After a sharp scream rang out, the massive Ice Spike smashed directly into the spot where Luo Tianyu was sitting. The entire scene of the Ceremony fell into a dead silence.
“What are you standing around for? Go save Father!”
Luo Yao and Luo Heng were the first to react, followed by a swarm of panicked Servants.
The giant Ice Spike was driven straight into the ground. One unlucky guest of the Luo Family clutched his broken leg, rolling on the ground while howling in pain.
Just as Luo Yao signaled the others to back away, intending to use a Secret Art to shatter the ice, the massive Ice Spike cracked on its own. Then, Luo Tianyu’s voice drifted out from within:
“Enough, there is no need to panic.”
He stepped out completely unscathed. One of the rings on his hand was emitting a golden light, a radiance that enveloped his entire body and protected him from even the slightest injury.
As the Master of a family, it was impossible for him not to have protective measures. An assassination attempt without prior preparation could never take his life.
However…
Luo Tianyu picked up the Protective Amulet around his neck. This item, which should have been the first to activate, had unexpectedly shown no reaction at all.
“Was it swapped by someone?”
If not for this ring protecting his body, he truly might have met his end here.
To have swapped his protective tool beforehand and launched an attack during the Ceremony, the Assassin was definitely someone who had long been lying in wait within the Luo Family.
“Father, are you alright?”
“My bones are still quite tough; I won’t die that easily,” Luo Tianyu spoke as if joking, brushing the ice shards off his clothes. “I just didn’t expect that someone would actually dare to make a move at a time like this.”
Indeed, no one else had expected it either.
Lu Yunze looked at the person beside him. That person’s face had turned pale in an instant as they desperately tried to explain:
“This has nothing to do with me! I was really just speaking casually.”
“No one said you did it, so why the panic?” Lu Yunze couldn’t help but let out a cold snort.
Realizing they had been mocked, the guest’s face flushed red with anger, but they didn’t dare make a sound.
Having won that small exchange, Lu Yunze didn’t continue to pay him any mind, instead shifting his attention to other matters.
Since Luo Tianyu was fine, the urgent priority was to find that Assassin.
The giant Ice Spike had flown in from outside the window. Was the person still out there?
Before Lu Yunze could take action, the doors to the Dining Hall were pushed open heavily. Guards marched in, escorting a man and bringing him before Luo Tianyu.
“Reporting to the Master, we captured this man outside!”
The guards of the Luo Family had moved the moment the incident occurred, surrounding the Assassin’s position and bringing back a suspect.
Lu Yunze looked toward the front. Naturally, he had already suspected something when he saw the giant Ice Spike, but when Lin entered his field of vision, kneeling on the ground, his brow furrowed.
Feeling everyone’s gaze—especially Luo Tianyu’s—Lin’s expression filled with panic.
“Old Master, I’ve been framed! I was set up!”
“For the sake of your many years of loyalty, speak.”
Lin took a deep breath and recounted everything that had just happened.
His task tonight was to be responsible for the security work on the outer perimeter of the residence, but he had suddenly received a communication saying the Old Master had an order for him to go to a designated location.
As soon as he arrived, the massive Ice Spike flew at him from behind. He dodged it, but he didn’t realize that the thing’s target wasn’t him at all, but Luo Tianyu inside.
By the time Lin realized he had been tricked, the guards had arrived on the scene and seized him.
Lin was a veteran of the Luo Family. Even if he were truly the Assassin, many people would be reluctant to accept such a reality.
“If it wasn’t you, then who was it?”
“Old Master, I am not the only Secret Arts Practitioner in this house who uses ice-related arts.”
As Lin said this, his gaze swept through the crowd.
“There is also him!”
As he raised his finger to point in a certain direction, everyone’s eyes followed.
The person who was suddenly the focus of attention looked a bit dazed at that moment, letting out a soft “Eh?”
It was none other than the other Butler, Kong Yang.
Suddenly being identified as the culprit, Kong Yang’s expression shifted rapidly before finally settling on anger:
“Hmph, don’t make such baseless accusations! Lin, it’s not like you haven’t seen me use my Secret Arts. Since when could I control ice?”
“Whether you can or not isn’t for you to say. Do you think I haven’t seen it?” Lin immediately retorted. “I’ve seen you manifest ice cubes out of thin air to add to drinks more than once. Did you really think no one saw those little tricks?”
“Bullshit! When have I ever done such a thing…”
Just as the two were accusing each other and arguing incessantly, Lu Yunze suddenly stood up and interrupted them:
“I have a way to distinguish who is telling the truth.”
Surprised that it was him, Luo Tianyu knit his brows and signaled for him to continue.
“I heard that Luo Heng’s Workshop produced a few vials of Truth Serum. Why not just have them take it?”
As he spoke, he intentionally looked toward Luo Heng, winking at him.
Initially muttering, “How come I didn’t know about this?” Luo Heng understood his meaning in an instant and waved his hand, shouting loudly:
“Right! How could I have forgotten? Father, I agree with Lu Yunze’s suggestion.”
Luo Tianyu didn’t speak immediately, instead looking at the two Butlers.
Lin looked resolute. “If this is the Old Master’s command, and it can clear my name, I am willing to comply.”
As for Kong Yang, he remained in a wooden state. He opened his mouth several times but said nothing.
“What’s wrong? You aren’t scared just because you heard we’re going to give you Truth Serum, are you?”
Lu Yunze’s words were like a heavy hammer.
Now, all the pressure was on Kong Yang.
“If… if this is what the Old Master wants, then I…”
Kong Yang stopped mid-sentence and suddenly lifted his head.
“I’ll just have to make a run for it!”
All the previous fear vanished. With an expressionless face, he pulled a small, golden, rhombic crystal from his pocket and crushed it with force.
In an instant, a light as bright as the sun filled the entire venue. Everyone was forced to close their eyes.
In the second before the light faded, many people heard the sound of footsteps rushing outside. Before Luo Tianyu could even issue an order, the guards charged out of the venue.
Having successfully cleared his name, Lin was released and proactively requested to go and capture the Assassin, Kong Yang.
The scene of the Ceremony once again returned to a strange silence. Everyone stared at each other. Until Luo Tianyu spoke, no one dared to say a word, or even breathe too loudly.
Luo Tianyu sat stiffly in his chair, his entire aura having withered significantly.
“Father?” Light Jade stepped forward out of concern.
“I really am old, I can’t handle such commotions.” Luo Tianyu smiled at her. “The troublemaker is gone, but I am tired. I’ll go rest first. You all continue the Ceremony.”
“Yes.”
Watching their father’s back as he left the hall, Luo Yao and Light Jade looked at each other. Now, it was their turn to preside over affairs.
Since he said to “continue,” tonight’s Ceremony couldn’t end just because of an Assassin’s attack.
“Everyone, just act as if nothing happened. Continue doing what you were doing.”
Light Jade stood on the stage. Originally, this was the position where Luo Tianyu stood, but she—a young girl not even twenty years old—did not shrink away because of the many gazes. Even her voice didn’t tremble once.
***
“Don’t waste words, just shoot!”
On a small path outside the Luo Family Residence, the guards who discovered Kong Yang’s figure didn’t hesitate to pull their triggers.
A volley of Bullets hit the lower half of that figure, but they quickly realized something was wrong.
Kong Yang stood in the shadow of a large tree. Despite being hit by several rounds, there was not a single reaction.
When the moonlight shone on Kong Yang’s body, they all gasped.
They’d been tricked!
This wasn’t the Assassin they were chasing; it was just a mud decoy standing there!
Because of the high number of bullet holes, the mud body could no longer hold together. It collapsed onto the ground, turning into a pile of dirt.
The guards were all gnashing their teeth in anger. He had actually managed to escape.
But was that really the case?
After the guards reported the situation and left, the real Kong Yang emerged from the shadows nearby, letting out a sneer toward the direction where they had departed.
“Thinking I ran? You never imagined I’d come back, did you?”
Kong Yang had no intention of leaving the Luo Family Residence—at least, not yet.
He couldn’t leave before he completed his mission.
Originally, he intended to pin it on Lin and act while they were unsuspecting. Now, he could only pick up the pace and finish things quickly.
Before setting off, Kong Yang didn’t forget to pull a purple reagent from his pocket, jab it into his arm, and inject half of it.
“Hiss…”
As the medicinal liquid entered his body, Kong Yang’s expression turned hideous. He let out a long exhale.
After quietly sneaking back into the Luo Family Residence, Lin—who was already very familiar with the layout here—could easily avoid the gazes of others. Coupled with his Secret Art that allowed him to hide his form under the moonlight, infiltrating was extremely easy.
Crossing the Corridor, Kong Yang arrived directly in front of Luo Tianyu’s Library.
He tried the doorknob twice and found the door was locked.
But this couldn’t stop him. He pulled a small piece of crimson crystal from his pocket and pressed it against the keyhole.
Heat surged out and drilled into the keyhole, melting all the internal structures. He only needed to apply a little force to push it open.
“Finally, I’ve made it here.”
The corners of Kong Yang’s mouth were almost curling up to his ears.
“My half-year undercover wasn’t for nothing. Where is the thing?”
Closing the door behind him, Kong Yang once again pulled a golden crystal from his pocket. This time he didn’t crush it but held it in his hand to act as a small lamp.
Kong Yang quickly rummaged through the items in the Library, but he simply didn’t see what he wanted.
“Where exactly is it? Would that Luo Tianyu keep such a thing? If he did, where would he put it?”
When he reached the desk, Kong Yang noticed the surface was messy, as if it had been rummaged through.
Strange. Given Luo Tianyu’s personality, he would never allow his desk to remain in such a state of disarray.
Feeling suspicious, he moved to the other side of the desk and involuntarily lowered his head to look under it.
“…”
“Eh?”
The light illuminated the face of a girl hiding under the desk. The two of them locked eyes, neither of them moving.
The girl, wearing a Grey-White Robe and having messy hair, suddenly reacted. She spoke with a smile:
“Um, hey there. Are you also here for a dare?”