The heavy gates of Caran City slowly ground shut behind the campaign force, completely shutting out the clamor of the city and the prying eyes of the crowd.
The wind sweeping across the open wilderness outside the city carried a raw, gritty chill, snapping the banners overhead.
The Royal Capital Knights had stood in a neat and imposing formation before the citizens just moments ago.
Yet, they relaxed almost the exact moment the city gates were locked shut.
Leading them, Knight Lyon gave a hand gesture, and the knights nimbly dismounted one after another.
They deftly hitched their warhorses to temporary posts nearby.
Clearly, they had no intention of maintaining that dazzling cavalry formation for the rest of the journey.
The show was over; now it was time to get down to “business.”
The procession silently turned toward the Black Demon Forest and began to march on foot.
The atmosphere suddenly grew tense and grim, the clinking of armor and the heavy thud of footsteps echoing with stark clarity across the quiet wilderness.
Perhaps they were irritated by the stifling silence, or perhaps they simply felt emboldened now that they were out of the public eye.
One of the warrior-knights marching on the flank—a man with a scar running across his face—kept casting his eyes toward Theia.
She possessed a peerless beauty born of her combined elven and demon bloodlines, along with a lithe and graceful physique forged by her ranger training.
And those crimson eyes that were simultaneously innocent and bewitching—every single aspect of her sorely tested certain people's self-control.
The warrior licked his dry, chapped lips.
Seizing the opportunity during a slight squeeze in the ranks, he feigned a stumble.
His large, iron-gauntleted hand reached out toward Theia in a movement that was meant to look accidental, yet was swift and deliberate.
However, before his hand could even close half the distance.
A cold, icy gleam silently pressed against his Adam's apple like a venomous serpent!
Without even fully turning around, Theia simply flicked her wrist.
A refined short dagger was already out of its sheath, perfectly poised against his throat.
A fraction of an inch further, and it would pierce leather and flesh.
Her eyes were cold and sharp, like a leopard locking onto its prey, devoid of any emotion.
The warrior froze in his tracks, his lecherous grin instantly replaced by shock and a trace of fear.
He could clearly feel the icy promise of death radiating from the tip of the dagger.
“What do you think you're doing?!”
The surrounding knights immediately noticed the commotion and began to shout, their hands flying to their weapons.
The tense atmosphere was on the verge of exploding.
Just as the knights were about to make their move.
Lin Gui suddenly took a step forward and bellowed at the top of his lungs, his voice so loud it almost cracked:
“Report, Knight Commander Lyon! This knight is trying to assault Miss Theia!!”
This shout was like a sudden clap of thunder, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
Every single gaze locked onto the warrior-knight's hand, which was still frozen in midair in a highly incriminating position.
In truth, many of the knights had also been more or less captivated by Theia's stunning figure and face.
They simply lacked the courage to act on it.
Now that Lin Gui had exposed it so blatantly, none of them could save face.
For a moment, not a single person spoke up to refute him.
Theia was also momentarily stunned by Lin Gui's sudden “reporting.”
But she reacted incredibly fast, flicking her wrist to sheathe the dagger.
At the same time, she shifted her footing, instinctively pulling Lin Gui slightly behind her.
Her wary gaze locked onto Knight Lyon, her muscles tensed as she prepared for a sudden attack.
Having his sordid intentions exposed in front of everyone, the warrior-knight instantly flew into a rage, his face flushing crimson.
With a sharp clang, he unsheathed the longsword at his waist and pointed it at Theia, his voice warping with fury.
“Nonsense! You vile half-demon mongrel! As if I would ever look at you!”
“You were clearly the one who attacked a noble knight of the kingdom first! I demand a duel to wash away my humiliation!”
With the conflict escalating rapidly, bloodshed seemed inevitable.
Right at that moment, Lin Gui slipped out from behind Theia, a thoroughly fawning smile plastered across his face.
He stepped quickly between the two sides, waving his hands repeatedly at the furious warrior and the grim-faced Knight Lyon.
“A misunderstanding! This is an absolute misunderstanding! This brave and mighty knight would never do such a thing.”
“The road must have been uneven just now, causing you to lose your footing, sir. Your hand must have just slipped, right?”
As he spoke, he repeatedly winked at the warrior, as if desperately trying to offer him an easy way out.
Then, he turned to Knight Lyon, his tone becoming even more deferential.
“Please understand, Lord Knight Commander, Theia has a fiery temper. She grew up in the wilderness and doesn't know proper etiquette, so she overreacted.”
“I sincerely apologize to this noble knight on her behalf! We had absolutely no intention of offending the Royal Capital Knights!”
He bowed deeply as he spoke, his attitude so humble it verged on servile.
His humble attempt to smooth things over indeed diffused some of the explosive tension in the air.
Though the warrior-knight was still fuming, the grip on his sword loosened slightly.
He seemed to be taking the offered way out, considering how to bring this to an end.
Knight Lyon watched coldly, making no immediate comment.
Seeing this, Lin Gui offered a few more placating words before slowly retreating to Theia's side.
Theia watched him return, her brow furrowed deeply.
Her eyes were filled with confusion and a trace of disappointment.
She could not understand why Lin Gui was bowing and scraping before these people.
They were supposed to be friends; shouldn't he be standing by her side?
Even a bit of verbal support would have been better than making excuses for the other side and accusing her of “overreacting.”
Lin Gui stood beside her once more, the humble smile not yet fully faded from his face.
However, that changed the moment he turned his head.
His gaze swept over the backs of the knights who were turning around to resume their march.
Theia saw clearly that the lingering smile on his lips instantly twisted into something else.
It morphed into a cold, cruel, and mocking curl.
The cold glint passing through the depths of his eyes was like that of a starving beast looking at a plump, juicy prey.
Calculating exactly where to sink its teeth.
That was absolutely not an expression the Lin Gui she knew—the one who seemed aloof but was actually kind-hearted—would ever make!
An incredibly bizarre sensation suddenly gripped Theia's heart.
Sending an involuntary shiver down her spine.
She stared at Lin Gui's calm profile.
And then at the arrogant knights ahead, marching forward in complete ignorance.
For a fleeting second, she felt as if Lin Gui had transformed into a ferocious beast, retracting its claws and fangs to lie in wait within the shadows.
Meanwhile, those pompous knights swaggering ahead had become nothing more than a herd of plump deer... walking blindly into a trap.
A Low-tier High Rank mage baring his fangs at ten knights who were an entire rank higher than him?
It was truly beyond belief.
Rate on N.U.
