For some reason today, she woke up exceptionally early.
Su Ling’s eyes slowly opened in the dim light, her vision gradually adapting to the shadows of the Underground Room.
The air was filled with dampness and biting cold, as if even her breath could freeze into frost. She lightly rubbed her eyes, trying to dispel the lingering drowsiness and clear her vision.
Pushing open the door, Su Ling stepped out cautiously. The corridor was silent; the Servants had not yet awakened.
As if drawn by something in her heart, Su Ling lightened her steps and followed the stairs upward.
Outside, the horizon was faint with the first light of dawn, but this light brought little warmth. Instead, it gave Su Ling an indescribable sense of unease. She did not know where this premonition came from, only feeling a dull ache in her chest.
Stepping out of the Grand Hall door, a gust of cold air rushed at her, carrying the freshness and bone-chilling cold unique to early morning. Su Ling couldn’t help but shiver, tightening her clothes as she tried to ward off this sudden chill.
The sky was shrouded in a layer of lead-gray mist. The light was dim, and the air was thick with an oppressive atmosphere. Everything around her was silent—no crows, no human voices; even the wind seemed to have stifled its breath.
The deathly silence made Su Ling’s heart race. Her ears became unusually sharp in this quiet gloom, catching every tiny sound.
Suddenly, the sound of flapping wings brushed past her ear. She was startled and looked up to see a Strange Bird with black feathers circling across the sky, a few feathers fluttering down.
Su Ling only then noticed a familiar silhouette not far away.
Tii’s long, curled Red Hair rose and fell in the wind, her pitch-black cloak fluttering like ripples.
“Tii… Tii…”
Su Ling instinctively called out that name.
For some reason, Su Ling felt that Tii looked a bit different today than usual.
The Red Hair girl turned her head at the sound, her eyes as dark as ink resting on Su Ling’s face.
Seeing Su Ling before her, the girl first froze for a moment, then revealed a gentle smile.
“Morning, Little Su Ling. You’re up quite early today.”
“Tii, what are you doing here?”
Su Ling walked to her side, looking up and down at that peculiar bird. She felt somewhat confused as to how Tii could still be tending birds in the City.
“Just out for some fresh air~” Tii gently stroked the bird’s feathers. “Nori Highness ordered me to go out later to buy some spices. The Marketplace is a bit far, so I’ll be heading out in a moment.”
“Aren’t you going to leave after breakfast?”
“No need.”
“Are you sure you won’t stay a bit longer before going?”
“Haha, Little Su Ling, could it be that you can’t bear to let me go?” She smiled and reached out to scratch Su Ling’s cold, red nose. “I didn’t know Little Su Ling was so clingy.”
“I am not. Just be careful on the road.”
Su Ling patted Tii’s shoulder and didn’t continue teasing her.
Tii whispered something into the bird’s ear. The bird gave a cry and then spread its wings and flew away. She turned back to look at Su Ling, seemingly wanting to say something.
Just then, the faint clattering of tableware came from not far away.
“Ah, breakfast time is about to start. Tii, I’m going back to work now.”
Tii seemed to say something back to her, but the sound was muffled by a layer of wind. Su Ling didn’t hear it clearly; she just preoccupied herself with jogging back toward the direction of the Underground Room.
If there was something else, it would be fine to wait until Tii returned to talk, right? Right now, she had to get to the kitchen to work as soon as possible.
She turned this over in her mind.
Before she could go down, Su Ling’s footsteps came to an abrupt halt at the stairwell. Several Servants stood there, their expressions solemn, appearing to be discussing something.
“Have you heard? Nori Highness seems to have disappeared.” one voice said tremblingly, with obvious panic.
“Of course. Blanche, that Old Woman who cleans the rooms, has already been spreading it everywhere,” another Servant responded. “This morning, Nori Highness’s Bedroom was empty. There was only a clump of dirty mud on the bed…”
“Mud? How could it be mud?” a young woman nearby chimed in, her voice full of confusion.
“Maybe the child was being naughty and went out to play in the wild again.”
“Who knows? Anyway, now we have to go to the Rear Garden to find her…” an older Servant sighed. His face was etched with the marks of time, looking even heavier at this moment.
“Sigh, even the Guards rotating at the gate have been requested to look for Her Highness. It looks like this is no small matter.”
Just as the Servants’ discussion grew louder, a sharp voice cut through the tense atmosphere. Approaching from a distance, it was the Cassamyre everyone feared. Her shadow, like a dark shroud, quickly loomed over the entire stairwell.
“Hey! You lazy things, what are you still standing here for?”
Cassamyre’s voice was like a whip, lashing the nerves of every Servant. She stood with her hands on her hips, looking at the group unceremoniously. “If you don’t get to work, I’m going to report you to the Lord Butler!”
“But Cassamyre, we haven’t made breakfast yet…” a manservant looked up nervously, fine beads of sweat already appearing on his forehead. “The morning cleaning hasn’t been done either…”
“Set those things aside!” Cassamyre interrupted him. “Lier Highness’s Royal Command is that finding Nori Highness is the priority!”
“But…”
“Don’t argue, listen! All Servants are to leave the Main Tower and gather toward the Rear Garden. You are not allowed to return without a command.” There was no room for negotiation in those words, only orders and determination. “Move it, now!”
Under Cassamyre’s shouting, the hesitating Servants no longer wavered and hurried toward the Rear Garden. Their footsteps echoed in the empty corridor like a driven flock of sheep, panicked and disordered.
Su Ling stood a bit further away; no one noticed her presence.
She watched the tall Cassamyre lead the group toward the back. She took a step forward but stopped again.
Nori was gone.
The inexplicable unease in her heart grew clearer.
Why was she missing? Could it be that Lier had already made a move? If so, wouldn’t Tii also be in danger?
Her heart was in turmoil. Unconsciously, she began to run, her steps getting faster and faster. Her hurried footsteps echoed in the Grand Hall, sounding exceptionally loud in the empty space.
She had no time to think, no time to hesitate. There was only one thought in her mind—to find Tii.
The Silver Hair girl rushed out of the tower’s gate. The cold morning air cut into her lungs like a knife, but she couldn’t care about that now.
Her eyes searched everywhere, hoping to find Tii’s figure, but the platform where the Red Hair girl had been tending the bird was empty. Only the cold wind swirled in the desolate space.
It seemed she had already gone out.
Su Ling’s heart sank.
What if… what if the current Tii… had already been harmed by the Princess.
She didn’t dare think further; she only knew she had to find Tii as quickly as possible. She turned and, almost by instinct, ran toward the direction of the City gate.
“Tii… Tii, where are you?”
Her heart was filled with worry. Those warnings about being deceived had long been forgotten. Right now, Su Ling only wanted to see her most important friend and ensure her safety.
One step, two steps… she was almost at the position of the City gate.
However, the premonition of unease became clearer and clearer.
The road was empty, leaving only a suffocating silence.
Unknowingly, a pungent and sharp smell of blood began to fill the air. This smell made her stomach churn, and the ominous premonition loomed over her head like a dark cloud.
What on earth happened? Why is there so much blood here?
The ground gradually began to turn crimson. Su Ling followed those mottled bloodstains, walking forward continuously, almost unable to control her racing heart.
All sorts of terrifying scenarios flashed through her mind, but her steps showed no sign of stopping.
Finally, the Great Gate of the City appeared before her.
Su Ling looked up. In an instant, the scene before her left her so shocked she could barely breathe.
Fresh blood, flowing like water, had stained the entire clearing red. Before her lay dozens of fallen corpses—some were Palace Guards, and others were faces Su Ling had never seen before.
Standing above that blood-red scene was a slender girl. Her entire body was splattered with blood, and in her hand, she gripped a Guard’s long blade, the edge still dripping with fresh crimson.
In the hazy morning mist, the girl slowly turned around. A pair of deep green eyes looked exceptionally sharp in the fog.
It was Tii.
Su Ling’s pupils dilated suddenly, her gaze unable to shift from the Red Hair girl. She could hardly believe her eyes—her best friend, the Red Hair girl who always carried a gentle smile, was now standing in a pool of blood as if she had become a completely different person.
“Tii…”
The voice squeezed out of her throat was almost inaudible.
“…”
Tii also seemed a bit surprised. The long blade in her hand slowly lowered, the tip of the sword resting on the ground with a light metallic clink.
“Su Ling.”
The two looked at each other. Tii seemed to want to explain something, but suddenly, she turned her head to look elsewhere. She abruptly tightened her grip on the long blade, revealing a look of vigilance.
Su Ling took two steps back, following her gaze to look behind her.
Not far behind Su Ling, another girl slowly approached—a silhouette Su Ling was equally familiar with.
“Hmph, you’ve finally revealed yourself, assassin of Black Feather.”
Sista gave a cold laugh, staring at Tii who stood in the pool of blood. Her jet-black long hair fluttered wildly in the cold wind behind her.
In an instant, the air seemed to freeze.