Chapter 590: Chapter-590
The Third Wife was still pressed flat against the wall, clutching her knees to her chest, trembling as she stared at the terrifying, blood-soaked Lord standing before her.
Samuel’s entire demeanor shifted. The frantic husband vanished, and the ruthless, cold-blooded noble lord took his place. He took a slow, deliberate step toward the corner, his foot smoothly kicking his fallen sword up from the floorboards and catching the hilt perfectly in his hand.
"Is she one of them?" Samuel asked, his voice entirely devoid of emotion as he raised the blood-stained blade toward the Third Wife’s neck.
The Third Wife let out a terrified squeak, pressing her hands over her face.
"Oh, he is definitely going to kill her," the System announced from the ceiling, aggressively eating a digital bucket of popcorn. "Host, your husband has zero chill."
Before Samuel could take another step, Heena grabbed the back of his collar and yanked him backward with surprising strength.
"Put the sword down, you idiot!" Heena hissed, stepping between Samuel and the trembling woman. "She is an asset! She pulled me out of the Cold Palace and hid me here. If you kill her, I will personally break your legs!"
Samuel blinked, the murderous intent faltering slightly. He looked from Heena’s furious, fox-like eyes to the pathetic, bruised woman cowering on the floor. He slowly lowered the sword, though he still looked entirely unconvinced.
"The Prime Minister’s wife?" Samuel scoffed, his golden eyes narrowing in suspicion. "You expect me to believe she turned on him?"
"She is taking him down from the inside," Heena stated firmly, leaving no room for argument. "She already has the pills. Now, stop wasting time."
Outside in the distance, the faint, rhythmic sound of heavily armored boots began to echo through the silent palace grounds. The Imperial Guards. Samuel’s dramatic entrance had finally drawn the attention of the Emperor’s patrols.
"They’re coming," Samuel noted, his expression tightening. He sheathed his sword with a sharp click.
Heena turned back to the Third Wife, her gaze dropping its previous hostility and returning to that cold, authoritative command.
"Remember the plan," Heena ordered. "Tear your hair. Scream. Tell them a man in black knocked you out. When your husband comes, play the traumatized victim. Do not give him a single reason to doubt you."
The Third Wife slowly lowered her hands. She looked at Heena, then at the terrifying man standing behind her, and gave a single, firm nod.
"I understand, My Lady," she whispered.
"Good." Heena turned to Samuel. "Let’s go. The shadow guards are already clearing our path."
Heena took a step toward the window, but before her freezing, exhausted legs could even register the movement, the world suddenly tilted.
Samuel didn’t ask for permission. He simply scooped her up into his arms, lifting her entirely off the floor in a secure, bridal carry.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Heena squawked, her hands instantly flying to his broad shoulders to steady herself. "Put me down! I can walk!"
"No, you can’t," Samuel replied flatly, his arms adjusting to hold her closer to his chest. "You have a concussion, you are covered in freezing water, and you are shivering so hard my teeth are chattering. You are not walking."
"I am the Vanguard General!" Heena argued furiously, her cheeks flushing red—whether from the lingering aphrodisiac or pure embarrassment, she couldn’t tell. "Put me down! My shadow guards are out there! If they see you carrying me like a damsel, I will never hear the end of it!"
"Let them look," Samuel said smoothly, a tiny, arrogant smirk finally returning to his handsome face. He looked down at her, his golden eyes softening into something deep and dangerously warm. "They can report to your grandfather that your husband actually knows how to take care of his wife."
Before Heena could throw another punch, Samuel vaulted effortlessly through the broken wooden window. He landed silently in the dark courtyard, completely ignoring the Imperial Guards rushing toward the front gates, and vanished into the shadows with his furious, blushing wife securely in his arms.
The moment Samuel and Heena vanished into the cold night, the suffocating, overwhelming presence in the ruined bathroom entirely evaporated.
The Third Wife was left completely alone in the damp, freezing room.
Outside, the heavy footsteps of the Imperial Guards thundered into the courtyard. Torches flared, casting flickering, frantic orange shadows across the torn paper windows.
"Surround the pavilion! Do not let anyone in or out!" a commanding voice shouted from the courtyard.
The Third Wife took a deep, shuddering breath. The terrifying Vanguard Madam had given her a script. Now, it was time for her to perform the most important play of her entire miserable life.
She reached up and violently tore the remaining pristine silk of her collar. She dragged her bruised fingernails down her own cheek, leaving a thin, stinging red scratch, and forcefully rubbed the dirt and diluted blood from the floorboards into her tangled hair.
She looked at the broken wooden door.
One. Two. Three.
"HELP!" the Third Wife screamed.
It was not a fake, theatrical scream. She channeled every single ounce of the agonizing terror she had felt when the assassins kicked down the door, every moment of suffocating fear she had endured under her husband’s roof, and let it rip from her throat.
"HELP ME! PLEASE!"
The Imperial Guards, hearing the blood-curdling shriek, immediately swarmed the shattered front entrance. They rushed into the ruined guest pavilion with their spears lowered, their torches illuminating the complete destruction of the room.
When they reached the bathroom, they found the Prime Minister’s Third Wife collapsed on the wet floor, sobbing hysterically, clutching her knees, and rocking back and forth.
"Secure the perimeter!" the captain of the guard yelled, rushing forward and kneeling a respectful distance away. "Madam! Madam, what happened here?!"
Before she could answer, a furious, booming voice shattered the commotion of the courtyard.
"Out of my way!"
The Prime Minister shoved violently past the Imperial Guards, his face a terrifying mask of barely contained panic and rage. He had received word that the Vanguard shadow guards were slaughtering his hidden men across the palace, and he had rushed to the guest pavilion, completely terrified that Heena had survived and left evidence.
But when the Prime Minister stepped into the bathroom, he froze.
There were no dead assassins. There was no paralyzed Vanguard General.
There was only his frail, bruised wife, weeping hysterically on the floor.
"Master!" the Third Wife sobbed the moment she saw him. She scrambled across the wet floorboards, throwing herself at his feet and gripping the hem of his dark robes. She looked up at him, her face a perfect, flawless picture of complete, broken terror.
"A man... a man in black!" she wailed, tears streaming down her dirty face. "He broke in! He was covered in blood! I tried to hide, but he saw me... he hit me on the back of the neck and I fainted! Master, I was so scared! I thought he was going to kill me!"
The Prime Minister stared down at her. His dark, calculating eyes swept over the empty, wet bathroom, searching for any sign of a trap, any drop of evidence that Heena had been here. He found nothing.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter