Chapter 116 Trapped and Captured
However, just as Candy shouted for retreat, many people suddenly poured out from the surrounding woods. By the firelight, Candy realized they were all Zotfort soldiers.
It's over, all over.
Candy panicked inside. She knew that after running for so long, not only she but also her troops had consumed a great deal of energy. Fighting against the strong and healthy Zotfort soldiers now would surely mean certain defeat.
Moreover, she vaguely felt that these people were looking at her with overwhelming hatred.
Candy didn't understand where this hatred came from, but she knew she absolutely couldn't let them capture her, or the consequences would be unimaginable.
"Run! We'll fight our way out!"
She raised her sword and desperately ran backward, but heard a cold laugh from the crowd, "Kill everyone except the target, leave no one alive!"
"Yes!"
All the Zotfort soldiers raised their swords and surrounded Candy's group.
Candy fought back at first, but more soldiers kept coming from the battlefield. They were outnumbered.
Hanks retreated to her side, struggling to resist the attacks around them, "Candy, why do I feel like they're not attacking you? Could you be that target they mentioned?"
Candy froze. She saw the soldiers around her falling one by one, and even when they struggled, they couldn't match Zotfort's swords.
But looking carefully, although those Zotfort soldiers looked at her as if they wanted to eat her alive, their attacks all bypassed Candy and targeted the soldiers she was leading.
Thinking of this, Candy calmed down quite a bit. Although these people seemed hostile, at least they weren't attacking her. They probably just wanted to capture her alive. As for why they weren't attacking her at all, maybe the person who wanted to catch her had no ill intentions toward her.
Candy had always been confident in her beauty and abilities, and thought the other party had taken a fancy to her and wanted to kidnap her. Although she was pleased with herself, she hoped more that Holden would come to rescue her. After all, she still loved Holden and didn't want to easily go with another man.
Besides, many people had seen her chasing the enemy. Holden would know her whereabouts with just one question. It was only a matter of time before he came to rescue her. Candy believed that even if Holden didn't love her as much anymore, he would definitely come to save her.
But the current situation was beyond her control.
She was roughly grabbed, her hands twisted behind her back. The sword in her hand was knocked into the nearby grass by the Zotfort soldiers during her resistance. The person behind her grabbed Candy's hair, forcing her to look up and watch her soldiers fall one by one.
Tears blurred her vision. Candy cried out in pain, "Stop killing them, stop!"
Hanks was still holding on. Hearing Candy's voice, he couldn't help but turn around, "Candy, you..."
A Zotfort officer pressed his blade against Hanks' neck, staring at him coldly. "Say one more word and your head will roll on the ground."
Hanks immediately dared not speak again. When Candy saw that only Hanks and a few others were still alive, her heart sank. Candy understood that even if she wanted to save herself, she was completely out of options.
With no choice left, Candy softened her voice and spoke to the soldier holding her, "My friend, may I ask why you want to capture me?"
The soldier sneered, "Orders from above are to capture the female knight captain of the Soth Empire."
Candy sighed in relief. She knew Anne's reputation far exceeded her own - when people mentioned the female knight captain of the eastern battlefield, they thought of Anne, not her.
Moreover, Anne's father, Duke Skoda, had killed enemy generals when fighting against Zotfort before. If they wanted revenge, they should take it out on Anne!
Thinking of this, Candy immediately called out loudly, "You've got the wrong person!"
"The one you should catch isn't me, but Anne, Duke Skoda's daughter Anne!"
The soldiers stopped and stared at Candy, and feeling the grip on her loosen, she quickly continued, "Anne's father, Duke Skoda, killed your generals on the southern battlefield before. Now Anne has come to the eastern battlefield and killed many of your soldiers with Friedel, and destroyed your stronghold in the Else Mountains. If you're going to catch someone, it should be her!"
"Is that so?"
Suddenly, Candy heard a woman's voice from behind. She turned her head in confusion to look, but was slapped hard across the face.
The mysterious person who slapped Candy removed the hood from her head and took off the black mask on her face, revealing a beautiful yet cold face.
Just one look at that face was enough to make Candy tremble all over.
Not to mention that behind this woman, Frol was looking at her coldly.
That face was almost identical to the prisoner she had captured a year ago, except that child was clearly a boy, while the woman before her was dignified and beautiful, radiating the aura of the highest nobility.
It was a dignity that allowed no one to question it.
The surrounding soldiers, seeing this face, quickly bowed down in respect. Now not only Candy, but even the captured Hanks and others understood how noble this person's identity was.
"You dare mention the Virlet family?"
The beautiful woman spoke with hatred, "If it weren't for you, how could there be such great conflict between my country and the Soth Empire!"
Frol beside her looked somewhat bitter. He spoke softly, "Lady Manlis, it's also my fault. I couldn't control everyone at the time, and I didn't take good care of Slave."
Hearing Frol mention her son, Lady Manlis swayed, almost unable to stand, but she still said with tears, "This matter isn't your fault."
At that time, Slave insisted on going to the border. Manlis was in the capital accompanying her sister the Queen at a banquet, and no one at home could stop this future family head. Frol had always doted on Slave, so naturally he couldn't refuse his request.
Unexpectedly, not long after, Slave disappeared from the inn Frol had arranged. Soon after, a female general from the Soth Empire contacted Frol, requesting a private meeting and mentioning Slave's name.
Frol angrily accused her of threatening with an innocent child, but faced with Slave's safety, he had no choice but to compromise. So when Candy asked him to withdraw his troops so she could chase and kill some soldiers for military merit, he could only agree through gritted teeth.
But in the end, lying in the carriage from the Soth Empire was Slave's body, covered in wounds.