The Kingmaker System
Chapter 259 - 258. Crimson Reckoning (2)

Chapter 259: 258. Crimson Reckoning (2)

Lyall dragged the man forward, his footsteps heavy against the blood-slick stage. The metallic scent thickened the air, making it hard to breathe as I stood amidst the carnage.

"This is the one, Master," Lyall growled, shoving the man to his knees. His body hit the ground with a thud, trembling as he dared to lift his head toward me.

"Wh-What do you want? Please... Please, don’t kill me!" His voice cracked, eyes darting to the lifeless forms strewn around us.

I gazed down at him, my expression carved from ice. Slowly, I let my Dragon’s Presence seep into the space between us, suffocating and absolute. His knees buckled, and he slumped forward, gasping for breath.

"I don’t want to hear your pathetic begging. Tell me what I want to know," I ordered, my voice cutting through the tension like a blade.

He nodded frantically, sweat dripping from his brow. "Y-Yes! I—I’ll tell you everything!"

"Did you sell a creature that resembles a Dragon?" My words hung in the air, each syllable laced with quiet menace.

"H-How could that be? How could I sell a Dragon... I-It’s impossible, Dragons are—" His voice faltered, the false innocence grating on my nerves.

He was lying.

I stepped forward, placing my boot over his trembling fingers. With a deliberate press, I crushed them, the sharp crack of bone splintering echoing in the silence. His agonized scream reverberated through the air, but I remained impassive, watching his pain with cold detachment.

"If you lie again, I’ll break every bone in your body," I said, my voice low and menacing. His tear-streaked face tilted up to meet my gaze, eyes wide with terror and agony.

"I-I’ll tell you! I did! I sold a boy... he looked like a lizard—or a Dragon!" His voice cracked under the weight of his confession.

"To whom? When?" I demanded, my patience hanging by a thread.

"A y-year ago... to... to a man..." he stammered, his body quivering under my scrutiny.

"What man?" I pressed, stepping closer. His throat bobbed as he swallowed, fear tightening its grip on him.

Understood. Here’s the enhanced version:

I sighed, casting a glance at Lyall. "You have the device I gave you, right?"

"Ah, you mean this?" he replied, reaching into his jacket’s inner pocket and producing a small, sleek pistol.

"Yes, that." My voice remained steady, unwavering.

The harried man’s eyes widened, darting between us. His breath hitched, panic setting in. "Wha-what are you two planning?" he stammered, his voice trembling like a cornered animal.

"Aim at his femoral vein," I commanded, my gaze never leaving the man.

Lyall nodded, raising the pistol and leveling it at the exact spot on the man’s thigh. The muzzle gleamed ominously under the dim light.

The man’s confusion deepened, his expression twisting in fear. He had no understanding of what lay before him—this device was beyond anything his world knew. His voice cracked as he stumbled over his words. "Wha-what is that? Please... I don’t understand—"

I tilted my head slightly, my tone cold, final. "Shoot."

On my word, Lyall pulled the trigger. The gunshot echoed sharply in the confined space, the bullet tearing through the air before embedding itself into the man’s thigh. For a moment, he simply froze, eyes widening as shock overwhelmed him. Then, as if realizing the pain a second too late, he let out a guttural scream, clutching at his leg as crimson blood spilled freely, pooling beneath him. His breaths came in ragged, panicked gasps, and his gaze darted frantically between me and Lyall, filled with terror and desperation.

I watched him impassively, letting his cries linger in the air. When they became grating, I sighed and rubbed my ears with deliberate nonchalance. "People like you," I muttered, more to myself, "always need a little motivation to loosen your tongues. Blood, broken bones... it’s always the same."

My gaze sharpened as I stepped closer, looming over him. "Consider this your warning," I said coldly. "Now, are you ready to talk? Or do we need to get... clearer with our intentions?"

"I-I... Please don’t kill me," the man pleaded, his voice cracking under the weight of his fear.

I turned to Lyall, who didn’t need to be told twice. With a swift, practiced motion, he aimed at the man’s injured leg, targeting the kneecap. The man screamed louder, his hands desperately shielding the wound.

"No! Please! I really don’t know who that man was... But he seemed rich! He bought the boy for a high price!" he stammered, the terror in his eyes deepening with each word.

"You sell slaves to people without knowing their identities?" I asked, my voice sharp. He gulped, his body trembling.

"He-He had a royal insignia, so..."

"Royal insignia?" My brows furrowed, confusion flickering for a moment. The Pope had been involved in the child’s capture—so why would someone with a royal insignia be purchasing him?

"Do you have any record of it?" I asked, my patience thinning.

"Y-Yes!" he nodded frantically, eyes wide with fear.

"Tell him where to find it," I ordered, gesturing to Lyall. The man hesitated, but Lyall’s icy stare made him think twice. With a shaky hand, he produced a set of keys, the silver glinting in the dim light.

"Um... In my office, there’s a picture of Saintess and Dragons. Behind it, there’s a locker... The keys... are here," he stammered, handing the keys over to Lyall, his hands shaking so violently that the keys rattled in his grasp.

"Th-There are documents... related to all the..." he trailed off, but Lyall didn’t wait to hear more. Without a second glance, he turned on his heel and walked away.

I glanced around at the carnage I had left in my wake, the pool of blood slowly spreading across the floor, before my eyes fixed on the man before me. The room was heavy with silence, broken only by the man’s frantic breathing. I turned my icy gaze upon him, the weight of my presence suffocating.

"What’s your name?" I asked, my voice smooth but laced with an edge.

"George Birar," he replied, his voice barely above a whisper, his body trembling in anticipation.

I nodded, my gaze never leaving him as I crouched down to his eye level, watching the fear in his eyes deepen.

"Those slaves you have... I’m going to take them. Along with you," I said, tapping my finger on his nose. His body flinched involuntarily at the touch, a look of pure terror flashing across his face.

"Wh-Why me? I-I told you everything," he stammered, his voice breaking under the weight of his fear.

"You may have," I replied, a slow, cold smirk curving my lips, "but I’m not done with you yet."

His face drained of color, the realization of what I meant sinking in. The stench of his blood filled the air, thick and rancid, and for a moment, I had to fight the urge to gag. The scent was overpowering, a constant reminder of the violence I had just inflicted.

Lyall returned swiftly, carrying a leather bag, his expression unreadable.

"I got everything," he said, his voice calm and collected.

I chuckled softly, the sound almost too warm for the situation.

"We have to take him too," I said, nodding toward George.

Lyall glanced at him with an expression of mild indifference. "I understand," he replied, his voice devoid of any emotion, and without further discussion, he prepared to follow my orders.

George, meanwhile, seemed on the verge of collapsing, his body trembling, no doubt realizing that his fate was now inextricably tied to mine.

George and all the documents stayed with Lyall while I returned back to the Temple. I had checked the record of the selling of the child and there was a rough sketch of the child before he was sold.

The edgy lines and the angular body, it was unmistakably a form that I had seen before. A similar body that was in Frosthail. Drac. In his Lesser Dragon form, Drac wasn’t strong enough to keep his human form that’s why he was half human, half Dragon. There were scales on his body along with a hulking figure and coarse voice with the rows of sharp teeth.

The child in the sketch looked oddly similar to that form and I reached a conclusion that the child Saint, was in reality a Lesser Dragon like Drac.

And probably he was a blue one with the Healing ability, unlike Drac who was red and had the fire element.

No wonder, they were so desperate to have him.

But, I wondered if someone from the royal side was involved in this. I was sure that the Temple had to do something or the other with it but then again, the royal side was gaining more and more of my suspicion.

First, there was the sword that Crown Prince Arian had made of Dragon’s bones, second this child Saint who was a Lesser Dragon of the same element as me and lastly, the dark entity.

The picture just got a bit more bigger than my anticipation.