does he desire of her?

The girl was lost in speculation, but carefully glanced at the face of the conqueror: he was handsome, nothing to say, but in his features felt the coldness that penetrated her to the bone. As far as Sylvia could tell, seeing this man, fully clad in heavy light armor, splattered with the scarlet blood of the enemies he had brutally killed, Derek Merkswerd had a tall, masculine figure, an aristocratic face, dark, slightly wavy hair down to his shoulders, and a small, well-groomed dark beard that distinguished humans from demons, who had not a hint of vegetation on their faces. But what struck the young princess were the man's eyes: gray, they glittered with steel and hatred. Hatred for her and her people. And she knew that he had a right to that hatred, and yet she despised him and hated him as much as he hated her.

And what does this cruel king of men wish to do to her? Burn her in the main square of his capital like a witch? Give her to the hungry dogs, to the delight of the mob? Put her in an iron box and submerge it in water until she confesses to sleeping with the Devil, only to be burned for having intercourse with the ruler of darkness? Isn't that what King Juris, Derek Merkswerd's predecessor, did?

– What will you do to our daughter, you vile man? – Varma squinted her eyes. – You are not worthy to even look at her!

– What will I do to her, my dear, over-long-tongued Queen of Flammehav? – Derek's eyes glittered with mockery: without realizing it, Varma was depriving this all-powerful conqueror of the desire to make peace with her husband with every word she said, the demoness was too proud. – I will do whatever I want to her: I will torture her, hang her by her feet in front of the palace, undress her and make her walk through the crowd of onlookers. That is exactly what I will do if you don't shut your mouth right now.

'How easily he said it! Ah, mother, listen to him and remain silent! Otherwise, this tyrant and usurper will definitely do to me what he just threatened to do!" – flashed through Sylvia's mind, and she slowly reached out and squeezed her mother's palm.

Fortunately, the enemy's promise sobered the demon queen's mind full of unnecessary pride at this moment of Flammehav's downfall, and she frantically squeezed her daughter's hand in return. But her gaze on Derek burned with the same hatred: her soul was embraced by the desire to pelt this pathetic man who thought himself superior to her, Sylvia and especially Lamar, but fear for her daughter's fate made her clench her teeth so tightly that her face turned jaundiced.

– That's better," Derek said in a satisfied tone, and then turned to the kneeling Princess Flammehav. – Your mother seems to have a glimmer of intelligence after all. – And the sword that had touched the girl's neck was hidden in its scabbard.

– I beg you, King Derek… Sylvia is my only child and the hereditary princess of my kingdom. If disaster befalls me and my consort, she will sit on the throne and…" Lamar began.

– Wonderful! – Derek interrupted him. – That's even better! She'll come with me to Kaldwind in case you gather the remnants of your wretched army and attack again like a rat in the night.

– You have my word as king that I would not dream of revenge," Lamar said quietly. – Take back all the lands and cities you have conquered, but I beg you, as a father, to leave me my daughter!

– Your lands and cities are nothing but ashes," the king of men answered him quietly. – You have lost this war, Lamar, and do not dare to press my pity now, for I have none. Your princess will come with me… But no, wait: perhaps you think I will rape her and make her my concubine? – Derek laughed softly and looked into Sylvia's eyes and said: "Don't worry, that will never happen: Satan's spawn will never be in the bed of a good Christian.

"Good Christian! You said it! As if he didn't fall asleep at Sunday service, have a bunch of girls, and sometimes get drunk as a pig!" – Bergil almost burst out laughing, but he covered his mouth with his fist and coughed loudly.

But in this tense moment no one paid attention to the long-haired, burly man: the eyes of both humans and demons were fixed on Derek Merkswerd and the three demons, representatives of a great dynasty, who now stood humiliated, defeated, on their knees before the man who had destroyed their kingdom and threatened to take their daughter with him.

"What a splendid picture! Andrada, it was you who brought us victory!" – Derek smiled to himself, but his face remained still as cruel and stern.

He liked to see Rossi humiliated, powerless. He reveled in his power over them, knowing that their lives were now in his hands. But he wasn't going to take Princess Sylvia, that red-eyed demoness whom he found beautiful, but who disgusted him: his words were a bluff. Derek had no reason to take this girl as a hostage, because if the demons attacked again, he would easily repel them again, and then he would certainly leave no stone unturned in Flammehav and slaughter all the demons from small to large. The Lord himself must have given him this mission: the Talisman of Andrada now forever protects Kaldwind from black magic and makes him invincible.

"Well, time to drink wine from the rich cellars of Lamar," Derek thought with satisfaction. – These Rossi's have already been humiliated to the limit, there's no point in humiliating them further. But let Lamar think I'm going to snatch his girl: the less he knows, the better for Kaldwind."

– All right, Lamar. Let's stop this circus already," he said to the demon king in a calm tone. – Get up, but be quiet. – At these words, he glanced mockingly at Varma, who was flaming with silent indignation. – You will be confined to your chambers until I decide what to do with you and what fate will befall the rest of your lands, King Lamar. And I hear there are thousands of bottles of old wine stored in your palace? My men and I will drink to your health! Bind their hands and escort them to their chambers!

Derek's warriors immediately ran up to Rossi and, tying their hands tightly behind their backs with ropes, roughly ordered the captives to show them where their chambers were.

"What a madman I am… My pride has reduced Flammehav to ruins, and these filthy mortals will drink wine… My wine! Empty my cellars! But all these things are trifles compared to what awaits Sylvia… This usurper will destroy her, break her, humiliate her every minute, every second… Forgive me, my daughter, it was I who brought such misfortune on your head and on all of us" – on the way to the palace, the once omnipotent king indulged in bitter thoughts.

– Well, my soldiers! – loudly addressed the king of men to his army, which immediately answered him with a joyful roar. – I promised to lead you to the palace of these spawn of Darkness, and here we stand, in this square! The enemy is defeated! The Rossi on their knees have begged us for peace! We will give them peace and preserve what little remains of their former greatness! But on our terms and ours alone!

– Hail Derek, King of Kaldwind!

– Lead us, our king!

– Let the demons bite their elbows! And may they bite them off!

From all sides came the cheers of battle-weary but happy human warriors: they had won, which meant they would soon turn back to their families and be richly rewarded, as their king had promised them, and they believed him as themselves, as God.

– And now, my warriors, find yourselves a place to sleep! And for that, you have a whole palace before you! Eat! Drink! Have fun! But don't get so drunk that you give your enemies a chance to kill you! I will take one of the servants' bedrooms, Rossi will be locked in their quarters, and you will choose any place you like!

Instead of answering, the warriors hammered their swords loudly against their iron shields, making so much noise that King Derek himself cringed and raised his hand to signal them to stop.

– Take whatever you can find! Gold! Fabric! Stones! But no fighting and no squabbling! And one more thing: All demons in the city and in the palace are now under my protection! That means no rape and no killing! Anyone who violates this order will be executed by me personally!

– Unfair!

– Just this once!

– King, this order is too harsh! – The warriors wailed sadly, already anticipating how they would find a demoness each and make them do what they ordered, without violence.

– This is an order! – loudly, in a voice full of steel, repeated the king. – Now to the wine cellars! Bergil! Leave the guard!

– As you say, my King! – The chief of the guard eagerly responded. – Now, that's what I understand. But to deprive our soldiers of female affection?

– That order applies to you and to me," Derek told him grimly. – We are not beasts to rape and kill those who ask for peace.

– Do you know what I think, Your Majesty? You're too noble, and the damned demons don't deserve your kindness at all! – Bergil grumbled, but he dared not disobey, even though he wanted to catch a lush demoness in his arms.

Bergil was not a stranger to violence, but Derek shunned it: he preferred making love to raping women, and he recognized only consent, not the use of his power. Besides, there were many women in his kingdom who wanted to be in his bed: despite the fact that his mother was considered a sorceress who had intercourse with the Devil, Derek was a king after all and was generous with gifts to his mistresses.

Derek smiled crookedly at Bergil and ordered him to give his warriors a decent rest and a place to sleep. And the warriors, looking around in surprise and interest, began to enter the front door of the huge palace of demons, the heart of Flammehav, surrounded by a scattering of red mist. The inhabitants of the palace did not meet their enemies: they hid whoever they could, fearing the wrath and violence that the other inhabitants of the kingdom had faced earlier.

"Everything about these damned brats seems to be covered in blood: they love the color of blood! They even named their palace Blutoke! Blood mist!" – The king thought contemptuously as he scrutinized the tall palace of the demons, which seemed to be trying to tear apart with its tall, sharp spires.

This building was a majestic, ornate structure made of red stone and iron, its silhouettes illuminated by the gold that adorned it. Gold was everywhere, and this excessive luxury further alienated the race of demons from the king of men, who was used to the calm and icy lights of his own palace in the capital city of Kaldwind. Blutoke's demon palace screamed and flaunted its vulgar opulence, reminding Derek of one of the great brothels of Sturfjel, his capital, whose walls and floors were also covered in a screaming scarlet velvet, the color of vice and temptation. Derek knew from the merchants of Kaldwind what orgies and debauchery were going on in the palace of the great Lamar, but he rightly considered himself, who had deprived dozens of virgins in his kingdom of their innocence, not entitled to mock the fact. For, as the king admitted to himself, he was no better than the demons in this respect.

Blutoke had a kind of asymmetry incomprehensible to the human eye, and was so huge that its towers and wings were connected by narrow red bridges. The central part, where the Rossi family lived, was distinguished from the other wings by the golden runes decorating its entire facade, protecting the Rossi from enemies. But to Derek and his army, these runes posed no threat and were useless to their lord: their magic, like that of the demons, had been lost.

"I should have told the horned Queen Varma that she would be warming my bed tonight," Derek grinned gloatingly. – But they say she's many years old, and she's only skillfully hiding her old age with magic… Now that magic doesn't work for her, I think I'll see an old woman instead of her tonight, and a gray-haired grandfather instead of golden-haired Lamar. I wonder how old their daughter is? She looks young indeed. She's beautiful, but, damn, her red eyes ruin the whole impression, and it's disgusting to take her to bed. It's a good thing she didn't inherit twisted horns like her mother… But I need rest: it's fun to swing a sword left and right, but even I need at least an hour of peace and quiet.

And, with the intention of finding himself a small cozy room and drinking a goblet of wine, Derek Merkswerd also headed for the palace. But then Gerd – a warrior, master of several falcons, in charge of the correspondence between the king and the magician Andrada – was beside him.

– Your Majesty, my faithful Kit has brought you a letter," Gerd bowed to the king and handed him a small, tightly rolled sheet of yellow parchment, sealed with a blue seal bearing the image of a fox – Andrada's surname.

– Thank you," the king said briefly, and immediately broke the seal and ran a quick glance over his magician's beautiful manuscript.

Neither he nor Andrada had any fear that their letters would fall into the hands of their enemies and be used against them, because both of them wrote in a secret script, familiar only to the two of them. Derek's eyes slowly narrowed as he read the magician's short message.

– Gerd! Find me Bergil! – he quietly ordered the master of the falcons, and the latter, silently bowing, hurried inside the palace.

"God's grace that these demons cannot now read my thoughts! Otherwise, they would have triumphed… Something must be done, today. I will not hesitate and hope for a miracle," Derek thought to himself and tore the message into small pieces and swallowed it, drinking a sip of water from the flask tied to his belt.

Quickly entering the palace, Derek met Bergil walking back to the square and locked himself with him in one of the farthest wings.

– Keep your voice down," the king warned his friend as he closed the elegant but thin golden door behind him.

– Understood. – Bergil stepped up to Derek and fixed an expectant gaze on his face.

– Worse news than I was prepared for," he said quietly.

– What kind of news?

– Andrada wrote that we must destroy Flammehav and not accept peace if it is offered. But I've already given Lamar my word, and I can't go back on it. – Derek put his palm to his eyes tiredly. – The devil! Why have I been in such a hurry?

– Hey, hey, Your Majesty! Can I get you some wine to lift your spirits? – Bergil asked him kindly.

– Wine will not help, my friend!" the king laughed softly and took his palm away from his eyes. He was in no hurry to remove his blood-stained armor. – But the fact that I promised to give the demons peace is not the worst of it.

– Don't drag it out, Your Majesty! – Bergil grumbled unhappily.

– We can't leave Flammehav without those bastards taking revenge on us and invading Kaldwind with another war," Derek explained. – Andrada wrote that she was wrong in her calculations, which means that with her death the magic of the White Talisman will also die

– That's right! – Bergil scratched his beard thoughtfully. – Bad!

– Imagine what would be left of our kingdom and its inhabitants if the demons attacked us and were able to use their devilish magic?

– I don't want to think about that. What do we do, Derek? If you decide to slit the throats of all the demons, down to the last child, I'll be at the forefront," Bergil smirked. – But before you do, give us permission to have some fun, me and the others. Why protect those red-eyed whores? They'll do us some good.

– My friend, you are as bloodthirsty as a hungry wolf. But it won't happen. My conscience won't let me go against my word. You think I care about these demons? Alas, I rushed into it, and I've trampled myself into the mud! – Derek cursed like the last highwayman and stepped back to the large window. He stood there without moving for several minutes, thinking frantically. Finally, when Bergil was about to pull him back, Derek turned to his friend and said, "Bring Rossi here.

– Who exactly do you want? The king? That slutty queen? Or their pretty little girl they're shaking like a crystal vase over? – Bergil asked.

– All of them," Derek answered briefly, turning back to the window.

– Whatever you say. – Bergil bowed subtly to his friend's back and left him to himself and his thoughts.

'This is the only way to keep my people safe from the vengeance of the demons. Andrada has shattered all my illusions. But I will do whatever it takes to keep Kaldwind intact. And what I do will be a small price to pay," Derek decided.

It was a hard decision to make, but he realized that it was the only way to guarantee peace and quiet for his kingdom.

Soon Rossi entered the room, each of them searched and disarmed, their hands still bound tightly with ropes. They looked at the silent King Derek Merkswerd with bewilderment, and Varma with contempt, as they waited for him to speak.

– Lamar and Varma: you are here to hear the terms on which I will give you peace, and on which my army will leave Flammehav," Derek said firmly and turned to the demons.

– I listen to you, King Derek," Lamar replied in an ingratiating tone.

The gray eyes of the king of men stared into the red eyes of Princess Sylvia.

– Your daughter will be my consort," he said in an uncomplaining tone.

– My daughter is the wife of a mortal? – Varma hissed: as Derek had expected, the magic no longer nourished her body, and she was now a gray-haired old woman. Her husband looked no better. Only young Sylvia was still herself.

– Derek, you ask too much," Lamar said softly. – Ask anything, kill me, kill Varma, but leave Sylvia alone.

– You're in no position to contradict me," Derek reminded him grimly.

– I agree. I will be your consort," Sylvia said quietly but firmly, looking into the gray eyes of the enemy of her people.