Chapter Sixteen: Assassination

Crash! The falling wine jar and the sudden, gleaming cold light collided fiercely, producing a dull thud. The sturdy jar shattered, spilling wine across the ground, and the cold light revealed itself to be a jade-green short arrow. Though the jar’s impact knocked the arrow off its course, its master was clearly a formidable expert; even after being deflected, the arrow still pierced Chutian’s chest.

The sound of shattering pottery and the searing pain in his chest jolted Chutian awake. In a flash, a single thought blazed through his mind: He must not give the assassin a second chance!

Gritting his teeth against the agony, Chutian hurled himself toward the mouth of the alley. Even as he moved, his hands worked without pause, drawing protective scrolls from his ring and smashing them against his body with reckless abandon! As he ran, he bellowed with all his might: “Assassin! Murder!” His desperate cries echoed through the silent night, resounding across half of Pompeii.

Chutian’s actions proved to be wise indeed. The activated scrolls enveloped him in layers of shimmering, colorful shields. At that moment, three more flashes of cold light streaked toward him in a line.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Three crisp, ringing notes sounded as the arrows struck Chutian’s magical shields and were deflected.

The earth trembled. The residents of the alley, roused by the commotion, peered through lit windows. The houses that remained dark belonged to old residents of Pompeii, who recognized what this tremor meant—something was happening in the imperial capital that was beyond their concern, and it was wise to stay inside. For the Imperial Royal Cavalry of the Caesar Empire had arrived!

Deafening hooves thundered through the street, mingled with officers’ shouts. At last—people! Chutian, shielded by magic, exhaled in relief, though the movement sent fresh pain through his chest. The mysterious assassin, having failed again, seemed to realize the magic protecting Chutian was no ordinary spell and retreated without further attack.

“Marquis Vladino, are you all right?” The lead officer dismounted and hurried to Chutian’s side, concern etched on his face—clearly, he recognized Chutian.

“Praise the Goddess of Life! I am unharmed, thanks to your timely arrival!” Chutian replied before quickly adding, “Seal off the area at once! The killer must be caught!”

“Hearing your call for help, I immediately sealed this alley!” the officer responded.

“Good!” Chutian nodded, wincing as the movement tugged at his wound. “What is your name?”

The officer’s quick response greatly satisfied Chutian. He glanced at the disciplined ranks packed into the narrow street—hundreds of cavalrymen, yet not a hint of chaos. A talent, indeed!

“Page, Fourth-Rank Bronze Knight, Imperial Guard. Currently serving as Thousand-Man Commander of the Capital Guard.” With that, Page straightened, right fist pressed to his left chest in a crisp Caesar salute. By imperial law, the Caesar Cavalry were never required to bow to anyone.

“I will remember you,” Chutian said with a nod and a smile—though the effort cost him another stab of pain.

Glancing at the arrow still lodged in his chest—over two feet long, jade-green, with fiery red fletching—he saw his blood welling out around it.

His face was pale from blood loss. As a veterinarian, Chutian knew all too well what that meant.

Clenching his jaw, he gripped the arrow’s shaft and, with a muffled grunt, yanked it free. Blood spurted after it.

He quickly tended the wound, then examined the weapon in his hand and sighed, “How ruthless!” The arrowhead was triangular, with three blood-grooves still stained with his fresh blood.

The soldiers around him were all stunned by Chutian’s display. In their experience, no priest had ever acted so boldly—pulling out a weapon without anesthesia! Unconsciously, Chutian’s stature rose several notches in the hearts of the Imperial Guards.

“Well now! Isn’t this Marquis Vladino? What on earth happened?” Suddenly, an elderly man with white hair, dressed as a servant, pushed through the crowd to Chutian’s side.

Chutian looked up and recognized the steward, Dirk, who served the Right Chancellor Andor.

He’d met Dirk once at a family banquet at the Andor residence, and the shrewd, capable, yet proper steward had left a good impression.

Chutian gave a wry smile. “So it’s you,” he said, tucking the arrow into his cloak. “What brings you here?”

“Oh, my master sent me out of the city on business this morning. I’ve only just returned and stumbled into this mess.” Dirk glanced at Chutian’s wound and shook his head in regret. “Who could hate you so much, Marquis, to have hurt you so grievously?”

“I’ve only been in the capital three months, hardly time to make enemies. Perhaps the killer mistook me for someone else. I must see to my injuries, so please excuse me.” Chutian’s tone was perfunctory—he had no interest in small talk now.

“Then I won’t delay your treatment any longer. I’ll take my leave.” Dirk bowed and left.

Watching the steward’s receding, faltering steps, Chutian’s eyes flashed coldly and a sneer touched his lips. Too convenient, old man… far too convenient.

———

News of Marquis Vladino’s attempted assassination shook the entire imperial capital. Under Canas’s command, the city was scoured for three days, but nothing turned up—the culprit seemed to vanish into thin air.

In Emperor Ludis III’s study, the three giants of the Imperial High Command—the War Minister, Macaulay; the Minister of Magic, Damar; and the Minister of Magical Beasts, Best—stood respectfully before their sovereign, accompanied by the Director of Intelligence, Barry. On the table before the emperor lay the very arrow that had wounded Chutian.

The five were convened in an emergency meeting regarding the assassination.

Ludis III now attached great importance to Chutian. On the Continent of Fantastical Beasts, the strength and number of magical beasts defined national power—without magical beasts, there was nothing. All rulers understood this truth. Recently, with both the Scarlet Flame and the hundred thousand Unicorn Warhorses suffering calamity, the empire’s magical beasts had been gravely diminished, and the vassal states were growing restless. The mortal enemy, Raes, was stirring as well. All this left the ambitious Ludis III deeply troubled.

At this critical moment, Chutian had appeared and resolved every crisis. With his help, the empire regained its supremacy, and the borders quieted once more. Magical beasts determined a nation’s fate—Chutian determined the fate of magical beasts! How could Ludis III not value him? In the emperor’s mind, Chutian was now a vital piece in his plan to dominate the continent. Thus, he spared no effort to win Chutian’s loyalty—raising him from commoner to marquis in just three months, and even tacitly (or secretly) supporting Chutian’s pursuit of his only sister. Otherwise, why would Selina have accepted Chutian so quickly?

Of course, Ludis III was shrewd, but Chutian was no fool either. Sensing the emperor’s intentions, he dared to slack off in his duties, devoting his energy to courting his beloved.

Ludis III’s face was grim as he stared at the arrow. He barked, “Barry! What have you found?”

Director Barry stepped forward and bowed his head. “I am ashamed, Your Majesty. There are no clues. All we know is that the weapon is a short arrow used exclusively by elven archers. Based on the scene described by Marquis Vladino, the assassin must be a sixth-rank or higher Golden Archer of the elven race.”

“However, since the fall of the Elven Kingdom, elves have scattered across the continent, their masters even more elusive. It is very difficult to trace them.”

Ludis III nodded, accepting Barry’s analysis. His gaze swept to the others, finally settling on Best, the Minister of Magical Beasts. “Best, is it possible a high-level magical beast from another country is responsible?”

“Your Majesty, upon receiving the news, I dispatched two eight-tier magical beasts to investigate the scene. They detected no trace of high-level magical beasts. However, I cannot rule out the possibility of a ninth-tier beast capable of concealing its presence. If that is the case, only the deployment of Kuata and Scarlet Flame would suffice to uncover the truth.”

“Forget it. Scarlet Flame is still training in the Agula Mountains, and Kuata would never lower itself for such a trivial matter. We’ll discuss this later.” Ludis III felt helpless; Scarlet Flame, under Canas’s command, was away, and Kuata, bound by a pact of equality, would only act in major wars.

“Your Majesty, I have some thoughts.” Ludis III turned to see Marshal Macaulay, famed alongside Chancellor Gremming as one of the Empire’s twin pillars.

“What is your opinion, Marshal?”

“I believe Marquis Vladino could not have been wounded by a high-tier magical beast. All major nations’ warbeasts are under constant surveillance by our intelligence service, and most are far too large to enter the capital unnoticed. As for ninth-tier beasts who can take human form, there are only six in all the nations, and only Anka of the Elson Kingdom and our own Scarlet Flame are bound as royal companions. Elson has always been friendly to us and would not risk the wrath of our Imperial Cavalry by attacking Marquis Vladino. The others, like Kuata, are only under contract and would not undertake assassination missions.

Therefore, I believe the most likely scenario is that a hostile nation has hired an elven expert. Our greatest enemies are the Raes Empire to the south and the island nation of Tenkai to the east; of these, Raes is the prime suspect. Though Marquis Vladino has only served three months, he has performed great deeds—especially in healing the warhorses, which benefits Caesar but threatens Raes, since our cavalry is their greatest fear. Tenkai, separated by sea, has no reason to fear our horsemen. Thus, this is most likely a plot by Raes to weaken us!”

Raes! Ludis III ground his teeth on the name.

“Yes, Marshal, your reasoning is sound. Damar, what do you think?” Realizing he’d neglected the Minister of Magic, Ludis III turned to the lovable Damar.

At this moment, Damar was half-asleep, lost amid his colleagues’ analyses. He vaguely gathered that Raes had angered the emperor again. Still, after spending so much time with Chutian, Damar had learned a thing or two about the art of statesmanship.

Reciting Chutian’s teachings in his heart, Damar stood tall, his face stern and righteously indignant. “I agree with my esteemed colleagues! The Raes Empire is as ambitious as wolves, bent on our destruction, daring even to offend Your Majesty. Yet such petty threats are beneath Your Majesty’s notice. I am willing to lead a small force and bring back the head of Emperor Tyrone of Raes as a gift to Your Majesty!”

His words rang out with conviction! For a moment, the others barely recognized the usually muddle-headed Damar.

Seeing the shock on the emperor’s and his colleagues’ faces, Damar secretly rejoiced: The lessons Marquis Vladino taught me really do work! First, the opinions of smarter colleagues are always correct—agree, even if you don’t understand. Second, the emperor is always wise and the enemy always vile; never forget to praise the emperor and curse his foes! Third, always volunteer for impossible tasks—the emperor will never actually send you to war!

Ludis III was the first to recover, giving Damar an odd look. “Your loyalty is admirable, but this matter is complicated and you will not be sent to the battlefield for now.”

Indeed, by following Marquis Vladino’s advice, he’d even predicted the emperor’s reaction.