The woman stared at Rowena’s lifeless body, her face flickering with regret. She sighed deeply, her resolve hardening. "Her fate is sealed. Useless to try saving her," she muttered under her breath. Turning to Kael, she pushed him away with a blast of energy, propelling him back, and without another glance, she fled through the window, escaping into the night.
Kael, now standing over Rowena’s body, didn’t waste a moment. He threw a sharp object, forged from black titanium and shaped like the letter "K," into Rowena’s back. The object sank deep into her corpse. "One is down. One more to go."
With his primary mission complete, he teleported away, pursuing the woman who had escaped.
Kael followed her path, his steps light and agile, hopping across the rooftops of the city’s buildings, always keeping pace with the woman as she fled. She was fast, but Kael was faster, and he was closing their distance every second.
Giving a glance at her behind, the King Clown mumbled. "I need to raise commotion enough to distract him. I had to cause destruction with the possibility of a high number of casualties. That will change his priorities."
"Fireball."
She gathered her mana into her palms, transforming it into a giant fireball in a moment. "Now, let the fun begin."
Just as she was about to finish the conjuration of the large fireball in order to throw it down at a residential district she was passing by, a spell meant to wreak havoc on the streets and buy her enough time to escape, Kael made a sudden move. He stopped as his daggers in hand joined their handle tips, causing them to transform into an intricate bow with a dark energy string.
Gathering a large portion of mana from his reserves, he conjured a dark energy arrow, its power pulsating with killing intent. With deadly precision, he released the arrow, shooting it directly at the woman.
As if it teleported or traveled at the speed of light, the moment the arrow left the bow, it already struck its mark, piercing her back. She cried out in pain, the fireball dissipating mid-cast as she fell down with a thud.
"Good. Let’s go and capture her. Oh Queen Remia, get ready with 2 million gold coins." Kael transformed the bow back into his twin daggers and charged forward in excitement.
But when Kael arrived at the spot where she should have crashed on, she was gone. Her blood, however, marked the place where she had fallen, a sign of her injuries, and there was a significantly sized crater left behind.
Kael cursed under his breath. "Dammit," he muttered, frustration coloring his voice. Despite the injury, she somehow managed to escape. "Did she use a random teleportation scroll or something?" He couldn’t help but wonder for a moment. "I shouldn’t have let her escape like that. I should have gone for the kill. This greed for money is..." Stomping on the ground in frustration, Kael took a heavy breath to calm himself down.
The main objective was completed. Rowena was dead, and atleast, something positive to think about.
As Kael disappeared from the scene, the injured woman emerged from the ground, her form materializing from a transparent shadow.
She clutched her fists tightly, a low growl of frustration escaping her lips. Her teeth ground together as she stood, the pain of her wound seething through her body. "I’ll kill you one day, K," she swore to the empty night air, her voice thick with rage.
But she knew better than to give chase now. She was far too injured. For now, she needed to heal, regain her strength, and complete her mission. With a final, seething glare in the direction of Kael’s departure, she vanished into the shadows, planning her next move.
The night passed peacefully for Kael and his wives but not for the citizens, nobles, and criminal gangs.
The news of Rowena’s assassination spread throughout the imperial city like wildfire by morning.
Whispers of K’s ruthless efficiency reached every corner of the city, and by the time dawn broke, it was the only topic on everyone’s lips.
It has been three weeks since ’K’ killed someone, and the fear was reduced due to his absence. And Rowena’s death in Blackthorn Mansion served as a warning to those with funny ideas. The gangs that planned to resume their activities were forced to stay low-key once again.
But this has nothing to do with Adam or the royal guest, Artemis.
In the palace training grounds, as the sun slowly rose into the sky, the foreign princess stood poised with her sword in hand, preparing for a sparring session. Adam stood opposite her, his stance ready but slightly nervous. Kael was present as a spectator and Adam’s supporter, standing among the other knights and the demigod Dragamir.
"You can begin, Prince Adam," Artemis smirked, pointing the blade directly at his face.
Adam, who was provoked, charged forward and attacked first, testing Artemis’s defenses.
But she was a master of the blade, parrying his strikes with the grace and precision of a seasoned veteran. The fight was fluid, pure swordplay with no magic or elemental energy involved—just the clash of steel against steel.
As the minutes ticked by, Artemis moved with confidence, a teasing smile on her lips. After about twenty minutes of non-stop action, she taunted Adam. "Is that all you have to show, Prince Adam, the swordmaster who thinks he would one day surpass even Zet—the sword king?" she asked, her voice laced with a challenge.
Adam, panting lightly but clearly still with much energy, raised an eyebrow. "You haven’t attacked yet. Parrying is my specialty," he replied, setting himself to defend whatever she would throw at him next.
"Very well." Artemis’s smile deepened into something more competitive, and in an instant, she charged. Her sword moved in a blur, and Adam’s eyes widened as he saw the first strike. It wasn’t just one attack—there were multiple. At least six separate sword strikes seemed to converge on him all at once, and in a blink, Adam found himself blasted away by the force of her attack.
Kael’s eyes widened in surprise, his mind processing what he had just seen. His breath caught in his throat as he involuntarily muttered, "Eighteen."
He rubbed his eyes in disbelief, unsure if he was seeing things correctly. But as he glanced at Dragamir, the old man looked at him, eyebrows raised in surprise at his unexpected comment. Kael’s words had clearly not gone unnoticed.
Meanwhile, Adam, still recovering from the blast, pushed himself up with a sigh. "What was that technique? I saw at least six illusions of your sword," he asked, his voice tinged with awe and confusion.
Artemis smiled modestly but with a touch of pride. "I created it myself," she explained. "But I haven’t given it a name yet."
She continued, "A common person could easily block the real strike because they lack the mastery to detect the illusions. But someone with higher skill, like you, will see multiple illusions of the strike. It’s a technique created especially for battle experts. And of those experts, only those who became one with the blade could see through the attack."
Adam sighed again, clearly humbled by her prowess. "I’m no match for you," he admitted.
Artemis put her sword away with a lighthearted air, clearly pleased by the exchange. "It was just a nice morning exercise," she said with a smile, before turning to leave. "It was a good spar."
Adam, flushed from the match and still catching his breath, couldn’t help but blush at her smile. He waved her off with a lighthearted chuckle, but inwardly, there was nothing but disappointment. "Before you leave, I will gain your acknowledgment for sure." He clenched his fists in determination.
Meanwhile, as Artemis and Dragamir walked away from the training grounds, the princess wiped away her earlier playful expression, her face turning cold and serious as usual.
She turned to Dragamir, her voice now calm and controlled. "Teacher, you seemed like you have something to say."
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Dragamir nodded, his tone somber. "Your Highness, Kael saw eighteen illusions of your attack. It doesn’t make sense for him to have this level of mastery and yet be a weakling. He’s hiding his strength. He’s not only a blademaster, but I’m also sure that he is atleast a Tier-8. If he climbs the Tower of Zurin, he will become a trouble for you. Do you want me to keep him away from the Tower?"
Artemis’s expression remained emotionless as she processed this information. "He hasn’t fathered any children yet. I need his bloodline to secure my grandpa’s wishes and prevent the extinction of House Moonstone. So, no matter what, he cannot be harmed. We cannot allow him to have any negative opinion of us either. Moreover, just because you take him away doesn’t mean I wouldn’t face competition from others. Let it go. Only those who had a fate with the treasures of Zurin would be able to claim them."
She paused for a moment, her mind working through the complexities of her plan. "Teacher, what about the spy I asked you to put in the Moonstone Household?
Dragamir replied. "I’ll take care of it."
Artemis’s gaze hardened as she glanced at the palace ahead of them.