Chapter 296: Chapter 295: Not Yet the Time (1)


    ?


    Amelia smiled coldly. She now had the chance to deal a proper blow to that annoying man.


    She had created a situation where Ghiin did all the hard work, and she would reap the rewards.


    "Now, I''ll strike the final blow, Ghiin."


    She could easily create any justification she needed. After all, her alliance with Desmond had always been nominal.


    The faction supporting the royal family wouldn''t want to fight her directly, so if she negotiated well, she could take half of Desmond''s territory without much resistance.


    Of course, she wasn''t nning on giving even an inch of it, but that was another matter. "The Duchy will have no choice but to help me.''


    The n in her mind was already set.


    The Duchy, having lost Harold, would have no choice but to choose her as a bridgehead for advancing into the North. If territorial disputes arose, they would step in to mediate.


    "Just to be safe, move out at full speed. We must capture the key castles and fortresses before anyone else does."


    She had already dealt with those who might challenge her. Ghiin and Harold had just finished their fight.


    There was nothing left to hinder her march, so Amelia quickly increased her speed.


    Both the Fenris army and Rayfold''s forces were tired from battle. No matter how elite they were, umted fatigue couldn''t be ignored.


    As night deepened, Bernaph cautiously spoke.


    "It seems we should rest for a bit. It''s difficult to move at night. The soldiers are also quite exhausted."


    "Tch."


    Amelia clicked her tongue and nodded in resignation.


    With nearly 5,000 troops moving together, there were inevitably limitations to their speed. "This is thest rest. No more breaks until we''ve captured Desmond. As soon as dawn breaks, send the cavalry and knights ahead. The infantry will follow."


    "Understood."


    Torches were quickly set up, and camp preparations werepleted in no time. Since they were not in a wartime situation and there were no enemies to target, the soldiers maintained an alertness akin to peacetime.


    Even as everyone hurriedly fell asleep, preparing for the march ahead, Amelia remained awake.


    Inside thergest and most luxurious tent, she spread out maps, busy reassessing her next


    moves.


    "Bernaph, with our current forces, we won''t be able to quickly capture all of Desmond''s territories. So for now, let''s block the main routes..."


    Amelia stopped mid-sentence, noticing the eerie silence.


    Bernaph was slumped in a chair, dozing off. She had ced him next to her as both an escort knight and an adviser, but he had fallen asleep quicker than anyone else.


    Amelia red at him with annoyance but chose not to wake him. After all, Bernaph had


    suffered greatly during the rebellion and civil war.


    Bastet, too, had curled up on herp, sound asleep.


    "Hah..."


    Amelia sighed and turned her attention back to the map. She had a lot on her mind-how to take more from the Duchy and secure the North.


    "Ghiin is bing a problem. But if the Duchy starts a war soon..."


    As she focused on the map, a strange movement urred behind her.


    Tsssss.


    Darkness began to gather stealthily behind her, warping the air, as if forming into a shape. But Amelia, absorbed in her thoughts, didn''t notice.


    Suddenly, Bastet''s ears perked up.


    Bernaph remained slumped, still fast asleep. But his left thumb twitched, nudging the guard of the sword at his waist.


    Click.


    The sound of the sword being drawn echoed as-


    Meow!


    Bastet let out a sharp cry.


    In that instant, Bernaph''s right hand shot out like lightning, drawing the sword and blocking an assassination attempt from behind Amelia.


    Ka-aang!


    The sound of metal shing rang loudly. Only then did Amelia turn to see an assassin standing behind her.


    Bernaph wiped the drool from his mouth with his left hand and fixed a sharp gaze on the


    assassin.


    "Tch, who are you?"


    The assassin was dressed in a ck robe and mask, armed with a dagger. After the dagger strike was blocked, the assassin took several steps back and muttered.


    "Hmm, maybe I was pushing it."


    Amelia frowned. The voice sounded strangely familiar-it was a woman''s voice she thought she had heard before.


    In that moment, the assassin''s robe fluttered, and dozens of daggers spilled out from inside.


    nk nk nk ka-ching!


    Bernaph''s sword moved like lightning, deflecting all the daggers. Immediately after, he advanced and swung his sword downward.


    shhk!


    Although Bernaph''s sword didn''tnd on the assassin, the intense aura carried by his de


    sliced through the assassin''s mask.


    Half of the mask fell off, revealing a face with a seductive smile.


    The assassin looked at Bernaph and spoke.


    "Oh... you''re a lot more intact than I thought." Bernaph''s anger red, but Amelia spoke first.


    "You are!"


    "Miss, it''s been a while."


    The assassin, smiling widely and waving her hand, revealed herself to be Belinda.


    Amelia recognized Belinda instantly. It was simple-she had a personal grudge against her. Amelia still hadn''t forgotten when Belinda had arrogantly held a dagger to her throat in the


    past.


    But now that she knew who the assassin was, she couldn''t understand the situation at all. Why was Ghiin''s closest ally here?


    "Why... are you here?"


    "Well, of course, I came to kill you. I''ve been waiting here."


    "Came to assassinate me? While Ghiin is fighting Harold, you leave that to him ande


    after me?"


    "The young master told me to keep you upied. I wanted to join the war too, but he insisted


    Ie here. What could I do? Do you know how long I''ve been waiting for you?"


    Belinda spoke in a toneced with mock disappointment.


    She had been sent by Ghiin to hinder Amelia''s advance. Naturally, Belinda had opposed the idea at first. Facing Desmond''s 30,000-strong army wasn''t an easy task, and she had argued that it made more sense to stay by Ghiin''s side and


    assist him, even just a little.


    However, Ghiin had sent her here, reasoning that Belinda''s assassination skills were not suited torge-scale battles and couldn''t be effectively utilized in that context.


    Instead, it was more efficient to deploy her to a ce where her abilities could be put to better


    use. It was also a crucial task.


    The logic was sound, so Belinda couldn''t bring herself to argue further and followed


    Ghiin''s orders.


    Since then, she had been left in the dark about how the battle had progressed. Her worries were immense, but the sight of Amelia brought her some relief.


    The fact that the Rayfold army was on the move meant that Ghiin had emerged victorious.


    Amelia ground her teeth and red at Belinda. Hearing something so unexpected left her


    feeling dizzy.


    "Ghiin... that bastard... predicted I would make a move? Even with the war against Harold


    imminent, he sent you ahead of time?"


    "Exactly. Isn''t it amazing? How could he know something like this?"


    Belinda''s confident reply sent shockwaves through Amelia. It didn''t make sense.


    Before Ghiin had even faced Harold, Amelia had been fighting Baron Valois and the


    northern alliance.


    He had predicted not only that she would defeat them all but also that she would act immediately upon hearing news of his victory?


    Such foresight was impossible unless he had a perfect understanding of her character-or


    even the ability to read her mind.


    Amelia''s thoughts raced as she recalled everything Ghiin had aplished so far.


    Securing the Rune Stone, predicting droughts, developing new technologies, anticipating her


    rebellion, and even whisking Daven away in advance.


    It was as if...


    "That man can foresee the future.''


    Looking back on Ghiin''s actions, Amelia couldn''t help but think of the rare prophets who


    asionally appeared on the continent.


    But even that didn''t fully exin it. No matter how brilliant a prophet, their predictions were


    always vague and abstract; no one could achieve this level of precision.


    ''How is this possible...!''


    A shiver ran down Amelia''s spine. Whether he had prophetic abilities or not, one thing was clear-Ghiin was far beyond the realm of ordinary genius.


    That man knew something. It was as if he were standing on a high vantage point, watching


    the movements of others as clearly as though he held them in the palm of his hand.


    It felt as though her every move was being watched.


    ''He must die!''


    Amelia instinctively felt the urgency. Ghiin had to be killed. Otherwise, she would forever


    be a pawn in the game he orchestrated.


    But before that, there was someone else she needed to deal with-someone standing right in


    front of her.


    "I had told them to bring me his head before. Those idiots failed. I should have killed Ghiin


    back then."


    "Ah, back then. That must''ve been frustrating for you, miss."


    "Yes, it was quite frustrating. But to think you''de to me on your own. Did youe to


    avenge that failure? Did you think you could assassinate me?"


    Belinda shrugged and smirked.


    "Well, yes. The young master said it was impossible, but it seems that''s because you have such a fine escort knight. I thought you were a fool based on the rumors." Bernaph looked ready to explode with anger, but once again, Amelia spoke first.


    "You failed at assassination, so you won''t be able to hold me back. What could a mere maid


    like you aplish on your own?"


    "Oh my, you''re so confident. But you didn''t even know I wasing, did you?"


    "And yet, did you seed in assassinating me?"


    "It''s not over yet, you know?" The two women stared at each other with smiles, but their faces radiated murderous intent.


    The intense pressure between them made Bernaph hesitate, momentarily forgetting to attack Belinda. He was visibly ufortable in such a charged atmosphere.


    "Kill her, Bernaph."


    Meow!


    The moment Amelia and Bastet gave themand, Bernaph swung his sword toward


    Belinda.


    Kaang!


    Belinda parried with her dagger.


    Bernaph swung again, his sword shing dozens of times as it cut through the air in every


    direction.


    But not a single strikended. All he managed to cut was the hem of her robe a few times.


    The more he swung, the more Bernaph''s expression grew grim.


    ''What kind of movements are these...?''


    It was as though he was fighting a ghost. Every time Belinda moved, the space around her


    seemed to distort, making it difficult to sense her presence.


    That wasn''t the only challenge.


    Papapapat!


    Each time the distorted space shifted and her robe fluttered, dozens of daggers shot out.


    ''Damn it!''


    Kaang! Kaang! Kaang!


    Bernaph quickly stepped back, deflecting the daggers. The daggers, seemingly connected to


    Belinda, moved like living creatures, relentlessly targeting Amelia.


    Fighting to protect someone while dealing with an elite assassin was no easy task. Bernaph


    nced at the tent''s entrance.


    Given themotion, the soldiers outside should have entered by now, yet there was no sign


    of them.


    "They''re already dead.''


    Normally, knights would form a tight protective ring around Amelia, but now they had been reced with regr soldiers.


    For someone of Belinda''s skill, killing a few soldiers without a sound was entirely possible. It


    was bad luck that an assassin struck when the knights had been given a rare moment of rest.


    Though the schedule had been grueling, necessitating a break, the fact that Amelia was now


    in danger was an undeniable failure on Bernaph''s part as head of escort knights.


    ''I just need to hold out for a moment.''


    Bernaph focused entirely on protecting Amelia, his expression uncharacteristically serious.


    The knights'' tent wasn''t far-surely, they would sense the disturbance and arrive soon.


    Kaang!


    Belinda also realized that killing Amelia wouldn''t be easy.


    "Who would''ve thought this idiot had such skill? I thought it''d be easy if I caught him off guard


    outdoors.''


    Bernaph was rumored to be nothing more than a fool who trailed after Amelia like a puppy.


    She hadn''t imagined he''d possess this level of ability.


    Even while focusing on defending Amelia, he found opportunities to counterattack, swinging


    his sword with precision. More than once, Belinda had narrowly avoided danger.


    What impressed her even more was Amelia''s reaction.


    Even when daggers came inches from her face, she didn''t flinch. She only red at Belinda


    with an intent to kill.


    Belinda couldn''t help but be impressed.


    ''Wow, she''s really something else.''n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Amelia didn''t know how to use mana or wield a sword, yet herposure and determination


    were remarkable.


    She was terrifying in apletely different way from Ghiin.


    Kaang! Kaang! Kaang!


    The sh between Belinda and Bernaph became a blur, their movements too fast to follow.


    Dozens of daggers danced in the air, while sparks flew from Bernaph''s de as he parried


    them.


    Countless exchanges urred in what felt like an instant.


    Shhhaaaak!


    Suddenly, the tent was shed apart, and a dozen knights stormed in.


    "Mydy!"


    "Are you unharmed?"


    "Kill the assassin!"


    The knights drew their swords and charged at Belinda.


    "Tch."


    Fixating on an unkible target was not the hallmark of a good assassin. Belinda sighed and


    retreated, smirking.


    "It seems I''ve failed. But... I didn''te alone."


    Fwoosh!


    Before she even finished speaking, fires erupted throughout the camp.


    At the same time, shouts of rm echoed from all directions.


    "Enemies!"


    "Assassins have infiltrated!"


    "Wake up, now!"


    It was the secret force Ghiin had nurtured alongside Belinda.


    Perdium''s assassination squad was attacking Rayfold''s camp.


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