Help! My Moms Are Overpowered Tyrants, and I'm Stuck as Their Baby!-Chapter 108: Fractured Silence

Pain became my world.

Each breath dragged across my ribs like hot coals, each heartbeat echoed as agony through my battered body. I hung limply from the cold iron chains, blood trickling slowly down my wrists, leaving sticky trails that cooled in the chill air. The cuffs bit cruelly into my skin, metal teeth gnawing deeper with every slight shift, every involuntary twitch.

Eight years old. I'd lived eight short years in this world, believing I was strong, believing my power was unstoppable, untouchable. Now, each fresh wave of pain shattered that illusion, reminding me cruelly how weak, vulnerable, and alone I truly was.

The woman the one with the empty eyes and gentle, careful hands continued her ruthless work. She moved with mechanical precision, slicing, stabbing shallow wounds that ignited nerves and tore muffled cries from my lips. Her blade glinted dully beneath the lantern's flickering orange glow, edges stained with dark crimson my blood. She watched impassively, her expression never changing, never wavering from calm indifference, no matter how loudly I screamed.

Then, without warning, she'd pause. Her slender hands would rise, magic seeping softly from her fingertips, gentle and warm, sealing each wound closed with meticulous care. Skin knitted back together, fresh and new, but the memories remained seared deeply into my bones, etched into my soul.

Healing me wasn't mercy—it was cruelty perfected, endlessly repeating a cycle designed purely to break me.

The young man watched silently, leaning against the damp stone wall. His eyes were bright, intensely curious, absorbing my suffering as if studying a rare, fascinating specimen. He spoke softly from time to time, calm questions slipping between screams, his voice soothing, almost comforting. But the questions remained the same, unwavering in their cold intent.

"Tell me, Elyzara," he whispered patiently, as though speaking to a stubborn child. "What are your parents' greatest weaknesses? How many hidden allies protect your palace? Give us something, child, and this will all stop."

I shook my head weakly, tears blurring my vision, breath hitching sharply. "No," I whispered, my voice hoarse and cracked. "Never."

He sighed softly, almost regretfully, shaking his head as if disappointed. "So stubborn," he murmured gently, nodding to the woman once more.

And the cycle began again.

Time ceased to matter, blending into a hazy, meaningless blur of agony and exhaustion. I faded in and out of consciousness, lost between screams and silence, darkness and fleeting moments of terrible clarity. Gradually, even my sobs weakened to ragged breaths, the defiance stripped from my trembling voice until all that remained was hollow silence.

Finally, after hours or perhaps days they paused again, seemingly frustrated by my silence. The young man sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose in mild irritation.

"Enough for now," he said softly. "She'll break eventually, but this is proving tiresome."

The woman nodded mechanically, stepping backward silently. She wiped her bloodied knife clean on a small white cloth, then turned without a word, slipping noiselessly from the room.

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The man approached slowly, crouching until his eyes were level with mine. His gaze searched my face carefully, thoughtfully, lingering on the dried tear tracks staining my cheeks. "Think about this carefully," he murmured gently. "Your parents are powerful, yes, but they're not invincible. They can't save you here."

He stood smoothly, turning away without waiting for an answer. Moments later, the heavy wooden door closed firmly behind him, echoing through the darkness, leaving me utterly, despairingly alone.

Silence pressed inward, thick and suffocating. Pain pulsed through my battered body, dull aches spreading with every heartbeat, reminders of wounds healed yet unforgotten. I shivered uncontrollably, exhaustion dragging heavily at my limbs. My magic stirred faintly within me, weak and helpless, unable to fight the chains binding me tightly.

Despair rose slowly, choking my throat, hot tears slipping silently down my cheeks, stinging freshly healed skin. I couldn't move, couldn't escape, couldn't fight. All my power, all my supposed strength useless.

[I'm still here, Elyzara,] the system murmured softly, urgently, cutting sharply through my despair. Its voice was tense, edged with rare distress. [You're not alone. We'll find a way out.]

"How?" My whisper cracked painfully, hopelessness coloring every trembling word. "I can't move, I can't fight. They've thought of everything. I'm trapped."

The system hesitated briefly, its silence heavy with frustration and worry. Finally, it spoke again, careful yet determined. [Not everything. Give me time. I'll find a way.]

I swallowed weakly, forcing myself to breathe slowly, to cling desperately to its words, its presence. "Please hurry," I whispered brokenly. "I can't—I can't do this again."

[Stay strong, Elyzara,] the system insisted fiercely, voice firm yet gentle, filled with a strange, desperate conviction. [You're stronger than you think. Just hold on.]

I nodded slightly, my breathing shaky but slowly steadying, trying desperately to gather whatever remained of my fragile courage.

Time dragged painfully onward. The lantern slowly dimmed, shadows creeping closer, swallowing the walls, the ceiling, the stained floor until darkness nearly consumed everything. My eyes grew heavy, exhaustion threatening to drag me back toward oblivion but I fought stubbornly against it, clinging fiercely to consciousness.

Then, abruptly, the system's voice sharpened urgently in my mind. [I found something. These cuffs they block your magic externally, but your internal connection to me remains. We can use that.]

Hope flickered faintly, cautious and fragile. "What do I do?"

[Focus inward, Elyzara,] it instructed calmly. [Find that tiny pulse of magic that connects us. Reach for it, hold it carefully, nurture it slowly. If we strengthen it enough, we can overload the cuffs from within.]

I nodded weakly, eyes closing tightly, breathing slowing deliberately. Carefully, hesitantly, I reached inward, searching desperately through layers of pain, fear, and exhaustion. It felt hopeless at first, like trying to grasp smoke or water, intangible and slippery.

But gradually, faintly, a tiny spark appeared a gentle, steady hum of energy, warm and familiar, hidden deep within me.

"I feel it," I whispered shakily, relief surging briefly within my chest. "It's weak, but it's there."

[Good,] the system replied urgently. [Hold onto it. Carefully feed it strength. Slowly, Elyzara don't rush.]

I obeyed instantly, focusing everything into that tiny pulse of magic, carefully nurturing, coaxing it stronger, feeling the spark steadily strengthen, grow.

Suddenly, a harsh scraping sound shattered my concentration, followed immediately by heavy footsteps echoing against stone. My eyes flew open in startled panic, magic slipping instantly from my grasp, fading into nothing.

The wooden door swung open sharply, torchlight flooding briefly inward, making me flinch painfully from the sudden brightness.

A different man stood silhouetted in the doorway, broader, heavier-set, his face hidden by shadows. He carried something small a bowl, I realized, nose wrinkling automatically at the sour, pungent odor emanating strongly from within.

"Eat," he grunted roughly, stepping heavily forward, placing the bowl roughly onto a small wooden stool near my dangling form. "Orders."

The bowl was small, chipped, filled with something gray and lumpy, swimming unpleasantly in a watery liquid that looked disturbingly like dishwater. My stomach lurched nauseatingly, hunger battling fiercely against revulsion.

The man snorted at my expression, clearly amused by my disgust. "Better get used to it, princess," he sneered mockingly. "No royal banquets down here."

He stepped backward heavily, chuckling darkly, clearly enjoying my discomfort. The door slammed closed behind him, leaving me once more shrouded in darkness, alone with only the vile-smelling meal for company.

[Stay calm,] the system whispered softly, reassurance carefully threading through its voice. [We'll try again soon.]

I exhaled shakily, closing my eyes tightly, despair briefly surging within me. Then, with determination born of stubborn defiance, I reached once again for that tiny spark of magic buried within.

They could chain me, torture me, mock me but they wouldn't break me.