The Mysterious Assassin
"Help! Somebody help!"
Cain cried out for help, and at that moment, the blade had already been thrust downward.
Ding!
"Ah!"
A sword struck—the assassin's blade was knocked away.
"You must have a death wish!"
Immediately after, Pedory swung his sword again with a swift and forceful motion.
Pchhk!
The sword slashed across the assassin's chest. With another slash, Pedory dispatched the assassin in an instant.
This revealed that the man named Pedory was no ordinary person.
"Get to safety!"
"Ah... y-yes!"
Cain, terrified, quickly hid. Pedory, having rescued Cain, hadn't yet turned back when the clashing sounds of weapons echoed from outside.
Clang clang!
Screams and shouts were mingled with the noises.
Looking closely, one could see a group of black-robed assassins, about thirty in number, had emerged from who knows where, and were now battling fiercely with the guards of both Pedory and Cain.
Though all of Pedory's men were elite warriors, the assassins clearly came prepared. The two sides were evenly matched.
But Cain's guards were in a terrible situation—they had no power to resist these assassins, falling after just a single blow.
After swiftly dealing with Cain's guards, seven or eight assassins joined the assault on Pedory and his men.
"Bastards!"
Watching his men fall one by one, Pedory was furious. He lifted his knight's sword and charged into battle.
"Stop him!"
Seeing Pedory coming, two assassins in black exchanged glances and rushed him together.
"Get out of my way!"
Pedory roared. The knight's sword in his hand glowed red as he unleashed a cross slash. The assassin who came at him was struck down instantly.
All of this was witnessed by Little Black, who relayed the information to Serea. Serea made a rough estimation of Pedory's strength.
Level 20–30; that meant this middle-aged man was at least at the same level as Celia.
Seeing the assassins' decisive skills, Serea knew the situation was only going to get worse. She instructed Little Black to bring Vina back immediately.
As for dealing with Cain, there was no longer any need for Little Black to act—clearly, these assassins were here specifically to assassinate him.
Now that someone else was dealing with her trouble, Serea was more than happy to let them.
Surveying the chaotic battlefield, Vina also realized this wasn't a place to linger. She quietly crept along the wall, planning to escape over it.
But as soon as she touched the wall, a surge of energy suddenly pushed her back.
Bang!
Vina was flung away, tumbling several times before she managed to stand up with difficulty.
"There's actually a barrier!"
Vina panicked. Having triggered the defensive barrier, she immediately caught the attention of the black-robed assassins.
"Who's there?"
A few assassins turned and saw Vina, also dressed in a black robe and wearing a mask.
"One of us?"
"Idiot! Why are you standing there? Hurry up and deal with the others!"
One black-robed man shouted at Vina. Noting that the other party was dressed like herself, Vina understood that a mistake had been made.
Before those assassins could say more, a volley of arrows suddenly flew toward them.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
"Ugh!"
"Ahhh!"
Cries rang out as a squad of fifteen archers suddenly charged out of the warehouse, forming ranks and unleashing a barrage on the assassins.
Thunk, thunk, thunk!
Blood blossomed in the air. The assassin who had just yelled at Vina looked anxiously at his companion.
"Weren't there supposed to be only twenty guards? Why are there so many more people?"
"This... can't be. The captain checked in advance. They only brought twenty people."
The scolded assassin was stunned. Their informants in the city had only seen two groups of ten enter the city; since then, no one else had gone in or out of the manor. Why were there suddenly so many more now?
"Useless fools!"
Their leader cursed.
With the massed archers joining, half of their thirty assassins were instantly killed or wounded; though the rest still resisted desperately, completing their assassination objective was now impossible.
"Retreat!"
Sensing things had gone sour, the assassin leader decisively ordered a withdrawal.
But as the command was given, Pedory had already charged over.
"Mm!!"
The leader raised a dagger to meet Pedory's knight's sword, but the overwhelming difference in strength saw him sent flying backward until he crashed against the barrier-protected wall.
Sizzle, sizzle!
Pinned against the wall, the assassin leader was immobilized as magical shocks from the barrier coursed through him. He howled in pain.
"Ahhh!"
Hearing his cries, Pedory held him firm, intent on killing him with the barrier's magical shock.
"Heh, who'd have thought you even roused those from Assassination Star. Let me guess—which of the Twelve are you?"
As Pedory reached to remove the man's mask, other assassins rushed over.
"Protect the captain!"
Three of them charged forward, but were blocked by a group of guards. The archers' assault had turned the tide of the main battle, freeing up the guards.
"Damn! Take them out first!"
The two sides clashed again, and Vina was mistakenly targeted as an assassin. Two guards charged at her.
Clang! Clang!
Vina parried with two daggers, retreating as she fought. Having chased here in a hurry, she hadn't brought her bow, so she was forced into close combat and was being suppressed by the guards.
Seeing Vina in danger, Serea commanded Little Black to get close. If Vina encountered any real peril, Little Black was to strike immediately.
Meanwhile, in the inn, it had been quite some time since Vina had left to buy dinner. Lola and Celia both sensed something was wrong. Just as they prepared to go look for her, Serea's tightly closed eyes snapped open.
Her eyes were now ice-cold and filled with killing intent—and a trace of anger.
"System, what's my chance of success against these people?"
System: Without the help of the Skeleton Warrior, your odds are low. However, if you employ some less conventional means, the success rate is ninety-five percent.
"Unconventional means?"
System: The power of the bloodline is very strong. If you activate 'Blood Frenzy (Tier II)', you'll temporarily gain its strength, but you may suffer side effects like anemia or exhaustion.
"Let's do it."
As she spoke, Serea stood up.
"Follow me. Prepare for battle!"
At this, both women were stunned.
"Battle? My Queen, shouldn't we look for Vina first?"
Lola, worried about Vina, voiced her concern. At her words, the anger in Serea's eyes grew even fiercer.
"That's exactly what we're doing!"
With that, Serea led the way outside.
Seeing that Serea was angry, Lola and Celia dared not ask further and hurried after her.
Receiving Little Black's updates, Serea's face was frosted with cold.
Sometimes, undead followers really were simply more useful—they were at least obedient, weren't they?
(To be continued...)