CHAPTER 383: THE QUEEN’S JUDGEMENT

Most of the slaves from the former king had never come into direct contact with Primrose, since they usually worked in the kitchens, stables, or even washed clothes.

However, at times, they were also given tasks to clean the king and queen’s chambers, which meant there was a chance they could plant spy tools in there.

Edmund had already told Leofric to search for every single one of those items, making sure not to overlook even the smallest detail.

Since the palace was in such a mess, it was likely the traitors hadn’t even had the chance to take back the spy tools they had hidden inside. On top of that, Leofric had already rounded up all of the former king’s slaves and locked them in the dungeon.

"The dungeon might be a bit damp, my wife," Edmund warned her before they entered. "If you feel suffocated, we can leave right away."

Primrose smiled at him, her tone calm and reassuring. "I know. Don’t worry. I’ll tell you if anything feels wrong."

Since Primrose wanted to use her mind-reading ability more freely, she asked the soldiers to wait outside and went in with only her husband.

This was actually her first time setting foot inside the dungeon, a place strictly forbidden for her. Even the soldiers would drive her away if she came too close to its entrance.

Ironically, when Primrose had first arrived in Noctvaris, she had thought Edmund would lock her in the dungeon if she disobeyed him or did something he disliked.

But instead of being thrown into the dungeon, she hadn’t even been allowed to breathe the air around it.

As Callen had told her back then, the dungeon felt so cold, the chill was enough to make anyone inside shiver, especially with winter approaching.

Fortunately, Edmund had told her to wear a thick coat so she wouldn’t freeze when they entered the dungeon.

She looked around and saw dark blood stains on the walls and floor. The blood had turned a deep brown and dried into the stone, like it had been there for a long time.

"My King, why would you do this to us?!" someone shouted from the cell as Edmund and Primrose stopped in front of the iron bars. Behind them stood a dozen of the former king’s slaves.

There were maybe twenty in all, enough to cause trouble for the palace if things went wrong.

Primrose had always felt that allowing the former king’s slaves to remain in the palace was a mistake from the very beginning. Still, she could understand why Edmund had wanted to give them another chance.

"Does our years of service mean nothing to you?!" one of them cried.

Another shouted, "We’ve long been freed from the status of slaves, so why are you still treating us like slaves?!"

Edmund tightened his jaw and spoke in a low voice. "This is only temporary." He continued, "If you truly did nothing wrong, then you have nothing to fear."

"Nonsense!" a man snapped. "You will punish us anyway, even if we did nothing! Just because we have nothing, you treat us cruelly!"

"Your Majesty, we never betrayed you!" a woman screamed until her voice bounced off the walls. "Why would I betray someone who saved my life?"

They wailed, shouted, and swore by the Moon Goddess that they had never betrayed Edmund. They looked so pitiful, so heart-rending that it made the Lycan King question his decision to throw them into the dungeon.

However, no matter how convincing they seemed, no matter how sad they appeared, Primrose could see behind their facades.

[This king is an idiot. We’ve lived in this palace for years, and he only now realizes something is wrong with us.]

[Fucking Weston! How could he die so easily?! If he had gotten rid of this foolish lycan king, I could have taken many valuable things from this palace!]

[FUCK! I’ve waited so long to grab his golds! Instead of profit, I get thrown in here!]

[Why does that fucking queen keep staring at me?! Since she came, I’ve hated her. Why do I have to wash her fancy dresses? She should’ve died yesterday so I could sell them!]

Ah, so they weren’t brainwashed slaves at all. They were nothing but greedy.

Edmund, her gentle husband, had given them another chance; he let them work and even paid them wages. But instead of being grateful, their greed swallowed them whole. They willingly served the late king’s son, hoping to steal treasures from the palace and even take all the gold Edmund had stored there.

[If I knew I was about to die, I would have asked Weston to let me use the spy tools too, so I could see the queen’s naked body when they make love in their room.]

Primrose’s lashes lowered, her eyes turning ice-cold as more of their thoughts poured into her mind.

Not only were they greedy, these men were a pack of perverts. They had truly hoped Edmund would die yesterday so they could lay their filthy hands on her.

Disgusting.

[She’d probably lose her mind if she found out Weston had been spying on her all this time and—]

"Husband," Primrose said, her voice cold as she looked at the trembling beasts before her. "There are too many rats here. I think you should burn them all."

Primrose didn’t need to explain everything to Edmund, because her words alone made it clear that they were all traitors.

Edmund had shown them kindness, yet they repaid him by sinking their teeth into the very hand that fed them.

"You should cut out their tongues as well." Primrose lifted her hand and pointed at several men whose minds had been filled with sickening thoughts about her. "They make me sick."

"My queen, what are you saying?!" one of the men she pointed at went pale, his filthy thoughts vanishing in an instant. "Why would you cut out my tongue?! What did I do?!"

Primrose didn’t bother to answer him. Instead, she leaned close to Edmund and whispered, "They were planning to take advantage of me if you had died yesterday."