The statue of the Virgin Mary slowly opened its arms, sharp thorns ready to welcome the lamb who had endured all suffering.
Natasha, her face filled with despair, was pushed into the Iron Maiden by her attendants.
Heart-wrenching screams came from the Iron Maiden behind her. Natasha was forcibly shoved into the dark coffin studded with sharp spikes by the guards, unable to move.
The sharp thorns pierced her skin, slowly penetrating into her bone marrow. She howled in agony, her desperate and shrill cries echoing throughout the entire underground prison. Upon hearing this terrifying scream, the other prisoners in the cells instinctively covered their ears.
This was probably the most heart-wrenching and tragic cry they had ever heard.
Compared to Ivan IV's cruelty, Empress Eelena's act of cutting off the prisoner's hands and pouring molten tin into his mouth was practically a merciful act of forgiveness.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, spare me!"
"It was all Grand Duke Shuysky's doing, I really don't know anything else!"
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, don't kill me!"
Natasha pleaded with Ivan IV for mercy, her mouth filled with blood and foam after her alveoli were punctured, her speech becoming increasingly slurred. Blood flowed continuously from the punctures, forming a glaringly crimson pool on the ground.
The design of the iron nails avoided vital organs; the prisoners inside wouldn't die quickly, but would suffer excruciating torment, eventually bleeding to death.
Tuchkov turned his face away; in all his years as a prince of Moscow, this was the first time he had witnessed such torture used on a poor prisoner.
Ivan…
Tuchkov felt as if he were collaborating with the devil.
However, Ivan IV left Natasha with only a cruel silhouette, slowly disappearing around the corner, leaving her to suffer torture in the Iron Maiden's instruments.
The face of the Virgin Mary slowly closed, isolating Natasha in a sealed, cramped space filled with sharp spikes.
The originally piercing screams turned into muffled hoarse cries.
As blood continued to flow, the cries from the iron coffin grew weaker and weaker, finally fading into silence.
She was dead.
Stepping out of the dark prison, he took a deep breath, trying to process the visual shock of the bloody scene.
This was the first time he had witnessed murder firsthand. The overwhelming power he wielded made him realize for the first time that all living beings were, in his eyes, insignificant ants.
Power is like an abyss; when you gaze into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you.
Tuchkov stood in the sunlight, dispelling the chill and fear emanating from the Lefortov prison.
"Your Majesty."
Tuchkov, who had originally been exiled to the countryside, was only standing here again because of Ivan IV. He did not approve of Ivan IV's practice of sending servants into the Iron Maiden.
"The servants seem unaware of their accomplices monitoring you. Trying to uncover Grand Prince Shuysky's flaws through this seems unrealistic. While Shuysky is arrogant and ruthless, he is not foolish enough to commit such a basic error."
Ivan scoffed at Tuchkov's leniency. Short-sighted grand princes always limit themselves to their political opponents, which is why they frequently stumble and fall into traps. Prince Grinsky, one of the Seven Pillars of the Kingdom, was strangled to death by his own servant.
Ivan IV was dedicated to eliminating any possible danger, even if it was only a one in ten thousand chance.
"Whether she knows or not is irrelevant. Do you think I don't know who the traitor is? When the time comes, the attendants, guards, servants, and even cooks in the Moscow court will be either killed or exiled."
Tuchkov hesitated. He was the weak-willed of the seven royal advisors and objected to Ivan IV's brutal approach.
"But doing so will cause panic throughout the Kremlin. I fear those attendants might do something detrimental to the Tsar."
Hearing this, Ivan IV turned around and said solemnly to the down-on-his-luck regent beside him, "Do you hate Shuysky?"
"Hmm?"
Turkov was somewhat confused, but he still answered honestly, "Of course, Your Majesty."
Ivan IV said to him, "Shuysky killed your cousin Yuriev, and your closest ally in the Duma, Bersky, was arrested and imprisoned. He also demoted your friend, Bishop Daniel. The reason I chose you is precisely because of the irreconcilable hatred between Tuchkov and Shuysky."
Ivan sat down on the steps without any regard for his image, as if he were immersed in memories of the past.
"When I was three years old, they killed Prince Andrei, who was loyal to the royal family. My uncle could have fled to Lithuania, but he chose to be arrested rather than betray the royal family, and was even put in a shackled iron hat before his death. From Moscow to Novgorod, gallows stood everywhere, and all the nobles who had supported Prince Andrei were hanged one by one."
"At dawn, the Shuysky brothers arrogantly stormed into my bedroom, woke me up, and threatened me. They arrested their political enemies in front of me, including Archbishop Josip Asaf. They forced me to sing hymns beside the Holy Cross."
"They cunningly and premeditatedly stole from my parents' treasury multiple times to enrich their own family. They deliberately instigated me to eliminate their enemies and rivals. Grand Prince Tuchkov, do you still think these people deserve to not die?"
Recounting the humiliation of being manipulated by treacherous officials, Ivan showed no anger or rudeness, seemingly just quietly recounting bitter old stories. Abandonment and loneliness were deeply etched into the heart of this orphaned Tsar. Growing up amidst the tyranny and brutality of the lords, their misdeeds transformed his initial timidity into an uncontrollable hatred.
Once the Tsar tasted the sweetness of power, his resentment towards the Grand Dukes grew daily.
Even though Vasily Shuysky was his brother-in-law, he sought to eradicate the entire Shuysky family, leaving no trace.
His father, Vasily III, had established a council for him before his death, composed of lords who had consulted on state affairs at his deathbed. However, the powerful minister Zimin disagreed, advocating entrusting state affairs to the Duma and appointing two designated Grand Dukes to assist Ivan III.
There was no good person in the entire court. Although Ivan IV held power, he was surrounded by treacherous villains.
Many people needed to be killed; the road ahead was long.
Tuchkov fell silent, astonished by the maturity and insightful observation of the thirteen-year-old Tsar. No power struggle or the myriad aspects of human nature escaped his notice.
"After Ivan Shuisky's death, his brother Andrei Shuisky became the last head of the Shuisky family. He has now lost the support of all the lords. His seemingly glorious prestige is nothing but a tragic decline."
Ivan IV pulled a letter from his robes and handed it to Tuchkov.
"Your Majesty, what is this?"
"The will."
Ivan stated succinctly, "This is a life-or-death political struggle. It's possible that Shuisky will ultimately resort to violence, ordering my execution and placing my mentally challenged brother on the throne. If I die, your task is to publish the will and replace Shuisky as Yuri's guardian."
Both fell silent.
Standing on the steps, Ivan IV gazed at the towering spire of the palace in the distance, pondered for a moment, and finally issued his first formal order to Tuchkov.
"Arrest all my attendants, including the palace guards."
"Anyone connected to Shuysky, stuff them into the Iron Maiden."
Ivan IV's last words revealed to Tuchkov for the first time in the young Tsar the shadow of his father, the Moscow warlord Vasily III.
"Killing is not the best way to solve problems, but it is certainly the most direct. Better to kill a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free."