The Crown's Obsession (WN)
chapter-451

In the mountains of Belmount where a secretive castle was built behind the caves, Madeline who was unconscious since she had left Devon was now strapped on to the table with her hands and legs bound. When her consciousness returned, Madeline looked at the ceiling, and her head turned to see a room that had pretty much to nothing which her vision allowed at the moment.

Madeline tried to free herself from the straps, but they were too tight. Where was she?! One moment she had seen Calhoun, and the next moment, everything had turned pitch black until she regained her consciousness.

When she tried to use her ability, she felt her chest start to pain again and she finally gave up. Was she going to be sacrificed here? She tried to look for a window from where she was strapped. At the same time, Madeline heard someone humming a tune, and she caught sight of a young vampire whose oily hair was combed to the side.

"Hello! Please help me!" Madeline persuaded the young man who appeared to be sane looking.

The person looked surprised and looked at the girl he had strapped on the table himself. For a second more, they stared at each other, and Odin shouted, "Master! Master! She's awake, Master!" and he ran out of the room.

"Wait!" Madeline called, but the person ran out of the room, his voice echoed and she wondered whom he was calling his Master. Moving her body as much as she could, she finally caught sight of a window, and all she could see through it was darkness.

After a couple of minutes of silence, Madeline heard the sharp sound of shoes clicking against the floor before the person who had abducted her from the castle to this place appeared at the door.

Vladimir stared at the girl whom his servant had tied so that she wouldn't have the chance to escape, not that she had the luck to do it in his presence. Being the oldest vampire and a devil, he didn't spare people that easily.

"Odin," called Vladimir, "Raise the table to the front."

"Yes, Master!" said the servant vampire. He went next to Madeline and started to rotate the handle that was connected to the table. The levers made creaking sounds, and Madeline felt the table's position started to change until the table stood upright, and she was in the standing position.

"I saw you at the time of the wedding," said Madeline. If this person had killed Samuel, and Samuel didn't know who this person was, it only meant that this person wasn't working with Walter's group. "What do you want?" she asked him.

Vladimir stood right in front of Madeline, looking into the brown-eyed girl. "Vengeance. That is what I want."

Madeline had no idea who this person was, and she said, "I am sure we can sit down or stand like this and try to sort out whatever issues you have." She knew Calhoun had killed many people, but she also knew there were some things she wasn't aware of because Calhoun wanted to protect her.

"Can you bring a dead person back to life?" asked the man.

Whom was he speaking about?

"As I thought, you cannot bring the dead back to life. You cannot heal the wounds that took place in the past. I lost my daughter all because of the King. And I think it is only right that I take what he holds dear to his heart. Don't you agree?" Vladimir asked Madeline.

"I am sorry to hear that, but he might have some reason to do it. He-"

"Using my daughter and throwing her away!" Vladimir's voice boomed in the room, shaking the windows. "How dare you mortals think you can do anything you want without any repentance," his voice fell low, and Madeline gulped. Which girl was he speaking about?? Madeline wasn't familiar with every kill Calhoun had until now, nor had she asked in-depth about his affairs with other women.

"You should talk to him," said Madeline.

"I have no interest in that," Vladimir's features schooled down. "Don't worry, I won't kill you right away. But I will break every finger and toe of yours every day from now on, so that the King knows how it feels to have your loved one taken away. Odin!"

And Odin dutifully grabbed a nearby device, pulling it next to the table before he caught hold of Madeline's hand. The device only had to be tightened manually, and the finger placed inside it would be chopped.

Madeline could feel sweat forming on her forehead. The night was only turning worse, and she didn't know what to do.

"Please!" She pleaded, feeling the tension rise in her body and she struggled to keep the servant away by turning her hand into fist. When the servant vampire finally placed her finger inside the slot, her body started to shiver out of nervousness because she wasn't able take it out. "The world is already filled in chaos. You can make it a better place." She tried to drag the time by distracting the older vampire to avoid her finger being chopped.

Vladimir raised his hand at Odin, and the servant looked back and forth before dropping his hands down from the device which he was going to tighten.

The older vampire scoffed, "Haven't you heard you should be bad with the bad? This world is worse than Hell, covered in deceit and lies where people decieve their own blood, ready to kill for materialistic values and powers."

"Doesn't mean every person is like that," said Madeline and Vladimir gave her a nod.

"Yes, my daughter was not like that. I raised her in a way as my wife would want her to grow up, but now I realise I raised her in a wrong way," stated Vladimir. "This world is a shitty place, and I don't care about others except for my own blood," he then raised his hand signalling Odin to continue with his job.

Odin bowed his head, going back to place his hands on the lever...

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I have created a single line at the start of the 'Excerpt' chapter in the beginning of the book. I would love it, if you could leave your thoughts on the book. This would be helpful for new readers who often run away after reading the synopsis. Thank you for your support~