Enemy Raid, Never Pick Up People by the Roadside

The horse came to a halt. Before Serena Feng could even react, she was grabbed like a stray dog and dragged along, twisted and turned so many times she completely lost her sense of direction.

All Serena Feng knew was that she was being led ever downward. If her guess was right, these people were taking her to some kind of underground palace—the deeper they went, the colder and gloomier it grew, as if the air itself was haunted.

With no warning, she was dumped straight onto the ground. Luckily, Serena reacted instantly, shielding her head with both arms and rolling several times to soften the blow.

It was messy and undignified, but still better than landing face-first like a dog eating dirt.

“Hahaha…”

Her disheveled state drew loud laughter from everyone in the room.

“Serena Feng, meeting you for the first time is truly surprising.” A cold, slightly sinister voice cut through the jeers.

Serena climbed to her feet, rubbing her arm. “Thanks for the compliment, but I had no intention of meeting you.”

“No intention? You think you have a choice?”

Serena felt a sharp pain in her wrist, and the next moment she was pulled into a man's embrace. He was drenched in a thick dragon-musk fragrance.

A member of the royal family?

Aren’t they supposed to be Julius Zhu’s remaining followers?

Caught off guard by this, Serena felt the black cloth over her eyes being removed. She kept her eyes tightly shut, refusing to see who her captor was.

The man held Serena in one arm, the other gripping the handkerchief beneath the blindfold.

“Serena Feng, what’s this for?” He inspected the handkerchief but found nothing unusual.

“The black cloth you gave me was filthy. It would have hurt my eyes.” Skin pressed against skin, Serena stiffened, afraid to move, but her awkwardness amused the man. He tossed the blindfold and handkerchief to the floor, then grabbed her chin.

“Open your eyes. Look at me.”

“No.”

“I’ll count to three. If you still won’t open your eyes, I’ll kiss you—kiss you until you do.” His callused fingers traced her lips, teasing and shameless.

Serena felt a wave of disgust. Where did this shameless creep come from? Gritting her teeth, she finally opened her eyes and stared at the face looming before her.

His skin was pale, as if he hadn’t seen sunlight in years. Narrow phoenix eyes glinted with icy light, and though his features were delicate, there was nothing feminine about him.

Serena reflected that one perk of ancient times was the abundance of handsome men. Of all the men she’d met, none were ugly; even if their features weren’t perfect, their bearing more than made up for it.

But why did this man look so familiar? Serena puzzled over it, then suddenly her eyes widened and her mouth formed an O.

He looked a lot like Evan Zhou. When Evan first arrived at Feng Manor, sickly and pale, he resembled this man at least fifty percent—except this man was even more beautiful.

“Who are you?” There was no such thing as coincidental resemblance in this world; this man almost certainly had some connection to Evan Zhou.

Serena could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

Is Evan Zhou from Southern Lyn?

Damn it, you really shouldn’t pick up random people by the roadside. If Evan Zhou is a Southern Lyn spy hiding in Eastlyn, she’s doomed—harboring an enemy agent is treason, and if exposed, no one could save her.

“What are you thinking?” The man didn’t answer her question but asked one of his own, pulling Serena onto his lap and holding her in place.

Damn it, Serena was so frustrated she could spit.

What did this man take her for—a bar girl, or a famous courtesan? From the moment they met, all he did was grab and grope her. But… sometimes you just have to bow your head to survive.

Serena did her best to ignore his scent and the awkward position, and forced a smile. “I was just thinking, how can there be someone so beautiful in this world? Your looks are simply stunning.”

No one could deny this man’s beauty. Being held in his arms, an outsider might have thought he was the one being taken advantage of, not her.

Of course, his shamelessness was just as stunning. She’d never met a man so brazen.

“Hahaha, you really are bold. I thought Eastlyn women were all raised to be obsessively chaste—lose a finger to a man and they’d want to die. I never expected you’d have the nerve to tease me instead.” The beautiful man clearly knew Serena wasn’t thinking about his looks, but didn’t press further.

His narrow phoenix eyes gleamed with a strange, unreadable light.

Serena shot him a glare. “Obsessively chaste? If that were true, I’d have died a thousand times over. Eastlyn women? So you’re not from Eastlyn?”

“Serena Feng, you’re far too curious.” He slid his hand along her shoulder, openly flirting and trying to provoke her.

Serena was too calm—she knew she’d never get useful information out of a man like this. The beautiful man couldn’t believe any woman could remain so composed under his teasing. His hand continued downward, toying with her ten fingers.

With her fingers trapped in his grip, Serena felt her heart leap into her throat. She prayed he wouldn’t “accidentally” break her hands.

Fortunately, the beautiful man didn’t seem to have that idea. He leaned close to Serena’s ear and whispered, “Serena Feng, stay and warm my bed, and I’ll spare your life.”

“Warm your bed? Sir, I don’t warm beds—I heal people. From the look of it, you’re injured. Why don’t I bandage your wound instead?” Serena placed her hand between them to keep him at bay.

Her reputation wasn’t as important as her life—but she couldn’t lose it for no reason, either.

“Injured? What makes you think I’m hurt?” He tightened his grip around Serena’s waist, pulling her even closer until she could barely breathe.

“I’m very sensitive to the smell of blood. You’ve tried to cover it with fragrance, but I can still catch it.” In truth, she wouldn’t have noticed if he hadn’t come so close—but this man was deliberately toying with her.

He studied Serena carefully. Once he was sure she wasn’t lying, he smiled. “Rumor has it you’re an expert at treating wounds. Looks like it’s true. I’ll give you a chance—if you treat my injury well, I’ll take you back to Southern Lyn.”

“Southern Lyn? So you’re not Julius Zhu’s remaining followers—you’re from Southern Lyn?” Serena gasped, but regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth.

Now they’d never let her go.

Sure enough, the beautiful man suddenly gripped Serena’s throat. “You’re clever—but clever people don’t live long.”

“You told me yourself.” Serena protested, betting this man had revealed his identity on purpose.

Serena cursed Dominic Zhai from start to finish in her heart. If it weren’t for that bastard, she would never have ended up like this.

What Julius Zhu’s remaining followers? If they really were, she wouldn’t have much to say—after all, she’d had a hand in that mess herself.

But these people were from Southern Lyn. It wasn’t her who defeated Southern Lyn—it was General Warren Yu, and at the time, she hadn’t even met him yet.

Ugh… Thinking about it made Serena want to cry. General Warren Yu had only helped her a few times—did she really have to repay him with her life? And to Southern Lyn, of all people.

“So what? You think I’ll let you go now that you’re here? Serena Feng, should I take you back to Southern Lyn, or just kill you?” The beautiful man had decided long ago—he would never let Serena return to Eastlyn.

He was only toying with her to try and get useful information, but…

This woman was clever when she shouldn’t be, and at other times he couldn’t get past her defenses—let alone extract any secrets.

“Sir…”

Before she could finish, a chorus of footsteps sounded outside. At that moment, a gray-robed man rushed in. “Third Prince, Eastlyn’s people are attacking!”