Outside the carriage, the situation remained eerily quiet.
The overturned vehicle continued burning in the middle of the abandoned street as thick smoke rose toward the sky. Several corpses lay scattered nearby, including the guards, servants, and even the horses that had pulled the carriage earlier. Arrows remained embedded throughout their bodies, their darkened wounds serving as proof of how effective the poison had been.
Not far from the scene, three figures remained hidden among nearby rooftops and buildings while patiently observing the burning carriage.
None of them spoke.
None of them moved.
There was no need to.
The target could not escape.
The carriage itself was sturdy enough to withstand the flames for some time, but eventually the people trapped inside would either suffocate from the smoke or be forced to leave their shelter. Regardless of which happened first, the outcome would remain the same.
They would die.
So the three assassins waited.
Several minutes gradually passed.
Then several more.
Still nothing happened.
One of the assassins frowned slightly.
The fire was spreading faster than expected, yet there was still no movement from inside the carriage.
Had they already lost consciousness?
Or perhaps the fire had already claimed them?
The thought had barely formed when—
BANG!
A deafening sound erupted from the burning carriage.
The upper door blasted open with tremendous force, causing thick smoke to explode outward. At the same time, the flames surrounding the opening were violently pushed aside, scattering burning embers throughout the street and instantly obscuring visibility.
The three assassins reacted immediately.
Without waiting for visual confirmation, they raised their repeating crossbows and pulled their triggers.
Click-click-click-click!
Several arrows shot directly toward the carriage.
However, instead of hearing screams, something entirely unexpected happened.
A storm of paper burst out from the smoke.
Thousands of pages erupted from the carriage like a fountain, scattering throughout the air and mixing with the flames and smoke. The sudden sight caught the assassins off guard.
Some arrows pierced through individual pages.
Others struck several sheets before continuing forward.
Yet strangely enough, the arrows failed to reach their destination.
Their trajectories shifted.
Their speed slowed.
Some struck nearby walls.
Others veered away entirely.
One even collided with another arrow mid-flight.
The countless pages continued swirling through the air, creating a chaotic white storm that completely disrupted their line of sight.
For the first time since the ambush began, confusion appeared on the assassins' faces.
Then a voice suddenly echoed near them.
"They're escaping through the alley!"
The other assassins immediately reacted.
Without questioning the claim, they abandoned their positions and rushed toward the indicated direction.
...
Meanwhile, Seila was equally astonished.
Everything had happened too quickly.
The pages had worked.
Not only had they worked, they had worked far beyond her expectations.
She had prepared herself to block incoming arrows the moment they escaped. Yet from the beginning until now, she had not seen a single arrow reach them.
Not one.
The realization left her genuinely bewildered.
Were pages actually capable of stopping arrows?
The answer made no sense.
Yet she had witnessed it herself.
Unfortunately, there was no time to dwell on the mystery.
Holding Relict securely in her arms, Seila sprinted into the nearest alley without slowing down. The narrow passage stretched between rows of buildings, creating a maze-like path that wound throughout the district.
The wind rushed past her ears as she accelerated.
Behind them, angry shouts quickly followed.
"They went this way!"
"Don't let them escape!"
Seila gritted her teeth and immediately expanded her aura.
Invisible perception spread outward from her body and swept across the surrounding area. Walls, corners, obstacles, and potential threats rapidly entered her awareness, allowing her to process the environment far more efficiently than her eyes alone.
However, before she could make full use of it, Relict's voice interrupted her.
"Retract your aura."
Seila blinked.
"What?"
"I'll handle the arrows."
His gaze remained directed behind them.
"You focus on the path ahead."
She hesitated.
Only for a brief moment.
Then she nodded.
Trusting him.
The aura immediately retracted as she shifted her entire focus toward movement.
Left turn.
Right turn.
Another corner.
Another alley.
She moved through the narrow pathways with astonishing speed while carrying Relict as though his weight barely existed.
Meanwhile, arrows continued flying behind them.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Dull impacts repeatedly echoed from nearby walls.
Each sound should have belonged to an arrow striking their bodies.
Yet somehow, none of them did.
Seila could hardly believe it.
The attacks kept missing.
Again.
And again.
And again.
A growing sense of astonishment slowly formed within her heart.
'What exactly was her young master doing?'
She desperately wanted to turn around and see it for herself.
However, she resisted the temptation.
The front mattered more.
The chase continued through several more alleys before Seila suddenly slowed down.
Her expression immediately changed.
A wall blocked their path.
Tall.
Smooth.
And approximately eight meters high.
A dead end.
Seila instinctively evaluated her options. There were enough protrusions along the walls to climb upward, and under normal circumstances she could easily reach the top. However, carrying another person while being pursued was an entirely different matter.
The moment she jumped, they would become easy targets.
The risk was enormous.
Sensing her hesitation, Relict immediately noticed.
"What's wrong?"
"Dead end."
Seila stared at the wall ahead.
"We can climb it, but we'll become easy targets."
Relict followed her gaze before calmly examining both sides of the alley.
A moment later, he tilted his head.
"Can't you simply use the walls?"
Hearing that, Seila blinked and looked toward the walls on both sides of the alley.
Then, she finally understood.
This alley was far too narrow.
If she used the protrusions on the walls as footholds and continuously kicked off from one side to the other, reaching the top would not be difficult. Under normal circumstances, she would never consider such a method while carrying another person. However, the more she thought about it, the more feasible it became.
For a moment, she almost smacked herself for not thinking of it sooner.
Unfortunately, the rapidly approaching footsteps behind them immediately reminded her that they were still being hunted.
Seila took a deep breath and nodded firmly.
With her young master's suggestion in mind, she immediately moved.
Her legs bent slightly before she exploded forward, leaping toward the wall on her right. The moment her feet touched the surface, she kicked off again and propelled herself toward the opposite side of the alley. Then she repeated the process once more, rapidly ascending upward in a zigzag pattern while still carrying Relict in her arms.
To ordinary people, such a feat would have seemed impossible.
However, Seila was no ordinary person.
Dragon Essence continuously reinforced her body, allowing her to perform movements far beyond the limits of normal humans. Although carrying another person made the maneuver considerably more difficult, it remained well within her capabilities.
Unfortunately, it was also at this exact moment that the assassins finally caught up to them.
The three figures rushed into the alley and immediately discovered the fleeing pair halfway up the walls.
They did not panic.
Nor did they waste time shouting.
Years of experience allowed them to assess the situation almost instantly.
"They're climbing."
One of them narrowed his eyes.
"They're already halfway."
The three immediately raised their repeating crossbows.
Instead of aiming directly at Seila's current location, they aimed ahead.
Toward the point where she would inevitably arrive once she reached the top.
Then they pulled their triggers.
Click-click-click!
Click-click-click!
Click-click-click!
Nine arrows burst forth almost simultaneously and tore through the air toward the fleeing pair.
Meanwhile, Relict had already shifted his attention behind them.
The moment the crossbows fired, the distinct sounds of their mechanisms entered his ears.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
Then the world seemed to slow down.
Not because time itself had changed.
Rather, his thoughts accelerated.
Information rapidly flowed through his mind.
Three firing positions.
Three identical mechanical sounds.
Three-shot bursts.
Nine arrows.
His gaze tracked each projectile as it cut through the air.
"Three shooters."
The conclusion formed almost instantly.
"Their actual number may only be three."
The thought did not surprise him.
If anything, it made the ambush more reasonable.
Three highly trained assassins equipped with specialized repeating crossbows would be far more dangerous than dozens of poorly trained attackers.
His calculations continued.
Poison.
Fire.
Prepared route.
Rapid elimination of escorts.
No unnecessary engagement.
A professional operation.
"They are skilled."
Relict silently acknowledged the fact.
After all, they had managed to eliminate every servant and guard accompanying them within minutes.
Most people would have felt fear under such circumstances.
Relict merely arrived at another conclusion.
"Though it doesn't matter."
His gaze remained fixed on the incoming arrows.
"They've killed my servants."
For a brief moment, his expression became colder.
"It would be unwise not to retaliate."
The next moment, his accelerated perception returned to normal.
The arrows continued rushing toward them.
Fast.
Precise.
Deadly.
To an outside observer, there was no possible way to avoid them.
Seila was still in midair.
The arrows had already sealed every route of escape.
Their deaths seemed inevitable.
Unfortunately for the assassins, their calculations contained one fatal flaw.
They underestimated Relict.
The remaining stack of pages in his hands suddenly flew upward.
Hundreds of sheets scattered into the air and spread throughout the narrow space between the walls.
At first glance, the action appeared completely meaningless.
Paper could never stop arrows.
Yet that assumption only applied to ordinary paper.
Tiny traces of Yuan Energy had already been infused into every page.
Not enough to reinforce them into shields.
Not enough to make them durable.
Only enough to alter a single property.
Smoothness.
The pages became extraordinarily slick, drastically reducing friction across their surfaces.
Then the arrows arrived.
One after another, they struck the swirling sheets.
Some pierced through several pages.
Others tore through entire clusters.
Yet every impact slightly altered their trajectories.
A few degrees here.
A few degrees there.
Tiny deviations that seemed insignificant on their own.
However, when accumulated across hundreds of impacts, the result became devastating.
The arrows missed.
One struck a wall.
Another embedded itself into a rooftop.
A third narrowly passed beside Seila's shoulder before disappearing into the distance.
None reached their target.
At that exact moment, Seila finally reached the top of the wall.
Her feet landed firmly upon the edge before she immediately pushed herself forward and jumped to the opposite side.
The three assassins arrived just in time to witness her disappearance.
For several moments, they simply stared.
Even they could not understand what had just happened.
Their arrows should have hit.
The calculations had been perfect.
Yet somehow, they missed.
One of them glanced toward the countless pages still drifting through the air.
"The papers..."
His voice carried a trace of disbelief.
Unfortunately, the realization came too late.
Their targets were already gone.
...
After landing on the opposite side, Seila continued running without slowing down.
She passed through several more alleys, made multiple turns, and deliberately changed directions whenever possible. Only after several minutes did the surroundings gradually begin changing.
The silence disappeared.
Voices returned.
Merchants shouted.
Children laughed.
The familiar sounds of city life once again filled the air.
They had finally reached one of the larger streets of Abarrus.
Numerous pedestrians immediately turned toward them.
After all, it was not every day that people witnessed a young woman sprinting through the streets while carrying a frail-looking young nobleman in her arms.
Several people stared.
Others whispered.
One elderly merchant even looked visibly confused.
Relict immediately noticed the growing attention.
"You can put me down now."
Seila obediently stopped and carefully returned him to the ground. Then, she skillfully hid the dagger on her right hand into her pocket.
Once his feet touched the pavement, Relict adjusted his clothes and casually gestured for her to follow.
Then he began walking directly into the crowd.
Without hesitation.
Without urgency.
Within moments, the bustling street swallowed their figures.
Meanwhile, far behind them, the three assassins continued searching the district, completely unaware that their targets had already escaped.
Relict silently memorized their voices.
The assassins had failed to catch up to them and never managed to discover where they went afterward. Yet for Relict, that did not matter.
Voices, speech patterns, breathing rhythms, and countless other details had already been recorded within the databook.
As long as they remained alive, finding them again would only be a matter of time.
...