The Demon King who wanted peace

CHAPTER 6: The Forgotten Dungeon

The next morning, Vane came to Haru's room.

"My King, what shall we do with the 50 soldiers in the dungeon?" Vane asked.

Haru's face changed. He had almost forgotten.

He remembered the smell of blood, the hatred in Kalvin's eyes. He felt a sharp pain of guilt in his chest.

"I will release them," Haru said firmly. "If they want to leave the kingdom, they can leave. If they want to stay, they can stay. It is their choice. I will not force them. I will give them freedom."

Vane smiled. "As you wish, my king."

They walked together to the dark dungeon.

When they reached there, Haru stopped in front of the heavy, scary iron door.

He raised his hand.

In an instant, the heavy door vanished. There was no door anymore — just a beautiful open entrance decorated with glowing flowers and soft light magic. The darkness that always covered this place disappeared.

Outside the dungeon, the barren, dead ground transformed into a very beautiful and green place. Flower trees bloomed, there were beautiful wooden benches to rest on, and even a beautiful swing hanging from a tree.

Vane gasped. "It is so attractive and beautiful, my king. I never imagined that this cursed place could become so beautiful."

When they went inside, Haru transformed everything.

The torture room was gone. The chains, the whips, the blood stains — all of it vanished.

The dark, rotten smell disappeared and was replaced by the scent of fresh flowers.

There, he created a beautiful garden full of colorful flowers. There were resting places in the shade, many fruit trees, and small, beautiful decorative trees.

There was also a natural hot spring where people could take a warm bath.

He made two clean bathrooms — one for the boys and one for the girls. There were many dressing rooms full of beautiful new clothes.

There was a free food shop and a small market where anyone could take food for free. And there was a small park where children could play.

Vane was completely shocked. He couldn't imagine that a torture room could become so beautiful. The entrance was now a place full of flowers and magic lights. The road leading to it was beautiful and bright.

The 50 soldiers who were locked in the prison were shocked to see the light shining inside.

"Why is it so bright now? Where did the darkness go?" one of them whispered.

Then they saw Haru walking towards them.

"Who is he?" a soldier asked.

When they saw Vane standing respectfully next to him, they understood.

"Look, he... he became a beautiful boy," another soldier said. "Is that the Demon King?"

When Haru reached them, he looked at their wounded faces and said softly, "I will release you now. I will give you freedom. From today, you are free."

The soldiers looked at their leader, Kalvin.

Kalvin stepped forward, his eyes still full of suspicion. "You will not kill us anymore? Is this another trick?"

Haru shook his head. "From today, no more slaves, no more prisoners, no more war in my kingdom. Only peace. You are all equal in my eyes."

They were all shocked. They couldn't imagine that the cruel Demon King would ever say such words.

And as he said that, he waved his hand.

All the darkness, all the prison bars — he vanished them all.

The dark prison cell where they were kept became a very beautiful house. It had different rooms — a clean kitchen, a dining room, a dressing room, bedrooms with soft beds, a bathroom, and a balcony full of flowers.

The soldiers were speechless. A moment ago they were sitting in a dark dungeon, and now they were standing in a beautiful house they had never seen before in their lives.

When he was done, Haru placed his hand on the ground and healed them. A warm light covered their bodies and all their wounds, their broken bones, and their pain disappeared.

"I give you freedom," Haru said. "If you want to stay or if you want to leave this kingdom, I will not force you. And this house, I prepared it for all of you."

He pointed outside. "Outside this house, there is a field that you can use to grow vegetables. Inside, I have kept food and new clothes for all of you. You can change and wear them."

Then before he left, he said, "Take your time. I will wait for your answer. Once you have all discussed, come to my palace and tell me your decision — whether you want to stay or leave. If you want to leave, I will prepare a carriage for you to return safely to the capital city."

And he walked away.

When he left, the 50 soldiers were in complete shock.

"Is this not the same demon who wanted to kill us? Now he is giving us freedom, he healed us, and he prepared this house and this field for us?" one soldier said.

They all turned to their leader. "Commander Kalvin, what should we do now?"

Kalvin looked around at the beautiful house and the food, but his heart was still full of fear.

"We will stay here for 6 days," he said. "We will see if this is a trick or not. If his words are true, then we will stay and thank him."

When Haru looked at them from a distance, he understood. They were very hungry, but they were too scared to eat the food. They thought the Demon King might have poisoned the food, and if they ate it, they would die.

Kalvin understood this too. He looked at his men.

"Let me eat first," he said.

He sat down and took a bite of the bread.

When he ate, he was shocked. It was incredibly delicious. He had never eaten anything like this, even in the capital city of humans.

Others watched him anxiously. "Commander, shall we eat? Is it safe?"

Kalvin smiled for the first time in months. "Eat. It's safe."

When they got the order from him, they all started to eat. They were shocked by how tasty it was. They ate until they were full and happy. As they ate, they realized all their broken bones were completely healed and they felt strong and fit again.

Then they changed into new clothes. They felt like new men. They entered the bedrooms and saw how beautiful and soft they were. For the first time since they were captured, they felt happy and safe.

The Next Morning

When they woke up the next morning, sunlight was shining through the balcony.

Kalvin asked them, "How was the night?"

One soldier replied, "It was wonderful, Commander. It was our first time feeling safe in the demon kingdom. I slept without fear."

Kalvin nodded. "Good. Today, we will leave this house and see what happened to the dungeon and outside. We need to see what happened to our people, and if what he said is true."

They all agreed. They wanted to see the new kingdom with their own eyes.

To Be Continued...