Chapter 6: The Compass

Anderson had no idea that this pointer possessed such powerful capabilities.

After accepting it, he expressed his deepest gratitude to the White Wizard.

“I truly do not know how to thank you enough.”

“It is nothing. I owed you a favor from before, so consider this repayment.”

The White Wizard did not say anything else; after handing the pointer over to Anderson, she continued to stir the medicinal soup in her pot.

Anderson left with the pointer, but he failed to notice that, inside the cottage, the White Wizard’s lips curled into an uncontrollable smirk.

Once she removed her pointed hat, had Anderson still been there, he certainly would have realized that this was none other than Ainola, the very person he was looking for!

“Oh my, what a gullible simpleton,” Ainola exclaimed with a sigh.

What she had given Anderson was not a magical pointer, and it would not lead him to her.

It was merely an ordinary compass, stripped of its color and etched with some superficial magic formations to put on a show.

Furthermore, Ainola was not the White Wizard; as for where the real White Wizard had gone, that was a different matter.

If one were to lift the curtain to the inner room now, it would be easy to discover that, on the bed inside, the poor girl had been hog-tied and tossed aside.

Although Ainola was an assassin, her ability to fight head-on was not weak at all.

Even a renowned wizard of the Glory Empire was no match for her within three moves.

Moreover, an assassin’s art of disguise is quite potent, and by using the White Wizard’s robes, she had easily deceived Anderson.

“By now, Anderson should be wandering aimlessly, following the direction of that compass, right?”

Ainola chuckled playfully, then walked into the inner room and spoke to the bound White Wizard:

“Sister, I am sorry, but I cannot untie you, or else you would go and report me to Anderson.”

“Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!”

The White Wizard, gagged by her own white silk ribbons, could not speak a word and could only emit such muffled sounds of protest.

“However, you need not worry about starving to death in here; this rope is specially made, and it will automatically dissolve after 12 hours. I am sorry, but you will just have to endure it here until then.”

Ainola smiled and took the gold coins from the wizard’s robes, weighed them in her hand, and continued.

“I am borrowing a portion of this money.”

The White Wizard felt even more like crying, though she had no tears left.

With her mouth blocked, she had no room to argue.

And the point was not about being hungry or not; if she had to be tied here for 12 hours, then during those 12 hours… how was she supposed to use the restroom?!

Fortunately, Ainola had anticipated this as well.

She struck her palm with a fist and said,

“Ah, I almost forgot. I will go get the chamber pot for you right away.”

Hearing this, the White Wizard’s eyes turned completely lifeless.

“Bye-bye then!”

Ainola walked out of the Forest Cottage with a smile.

She was, of course, joking with the White Wizard; she did indeed need the compass to interfere with Anderson’s tracking, but she did not need to delay him for three days.

So, the poor girl, the White Wizard, would only need to remain tied up for about 12 hours.

At this thought, Ainola nodded and said quite proudly,

“I am still quite merciful, after all. If it were any other assassin, they would have already silenced you permanently, you know?”

One can only wonder what the White Wizard would think of that statement, but Ainola herself was feeling very pleased.

Happiness, sometimes, is just that simple.

Now, she could take the opportunity to slip out of the encirclement around Hail City and head toward the Canyon of the Abyss.

After making all necessary preparations, Ainola hid her dual blades behind her back and carefully made her way toward the outskirts of the city.

The journey was extremely perilous.

Nowadays, the trails of Temple Knights were everywhere in Hail City; they were like the hyenas of the Glory Empire, desperate to capture her at any cost.

While these Temple Knights were undoubtedly strong, it was a pity that for Ainola, known as the assassin Red Sparrow, her infiltration and anti-tracking abilities were leagues above them.

Especially since their orders had been so rushed, the current encirclement was riddled with holes.

Ainola did not expend much effort in successfully bypassing all the Temple Knights’ perimeters.

However, this silent infiltration was not the result Ainola wanted.

After all, she needed Anderson to know that she was “dead.”

Otherwise, he would never give up the hunt for her; as time dragged on, her tracks would inevitably be discovered by him.

Only by letting him know she was “dead” would he stop his persistent capture, and in time, he would eventually let it go.

After all, a “dead person” is not worth spending so much energy on.

Even if Anderson had a bit of affection for her, it would still hold true.

“Come to think of it… why did that oaf Anderson take a liking to me?”

Ainola could not quite wrap her head around it.

Logically, as a Prince, Anderson should have no shortage of beautiful women by his side.

Why seek her out, someone who lived in the shadows?

Unable to figure it out, Ainola ultimately concluded…

“Hmm… perhaps it is because I am just too cute?”

As she said this, she could not help but place her hands on her hips, looking quite proud of herself.

However, she shrugged shortly after and said,

“Well, it is just a thought. It is impossible for him to actually like me; I reckon I am just being self-indulgent. He must hate me to death right now, so how could he possibly have any affection? Though, it would be better if he did.”

If Anderson felt anything for her, then Ainola would truly love to see the expression on his face after she leaped off the cliff.

That would certainly be quite spectacular.

At this thought, the corners of Ainola’s mouth curled upward again.

In Ainola’s philosophy, happiness must always be accompanied by the suffering of others.

Much like a competitive game, only by making the opponent lose can one enjoy the thrill of victory.

Ainola’s joy was just that simple.

So, as for her revenge against the Glory Empire, let its finale be the path of pain for its Prince.

Surely, that would be a magnificent display of fireworks.

Ainola thought about this contentedly as she walked out of the city.

A few days later, as Ainola was walking along a forest trail, a shrill whistle echoed in her ears.

“This sound… the rally whistle of the Temple Knights?!”

Ainola never imagined her whereabouts would be exposed here.

But there was no other choice; she was forced to draw the dual blades from her back.

After readying herself for battle, Ainola saw a team of Temple Knights flanking her from front and back.

The man leading them was none other than the Temple Knight who had been by Anderson’s side before—Lewis.

“Miss Red Sparrow,” Lewis looked at Ainola with a cold smile and said without a hint of politeness:

“It is not too late to surrender; you cannot defeat so many Temple Knights.”

“That is true.”

Ainola nodded, expressing her agreement with Lewis’s assessment.

She was an assassin; she was adept at head-on combat and surprise attacks.

But as for fighting multiple opponents at once, she really could not win.

However, being unable to win did not mean Ainola would just surrender.

Seeing Ainola take a combat stance, Lewis frowned and said, “Miss Ainola, His Highness the Prince asked me to bring you a message: lay down your weapons and surrender, and our Temple Knights can guarantee your safety.”