Miss Wang Weina, even your cousin won't do!

"It's alright, Your Highness Wayne, please rest assured, I will definitely rescue you from the palace!"

Ah, rescue me? Where to?

"Rest assured, although your sister has the demons as her backers, you can be at ease. The Sarkaz of Laterano have ample experience in fighting the demons. We will help you set things right, make a comeback, and reclaim the throne that belongs to you."

Wayne nodded in agreement.

This job was done pretty well, just a little botched. If you said that to Vina, it would probably fit perfectly, because the one going to marry into the demon race isn't Vina, it's me, Wayne!

"I already know that your sister is forcing you to marry into the demon race. Don't worry, no one can threaten your friends in Lateran. You don't need to accept an unwilling marriage. As long as I send you out of the palace, the rest will be resolved naturally!"

You even came up with this explanation for me?

Forced into an arranged marriage?

Hmm, Wayne was forced by Vina to accept a marriage alliance (between Wayne and the demons)? If you switch the order of our siblings' names, the truth will come out.

Almost unable to suppress a laugh, and to preserve his Oscar-worthy image, Wayne changed the subject:

"And what about you, Mostima?"

"I?......"

Mostima was silent for a long while, then took a deep breath and said firmly:

"Just leave, I'll figure something out. Don't worry about me, I promise you I'll treat you to apple pie in Laterano to repay you for this cup of rich hoof milk today!"

There are so many things to complain about, Wayne doesn't even know where to begin.

He shook his head and refused:

"You should go first. I'll find a way to get you out of the palace safely."

Wayne forced a bitter, strained smile, patted Mostima on the shoulder, and said reassuringly,

“I can postpone this so-called marriage on the grounds that I need to get to know each other better, so I won’t be in danger for the time being. Time is plenty of my time, but Mostima, you are not. If you are found in the Victoria Palace, your life will be over. I don’t want to wait for you to treat me to cake in Lateran. If I could, I would rather have Stargazing Pie with you in a restaurant in Lentinium.”

"Forget your thoughts of self-sacrifice. Even if I sacrifice you, I can't leave Londinium without any backup. So, now, I'm sending you back to Lateran to bring me more gold, connections, and resources. The decisive battle can only be played out in Londinium. As a king, I can't flee my country in disgrace. So, promise me, live for me, and help me live!"

"Dong dong!"

A rapid knocking sounded at the door. Wayne released his hand from Mostima's shoulder, walked to the door, and looked out through the peephole.

It's The Shining.

Holding the coffee tray in his left hand and resting his right hand on the hilt of his sword, he cautiously surveyed his surroundings while awaiting Wayne's response.

Has it finally arrived?

Wayne turned around and gestured to Mostima, who was still in a daze. Mostima was slightly taken aback, looked at the door, and his expression immediately became serious.

His Highness Wayne is right. She was being presumptuous. The Church's power in Victoria is far less than before, and its remaining influence in Londinium is almost nonexistent. Expecting those impoverished monasteries that have to send nuns out to work to receive His Highness Wayne as she flees to Lateran is utter nonsense!

Her sacrifice was unnecessary. The right thing to do was to live, to live at all costs. She needed to return to Laterano, persuade the Pope to provide generous aid, and then return to Victoria with the support to thwart the demons' plot alongside Prince Wayne!

She wanted to entrust her trust to Wayne Bruce, believing he could hold out until her return! Could she trust Wayne?

In the past, Mostima might have hesitated, but now, Wayne's help and protection in this desperate situation rekindled the passion that Mostima thought had cooled down. She could guarantee with her life that Wayne was not a pawn; he was definitely Mostima and Lateran's most loyal, reliable, and gentlest ally!

"Hide!"

Wayne urged in a low voice.

Mostima gave him a deep look, her gaze complex, containing gratitude, respect, but above all, admiration. She nodded heavily, then, under Wayne's urging gaze, bent down and squeezed into the narrow space under the desk.

Once Mostima had completely disappeared, Wayne changed his expression, pretended to yawn, and sleepily opened the wooden door of the meditation room, looking at the serious-looking Shining before him.

"Is this Princess Theresa's attendant? Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Your Highness Wayne, may I ask you...?"

Shining tiptoed, tilted his head, and looked around the meditation room as he spoke:

"Have you seen a suspicious Lateran?"

Mostima, who was under the table, trembled slightly and gripped the Black Key, which could probably still be activated twice more.

“I didn’t see any.” Wayne answered decisively without hesitation. “I was sleeping and you woke me up. Are there Laterans in the palace?”

"No, I'm sorry to have worried you. I'll handle it."

Shining nodded, seemingly without much suspicion, and carried the coffee tray into the room, reaching out to pick up the coffee cup from the table.

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

The coffee cup is hot.

Chapter Fifteen: Don't push!

The coffee cup still retained its warmth. Shining's eyes narrowed, and she calmly placed the cup on the tray, rubbed her fingers together, and looked at the still slightly warm milk stains on her pale skin.

This aroma... is it from Fengti Milk?

Shining glanced at the half-eaten milk jug on the table, frowned slightly, and looked at Wayne.

Why did Your Highness lie?

The presence of residual Fengti milk on the inner wall of the cup indicates that someone had just poured it into the cup recently, otherwise the milk would have settled at the bottom of the cup instead of on the inner wall, and the outer wall of the cup would not still feel warm to the touch.

His Highness Wayne definitely wasn't asleep, so why would he lie to me? Could it be...?

Shining's guard was raised to its highest level again the moment she lowered it. She scanned the room's furnishings, curtains, bookshelves, lamps, and desk, and finally fixed her gaze on Wayne.

His Highness Wayne claims he was asleep and didn't see the Lateran assassins, but there's clear evidence that someone in the room used the milk jug and coffee cup. Could it be that His Highness lied because...?

He has been kidnapped by that elusive Lateran assassin.

Shining thought about it more and more and felt that this was a possibility. After all, Princess Wayne had no reason to be involved with the Lateran forces. Her engagement to Theresa meant that she was on Kazdel's side, and Kazdel and Lateran were mortal enemies. So there was only one answer.

The assassin with the bizarre Originium Arts is hiding in this meditation room, and has already taken His Highness the Prince of Wales hostage, threatening him to either help her lie to deceive her or harm him! The Prince of Wales had no choice but to agree to this condition and tell Shining this lie.

That despicable assassin.

Shining was filled with resentment, yet felt utterly helpless. Although she appeared to be dominating the Lateran assassin all day, no one could fathom the astonishment within her. Shining knew that while she wasn't among the top tier of the Order of the Exorcists, she was certainly no ordinary person, bearing the title of "Sword Saint." Even the fastest Exorcist in the Order, she was confident she could catch his shadow. But today, facing an assassin, she truly felt powerless.

No matter how focused she was, how hard she tried to lock onto the assassin's aura, or how closely she tried to track their movements, the assassin would vanish from her sight the moment she was about to swing her sword, then reappear in a place she could never have predicted. Without warning, without any preparatory action, it was as if she were teleporting; Shining couldn't catch any trace of her fleeing figure. Yet, there were traces of her departure on the road, indicating that she had indeed walked past her at a speed Shining couldn't perceive at all, rather than teleporting directly behind her.

Such speed made Flash's heart pound, so she had to simultaneously unleash a barrier of Dogmatic Domain around her body while swinging her sword to prevent the assassin from launching a surprise attack from where she wasn't looking. In fact, this method did work; the assassin's attack power wasn't strong. After the Dogmatic Domain blocked several of her throwing knives, she gave up retaliating and began to flee. Finally, she hid inside this room.

Shining is now certain that the Lateran assassin is inside the room, but she doesn't know where the assassin is, and she dares not openly expose Vayne's lie—the enemy is so fast that Shining is confident she can protect herself from the attack, but she is not confident she can protect Vayne.

If Her Majesty Queen Victoria were to find out that Prince Wayne had been injured here while she had failed in her duty of protection, she would not only be punished by the Order, Theresis, and Victoria, but it could also potentially jeopardize the marriage between Princess Theresa and Prince Wayne.

No one would want to marry a woman whose life is constantly threatened!

"Article 1, First Rule of 'How to Become a Pardoner in One Month': The priority of this operation is to complete the marriage mission!"

After silently reciting the ironclad rules in the manual, Shining gritted her teeth, swallowed hard, and looked at Wayne with guilt, saying:

"Understood, Your Highness Wayne. Would you like me to refill your coffee?"

Mostima, who had been tense under the desk, finally breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't know when his vest had been soaked with cold sweat.

If Shining finds out she's here, and Prince Wayne deliberately tries to cover it up, Prince Wayne might be suspected and put in danger! Given the ruthless nature of the demons, it's hard to guarantee they won't abandon their marriage plans and risk public condemnation by "getting rid of" Prince Wayne simply because they suspect him of having an affair with Laterano.

If that were to happen, Mostima would be better off rushing out and fighting to the death to get Wayne out of the palace.

Fortunately, Shining didn't seem to doubt Wayne's words.

Seeing the feet slowly leave the desk, Mostima breathed a sigh of relief and felt a little more at ease.

Shining, carrying a coffee tray, approached Wayne while asking him questions.

Wayne was still nervous about Shining's sudden pause and scanning action. When Shining asked a question, he casually replied:

"Coffee, with milk and sugar, please." He paused halfway through his sentence, then corrected himself, "I meant, hoof milk and sugar."

“Your Highness…” It seemed Shining hadn’t noticed Wayne’s slip of the tongue in his nervousness, or rather, she was even more nervous than Wayne. Her forced smile gradually faded into calm, her face filled with deep remorse. As she brushed past Wayne, she whispered, “I’m sorry, I failed in my duty to protect you. You can deal with me as you see fit later!”

She found out?!

Wayne was startled and turned to look at Shining. Just as he was about to say something, the light sound of high heels came from outside the door.

Shining was startled and stopped in her tracks as she was about to leave, gripping the doorknob. Wayne immediately stepped forward and looked through the peephole. Theresa had just closed the door to the Grand Archives and was now carrying a cake and two glasses of juice, walking toward the study room.

"Ah, Princess Theresa!"

Shining looked around in a panic, trying to find a place to hide.

She was sent by Theresis and the Order of the Exorcists, and already harbored a deep estrangement from Princess Theresa. This was evident from the fact that, although she was always by Theresa's side, the kind-hearted princess had hardly ever spoken to her. And at this moment, she was the last person who should be near Princess Wayne, because she was carrying a tray of coffee cups, on which lay two cups and a half-empty hoof milk jug.

Even if Theresa were all-knowing and wouldn't suspect Shining's presence in this ambiguous room during the ambiguous time when Wayne was studying alone, Shining also couldn't explain why she hadn't dispelled either of the Originium Arts sword at her waist or the Dogmatic Domain barrier surrounding her—spells she hadn't used to deal with assassins who might launch a surprise attack at any moment.

The Exonerator and the monitor sent by Theresis entered Wayne's room, which was unguarded and armed with knives, fully prepared for battle. This couldn't be explained away with a simple "I'm here to bring coffee." However, if the possibility of an assassin were mentioned, Shining wasn't sure if Princess Theresia could protect herself and Princess Wayne from an assassin she herself felt powerless against in an instant.

At that point, the number of victims might even escalate from one Prince Wayne to two royal families, two members of the royal family!

Shining dares not gamble!

Let's hide it for now!

She hurriedly put down the tray and ran behind the curtains, wanting to pull them open to hide herself, but for the first time she realized that having a good figure was such a troublesome thing.

If she were a flat surface, she wouldn't be able to push the curtains up!

"Hey, Shining, what are you doing?"

Wayne walked to the table and sat down discreetly, intending to shield Mostima from Shining's apparent search for something. Shining noticed him, her eyes flashing, and squeezed through the gap in the desk—there was only one entrance in front of Wayne, completely invisible from the main entrance; it was a "safe house"!

"Wait a moment."

Before the word "down" could even be uttered, Shining had already squeezed in!

Wayne's lips twitched. Just as he was about to bend down and explain to the two people inside, the door to the study room was gently pushed open.

"Your Highness Bruce, I brought you a cake. Would you like to eat it together?"

"Ah, ahahaha—"

With one foot grabbed by one hand, Wayne was forcibly pulled down to sit, and could only reply with a wry smile:

"Eat, eat, I just woke up."

.........