Forced to Sell Myself to the Female Lead After Killing the Male Lead

In response to Miss Yumo's questioning, the knight showed not the slightest hint of guilt.

Instead, he met the noble girl's gaze without the least bit of shame and replied in an utterly contemptuous tone,

"You barbarians colluded with Abyss Demons. The fact that His Majesty is still willing to take you to the Imperial Capital for a fair trial is already an act of mercy. He's shown you more than enough generosity. What more do you want?"

Not only was his tone dripping with disdain—

His expression was equally full of hostility.

It almost seemed as if, should Yumo say another word, he would attack her on the spot.

Seeing this, Yumo couldn't help frowning.

Beside her, Duo'er and the other maids hurriedly tried to pull her back, unwilling to let her provoke the man any further.

At the same time, they were utterly stunned.

Their young lady had always been timid and fearful.

Yet now...

She was openly confronting a ferocious Royal Knight.

And there wasn't the slightest trace of fear in her voice.

If anything...

It carried an unmistakable chill.

Unfortunately, the maids' efforts were doomed to fail.

To their astonishment, they discovered that Miss's strength was astonishing.

No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't pull her back.

Yumo continued speaking, asking the question she had genuinely been curious about.

"You've been insisting this whole time that we colluded with Abyss Demons, and you're so absolutely certain of it. But... don't you lack any actual evidence? Shouldn't accusations like colluding with Abyss Demons require an investigation and a court trial before a conclusion is reached? Why are you so convinced?"

"Heh! Your little sister is an Abyss Demon now!"

"I think I'm the one who should be laughing. Seriously."

"The Duke Family spent nearly a century fighting Abyss Demons. We could hardly hate them more. Why would we ever collude with them?"

"And are you an idiot?"

"Plenty of people have been corrupted by Abyss Demons and eventually turned into them."

"As far as I know, members of the royal family have transformed into Abyss Demons before as well."

"So why don't you accuse the royal family of colluding with Abyss Demons too?"

Yumo's voice gradually grew colder.

"You...! How dare you insult the royal family!"

"I didn't."

"I'm simply stating facts."

The knight was momentarily left speechless.

Just then—

Another Royal Knight of considerably higher rank slowly entered Yumo's field of vision.

The moment she saw him, her brows rose slightly.

It was the squad captain who had arrested her earlier.

His name seemed to be...

Abike.

Abike was somewhat surprised by Yumo's boldness.

He hadn't expected the timid young lady to openly argue with a Royal Knight.

Even so, his face remained filled with unconcealed contempt.

"Evidence?"

"We don't need any."

"...What do you mean?"

"His Royal Highness—"

"Oh, no."

"His Majesty has already determined that the Duke Family attempted to collude with Abyss Demons in order to strengthen both their power and influence."

"As for evidence..."

"We'll gather that afterward."

As he spoke, a trace of fanatical fervor gradually surfaced in Abike's eyes.

The excitement in his voice whenever he uttered the words His Majesty was enough to send chills down one's spine.

He didn't merely serve Xue Tianao.

He worshipped him.

Like a true believer.

Hearing those words, a complicated look emerged in Yumo's sapphire-blue eyes.

"You..."

At the same time, she quietly swept her gaze across the surrounding Royal Knights.

The result was exactly the same.

Whenever they spoke of His Majesty, every one of them displayed the same fanatical expression as Abike.

None of them had been remotely shaken by anything Yumo had said.

After boasting for a while longer, Abike walked over to the prison wagon and declared with unconcealed hostility,

"Traitors like you, who betrayed the Empire and betrayed humanity."

"The fact that His Majesty is even letting you live is already an act of mercy."

"And you still dare make demands?"

"What a joke."

As he spoke, his eyes shifted toward the food beside the wagon—

The basket of bread prepared for Yumo and the maids.

Without hesitation, Abike kicked the basket over.

"So you still expect to eat?"

"After committing crimes against all mankind, you deserve to starve."

The bread scattered across the dirt.

Unable to hold herself back any longer, Duo'er pleaded,

"Please, Sir Knight... Miss hasn't eaten anything all day... You can't..."

"Can't what?"

With a look of disgust, Abike casually raised his hand and slapped Duo'er away again as she rushed toward him.

Then he crouched down, picked up a loaf of bread now covered in dirt, and tossed it to Yumo's feet.

"This is all the likes of you deserve."

With a cold sneer, Abike no longer paid the prisoners any attention.

If not for His Majesty's mercy in insisting they be brought back for trial...

He would have executed these human scum who had colluded with Abyss Demons long ago.

Right now...

He still had to reorganize the convoy, drive away the nearby magical beasts, and prepare for tomorrow's departure.

For some reason, they had also lost contact with the main force.

They needed to reestablish communication as soon as possible.

He had no interest in wasting any more time on these criminals.

Thinking that, Abike turned around to leave.

However—

The instant he turned—

His pupils suddenly contracted.

His face froze in astonishment.

Countless alarm bells exploded in his mind.

Huh?!

"Y-You! Who are you?!"

Standing silently behind him—

Without anyone knowing when she had arrived—

Was a small figure dressed in a black cloak, her appearance completely concealed.

Although he couldn't make out her face, the enormous iron warhammer strapped across her back—far too massive for her small frame—made one thing abundantly clear.

Whoever she was...

She had come with hostile intentions.

And as she ignored his question entirely, calmly reaching for the handle of the gigantic hammer on her back...

Abike's heart began pounding violently.

His battle instincts took over.

He instantly grabbed the hilt of the sword at his waist and assumed a defensive stance.

Unfortunately—

The moment he moved—

The small cloaked figure gripped the hammer and swung it with a speed impossible to follow with the naked eye.

A violent wave of battle aura exploded forward.

Abike's protective aura shattered instantly.

The colossal hammer smashed directly into his head.

Why... is... this... happening...

The handsome knight's helmet instantly twisted out of shape.

Stars filled his vision.

Foam poured from his mouth.

After somehow remaining upright for a full three seconds...

He staggered—

Then collapsed unconscious into endless darkness.

"Captain!"

Seeing their commander ambushed so shamelessly, the surrounding Royal Knights stared in utter disbelief.

None of them had imagined that someone would dare attack the Royal Knights in a place like this.

Recovering from their shock, they immediately drew their weapons and charged forward in fury.

"Who are you?!"

However—

Before they could make a move—

A chilling gust of wind swept through the night.

Dozens of black-clad figures silently appeared behind them like ghosts, concealed by the darkness.

Their speed was so overwhelming—and their attack so sudden—that the Royal Knights had no chance to defend themselves.

The next instant...

Daggers coated with powerful sleeping poison pierced into their bodies.

One after another...

They followed Abike into unconsciousness.

Some Royal Knights reacted in time, drawing their weapons and fighting back.

But then—

Another black-clad woman appeared.

At that moment, all resistance became meaningless.

Countless grotesque black energy forms resembling evil spirits materialized around the knights, completely surrounding them before launching a relentless storm of attacks.

"W-What are these things?! H-Help!! Quick! Call for reinforcements!"

"What the hell are these monsters?! Akaka! Call the others!"

"I did! Nobody's answering! W-What are these things?!"

...

...

Boom!!

Accompanied by an eruption of orange-red magical power and the terrified cries of the knights...

The last few resisting Royal Knights finally lost consciousness.

As the final knight fell...

Silence descended upon the entire area.

The battle had ended quickly.

But the commotion it created was anything but insignificant.

And yet...

For some unknown reason...

Not a single reinforcement from the rest of the Royal Knights had arrived.

...?!

What?!

Assassins? Bandits? Or...?!

Watching the Royal Knights outside be defeated so effortlessly and completely overwhelmed, Duo'er and the other maids couldn't help feeling a surge of satisfaction.

At the same time...

Fear gripped their hearts.

After all...

They had no idea whether these black-clad figures were friend or foe.

Then—

To Duo'er's horror—

The very person who had knocked Abike unconscious with a single blow slowly walked toward the prison wagon.

Moments later—

Under the terrified gaze of every maid—

The supposedly indestructible black-iron bars were ripped off by brute force as though they were nothing more than twigs.

The cloaked figure leaped onto the wagon.

Duo'er's heart immediately began pounding wildly.

Now that the stranger was closer...

She could clearly feel the overwhelming killing intent radiating from her.

It was so cold it made breathing difficult.

This small cloaked person...

Had undoubtedly killed countless people.

Otherwise...

Such terrifying killing intent could never have accumulated.

Despite trembling in fear...

Duo'er still stepped in front of the pink-haired girl.

Looking up at the cloaked figure with a shaking voice, she pleaded,

"P-Please... M-My Lady... Please... don't hurt Miss... Miss is... she's only a child..."

The cloaked figure tilted her head.

She didn't seem to understand what the maid was trying to say.

Or perhaps...

She simply couldn't be bothered to respond.

Then—

Right before the utterly bewildered maids—

She dropped to one knee before the pink-haired girl.

With impeccable respect, she performed a flawless knight's salute.

"We sincerely apologize for arriving late, Lady Yumo."

?!

Duo'er: "...Huh?!"