The Warden of The Witches-Chapter 219:

At that moment, the riot squad, drawn by the alarm, finally arrived at the scene. They saw that the warden had already taken complete control of the situation and immediately lined up to the side, ready for further instructions.

This was Aiden’s first time using the mercury golem to subdue inmates. Thanks to Ophelia’s little outburst, he had the perfect opportunity to test it out.

“It—it was them who provoked me first!” Ophelia attempted to defend herself to Aiden.

“And who threw the first punch?” The inmate she’d been fighting shot back, quickly backed up by her two cellmates.

“You brought this on yourselves! If it weren’t for the barrier, this princess would have drained you all dry by now!”

“Oh, big talk! Pretty bold for a two-time escapee who got caught both times!”

“What did you say?!”

Seeing that the two sides were on the verge of another clash, Aiden, expressionless, spoke a single word: “Tighten.”

The moment he said it, the four inmates felt the iron rings on their necks and wrists suddenly constrict, choking them into silence.

Aiden looked coldly at the struggling inmates for several seconds before saying, “Loosen.”

The mercury golem immediately relaxed its grip, and the three human inmates began coughing violently. Though as a vampire, Ophelia didn’t need to breathe, speaking required an exhale, so having her neck squeezed like that wasn’t exactly comfortable for her either.

"Go on, keep arguing! Go on, say, ‘Teacher, she hit me first!’” Aiden mocked, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “What, you think this is a daycare? Since you all love to play so much, fine, I'll give you something to play with. Head inside, grab some supplies, and scrub the toilets—twenty stalls each! After that, solitary confinement for a full day. Now, move it!"

"Please, Warden, she started it! We were only defending ourselves!" one of the three inmates immediately protested.

"Self-defense? All three of you jumping in to gang up on her? When I arrived, you seemed to be enjoying yourselves quite a bit, fighting so intensely that the guards couldn’t even step in," Aiden replied with a sidelong glance.

"We…we were just trying to break it up!" the other two inmates, who had joined the fight later, tried to distance themselves from the blame.

“Breaking it up with your fists? If you keep playing me for a fool, the toilets will be yours for the entire week!” Aiden’s tone was icy.

The inmates fell silent, one after another.

Finally, Aiden waved his hand. "Release!"

The mercury golem retracted its restraints from the inmates, morphing back into its humanoid form and positioning itself behind Aiden, and crossed its arms like a vigilant bodyguard.

The inmates in the core block exchanged uneasy glances. They’d seen the warden patrolling with a shapeshifting mercury sphere before, but now it seemed his little toy… had been upgraded.

Aiden gestured to a nearby guard, signaling her to take the inmates to carry out their punishment.

The three cellmates reluctantly began to move, but Ophelia remained rooted in place, refusing to budge.

"Ophelia, didn’t you hear me?" Aiden's gaze fell on her.

After several seconds, Ophelia spoke, almost painfully, "I… I refuse!"

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“Refuse what?” Aiden’s brow creased slightly.

“I refuse to clean toilets! I am a noble vampire princess—I’ve never endured such humiliation!”

Aiden’s order had wounded Ophelia’s pride, reigniting her courage to defy the warden once again.

"You spent two years digging a tunnel under your cell’s toilet, and now you're bothered by this?" Aiden reminded her of her past deeds. "Never experienced this kind of humiliation? Well, no problem—you’re experiencing it now. There’s a first time for everything. Go on!"

"I don’t care what you say! I’ve tolerated you long enough!" Ophelia erupted. "If you have the guts, just kill me already!"

"I told you, you’re still on probation," Aiden replied, locking eyes with her. "I’m giving you a chance by making you take your punishment quietly. Don’t sabotage yourself, young lady."

“Ugh! Drop dead!” Ophelia, completely enraged, spat the words at him.

Aiden leaned his head aside just in time, dodging the flecks of spit from her outburst.

"Ophelia," he said slowly, meeting her defiant, blood-red gaze, "I want you to go clean those toilets, and while you’re at it, loudly say, ‘I’m sorry, Warden.’ If I can’t hear you, you’ll say it again. Keep saying it until I do."

Ophelia raised her head haughtily. "With all due respect, Warden, there’s no need to go to the toilets—I’ll just say it right here. And it’s just one sentence—"

"However you insult me next will determine your punishment," Aiden interrupted, his tone like a sharp blade cutting her off.

Ophelia stared at him, the rest of her retort lodged in her throat, unable to come out.

“Go to the cafeteria and fetch a couple of garlic cloves,” Aiden instructed one of the guards.

At his words, Ophelia could almost taste the pungent smell of garlic invading her mouth, and the heat of her anger cooled instantly.

"Sorry…" Ophelia mumbled, her voice barely a whisper.

"What was that?" Aiden shot her a glance.

"Sorry… is that enough?" Ophelia replied, her face full of reluctant submission.

"Speak up!" Aiden persisted.

“…Sorry…”

"And you think mumbling that will wipe the slate clean?" Aiden didn’t let up. "I told you, if I can’t hear it, it doesn’t count!"

"Guh!" Ophelia’s face twisted, and with a clenched jaw, she forced the words through gritted teeth. "So—rry, Warden!"

"See? If you’d just cooperated from the start, this would be over already. Now, get moving!" Aiden gestured toward the restroom and signaled two riot guards to go monitor her.

Later that afternoon, after lunch, Aiden walked down the corridor to the solitary cells.

He made a quick check on the inmates held there before stopping in front of Ophelia’s cell.

Hearing someone approach, Ophelia glanced his way, but the moment their eyes met, she turned her head away in defiance.

"A rare breed of stubborn inmate, aren’t you? Makes me want to give you a medal," Aiden remarked with a mocking smile.

Ophelia stayed silent, refusing to respond.

"Tell me, don’t you have an older brother named Kyle?" Aiden continued casually.

Ophelia’s brow furrowed slightly, and she shot him a sharp look, her expression clearly saying, "How do you know that?"

Seeing her reaction, Aiden thought to himself that the information he’d received was probably accurate. Just before noon, Isabella, who had been on duty in the reception area, had mentioned that a vampire claiming to be a family member of Ophelia’s had visited the prison.

"You realize that with all the trouble you’ve caused, your family can’t even visit you?" Aiden crossed his arms. "Is keeping up this pointless pride really that important?"