Alastair left many troops to secure the two women here, while he was a gentleman who only brought 3 people for himself and moved in the direction Kirsi mentioned. Alastair's attitude was not like that of a strong man who looked down on women like weak creatures. The way he left most of the troops he had painstakingly brought and gathered seemed like a knight treating women like precious treasures that should not be scratched. Even though there wasn't much exchange of words between them, Kirsi felt so impressed with Alastair. She kept in her heart that someone like that man was someone we would feel bad for making enemies of.
There was a total of one and a half guard camps left by the Grand Marshal. They were all the people Arthur ordered to watch Viona from a distance. They were strong men who spent most of their time training their muscles and sword skills, but were still like elementary school kids who needed to learn how to respect others. When they saw Viona's deplorable condition, their eyes reflexively squinted at Kirsi whose appearance was still neat and appropriate. As if it was a big sin for Kirsi to stay healthy and fit and be able to survive in the best possible condition.
Isn't it ridiculous when the person who managed to survive was blamed for not being able to save the person who couldn't even defend themselves? Isn't that unfair?
It felt like Kirsi was a cop assigned to catch the killer and managed to survive to the end by bringing the culprit to justice, but the victim's family still blamed her for not being able to prevent the murder early on.
Who is she? Did they think she was God? Why do these people who don't even know her think so highly of her?
If she had to sacrifice herself for the sake of others to gain praise and honour, Kirsi would rather live as a villain who only thinks about herself.
Putting her wandering thoughts aside, Kirsi treated the hatred like empty air. Not bothered at all. Instead, she casually sat down to rest, and leaned against an old tree trunk while closing her eyes and clearing her mind of the horrible images just now. Not only those people, but she also felt pressured by the current situation. The one who felt helpless and most uncomfortable should be Kirsi, who was early pregnant, not Viona, who should have the power to kick and hit hard.
Since Kirsi knew she was in a weak state, she defended herself by arming herself. She carried a dagger and a gun, she was wary of her surroundings, and on long nights she couldn't even sleep well in her tent. It might not be fair to accuse Viona of being useless because the poor girl doesn't know the storyline of the novel like Kirsi does, however, doesn't it occur to the girl's innocent mind that if she isn't strong, then at least stop hanging around showing off her neck and bring at least a spray or two of chilli peppers to protect herself.
Don't scold the tough iron for hitting your feet.
Even with all that preparation, Kirsi still views her past success as sheer luck. She didn't know if she could make it to the end.
But their calm could not last long. The rest of the revolutionary army had just been slaughtered. And just when they thought that they could already breathe a sigh of relief, the enemy reinforcements came in even greater numbers. This time, they didn't move openly, but instead blended in with nature and attacked from behind the bushes. The guys were playing hide and seek like in a game of whack a mole, it took a lot of energy and patience to be able to pull their tails out and beat them to pieces with hammers.
Several guards immediately ran towards Kirsi and surrounded her. Even if they didn't like Kirsi, they couldn't do much as long as Kirsi was someone of a higher rank.
Kirsi was also put on the standby position. She rose from the tree trunk that tempted her to continue leaning. She could not confirm the enemy's location by sound due to the high intensity of the rain. Plus the sound of lightning striking several times rumbled.
In the distance, someone had shot a red beacon that couldn't last long in the pouring rain. But by looking at the sky, people knew how unlucky this night was. Lightning continued to strike. The light of lightning and thunder lit up the terrifying scene in the forest as the blades of the swords crossed each other making a deafening loud crashing sound. The surrounding area is very noisy. The only voice that didn't fill in was the sound of someone chattering.
People could pinpoint each other's locations only when lightning flashed, lending a little light to allow their eyes to adjust for a bit. The darkness enveloped once again, the suffocating air was terrifying like invisible hands trying to pull anyone into the abyss of despair. Those who are in a hurry will reveal their weaknesses.
Kirsi, who couldn't even guess exactly where the positions of the people protecting her were, was about to move forward when a hand covered in leather gloves covered her mouth from behind.
"Mmmphh!!!" she tried to tell the people around her, but unfortunately the sound of rain covered her efforts.
Kirsi reflexively raised the dagger in her left hand to stab, but she lost quickly when the person kicked the back of her knee and made her wobble. She didn't dare make any fussy moves and submissively followed the mysterious assailant's wishes.
Kirsi was dragged away from her guard line and gently laid on the ground. The sturdy hand went from suffocating to strangling her neck. The strangulation was quite compassionate, but still with a thick killing intent that managed to asphyxiate her. When Kirsi thought that she was going to die, this person instantly got out of her way when one of the guards tried to kick him. The person moved in a very orderly and neat manner, making no unnecessary movements when he was attacking and resisting. All of his thrusts were aimed right at his opponent's vital point.
Kirsi was still busy breathing greedily when the two guards were defeated in an instant. Kirsi hurriedly got up to dodge a follow-up attack, but she was once again out of bounds when the person slammed her back to the ground. Her hands were brought together above her head, gripped in one hand, as the man climbed onto her body, kneeling astride her stomach, shielding Kirsi from the sharp raindrops.
The person hissed, saying in a familiar voice, "Where is the most 'impressive' place for you?"
In an instant, the boisterous forest area flickered in a glitch like a broken movie scene. The wind howled, the trees with hundreds of leafy branches swayed crazily, the rain lashed down, and lightning filled the horizon, but none of the sounds above could be heard by her as if the scene around her was part of a muted movie. Before long, the gripping scene in the forest faded and decayed, giving the impression of a painting being slowly erased before everything turned into darkness.
A distorted voice rang out once again. His voice didn't sound like human speech, but it was easy for someone who knew him to tell. "The spoiled daughter of a noble family is seemingly not to be underestimated."
Along with those disdainful words, the light slowly crawled from mega's bottom at the edge of the horizon. She don't know when the night atmosphere turned into twilight with a gentle splash of orange light. Kirsi lay on the lacquered wooden floor. There were hundreds of papers with frustrating paintings strewn across the floor. The spanram frame is held together in the furthest corner, with the wooden easel left standing. There were no brushes and paint in sight, but Kirsi knew what kind of place this was. Very familiar place. It really was so familiar that she wouldn't believe she could come here again.
Double windows surround each side of the room, making the place feel like an abandoned painting studio. Even though everything looked very real in her eyes, Kirsi was well aware that this was an illusion. Because it's not the surface of the wooden floor that she feels, but still a dirty and sticky wet area. It proved that Kirsi was still in the same place.
The stranger was still above her. Pressing her movements furiously. Kirsi laughed sarcastically, still coughing a few times from the hyperventilating moment just now, saying, "What are you talking about? I'm so weak that I can't dodge your attacks."
With a tone full of ridicule, the person said, as he increased the intensity of his grip on the little hands. "Somebody from the Evander family may not teach you, but someone else will."
Kirsi grimaced softly. Her hands felt numb. "You think too highly of me."
"You talk too sweet, I do think too highly of you."
Kirsi chuckled, not answering.
"You can survive tragedy just by sitting still in your golden cage. But no, you choose to hang around showing your neck and looking for trouble. Either my killing intent is still too shallow, or are you too confident in your low life, so you act so boldly? "
Kirsi boasted, "Someone once said that the lower a life is, the easier it is to maintain."
The person lowered his head so that the nose under the hood was almost touching the tip of Kirsi's nose. The hot breaths of the two collided with each other. "Does your life fit into it?" His breath blew across Kirsi's face, sending off the all-too-familiar scent of mint and tobacco.
"Why make it difficult for yourself for someone like me? I just stick with my ideas, just as you stick with yours."
Cedric Aleksander Reverie laughed. His weight was pressing against Kirsi beneath him. His men who had secretly joined the ranks of the revolutionary army diligently held back the attack for him, giving him plenty of time to scold his little wife for messing around. But what appeared in front of Kirsi was an empty, abandoned studio.
Cedric was so angry that his strangulation just now was meant to end her life.
With disdain, Kirsi said once again, "You can use magic you see. Is this one of your other cheap tricks?"
Cedric snorted, he reduced the distance between them, until his nose touched Kirsi's, and his lips spoke directly above those seductive lips, saying, "I didn't think you were a naive person who innocently believed everything I said. If I said that I am a helpless man, would you believe it?"
Kirsi snorted back, "I am a righteous woman. I will not harbour bad thoughts for a helpless man like you."
Cedric laughed mockingly, "Then die with those righteous thoughts of yours."
Kirsi screamed through her teeth, "You think your father is useless! But is your stepmother any better?! Living like a dog is more impressive than living as a trigger of tragedy!!"
Cedric rambled, "Seems like you know a lot. Suddenly showing your true colours now huh? I wonder if the Kirsi Daciana I've seen over the past few days is a slick role-playing game, with a helpless and pathetic act that managed to trick me into for a while. I must praise you."
Kirsi suppressed her feelings and put on a calm and purposeful facade likewise, replying, "I'm flattered."
Heavy rain still flushed the area around. The extreme rainfall makes the environment wet and muddy. The ground where Kirsi lay was already filled with murky water and mud, very runny and sticky. Her gaze was lethargic and resigned. Cedric's free hand slid from her slender body side to her neck. When he was about to strangle her once more, he was taken aback by Kirsi's surprising action. Her knees pushed hard against his butt, causing him to wobble and stumble, cutting the distance between him and Kirsi. Cedric's face smashed into Kirsi's neck. At that moment, Kirsi leaned forward and bit Cedric's neck with all her might, until the taste of rust filled her mouth.
Cedric grabbed her by the hair, pulling her away. Both of Kirsi's hands have been freed. With a stream of blood covering her mouth, Kirsi burst out laughing, saying with a sharp hiss, "You won't let me go, so I won't let you go."
Kirsi quickly spat blood into Cedric's eyes, temporarily blinding the man. In a split second, Kirsi grabbed the needle in her sleeve and thrust it into Cedric's chest. In an instant, Cedric felt a terrible itching sting.
It's anaesthetics!
Was this woman treating him like a beast about to be hunted?!
When Cedric forced himself to open his eyes, Kirsi threw mud water towards his face so he had to close his eyes further. He was forced to move back. He doesn't know when the illusion of an abandoned painting space has melted and been released. Or maybe Kirsi is still trapped in the place she fears the most, but manages to realize that it is an illusion where she is still connected to the real reality. This woman is as slippery as a snake. Not only poisonous, but she is also very agile.
The effects of the anaesthetic do not react instantly. At the very least, Kirsi had to wait at least a minute before Cedric started to lose his motoric function control. An hour later, he would be completely unconscious. To defend her life and her still immature baby, Kirsi must hit her husband hard and wake him from the wrong path.
Kirsi smacked her head against Cedric's forehead, in an instant managed to push the man away and reverse their position. The sharp blade of a thin dagger was pinched in Kirsi's hand, pressed against Cedric's blood-stained neck. The rain immediately washed the mud and blood from Cedric's eyes. And when that icy blue-beaded glint appeared once again, Kirsi looked back at him with the same coldness. In Kirsi's eyes, the sight of Cedric in the rain and mud looked like a man who was on the line between beauty and cruelty whose gorgeous face was doused with oil paint and the sun's rays.
Sitting on the man's muscular abdomen, Kirsi once again tried her pillow talk. "What's the good of killing me and being a widower, huh? You'll be very lonely. No other pregnant woman is more useful than me. You may decide to forsake the Evander family's support, but rest assured that I'm more than just the Evander family's daughter."
Slightly panting, Cedric replied, "You've messed up my plans, and now you're shamelessly saying you're useful?"
"Nothing can be achieved by my death. I know you don't really support the Empress, do you? You're just taking advantage of that old woman the same way she's taking your advantage." Kirsi noticed how Cedric's breathing grew heavier.
The man lay on the spills of various kinds of paint in a very majestic way as if he was lying on a flower bed. His cold and sharp blue eyes began to lose focus. Slightly stubborn streaks of blood still remained on his eyelashes, giving off a mystical and enchanting impression at the same time. He wistfully stared back uncertainly at her copper eyes. Kirsi continued, "The anaesthetic is starting to take effect, isn't it? You can't fight back anymore, give up on the idea of killing me."
Cedric laughed, his hand going up to Kirsi's neck, rubbing it back and forth like an artist appreciating a statue of a goddess, ignoring the dagger blade pressing harder against the side of his neck. He replied, "I can still break a neck this thin."
Kirsi who was sitting on his abdomen didn't blink at the threat. Cedric's hand went up and caressed her cheek affectionately. A languid smile graced his lips as Kirsi resolutely replied, "You might think that the Empress's rise to the highest position in place of the Emperor would be a good moment to suppress the combined Western and Northern command factions. A revival of the Eastern command might be possible, but you are overestimating Empress. You wouldn't imagine what that woman could do over such a short period."
"You just guessed, and now brag about your cheap hypotheses?" Cedric looked into her clear eyes calmly. Wondering in his head why at a time like this, once again his power couldn't penetrate the contents of his little wife's mind which constantly made him confused. Cedric narrowed his eyes and said, "This is not the real battle yet."
"I know." Kirsi instilled in her heart that her victory over Cedric this time was solely due to the carelessness of Cedric who had underestimated her. The next time they were faced with the same situation, Kirsi wouldn't have enough time to brag and died instantly on the first hit.
There is one person in every ten steps. The Allies had been cornered because they were outnumbered. The revolutionary soldiers were equipped with nothing but swords on their waists, but their attack power and a large amount of fighting experience contributed greatly to their success in mastering the flow of battle. Cedric's words about this not being the real battle are actually valid considering that in the novel, the most troublesome weapons throughout this ambush are arrows and hand cannons.
The Empress' private wealth was enough to cover the military needs of a garrison for a whole year without interruption. Funding several rogue soldiers with poisoned arrows and hand cannons was nothing to her. Seeing that neither of the two weapons had appeared yet, meaning that the real enemy had not yet come out. The revolutionary soldiers this time were nothing more than savage bandits recruited to distract. Before the moment of crisis arrived, Kirsi rose from above Cedric and helped the man sit up.
The semi-anaesthetized man still seemed fine. His gaze was calm. Who knew that just to look straight ahead he was already overwhelmed? Cedric lifted the hood of his muddy robe. His body was slightly lowered with his knees bent, holding a stance while pulling the stiletto blade from inside his robes.
"Are you sure you can still fight?" Kirsi asked him not feeling the least bit guilty, as if the person who had injected the anaesthetic into Cedric's chest had nothing to do with her.
"Just worry about yourself."
Kirsi frowned, feeling disapproved. She refuted, "I'm not worried about you."
Cedric snorted, "I know."