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Maverick's POV

Armstrong and I looked at the doorway where Lord Desmond currently stood, observing the situation and taking in every detail. He clearly had a lot of questions on his mind, but he was such a gentleman that he would not speak until he was spoken to.

“Lord Desmond, thank you for coming,” I said, greeting him and welcoming him to the scene that had unfolded before us.

“Thank you for inviting me, Your Majesty. May I know why?” he asked, observing the nurse on the ground closely.

“For the reason you are here, I need you to identify this nurse,” I said, pointing down at the nurse who currently lay on the ground, bound by Armstrong’s chain. “I am sure that as the head of the medical division, no one joins your division without first going through you.”

“Yes, that is correct. I identify every medical personnel before they are authorized to work officially. And I have to say, I have never met this nurse in my life,” Lord Desmond said, confirming all our doubts.

A feeling of fear gripped my heart. If Armstrong had not been around to protect Celine, she might have been taken away or even killed by this assailant.

“Patricia,” Lord Desmond called out, and instantly, a nearby nurse arrived. It was amazing how he could memorize every single one of the medical staff, even though he had only seen them once.

“Clean Lady Celine properly and administer 20 cc’s of termonol now,” he commanded, and without wasting any time, the nurse named Patricia got to work. Soon after, a few other nurses joined her, and Celine was swiftly carried out of the room.

“I know her,” Master Gerald’s voice said from the doorway.

It was only then that I realized he had been there all along. I turned to look at him, and his eyes were strongly fixated on the infiltrator lying on the ground.

“What did you just say?” I asked, looking at Master Gerald, wanting to hear his answer. Looking around now, I noticed that all the Elders were gathered, standing just outside the door, curiously trying to understand the situation.

They had probably been assembled in the conference room, and when Lord Desmond was called out, they had followed behind him.

“Well, well, well. We meet again, don’t we, Gerald?” the infiltrator said, looking at Gerald with a smirk.

“Yes, Sasha, it seems we do meet again. Considering the position you’re in, do you think you are in any shape to be smiling?” Master Gerald asked, addressing the nurse—or Sasha, as he had just called her.

“Well, I don’t think there’s any use in me struggling or any chance of me escaping. So why don’t I just find joy in the little things? You know, I really enjoyed watching you suffer years back,” Sasha said, smiling at Lord Gerald.

“Well, contrary to your delight, I didn’t enjoy it at all. If I had been younger, thoughts of revenge would have still clouded my mind. But your actions weren’t significant enough for me to worry about,” Lord Gerald said.

“You insolent little... well, you aren’t little anymore, are you? You’re an Elder now, and you command respect. Doesn’t mean I can’t poison you on a good day,” Sasha said and laughed.

“Excuse me, but do you two know each other?” I asked, cutting into their conversation.

“My apologies for not properly introducing her, Your Majesty. This lady here is known as Sasha the Purple for her exquisite use of poison. She’s also known as the Mistress of Poison and has used most of the poisons known. I met her during my youth as a bodyguard. She was new to the mercenary world, but she was highly skilled and talented. She nearly killed one of my clients once, but I had been quick to stop her. In the process of saving my client, I was laced with a poison that caused me great pain, and I suffered terribly. She was frustrated that she couldn’t get to my client because of the security, so she filled me up with more and more poison until the pain became unbearable. I would have died if I hadn’t received medical attention soon after,” Master Gerald explained.

Hearing that Celine was nearly attacked by such an infamous assassin, fear gripped me. If Armstrong had been a shred more lax, Celine might have been taken away.

“What the hell were you planning to do to her?” I asked, staring Sasha right in the face. I was enraged and was fighting the urge to kill her on the spot. If we were alone in a room, I would have ripped her head off long ago. But there were too many people here, and Armstrong was most likely to stop me—possibly by force—so I decided to refrain.

“What do you think?” Sasha said, staring at me nonchalantly. She had no remorse or fear of her current situation, and it worried me.

“So, Ryder paid you to kill Celine, did he? I’m going to get my revenge on that bastard, and maybe I can start by showing him your corpse,” I said, staring down at Sasha menacingly.

Sasha stared at me for a while, then she began to laugh. “It seems you may be dim of wit. Ryder told me to be careful of your strength, but he didn’t mention anything about your intelligence. Now that I’ve experienced it firsthand, I know you’re nothing but a moron. Ryder wants his wife and his child. You really think he would go as far as killing both of them? What could you possibly gain from that?” Sasha asked in a tone that infuriated me.

This wasn’t the first time such thoughts about Ryder had crossed my mind. I knew that it was most likely Ryder’s plan to abduct Celine, but at that moment, too many things were going through my head for me to process it properly.

“What was the poison you just gave her going to do?” I asked, wanting to know what Celine might have suffered if Armstrong hadn’t been alert.

“Well, she would have slept for a long time. What I gave her would have put her in a deep sleep, possibly up to two weeks. If I had given her a bit more, she could have been asleep for an entire month, but giving her too much would affect the baby. So, I decided to only give her a little. What you see there is very expensive, and that bastard right there is going to pay for it,” Sasha said, glaring at Armstrong.

“You were going to harm an innocent woman and a baby just for money?” I asked, looking at Sasha with disgust.

“Well, I don’t really know what you mean, but to be honest, what you just said is ludicrous. Who knows if Celine being in your hands is wrong? Who knows if you’re the one treating her badly, and Ryder is the one capable of treating her well? For all I know, Ryder is the father of the child, and therefore the rightful one to raise it. Considering he’s paying me as well, you really think your opinion matters in my line of work?” Sasha asked, staring at me as though I were some kind of fool.

“You know I hold your fate—life and death—in my hands,” I said, trying to remind Sasha of her position.

“You think I fear death? I have lost too many comrades in my line of work to be scared of death. All my family members and friends I once held dear are dead. Do you really think I have anyone to go to? If I were to die, no one would miss me. In fact, it would probably be a good deduction from the world. After all, should I be allowed to roam freely, more people would die instead. I have no one to go to, and the only thing that keeps me going is the pleasure money can buy me. So, if you want to kill me, I don’t care. I practice with poisons, and I’ve been stung by the ones I’ve created many times. I don’t think there’s any torture you can think of that would have any effect on me. So, there’s nothing you can say that will make me terrified of you,” Sasha said, her expression completely indifferent.

“Master Gerald, if you wouldn’t mind, take Sasha here and lock her up. I believe she can be of some use to us in the future,” I said, not wanting to look at Sasha anymore.

“As you wish, Your Majesty,” Master Gerald said, approaching Sasha.

“Hold on,” Lord Desmond said, stepping forward.

“Desmond, what are you doing? She is dangerous,” Master Gerald said in a warning tone toward Lord Desmond.

“And that is exactly why she cannot be let loose,” Lord Desmond said, pulling out an injection from his garments.

Lord Desmond held onto Sasha’s head and pressed it to the ground forcefully, humiliating her. She tried to struggle free, but Lord Desmond was a male, and even though she was an assassin, she couldn’t overpower him. The injection was cleanly administered, and a few seconds later, Sasha was asleep.

Armstrong released her from his chain blade, and Master Gerald did not hesitate to tie her up before taking her to the dungeon.