Become their wicked yet gentle lord.

However, this wasn't the reason the Third Prince had launched such a large-scale operation. Quaid's letters revealed a sense of urgency, as if he feared the awakened Emperor himself, and many plans had to be brought forward...

Remembering that Emperor Otus was injured during a hunt, and that Ryusha knew nothing of the details.

Regardless of the emperor's actual strength, even if he were an elderly man in his twilight years, as the highest authority in the empire, he would certainly have no shortage of skilled guards. For him to be injured during a hunt under such circumstances is enough to arouse suspicion. Coupled with the urgency in Quaid's letter, Ryūka believes this matter is inextricably linked to the Third Prince!

A coup?! Liu Xia shook her head. The contents of the letters alone were not enough to draw a conclusion. Otherwise, she could have simply taken these letters to the capital and the matter would have been resolved. The other party would not be so foolish as to leave such obvious incriminating evidence in the letters.

Ryuka easily found information about David; the young master had been moved to another location after Zona was discovered last time…

"The Enchanting Pearl? Hiding a twelve-year-old boy in a place like that, they really have something..."

No wonder Heflian was so sensitive to the slave traders who were sending female slaves to the Enchanted Night Pearl, personally leading a whole team of knights to intercept them halfway, quite like a lion hunting a rabbit.

Who would have thought that the Earl's grandson was hiding in the brightest part of the Upper Town? This is what they call being in the darkest place under the lamp.

Having obtained the crucial information, Ryūka didn't waste a moment. However, he couldn't reveal that he had manipulated the two maids, so he directly rewrote their recent memories, making their impression that the villain had infiltrated, knocked them unconscious, and taken the letter.

"I'm sorry, I hope your young lady won't blame you."

After using the [Playwright] skill, Ryuka felt slightly tired. She knocked the two maids to the ground with a single blow each and was about to leave...

"Hmm? Wait... there's also the matter of the magical equipment. We need to come up with a more comprehensive plan. How about this..."

A mischievous smile crept across Liu Xia's lips as she began to decorate the room...

"These are truly top-quality magical instruments. Linhu Territory is really wealthy to be able to afford to commission such things. It seems that Hetia is quite capable, managing to transform Linhu Territory into a thriving place in such a short time..."

In a warehouse belonging to the Chamber of Commerce, Hafren opened three cargo wagons, each containing different instruments in its crates. The tools, crafted from expensive enchanted steel and magical crystals, gleamed coldly; even though Hafren knew nothing of magical engineering, she could understand their value.

Behind her, several bruised and battered business leaders were forcing smiles, while the knights who had followed were trying hard to suppress their laughter.

They even talked about how learning and using your brain are more useful than brute force. Their young lady initially tried to use rhetoric about martial law and requisitioning supplies, but these merchants refuted her with a string of imperial laws. "You, Linlin, are you thinking about it? You, Lin, are you free...?"

Then...then she just physically convinced them, saying, "You should have said so earlier, the few of us could have done this."

"Miss, should we report these things to Lord Quaid?"

"No need~ These are all good things. Our Alvarez family still needs to make a living. Whoever takes the spoils of war keeps them~"

Heflian gave a wicked smile, closed the box, and ordered the men to pull the carriage back to her residence. Then, after a moment's thought, she added another order:

"Hmm... but let him know anyway. Send a few knowledgeable mages or engineers to take a look. He should be able to deduce what Linhu Territory is going to make with these instruments, and further assess their actions. They can also help us estimate the price."

"Miss is right, you've thought of everything so thoroughly!"

"I've already said it, you need to study and use your brain—you can't just rely on brute force!"

Heflint waved her hand dismissively, saying something that made the bruised and battered merchants unable to laugh...

Just then, a flustered knight burst into the warehouse and rushed to Hefren's side.

"Miss! Something terrible has happened! Your room has been broken into!!!"

"What?! What are you all doing?! Is all you can think about is the girl from last night?!"

Heflian's expression changed instantly. Without daring to delay for even a moment, she channeled her fighting spirit and broke through the warehouse wall. Her cyan skirt billowed up beautifully as she stepped outside and mounted her horse.

"Miss! Slow down! We'll go back with you!"

"Bullshit! Just escort these carriages! What do I have to be afraid of if I'm alone!"

Neigh! The armored warhorse neighed, its muscles stimulated by the fighting spirit emanating from Hefren. Under the knight's fighting spirit and horse riding technique, it galloped like a steel torrent towards the mansion!

Chapter 11 Tentative Encounters

Damn it! Someone dared to invade right under our noses! Thankfully, that brat has already been moved! But what are the guards even doing?!

Heflian galloped wildly on her horse, causing pedestrians to dodge and creating chaos on the streets of the Upper Town.

Although David had been moved, the fact that her private quarters had been invaded by outsiders was truly an unlucky thing. More importantly, she had many letters stored in her room, and even with magical protection, if they fell into the wrong hands… she wouldn't know how to explain it to that lunatic Quaid…

Just as Heflian was lost in thought, a dark shadow had already locked onto her from a building on the street.

"It's earlier than I expected."

Liu Xia smiled slightly. He had already concealed his clothes and face. In addition to the witch's [Charm] transformation, the dark elf's secret technique also made his figure look like an afterimage.

"Let's test this young lady's skills a bit~"

Ryuka drew his longsword, and colorless battle qi slashed out instantly, rushing straight down towards Heflian!

"ambush?!"

Heflian noticed immediately, a disdainful smile appearing on her lips. Her spear pointed like the fangs of a dragon, clashing fiercely with Ryuka's sword energy!

Boom! The warhorse kicked up dust, and even a single strand of Heflene's hair remained perfectly in place, but this attack made her realize that her opponent was no ordinary knight!

After unleashing a sword strike, Ryuka had already charged towards Heflian, the impact of his powerful footsteps causing the small building beneath him to tremble slightly!

Not wanting to reveal his identity, Ryuka used no skills other than ordinary fighting spirit and charged head-on at Hafulen, who was riding a heavily armored warhorse.

A muffled explosion rang out again, and pedestrians and merchants on the street screamed and scattered. Two streams of fighting energy formed a visible shield, violently fluctuating between the black shadow and the female warhorse rider.

"You're courting death!" Haifulian roared, and sonic waves trembled once more from her spear.

An astonishing sensory stimulation rushed towards him, and Liuxia felt as if she had been deafened, her head was buzzing, and her internal organs and brain matter were churning! At such close range, even a moment's sluggishness in reaction was enough to send her head flying!

However, having already experienced this technique before, Ryuka knew what to do. As he released his fighting spirit, he instantly sprang back to dodge the sweeping spear attack from Heflian, and then charged up to slash!

The astonishing battle aura created intense wind pressure, almost creating a small vacuum in an instant! Liu Xia instantly felt the pressure on her body decrease significantly!

As expected, this young lady's combat technique involves emitting different sound waves through the vibration of her battle aura. This can both detect enemies and interfere with and affect the human body. If she can create a vacuum zone in front of her while suspended in mid-air, she can counter this move.

"You're clever. It seems this isn't the first time you've seen me."

Heflian smiled with interest, clenching her teeth as she chuckled teasingly, "But you can't stay on the ground forever, can you?"

She's right. Ryusha really can't fly yet. Even Melanie's flying speed isn't fast enough for a knight of Hafulen's strength. The distance is far less than the acceleration brought by the knight's aura burst.

Moreover, even with strength several times greater than that of an ordinary knight, it would be impossible for Ryuka to continuously use the wind pressure generated by his battle aura to create a large vacuum zone in front of him.

As Ryuka landed backward in mid-air, a smile appeared beneath her mask. She knew about Hafulen's tactics, yet she still risked approaching for two reasons.

One reason was to test how long he could withstand Hefren's sonic attack if he used his power to resist. Considering his physical strength, which was comparable to that of a half-Great Knight, he could grit his teeth and hold out for twenty seconds without any problem. In a critical moment, such a burst of power would be enough to make Hefren suffer a loss.

The second one is...

"Whoosh!!!"

The warhorse beneath Hafley suddenly went berserk, raising its front hooves and neighing as it tried to throw its master off!

We need to create enough distance and space for the [Charm] spell to be cast!

"You damned beast! What are you afraid of!"

Heflian gripped the reins tightly, her long, shapely legs beneath her blue skirt armor clamping firmly around the horse's body! Meanwhile, her narrow, bright eyes caught, out of the corner of her eye, the shadow that had attacked her!

As Ryuga landed, he unleashed another burst of speed with his legs! The thick bluestone slabs of the Upper City Street were instantly shattered! In the blink of an eye, he was in a blind spot behind Heflian!

Wow, this person's fighting spirit is ordinary and he hasn't used any special combat techniques! But the combat power he's displayed is already approaching my level!

Heflian gritted her teeth, instantly releasing her grip on the horse's body with her thighs. With a powerful push of her feet, she lightly dismounted from the saddle! Her right hand swung the spear fiercely behind her! At the same time, her left hand grabbed a gap in the armor on the saddled horse's neck, pulling herself up into the air!

Boom! Two loud explosions rang out! One was the clash between Heflian's spear and Ryuka's longsword! The other was Heflian's upward pull, imbued with her fighting spirit, snapping her beloved horse's neck!

Beneath the armor, the warhorse burst forth with flesh and blood from the gaps in the armor like a flattened can! And it was through this astonishing explosive force that Hefren instantly propelled herself into the air! Dodging Ryūka's longsword attack, she simultaneously swung her spear horizontally at Ryūka!

Ryuka, with equally fast reaction speed, changed the trajectory of his sword, turning offense into defense and blocking the blow that was enough to shatter ribs!

Boom! Ryuka's body flew sideways and crashed into a building on the side of the street! The impact of the collision also sent Hefren flying diagonally upwards, landing on the roof of the three-story building opposite!

She exhaled a breath of suffocation from her chest. The armor on her trembling hands clanged against each other from the aftershocks of her battle aura. The blue cloth beneath the armor had already been shattered by the two bursts of energy! Her fair skin was exposed from her forearms to her shoulder armor. The arm and shoulder armor hung down in disarray, and her chest heaved violently, creating a chaotic and broken beauty.

So strong! Not just in terms of strength! Even her combat instincts are amazing! Haifulian stared intently at the crater left by the explosion on the opposite building, her left hand slamming heavily against her foot despite the numbness and excruciating pain!

A ripple traveled from the rooftop on Haifulian's side all the way to the other side! Across the street, a faint ripple came from the dust and smoke of the pit, gradually forming an image in Haifulian's mind.

A delighted smile graced her beautiful face! Interesting! Her opponent was someone just a step away from becoming a Grand Knight, like herself! Not only that, but she also possessed magic to conceal her presence, and hadn't even used any decent combat techniques! It seemed she was trying to hide her identity!

I never imagined there would be such a person in a remote, impoverished place like Sochi! Even Quaid's prior investigation didn't mention him! How interesting! Lin Yong, Lin Yong, are you planning to...?

"You're the one who broke into my room! A diversionary tactic? A siege to ambush reinforcements? Your target should be me, right? If you use your combat skills, I'm afraid I'll be in real trouble! But..."

Feeling the feedback from the sound waves, the image in the opposite pit gradually formed in Haifulian's mind. She could feel the assassin in the shadows writhing on the ground, as if the attack had caused considerable damage.

Heflian burst into wild laughter!

"However, you were too arrogant! You thought you could take me down with just your battle aura without using any combat skills! It's too late to regret it now! With such a commotion! Once my men and reinforcements arrive, even a true Grand Knight won't be able to escape Sochi!"

Looking down at the neighboring streets from her high vantage point, Haifulian saw her forces rushing towards her with tremendous force! They had already formed an encirclement! This made Haifulian extremely proud.

"Sorry, I still want to take the credit myself—even if it means taking some risks."

Recalling the weakened sensation she had just sensed, Heflian raised her spear and charged into the dust like a meteor! She thrust her spear like a dragon towards the spot she had just identified!

The sensation of flesh being pierced surged through him! Battle aura erupted from the spear! Haifulian laughed wildly!

Hahahahahaha~~~

however……

boom!

What splashed onto Haiflian's face was not the warm, sweet-smelling human blood she had imagined, nor the severed limbs and internal organs of this treacherous person who dared to plot against and ambush her...

As the aura from the gun dispersed the smoke and dust, Hefley could finally see what exactly the chunks of flesh she had been crushing were.

mouse……

Countless mice...

"Squeak squeak squeak!!!!!"

A large swarm of rats huddled together in a human-like shape, their center pierced by their own spear. Their battle aura tore a huge hole in the center of the swarm, while the surrounding rats scattered and fled in all directions...

They swarmed towards the toilets and sewer openings, pushing back all their companions who had just poked their heads out and were trying to rush over...

Hey?

Chapter 12 Two Qi Sea Lotus

Heflint's smile froze instantly. Where did she go?!

What splattered on my face... was this filthy rat scraps?

And just as he opened his mouth to laugh, a few bits of bone fragments and blood... splattered in... and he even... swallowed them...

Although she has a fiery and unrestrained style, Haifulian is still the legitimate daughter of a famous family in the capital, and such things are still...

"Ugh... Hiccup!!!"

Without even considering whether the vanished shadow assassin was still lurking in the shadows waiting to ambush her, Haiflian covered her mouth and vomited violently!

"Ugh... Ugh..."

Having spent the night on duty and barely eaten breakfast, Haifulian's stomach was filled with acid, which gushed out through her mouth and nose! Her pretty face was contorted in agony, resembling an abstract painting, as she knelt on the ground, supporting herself with her spear, vomiting violently!

A little mouse curiously turned around and looked over. The moment Hefleen saw it, her pupils contracted instantly, and she began to tremble all over...

"Don't come any closer!"

"Disgusting thing!!! Disgusting, disgusting, disgusting, disgusting!! I'm going to kill you!!!! Come out here!!!!"

Her fighting spirit erupted wildly! Like a frightened little girl, Haifulian unleashed her fury, turning the building's interior into a chaotic mess...

Boom! The severely damaged ceiling, having lost its support, crashed heavily onto Heflian, causing the knights who had just arrived to gasp in surprise.

"Miss Heflint!!!"

Just as the knights were about to step forward to help dig, the pile of rubble suddenly exploded, and Heflian's dusty body rose from the rubble like a broken doll, swaying from side to side.

"I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you..."

The knights, listening to their young mistress's murmurs, felt a chill run down their spines and cautiously asked:

"Miss...are you alright?"

Heflian's neck suddenly twisted, her eyes staring at the knight who asked the question like a demon, scaring everyone into a cold sweat!

Perhaps only then did she notice the arrival of reinforcements, because Haiflian suddenly came to her senses. As if realizing something, she instantly clenched her arms and hugged her chest.

"Turn around, all of you!!!" Heflian threatened her usually joking subordinates with a fierce look.

"Hey?"

The knights were puzzled. The young lady's sleeve had only been torn by the aura, and her clothes were still intact. Why were they so concerned?