Tyrant's Obsession With The Heiress-Chapter 13: A Man Feared By Even The King

Lady Karina was somewhat surprised to hear that Van Merikh had considered her a threat.

As much as her father had taught her to wield a sword since childhood, she did not have the physical prowess to overpower the new Lord of Moonveil.

Perhaps it was because he was suspicious of her abilities to tame wild, ancient beasts that could be used to her advantage.

"Why do you consider me a threat?" Lady Karina asked regardless of her speculations. "I will not lift a weapon and even if I did, there is no chance that I would be able to kill you."

Van Merikh pondered on his reply; in fact, he could hardly believe that he was discussing such things with the lady.

She was nothing more than the enemy, someone he should never have afforded his time and attention to.

Yet, he was doing so nonetheless.

After a moment, Van Merikh averted his gaze and sauntered towards the hearth where a large sling-back chair sat, cold and unused, perfect to accommodate him. He planted his massive body in it, listening to the wood creak.

"What exactly do you know of me, Lady Karina?" Van Merikh asked, uttering her name for the first time alongside her title.

She would be a fool to deny that the way it sounded coming from his baritone did something unusual inside her, a tingly sensation she had never experienced before, but now was not the time to be lost in such things.

Lady Karina blinked at his question, tilting her head to the side. "I...I know that you are Orpheus Van Merikh and that you are now the commander of Moonveil Castle.

Van Merikh shook his head slowly. "Nay," he said quietly. "What do you know of me?" He repeated, stirring her mind to contemplate deeper this time.

Lady Karina realised what he had implied; what had she heard about him? What had she been told of his nature and accomplishments?

She lowered her gaze and took a few steps back until the back of her knees bumped into her bed, prompting her to sit down on the edge.

It was rather strange how the beast of a man did not exude the same aura of intimidation as much as he had hours ago; Lady Karina couldn't vouch that she was comfortable with him, but she wasn't exactly terrified either.

She folded her cold hands on her lap, trying to warm them up.

"I know that you have been addressed as The Black Frost Demon," Lady Karina murmured, her lips pressed into a thin line before she spoke again. "I have heard tales that you are a greatly feared man."

Van Merikh snorted with a hint of amusement, resting his chin in the middle of his palm as his dual-coloured eyes riveted to her.

"Feared indeed," he rumbled. "Have you heard that the Viscount Lancelot Von Asher of Caelthywn's outskirts fears me so much that he granted me my own castle and lands to prevent me from invading his holdings?"

If Lady Karina was impressed or surprised at all, then she did not show it.

She was indeed bewildered to hear that the Viscount Lancelot, whom her father served under, was such a coward that he would grant Van Merikh riches to stay clear of the man's wrath.

"And did you also hear that the Caelthian King is so wary of me that he compensates me with a regular stipend every year in the amount of one thousand gold crowns just so that I will not pillage his properties?"

Now that brought evident astonishment to Lady Karina's face, her brows shooting up with partial disbelief.

"The king compensates you?"

Van Merikh nodded disinterestedly, his gaze wandering over to the hearth and for some unknown reason, rising to light it.

The Crimson Brand on the side of his neck glowed faintly as he snapped his fingers, setting sparks onto the wood to light a fire.

Perhaps it was because he had noticed Lady Karina shiver from the cold and he instinctively rose to light the hearth, which now blazed with crackling flames.

She was intrigued by his show of magic, watching how effortlessly he lit the fire while she knew very well that fire wielders often did not have excellent control of their flames.

The man's magic was well-tempered, it seemed.

"I was not born to titles nor wealth," Van Merikh said as he crouched down, using the thin iron bar beside the hearth to kindle the fire. "I must always have that, which i desire and I want deals that are beneficial to me."

Lady Karina's eyes followed his movements as he laid out the kindling and the peat, already feeling the warmth of the flames reaching to wrap around her like a blanket.

"But..." She fumbled for her words. "You are already in possession of a castle and lands...and the king compensates you handsomely to not intervene with his properties."

Van Merikh nodded as he shuffled the wood around with the iron bar.

"I own several castles," he said casually, watching the flames of the fire flare. "I have seven along the Walcian Marches and I control everything between the Walcian middle lands and Lorienel beside it. Even the Lords of the Marches pay tribute to me so that I will not raze their castles to the ground and possess their riches for myself."

Lady Karina listened to him speak so nonchalantly of such serious matters, her astonishment suddenly rising to outrage.

The man was a demon, as they said he was and he either didn't care enough or he didn't realise it.

She suspected it was the former.

"Why do you speak to me of these things?" She asked, her tone bordering on cold as she rubbed her palms together for warmth.

Van Merikh stood up without turning around, his eyes fixated on the flames.

"I tell you so that you will understand that I am no one to be trifled with," he said, turning around to gaze at her lovely face. "You are horribly ignorant, Lady. I am simply educating you."

"I never believed that you were someone to be trifled with," she shot back daringly but softly. "But your boasts do not impress me."

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