80

80
Maverick's POV

I woke in a sea of perspiration. The dream I just had terrified me greatly. It only served to make me more anxious and worried about Ryder's next step of action. Realizing the alarm clock was still ringing loudly, I reached over and turned it off.

The fear that Ryder was going to abduct Celine grew more and more in me. The last two attempts had been warded off by Jarvis, but Jarvis was no longer around to protect her. Whether or not he was even going to survive was still a complete mystery to me.

I hoped with all my heart that Jarvis survived. I owed him so much for saving Celine, and I was going to repay him in any way he deemed fit.

I quickly left my bed and took a bath, after which I changed into royal attire. I was supposed to head straight for the conference room, but I decided to pay a quick visit to Celine first.

The dream of Ryder abducting Celine filled me with such terror that I was uneasy just thinking about her. I needed to make sure that she was safe and under Armstrong's protection while I was away.

I didn’t dawdle. Instead, I located Celine’s ward immediately and found her sleeping soundly with Armstrong nowhere to be seen.

I was glad that she was safe, but I was also furious that Armstrong wasn’t there.

I opened the door and took a step inside. I was immediately greeted by a cold shiver that ran through my spine. Just as I opened the door, two chain blades blocked my entrance in such a way that, if I had been too hasty, I would have been bisected.

Looking up, I realized Armstrong was positioned calmly, in a way that allowed him to fight from above.

When he realized it was me, he immediately retrieved his chain blades and came down from the ceiling.

"Your Majesty," he said, looking me right in the eye without prostrating.

"It seems you’re doing a fine job," I said, my earlier anger replaced with relief. Knowing that Armstrong was keeping Celine perfectly safe gave me some peace of mind.

"I do not want anything to stand in the way of my money, and as such, I will keep her perfectly safe," Armstrong said nonchalantly.

"But that technique of yours was a bit dangerous. What if it had been a nurse that walked in here? You could have killed her," I said, slightly annoyed that he hadn’t been cautious enough.

"Your Majesty, you need not worry about me killing any nurses. In my line of work, I can sense the strength of my opponent even without seeing them. I know the aura a nurse gives off, and from the one you were emitting, I knew you were either an assassin or an elder. An assassin would have probably died on the first attack, but an elder would have been able to evade it. Therefore, I think it’s all pretty safe," Armstrong said calmly.

"Now that I think about it, it's unlikely an assassin would walk through the front door," I said, stroking my chin lightly.

"And that’s exactly why I was on the ceiling, where I could see everything and sense if an assassin was trying to pass through the roof," Armstrong said.

"Well, thank you for your services. Keep doing what you’re doing and protect Celine at all—"

I was interrupted by the entrance of a nurse who seemed highly apologetic.

"Your Majesty, sir," she said, prostrating between myself and Armstrong in a hurry. She was obviously very tense, and the tray she was holding in her hands was beginning to fill with the sweat from her palms.

"I am here to administer Lady Celine’s drugs. I hope I’m not in the way," she said while bowing down.

"No, you’re free to go ahead," I said, gesturing for her to move over to where Celine was.

She bowed once more to both myself and Armstrong and began walking towards Celine. Armstrong said nothing and simply observed her with a sharp gaze.

When she reached Celine, she brought out a syringe and fixed a needle at its tip. She drew out a red liquid from a nearby bottle and tilted the needle closer to Celine’s neck. Her hands were shaky as she approached the vein on Celine’s neck.

Just as the needle was about to prick Celine’s skin, Armstrong’s huge hand suddenly encompassed the nurse’s.

He lifted her into the air, looking at her menacingly.

"Armstrong, what is the meaning of this? Can’t you see she’s about to administer Lady Celine’s injection?" I asked, growing wary of Armstrong’s behavior.

"How do we know this is a legitimate nurse of the kingdom?" Armstrong asked, looking in my direction.

"I am the king, not the head of the medical division. How would I know all the nurses who serve in my kingdom?" I asked, beginning to worry for the safety of both the nurse and Celine.

"How about we get the head of the medical division here so he can identify this nurse?" Armstrong suggested, his grip tightening.

"Armstrong, stop fooling around and let her administer the injection. It’s not good if it takes too long for Celine to receive her medicine," I said, starting to panic.

"Lady Celine has suffered significant psychological blows, and I’m sure she’s taken all the necessary drugs to help her. This large syringe and such a large amount of whatever medicine that is seem rather unnecessary. I cannot trust this nurse with Lady Celine’s life," Armstrong said, his voice filled with suspicion.

"You can't mean..." And that’s when it hit me. It could be that Ryder had sent one of his assassins, pretending to be one of Celine’s nurses. If that were the case, Celine was in real danger.

I quickly rushed outside and spotted a nearby nurse walking by. "Get me Lord Desmond, now," I commanded in an authoritative voice. She wasted no time, bowed, and left.

"What is the name of this drug you are about to give Lady Celine?" Armstrong asked the nurse, still holding her aloft at a distance.

"It’s just a normal drug that will help regulate her blood," the nurse said, struggling to free herself from Armstrong’s grip.

"I’m sure it has a name. Tell me the name of this drug, or I will break your arm," Armstrong threatened.

The nurse did nothing but continue struggling to escape Armstrong’s hold.

"I guess I have no choice then," Armstrong said, tightening his grip at a rapid pace. It became clear that the nurse’s arm would soon be nothing but shattered bones and punctured flesh.

Suddenly, the nurse clicked her sandals, and a sharp object protruded from the back of one of them. She kicked forcefully in the air, aiming at Armstrong’s face in a perfect split. But Armstrong had fast reflexes and was able to evade the attack.

As her leg came back down, Armstrong realized he might not be able to dodge a second strike. He threw the nurse away from him, creating some distance.

Seeing her opportunity, the nurse reached for the syringe once more and tried to pierce Celine.

Armstrong’s chain blade moved quickly, puncturing the syringe in such a way that it shattered, spilling the liquid all over Celine’s body.

"You son of a bitch!" the nurse cursed angrily. "Do you know how expensive that poison was? The only reason I went out of my way to buy it was because Ryder promised to pay me a handsome sum. Now look what you’ve done!" she shouted, infuriated.

Everything was happening so fast that, although my legs wanted to move, they could not.

I had let my guard down so much that this all unfolded right in front of me, without me having the slightest clue about what was happening at the beginning.

Armstrong’s chain blade assaulted the assassin from all directions, but she was quite skilled and evaded the attacks. Unfortunately for her, her evasions drove her directly toward me.

A wave of rage washed over me as I reached out for her neck and grabbed it, lifting her into the air. My grip began to tighten more and more. I intended to rip her head off by squeezing her neck so hard it would decapitate her.

Armstrong’s chain blade wrapped around the nurse, slightly slicing my arm, causing it to bleed. He dragged the nurse away and pinned her to the floor, rendering her powerless. If she struggled too hard, the blades would pierce her, leaving her in a terrible state.

"What did you do that for?" I asked, furious with Armstrong.

"It would be best if we saved her for questioning. If you killed her, it wouldn’t be to our advantage," Armstrong said calmly, without emotion.

Footsteps echoed in the hallway, and both Armstrong and I turned to look at the door. Lord Desmond had arrived.