Because of Dorian Owen's botched assassination attempt, the entire Feng Manor was thrown into chaos.
The butler was busy blaming himself, the guards were searching for suspicious people, the dark guards were interrogating Dorian, and Serena herself was busy bandaging her own wound and checking on Simon's condition.
The attacker went easy on Simon—the poison in his system was only enough to keep him unconscious for a day, and a little sweating would flush it out. Serena gave him an injection, hung up an IV with nutrients, and then entrusted him to Winter.
"Take good care of Young Master Simon. If anything happens, your life will pay the price." This was the harshest thing Serena had ever said, showing just how rattled she was by today's events.
"Yes, ma'am." Winter knelt at once. After Serena helped her up, she walked out. Just as Serena reached the door, she suddenly realized she hadn't seen Zed since returning to the manor, and asked urgently, "Where is Young Master Zed? Quick, go find him!"
Serena's heart gave a violent jolt—the unease she'd just managed to suppress surged up again.
"I'll go look for him right away," the guard replied, not knowing what Serena wanted but remembering Zed had visited the sickroom that afternoon. Without further questions, he dashed off to Zed's courtyard, only to find...
"Young Master Zed is missing!" The guard's face changed dramatically as he rushed back to report.
"Zed is missing?" Serena's eyelid twitched. At that moment, Dorian Owen finally gave Zed up completely and spilled everything that had happened that afternoon.
Dorian had planned to take the secret to his grave—he couldn't bear to lose face in front of Zuo An. Besides, even if he told the truth, who would believe him? After all, Zed was just a child. Anyone who hadn't truly dealt with that kid would never know his real nature.
But Dorian couldn't withstand Zuo An's relentless interrogation and temptation, and finally, in a daze, blurted out the humiliating truth.
"Pathetic," Zuo An said, shooting Dorian a look of utter disdain. Dorian bristled, but moving made his injuries flare with pain. "It hurts like hell."
"Serves you right. Only an idiot would get played by a child. With skills like yours, don't even call yourself an assassin—you're a disgrace to the profession." Zuo An knocked Dorian hard on the head, ignoring his untreated wounds, and walked out.
It was all external injuries—a couple days of bed rest would fix him. Let Dorian bleed a bit and lie low, so he wouldn't cause more trouble.
After finishing the interrogation, Zuo An went to find Serena. "It was Zed."
"Zed is missing." Serena and Zuo An spoke almost in unison, their faces growing serious.
"We've all been played. Zed used the chaos to escape." Serena clenched her fists in frustration.
Damn it—she'd had a bad feeling, so why hadn't she been more cautious? If she'd asked about Zed the moment she came in, maybe none of this would have happened.
"So calculating at such a young age—the Demon Sect has its successor. Only Dorian could be stupid enough to get used by him." Zuo An knew Zed's true identity, and was well aware that if Zed went missing under Serena's watch, the Demon Sect would skin her alive.
Just great... Trouble never ends. The Assassin Alliance problem wasn't even resolved, and now the Demon Sect is involved too.
"Don't blame Dorian—it's my own negligence. I thought Zed had really learned his lesson, but he was just putting on a show to lower our guard and seize a chance to escape." Serena let out a long, weary breath.
"Talking about it now won't help. Zuo An, please search everywhere—maybe Zed is still inside the manor. I'm going to Prince Samuel Manor to ask Dominic Zhai for help. No matter what, we have to find Zed." Serena's headache was real now.
"Alright, I'll go look for him. I just asked Dorian—aside from him, the Alliance hasn't sent any other assassins for now. You're safe within the capital." Zuo An was thorough, and managed to extract plenty of useful intel from Dorian.
"Good, there's no time to waste. I'll head to Prince Samuel Manor now—I'll leave the manor in your hands." Serena worried that if she delayed, Zed might already be out of the city, making him even harder to find.
Serena and Zuo An split up. Zuo An searched every corner of Feng Manor but found no trace of Zed, while Serena arrived at Prince Samuel Manor late at night.
Serena didn't care about etiquette and knocked on the door, only to learn both Prince Samuel Manor and Dominic Zhai had been summoned to the palace and hadn't returned yet.
Summoned to the palace?
Serena remembered that Ninth Royal Uncle had also been urgently called to the palace, so she knew something major was happening. She didn't ask further, just told the butler to let Dominic Zhai know she'd come by.
By moonlight, Serena walked toward the Young Clan estate, escorted by guards.
With Zed missing, not only was she responsible—the Young Clan was too. At times like this, more hands meant more power; Feng Manor alone couldn't possibly find Zed.
Victor Yun was dragged out of bed by his servants, eyes still bleary. Seeing Serena, the one disturbing his sleep, he grumbled, "Serena, do you have any idea what time it is? Couldn't you pick a better hour to visit?"
Suppressing a yawn, he came inside.
Serena had no time for small talk. She got straight to the point: "Zed has escaped."
"What?" Victor snapped awake, all traces of sleep gone.
"You heard me—Zed ran away from my manor." Serena repeated, and Victor was so startled he quickly asked what had happened.
Serena summed it up in a few words—how she and Ninth Royal Uncle punished Zed, and how Zed used the Assassin Alliance to create chaos and escape.
"This kid—is he even human? So cunning at such a young age." Victor was stunned by Zed's "accomplishments."
This was no ordinary child—even most adults couldn't pull off such tricks.
"At least you know what kind of trouble you sent me. Now that Zed's gone, I'll take responsibility, but I need you to send people to help search. It's been less than two hours—he must still be in the city. Feng Manor is short-staffed, and Dominic Zhai's at the palace, so I can't find help elsewhere." Serena took all the blame without hesitation.
Zed may have been sent by Victor, but he escaped right under Serena's nose.
"Don't say that—Zed's gone missing, so the Young Clan is responsible too." Victor was every bit the stand-up man, not shirking blame at all. "I'll send people out right away, don't worry. No matter how clever Zed is, he's still just a child; he can't have gone far."
Victor couldn't sit still either. He stood up and summoned the butler, ordering everyone in the Young Clan—including those at the pharmacies—to join the search for the six-year-old.
Serena saw Victor's decisiveness and didn't linger. "I'll leave the search to you. Dawn's almost here—I need to go home and change, and then visit the Wang family to ask William for help."
It wasn't that Serena hadn't asked William Wang sooner, but the Wang family was large and strict. If she showed up in the middle of the night, she'd only cause trouble for William.
The Young Clan was different—Serena was their honored physician and had a special relationship with them. Plus, Zed's disappearance involved the Young Clan, so Victor was the obvious person to ask.
"Alright, as soon as we find him, I'll let you know. Don't worry—Zed's not the type to get bullied." Victor reassured her quickly.
Serena just waved her hand, saying nothing.
No matter how clever Zed was, with his violent streak, he'd surely get into trouble. If no one helped him, what chance did a child have against adults? In the end, Zed would be the one to suffer.
Sigh...
If anything really happened to Zed, her conscience would never be at peace!