Page 25 of The Princess In A 'Prince' Disguise

"What is Blackstone?" Emeriel asked.

"Grand Lord Vladya's domain. He rules the western clans, and his home is located in the western region of this citadel," Livia explained. Then, in a quieter tone, she added, "I wonder why he wants to see me."

Emeriel wiped his eyes, swallowing tightly. "Do you think it’s about my sister?"

"You may go now. I have already told Slavemaster Gaine that you will work in the cellar for now. The soldiers will come for you soon."

A cellar slave?It was not ideal, but it could have been worse. "Thank you, Madam Livia, for everything," Emeriel said softly, standing to leave.

"Emeriel?"

He turned back, looking at her. "Yes, Madam?"

Livia hesitated. "I would not hold out hope regarding Aekeira."

When she said nothing more, tears once again sprang to Emeriel's eyes, and he let out a quiet sob. He had dreaded the thought, refusing to entertain it. But deep down, he knew he had been fooling himself.

Emeriel walked unsteadily back to his chambers and locked the door. Falling to the floor, he wept bitterly.

Three days passed, and Emeriel was moved to the slave quarters in the southern wing.

The room he was given was small and bare, with only a tiny bed in one corner.

Thankfully, Madam Livia had managed to get him clothes that covered his whole body, sparing him from the revealing attire other slaves wore.

As the evening fell, marking his first day as a cellar slave, Emeriel tightened the chest-binds around his chest and put on his work clothes. He tied his hair into a ponytail.

He hadn’t heard anything about Aekeira. Hadn’t seen his sister.

Whenever he tried to ask Madam Livia, she would change the subject.

Emeriel refused to believe his sister was dead and her body discarded. At least during the day.

But at night, he would curl up on his cold bed and cry himself to sleep. Every single time.

Emeriel had seen Grand Lord Vladya and Grand Lord Ottai, but not the one called Grand Lord Zaiper. Whenever his name was mentioned, the Urekai maids and human slaves would all look terrified. Every single one of them.

"He is the worst of all the grand lords," The slave girl, Amie, had whispered to him the day before, her eyes wide as she looked around to make sure no one was listening and the hallway was empty. "Lord Ottai can be sweet when he wants to be, and Lord Vladya is very scary. But like Lord Ottai, he is fair and just in his leadership. But Lord Zaiper?”

Amie had glanced around again. “He is a monster. His slaves die every day. Some starve, others are tortured for fun, and some are even raped to death. His slavemasters are the worst, and Lord Zaiper does not care. He does not even see us as human."

Emeriel's eyes had widened to the root of his hair. “This lord is worse than Lord Vladya?"

"Actually, Grand Lord Vladya is not that bad," Amie had stated firmly. "When it comes to ruling and running the kingdom, he is as fair as you could hope from a Urekai lord. He just hates humans. He never holds back when dealing with humans. Compared to Lord Zaiper, though, he is an angel." The younger girl had paused. "Stay away from Lord Zaiper at all costs."

A knock broke into Emeriel's thoughts as Amie poked her head through the door, her smile bright.

"Are you ready to go?" she asked cheerfully.

Emeriel nodded and followed her outside.

Boris, the Urekai slavemaster, watched Emeriel’s every move with the sharp gaze of a hawk stalking its prey in the deepest parts of an ancient forest.

Emeriel felt deeply uneasy as he placed bottles of wine into a wooden barrel. He was so uncomfortable that he almost dropped a bottle in a moment of panic.

Luckily, his reflexes saved him, catching it just in time.

A good thing too, because breaking a wine bottle would mean fifteen lashes from the burning whip—and two nights in the dungeon, according to Master Gaine, the second Urekai slavemaster.

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