As she walked out of the Mist, the scene before her eyes regained its usual color. The darkness created by the magic stone also began to dissipate, allowing her heart to stop beating frantically. The man lying on the ground was not Roland, but a guard whom Nightingale had never seen before. He was wearing the standard uniform of the Honeysuckle Family, and on his chest was a dark red mark which looked like a gunshot wound.

"Why are you here?" She heard a familiar voice cry out from beside her.

She turned her head and realized that the person speaking was Roland himself. He was surrounded by layers of bodyguards at one corner of the hall, which explained why Nightingale did not notice him when she rushed in.

"I..." As Nightingale opened her mouth, she realized that her throat was terribly hoa.r.s.e, while her limbs were cold and numb. Her body felt so feeble that it was as if she had just narrowly survived a disaster. All that she desired to do at that moment was to hug Roland tightly, but she knew that she could not do so as there were other n.o.bles around. Therefore, if she truly wanted to lead the Security Bureau and protect this territory, she had to avoid acting overly intimate with Roland.

Although her brain forbade her from doing so, she entered into the Mist and walked up to Roland, cutting through the lines of guards. Then, she hugged him with all of her remaining strength.

At once, gasps were heard from the crowd. The onlookers apparently could not understand why a witch appeared out of nowhere and disappeared without saying anything.

In the Mist, Nightingale held on to the prince with both arms. She tucked her head against his chest and listened attentively to his heartbeat. Perhaps, this was the only way to confirm that it was all just a false alarm.

Roland also began to sense what was going on. He clapped his hands and announced, "Everyone shall proceed to the dining hall for lunch first. No one is to leave the castle in the meantime. We'll resume the meeting in the afternoon!"

When only his guards, as well as Petrov, Sylvie and Lightning were left in the hall, Roland asked, "Does the murderer have anything to do with this a.s.sa.s.sination attempt?"

When she heard Roland's voice speaking to herself, Nightingale began to calm down gradually. She took a few steps back reluctantly and revealed herself once again, pretending that she did not move towards the prince at all, and replied, "Indeed. When I found out that the person directing the criminal was a guard of the Honeysuckle Family, I immediately rushed here." She then explained her findings and Maans' confession. "I couldn't tell that the real purpose was to divert our attention in order to create an opportunity to lay hands on you... thankfully, you're safe."

"His plan worked until the last step, and he accurately calculated the time that I would arrive, as well as predicted the witches' movements." Roland gave a sigh. "This person is wasted as an a.s.sa.s.sin."

Petrov immediately knelt down on one knee and said, "Your Highness, I really didn't know that he's..."

"Stand up. You've said this before, and you know I don't like to punish people." Roland interjected. "But it was no doubt that due to your negligence of duty, there were agents among the castle servants and the outer guard."

"I..." Petrov opened his mouth to speak, and then lowered his head. "I'm guilty."

"Find out the ident.i.ty and background of the a.s.sa.s.sin. I want to know as soon as possible."

"Yes, Your Highness!"

After the eldest son of the Honeysuckle Family took his leave, Nightingale enquired about her worries. "How was the situation like?"

"Threatening but not dangerous," Roland replied, laughing. "Thanks to Sylvie's warning... but then again, the a.s.sa.s.sin was already at a disadvantage when he chose to do it in the meeting hall."

After listening to the prince's account, Nightingale began to understand how the attempt took place—but in reality, it was not as easy as Roland put it. Though weapons were not permitted to bring into the hall, the a.s.sa.s.sin had concealed a dagger under his clothes, and because he was a castle guard, no one conducted a body check on him before he was allowed in.

The a.s.sa.s.sin's only error was to carry a G.o.d's Stone of Retaliation. It was common for the outer guards to adorn magic stones, but in the hall, it appeared particularly prominent—in order not to distract Sylvie, all of the n.o.bles would comply with the request to take off their adornments. Hence, Sylvie noticed the a.s.sa.s.sin the moment she saw the black cavity, and when he moved towards the prince, she immediately issued a warning.

Although Roland described the following scene as simple, Nightingale broke into a cold sweat as she listened to his story. The hall was approximately 20 meters in length and width, and when the a.s.sa.s.sin heard the warning, he picked up speed and charged towards the main seat of the long table, where his target was sitting. By the time the prince pulled out his revolver and opened its safety lock, the a.s.sa.s.sin had already struck him on his lower back with the dagger. As someone who had undergone a.s.sa.s.sination training, Nightingale naturally understood that compared to the chest and head, which a person would protect subconsciously, the waist area was very difficult to protect, and the severe pain that could be inflicted by a single strike might cause the target to lose his ability to resist, enabling the a.s.sa.s.sin to easily go for the vital blood vessels in the neck next.

Luckily, Roland was wearing the protective clothing that Soraya specially made for him. The dagger failed to penetrate its coating and thereby could not prevent Roland's subsequent defensive action. He opened fire at the a.s.sa.s.sin while the gun was literally pressing on the a.s.sa.s.sin's chest. The two 12mm caliber bullets fired immediately killed the a.s.sa.s.sin, causing a loud booming sound which led to a huge commotion in the hall.

Nightingale could clearly visualize just how risky this sequence of events was. If His Highness did not manage to open the safety lock in time, or the gun failed to fire off, the consequence would have been unimaginable... Nightingale turned her head and cast a glance at Lightning, who immediately dropped her head as though to acknowledge her mistake.

"Your Highness, we've figured it out," Petrov re-entered the hall and said. "His name's s.h.i.+o. He's not a native of the Western Region, but was formerly one of Duke Ryan's castle guards."

"Duke Ryan?" Roland frowned. "Why did you choose someone like that to be your guard?"

"He's just an ordinary guard. At that time, every family lost a lot of manpower, and thus I brought in those who weren't so attached to the Duke. This is how it's usually done in Stronghold..." Petrov answered cautiously. "I believe that it's unlikely that he committed this attempt as revenge for the Duke."

"He's not lying," Nightingale thought. "When a large family fell, apart from the subordinates who were given land and t.i.tle, the remaining people were perceived by the other families as resources that can be divided. To them, it's simply a change of owner. Because the Honeysuckle Family had long surrendered to His Highness, plus the fact that Stronghold was always managed by Petrov, this portion of people was never examined."

"How many men with a similar background are there?" Roland asked. "Did you also hire men from the Wild Rose, Maple and Wolf families?"

"There're only three or four of them in the outer guard," Petrov replied, nodding his head. "The servants, citizens and serfs from the other three families were a.s.signed to the Honeysuckle and Elk families. I guarantee that they won't appear in Stronghold."

"Okay, then I shall not concern myself with them. But remember, in the castle area, even the men of the perimeter garrison must be chosen from your family, understood? As for the inner castle, I'll arrange them myself."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Meanwhile, seal off s.h.i.+o's residence. I'll find out the real reason behind his attempt." Roland then turned to look at Lightning. "Inform Maggie to fetch Countess Spear here."