Claimed by the vampire prince

Chapter 517: Chapter 517

"This isn’t a statement that should be made lightly," Halric said immediately. "Your Highness, are you and your wife aware of the consequences of such harsh accusations if they are found to be false?"

Circe answered before Ragnar could speak.

"These are not mere accusations," she said, "but the words of the late king himself."

Several nobles frowned in confusion.

Others stared at her as though she had finally descended into madness.

"And since you are all so eager to dismiss it as false," She went on. "Then perhaps you ought to hear it from the king himself."

A chill swept through the room.

Before anyone could question her further, Circe reached for her magic. A blinding light exploded outward, consuming the entire chamber in an instant, forcing cries from the nobles as many shielded their eyes instinctively.

Power surged violently through Circe’s body. She felt it tearing from her in brutal waves as she reached beyond the boundary separating life from death itself.

She reached as far as she could go until her magic finally found him.

The light faded slowly and at the center of the throne room, beside Circe stood the late king Zeriel.

His form shimmered faintly, slightly translucent yet unmistakably real. This being in front of them had the same regal frame and familiar face as Zeriel.

Gasps erupted instantly throughout the hall.

One noblewoman stumbled backward so fast she nearly fell.

"No..." someone whispered weakly.

"It cannot be..."

But it was.

The dead king stood before them all and though his spirit appeared calm, the fury burning within his eyes was difficult to hide.

Circe swayed slightly where she stood.

The effort it took to achieve such a feat was immense.

Dragging a soul back from the land of the dead was never meant to be possible. Holding him here and forcing him to remain visible to every person gathered there, was draining her magic at a terrifying rate. Because his soul no longer belonged to the living world.

Every second he remained here came at a cost to her. But Circe did not care. All she cared about now was getting the truth out and to witness Nheera’s crimes exposed for all to see.

For the first time since entering the throne room, Nheera looked taken aback. Shock streaked across her features as she stared at the soul of her husband standing before the gathered court. Her lips parted faintly, yet no sound emerged. Even her breathing had become shallow.

And she was not the only one affected by this. Hairan looked as though the world beneath him had suddenly fractured apart.

His face had gone rigid with disbelief as he stared at the spirit of his father. Without even realizing it, he descended two steps from the dais, his movements slow and uncertain.

"Father?" he said shakily. His composure crumbled beneath the sheer impossibility of what he was witnessing. "How is this even possible?"

His eyes remained fixed on Zeriel for another brief second before they snapped toward Circe instead with a look of horror and revulsion.

"How did you do this?" he demanded. "Answer me. What kind of abominable creature are you?"

Circe did not answer him. She barely even acknowledged him.

Like everyone else in the throne room, her attention remained fixed entirely on the dead king standing beside her.

Zeriel slowly surveyed the chamber.

Even in death his presence still carried the same commanding authority it once had when he was still alive.

When he finally spoke, his voice echoed unnaturally through the hall.

"I did quite a disservice to our people during my time as king of this kingdom. There was much I neglected in favor of the things that benefited me. There were many things I could have prevented but I did not." Then Zeriel turned his gaze toward Nheera. "One of the things I should have prevented was marrying you, Nheera. You killed my cousin, Orrin, so I would become next in line to the throne. And once we wed, you finally obtained what you desired most. The crown. And when you discovered that I had no intention of naming your son as my successor, you and Laheir poisoned me. I overheard your entire conversation while I lay unconscious in bed."

Nheera suddenly found her voice.

"That is a lie—"

But the words never fully left her mouth.

A disembodied voice echoed throughout the throne room. She only had to listen to it for a second to realize it was her voice.

"Why do you even bother coming here? To gloat?" Nheera’s disembodied voice said.

Then another voice answered. This one belonged to Laheir.

"Why else? Beyond that, people expect to see the king’s chief advisor showing concern for him. The last thing either of us needs is for anyone to start wondering why I don’t."

Laheir visibly stiffened beside the throne.

Panic was written plainly on Nheera’s face.

Her head snapped around frantically as she searched for the source of the voices echoing through the hall. But there was nothing there. Her eyes were wide with panic and fear, fear because she knew that her utter ruination was imminent.

Only the truth and her own crimes staring her in the face.

"He looks peaceful," Nheera’s disembodied voice murmured. ƒгeewёbnovel.com

And realized that it was all Zeriel’s doing.

This was the conversation.

The one she had with Laheir while Zeriel slowly died in his chambers.

Nheera blanched as the full horror of what was happening finally settled over her.

This was the very conversation she had shared with Laheir while Zeriel lay slowly dying in his bed. At the time, neither of them had cared about speaking freely. Zeriel had been unconscious, barely clinging to life, and they had believed there was no possibility he could hear them.

Now she realized the magnitude of her mistake.

Every word she had spoken in that room was being hurled back at her before the entire court in the sound of her own voice.

And it did not stop.

The disembodied voices continued their conversation without mercy while Nheera stood frozen in place, powerless to silence them. Tremors ran through her body, yet all she could do was listen.