CHAPTER 61: CHAPTER 22: MYSTERIOUS ASSASSIN

The events that transpired within the castle were actually quite simple.

As of late, Ireya had been preoccupied with handling all sorts of political affairs of her domain, and in the afternoon she had even received a visit from the Trinidad Knight.

The latter had rushed from his own feud, weary from travel, to report to the young lady on the movements of the lizard people.

According to Trinidad, there had already been seven or eight villagers who spotted those creatures near their villages, most sightings occurring after sunset. Those vile marauders emerge from the swamps, skulking in the darkness.

Fortunately, as of now, there were no casualties nor was anything stolen.

Yet, because of this, Trinidad found himself growing even more concerned, for he felt it was very likely that these lizard people were scouts tasked with surveying the defensive setup of the villages, in preparation for a future raid.

Only such a reason could explain why they hadn’t harmed anyone or taken anything.

"I fear they will take a big move next," the Knight said.

"When, and how many of them?" the young lady asked.

"I don’t know how many will come. Those creatures also fear encountering a large army, so they usually strike in groups of thirty or forty, split into several bands. Utilizing the cover of night, they rush into the villages to burn, kill, and loot. Once we light the signal fires, they retreat. I reckon it’ll be no different this time."

The Knight paused, then continued, "As for the timing, it’s hard to say. Typically, they appear around harvest time, so they can seize some grain. Living in the swamps, they probably lack food. Thank the gods for that, or we’d be overrun with these marauders."

"How many hands do you have right now?" Ireya queried further.

"Me, my two attendants, a unit of soldiers sent by Lord Ruse to be stationed here—seven warriors, five archers, and additionally thirty-six militia members, all young and strong from the village. However, half of them are recruits with only basic training."

"Most of the men lack armor, equipped with wooden spears and axes. Frankly speaking, they stand almost no chance against those lizard people."

After a moment of thought, the young lady said, "I will provide you with twenty sets of Cloth Armor, twenty spears, fifteen Round Shields, and I will also send an additional ten warriors to reinforce your defenses."

Trinidad first expressed his gratitude. "I will forever remember your kindness and generosity in my heart. With these supplies, I can arm the militia. With a few more days of intensive training, they should be able to make a difference when the battle begins. As for the unit of warriors..."

Ireya knew what the Knight was worried about.

Increasing the number of troops stationed at his domain would certainly make it more secure, but it would also add extra expenses—expenses that were normally covered by the lord of the feud himself.

After all, it makes sense to request aid and troops from one’s sovereign, but it’s not reasonable to expect them to cover all of the logistical costs.

For a small Knight like him, with a modest feud and not much land, constantly harassed by those lizard people, there was hardly any spare money saved up.

Supporting a unit of soldiers was already a strain; to add another would risk bankruptcy before the lizard people were even repelled.

Miss Rabbit, who was equally adept at financial prudence, clearly understood where his anxieties stemmed from. Under normal circumstances, the young lady would probably only provide the equipment without the funds, and might not even provide the equipment, given that not long ago, the Arias family was on the brink of borrowing money themselves.

Even after becoming a Lord, Ireya was so poor she couldn’t afford to throw a celebration banquet, but now she had just made some money from selling pepper, with more income to arrive every twenty days, continuously filling her purse.

Furthermore, Trinidad performed admirably in the Battle of Teacup Castle, being one of the few knights who did not heed Vanessa’s call to arms. The young lady had recently been courting the favor of minor nobles within her domain, and finding him quite agreeable, she generously declared, "All their expenses on your feud are on me."

"Really? I’m so grateful for that!" Trinidad exclaimed with surprise and delight.

He had previously been a vassal of Lord Ruse and was naturally familiar with Lord Ruse’s daughter, having heard numerous rumors about Ireya.

Some said that this young girl was nothing like her generous and flamboyant father, possessing an unusually intense obsession with money that was incomprehensible to ordinary people.

Before setting out, Trinidad had been worried—securing support from Ireya’s hands seemed a daunting task. However, he hadn’t expected it to be so exceptionally smooth, and the final outcome far exceeded his expectations.

Ireya even personally took him to the arsenal to select weapons and sent him off from the castle.

But when the young lady returned to the office where she managed official affairs, she found a piece of paper under the table.

There was only one sentence on the paper.

—"We will come back and take everything from you."

Upon seeing the few words on the paper, Ireya felt a chill run down her spine and almost instinctively shrunk behind Jude, crying out at the same time, "There’s an assassin in the room!"

"Hmm?" Jude frowned, drawing the war ax from his waist.

However, after scanning his surroundings, he saw no trace of an enemy and turned to see the young girl still shaking uncontrollably.

If the person who left the note had not left but was hiding at the entrance waiting to strike her with a knife upon her entry, she would have been almost certainly doomed.

Thinking about this, Ireya was filled with retrospective terror and then a surge of boundless anger.

The young lady hadn’t been gone long, and it was still broad daylight. If an outsider had infiltrated the castle, it would have been nearly impossible to reach her office unnoticed and without the assistance of someone inside, leave that menacing note, and depart without a trace.

Moreover, Ireya called the soldiers from the tower to inquire, and aside from Trinidad and the four soldiers responsible for transporting equipment, no one else had come in or out of the castle during that time.

Meaning, the assassin was very likely still inside the castle.

Realizing this, the young lady acted decisively, immediately ordering the castle to be sealed off and notifying her Guardian Knights. Then, thinking of Li Yu who was outside and fearing he might also be in danger, she summoned the Purple Sparrow Flower Knight to search for him.

That was the complete account of events this time.

It was only then that Li Yu understood why Jordi had said he probably encountered an assassin when he met him.

Because from beginning to end, no one had actually seen the mysterious assassin, but Ireya’s suspicions were not unfounded—there was clearly at least one mole inside the castle.

But now the question arose: The person had taken the opportunity of the young lady’s absence to leave the note. However, they hadn’t actually attempted to kill anyone, instead revealing their own existence. What exactly was their purpose?