RETURN OF THE FEMALE KNIGHT

103. Hold On

Ophelia's mood as she waited for news of Jungkook's death soured as more time went by. No reports came in, although it had been hours since Marquis Selby left for the mission. Soojin shifted uncomfortably, then spoke to the Empress.

"Your Majesty. I've sent someone to check on the situation, and they will bring news soon."

"..."

Ophelia did not respond. As it was now, a delay likely meant that their assassination attempt had not gone as planned. She couldn't figure out why yet. Selby Marquis had amassed a considerable force, and Ophelia had sent additional troops as well. The chances of such a failure were slim, and even in that event, a report wouldn't come in so late.

'What the hell happened there?'

There had been a thorough investigation of Jungkook's sword fighting skills and number of guards he had taken with him. After sending assassins after him for years, she naturally amassed large amounts of data on his ability. Unless the ambush was leaked beforehand, it would be impossible for him to survive.

'...Unless someone else got involved that I did not expect.'

Jungkook was as persistent as a cockroach, but even she didn't know how even he could return from the battle...

The atmosphere around Ophelia turned foul, and her eyes gleamed like a snake.

The door was suddenly flung open, and Cesare—Ophelia's younger brother and head of the Anita family—stormed inside, looking like an angry red lion.

"Sister."

At Cesare's call, Ophelia looked at him and demanded answers.

"Tell me. It must be bad seeing as you're here instead of a messenger. What happened?"

"They're..."

Cesare uncharacteristically seemed unable to find his words. Then he shouted angrily.

"They're all dead!"

"...What?"

"I just came back after seeing it with my own eyes. They were all wiped out."

"Every man there?"

"Yes, my sister."

Ophelia was in stunned disbelief. Failure was possible, yes, but a complete massacre? That wasn't possible. No matter how quickly Jungkook's reinforcements arrived, it didn't make sense. However, contrary to Ophelia's thoughts, Cesare's answer remained unchanged.

"I didn't believe the messenger, so I went there and saw the bodies piled up like mountains."

Normally a figure of calm, Ophelia hit the arm of her chair impatiently.

"How is that possible?!"

"Given that the bodies appear to be torn apart with the claws of a beast, perhaps the blood lust..."

Cesare trailed off, and glanced at Soojin standing next to Empress Ophelia. It was not something he could speak of to even the closest of aides. Soojin sensed her intrusion and quickly spoke.

"I'll leave you to speak freely. I'll be waiting outside."

At those words, Soojin took all the other maidservants outside the room, and soon it became quiet again. Cesare gave a cautious glance around, but no one else was in the vicinity. With the two of them alone, Ophelia first spoke with a stiffened expression.

"Even the blood lust would not give him that much strength."

"That's what I'm curious about. Damn it. The dragon's blood is strong. It keeps him persisting."