The women''s wide eyes, filled with terror, followed his every move. Their lips trembled, unspoken pleas hanging in the air. But the emperor was cold and unyielding.


    "Get in," he commanded, his voice devoid of emotion.


    The warmth that had once colored his gaze was long gone, replaced by a cruelty that stabbed into the concubines like daggers. With an impatient flick of his finger, he pointed toward the passage. The meaning was clear: disobey, and you''ll die.


    "Now!" he barked.


    Grabbing the wrist of the nearest concubine, he dragged her toward the passage. She whimpered like a frightened animal but stepped inside, powerless to resist. The other women followed, leaning on one another as they shuffled into the dark tunnel, their steps hushed by fear.


    Inside the hidden chamber, they sank to the floor, clutching one another in trembling silence. Their thin, shaking fingers sought solace in each other''s touch, but no comfort could be found.


    As their voluminous skirts spread across the ground, the women became aware of a horrifying truth. The floor beneath them was made of flesh. Sёar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    They stifled their screams, eyes wide with terror. The walls, too, were covered in the same grotesque, pulsing tissue. The living flesh quivered faintly, and dark droplets of blood seeped through the gaps, trickling downward.


    Maximilian I gazed upon the chamber, now consumed by the power of the ancient god, with an expression of twisted awe. To him, it was a masterpiece sculpted from human flesh and blood. Crimson masses protruding from the walls resembled the anguished faces of tortured souls, their twisted features occasionally emitting otherworldly wails.


    The concubines were frozen in horror, their eyes locked onto the grotesque scene before them. The stench of decaying flesh filled the chilly air, forcing them to stifle their gag reflexes as they covered their mouths. Each breath was laden with the sharp scent of blood, and the dampness seeping from the floor only heightened their terror.


    Each time the fleshy walls writhed, the women let out frightened whimpers, their bodies shrinking further into themselves.


    Maximilian observed them from the shadows, a satisfied smile creeping across his face. As he took a step forward, the concubines recoiled in fear, their trembling more pronounced. He grabbed one of them by the arm and dragged her forward. Powerless to resist, she quaked in his grip, tears streaming uncontrollably down her once-beautiful face, now twisted by terror.


    "Please… please, spare my life, Your Majesty…" she begged, her voice filled with desperation. Clinging to his sleeve, she pleaded with a tearful voice, "I''ll do anything! I won''t cry anymore, I promise. Just spare me!"


    Her pleas fell on deaf ears. The emperor''s eyes were cold and unyielding, devoid of the slightest trace of compassion. The louder her cries grew, the more indifferent his expression became. Gripping her jaw firmly, he forced her face upward, staring into her tear-streaked eyes.


    "Stop crying already. Weren''t you the bastard daughter of Count Dudley?" he asked, his tone icy and detached.


    Shaking like a leaf, the concubine hesitantly nodded, hoping this connection might save her life. Her fragile hope was shattered the next moment as the dagger of betrayal pierced her chest.


    "Y-Your Majesty… why…?" she gasped, her wide eyes brimming with disbelief and pain.


    Without a flicker of remorse, Maximilian tossed her lifeless body aside and turned his attention to the next. He selected those with noble lineage—descendants of the five great tribes whose bloodlines carried latent potential.


    As his manic laughter echoed through the chamber, Maximilian slaughtered his concubines one by one. His face, twisted with frenzy, reflected no hesitation. When he had finished, he inflicted deep wounds upon his own arms, letting his blood mingle with theirs. Streams of crimson trickled down his hands, pooling on the flesh-covered floor.


    With a grin that betrayed his madness, he invoked the one being he believed could save him.


    "You refuse to serve me as your emperor? Then all of you shall die!" he cried. "Oh, great god, I, Maximilian, offer my blood to summon you!"


    A cold wind howled through the chamber, now drenched in the blood of the emperor and his concubines. Eerie, rasping laughter filled the space, reverberating deep within Maximilian''s mind and sending waves of excruciating pain through his skull. Clutching his head, he gritted his teeth, his vision swimming from the unbearable agony.


    The chamber pulsed with waves of malevolent energy. The mingled blood flowed toward the center of the room, as if guided by an unseen force, pooling into a dark, viscous mass. The blood formed a thick, crimson veil, coalescing into the shape of a robed figure.


    As more blood was drawn into the growing form, the figure became increasingly distinct. Maximilian, now on his knees, prostrated himself before the entity.


    "Please… grant me your strength!" he implored, his voice trembling with desperation.


    The unstable form wavered like liquid, its body shifting between shapes as if made entirely of blood. It seemed to sneer at his plea, its voice a low, mocking rumble that echoed eerily.


    [You think such a paltry offering can summon my power? It''s nowhere near enough.]


    The sinister voice splintered into countless echoes, each cutting into the emperor''s resolve. Trembling, Maximilian shouted in defiance, "I will give you the lives of everyone in this capital! I swear it by the sacred insignia of the empire!"


    He held up the imperial insignia, the ancient symbol of the empire''s power passed down through generations. The entity paused, its swirling form seeming to smile.


    [Ah, now that is intriguing. Still, it''s not enough. For me to intervene in the material world, I require far more.]


    The figure''s dark gaze bore into Maximilian, its presence a yawning abyss that seemed to pierce through his soul.


    [Now, tell me… how much are you truly willing to sacrifice to achieve your desire?]


    Its voice was as cold as ice, chilling the emperor to his core. He clenched his bloodied fists, his mind spinning as he weighed the cost. The price was clear, but was the reward worth it?