It was getting late. The security in Alice's mansion was still very tight. There were mercenaries patrolling the outer courtyard, as well as female swordsmen, all taking turns to guard the inner courtyard. If a bird would have flown past, it would have attracted the attention of many people.
In the southern part of the inner courtyard, two female swordsmen were walking in the alley. The one taking the lead suddenly stopped. The female swordsman behind her was curious and asked, "What happened?"
"I…seem to have heard something just now." The female swordsman taking the lead grabbed her sword with one hand, and with the other, took out a magic scroll.
"Don't be silly!" The female swordsman walking behind said hastily. "Don't alert Sir. If it is a false alarm, can you bear the consequences?"
The female swordsman taking the lead felt that her partner was right. Once the magic signal had been released, all the mercenaries and guards would be alerted. Should everyone rush here to find out that it was a false alarm, she would be ridiculed.
The female swordsman kept the magic scroll and walked to the side. However, as she moved forward, she felt a sharp pain on her back. A cold hand came around, covering her mouth tightly. She then heard the shivering voice of her partner, "Don't blame me. You asked for it…"
Suzanna and Alice were chatting in the upper floor. Although Alice had a very tight schedule and had wished to be able to stretch out her time, her energy was limited. She needed to rest at times. Chatting had become her way of resting.
A maid gently opened the door and brought in a plate of fruit and a pot of tea. Those who burned the midnight oil would know that they would get hungry in the middle of the night, if they were awake. To ensure the quality of her work, Alice had developed the habit of taking supper.
After the maid had placed the plate of fruit on the table, she made tea for them. As she was putting down the teapot, she accidentally knocked against the cup, sending the hot water splashing onto Alice. The maid turned pale and quickly wiped it up with her sleeve.
"Alice, have you been burned?" Suzanna was shocked, and immediately stood up.
Suzanna and Alice were entirely different. To Suzanna, the speed of her sword was faster than her brain. Most of the time, she had used her sword based upon her instincts. For Alice, she could think fast, but her actions were slower. She had been tense, and waited for the enemy to act. The maid moved forth toward Alice and speedily backed away. Alice's speed was too slow. The moment she lifted up her head, a dagger was at her neck.
"Don't move!" The maid shouted sharply. "If you move, I will kill her!"
Suzanna had withdrawn her long sword, but she stood rooted to the spot. Although she was confident of killing the maid, she dared not take the risk.
"Lajusha, has Arunjay instructed you to do so?" Alice said flatly. She looked relaxed, but she felt remorseful within. Alice had five maids on rotation to take care of her daily needs. The selection process was extremely strict. Not only did Alice do a check on them, Anfey would personally do a background check on them. They had been very loyal to Alice. Recently, Lajusha and Arunjay had been very close to each other. Alice had been told that both of them were sleeping together in the storeroom. She had brushed it aside, as she thought that it was nothing unusual. Now, she knew that she had been wrong. Only a woman could make a man change so drastically. Likewise, only a man could make a woman change so drastically. It must be Arunjay who had instructed Lajusha to attack Alice. Sometimes, it would not be a good thing to be too lenient to the servants. The more they come into contact with the outside world, the more hopes and desires they would have. Lajusha was a typical example of this.
"Shut up!" Lajusha screamed again. She had hidden herself behind Alice and was staring at Suzanna nervously. As Alice's maid, she knew who was the most terrifying person. At this instant, fighting sounds were heard from the ground floor. The outer courtyard was in an uproar as well. The assassins had acted efficiently and effectively, especially with the help of their spy. From the outer courtyard to the inner courtyard and middle floor, the sentries and Patrol had not been alerted. However, Lajusha's screams were loud, and they had awakened the female swordsmen who were sleeping in the outer courtyard. They carried their long swords to check around, and saw the group of people in black. A fight ensued.
The door had been kicked open, and five to six people in black dashed into the room. They looked at Alice, who had been held hostage, and Suzanna, who was standing to the side. One of them dashed behind Alice and pushed Lujasha away, snatching away her dagger. He said coldly to Suzanna, "Madam Suzanna, we mean no harm. We just need your co-operation. Please put your sword down!"
Suzanna slowly took a few steps backward, and held on more tightly to her sword. The magic signals had been sent, one after another, toward the sky. Now, not only were the people in Alice's mansion being alerted, the entire city had been alerted as well.
"Madam, I don't have much time. I hope you will co-operate with us!" The man in black glided the dagger along Alice's neck and said, "Unless, you want her dead!"
Alice's heart was heavy. Her instinct was right. They were targeting Suzanna and not her! Since they had been discovered, reinforcements would be on the way. If they were targeting Alice, they would have acted earlier. They would have either killed her, or held her hostage and escaped. They would not have made Suzanna disarm herself.
"Put down your weapon!" The man in black was impatient and shouted. He made a cut on Alice's neck.
"No!" Suzanna said in a hurry. She finally loosened her grip.
Regardless of her faults, Alice was not an evil woman. At times, she would put her interests aside. Should Suzanna meet with any mishap, it would do Alice more good. The assassins were Wester's men. The day before, Wester had written her an ebullient letter, ensuring her safety. Moreover, Anfey would be here soon. Just a while more, and everything would be fine. Alice did not let her thoughts run wild.
There was an emotion known as "gratitude". Initially, people would be on guard with one another. As time went by, the relationship became more cohesive. Suzanna was Anfey's wife, and she could be considered as the First Lady of The League of Mercenaries. However, she had become her bodyguard for the past few days. As for Christian, regardless of his weariness from the day's work, he would ensure that he would personally go to Alice's bedroom to cast a magic array to protect her. As the Chief of General, Anfey had been on sentry for a long period of time, to ensure her safety. All these things, and what many others had done, had taken root in her heart. It was a great blessing to have people with whom she could entrust her life!
Alice dropped her right finger to the floor and slowly shook it. She twisted the pendant of her cloak with her left hand. Her right finger was pointing at Suzanna, hinting to her. When Suzanna had brought the cloak to Alice after nightfall, the target in their conversation was referring to Suzanna!
Seeing that Suzanna had wavered a little, Volte put his hands behind his back and moved closer to her. The closer he was, the more careful he became. He did not want to irritate Suzanna. He had nothing in his hands. He stopped when he was less than three meters away from Suzanna. He removed his mask, and with a gentle smile, said to Suzanna, "Madam, please hand me your sword."
Suzanna took a deep breath and asked, "Who are you? What do you want?" She asked for the sake of buying time.
"Madam, please trust me. We mean no harm." Volte said with a smile. The fighting sounds were getting nearer, and Volte was getting impatient. His men had obviously been unable to hold back the mercenaries led by Shinbela. They had failed on the previous attack, as Suzanna had a magic prop that had enabled her to fly up to the sky. He had to disarm Suzanna and try to control her. At the least, he had to throw out a deadly attack before Suzanna could fly up to the sky.
"If I disarm myself, you must not hurt her!" Suzanna said slowly, pointing at Alice.
"Of course. I swear!" Volte's heart was beating fiercely.
"All right!" Suzanna hesitated for a while and gritted her teeth. She handed over her sword to Volte. Upon seeing this, Alice nearly fainted. She crazily twisted her body and tried to warn Alice. However, she was too slow to act. The man in black, who was standing behind her, covered her mouth and said, "Stop moving!"
"Sir, let me." A pale-looking hand was placed on Alice's shoulder. A thick, iron blue color was released from Alice's shoulder and spread out to the surrounding area. Even Alice's hair turned iron blue. Alice stood frozen to the ground and could not move.
Douglas let go of his hand and smiled with satisfaction.
Brunfett smiled slyly and said in a low voice, "Sir, we cannot delay any further. We have to end it fast!"
"Don't worry." Douglas slowly took a few steps forward and was ready to attack with Volte.
Volte tried to suppress his emotions and slowly stretched out his hand. As his finger was about to touch the edge of the sword, Suzanna's expression suddenly changed. Her helpless look had turned into a sharp look. A bright Combat Power shone out, and Suzanna's sword shot forth like lightning.