The Lycan King's Forbidden Craving - Chapter 81: Chapter 81

Gasps and murmurs erupted as the tension doubled. Magnus looked as though he had seen a ghost.
Arianna froze. What?
"Who sent you?" The king questioned.
The witch cried on her spot, slowly looking up at the culprit. "Ser Magnus."
"Nonsense!" Magnus flared, slamming his hand on the table. "Your Grace, you shouldn't listen to her. She is a liar. A deceiver. There is no way I would ever do such a thing. I haven't even met a witch for almost my entire life!"
Duncan snorted. "I investigated this case myself." A warrior approached Magnus, handing over a scroll for him to read. "That is your seal at the bottom. Is it not? You paid a fortune to witches to deceive me."
Sweat flooded Magnus's forehead. "No, your Grace! This is a lie... It's forged."
"Are you calling me a liar?" Duncan raised a brow. Magnus's mouth snapped shut, then he slowly turned to face Valkyrie. "Come."
Valkyrie swallowed hard, stepped down, and walked to him with her gaze down.
"Deceit. Desperation. Manipulation." Duncan's voice remained unwavering. "These are the things you have built your claim upon. Tell me, Lady Valkyrie, do you deny any knowledge of this treachery?"
"No, she doesn't know about this!" Magnus exclaimed from the corner. "My daughter has no idea. Tell him, Valkyrie!"
"Silence!" Lucas snapped at Magnus. "The king never asked you. Unless you want to lose that head of yours."
Valkyrie sucked in a deep breath. Just as Toran had mentioned, when the king asked a question like this, he already knew the answer.
"I do not deny, my king," Valkyrie confessed, her voice almost a whisper. "But I love you, your Grace. Give me a chance. I will be a perfect Luna for you, bear your heir after you mark..."
"You love the crown, and for my heir, it would not be from a woman full of deceit... You think I do not know all what you've done? Every single thing you did in the palace. Every. Single. Thing," he bit out, gaze growing colder. "So, Valkyrie, here is your punishment."
A broken sob escaped Valkyrie's lips. "Your Grace."
"I, King Duncan Thornevale, dethrone you, Valkyrie Venis, as my betrothed."
No!
"I also banish you from the Lunaris Citadel. Cross my path again, and you will be killed on sight."
Lylah gasped at her spot; shock registered on her face, the same as Arianna, whose lips parted in disbelief.
As the king's command echoed, Valkyrie fell to her knees, feeling as though her heart was being torn in two.
She had failed.
Though she knew there was a big chance that something like this would happen, yet when it did, she felt all her nerves going numb.
Toran's fist clenched on his desk, his breath ragged as he watched.
Kael swallowed the bile in his throat. The word "Ruthless" in the King's name was not a joke.
"Your majesty!"
Magnus's scream came like a roar, with no sign of formality or respect, just pure rage.
Duncan simply glanced over his shoulder, meeting his gaze.
"This is not right! You promised the werewolves a merge. You promised you would share your power and bring balance to the Moon Realm. How long will you sit on the throne without crowning a Luna or bearing an heir?" Magnus's voice grew sharper, rage clouding his senses. "You cannot rule forever, King Duncan!"
Toran sighed. It seemed he was going to lose a father.
Lucas rose from his chair, but Duncan raised a hand, stopping him.
"Instead of keeping your word, you replaced your betrothed with a slave! A fucking mere slave! You're no king; you're just a living coward if you don't keep your word and crown her already!"
Silence rent the grand hall; one could hear a pin drop. The tension in the air rose like never before. Everyone, everything stilled.
"Magnus Venis," Duncan grinned amusingly. "What a breath of fresh air seeing someone actually challenge me right before everyone."
He began approaching Magnus; each of his steps echoed like a death knell.
"You've committed so many crimes, Magnus. Not only have you tried to put many packs below you, but you also tried to kill what is mine." Duncan whispered, his voice cold. "You sent the assassins; now you stand before me, challenging my rule. From my perspective, you need to eat that tongue of yours."
"Your Grace.... I...."
"Hold him!"
The soldiers immediately stepped forward to hold Magnus, forcing him down to his knees.
"Wait! What are you.... No. My King, I was drunk!"
Duncan swiftly reached for his personal dagger, coated with wolfbane to prevent regeneration.
"Elites!" Duncan's voice rose in the hall. "This is not the end of the small sweet trial I had prepared for you. So many have deceived, betrayed, and caused harm just to feed their shitty ass desires."
For a fleeting moment, Kael's eyes met Duncan's. Fear gripped him so hard, making him remember one name: Arianna Greystone... It felt like she was haunting him.
"I've been too occupied with my cases, ignoring your atrocities, but this festival will change everything."
As Duncan approached him, Magnus's fear doubled, and he immediately summoned his wolf to defend himself and perhaps find a chance to run and escape.
But a growl from King Duncan immediately stopped the wolf from emerging. It was like a warning of death, making the wolf in Magnus cower in fear.
Shifting meant automatic death.
Magnus struggled helplessly against the soldiers that held him down until the king reached him.
"Your Grace... You can't possibly do this... Urgh..."
Magnus's words were cut off as the Lycan warrior opened his mouth further. Incoherent words rumbled out of his throat as he struggled.
Pity flashed in many eyes. Toran slowly rose to his feet with wide eyes, not believing the king would actually do it.
Duncan reached for Magnus's tongue; then the sickening sound of a loud, high-pitched, painful roar thundered through the room, resonating.
Blood spilled out like a flowing river from Magnus's mouth. Pain shot through his entire body, his head reeling.
However, Duncan didn't stop there as he shoved that severed tongue into Magnus's mouth and ordered,
"Now eat it."