Rise of the Lustful Evil Monarch (Re)

Third Person's POV

Beside him sat two similarly mundane-looking girls. The contrast was jarring.

Gone was the ominous threat as they looked like just another group of humble travelers rather than some arrogant and powerful noble young heirs or some powerful lord with a regal aura.

The fearful pounding in the guards' chests eased slightly.

One of them tried to reclaim his composure and, clearing his throat, he spoke with forced civility.

"Alright, state your names, your origin, and your destination."

Ethan's brows creased into a puzzled frown.

He leaned forward slightly as he uttered in a light tone that was tinged with confusion.

"Why would we need to tell our identities? I haven't experienced anything like this before…"

His voice was calm and uncertain while being perfectly measured to suggest law-abiding innocence.

And like he expected, these useless guards were misled by the act and grew slightly emboldened.

They clearly saw the three as not some secret or disguised threat but timid and submissive prey that respected rules and feared confrontation.

"Hmph," one barked as he straightened his back with a snap of authority.

"It is not your place to question city protocol.

Just comply and state your identities, or we will be forced to detain you under orders from above."

The pressure hung heavy again, but this time from both sides as one side started posturing with authority, but the other smiled beneath masks, playing the long game.

The young guard spoke in a way that was smarter than most as he subtly redirected all the responsibility of their rude behavior to the higher-ups.

His confidence stemmed from the assumption that the seemingly dangerous hooded figure was clearly just a driver who would defer to the trio seated inside.

He believed the true authority lay with them, and as such, he dared to be stern.

Inside, Ethan allowed a flicker of panic to crawl across his features.

He widened his eyes slightly, and his breath caught in his throat as he stammered with feigned nervousness.

"I-I am Jack... she is Jill, and the other is Jenna.

We are from the small town of Slora. Our father is... Baron Slora."

His voice trembled just the right amount that gave weight to his false fear and a genuine place to his identity.

The names were plucked out of thin air in this moment itself, but his face wore a mask that radiated absolute sincerity.

By giving their fabricated father the modest rank of a baron, which was obviously nothing too grand, yet was noble enough to deter unnecessary scrutiny, he masterfully avoided drawing attention to their spectral horses or the group's suspiciously quiet demeanor.

The guard blinked and tried to place the name.

Baron Slora?

The title didn't ring any bells, but the empire had countless minor territories and more nobles than any sane person could remember.

Small nobles from tiny towns came and went all the time.

The guard nodded and looked clearly convinced suddenly.

In his mind, these three looked far too plain and too timid to be those dangerous fugitives.

"Alright, you may go," he said as his tone eased into a more relaxed cadence.

He even forgot to ask more details about the reason for their visit in this grand city, their subsequent destination, the reason for the unusual strength and scary aura their carriage driver radiated, and many more.

But unbeknownst to guards, all of their behavior in the past minute was clearly an oversight that Ethan had carefully orchestrated.

Ethan had already influenced them with a subtle mental wave through his Soul Veil Manipulation.

The young guards' thoughts had been gently nudged, and their focus quietly shifted.

Even though Ethan's group matched the basic description of a man and two women group of the dangerous suspects, the idea about them being the ones never even flickered in the guards' consciousness.

Their eyes were clear and unaware that their thoughts had been changed and something else had been planted in their place.

The guards' minds accepted the fabricated story as truth, and the trio had passed under the veil unnoticed.

With a soft and warm smile, Ethan gave a polite nod and silently signaled the blood slave to continue forward.

The old driver didn't reply and merely flicked the reins.

The decrepit dark carriage rolled onward and passed through the gates of the city like a phantom escaping into the mist.

But unbeknownst to them, not all eyes were deceived.

In the filth-stained corner of a nearby alley, what appeared to be a dozing beggar stirred.

A small, hunched imp that was covered with a tattered and dusty blanket cracked its beady yellow toad eyes open and lifted its leathery eyelids with unnatural smoothness.

Its grotesque face suddenly twitched.

The moment the trio's carriage passed through the alley towards the gate, it inhaled deeply and snorted like a beast.

A wave of greedy pleasure danced across his expression as if he had just tasted the rarest wine.

That scent... it is her.

The imp's entire body shuddered, and he suddenly sat up.

His bony and leather,y dark fingers dug into the dirt as he licked his dry lips, and his eyes gleamed with perverse delight.

She is here. She is really here... I have to tell the lord... now.

A fevered urgency overtook him.

With trembling leathery claws, he reached deep into his dirty, tattered robe and retrieved a small, ancient-looking metal necklace.

Its obsidian core pulsed faintly, like a sleeping heart.

Pressing it to his wart-covered forehead, the imp whispered inaudibly and poured his every thought into the artifact.

The message sped off like a silent arrow toward a distant mind.

And all the while, Ethan and his companions remained blissfully unaware that another predator had just marked their trail.

The carriage rolled beyond the looming gates of the demon city yet a knot still remained twisted deep in Ethan's gut.

Even as the city's massive silhouette began to shrink behind them, he couldn't relax.