Chapter 35: A Drop of Red II
The old woman paled tremendously, but to her credit, she gathered enough courage — or perhaps it was more desperation of a cornered animal — to spit at Ralph’s feet. Ralph merely raised an eyebrow and shifted Soleia out of the way as that little bit of spit landed on his boots.
"Very rude of you," Ralph scolded. He curled his fingers to form manacles around the old woman’s ankles, the very same type she imprisoned Soleia in.
However, he knew better than anyone that nothing short of death would allow her to emerge from the restraints. Sensing the fear in her eyes, he decided to restrain her neck and hands as well, all while humming a cheerful tune.
It wouldn’t do for her to do something foolish like throwing herself on a particularly sharp piece of crystal to end her life, not when she was priceless alive. After all, the business of precious gems was one that lent its vendors to a short shelf life. For such an old woman to keep maintaining her business without being sent to the guillotine meant that she had to have friends in high places.
"Let me go― I’ll give you half of everything I own!" the old woman declared, her pupils darting around, desperately looking for an escape route that wasn’t there.
Her store, that was once her pride and joy, had turned into a battleground littered with corpses. Smashed crystals lay on the ground, their fragments bringing bright spots of color against the dull grayish floors.
More guards entered the store, cutting off any route for escape.
"Your Highness, how do you want to deal with her?" one of the guards asked, and Ralph sighed.
"Oliver, how often must I tell you that we must be discreet about my identity? What if Soleia had heard you?" Ralph scolded with a sigh.