“Your Highness!”

 

The Shadow Guards protecting the princess were furious. The opponent’s speed was too fast, they didn’t have time to stop the traitor who had launched a surprise attack on the princess. All they could do was angrily swing their blades at the betrayer.

 

Having succeeded with her attack, Emily didn’t engage with them. She immediately released the blood-stained hilt of the dagger used in the attack and agilely retreated.

 

“Hahaha!… Wow!”

 

As Emily ran, she laughed maniacally. But before she could relish her victory for a few seconds, an arrow, carrying intense fury, roared through the night sky, transforming into a dark red fire dragon, directly aiming to take her life!

 

Red Lotus Technique – Third Form: Flame of Retribution.

 

This was the fire that burned all sins and evils, unstoppable and unavoidable. Besides neutralizing it with a stronger force, there was no way to resist it.

 

“Lilya!!!”

 

The crimson flame tightly gripped the short bow, disregarding everything as it charged towards the slowly falling princess. It even ignored the burden brought by forcibly activating the flames—bloody blossoms exploding at the fingertips were the least of its concerns.

 

Emily seemed to be well aware of the danger of this move. Gritting her teeth, she split into a phantom and rolled to the side, while her main body directly faced the surging fire dragon!

 

Boom!

 

The flames instantly engulfed the flesh, causing a terrifying explosion that affected over a dozen rebels in the vicinity. The traitors didn’t even leave behind remains, turning into ashes in the fiery wrath of the crimson flame.

 

But Miss Flora was completely preoccupied now.

 

“Lilya! Lilya, are you okay? Wake up, don’t scare me!”

 

Protected by several shadow guards in the center and cradled carefully by another deputy leader, the princess had her eyes tightly shut, and behind her, crimson blood continued to flow. There was no response to the calls from her friend.

 

Trembling, Flora fed her another dose of healing potion, not daring to check her breath with her hands, fearing she couldn’t handle the painful reality.

 

“Hehe, don’t dream on. I’ve never missed my mark before. That strike pierced the princess’s heart. For you inferior beings, it’s an absolute fatal blow!”

 

Amidst the chaotic battlefield due to the princess’s assassination, Emily’s mocking voice echoed abruptly again. Next to her burnt body, another Emily emerged, with the same shadow guard uniform as before.

 

“You’re not Emily. Who are you?”

 

Blocking Lilya behind her, Flora aimed the short bow at the enemy with eyes burning red.

 

Emily was just an ordinary human at the Earth-level and couldn’t have survived under flames comparable to legendary peaks. In other words, this person was an imposter from the beginning to the end.

 

No wonder she suddenly swung a blade at her master. However, this disguise was too exquisite. Even the legendary Flora couldn’t discern any flaws.

 

“Hehe, well, it doesn’t matter now that we’ve reached this point. I am the Ninth Throne of the Eternal Throne, the Thousand-Faced Witch—Cromancia. Your princess has destroyed my home, so she’ll have to repay with her life…”

 

Squelch.

 

A sharp claw pierced through her chest, silencing Cromancia’s voice abruptly. Her eyes lost their luster, and she collapsed in a slump.

 

Strangely, even after the short three-inch claws vanished into thin air, no one could figure out who had killed her.

 

Even more bizarrely…

 

After the lifeless “Emily” fell, she transformed into a black shadow, blending into the ground. In the blink of an eye, a new “Emily” reappeared, exactly the same as before.

 

“Hehe, Prakaka, you indeed betrayed us. Lord Timos warned that your character is not firm, not to be fully trusted, and he was absolutely right.”

 

From an unknown location, the retort of a rat-like assassin came without any hesitation.

 

“Better than you, an ugly freak who never dares to show your true face and constantly hides behind the shadows of others. The one I follow now is an infinitely superior being compared to some nonsense immortal sorcerer, you fool.”

 

Cromancia, wearing the appearance of Emily, froze for a moment, seemingly struck at a sensitive point. But soon, she laughed even louder.

 

“Hahaha! So what? I may not have killed the target, but I’ve taken out yours. Failed to protect the princess, your new master might be quite angry, huh? Will she just butcher you outright?”

 

“Hehe… what a fool.”

 

The air was filled with a contemptuous laughter.

 

“You’re the damn fool!”

 

Now, Cromancia couldn’t hold back anymore. In a fit of rage, she hurled the newly created short knife toward the last location of the voice, but unfortunately, Prakaka was long gone from there.

 

It seemed that she couldn’t trace the elusive rat-like assassin.

 

“Prakaka, what do you mean?!! Do you really think this Lilya can survive a strike from me? She’s not an undead like us!”

 

“Stop it. Don’t lump me together with you lot. I’ve already been reborn, and you, the so-called undead, are just a frog at the bottom of a well, forever unable to understand what true strength is.”

 

After the last sentence, Prakaka fell silent again. After all, this place was crowded, and it didn’t want to attract too much attention.

 

Cromancia still wore a face full of disbelief.

 

“Huh? You said you—”

 

“Cough, cough, cough!”

 

Just at that moment, the princess, who had kept her eyes closed, suddenly coughed violently. She abruptly sat up from the arms of the shadow guard, startling Cromancia into swallowing the rest of her sentence.

 

“How is this possible!? I clearly…”

 

“Lilya!”

 

Flora turned quickly, and the other guards who rushed back also showed joy on their faces.

 

Before they could ask, the princess shook her head and discreetly pointed at a small pendant hanging on her chest.

 

“Don’t worry, luckily her blade wasn’t poisoned.”

 

She said so, but Lilya still felt a bit scared deep down.

 

Generally, true powerhouses, especially those beyond the legendary level, rarely indulge in things like poisons unless it aligns with their specific path. Instead of substances that could potentially backfire, they tend to rely more on their own abilities.

 

Just like the current Cromancia before us.

 

Once again, you’ve saved my life, Violet…

 

Feeling the sensation of the small box against her skin on her chest, the princess silently thought to herself.

 

Even with full preparation, Lilya currently didn’t have absolute certainty that she could withstand a full-powered strike from a legendary being, especially since she was ambushed from behind.

 

Even Prakaka, a legendary being, couldn’t react immediately, indicating how swift and inevitable Cromancia’s strike was. Her confidence wasn’t unfounded.

 

“Where is Emily?”

 

Drawing the long sword from her waist, Lilya assumed a ready stance.

 

“Tsk… Haha, who knows? After all, I’ve been taking her place for so long, she’s probably been eaten by some wild dog somewhere.”

 

Cromancia pursed her lips in discontent, chuckled with a hint of resentment, and casually said so.

 

“Lies. The time you took Emily’s place coincides with tonight when the incident occurred. I sent her to investigate the situation.”

 

When Emily reported the situation earlier, Lilya had sensed some inconsistencies in her speech habits and small details. However, the urgent circumstances had focused most of her attention on the state of the capital, and she hadn’t thought much about it at the time.

 

Looking back now, her initial feelings were indeed correct.

 

Easily exposing the falsehood of the Eternal Throne lady, especially after seeing the displeasure on her face, the princess was completely certain of her suspicions.

 

In other words, Emily is likely still alive.

 

Then, let’s settle this swiftly.