At the edge of the kingdom lay a cursed wasteland, a desolate expanse of jagged rock scoured by howling winds, a place even the sun seemed to shun. The earth was cracked like a spiderweb, its exposed bedrock an eerie dark red—a silent testament to the blood that had once been spilled.

It was here that Count Doris had erected a fortress of blood and sin, like a demon’s lair clawing its way out of the abyss.

The wind whipped sand and stone against the fortress’s mottled walls, creating a sound like the wailing of vengeful ghosts. Count Doris stood on her exquisitely designed viewing platform, her crimson lips curling into a pleased smile. Below, the slaughter in the cages had reached a fever pitch. Blood pooled into small streams on the rough wooden planks, dripping through the cracks onto the parched earth below.

"A little more violent, my little beasts," she murmured, her fingertips tapping lightly on the railing. A servant at her side immediately handed her a glass of chilled wine. Condensation slid down the side of the glass, glistening against the rubies encrusted on her wrist.

In the cage, a brown Bear-man let out a deafening roar and shattered the head of a Fox-man who had tried a sneak attack. Brains and blood sprayed across the iron bars, eliciting excited screams from the viewing stand. Doris watched with satisfaction as several noble ladies from the Fairy Star System shot to their feet in excitement, their expensive silk skirts wrinkling from the sudden movement, though they paid it no mind.

"Lady Doris, your performances are always so... unforgettable." A female wearing a peacock-feather mask leaned in close, her breathing heavy. "I’ll pay double for that Bear-man."

Doris chuckled softly and swirled the wine in her glass. "My dear, that one is my champion. However..." She lowered her voice. "I have some fresh goods in the basement. They might just satisfy your... particular tastes."

The air in the basement was so thick you could almost wring blood from it. Under the dim, yellow light, a dozen or so males were chained to the walls, spread-eagled. Their bodies were covered in a tapestry of old and new wounds.

A female in a smiling mask was using a pair of red-hot tongs to slowly brand the count’s crest onto the exposed abdomen of a young Wolf-man.

A discordant wail was forced from the Wolf-man’s throat. His muscles convulsed in excruciating pain, but he couldn’t break free from his restraints.

The eyes behind the mask widened in excitement. She even leaned down to lick away the tears seeping from the corners of the Wolf-man’s eyes.

"Such sweet despair," she sighed, her voice trembling with perverse pleasure.

Suddenly, the sound of clashing metal came from above, followed by the rhythmic stomp of synchronized footsteps.

Doris frowned and set down her wine glass. "What’s going on? I didn’t schedule a changing of the guard today."

The words had barely left her lips when the fortress’s heavy oak doors collapsed with a thunderous crash.

Sunlight pierced the dim interior like a sword, illuminating the swirling dust.

Within that beam of light, a line of silver Armor gleamed brilliantly.

"In the name of His Majesty the Emperor!" The captain of the Roland Royal Holy Knight Order stepped into the hall, wielding a longsword inlaid with a Holy Crystal. His voice was like thunder, rattling the crystal chandeliers. "Doris, you are suspected of illegally imprisoning and torturing citizens of the Empire. I am under imperial order to arrest you!"

The noble ladies on the viewing stand erupted into chaos. Some knocked over their wine glasses, others screamed and searched for an exit. Doris’s face instantly turned deathly pale, but she quickly regained her composure.

"Captain Roland," she said with a sickly sweet smile, "there must be some misunderstanding. This is just... a small, private club."

Roland ignored her excuses. His sharp gaze swept over the dying Beastmen in the cages, then shifted to the staircase leading to the basement. The reek of blood wafted up from it unceasingly, mixed with the stench of rot and despair.

"Search the entire fortress!" Roland commanded sharply. "Rescue all the prisoners!"

The Holy Knights fanned out like a silver torrent. Vice-Captain Cezel led a team straight for the basement, their war boots echoing crisply on the stone steps.

When the scene in the basement came into view, even the battle-hardened Cezel couldn’t help but draw a sharp breath.

"Beast God above..." he prayed under his breath, quickly severing the nearest chains. The young Wolf-man lost his support and pitched forward, only to be caught by Leona. His skin was scorching hot, and the freshly branded wound on his abdomen was still smoking.

"Medics! We need medics, now!" Cezel yelled into his communication crystal, simultaneously shrugging off his cloak and wrapping it around the Wolf-man’s naked body.

Meanwhile, Doris used the chaos as cover to retreat to the back of the viewing platform, her trembling fingers opening a hidden door. She had to get to the secret laboratory; there was a bomb there to destroy the evidence.

"Where are you off to, Count?" an icy voice came from behind her. Doris spun around to see Roland standing just three paces away, his longsword pointed at her throat.

"You can’t do this to me!" Doris shrieked hysterically. "My father is the Empire’s Minister of Finance! My uncle is a Cardinal!"

Roland’s gaze was colder than arctic ice. "All are equal before justice."

"Especially when you not only torture Beastmen, but also kidnap citizens of the Empire for illegal experiments."

Doris’s face went white as a sheet. "You... how could you know...?"

"We’ve been tracking missing persons cases for three months." Roland produced a scroll of parchment found during the search, which detailed data from various human experiments. "Then, a week ago, a young Beastman who had escaped risked everything to reach the Holy Hall and beg for help."

"Stop them!" Doris suddenly shrieked, hurling her wine glass at Roland’s face.

Ten bodyguards in black armor immediately rushed out from the shadows, forming a human wall to block the passage. The leader, a Tiger Man bodyguard, unsheathed his sharp claws, which glinted coldly in the dim light.

"Stand aside!" Roland leveled his longsword, and a divine light from the Holy Crystal flowed along its blade. "Don’t you know what she’s been doing in the basement?"

A young Holy Knight shouted in disbelief, "You’re all males! She tortures our brethren like that, and you’re still going to protect her?"

The Tiger Man bodyguard’s ears twitched unnaturally, and his claws trembled slightly. Behind him, a Bear-man bodyguard unconsciously touched the brand on his neck—a "punishment" Doris had personally inflicted three months ago when he’d failed in a task.

"We..." the Tiger Man’s voice was hoarse. "Those who disobey orders... are sent to the fighting pits... or the laboratory."

From the other end of the passage came the sound of Doris’s high heels clattering away, accompanied by her hysterical laughter. "You idiots, hold them back!"