Night Raid and the Old Monsters Behind Dorian Owen

Prince Damien of Southlyn's words weren't wrong—the smear campaign was well-executed. Unfortunately, he picked the wrong targets: neither Prince Nolan nor Serena Feng were fools.

Serena watched with a hint of amusement in her eyes, as if she were just enjoying a farce. Prince Nolan didn't even spare Damien a glance, sitting there with perfect composure, completely reversing the roles as if he were the true host.

Being treated like a clown, Damien couldn't stand it. Furious, he flung his sleeves and left, ordering his soldiers not to slack off with Prince Nolan and to keep a close watch so they wouldn't run off.

As soon as Damien left, Dorian Owen's eyes lit up and he started circling Serena, his beautiful eyes brimming with amazement.

"Serena, I really couldn't tell you had the power to be a femme fatale. Prince Nolan is actually willing to raze Southlyn for you—it's just, just, just too shocking, isn't it?"

"Prince Nolan was just talking. You actually believed him?" Serena patted Dorian's head, motioning for him to move aside.

Serena didn't use much force, but Lord Bean, ever the drama king, exaggerated and toppled over with a loud "Ow—"

"Serena, don't lie to me. You really think I don't know? Prince Nolan meant every word. If that Southlyn prince really laid a hand on you, he'd march his troops and flatten the whole kingdom."

The more Dorian thought about it, the more convinced he became, shouting, "Serena, why is that Southlyn prince such a coward? If he'd just chop off your hands, I could watch Prince Nolan raze Southlyn. That scene would be so epic!"

Lord Bean was just the type to wish for chaos. Serena and Prince Nolan exchanged a helpless glance and sighed.

Razing Southlyn would be a pyrrhic victory—destroying a thousand enemies but losing eight hundred of your own. Prince Nolan would never do it unless absolutely necessary, and Damien knew this too, which is why he didn't dare push Serena and Prince Nolan too far.

So Prince Nolan, Serena, and their group settled in Damien's camp. Aside from lacking freedom, everything else was excellent—fine clothes, gourmet food, nothing missing. Even Dorian joked that if this kept up, he wouldn't want to leave.

The Master of the Mystic Healer Valley was also more than happy to stay—this way, Zed wouldn't have to be moved around, saving plenty of rare medicines. The only one truly anxious was Serena.

"Will this affect your plans for the Demon Sect?" Serena took a moment when no one was watching to quietly speak with Prince Nolan.

Of course it would.

But Prince Nolan didn't say that. Instead, he comforted her gently: "No. As you said, I never make losing deals. Naturally, I've prepared for both outcomes."

"That's good. This back-and-forth is so time-consuming—by the time William's reply arrives, the flowers will have wilted." Sending a message from Eastlyn's capital to here would take at least half a month, even at the fastest.

Half a month later, neither the Demon Sect nor Prince Terrence of Lyndaria would be able to fight. They'd have wasted all their effort for someone else's benefit—a terrible loss.

Damien really was the type to stir up trouble—of all times to pick, he had to choose now to come after them.

"Don't worry, we'll be leaving in a couple of days." Waiting around to be slaughtered was never Prince Nolan's style—he wasn't about to sit here waiting for William to rescue them.

Besides, even if William Wang agreed to let Damien's branch rejoin the Wang clan, William might not necessarily let them leave.

"Are you ready?" Serena knew that it would be easy for Prince Nolan to leave, but bringing her, Zed, and the Master of the Mystic Healer Valley would be much more complicated.

Prince Nolan nodded. "Leave everything to me."

That one sentence said it all. Serena didn't ask any more questions—she just nodded firmly. She trusted Prince Nolan.

With Prince Nolan's reassurance, Serena stopped worrying. She ate and slept well, and when she woke, she'd chat with the Master of the Mystic Healer Valley about Zed's condition. Their days were so leisurely, it was enough to make people jealous.

"Are you sure there's really no movement? Prince Nolan and Serena just stay in their tent and never go out?" Damien wasn't being paranoid—it was just that these two were so quiet, it was unsettling.

"Yes, Your Highness. Except for that young man named Dorian, no one else has left the tent. They don't even bother to hide their conversations from us." The subordinate answered respectfully, trying to recall any odd behavior from Prince Nolan and Serena, but found nothing—they were perfectly normal.

"Keep a close watch—don't slack off just because of this. Prince Nolan and Serena are cunning. As for that Dorian, as long as he doesn't cause trouble, ignore him." Damien snapped his brush down on the table.

Damien had seen Dorian's foolish antics on the very first day. At first, he thought Dorian was faking it, but after a few days, Damien realized that no one could pretend to be that much of a fool.

To Damien, a silly young man like Dorian wasn't worth paying attention to. His focus was entirely on Prince Nolan and Serena.

Afterward, Prince Damien of Southlyn would regret it a thousand times over: how could he have ever mistaken Dorian Owen for some foolish, harmless youth? He was a master at playing dumb to hide his claws. While Damien kept his eyes glued to Prince Nolan and Serena, Dorian had already reached out to the Assassin Alliance.

As the most valued successor of the six old monsters who run the Assassin Alliance, Dorian's status there was practically that of a young lord. If he gave an order, others might ignore it, but the Assassin Hall established by the old monsters would immediately step up and obey his every command.

Prince Nolan, Serena, and their group stayed in Damien’s camp for five days. During those five days, everyone behaved themselves, saving Damien plenty of trouble. But all that restraint was just to set the stage for the final eruption.

At midnight, Dorian slipped into the room shared by Zed and the Master of the Mystic Healer Valley without alerting anyone. Without a word, he hoisted Zed onto his back.

The Master of the Mystic Healer Valley had been ready for this from the start. When he saw Dorian arrive, he didn’t speak—just nodded, signaling he was prepared to act at any moment.

Dorian gave the Valley Master a big thumbs-up, then pulled him into the shadows. The two of them waited in the dark for the perfect moment to strike.

At the same time, Prince Nolan and Serena opened their eyes, quietly rolled out of bed, and stood together in the darkness. They didn’t speak, just intertwined their fingers tightly.

No matter what danger lay ahead, Prince Nolan would never let go of Serena’s hand.

Elsewhere in the camp, the eight shadow guards who were supposedly drugged moved with lightning speed and agility, like leopards—completely unaffected by the poison.

If Prince Damien saw this, he’d probably cough up blood from rage. He’d confiscated every single medicinal herb from the Valley Master—so how did these eight manage to find an antidote?

Too bad—at this point, all Damien could do was fume. Just as Prince Nolan and Serena’s group finished their preparations, chaos erupted in the camp.

"Assassins! Assassins! Quick, protect His Highness!"

"His Highness is wounded! Hurry, get the doctor! His Highness is wounded!"

"Protect His Highness! Capture the assassins!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Tiger Guard Battalion, surround Prince Nolan’s tent immediately. Don’t let them escape in the confusion!"

"Yes, sir!"

With Damien wounded and no commander in charge, the whole camp was in chaos. The vice general stepped up and tried to restore order, but...

Too late!