The Hero's Harem is Trying to Kill Him - Chapter 98 - 99: The Ancient Verdict

Chapter 98: Chapter 99: The Ancient Verdict

Section 1 – Recap & Immediate Fallout

The banquet hall lay in ruins, a battlefield masquerading as royalty’s pride. The gilded walls cracked, their gold leaf peeling like dead skin under the lingering force of Kai’s refusal of the crown. The floor was fractured marble, each jagged line pulsing faintly as if the palace itself had taken offense.

The crown’s aura had not vanished—it hung in the air like a phantom storm, wrapping around the pillars, whispering in the ears of all who dared to stand. The words were not words at all, but desires given voice: Rule. Own. Command. Be loved without question.

Kai swayed on his feet, gripping his sword so tightly his fingers bled at the knuckles. Every heartbeat was a struggle to stay himself. The crown clawed at him, painting seductive illusions of the wives kneeling willingly at his feet, their eyes full of worship, their lips whispering promises of eternal loyalty. His jaw locked, sweat dripping down his temple as he forced those images away.

Velis crouched low, daggers in hand, her breathing sharp and fast. “The air tastes like poison.” Her wolf-like eyes darted to Kai, scanning for weakness, not out of distrust, but fear.

Astra—normally draped in playful confidence—looked stripped bare. Her grin was gone, her lips pressed in a line so tight it trembled. The weight of the hall’s pressure had forced even her to show the cracks beneath her charisma.

Lyra, silent as always, had her bow drawn. But she didn’t aim at enemies—her arrow was trained on the crown’s aura itself, as if she could pierce temptation. Her voice came out low and unsteady. “Kai… it wants you more than it wants anything else.”

The wives closed in around him, but couldn’t draw near. The invisible storm around Kai rippled violently, daring anyone to touch him.

And then… the air shifted. Not like wind, but like the world exhaling after holding its breath too long.

Section 2 – The Ancient Figure Emerges

From the deepest cracks in the marble floor, light bled upward. Not gold. Not white. Black-gold, like molten obsidian leaking from the earth’s veins.

The runes it formed were wrong to mortal eyes, shapes that twisted as soon as they were seen, words that bruised the mind for daring to look at them. They circled, spreading outward until the wives found themselves encased in a ritual older than kingdoms.

And then it rose.

The light solidified into a figure—tall, skeletal, cloaked in shadow. Its robe trailed across the broken marble, yet made no sound. Its face was concealed by an obsidian mask carved with jagged cracks that pulsed like a heartbeat. Each breathless second, the cracks spread wider, as if the mask itself were alive, straining to contain something inside.

Its voice wasn’t heard but felt. Not through ears, but through marrow, pounding against hearts as though the figure’s decree had always been law:

“The Crown has been refused. The balance demands judgment.”

Velis crumpled to one knee immediately, clutching her ribs. “Damn it—this… weight…”

Astra grit her teeth, forcing herself to stay upright, though her body shivered as though shackled. “So this is the fine print nobody warned us about.”

Lyra’s bowstring trembled. Her arrow slipped and shattered against the marble, her hand shaking despite her iron discipline. She pressed her lips together in silence, forcing herself to stand.

Kai alone held his ground—barely. Every bone in his body screamed to bow, to submit, to kneel before the figure as though it were god made flesh. His heartbeat pounded, his vision doubled, but his feet refused to bend.

The entity’s presence thickened, folding the hall into silence.

Section 3 – Rising Conflict

The figure extended its hand. The air rippled.

The cracked walls of the banquet hall transformed into mirrors. Dozens of them. Hundreds. Each shimmer reflected not just the ruined chamber, but fragments of the past. Betrayals flashed like stabs of lightning—Velis’s hesitation in saving Kai, Astra’s manipulations, Lyra’s cold silence when her words could have saved lives. Even Kai himself—every moment of doubt, hesitation, every temptation to wield the crown’s promise.

The wives’ faces drained of color as their own sins stared back at them.

The voice fell again:

“You are bound by oath and bond. To sever, you must survive. To keep, you must endure. Judgment falls on all.”

The runes blazed. A jagged circle of light carved itself around Kai and his wives, closing them in. The nobles who lingered on the edges of the hall screamed, clawing for escape, but the moment they touched the circle’s edge their bodies disintegrated into shadow, absorbed into the mirrors.

Velis spat blood, dragging herself to her feet. “So this is it—a trial?”

The entity tilted its mask, the cracks glowing brighter. Its reply split their ears and hearts at once:

“Not trial. Verdict.”

Its robe flared open—and from the shadow within, figures stepped out.

They were… themselves.

Reflections. But not perfect. Twisted.

Astra, but her smile was cruel and empty. Velis, but every hesitation had been stripped away, leaving only predatory instinct. Lyra, but with eyes burning cold fire, arrows poised to kill without doubt or mercy. And Kai—Kai crowned, eyes glowing with tyrant’s certainty.

Lyra whispered, horror lacing her voice. “We’re fighting… ourselves.”

Section 4 – The Clash Begins

The mirrored Astra moved first. She lunged, her rapier dripping with venom that sizzled when it touched the floor. Real Astra met her head-on, their blades sparking with every clash. The mirrored grin was wider, sharper, a mask of malice. Astra’s teeth clenched as she snarled, “I hate how much better that smile looks on you.”

Velis’ counterpart circled her like a wolf, daggers twirling. No hesitation. No compassion. Just instinct to kill. Velis countered, each strike meeting its twin. “So this is what I’d be if I didn’t care about anyone.”

Lyra’s reflection fired without pause, arrows screaming through the air. Each shot curved unnaturally, as though it knew where Lyra would dodge. Lyra loosed her own arrows in return, the sound of twanging bowstrings becoming a storm. Every miss felt like a betrayal of her own skill.

And Kai.

Kai’s reflection stood taller, surer, crown gleaming like a star in its hair. Its blade burned with certainty. When their swords met, the clang rang deeper than steel—it was the sound of destiny colliding with defiance.

Kai’s arms shook under the force of every blow. This reflection wasn’t just his equal—it was him at his absolute peak. Him without fear. Him without love, without doubt, without weakness. The tyrant he could have been.

Every strike was a question.

Every block was a denial.

Section 5 – Cliffhanger

The wives fought savagely, but their reflections adapted. Every parry, every dodge, every strategy—learned, mirrored, twisted, and thrown back sharper. Astra’s grin faltered, Velis’s breathing grew ragged, Lyra’s aim wavered.

The figure’s voice cut through the chaos:

“You cannot slay what you refuse to accept. The verdict will be written in your blood.”

Kai’s knees buckled as his reflection bore down. The crowned Kai pressed him into the fractured marble, their blades locked. Sweat and blood blurred Kai’s vision. The reflection leaned in, eyes glowing with pitiless certainty.

The sword slipped an inch closer to Kai’s throat.

The entity’s mask glowed so bright the cracks threatened to burst.

“The Crown has chosen its vessel. The choice is no longer yours.”

The reflection’s blade dropped—

And the world exploded into white.

Next Chapter Preview – Chapter 100: The Mirror War

The blast of white light shatters the battlefield, scattering reality itself into fragments. Kai and his wives awaken inside a realm made entirely of mirrors—each one showing a twisted possibility of what they could become.

The reflections are no longer just opponents. They evolve, feeding on doubt, seduction, and hidden fears. Astra faces a version of herself who seduces with cruelty. Velis battles a predator who kills without hesitation. Lyra confronts an archer who has no heart left to weigh choices. And Kai—Kai must face his crowned self, the tyrant king he could have been, who wields the power of domination without guilt.

Every clash grows heavier. Every strike forces them closer to breaking. And through it all, the masked entity watches, waiting to decide whether Kai’s rebellion against the crown proves him worthy—or dooms them all to eternal bondage.

As the centennial battle begins, one truth becomes clear:

The only way to win is to embrace what they fear most.

⚔️ Call to Action

The banquet of blood was only the beginning—now the battlefield itself has shattered into mirrors, each one dragging Kai and his wives into a war not just of steel, but of soul. Their enemies are no longer faceless assassins or shadowy nobles, but their own reflections: the futures they swore they’d never become, the mistakes they’ve tried to bury, and the desires they’re terrified to admit.

This is the centennial trial where every choice matters. A single hesitation could mean a blade through the heart. A single moment of doubt could shatter the fragile bond that keeps them alive. And the Queen’s unseen hand waits above it all, pulling strings with a smile that hides more knives than jewels.

Can Kai rally his harem in time to strike down the false selves clawing at their hearts? Or will the reflections prove stronger than the originals, turning their love and loyalty into weapons against them?

👉 Don’t miss Chapter 100: The Mirror War, where truths are exposed, loyalties are tested, and the very future of Kai’s rebellion hangs by a single heartbeat. This is the clash that decides everything.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by AiKurou