Making Enemies and the Assassination at the City Gate

Serena knew that news of her arrival in Lyndaria couldn’t be hidden from the Princess Royal and the others. Even though those two freaks had already described their group to the mysterious black-armored man, Serena had no intention of changing her disguise.

"There are only a handful in Lyndaria who would cooperate with Ghost Hall, and the most suspicious is the Princess Royal. We might be able to fool everyone else, but not her." Serena’s assertion wasn’t baseless.

Back at Skyvault Fortress, Princess Royal Helena had always mingled with Damien of Southlyn and his freakish entourage, so she was certainly familiar with those odd people. After Damien’s downfall, the odds of both sides joining forces were extremely high.

As for the black-armored man’s identity, Serena hadn’t managed to uncover it yet. The other party was extremely cautious—even Master Graves had lost the trail. In the short term, there was no way Serena could find out who it was, so rather than sneaking around, she decided to lay her cards on the table and wait for the enemy to come to her.

It’s better to have an enemy out in the open than one lurking in the shadows, ready to strike at any moment.

"Miss, I just spotted Spring." One of the Eighteen Riders drew closer to the carriage and reported to Serena first.

"Go ahead into the city." Serena tapped twice by the carriage door, signaling for the Eighteen Rider to make contact with Spring first.

One of the Eighteen Riders dismounted and headed toward the queue entering the city, while the carriage remained in line, inching forward at a steady pace.

Just as the Eighteen Rider moved ahead, Master Graves drifted out from the shadows: "Young Lady, something’s off at the city gate."

Though it sounded like he was speaking to Serena, Master Graves was actually warning the Eighteen Riders. The remaining eight instantly blanched, surged forward, and formed a tight protective ring around the carriage.

The commotion was significant, drawing the attention of many—including assassins lurking among the crowd, waiting for a chance to strike at Serena.

Noticing the Eighteen Riders’ movements, those killers looked visibly different from the ordinary townsfolk. The Eighteen Riders grew grim, silently blaming themselves for being careless.

At that moment, realizing their cover was blown, the assassins ignored the crowds at the gate and drew their blades, charging straight for Serena’s carriage. "Do it!"

"Protect the miss!" The Eighteen Riders instantly drew their swords, surrounding Serena at the center, bows at the ready behind them.

Boom—! Just then, an explosion rang out from somewhere nearby. The blast wasn’t deadly, but the noise was terrifying. On top of that, several assassins suddenly leapt from the crowd, throwing the entire gate into chaos as people shoved and scrambled to escape.

With people panicking like that, the horses were even worse. Spooked and uncontrollable, they bolted wildly, making the crowd even more chaotic…

In the blink of an eye, the city gate was a total mess. People trying to enter or leave were jammed together, shouting desperately: "Let me out! Let me out!"

"I need to get in—don’t push me, don’t push me…"

"Ah—help! Help!"

"Don’t step on me, don’t step on me…"

......

People, horses, carriages—all originally separated into lanes for entering the city—were now thrown together by the explosion. Hooves pounded, carriages overturned, people shoved each other, people collided with horses, and horses trampled people...

"Help! Help!" Screams and shouts filled the air—no one could hear anything else. Every single person was focused only on survival.

"Quick, dismount!" The Eighteen Riders leapt off their horses and, to prevent the animals from trampling anyone, gritted their teeth and slaughtered their own mounts.

"Miss, get out of the carriage!" the Eighteen Riders shouted.

Inside the carriage, Serena and the child were tossed about as the panicked horse bolted uncontrollably into the crowd. The carriage lurched and swayed, throwing them around violently...

Master Graves reacted quickly, slicing through the reins—but Serena and the child inside still couldn’t get out right away.

With the horse gone, the carriage didn’t stop—it just kept tumbling forward on momentum...

"Kill the adults and children inside the carriage!" The assassins, mingling in the crowd, had a clear target. They shoved innocent bystanders in front of the Eighteen Riders to block their way, then charged straight for Serena.

"Are you scared?" Serena held the child tightly with one arm, gripping the edge of the carriage with the other to keep herself from falling. In this situation, she couldn’t even draw her pistol—let alone protect the child, she could barely defend herself.

The child’s eyes were still lifeless. Even as the carriage rocked wildly, there wasn’t a trace of fear on their face. Hearing Serena’s question, the child quietly shook their head.

"If you’re not afraid, then get ready—we’re jumping out together."

Thud—a blade struck the carriage, splitting the door with a crack. It was just a cheap vehicle bought on the road, hardly sturdy enough for this.

Bang! Whether it was a horse or a person that struck it, the carriage lurched to one side—Serena and the child nearly went flying out.

Serena clung tightly to the upper window frame, gritting her teeth and refusing to let go. Her nails scraped against the wood with a harsh creak.

"No time!" The carriage was about to overturn—if she and the child didn’t jump now, they’d be crushed beneath it. Master Graves was tangled up with assassins and couldn’t break free to help them.

"We’re jumping!" Serena hugged the child close, shielding their head, and leapt out. The moment they hit the ground, inertia sent Serena tumbling forward—if she landed wrong, the child would be the one to suffer most.

No! This child can’t take another injury!

In that instant, as she fell, Serena forcibly twisted herself, clutching the child and rolling to the side.

Thud—Serena crashed sideways to the ground, her face going instantly pale. Her entire left arm was wracked with pain, almost numb; for half a second, she couldn’t move at all.

Before she could catch her breath, a flash of silver swept down from above. Gritting her teeth, Serena clutched the child and rolled desperately to the side.

Fleeing with a child in tow was truly difficult—Serena hadn’t been this battered in a long time.

Crack—the attacker’s blade missed, then swung again. Fortunately, the Eighteen Riders saw Serena’s predicament; just as the enemy raised their weapon, an arrow whistled over and struck the assassin’s arm.

Clang—the blade fell to the ground, landing barely half an inch from Serena. As the attacker lunged again, another arrow flew past—this time, killing them instantly.

The assassin’s eyes rolled back as they collapsed to the ground.

"That was close." Serena’s heart was still pounding. If she were alone, it would be hard for anyone to kill her—but carrying a child made everything much harder, especially since the child’s arms were useless and Serena had to hold him the entire time.

"Stay still and be good. Let me take care of the bad guys." Serena knew the child clung to her—leaving her side made him anxious—but now she had no choice but to set him down. Otherwise, they’d both die.

Ignoring the anxiety in the child’s eyes, Serena pushed him behind her and drew her pistol...