At the Royal Chambers - 6:00 AM (Day - 28, Fourth Week)
Four weeks had passed since the challenge began. The kingdom of Valdris was visibly emptying. Villages that once had hundreds of people now had dozens. Fear hung in the air like poison.
Elena sat in her chamber, making marks on the wall. Each mark represented a life she had taken. She counted them every morning, forcing herself to remember.
Fifteen marks.
Fifteen people dead by her hand in four weeks. All criminals from the dungeons or very old, very sick people who begged for death. But still fifteen souls gone forever.
"How many more can I take before I completely lose myself?" she wondered aloud.
...---...
At Marcus's Private Study - 7:00 AM
Marcus, on the other hand, was celebrating. He had a large chart on his wall with numbers written in blood.
Week 1: 18 kills
Week 2: 16 kills
Week 3: 14 kills
Week 4: Just started, already at 48 total
"I'm almost halfway there!" Marcus said excitedly to his advisor, Lord Brennan. "At this rate, I'll hit one hundred with three weeks to spare!"
Lord Brennan looked uncomfortable. "Your Highness, might I suggest slowing down? The people are becoming... difficult. There are whispers of rebellion."
"Let them rebel," Marcus laughed. "I'll just kill the rebels. They'll count toward my hundred too."
"But Your Highness, if too many people die, there won't be anyone left to rule over."
Marcus paused. He hadn't thought of that. What good was being king if there was no kingdom left?
"Fine," he said grudgingly. "I'll be more selective. Only kill strong, healthy adults. Leave the children and elderly so they can repopulate later."
It was a cold, calculated decision. Marcus no longer saw people as human beings. They were numbers. Resources. Tools for his ambition.
The brother Elena once knew was completely gone.
...---...
At the Village of Thornbrook - 10:00 AM
Elena visited Thornbrook secretly, wearing a disguise. She wasn't here to kill. She was here to help.
She found the family she had met in the forest a month ago - or rather, their relatives. The family had made it safely to the western kingdom, but they had left behind a grandmother who was too sick to travel.
"Please, let me help her," Elena said to the grandmother's sister. "I have medicine from the palace. I can ease her pain."
The sister looked at Elena suspiciously. "Why would a princess help us? You're supposed to be killing us."
"I'm trying to save as many as I can," Elena said desperately. "I know you don't believe me, but please. Let me help."
The sister finally agreed. Elena spent two hours caring for the sick grandmother, giving her medicine and changing her bandages.
As Elena prepared to leave, the old woman grabbed her hand. "You have a kind heart, Princess. Don't let them destroy it. The kingdom needs someone like you."
Elena's eyes filled with tears. "Thank you. That means more than you know."
...---...
At the Execution Square - 2:00 PM
Marcus had decided to make his kills more public. He gathered fifty people in the capital's main square and announced he would kill ten of them.
"I'll give you a choice!" Marcus shouted to the crowd. "You choose who dies. Ten volunteers, or I'll kill twenty randomly!"
The crowd stood in horrified silence. No one moved.
"Fine!" Marcus said. "Twenty random deaths it is!"
"WAIT!" A young man stepped forward. He looked about twenty-five. "I'll volunteer. Just... just spare the others."
Marcus smiled. "Brave. I like that. Anyone else?"
Eight more people stepped forward, all volunteering to save others. But they were one short.
Marcus walked through the crowd and grabbed a teenage boy who reminded him of his younger self. "You. Tenth volunteer."
"No! He's just a boy!" The boy's mother screamed.
"He's tall enough," Marcus said coldly. "He counts."
The mother tried to fight the guards, but they held her back. Marcus killed all ten volunteers in front of the crowd, making sure everyone watched.
"Fifty-eight," Marcus announced. "Forty-two to go."
As the crowd dispersed, people weren't just afraid anymore. They were angry. Hatred for Prince Marcus grew with each death.
...---...
At the Royal Library - 6:00 PM
Elena was allowed out of confinement. She immediately went to the royal library to research the tradition.
She found the ancient book that started it all - "The Blood Rite of Kings" written three hundred years ago by King Valdris the First.
Reading the book made Elena sick. It described how killing made rulers strong, how mercy was weakness, how fear kept people obedient.
"This is insane," Elena muttered. "This whole tradition is based on one madman's twisted philosophy."
She kept reading and found something interesting. The tradition could be ended by royal decree, but only by a sitting monarch. Her father would never end it. But if she became queen...
"I can end this," Elena realized. "I just have to survive long enough to take the throne."
She made a new promise to herself. Every person she killed would be the last of their kind. Once she was queen, no one else would have to die for this horrible tradition.
...---...
At the Village of Riverside - 8:00 PM
Marcus returned to Riverside, a village he had visited four weeks ago. But something was different. The village was almost empty.
"Where is everyone?" Marcus demanded.
A brave villager stepped forward. "They left, Your Highness. Fled to other kingdoms. We'd rather lose our homes than our lives."
Marcus's face turned red with rage. "You helped them escape? That's treason!"
"Treason against a tradition that murders innocents? Yes, I'm guilty."
Marcus killed the villager on the spot. But as he looked around the nearly empty village, he realized something. People were escaping. His targets were disappearing.
"Find them," Marcus ordered his guards. "Track down everyone who fled. Bring them back. No one escapes the Blood Rite."
...---...
At Elena's Chambers - 11:00 PM
Elena couldn't sleep. She had killed three more people today - all prisoners, all guilty of terrible crimes. But it didn't matter. Three more marks on her wall. Three more souls weighing on her conscience.
She now had eighteen total kills. She needed eighty-two more in four weeks.
"It's impossible," she whispered. "Even if I killed only criminals, there aren't eighty-two guilty prisoners in the kingdom. I'd have to start killing innocents eventually."
Mary visited her secretly, bringing food. "Princess, there's news. Prince Marcus is hunting down people who fled to other kingdoms. He's causing international problems."
"He's lost his mind completely," Elena said. "The brother I knew would never do this."
"What was he like? Before?" Mary asked.
Elena smiled sadly, remembering. "He used to protect me from bullies. He taught me how to ride horses. We'd sneak sweets from the kitchen together. He was kind once. Loving. But the moment Father announced this challenge, something changed in him. It's like the Marcus I knew died, and a monster took his place."
"Maybe he's still in there somewhere," Mary suggested hopefully.
"No," Elena said firmly. "The Marcus I loved is gone. This new Marcus would kill me without hesitation if it meant winning. I'm sure of it."
She had no idea how right she was.
And how soon she would find out.
Last chapter of this week 😊.
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