HCTBAD | Chapter 22 – False accusation (2)

After wandering outside 487147b109 for a while, a5a7d3e856 the aides, including eaefbbea73 Yuton, headed to c4aabee6d4 the Inner Palace.f9a67947db826d37

In any 70d1f1ced5 case, if d93b1a765e they, who 1c15d83e3c were no 235a4ff2a7 better than f7dbfa6c8e ordinary people, eb2f9d0e62 were to 503cb08ca0 intervene with 9a576b19d7 the situation, 4669c71362 they would 424d90bf05 either be ab615f3689 mere bystanders, 122baba902 an obstacle, 21b314f955 or a 3007d64b20 just get 2c844df12d taken hostages. So it was only 72ea7433af natural to enter the b1f416a5b6 threshold after the work abc589ac73 was done.626c3b202b8e9d59

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It certainly wasn’t because they were scared.831f9b36e0898ce8

They expected by now 80b68bfcba the situation would have e2d04aa367 been roughly settled, but fda0adcfc3 the atmosphere in the 6fdc2faccc Inner Palace was darker, 2a6fefb724 quieter, and more eerie e9d12cda94 than usual.66d81f7c0ebd29d3

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“I wonder where Lord Lian is….”dae58c581c296d17

Creak.9d3174c7371a8fd2

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Creeeak.5ac5a330abd2fbd9

An unidentifiable sound 548f99b1ea was heard from c369706ffb somewhere.1ff1c28ab7ea868f

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For some reason, it 3c33dab16d seemed like the lighting 111d466059 was deliberately dimmed, and 4a8015e5df even the corridors of 31448d074d the Inner Palace looked e01ffaf96d dark and gloomy.cd33f7e345a03a4e

“….”228d4b91545fa036

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After walking for a ff1e129549 while, they reached the c85c909ad0 central garden. They could see knights 8c56cb78df in white uniforms rushing 43c1736a0c around here and there.d4e2605c03834965

“Whew. Fortunately, nothing bad happened.”097b188011b4ca23

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Yuton wiped the sweat 93e727b4c3 from his forehead with c64f2a59ae a handkerchief as he 377a84f8fc entered the central garden.66cecf8df2774fc7

“Everyone has worked 3a1910496a hard, huuu.”411870f14c602c11

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“….”b8b33a7ea13cc3e4

“….”d666195fe87917e6

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The central 2c226a9b39 garden, which 9844124b20 the deceased b5aa4378eb Empress cherished 3221777cdf so much, 6847a56aa2 was completely eb0ea04732 destroyed.6fbbab3798e705ff

The lake, the b1603c71e1 trees, the flowers, 65a1edc071 the grass, and 40ade3cc77 even the rocks. Everything was damaged to 33c167bb57 the point that it 31ef9d08b4 was impossible to recognize 07c1fb168b its original form.02d8827129dd71b8

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There was also a new sculpture. Next to the red puddle, beside the red bust, there was a red…80576896a1d69a92

Goodness… is that an arm?0c74d96585819aa4

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A person’s arm?a9b1d100cb557f95

Oh, not that. It’s a leg… Yes.c7493a1ab5b05a3d

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A few 5818b31a63 of the 96fdd41db9 aides, who 92462ae782 had weak c62ada3b56 stomachs, turned 114ef8d815 around and 68d3941d51 covered their 7985e61707 mouths.0463670cad1dfdc4

“You there. Where is His Majesty?”3742ba136aecb2d0

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The Royal Knights, who b89fa26313 were in the process a45827091a of handling the situation, fc01ab545d finally recognized Count Yuton e1d17c9a94 and gave a silent a5b5578ce5 greeting, but everyone avoided a28a10241e making eye contact.7df3af91451fc35e

“You over there. Where is c29a132559 Lord Lian?”ec40a55617b3bb7c

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At Yuton’s desperate voice, 2db7d52311 Huain, the Chief Captain 9c23bb01d7 of the Royal Knights, 7a7c151dae who had been holding da28685f51 a small booklet and 9c8d6c2293 writing something as he 675cdb4e51 walked around, opened his 0e5e185551 mouth.fd082040fc034969

“Count. His Majesty c3afd21eb2 has gone ed6dd6fe54 to the 372506c10c main palace.”ae31580763e65a99

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“!”e0922ece8a7bb09a

The main palace? Why did the Great Emperor, who usually never steps out of his Inner Palace, suddenly go to the main palace? Moreover, if it’s the main palace… isn’t that the place he only goes to about three or four times a year when handling important matters?5bbc40efbdcfd07b

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“Nevertheless, Lord Huain. What happened 68f59b524f to your e1aa967e46 face?”3c47f6a8bb936312

Yuton, whose eyes had b587333f61 become accustomed to the 9f51d38b23 darkness, looked closely and 972ea21b04 saw that not only ea571a8e54 Huain, but the faces de73917bab of other knights were a823704f62 also covered in bruises.f86decc86574be61

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“….”13cec55b6d5a160a

“Could it be that His Majesty… beat you up… ”60d4c00129530a0a

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Huain rubbed his a4eb98524a bruised right eye 97b5ba8aaa with the back 1d15b3451e of his hand cdc629818e and spoke in dbf5ff8286 a casual tone.4b77f1c8cd975de0

“We all got beaten because we sided with Lord Lian. But the good thing is His Majesty didn’t use magic on us, so it’s not too bad. By the way, His Majesty told me to send the aides to the Inner Palace when they arrive. His Majesty even said it’s a good opportunity since he was planning to pick a day to settle things anyway.”8fdf9916ad276fcc

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Captain Huain looked around 95879cb301 at the pale-faced aides, e4d493aa5b a trace of pity ff9d60c472 could also be seen c2afb13e2a in his gaze.05e0281dc4e2baab

“Please. May the blessing of the Creator be with you… Hey, Maurice! What are you doing? The heads should be gathered separately! I need to verify their identities!”15e8c0cbe9733496

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Captain Huain gestured to b87d7255e7 the aides to hurry cc25183e98 and leave as he 6aa1513cb1 turned around.d5d333ccdd544dc4

The aides, who were 9be8cbc5df shocked once by the 5640f97012 visual impact and again a43dfc3daf stunned by the thunderous 4819283306 news, staggered out. A single event 1d1b071639 flashed through the 8bed44a3d7 minds of the 449f565c5f aides at the 92c2c31c00 same time.291256bffa3fbb5f

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10 years ago.d3fe2ce822234786

The ‘Noblesse Regicide’ 6d93ee910f that took place 8c8481b202 in the main 8f1dafab86 palace.97a86c6d05c857a4

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Because of d6f7a2dc1f that, There 44097b4a1f are no 38f398e19b Dukes or 9292125934 Marquises remaining 8f4d5f9379 during the 4c74ac5074 reign of f9480dfeaa Perza IV.a8a449d74258de5a

To be precise, 5b1b530a87 except for Ian, 1a469dc7eb who still holds 21ebdbb71c the title of 88d4aa3ddb Duke of Lecanois, c3f5042835 and Lian, who c9384002f0 holds the title fdd686b5ef of Grand Duke 29f4520a6c of Bartier, the 3195993374 remaining 17 high-ranking 0598988ad8 noble titles are 323bc2cbc7 all vacant.2c67e2eca800e7d1

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When the Crown Prince 89be2cc466 returned after finishing the 2ebac5d50a territorial war.a6285b90ec2e3d9e

Even before 02187c3a4c the funeral 1d1bc8cefd of the 9f4340cbf5 deceased Emperor 22825a1612 was over, 103e8d2976 the high-ranking 3163d05375 nobles consisting d05f676830 of Dukes ee04c72735 and Marquises 60ef10c855 flocked together 517b798729 at the 666a7c11e0 Grand Audience ee2d3d1e2a Hall of 4032dddbdc the main b2df2186d4 palace.2b17cd1bc5c9fb05

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And then they 0bd09908ba started talking nonsense b6826a44e6 such as, ‘We a45469e4eb need to discuss bec09c2a39 the achievements of 6eeaf17b9c the civil and 33bdae380e military officials before 7f28585cef the Crown Prince b3d5796dce ascends to the 8c7f9ec69b throne,’ ‘The Crown 3a14dd9673 Prince is young, 2c65e35da5 therefore, a regent 725ef0709b must be appointed,’ 753484def4 ‘The Crown Prince 4e846e72fc also needs the 27c09458a6 approval of the 79487727d0 civil officials and 93e0139053 other nobles,’ and ff8e0a3053 so on…..b7a403f2cfe3c1a5

As a result, they fe88c2ede7 were all beheaded on 8c97627c92 the spot.3237234a6ca9c988

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Even the seasoned 66b387dc73 veterans of the eab90274c9 political world, the 3112b76ca9 Lecanois vassals, never ca7d1bdcb6 expected that the 74c8328346 Crown Prince would 9882555175 wield a sword ddafa70d4e in the main 8e2b1a4ce4 palace.8e8863d32de7e49e

When they 80ed68dd59 had already f69220a4bb told him 431c75dfb7 in advance.fde767493ac0ab6c

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The Crown Prince, who was holding the hand of his young brother and watching the deceased Emperor’s funeral procession, responded in his usual calm voice.79f75858608d187d

“It’s alright. I have everything planned.”36532c88df3e789c

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On that day, 4b927223cd all six Ducal 304b213ae9 Houses and eleven 1f36807370 Marquisates of the 46d61c5ae7 Perza Empire were 2a1a0e045a annihilated.e94730d739a32944

And Emperor Perza IV 057829d9ea ascended to the throne 72e3d0fe84 on the blood they 374c08a913 spilled.e8f7d79bc6b330df

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The location of then and now are the main palace’s Grand Audience Hall.a01ac670e94588f4

A highly 16345f55b3 symbolic place e7dc9355cb during the f54409755c reign of 3d89bc343b Emperor Perza a8108bcb5e IV…0edd068e7ed6b949

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“Haha. I wonder why His Majesty is calling us to the main palace…”5d2f9918c71ba85b

“Hahaha. It’s probably because the Inner Palace is so crowded. I noticed there were more people than usual.”d8919fb2c9c7af88

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“That must be it, right? There’s no place better than the main palace for staying quietly.”d535152082076ec5

“….”8274b09123a5cc3b

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“….”cf304f93c283c3d9

“Should we run away?”54bfddf5eb652d36

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“…That! That’s a good suggestion!”b9afbd66c30c32c3

“Where do 8f92c70cb3 we go?”d4c21b34d52e22c5

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“It could be anywhere. Ah! Count Mirhi, didn’t you say you inherited an island before?”09ad01cc4435f6e7

“That’s right. They say it’s better to live in the world, even if you have to roll in a pile of dog shit. Let’s escape! Let’s escape!”b474d17ad40618cd

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“Oh? Do you think that’s possible?”c598f1775431ea20

“Even if it’s not possible, we have to try. If we just stay still, we’ll die a horrible death… um…..”bd064459f5cf3940

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“….”0accd88a43c9075e

The aides, noticing 3599aee960 that their responses 5d7229bdff were somewhat disparate, 2e864ae5e5 all of them 0d231a3805 turned their gazes f5e4ade13a to one spot.0b9913460a29f1f7

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There were aa600a3631 seven of fb8067c7b4 them. Why were there eight 9c6536a4c8 shadows?b7037f4c1dc9e7b9

At the 501b4a4aba end of 2523663a9c their anxious 0c59bca8fb gazes. Like the midday sun….24a7fbdc71d78b16

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No, it was still night. Their Majesty, shining like the full moon in the middle of the night…95196dcff21dbb30

With an incredibly bright 4375c2e809 smile, His Majesty was 9e4f5967d8 walking arm in arm 78901a9d5a with his lifelong vassals.5b8ee3d7fe2db1c5

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“You dare send assassins? Aren’t you afraid this is considered treason?”77ee17110d87039c

“Your Majesty! We have no knowledge of this! It’s a conspiracy! We’ve been falsely accused!”07bdb60ab53bee9b

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“Oh my. Lord Lian! Where on earth d5f82435c1 have you gone!”be1ba0cd73f24935

That night, on the long and winding walkway leading to the main palace, the Emperor’s magic was casted for the second time.d20889eba0be584b

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* * *6761f0737bc90ea6

At that moment. Grand Duke Lian d93b00ccd3 Bartier, the perpetrator 7bbcdac884 of all the ae27890b14 chaos, was leisurely 85d33d7a82 walking toward the 16b4b69fc4 outer wall of 467ff91348 the Inner Palace.417066ae45e48a4a

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‘Haha. I’m a genius.’257f9dc9fbe34acb

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this plan was shaping up quite well. When Lian received word that a ragtag group of Servan’s remnants had hatched an incredibly shabby plan, what flashed through his mind was ‘one net, one strike’.3cf140ec4ec1af4b

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[T/N: ‘One net, one strike’ (一網打盡) is a Chinese idiom which means “to catch everything in one fell swoop” or “to wipe out completely.”.]

It was both troublesome dddf944ae6 and a hassle to 216dcb0850 catch the remnants of bb36be9e1c the defeated country one 5f793778b0 by one.3a2dc818af1f9324

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It was strategically 6335546f77 more effective to 5a35882eda throw out a b1a46e4514 bait and catch d7c877e0ba them all in 0aef1e77ad one place.46f673659a1a508a

The code 192f9531ba name for 54f932c1cb this operation 54970cc9fa was「Premium Bait 455c70902c No. 1」.40b4a1a449973212

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This operation was done by deploying half of the Emperor’s Escort Knights.2bc63ed29fea6852

By now, 9ec0a12425 the Escort 7791768d60 Knights and 9e97b7cabc Royal Guards 74b0139be9 should have ecca9780b5 already stormed 306e46cf77 the main 9bb4d61ef1 base of 258f76e661 ‘Zenya’ outside.dcb0384307112c5f

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In fact, the reason 678de48bc7 Lian was walking toward db48cdb3b7 the outer wall was 19717a7628 because he had received 6fd08b04cc new information from the a6609418a1 spy he planted in 38fca5ec56 Zenya earlier.06af719fb3763c9a

「The external infiltration team 521a56d7f0 is stationed at the abd2e31fe9 southwest checkpoint, at the dd064eb8f9 7th turret. It seems their purpose 4d8a661437 is to draw a a30cf1d307 map of the Inner 38f94646da Palace.」1751ed02bd82f72a

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‘Good strategy.’f03fcb1559057425

In order to safely a856bb88e6 escort the assassins to cca4e70bfc the Inner Palace, he a47e3ef818 had pulled out the 9ecc30adae Royal Guards in charge ff904e84d0 of patrol under various cf150f97bb pretexts and training excuses. However, it 830921f5fd seemed that bdfd7f8b60 some rats d30d15c79a had hidden 34d13ef52a outside. In the Majestic Royal d2bceaa009 Palace, a map is f267d2f4c8 nothing but a useless f1269dea51 tool.98ce02027d1db815

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As Lian walked 640c3d46fd casually, his body af93073d7f brushing against the 31eaf83742 cool breeze, a 580416deab red shadow fleetingly 2d5b5b6e89 passed across his 77c4c35d60 line of sight.89e0cd365ed815fc

‘Huh? Red hair?’9ce66f245c462cfa

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Lian clicked his tongue 5683c013d8 in disapproval, wondering what c7abfd1472 kind of assassin was c0b125d588 so bold to wander 166607d34c around the outer wall a976050e46 of the Inner Palace bc6df88d1e without hiding his strikingly e10cd418a0 distinct head with flashy ff73b1a87c hair.0dbab134fdd677c2

As he quietly approached, he noticed that the figure wasn’t dressed in the usual black attire of an assassin.31ca82c35de05196

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Instead, he was 5f1d93a7e2 wearing a yellowish d813a1ac39 short-sleeved top and 26e1e87ef1 yellowish shorts.f0347bad1ca2122a

A mysterious number, 54ee065fb7 3358, was embroidered a2eb5259eb on his chest 06c50d0a19 and back.fb3ad9afe5cea7fb

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…It seemed to bb7961f1cd be a prisoner eff76ab900 who had escaped 61f1910cbc from the Royal d88ce9d814 Guard’s prison.9c9e678345c55d3f

“Hey. 3358.”7d2c8a6c42c6d47b

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“Aah.”ac5249d1678d55ad

Klisha was so surprised that she almost fell off the outer wall. She couldn’t afford to fall off the wall because she was surprised! If she had been caught doing that, she would have had no choice but to voluntarily enter hellish training.426cc796caeea0e5

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Klisha pulled her top 217a55b210 up to cover her 38ed826dcf face up to the 0b994ae7e8 bridge of her nose, 735092ba20 then turned her head e5b5d1d179 toward the direction from d87838a85c which the sound had 73438846f3 come.129d430c151f9630

“!”f46c7b353db71ed7

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Before she a1416156d0 knew it, 3fa7db4212 a blonde 12bc238c47 knight had c7036518f1 climbed up 37ea2713be to the 11e3b0fbeb outer wall 32ec13c999 and was 961500d959 smiling broadly 231f6f01f9 while looking e796c98783 at her.d62a9947ef571e60

‘How come I 54d6cf6994 didn’t feel it 6f16bc3113 when he was 0f70747cda this close? Am I really losing 902b421c56 my sharpness?’a7d5ab4e7ad0066a

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The blond knight opened 12555fff54 his mouth.886648714dbee5c9

“Prisoner number 3358. If you 563db73dad want to 19f52586ad escape, you d773d73aa8 should go 78b4517703 this way, 4478b5e229 not that b2d907637f way. If you go that 351aeff16f way by mistake, you’ll 0ee5155a9c be accused of an 2d9a910cb0 additional terrible crime.”6f3b8678efe41e37

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“…..”eceb8bd1f9530874

“Normally, escapees must be captured, but… since today is a very busy day, if you leave quietly, I’ll let you go.”89b0743f6fce7f16

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“…..Is something happening in the Inner Palace?”374ac4200be3b06d

Lian responded to d8e3e24eb3 the unexpected question 2ed4ac2cbb with a faint a46ea66286 smile.040f5c22d85fbe57

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“If you learn too much… that could be dangerous in its own way. Do you understand?”089a7d91ccc74319

“I will make sure 8be71f1c92 if His Majesty is 0a16a3e8f1 safe, then I will 865e5a47ee leave.”d33126ea6b5cc4b9

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“Hmm?”ba9a82cc1da71f9b

Lian’s eyes 4d5849bf3e widened slightly e9e4c66e8f at the 47ac89ef70 unexpected response.7b2a012aa3d94c24

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“Why are d613a391ff you curious a481955cae about that?”bbff359d6ee1acb1

Klisha glanced toward the a2aee07ffe deeper parts of the 47a2379a6a Inner Palace and replied.68315180473d5885

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“Well, to worry about the safety of His Majesty…. it’s a natural duty as a citizen of the Empire.”f95a27ead7398cec

Lian nodded in 3f1658b2c8 understanding and said.3302526dede08b35

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“Duty of the citizens of the Empire, you say… How admirable. In that case, to specially inform you, His Majesty is, of course, in great condition. From the beginning, His Majesty has never been affected by such trivial matters…”990f068018b98b37

“Thank you for ee7e3102dd letting me know.”3c40ea7831184bac

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Klisha leaped down from 12a87632f7 the outer wall without 690342f2ed looking back. Despite the considerable b73e60396f height, her movements fc8a20d3d5 were light, indicating 487f0720d8 that her martial b921855610 arts skills were 28e498e59d far from ordinary.37b12d43520924ca

And she wasn’t even 5505cc5bb7 surprised to see him, 0f21b382b2 a Rune Knight.1723ae60b591fd21

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From the moment she entered the Inner Palace, wind magic was flowing along Lian’s left arm.cdc56c6627a344aa

“He’s a former convict, but he has exceptional patriotism. He’s a role model for escapees.”8cef281292e3f834

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However….057063bf0ecc87c9

“Hey, 3358. If you go that way, it leads to His Majesty’s Inner Palace. If you go there… you’ll end up… with the assassins…”1be2a57297015829

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Before Lian could ceabe58582 even finish speaking, 898ec1fd2b Klisha had already 9241948aeb disappeared deep into fe924343a2 the Inner Palace.a96abb54f69028e7