Chapter 522

Chapter 145 Confrontation in the Town

The night breeze blew through the grass and fences, making the flames flicker and the hair flutter.

“Caw, caw—”

The raven’s hoarse cry echoed clearly through the wind.

The woman with silver hair and blue eyes, her face vaguely visible in the firelight, entered my field of vision. My head buzzed, and I was momentarily stunned.

My steps subconsciously stopped.

“Little Bernie—”

In front of me, Ryan and several young men ran through the mud and approached the fence not far from the hut. The boy’s older brother couldn’t hold back his complaints: “Really, what were you running for! I said I would buy…”

On the other side, the silver-haired woman gently pushed the boy’s shoulder. Little Bernie turned around and reluctantly shuffled over, step by step, unwillingly walking this way. The woman stood behind him, watching him.

Then, she turned her gaze toward me, locking onto my face.

It was… a completely different look from when we met in the royal city.

For an instant, I felt as if I had been caught by a lion or dragon in the darkness, my scalp tingling, my body turning cold, and goosebumps rising from my arms to my back!

“Ryan!”

I couldn’t help but shout. My highly tense nerves had become uncontrollable, triggering this subconscious reaction.

While shouting, my right hand instinctively reached for my back, but I was holding a sweet cookie, so I couldn’t free my hand. This thought was quickly suppressed in hesitation, and then I wanted to use moon step, but my brain finally caught up: She might not recognize me.

That night, to avoid drawing attention, I didn’t bring Captain Gray along and wasn’t wearing the Pontiff Knight’s cloak. I was just wearing a simple white cotton dress, and my hair was hidden under a wide-brimmed hat. Even if she had heard of me or seen my portrait in the Church’s reports, she wouldn’t recognize me immediately.

Moreover, I was with Ryan and the others—these young men, judging by their clothing and behavior, were just some local ruffians who were aimlessly hanging out. Their disheveled appearance made it unlikely that anyone would consider them a threat. Being with them was actually the best cover.

She…

didn’t know who I was…

And I couldn’t afford to alert her here. Fighting her here was definitely not an option…

Otherwise, the consequences would exceed our expectations…

My thoughts raced, and only two seconds had passed. Ryan and the others reached the boy’s side. The older brother took his younger brother’s hand and seemed to be saying something. I no longer had the energy to listen. The woman stood not far away, no longer looking at me, and made no move.

At this moment, one of the young men finally saw the woman’s face clearly, stunned for a moment, and then shouted uncontrollably.

“Miss Mayse…?”

“Miss Mayse…”

“It’s Miss Mayse!”

“Really… really…”

After they gradually recognized the woman’s identity, each of them became somewhat agitated, including Ryan. They even forgot to comfort the little boy and all rushed towards the woman. Perhaps due to excitement and nervousness, their voices trembled: “Miss Mayse, I am your loyal fan, I really like you, especially your sword dancing…”

“Miss Mayse, why are you here…”

“The performance… isn’t about to start…”

“Just taking a walk.”

Miss Mayse said calmly.

Her voice was special, soft and slightly sticky when first heard, floating lightly in the wind, like a feather gracefully descending, yet carrying the cold and aloofness of frost and snow. It was a difficult-to-describe contradiction. Her delicate voice, though nuanced, was pleasant to hear.

“Huh…”

I remained calm, exhaled softly, glanced at the cheese on the distant roof, shook my head, dispelling the jumbled thoughts in my mind, and composed myself. A smile appeared at the corner of my mouth. I tiptoed, pretending to be a young girl, and hopped over.

“Brother Ryan!”

I called out sweetly. The young man suddenly turned around, his mouth opening wide, his pupils gradually enlarging, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Like a呆鹅, he stiffened his neck and spoke tremblingly: “Shir…”

He dared to say my name—

“Brother Ryan, Brother Ryan, let’s go buy that… that… cheesecake…”

I blinked my big eyes and hugged the bag of sweet cookies tightly, looking up at him.

“…”

Ryan was still in shock, unable to recover.

“Come on, come on~”

If I weren’t holding the sweet cookies, I would have dragged him by the arm and thrown him out… I felt anxious inside but tried to show a sweet smile on the surface. After hesitating for two seconds, I finally made up my mind, handed one bag of sweet cookies to Ryan, and grabbed his arm with my right hand: “Let’s go~ I want to eat that… Little brother wants to eat it too, right, right~”

At least get them to safety first…

“Wow…”

“F*ck…”

A few exclamations could be heard.

Turning around, I saw several young men staring at Ryan with fierce or clenched teeth expressions: “Ryan…”

“You f*cker… I suddenly want to break ties with you…”

Stop standing there like fools! Hurry up, you bunch of idiots!

I tried hard to control my facial expression, avoiding the woman’s gaze as I felt the veins on my forehead bulge with urgency. “Hurry, hurry~”

Shrugging my shoulders and stomping my feet, I grabbed Ryan’s arm and tugged lightly, frowning slightly with a pouty look. “Brothers, let’s go, let’s go~ I’m hungry…”

Ugh—

I held back my disgust and finally compromised my dignity to act cute and obedient for their sake. The effect was obvious; I never doubted that anyone could resist such an approach. As the young men’s faces turned increasingly flushed under the firelight, their expressions became somewhat dazed, especially Ryan, whose face was already red as a beet. His tongue seemed tied, stuttering “me, you” without forming coherent words.

I pulled his arm and walked away, and Ryan obediently followed like a wooden puppet. The other young men stood rooted in place for a moment, looking at “Miss Mace” and then at me, who was walking away. Some of them instinctively followed.

Good, let’s leave it at that…

Not yet—

“Wait, wait! Miss Mace, do you have anything else? If you don’t mind, would you like to join us at the square…”

Damn!

Who—

My expression turned fierce for a moment, but when I turned around to confirm, I was once again the picture of innocence.

Stupid red-haired idiot…

“I have something else.”

Before I could think of how to get them to leave, the silent “Miss Mace” suddenly spoke up, her cool gaze sweeping over me again. “That lady.”

!

Damn it…

My mind was in turmoil for a moment. I released Ryan’s arm, hugged the bag of sweet cakes tightly, took a deep breath, and turned around. “Sister, did you call me?”

“Yes.”

The woman responded softly.

She’s calling me…

This is bad…

Did I overact?

She’s a professional actress—could she see through me…

I took two steps forward subconsciously, moving closer to the woman while subtly positioning Ryan behind me. I stopped five steps away from her—this distance seemed ideal for a sudden attack, pushing her out of this residential area while ensuring the safety of the young men.

“So, sister, what’s up…”

Tightening my grip on the bag, I took a bite of a sweet cake and chewed slowly. My dark eyes looked innocent and curious as I stared at her…

Such a posture might make people think I pose no threat, just a silly little girl, right?

I was waiting for her next move or words.

But the woman remained silent.

The moonlight was faint, casting its light on her cold, stern face, yet soft and alluring.

The woman said nothing and made no move, standing there in the shadows, looking at me—seconds passed, neither of us spoke, and the atmosphere became strange. Even the young men noticed something was off, their confused gazes darting between us.

“What… ah?”

“What happened…”

These two beauties, one large and one small, were rare gems in the entire West Continent. Their intense stare created an indescribable pressure that left the young men at a loss. They wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words, standing there awkwardly.

Crunch…

I took another bite of the sweet cake.

Chewing slowly, the original delicious taste was almost gone.

My palms were sweating, and beads of sweat formed on my forehead. I could feel my expression stiffening, barely holding it together.

“If there’s nothing…”

“There is something.”

…Just say it if there’s something!

What’s wrong with this woman…

Come to think of it, why did we run into her here? Could it be that she’s been following us since—

“You, leave,” the woman said again.

This time, she was speaking to the young men.

Using that familiar, commanding tone.

It suddenly dawned on me that the woman’s manner of speaking was similar to Victoria’s, both being cold and indifferent, devoid of any personal emotion. However, Victoria’s coldness was absolute, queen-like, making one feel distant and oppressed.

But this woman…

Though equally unemotional, perhaps due to her innate qualities or her aura and appearance, her words carried a delicate charm that Victoria would never possess—a gentle, flirtatious quality unique to dancers.

Such a charm was not intentional, yet it made people want to draw closer involuntarily.

Her gaze was kind, even when issuing commands, making people feel no discomfort, but rather a sense of inevitability. After she spoke, the young men hesitated for a moment before moving instinctively.

“Hey… Brother, do you know her?”

Behind me, Ryan’s uncertain voice echoed.

“No.”

“Yes.”

Two responses came out in quick succession, one from me and the other from the dancer.

The first was mine.

The second was hers.