Chapter 4 – The King's Wrath, The Mortal's Resolve
After the defeat of the Dark Elves, the Elven Kingdom slowly began to recover.
Broken towers stood like scars against the sky. Burned grounds still carried the smell of magic and ash. Injured warriors lay everywhere, while healers moved constantly through the palace halls. The people were safe—but shock still lingered in the air.
Then suddenly—
The air around the palace grew heavy.
A divine pressure spread across the entire kingdom.
The ground trembled slightly, as if the land itself sensed something approaching.
And then…
The Elf King returned.
His presence was so overwhelming that the entire Elven Kingdom seemed to forget how to breathe. Warriors, ministers, and civilians instinctively bowed their heads the moment they felt his aura.
Everyone bowed.
Everyone… except one.
Sam stood calmly in place.
He did not bow.
He did not move.
The Elf King's cold voice echoed throughout the court.
"I have heard… that you saved my people."
Sam gave a slight bow—only out of basic respect. Nothing more.
"What I did," Sam replied calmly,
"I did for my family and for innocent lives. I do not require thanks."
A subtle stir rippled through the court.
Then Meera's cousin stepped forward to report.
"Your Majesty… Sam spared the Dark Elf Prince instead of killing him."
The Elf King's expression changed instantly. A golden glow ignited in his eyes.
"Why did you let him live?" the King thundered.
"He attacked my kingdom! He endangered your daughter!"
Sam answered without emotion.
"I do not take lives without reason.
He accepted defeat. His loss was his punishment."
The King's anger surged.
"How naive," he scoffed.
"One day he will return. Is this how you protect your family?"
Sam's voice remained calm—but there was a savage edge beneath it.
"My protection is beyond your understanding.
I do not require anyone else's orders."
At those words, the Elf King unleashed his divine aura.
The palace hall shook violently. Pillars cracked. Chandeliers swung wildly.
Ministers and soldiers collapsed to the ground in fear.
Meera's daughter clutched Sam from behind, trembling.
But Sam…
He remained where he stood.
Unmoving.
Unshaken.
Only his clothes fluttered slightly in the pressure.
Sam spoke quietly:
"You may display as much power as you wish…
but I recognize only one truth—
my family's happiness."
The King's pressure failed to affect him.
Then Meera stepped forward.
Her eyes burned with anger, yet tears shimmered within them.
"Enough!" Meera's voice rang through the court.
"He is my husband. If you insult him, you insult me."
The entire court froze.
"I will remain with my husband and my daughter," she declared.
"This is my decision."
A princess… standing against her own father.
The Elf King fell silent.
Sam calmly took Meera's hand and lifted his daughter into his arms.
Then he spoke for all to hear.
"We respect you.
But the decisions of our family belong to us alone.
We are not servants to anyone's command."
The King's eyes burned with fury—but he said nothing.
Sam, Meera, and their daughter turned and walked away.
Behind them, the palace still crackled with the King's rage—
yet Sam's steps never faltered.
As they reached the gates, the King's voice echoed from behind.
"So, human…
this is how you repay a debt?
Have you forgotten who saved your life?"
Sam stopped.
And the world turned backward.
Four Years Earlier
An ancient ice forest.
The Elf King, Meera, and several soldiers were on a hunting expedition when the ground suddenly cracked open.
Within a massive glacier… a human silhouette appeared.
"Your Majesty… what is that?" the soldiers whispered in shock.
A magical scan revealed a faint life signal.
"Likely an accident victim," the King said coldly.
They had no idea—
Sam had been sealed inside that ice prison for seventy years.
The soldiers shattered the ice and carried Sam back to the palace.
When Sam regained consciousness, his face was hidden behind a strange mask.
Only Meera, the Elf King, and a few trusted soldiers saw his true face.
"Who are you?" the King demanded.
"How did you end up there?"
Sam answered calmly.
"I don't remember anything…
only that I am alive."
Despite suspicion, Sam was allowed to remain in the palace as a temporary servant.
From that day onward, Meera felt something strange toward him.
His calmness.
His distance.
The mystery behind the mask.
Sam deliberately kept his distance from her.
Within him lived a vow—
"No one will suffer because of me."
Later, the Elven Kingdom announced a royal marriage competition.
Princes from countless realms arrived—displaying power, wealth, and status.
Meera secretly approached Sam.
"Sam… if you do not participate, I will stop living."
For a moment, Sam remained silent.
A shadow flickered in his eyes—the clash between his vow and his heart.
At last, he spoke softly.
"If my participation keeps you alive…
then I will enter."
The competition followed.
Sword combat.
Archery.
Spell duels.
Trials of wisdom.
Sam quietly won every round.
A faint glimpse of Phoenix Fire appeared—
dismissed by others as an unusual flame.
In the final round… Sam emerged victorious.
The court erupted.
"A mortal?"
"The princess's husband?!"
The Elf King's face hardened.
"I will never accept this decision."
Meera declared before everyone:
"I will marry only Sam."
Political chaos followed.
That same night—
Sam and Meera left the Elven Kingdom.
They settled in another city.
Using his intelligence and hidden power, Sam slowly became a respected and wealthy businessman.
Meera found happiness…
but lost her family.
And from that day forward, the Elf King viewed Sam as a threat.
Present
The palace hall still trembled with divine fury.
"Sam!" the Elf King roared.
"You are a threat to my kingdom.
If you truly wish to protect your wife and daughter—
remain here. Under my control."
Sam met his gaze without fear.
"I do not live under anyone's control.
My methods may displease you—
but they guarantee their safety."
"I do not follow orders," Sam said.
"I follow my vow."
The King raised his hand.
Meera stepped forward instantly.
"Enough, father," she said firmly.
"We are not your property."
The court stood stunned.
The King spoke coldly:
"Go.
But remember, Sam…
your mercy will one day destroy you."
Sam said nothing.
He took Meera's hand, lifted his daughter, and walked away.
At the palace gates, he paused.
"I do not consider you my enemy, King," Sam said calmly.
"But I will never allow my family to be bound by your chains."
Then he left.
Moonlight illuminated their path.
As if the universe itself…
had accepted Sam's choice.
The Weight of Words
Sam, Meera, and their daughter finally returned to their city.
Everything looked the same—busy roads, tall buildings, familiar noise.
Sam resumed his routine as a wealthy businessman. Meetings. Deals. Numbers. Contracts. Evenings with family dinners.
Everything seemed normal.
But for Sam… nothing truly was.
Whenever he was alone, the Elf King's words echoed in his mind:
"Your mercy will destroy your family."
Again and again.
One night, standing on the balcony, city lights glowing below, cold air brushing his skin—
Sam's eyes turned blood-red for a brief instant.
A two-second vision struck him.
A battlefield.
Mountains of corpses.
His hands stained with blood.
And in the distance… a woman and a small girl lying lifeless.
Their faces blurred.
Sam snapped back to reality.
Sweat drenched him. His breathing was heavy. His hands trembled.
"What… was that?" he whispered.
The next day, Meera noticed the change.
Sam was quieter. Lost in thought.
She teased him playfully, arms crossed in mock anger.
"You're hiding something again, Sam.
Don't tell me you have a secret lover."
Sam looked at her calmly.
"If I did… would you have let me live this long?"
Meera flushed, half-angry, half-embarrassed.
"Hmph! Absolutely not!"
They laughed.
Their daughter clung to them.
"Papa, don't scare Mama!"
The small moments felt normal.
But inside Sam…
the vision kept replaying.
Days later, trouble began at Sam's office.
A rival businessman—respectable on the surface, corrupt beneath—began attacking Sam's reputation. False rumors. Manipulated deals. Silent pressure.
Meera assumed it was ordinary competition.
Sam's instincts said otherwise.
That night, as he tucked his daughter into bed, the vision returned—stronger.
A strange pattern flickered briefly in his eyes.
Red light glowed.
"Kya King sahi tha…?" Sam whispered.
"Is my mercy truly my family's destruction?"
He told his family nothing.
He joked with Meera.
Played with his daughter.
Sometimes Meera tried to check his phone or magical communicator like a detective.
Sam deliberately created awkward, funny situations until Meera embarrassed herself.
Their daughter cheered their small fights like a game.
Laughter continued.
But inside…
Sam had already decided.
If the King was right…
then my mercy must end.
The scene shifted.
A dark training ground.
A figure covered in scars.
The Dark Elf Prince.
He trained relentlessly—hatred and focus burning in his eyes.
He was alive.
And now…
far more dangerous.