Ingrid knew that Iris was an ex-veteran, but she didn't know her exact strength. Witnessing her take on three opponents simultaneously left her in awe of her skills.

  Ingrid has seen the Light Knights spar many times before and could tell that the trio clad in white tunics are only a level below the Light and Shadow captains. The relentless attack of their heavy swords created shockwaves as it clashed with Iris' axe. Yet, despite their undeniable strength, Iris managed to inflict heavy wounds on them while sustaining a few minor scratches.

  Iris' weapon and her skillful mastery gave her the upper hand. Her double-bladed axe capable of shrinking and expanding made her movements unpredictable.

  The three men were forced to second-guess their actions.

  Forged by countless battles, Iris did not show any fancy footwork or elaborate maneuvers. Instead she moved with brutal efficiency, each strike focused on ending her enemy like a fiend hungry for blood.

  The men were at a loss. Their intelligence did not speak of the existence of such an expert.

  One of the men, caught off guard by Iris's swift swing of the double-bladed axe, was forced to veer to the left. But before he could realize his mistake, the double-blade axe shifted to her left hand. In a mere millisecond, it propelled towards him at lightning speed.

  The man's eyes went wide as he desperately used his sword to parry Iris’s oncoming assault. The resounding clash of metal resonated in the air as their weapon collided, sending a powerful shockwave all throughout the forest.

  The man gritted his teeth as he tried his best to stand his ground. But cracks started to form on his sword under the force. Unable to maintain his grip, he was hurled into a nearby tree, the impact knocking the air from his lungs and momentarily incapacitating him.

  Iris's gaze then turned to the other two while licking the blood at the corner of her lips.

  But in that moment, an arrow shot from the dense forest in a precise flight. Ingrid let out a gasp when the arrow pierced through Iris’ left forearm.

  Throughout their clash, the arrows did not stop raining, but it had always been directed at Ingrid, so the sudden shift in target took Iris by surprise. It seems that seeing one of their allies defeated made them realize that she was a bigger threat than they had anticipated.

  “I’m fine, my lady,” Iris assured her as she broke the shaft of the arrow and threw it on the ground, annoyed. Their bowmen are really exceptional. That arrow was meant to hit her heart. If not for her quick reflexes, she would have already been dead.

  The two robed men took the opportunity to attack Iris, believing they now have an easier time fighting her with her left arm injured. They never would have thought that she would disregard her injury and would still use her injured arm. Though it's evident that the injury did affect her strength, as the ax had become noticeably smaller.

  Still, one of the men ended up paying the price for underestimating Iris. With a brutal swing of her axe, his head was severed from his neck and rolled to the ground.

  The third man halted at the sight of his comrade getting hacked like paper. A hint of hesitation marred his once confident eyes. One of them is dead. The other one is heavily injured. The tide of the battle is slowly going against them.

  “Now, are any of you willing to tell me why you’re after my lady’s life?” Iris asked dangerously. Her bloodshot eyes gleamed with a wild intensity. Disheveled strands of hair framed her face while her torn clothes hung on her body. With each heavy breath, her nostrils flared like a raging bull.

  Over an hour has passed since the battle started. Yet despite the prolonged fight, there were no signs of her strength diminishing. Instead, it felt like she became stronger and stronger the longer they fought.

  Another arrow zoomed towards Iris. But the arrow wasn’t as accurate as the previous one, and she easily caught it with her bare hand. She looked towards the direction of the forest with a taunting smirk as she let the arrow slowly slide off her palm and fall to the ground.

  The robed man’s eyes burned with anger and attacked her in the frenzy while arrows rained here and there. Iris, even with the gradual numbness of her injured arm, still held her ground against him.

  “Urgh!” Iris let out a pained groan when another arrow found its mark, piercing her calf. With a grimace, she was forced to kneel on the ground, surprise and disbelief flickering across her face.

  What is going on? She was sure she evaded that arrow. Was her movement too slow? or... She looked at the broken arrow still lodged on her skin. Was the arrow poisoned?

  “Iris!” Ingrid shouted worriedly. She wanted to run and help her, but what exactly can she do?

  The last remaining man took advantage of the situation and sneakily attacked Iris. But because of the poison impairing her senses, she did not notice him right away.

  Ingrid, who saw everything, desperately screamed, “STOP!!!”

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  As though compelled by a force, the man’s movement halted. He looked at Ingrid with glaring eyes, but when his gaze landed on her face, his pupils dilated and his mouth went wide.

  “Please stop,” Ingrid begged, her eyes glittering with tears. She was a sight to behold to begin with, and her tears added an allure of vulnerability that makes one just want to lay down the world under her feet.

  As though hypnotized, the man swallowed, his grip on the hilt of his sword loosening. Iris did not miss the chance and cleaved the man’s hips with her axe, whose eyes are still glued on Ingrid’s enchanting face.

  Ingrid averted her gaze as Iris’ axe cut the man in half, his blood splattering everywhere.

  Iris sank to her knee while panting. The poison from the arrow coursing through her body has taken its toll on her, leaving her left arm numb and useless. She fought to stay conscious, but the spreading poison threatened to send her collapsing to the ground.

  Iris bit her lips until they bled. She can’t afford to lose consciousness here. Not yet. There are still the bowmen that she needs to take care of.

  “Ugh! What’s taking those assholes so long?” Iris groaned in annoyance. With the speed of the Lightning Horses, they should have already arrived.

  Iris failed to notice the man previously lying under the tree slowly rising to his feet. With blood dripping from his mouth, he charged towards Iris with a raised sword, eyes filled with fury. At the same time, a rain of arrows flew her way.

  Ingrid's heart ran up to her throat. “Iris watch out!” she yelled while banging the dome.

  Iris turned her head and saw the man coming her way, but her body felt like it was chained to the ground, preventing her from moving. That last swing had completely drained her of her remaining strength.

  Ingrid’s heart skipped a beat as the man’s sword gradually descended on Iris neck while the rain of arrows loomed behind. It was as though the world slowed its motions. Tears fell from her eyes.

  “Iriiiiis!!!!!!!” She kept screaming and banging the dome with her fist until they were bruised and bleeding.

  But as the sharp edge of the sword slid through the skin on Iris’ neck, a figure suddenly flashed towards the man in a tunic. The figure came so fast that the dust on the unpaved road billowed, creating a dense fog obscuring the view.

  Ingrid’s heart raced with worry and anticipation. Amidst the haze, she caught a glimpse of a person's silhouette.

  “Iris!” She anxiously called. But nobody answered. “Iris!” She kept calling as fear gnawed on her with every passing moment. Coincidentally, the magic on the pendant ran out, and the dome shattered like glass. But with the storm of dust, it was impossible for her to see anything clearly.

  On the other hand, the battle between Oscar's men and the men in plain white tunics momentarily stopped when they sensed the arrival of an oppressive presence.

  When the dust finally settled, Ingrid found a tall and muscular man with hideous arms filled with scars standing on the unpaved street. He was holding a javelin on one arm where a man's lifeless body was skewered.

  But what struck Ingrid was the uncanny familiarity of his face.

  The man shook the body off his javelin, his eyes devoid of emotion. However, when his gaze shifted towards Ingrid, his eyes widened with a flicker of recognition. His reaction fueled her curiosity even more, and she began to ponder where she might have seen him.

  But suddenly, the man moved towards her at superhuman speed. Ingrid stood still like a statue, paralyzed with fear. She closed her eyes, assuming she would be hit or stabbed. But then the pain she anticipated did not come.

  Slowly, Ingrid opened her eyes and found the man holding an arrow that was supposed to hit her across the forehead. A chill ran down her spine.

  “Felix,” the man said in a rough and dark tone. That’s when Ingrid noticed that the man wasn’t alone. There were two others with him: a woman with short, wavy hair and a pleasant face, and a sweet and innocent-looking boy.

  The young boy Felix gave the man a playful salute before darting towards the forest at inhumane speed.

  Meanwhile the scar-filled man dashed towards the direction of Oscar and his men. With a wave of his javelin, four of the men in white tunics were killed in an instant. In just a matter of minutes, the battle on their side ended in a one-sided massacre.

  But Oscar didn't have time to wonder who the man was. His main priority was the young lady's well-being, so he instantly rushed in her direction.

  “My lady! Are you alright!" Oscar asked in a voice full of worry.

  Ingrid nodded her head and hid her wounded hands behind her back. It wasn't the time to fuss over something so superficial.

  Oscar dropped on his knees alongside the three knights left and apologized in a grieving voice, "My lady, forgive me for my incompetence!"

  The ambush caught them off guard. Even Oscar himself did not sense the presence of their ambusher until arrows rained on them. The four of them only managed to survive thanks to their quick reflexes, but the rest of them weren't as lucky.

  "Stand up; this isn't the time or place to be mulling over mistakes," Ingrid commanded coldly. She did not blame them. It was obvious that the Mizan were thoroughly prepared for this ambush. If it weren't for Iris' unexpected presence, they would have succeeded.

  Oscar and the remaining knights stood with their shoulders sagged. Pain crushed their hearts at the scene of their dead comrades.

  Oscar, as the captain, blamed himself even more. He was the one who chose them for this mission, thinking it would be an easy one. They were supposed to gain experience to prepare them to become full-fledged guards, but instead there was nothing left of them but corpses.

  "Have you heard from the Shadow Knights?" Ingrid asked, though she knew she wouldn't get a positive answer.

  Oscar shook his head, his face grim. Ingrid mirrored his expression. Something must have happened to them. The thought that they betrayed the house of Lennox did not even cross their mind. They knew they were loyal to a fault.

  But what stumped them was how the Mizan's knew of the Shadow Knight's existence. Realization dawned on both of them.

  Ingrid felt her tremble throb. She still hasn't dealt with the empress' spy, and now there's another one. Is their residence really that easy to infiltrate?

  “Naz, come here, hurry!”

  Their heads quickly turned towards the direction of the voice.

  “Iris!” Ingrid cried out when she saw the person lying on the ground unconscious. A woman was kneeling beside Iris, her hands hovering above her—green light emanating from her palm.

  “She’s been poisoned with the devil’s trumpet, and it is spreading rapidly. I can slow down its progression with my healing magic, but,” she looked at them with a grim expression. “Without the antidote, I’m afraid she won’t make it.”

  The woman was slightly taken aback when she saw the tranquility in Ingrid's gaze. Most young nobles would have already panicked.

  On the other hand, Ingrid was silently assessing the situation, calculating how they could reach the grand dukedom the fastest.

  Raven's blood has the ability to heal every type of poison. As long as they reach their residence, they can save Iris.

  "How long till the poison overtakes her system?" asked Ingrid.

  "With my ability, at least a day. But if we don't want her to lose any of her bodily functions, we'll have at least an hour."