In the royal study, George was reviewing some official documents. He suddenly stopped what he was doing, and his gaze turned cold."She wants the gold emblem?"The chamberlain who passed on the message shivered. "That's right, Your Majesty. The queen is outside the palace. She seeks an audience with you for the gold emblem."However, everyone knew the gold emblem was with Helena. Was the queen deliberately asking for trouble?The chamberlain broke out in a cold sweat, fearing that he would be affected by the king's anger.The large screen behind the throne showed glimpses of moving shadows.George’s face turned gloomy. His pupils looked like a falcon’s. They were sharp and dangerous."Tell her I will dethrone her if she continues to make trouble!""As you wish!"-Outside the royal study, Jane's gaze was calm. It was as if she could feel neither anger nor joy that ordinary people felt.After the chamberlain passed on George's message in its entirety, he offered her some advi
Jane sat calmly on the dark wooden chair, her demeanor composed and unperturbed."Zen Palace has become quieter. That's the benefit," she said.Lily, quick-witted as always, immediately understood."Your Majesty, so you didn’t truly want the gold emblem. You were just trying to rid yourself of those concubines who visit daily to pay their respects! But... wasn’t this price a bit too steep?""That's not all. Now that the mistress of Zen Palace has been confined, fewer eyes are watching us," Jane replied while shifting her gaze outside."Were there many eyes on us before?" Lily asked in surprise.Jane picked up her teacup, took a sip, and spoke slowly."The corner in the east courtyard, the old pagoda tree in the west, the roof on the northern side..." Jane went on.Lily’s eyes widened as she instinctively lowered her voice."Your Majesty, do you mean that there were secret sentries in all those places? W-Were they sent by His Majesty? Why would he do that?"Jane set the cup do
Finding a place to bury the body was secondary. Jane's main purpose in sneaking into the palace that night was to scout a few potential hiding spots.She wanted to avoid a repeat of the incident at Cloud Palace—being chased and forced to flee straight back to Zen Palace, inadvertently leading her pursuers there.Lily was still worried.The last time Jane infiltrated Cloud Palace, she ended up getting injured.Would there be any accidents this time?Meanwhile, at Serene Palace, upon hearing that the queen had been put under house arrest, Dina sighed deeply."A man's heart lies where his treasures are."The queen, new to the palace and without solid footing, has yet to win the king's favor. Even if she wanted the gold emblem, she shouldn't have acted so recklessly."Laurel shook her head as well."In my opinion, the only one who could take the gold emblem from Lady Helena would be Rosalie if she were still alive. Her Majesty, the queen, is merely chasing an unattainable dream."
The narrow underground chamber was filled with tension as their eyes met. The surrounding air seemed to grow colder.Jane wasn’t dressed in her dark cloak, disguised instead as an ordinary court lady. Unless absolutely necessary, she didn’t want to fight.First, the palace was on high alert for an assassin, which would complicate her future movements.Second, her internal injuries hadn’t fully healed.“I accidentally fell in here. Do you know the way out…”George’s expression changed slightly.This court lady didn’t seem to know who he was.Indeed, Jane had no idea that the man before her was her husband, the king, George.They had only met twice in total.The first time was on their wedding night, where the chamber had been pitch black.The second was the night the assassin was apprehended. He had stood behind her while she was in the bath, and she never turned to look at him.To this day, she didn’t know what he looked like.Similarly, George didn’t know that this court l
"Get off me!" George's voice was hoarse.During the flare-up of Thiberium poisoning, there were varying degrees of damage to his body. His throat felt as if shards of ice had gouged through it, making his voice raspier and more menacing than usual.Even uttering those three words caused unbearable pain.This woman was utterly infuriating."So, you can speak," Jane remarked, having assumed he was mute.In the next moment, her gaze fixed on his neck, and her expression changed. It was as though she'd stumbled upon something crucial.Jane stared at the silver line on his neck.She had been searching for Thiberium for a long time. To be precise, she was looking for the person who knew how to use it."Who used this poison on you?" Jane asked calmly. There was a slight glimmer in her eyes.George's expression remained dull. It seemed like he wouldn't tell her.Swoosh!He was caught off guard when Jane ripped his shirt open.Just as she expected, the silver line extended to his ch
Her sister was still alive! Jane clutched the note and clenched her fist before pressing it against her heart. Her eyes closed.She couldn't wait to see Wendy.-The next evening, Jane put on a disguise and snuck out of the palace. There was a carriage parked at the entrance of a remote alley. The young man driving the carriage saw her and immediately jumped out to greet her."Greetings, Commander Foster!"Wallace was one of her trusted advisors. He had followed her from the military camp all the way to the Royal City.When Jane had entered the palace, she had sent Wallace to Foster Mansion to secretly track down the bandits who had raped Wendy.She didn't expect such a big surprise from Wallace."Where is Wendy?" Jane asked softly while trying to remain calm.Wallace lifted the carriage's curtain. "I'll take you to her right away."Wallace explained everything to her while he drove the carriage."I noticed the butler's strange behavior that day and quietly followed him to t
All Jane knew was what Gloria had told her on the day of her wedding. Now, Candace revealed a lot more information."Ms. Wendy has been vomiting ever since she was sent home. She didn't throw up food scraps but human feces! They had the audacity to force that stuff down her throat! They didn't only rape her. They even used red-hot iron tongs to…! The physician said she won't ever be able to have children!"Not being able to bear children was a disaster for a woman in Nidora.Candace choked up several times and couldn't go on. Eventually, she buried her face in her hands and cried.Jane pursed her lips. She had a murderous look in her eyes. The cramped room was filled with an air of hostility.After a long while, Candace calmed down a little. She knelt in front of Jane again."Your Majesty, do you intend to kill Lady Helena in revenge?"Jane clenched her fists tightly with a cold expression on her face.Candace pressed on, "Your Majesty, when Ms. Wendy was still conscious, she a
Although Timothy was only a chamberlain, he acted in an arrogant manner. It was as if the queen had to give him what he asked for. However, after a long while, nobody answered the door.Instead, Maya came despite living further away. She seemed worn out. Since the queen wasn't favored by the king, Maya's status was even lower than the lowest-ranked servant from Cloud Palace."Timothy, please be patient. The queen is probably still in bed. I'll check on her," she said.Timothy lifted his chin. "Then hurry up!""All right, I'm going in right now."As soon as Maya entered the bedchamber, she saw Jane dressing. She immediately approached her, smiling."Your Majesty, Lady Helena has a headache. If you could give her some medicine, the king would certainly notice your kindness. You'd have a chance to start over. Don't you agree?"Jane slowly filled in her eyebrows in the mirror. She seemed completely unbothered."I've run out of the medicine."Maya's face fell. "Your Majesty, are
Helena fainted and was taken back to Cloud Palace.Despite the physicians' efforts, she remained unconscious.George's expression showed a hint of concern as the physician explained, "Your Majesty, Lady Henela's injuries have not yet fully healed. The lack of proper blood circulation is inevitable but not alarming. She simply needs to rest."At Zen Palace, Jane sat before a mirror, carefully removing the jewelry from her hair.Lily, attending to her, still seemed shaken."Your Majesty, are you…are you really unharmed? Ursa was so strong. Shouldn't you let the physicians take a look?"As soon as she spoke, Lily realized her mistake. If the physicians discovered any injuries, it might expose Jane's actions.Jane remained calm, her gaze tinged with cold determination. "No one is to know that I participated in the fight."Lily immediately nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty! I understand."She knew better than to say more.Shortly after, a chamberlain arrived with a message. "Queen Jane,
The mention of dismemberment sent a shiver through the officials.According to the law, the crimes of Cameron and Wallenby didn't warrant such a severe punishment.The two were in utter shock and terror."No! Caleb was merely demoted back then. Why are we to be executed in such a cruel manner?""Your Majesty, have mercy! Spare us, Your Majesty!"Cameron crawled to Caleb's side, clutching his leg desperately."Caleb, save me! We once fought side by side and risked our lives together as comrades…"Yesterday, Cameron had been arrogant and domineering. Now, he was reduced to a pitiful state.Caleb, who loathed Cameron and Wallenby to the core, wished nothing more than to kill them with his own hands. Facing Cameron's pleas, his expression remained cold."You betrayed your comrades, using their lives to pave your way to promotion. Did you think about us as your comrades back then? Cameron, you're even more deserving of death than Wallenby!"Cameron's face turned pale. "No, no! You
Jane presented the letters. They were handed to George, who opened and read them one by one.Cameron and Wallenby stood silently at a distance, holding their breaths and avoiding even the slightest eye contact.Cameron was especially antsy. He kept reassuring himself. 'This is fake, all fake. The queen and Caleb are bluffing!'Bang!George slammed the letters onto the desk, his sharp gaze brimming with murderous intent."Kneel!"The two men immediately felt their legs weaken, collapsing to the floor.Moments later, the royal servants placed the letters before them, allowing them to see for themselves whether they were being wrongfully accused.If they pleaded innocence, their handwriting would be examined to confirm this.Cameron glanced at the letters and immediately felt a chill down his spine, as if needles were pricking his back.'How could this be?'He had hidden those letters so well. How could anyone have found them?Still unwilling to give up, he picked up one of th
Caleb raising grievances at this moment left everyone stunned.He was bringing up a case from two years ago. After so much time had passed, how could anything still be clearly investigated?Cameron immediately rebuked him."Young Master Caleb, if you have grievances, you should present them to the High Court! Filing a complaint here as if we don't uphold the law in Nidora—do you have any idea how that looks?"This madman—what was he trying to do?Robin also hadn't anticipated Caleb's bold move. He quickly stood up and addressed the king."Your Majesty, my son has acted impulsively—"But Caleb's tone was resolute. "Two years ago, I was tasked with escorting disaster relief grain through Bourdon. On the way, we were ambushed by bandits..."Cameron immediately jumped in, feigning righteous anger."Caleb! You still dare to bring that up! If it weren't for your poor judgment, insisting on taking that route, those men wouldn't have died!"He seized the initiative, pinning the blame
George's gaze was deep and cold.The rule that the harem must not interfere in political affairs existed not only to prevent collusion between the harem and the court, which could lead to the overreach of influential families, but also because most women in the harem were shortsighted. Their petty schemes and vying for favor were tolerable, but in formal situations, they lacked propriety and understanding of boundaries.Just as George was about to intervene to restore balance to the situation, Jane spoke up with composure."Helena indeed misspoke. There's always someone better refers to individual achievement."In truth, the thousands of soldiers on the frontlines are all heroes. Victories are not achieved by a single person. For instance, earlier, if it weren't for the previous contestants exhausting Ursa and creating an opening, my brother wouldn't have been able to defeat him so swiftly."Ultimately, you only sent one person to compete, so this could be considered as Nidora w
George's tall figure nearly blocked out the sunlight streaming in through the doorway.The mask was on the table inside the room.Darkness hung over George's handsome face as his gaze locked onto the figure behind the screen.He had crossed paths with the female assassin multiple times. Her moves were deeply engraved in his memory.The motions Caleb had just displayed—he looked exactly like her.Could it be a coincidence? He needed to confirm it with his own eyes.George strode forward swiftly. Without hesitation, he moved to the other side of the screen, extending a long arm…In that instant, their eyes met.Caleb, whose arm was grabbed and whose right shoulder was partially exposed, responded in surprise, "Your Majesty!"Not bothering to cover himself, he immediately lowered his head in a bow.George's sharp brows furrowed deeply, his dark eyes stormy as though a tempest had suddenly descended. "Are you alone?"Caleb was puzzled. "Yes, Your Majesty."At that moment, Steve
At the critical moment, Jane grabbed the wooden stake, using it to perform a quick turn and somersault. Her skirt spun elegantly in the air, drawing a perfect arc.Immediately, she leaped in front of Ursa, and in the blink of an eye, tore off his belt.The female spectators immediately turned away, covering their eyes. However, from a distance, they couldn't see clearly. All they knew was that Ursa's belt was now in Caleb's hands, like a long whip.George furrowed his brows.Tearing off the belt. How clever. That female assassin had also used this move against him.Everyone was curious about what Caleb intended to do by tearing off Ursa's belt.Even the three commanders closest to the martial stage couldn't understand. Was it to embarrass Ursa? Or maybe to seize the opportunity to attack while Ursa was distracted, fixing his pants?-Jane stood behind Ursa. He couldn't care about his pants as he swung the wooden stake backward in a fierce strike. In the blink of an eye, Jane us
Ursa suddenly collapsed, like a mighty, immovable mountain crumbling in an instant.Everyone was stunned.What just happened?Before anyone could make sense of it, the man was down...On the dueling platform, Jane delivered a backward kick, landing squarely on Ursa's chest. Ursa struggled to get up but failed. His right knee felt like it was shattered, searing with pain. Clenching his jaw, he tried to force himself up.But Jane wouldn't give him the chance. She launched a sweeping kick, channeling her power into her knee, striking directly at Ursa's neck.Ursa lost his balance and fell backward.Jane bent her knee, pressing it firmly against his throat. Through the mask of the Kunlun slave, Ursa could see her eyes—cold and still as a dead pool, locking him in place."No... Impossible... How could you..."He couldn't comprehend how a single kick to the knee could generate such devastating force.Behind her mask, Jane's lips curled. Ursa suddenly realized—since the start of
Commander Christoff was the first to understand the situation on the stage. His eyes widened in disbelief."Caleb isn't trying to exhaust Ursa, nor is he defending. On the contrary, he's attacking!""How is that possible? Hasn't he been dodging this whole time?""Christoff, are you out of your mind?"Christoff shook his head, his gaze fixed on the stage as he firmly responded, "No, I'm absolutely certain. Caleb is attacking in a covert way!"The other two commanders, baffled, shouted impatiently, "How is he attacking?"Christoff hastened to explain, "Caleb has been circling and dodging, but if you notice, he's not dodging aimlessly. He's consistently moving to his left—Ursa's right.""What does that mean? Is Caleb trying to dizzy Ursa by circling? Wait, dizzy him? Could that be it? Is Ursa losing balance?"Christoff dismissed this notion. "Of course not!"Dizzying an opponent? Such a ridiculous tactic would never work.He continued, "Look carefully. Every time Ursa moves, he