CHAPTER 277: THE QUEEN’S CAPTIVE

Since then, the traders and travelers had crossed that bridge keeping contact between the two sides.

That ancient cataclysm might have been the same event in which their ancestors had fought and sealed the Aeon underground and turning half of the eastern continent into the desert it was now.

Still, he couldn’t sense Dominic’ thoughts.

Not even the faintest trace of it.

After lushing down the unease rising in his chest, Shiao Yi gathered his strength and jumped, teleporting straight toward the island that was said to hold the kingdom.

...

Dominic glared at the door through which the woman who called herself a queen had just left.

The dark wooden door didn’t budge no matter how hard he pushed or pulled.

It was probably sealed with some kind of spell that only that woman could open.

The metal restraints clamped around Dominic’s neck, wrists, and ankles had loosened slightly since the first day, but they still suppressed his strength and bound his movements.

Ne was imprisoned in this small, windowless room.

He had no idea how long he had been here.

In this place where there was no day or night, time couldn’t be measured.

The only clue came from how many times the woman had personally brought food and eaten with him. From that, Dominic could figured it out that it was probably the morning of the third day.

He had no desire to eat the food that woman served, but for some reason, his hunger always came like a sharp ache.

So he ended up eating in silence while wearing his usual grim expression.

Even then, the woman would just smile softly while watching him eating as if she were happy simply to be there.

Dominic remembered how Louis once said that his cold expression could scare off not just women and children but even monsters.

He knew well enough that he wasn’t the most pleasant person to be around.

But this woman didn’t flinch at all.

She stayed close and looking pleased even when he ignored her.

That alone said something about how strong-willed she was.

It was impossible not to notice that the woman was drawn to him.

The affection was so obvious it was almost irritating.

Maybe being a ruler had made her bold and unafraid of showing her desire.

Dominic had told her again and again that he already had someone he love but she refused to listen.

She seemed strangely sure that one day Dominic would fall for her instead.

That morning, the queen came to share breakfast as usual, then left to attend to her duties.

The previous day, she had returned at midday for lunch and didn’t appear again until dinner.

She seemed busy, as one would expect of a queen.

It was almost absurd that she took time from ruling a kingdom just to eat with her captive.

Last night, the queen had looked like she wanted to talk, but Dominic ignored her completely.

After a small sigh, the woman had returned to her own chambers.

Perhaps, since she already had Dominic in her grasp, she planned to take her time, to slowly win him over.

Dominic decided he could at least give the woman some credit, the so-called queen didn’t scream hysterically or try to manipulate him with tears.

It was also a relief that she hadn’t resorted to using drugs or spells to force his obedience.

Dominic had no intention of surrendering through sheer magical power, but he could tell that the woman’s magic was stronger than his own.

If it came to a real fight, it wouldn’t be an easy one.

Maybe, Dominic thought, the woman was surprisingly inexperienced when it came to matters of desire.

That, however, didn’t make her any more appealing.

Dominic had no intention of letting himself be swayed by that.

He filled his time with stretches and strength exercises that could be done indoors, but boredom soon settled in.

The room was too small, with almost nothing inside it.

A sofa that served as a bed, a small table with tea, and a dark mirror-like black stone that was as black as the night. That was all.

For her physical needs and hygiene, he used cleansing magic.

It was an incredibly convenient spell, even children can do it.

He could understand why.

The people from Shiao Yi’s world, who didn’t have magic like this, must have lived much harder lives.

At one point, Dominic touched the wall.

It felt strange.

It was soft in some places, but not like fabric or leather.

It was also hard, though not like wood or stone.

The material had an organic texture, almost like bone or scales.

It was probably made from the remains of some ancient creature that has been long dead.

Sometimes, in the mountains or deep under frozen ground, people unearthed parts of creatures from long ago and usually they are fossilized into stone-like forms.

This wall might have been one of those.

But if it came from a magical creature, it still retained a strange property, it could absorb, store, and even release magic power.

Dominic could actually feel his own magic being drawn out through the metal restraints around his wrists and neck, flowing into the walls that surrounded him.

That was likely why he was always so hungry.

The constant drain of magic left his body weak and craving food to replenish it, only for that new energy to be stolen away again.

It wasn’t enough to endanger his life, but it left him in a state of constant fatigue.

Even worse, the power pulsing faintly within the walls felt alive, like slow, steady breathing.

It carried the distinct trace of that woman’s magic.

The walls had probably been absorbing the queen’s excess power for a long time.

Without that, her uncontrolled magic would likely spill out and cause chaos at any moment.

A large amount of magic power must have already been stored within the walls.

The fact that the material could hold such enormous energy was astonishing enough, but Dominic wondered what did the woman plan to do with all that magic?