Chapter 45: Before Valmere City
They had barely moved past 500 meters when the sound of horses entered their ears.
"Oh?"
Seraph raised a brow, turning toward the source of the sound.
"Are those the royal guards?"
The butler smiled and nodded.
Soon, everyone could see the ten horses heading straight for them. When the two groups eventually met, the guards were surprised to find the princess without a carriage.
"Princess?! What the hell happened on your way here?"
The captain of guards was furious, his gaze questioning.
The butler calmly replied. "Sir Emerald, I believe you should calm your nerves. The carriage was blown apart by a group of the Reapers."
Eyes widened, the captain slowly looked at the princess. She didn’t look harmed, so she must have been out of the carriage when it happened.
"Sigh. This is really tiring. I wish I could just clear out those hateful Reapers all by myself."
Folding his arms, he alighted from his horse and turned to the princess.
"Princess, please climb onto the horse. It will make our journey faster."
The girl smiled softly at him, then climbed onto his horse. The butler climbed behind her, while the captain took charge of another guard’s horse.
Finally, Emerald turned to look at the sect disciples. His brows furrowed.
"We asked for escort and the Soul Cross Sect sent these?"
He could clearly see that only two inner court disciples and the remaining four outer court disciples were present.
A scowl twisted at his lips. "No core disciples? I didn’t think the sect has grown so arrogant."
Noel immediately bowed and apologized.
"The sect’s core disciples are undergoing a special training that cannot be interrupted. This is why they sent Thana and I, as inner court disciples."
Emerald wasn’t appeased. "And these outer court trash?"
Before Noel could reply, the butler spoke. "Sir Emerald. That is enough. You are wasting our time already."
The Captain’s face darkened. "I think these sects should at least show some respect to the royal family. This—"
"That is not for you to decide!" The butler snapped, his gaze cold. "Are you the King?"
Emerald went silent, shaking his head sideways.
"If you are not the King, then I don’t want to hear that from you."
Turning to the silent disciples, he said.
"Get onto the horses. We’re moving."
Seraph and the others joined the other guards on their horses, then began riding towards the Valmere City.
Seated behind one of the guards, Seraph observed the expression on the Captain’s face. It looked perfectly fine.
’Shouldn’t an angry person still express displeasure? Why does he have a calm look on his face?’
Although suspicious, Seraph didn’t say anything. He silently stayed behind the guard as they rode straight towards the city.
In just an hour, they had covered a long distance and could already see the Valmere City in the distance.
"Princess, we’re almost there."
Emerald said with a natural smile that unsettled Seraph.
’This guy...’
The next moment, Emerald jumped off his horse and attacked the princess’s butler.
Stunned, the man barely reacted as he was pushed off the horse.
"What!"
The princess turned around in shock, still confused by the turn of events.
Seraph reacted swiftly. He stabbed the guard before him with his spear, killing the guy in one unsuspected blow.
Pushing him off the horse, he immediately directed the horse to approach the princess.
Emerald and the butler rolled on the ground for a while before coming to a stop.
They immediately sprang up and attacked each other.
Noel’s eyes went wide, his mind blank.
What was going on? Why did the Captain of the guards attack the princess’s butler? Was he a spy?
"Arghk!"
The scream of a Solstice Peak disciple snapped him back to reality. Before he could even assess the situation, he could see the guard sitting before him sneakily unsheathing a knife.
Noel didn’t hesitate and shoved an ice spike through his heart. Marcus reacted quickly too, jumping off the horse before it was too late. However, he still had his torso cut, staining his robes with blood.
"Agh!"
Thana groaned, holding a sword and stopping it from drilling into her stomach more. She had reacted lately and had been stabbed, though she still tried to salvage the situation.
"Everyone, disengage the horses! The guards are traitors."
He had already taken control over the horse he was on, are so had Seraph done.
The white-haired boy immediately grabbed the princess and pulled her onto his own horse.
Noel looked at him and shouted. "Let’s get the princess to the City! It should be safer."
Passing by Thana, he grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his horse while she held her bleeding stomach.
Marcus growled and fled to meet the other Solstice Peak disciple who had already killed his own driver.
With three horses, the six of them prepared to escape. Behind them, the thunderous clash between Emerald and the butler could still be heard.
Seraph didn’t smile. It wasn’t necessary. Hitting the horse, he urged it to move faster.
He took a look at the princess and realized that she had several emotions in her teary blue eyes—shock, fear, anxiety, and the pain of betrayal.
’Hmm. That’s sad.’
He thought, without feeling any ripple of sympathy in his heart.
"Princess. The Captain of the guards... what stage is he?"
The girl gasped, her eyes teary and unfocused.
"He’s a Peak Master Stage Cultivator too. I don’t know if Grey can survive."
’Grey? So that’s the butler’s name.’
Seraph nodded calmly, then said in a serious tone. "I can’t guarantee that he’ll come out on top too. We can only hope."
Saying this, he watched as the Valmere City drew closer.
Suddenly, he grabbed the reins of the horse and yanked backwards.
Neigh~~~
The horse retreated a few steps, startling the other horses and making them stop too.
"What is it?" Marcus growled in anger.
"Look."
All around them were several masked men with at least an Advanced Stage in cultivation.