She sensed someone else in the room. However, she could not identify the person’s exact location.
This room, her private dining room, was an open room boasting a squarish layout, a high ceiling, a gorgeous, hand-woven rug extending over the entire floor space, stacked pillows and cushions that served as a sofa, a single dining table, a tapestry featuring the scenery of an oasis, and roses picked by gardeners every morning that maids subsequently used to skillfully decorate the room. This is where she came to escape from her parents when eating with them in the hall was not what she desired to do.
She looked up at approximately a dozen ventilation windows on the roof. The windows, which contained engraved hollows, surrounded the roof to regulate light and ventilation. Now, they had become a possible “entry” for a sneak attack. That is, if the attacker would be able to climb up the wall that was three to four stories high. She would rather believe that the person was hiding under the cushions or behind the tapestry.
This feeling was rather unpleasant. she did not like to have to face this kind of threat every time she woke up. However, she immediately remembered what her teacher had said. That is, when faced with situations like this, rather than trying to locate the assassin, sometimes, it is more effective to simply wait for the “fish” to take the bait.
Accordingly, she walked casually to the low dining table. The head maid tested the food in front of her to confirm that the food was not poisoned. The food consisted of flatbreads, roasted chicken with spice, boiled beans, and fried bread balls on a large silver plate the size of a washbowl. Beside the silver plate was a gold teapot and a cup of hot tea.
“Please enjoy your meal, miss.” The human head maid lowered her head and quietly exited the room. However, the murderous atmosphere remained in the air.
She broke out in cold sweat and could feel the butterflies in her stomach. Nevertheless, she mustered up the strength needed to grab her breakfast. At this moment, a short dagger was thrown at her from the dark. Being on the alert, she easily caught the light reflected by the dagger and frantically grabbed the silver plate to shield herself from the attack. Although she successfully stopped the attack with the silver plate, the plate also blocked her view.
She lowered the silver plate only to see a masked assassin, dressed in a loose cloak, immediately jumping out from under the cushions. She could not identify who the assassin was or who the assassin worked for.
“Murderer!” she yelled, grabbing the knife from the dining table—her only weapon—to confront her attacker. Once she realized that there was only one assassin, she hesitated no more and rushed towards him in an attempt to pin him down.
The assassin did not seem fazed by her retaliation and responded quickly. After seeing his weapon being knocked away by her, he bent his body slightly and revealed a short knife. He then proceeded to unlock her arms and attempted to stab her in the chest.
She gritted her teeth and fell backwards, barely evading the attack. After slamming into the table, she used the momentum to bring herself back up and utilized her tail to balance her body. She jumped up to dodge his attack and swung her tail, landing on him. The strike was like being run into by a man, knocking him backwards.
The assassin regained his footing and was ready to launch another attack before the door was opened.
“Miss, I am here!”
The head maid hollered at the door, panting. The assassin stopped and looked back and forth at the two nervous, panting girls.
“You barely passed,” said the assassin lightly.
Upon hearing his words, Diana let out a sigh of relief and slumped down on the ground, wiping away her sweat. He removed the cover from his face, unveiling a part of his face. He was a human, indeed. However, most of his face was still covered with a black mask, and his eyes were distant and cold.
