"This never happened before!"
Helena ran as fast as she could. However, her prowess was nowhere near assassin level. She might not make it out alive from this place.
The assassin grabbed her clothes and threw her onto the ground. Helena crawled on the floor to get away out of desperation. Before the assassin stabbed her, she pulled the pen from her pocket and shot the ink to the assassin's face. The killer cursed when he could not see anything.
While the assassin wiped the ink from his eyes, Helena used the opportunity to flee. It did not take a minute before the assassin had caught up with her pace. The killer almost captured her, but Adham appeared and attacked the assassin. Matthew Brown rushed to her side to check her condition.
"Are you all right?"
"That- that man tries to..." Helena could not finish her sentence because she was frightened.
Adham's movement was shallow but swift. The assassin avoided his attack when he swung the sword to the shoulder. The killer counterattacked by trying to slice his neck, but Adham ducked and gave him a shallow cut on his leg. The assassin groaned in pain and backed away.
"Lady Blackmoore, are you in there?"
Matthew heard his brother's voice. "Oxford, call more men! We need help!"
The assassin frowned when he heard more people would come. He put his finger inside his mouth and swallowed a hidden pill in his tooth. That man coughed blood and dropped to the floor. They were stunned to watch the whole scene. The assassin just killed himself.
Lady Wisteria ran to them half a minute later. "Did you find Lady-" Her words were cut off by the view of a dead body. She saw Helena sitting trembling on the floor. Lady Wisteria decided not to ask further questions.
Matthew Brown examined the killer. He found an officer ID in the left pocket. "Let's see... This is not the same person. The uniform belongs to someone else."
"Wait, I know that tattoo." Adham looked closer. There was a mark of Paradise Star behind the neck. "Of course, it's from the damned cult."
"Must be someone sent to kill Lady Blackmoore." Matthew inspected the corpse. "Cause of death... poison? No surprise. They do have a connection with drugs. Looks like he knew he would not finish his mission."
Helena's body still trembled in fear while her stomach twisted in a knot. "Why are you guys here..."
Adham answered her. "Well, I and these guys want to visit you after the trial." He pointed at Matthew and Lady Wisteria. "However, we found your cell to be empty."
Lady Wisteria sighed. "My cousin told me that you never return. I told the officer about it, and they went panic."
Matthew continued the story. "I had a bad feeling, so I ordered everyone to split up and found you. My feeling hit the spot. We came at the right time."
"Thank you..."
Helena went silent after speaking her gratitude. She was horrified by the experience. If her help came late, she would be gone or regress for the fourth time. Helena did not want both of them. She shuddered at the thought and held her neck unconsciously. Helena managed to avoid the guillotine, yet death still chased her. It was as if she was destined to die.
Adham could see how terrified Helena was. That man felt awkward, but he held her for a while. Adham hugged her and caressed her back.
"Everything is safe now."
Tears fell from her eyes. She cried out loudly until her fear disappeared. Lady Wisteria gave her handkerchief to Helena. No one judged her for crying. Her sniffle eventually subsided after some minutes passed.
The Vermillion couple came with Oxford Brown. The Duke was shocked by the corpse. "Dear, Lord.... Can someone explain what is going on?"
Matthew Brown filled the report to the Vermillion. They later found the corpse of the real officer behind the building. Due to an unexpected situation, Helena stayed in Vermillion's mansion for protection. She was worn out from the assassination attempt and fell asleep without admiring the place.
The next day, Helena was allowed to return to her estate. She expected a warm welcome from her family, but the reality was not as pretty as her imagination. Her parent, especially her mother, were pissed as hell.
"How could you be involved with such a dangerous cult?!"
They must hear her story with Paradise Star from somewhere. Her mother scolded her without mercy, and her stepfather agreed with his wife. Out of all people, they never expected Helena to be that reckless.
"You could lose your life, Helena. If anything happened to you.... How am I supposed to live?"
Tears fell on her mother's cheek. Helena felt guilty watching her mother crying. She recalled her memories of her first life. After the death of her mother, Helena was devastated. She spent her time grieving her loss and locked herself in the room. Perhaps her mother would mourn the same way if she lost her beloved daughter.
Helena hugged the crying woman. "I am sorry... I should have not put myself in danger."
The Baron smiled weakly at her. "You made us worried back there. Don't do something like this again, all right?"
Helena smiled back at him. In her first life, her father did everything to save her. He was forced to give up when none of his efforts worked out. Helena did not know how he remained after her death in her first life. Losing a wife and a daughter in the same year must be a rough experience.
Helena created many problems for him in her second life. Yet, he still treated her as a Blackmoore. No wonder Helena felt guilty for him as well. He loved Helena as much as he loved Ethel, although she was not his biological daughter.
Helena went to the room after speaking to her parent. She met Ethel on her way to the bedroom. Her step-sister looked nervous and bit her nail. Helena expected a snide remark from her, but Ethel avoided eye contact. She passed by Helena in a rush as something chased her.
The twin maids ran to hug her the moment Helena entered the room. Azure and Scarlet cried a lot from their wet cheeks. They stared at her with puffy eyes.
"We miss you, Lady Helena..."
"We thought we wouldn't see you again..."
Helena caressed their heads. "I'm sorry. You two must be worried about me."
Violet was also in the room waiting for Helena. She did not reprimand her younger sisters despite their impolite behaviour. The oldest maid apologised to her instead. "I'm sorry, My Lady. If only I was more competent."
"Don't blame yourself, Violet. It's not like you can do anything with the situation."
Her parent prohibited her from going out from that day. Not that it was a matter since Helena was under house arrest. The Royal Knights stayed on guard around the house. Fortunately, it did not mean she had to cope in her room. She could walk or train in the garden under the guard's supervision.
Helena saw journalists gathered behind the gate when she ran circling the house. The news of her involvement with cult and murder buzzed like hot news. Helena had become a celebrity over a night. She was grateful for the house arrest right now. Helena did not need to give information to the hungry public.
Eric Taupe whistled. "You are famous now, Lady Helena."
Helena touched her head. "Why are you here again?"
"Master's order. One of the family's knights must follow you all the time. Besides..." Taupe glanced at Violet. "I don't mind overwork for her."
"Spare me the love talk. I'm trying to train, and you distract me with your sparkles."
Helena sat under the tree after her training was over. She grew nimble, yet it was not enough. Siegfried and the assassin make Helena realise her limit. She might be stronger than a noble lady, but it was nothing compared to the enemy she faced.
"What are you thinking, Lady Helena?" The twin asked while preparing her snacks.
"My life-threatening situation. Maybe I am alive this far because of sheer luck."
The maids and knights stared at her. Helena was down because she was doubting her ability. They felt pity watching their gloomy master hang her head. Violet was thinking and got an idea to cheer her up.
"How about doing a mock battle?"
Helena tilted her head. "Mock battle?"
"Maybe you lost because you don't have experience against a stronger opponent. After all, training and battle are two different things." Violet wiped the dust from her uniform. "Mister Taupe, can you be my opponent?"
"Eh? Me?"
"Yes. I want to give Lady Helena an example."
Violet and Eric stood a few meters from each other. They used substitute weapons to avoid fatal injuries. Both held wooden swords in their own hand. Eric looked hesitant to fight with Violet. However, there was nothing he could do against it. The fight was her request, after all.
Helena warned him. "Eric, don't get distracted. Remember that she breaks furniture every day! She can do the same with your bones!"
Helena's encouragement made him more hesitate. Violet used this chance to move first. She struck him with a full-blown power. Eric was lucky to spar her attack and held his feet on the ground. He would be knocked out if he did not defend himself.
The knight stepped back and counterattacked by swinging his sword to her chest. Violet dodged it by moving to the right. Both of them did not have a gap in their defence. Violet won in strength, but Eric won in experience and speed. Helena could not follow their movement with her eyes. This battle was on another level.
Eric landed a hit on Violet's arm. She clicked her tongue, feeling upset that she lost the fight. Violet hit the knight with her hand instead of using the sword. Eric was surprised but managed to guard himself against the punch. Yet, he was still thrown to the ground for three meters.
"Oh, My God!" Violet ran to his side. "Are you all right? I am sorry! I did not control my strength! I should not let my anger get the better of me."
The twin applauded his action. "That was close, Eric! If you use a real sword, you will be the winner."
Eric opened his eyes and smiled with a dumb expression. "This is the best day of my life."
"Oi, get up," Helena ordered him.
Helena had a mock battle with Scarlett and Azure. They also used substitutes instead of real weapons. The twins attacked without mercy. They did not let Helena move as she wanted. Eric held his laughter when he watched the funny combat.
"You-you can do it, Lady Helena!"
"Don't laugh, Eric Taupe. Dodging broom and pebbles is harder than it looks! They are trained children!"
The Pearls were a knight family. Violet's father held a high ranking in the military before his death. She trained sword under his father's wing for several years. After Violet worked in Blackmoore's estate, she sent Scarlett and Azure to her village when they were young. They trained with her uncle and aunt before joining their older sister.
Helena kneeled on the ground when the fight was over. "That-that was hell..."
Azure looked at Scarlett. "Are we going too far?"
Scarlett looked at Azure. "But Lady Helena will know if we hold back."
Violet helped her master. "Good job, My Lady. Not many people can attack and defend themselves with two opponents."
Eric nodded. "Lady Helena, you can take pride in your agility.... Although you get hit by broom and pebbles a few times."
Helena glared at the knight and gave him punishment. "Eric Taupe, you will take the night watch as well."
Eric was shocked. "EEEEH?"
That day was exhausting but fulfilling. Helena dozed off as she lay on the bed. However, she was awakened by a loud crashing sound from the next door. It came from Ethel's room. Helena was upset that her sleep was disturbed.
Eric Taupe knocked and opened the door.
He peeked his head from outside. "Lady Helena, are you going to sneak out? Please don't. I am going to lose my job if you do."
"Like hell, I can. There are royal guards under the balcony."
"I heard a loud sound. Didn't it come from here?"
"No. It comes from Ethel's room. I am going to give her a piece of my mind!"
Eric had no choice but to follow his superior. Helena spared no time for knocking. She opened the door to Ethel's room while shouting.
"DAMN IT, ETHEL! IT'S ONE O'CLOCK. WHAT ARE YOU-"
Helena's words cut off when she saw an assassin strangling Ethel.