Red-Robed Youth Skye

"Then why were you sneaking around, all invisible and suspicious?" the Flying General asked.

"I just wanted to test you guys, see if you could spot me!" Lily Bai said.

"Huh? Peacock Spirit, she says she's not a criminal." The Flying General turned to report.

"Could you be any dumber? Hurry up!" The Peacock Spirit snapped at him.

"Oh..." The Flying General once again raised his serrated sword and slashed toward Lily Bai's face.

Lily Bai, powerless to resist, held her breath and glared at him.

Unexpectedly, that Marching Wing Guard waved his sword for ages, then turned and asked, "Peacock Spirit, why do you want to ruin her face? I think she's really pretty!"

The Peacock Spirit, furious, kicked him aside, summoned a dagger, and slashed at Lily Bai's face herself.

A sharp pain seared her face and blood trickled out.

Lily Bai closed her eyes and endured, cursing inwardly: Damn Peacock Spirit, if I ever get my powers back, I'm plucking you bald!

Suddenly, there was a loud "thud."

A dagger hit the ground, followed by the heavy thump of something else landing.

A faint, chilly fragrance drifted in on the breeze.

Then, the bindings loosened, and Lily Bai fell right into someone's arms.

Damian Black!

She hadn't seen his face, but that was definitely his aura!

He was back.

"Your Majesty, Demon Emperor, thank—" Lily Bai started to thank him, but her words cut off abruptly.

Because she realized—it wasn't the Demon Emperor after all.

It was Skye, the red-robed youth!

A flash of red robes, slender and tall, with a face so refined and striking, skin so fair, and a calm aura so like Damian Black's that you couldn't look away.

Damian Black himself looked like that.

Even his attendant was this good-looking?

And their auras were identical—no wonder Lily Bai had mistaken him for Damian Black just now!

Is this what they mean by 'birds of a feather'?

"Peacock Spirit, what are you doing?" Skye asked.

"Skye, Warden..." The Peacock Spirit's dagger clattered to the ground, her shoulder twisted awkwardly. "She's from the Sigil Sect, she must be a spy—"

"Does His Highness not know she's from the Sigil Sect?" Skye's aura was just as cold and intimidating as Damian Black's. "She's His Highness's person—who gave you permission to touch her?"

His Highness's person?

Lily Bai's heart gave a little jolt.

"Forgive me, Warden Skye!" The Peacock Spirit kowtowed to the ground, not daring to move.

"And you lot." Skye turned to the Marching Wing Guard. "You're palace guards of the Demon Emperor. You take orders only from Azure Flame, got it?"

"Got it... got it!" The Flying General replied, trembling.

"Scram!"

The Marching Wing Guard shot up into the sky and vanished in an instant.

The Peacock Spirit disappeared too.

Only then did Skye turn to Lily Bai: "Why did you run out here?"

Was it really that weird for me to run out here?

Wouldn't it be even weirder if I just sat there obediently, waiting for Damian Black to come back and deal with me?

Lily Bai smiled, bowed, and said, "Thank you for saving me, Warden."

"Head back," Skye said coolly. "The Demon Emperor's palace is crawling with wild, untamed beasts. If you get eaten, don't blame anyone but yourself."

Lily Bai thought he seemed way easier to talk to than Damian Black, so she decided to cozy up and maybe fish for news about what Damian planned to do with her.

She pointed at the slow-moving flying beast overhead and asked, "What's that?"

"That's the City Sentinel Manta. It circles the palace every day. You can ignore it."

"It looks like... it can break through invisibility?"

Skye smiled faintly. "Yep. No invisible intruder can escape its eyes."