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To his relief, it seemed like Caspian’s sharp sense of smell was currently affected by the aroma of blood that was in the air.

Caspian was still facing Ruby. So he was unaware of Vincent’s presence.

When Caspian didn’t get the answer from the guards, he shouted again in the same bone-chilling voice, “I asked, who the hell thought it was okay to let the Queen inside the dungeon?”

‘Queen?’ Ruby’s wet and puffy eyes were eager to see if she was the same Queen whom she had met before.

‘She’s the one!’ She sighed in relief upon seeing that same kind face. She looked at the Queen, hoping to get her attention.

But a couple of guards swooshed in and then stood behind the Queen with their heads held low. The guards had already accepted that today was going to be the last day of their lives.

But one of the guards still apologized to the King on everyone’s behalf. “We are extremely ashamed of ourselves, Your Majesty. We should have known better. We accept any punishment that you deem fit for our carelessness.”

Caspian pretended not to hear a word that the guard had just said. He quietly gestured for the guard who was still inside the cell, holding an empty glass, to come closer to him.

.....

And that guard was terrified that he was going to be the first victim of the King’s wrath even when he was not at fault.

Thankfully for him, Caspian only tore off the sleeve of his shirt.

Caspian wiped off the blood from his hand. But it barely did anything to remove the sticky and clotted blood. He threw that useless sleeve to the floor. And finally, he turned around to face his wife and the others.

Anastasia’s heart jumped inside her chest when she saw that rage and hunger for blood on her husband’s face.

His brows were knitted together, his blood-red eyes were hungry for violence, his nostrils were flaring, and his jaw looked stiff from clenching the teeth.

That was the face of Caspian that Anastasia wished she would never have to see in her life.

Caspian gave an icy glare to the guards and snarled at them, “Take the Queen back to her chambers. And come back to me before I lose my patience. Your punishment will be waiting for you all.”

Anastasia now regretted pushing her way into the dungeon. She came there because she didn’t want any more bloodshed. But here she was, causing just that. The least she could do now was try to calm her husband down and make him spare their lives.

“Caspian... it’s not their fault that I am here.” She courageously stepped inside the cell and stood very close to her husband.

Caspian swiftly turned around to prevent his wife from seeing his monstrous look up close.

Anastasia respected her husband’s wish and didn’t chase him around to face him. She kept on standing behind him and spoke again, “I ordered them to let me in. They didn’t do anything wrong. They were simply following their Queen’s order.”

Being a sick Princess her whole life, she knew how to say the right things to gain some sympathy. And she used that skill of hers to take Caspian on a guilt trip.

“I am a Queen with that much authority, aren’t I? I can order the guards around, right? Well, at least that’s what I thought. Forgive me if I was a Queen in the name only and if I overused my power when I didn’t have any. You can punish me instead of punishing them. It was my mistake after all. I forced my way in. So, I should take the responsibility.”

Caspian took a deep breath in. Anastasia’s innocent voice made it impossible for his love-struck heart to know what she just did.

Thus, he spoke to his wife in a voice that was a bit softer than before, “This has nothing to do with you, Anna. I just didn’t want you to see this ugly side of me. So, I got angry at them. You are sick. You should rest. Please let them take you back to your chambers.”

“Or...” He further added in a bit crude voice, “Vincent, you can take my wife back to her room if you were the one to bring her here.”

“Hey, I was also following the Queen’s order,” Vincent replied sheepishly.

“Now follow the King’s order,” Caspian asked as nicely as he could.

Vincent hated how the husband and wife were putting him in the middle and pulling him into their mess. He languidly stepped inside the cell. And then said to Anastasia, “Let’s get you back to your room, Your Majesty. I hope you saw what you came here to see.”

Before Anastasia could protest, Vincent swiftly carried her in his arms again.

And seeing that, Ruby felt like her opportunity to get out of this hellhole was slipping past her.

When she first saw the Queen, she had hoped that the Queen would see her and remember her. However, she soon realized that the vampires had made her unrecognizable through constant physical abuse.

She was waiting for an opportunity to speak to the Queen. But that opportunity never came. And now, the Queen was about to be taken away from the dungeon.

In her desperation, Ruby shouted as loudly as she could to get the Queen’s attention, “My Queen! Please save me!”

Anastasia finally focused her attention on Ruby’s battered face.

Ruby immediately felt a slight sense of relief when the Queen looked at her. And she started pleading and crying, “My Queen! Please! You are the only one who can get me out of here!”

Upon hearing Ruby, Vincent swiftly turned on his heels and walked out of the cell.

The guard who had his sleeve torn wanted to slap Ruby and stop her from making a scene in front of the Queen. He questioningly glanced at the King.

But Caspian gestured for him to stay put. He wanted his wife to leave the dungeon first.

Ruby, on the other hand, kept on rattling her chains and shouting at the top of her lungs, “I did nothing wrong! Please, my Queen! Save me... Please...”

While walking, Vincent noticed Anastasia’s eyes widening.

And just like what he had thought, he heard her whisper, “I’ve... I’ve met her before!”

He was worried about just that, that Anastasia would recognize Ruby as someone who she had met and saved before. And he was worried that she would grow a soft spot for Ruby again.

He was well aware that it would complicate things for Vampires if Anastasia was to intervene. So he increased his pace to get the Queen out of the dungeon quicker.

However, it was already too late.

Anastasia grabbed Vincent’s arm and asked him, “Put me down.”

“You need to rest, my Queen,” Vincent kept on walking down the passage.

But Anastasia used her leftover strength and shouted, “I said, put me down!” She looked over Vincent’s shoulders and shouted again, “Caspian! You can be the one to take me back!”

Caspian felt bad when he heard his wife shouting like that in her illness. So he swiftly went and stood in front of Vincent in no time. “I will take her,” he said to his friend.

Vincent put the Queen down from his arms.

And Caspian took Anastasia’s hand. “Come. Please don’t mind the smell.”

Caspian was about to carry Anastasia in his arms.

But she resisted. She looked him in the eyes and said in a trembling whisper, “Caspian, I know that woman...”

Caspian suddenly turned stiff when he heard his wife. He immediately assumed that Anastasia had seen that woman together with the werewolf who had bitten her. And he assumed that that werewolf was none other than the one who called himself her friend.

“Did you see her with Everard?” he asked to confirm.

And that only made Anastasia look at Caspian with confusion. “No... I saw her when I went to see the doctor a few weeks ago.”

“Ah!” Caspian had heard that story from Vincent as well as from Zenon. So he tried to brush it off, “It doesn’t matter. Now let me take you back to your room.”

Caspian tried to carry her again. But she pressed her palm on his chest and stopped him again.

“But it matters to me.” She looked resolute in her decision when she said, “I am not going anywhere until I know what her crime is that she deserved such harsh punishment.”