Chapter 296

Chapter 82 Departure from the Royal City

Before the carriage had even come to a complete stop, I lifted the curtain and jumped down, raising my head to gaze at the towering city walls to the left.

On the high walls, there were still embers burning in my sight. Thick smoke rose slowly into the sky, swirling around as soldiers held shields and swords, quickly running along the top of the wall. They shouted loudly towards the outside, their words too distant to be heard clearly, but surely filled with insults. Some laughed heartily, doing everything they could to provoke the enemy, their voices almost drowning out the occasional low sobs that drifted in from somewhere.

Outside the city, there seemed to be no movement. There were no archers seen on the walls either.

I took a deep breath, catching a whiff of something burnt.

“Ah! Ah ah ah—”

A piercing scream nearby startled me.

Turning my head, I saw several soldiers without helmets carrying a man whose body and even half his head were charred black. He looked like he had just come down from the wall, rushing hurriedly away. The leading soldier’s eyes were wide open, shouting incessantly, “Move aside! Quickly move aside!” before forcefully pushing through a group of guards heading up the wall, gradually disappearing into the distance.

Soon after, more injured people were carried down, running past me quickly.

In the alleyways to the right, many soldiers were evacuating civilians from house to house, forcefully driving men, women, and children out. Those who resisted were soon subdued by the soldiers.

Several glowing embers flew past me, soaring into the clear blue sky.

Marguerite walked up from behind and spoke briefly with a knight approaching from the opposite direction. Turning back to me, she said, “Her Majesty is still upstairs in the tower, but she will come down soon. Let’s wait here for now.”

“Alright.”

I nodded gently at her, then asked the unfamiliar knight, “What’s happening on the wall?”

It didn’t seem like they were in combat. What were those iron-armored soldiers doing outside?

The knight looked at me in surprise, then suddenly froze, his eyes flashing with admiration and love.

Such a look was nothing new to me. I tilted my head slightly, looking at him calmly.

After a moment of stunned silence, the knight quickly recovered, puffed up his chest unconsciously, and honestly replied, “The armored guards retreated after a round of long-range attacks. They are testing the defenses of the royal city, but it’s obvious that the walls are much sturdier than those relying solely on equipment. They lack the manpower and the nerve to launch a bold attack, and perhaps they’re hiding far away, trembling in fear. Ha ha — uh, forgive me, miss, please ignore my crude remarks.”

The knight seemed ashamed for saying such unrefined things in front of me, but I did not mind.

“So, there won’t be an assault on the city anytime soon?”

This was what I cared about most.

“An assault on the city?”

The robust knight was taken aback, then a hint of disdain flashed in his eyes, followed by a peculiar smile.

“Beautiful lady, you jest. Those weaklings want to assault the city? The brave defenders of the royal city will tear them apart alive. My soldiers even asked me to request permission from Her Majesty to open the gates now, charge the enemy camp, and crush them all, making the greedy Clive family pay for their foolish actions… I am considering this proposal.”

Oh…

I nodded, putting my thumb in my mouth and biting it.

I wasn’t sure if the knight was boasting… but given the current situation, the enemy hadn’t attacked yet; otherwise, the soldiers on the wall wouldn’t have had time to shout insults.

If the number of attackers and defenders were equal, the attackers would undoubtedly be at a great disadvantage… I understood this. Without any tricks, the armored guards would find it hard to win… but I feared they might use underhanded tactics against Victoria, which they were good at.

But at least the city wouldn’t be breached in the short term… the speed wasn’t that fast, and there weren’t enough armored guards…

Understanding this was enough.

Before I could say anything else to the knight, another wounded soldier was brought down from the wall. Marguerite stopped them, placing her delicate hand on the forehead of the injured warrior. A faint golden light emanated from her palm, and the young, charred body gradually ceased shaking, falling into a peaceful sleep with regular breathing.

“Thank you, revered Holy Lady…”

The injured soldier’s comrades kept thanking Marguerite, but the gentle Holy Lady only smiled without saying a word.

I quietly watched the wall, observing the burning fireballs gradually shrink, the smoke rising to a high altitude where it dissipated.

The knight beside me continued to prattle on, boasting about his bravery and belittling the armored guards. He wasn’t much older, probably in his twenties, trying every trick to catch my attention, but I had little interest in engaging with him, responding sporadically.

When Marguerite healed the seventh wounded soldier, the proud queen strode over surrounded by a group of people.

“Victoria!”

I called softly and ran up to her, standing in front of her with furrowed brows.

“Why aren’t you wearing armor…”

At a time like this…

Victoria was actually wearing very thin clothes, seeming like a single sword thrust could tear them apart! The large white cloak draped over her back also appeared thin, not resembling the style of a Pope’s knight, offering no defense…

I felt angry, but I didn’t want her to see my anger. So, I tried to maintain my expression, preventing my mouth from turning up, but I still glared at her.

But Her Majesty

She didn’t look at me directly. She just waved her hand slightly behind her, signaling for those people to go first. Then she casually said to me, “Clumsy armor will hinder my wind power.”

Hearing her explanation, I finally understood.

… That’s right.

Even I dislike wearing armor… It must be so heavy that it would affect her order power, especially when flying… Truly, one gets flustered when worried…

“What are you doing here?”

Victoria’s face remained calm, her beautiful and cold features revealing nothing about her current emotions.

“I have already learned about the situation in the abyss. You should now head to the canyon with the Holy Maiden…”

At this moment, she saw Margaret standing not far away. The two of them exchanged a distant greeting with a light bow after their eyes met. Margaret did not come over; she turned around and returned to the carriage.

Victoria watched the Holy Maiden get on the horned carriage. Her golden eyes turned back to me again. She reached out to ruffle my hair, her gaze gradually softening.

“Are we leaving soon?”

“Mmm…” I nodded.

… Strange.

I had clearly thought through what to say to her earlier, but now I can’t remember any of it…

“The abyss is entrusted to you.”

“Mmm.”

My hair was almost tousled by her…

“The enemy you face is much more dangerous than what I face. I hope you remain calm and don’t act impulsively or recklessly, and don’t repeat what happened last time.”

The incident last time… Ah. She meant the incident with Teresa; I jumped up into the sky… That was unavoidable…

“If… at a critical moment, I hope you won’t worry about others and prioritize your own life. Come back alive.”

Uh…

Is this really okay?

You are Queen Isenbel, why are you saying such things…

I would never desert my post…

“Promise me.”

“… Okay.”

I’ll agree with her for now.

Victoria seemed satisfied and moved her hand away from my head.

“So, why did you come to find me?”

Why did I come?

Oh right, I came to give her something!

My mind, which had been numbed by Victoria’s touch, suddenly remembered why I had come running over. I quickly pulled out two smoke tubes from my skirt pocket and handed them to Victoria.

“This is for you.”

The queen extended her hand to take them, but her eyes showed a hint of confusion.

“What is this?”

“It’s a smoke tube,” I told her. “In the Valen Empire, assassins like to use them. They can be used for killing or escaping. For example…”

I tilted my head, trying to think of how to explain the powerful effects of the smoke tube to her. After a moment’s hesitation, I raised both hands and pointed to the area under my eyelids, then slowly pulled down.

“It causes tears… Use it when in danger.”

… This doesn’t seem quite accurate.

So I rubbed my eyes harder, stomping my feet rapidly while shaking my head, trying to convey to Victoria a sense of urgency and pain.

“The enemy is very difficult. When you use it, close your eyes, don’t breathe, and then fly.”

The performance was over.

But Victoria’s expression seemed somewhat blank… Did she not understand my meaning?

But I couldn’t demonstrate it for her, or else I would waste one.

“Queen Victoria, Lord Rekmon is about to arrive,” someone who looked like a military leader came over to urge.

Victoria nodded to acknowledge. Once the general stepped aside, she patted my head again, a hint of a smile in her eyes.

“Alright, I understand. I will keep the smoke tubes safe. You should leave here quickly and don’t make the Holy Maiden wait.”

“Wait! There’s this too…”

Seeing Victoria seemingly wanting to leave, I hurriedly took out the chest guard from my chest and held her hand, placing it in her warm palm.

“This was given to me by my father. It’s made of moon crystal. Wear it well… Promise me.”

But Victoria gently pushed my hand back, shaking her head.

“You need this more.”

“I don’t… I have two.”

Would she accept it if I said that?

To show her I wasn’t lying, I deliberately gave a smug smile and patted my chest—of course, I didn’t do it too hard, fearing she might hear something off, as I actually didn’t have a second one.

Victoria hesitated for a moment before no longer refusing.

“You must wear it well,” I emphasized seriously.

“Okay.”

Seeing her agreement, I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.

Actually… If not for the gloves and leg armor she couldn’t wear, I would have given those to her too… My body seems to have been thoroughly strengthened in the last battle; even if I get injured, I recover quickly.

“I’m leaving now,” I said to her.

“Mmm.”

Victoria opened her arms and gently embraced me.

“Come back quickly,” she whispered in my ear, tickling me a bit.

“I will…”

“You mustn’t get hurt.”

“You too.”

The smell of gray smoke faded, replaced by an intoxicating fragrance.

Amidst the rolling blue sky above, wild grass and the scorching sun thrive endlessly.

Victoria gradually disappeared with her followers, while I ignored the knight’s astonished gaping mouth, tidying my hair with one hand and climbing into the carriage with the other.

“Let’s go.”

The horned beast neighed and moved, its iron hooves clattering as it pulled the carriage along the city wall at a rapid pace. Soon, they arrived at a side gate on the south side of the city. From afar, someone could be heard shouting loudly, “Open the gate!”

Creaking noises…

The heavy gate slowly opened. The three horned carriages did not stop and rushed out. I lifted the curtain and looked back at the city wall left behind.

High in the sky, a black bird circled, circling, and finally landed on the city tower.