Chapter Twenty Two

Chapter Twenty Two

Villagers screamed.

Maximus instantly moved in front of me, blocking another arrow that flew past my shoulder.

“AMBUSH!” Abel shouted.

Before I could blink, dark figures emerged from behind houses, barrels, rooftops, moving with speed too familiar to ignore. Their eyes were wild, their movements controlled and uniform.

Rogues.

But not the real ones.

Not the ones from my past life.

These were… different.

Their power felt close, unnervingly close.
Like someone had tried to copy rogue abilities , but not perfectly.
Their strikes were strong, but not strong enough.
Their coordination was sharp, but not feral enough.

Someone had engineered this.

“Stay behind me,” the King growled.

Abel had already leapt off his horse, positioning himself at my left, sword ready.
Maximus guarded my right, his presence practically radiating dominance.

But the rogues didn’t hesitate.

They charged.

Maximus moved first, disarming one with a swift blow. Abel blocked another with a force that sent vibrations through the ground.

But then

I saw it.

Abel’s eyes flashed gold, his teeth sharpening, his claws pushing through his fingers.
His body leaned forward.

He was about to shift.

Into werewolf form.

My breath caught.

In this kingdom, only the royal bloodline was supposed to have shifting abilities. Guards were warriors, not beasts.

Abel wasn’t supposed to have this power.

He realized it a later.

And with impossible restraint, he forced the transformation back inside, growling under his breath as his eyes dimmed to brown again. He straightened instantly, resuming normal combat, pretending nothing had happened.

But I saw it.

I saw everything.

A rogue leaped at me , but Maximus grabbed the attacker by the collar, slammed him onto the ground, and stood over him .

Another tried to reach my horse, but Abel intercepted with such speed that dust scattered beneath his feet.

This wasn’t a normal ambush.

This was staged.
Planned.
Designed to test reactions, my reactions, Maximus’s reactions, Abel’s reactions.

My chest tightened.

Someone in this kingdom wanted to see how we fought.
Someone wanted to provoke something in me.

And I had a very strong feeling I knew who.

“Luna, stay close!” Maximus ordered as a second wave approached.

Abel moved nearer too, making sure I was between them, two shields, two different loyalties.

“Anna,” Abel murmured under his breath, “these aren’t real rogues.”

“I know,” I replied softly, eyes narrowing. “Someone was training them.”

His jaw tightened.

Then.

From the rooftops above, I heard a soft metallic click.

Another arrow.

But this one…
This one wasn’t aimed at the heralds.
Or the king.
Or Abel.

It was aimed directly at me.

Maximus saw it at the last second.

“ANNABELLE!”

And the arrow split the air toward my heart.

The arrow shot toward me with terrifying speed.

Maximus shouted my name, Abel stepped forward

But I didn’t freeze.

I pulled on the horse’s reins, and leaned sideways, the arrow slicing through the air just inches from my arm.

It missed.

My horse reared, hooves striking the air, and I slid off smoothly, landing on my feet in a crouch.

Two rogues rushed toward me immediately or whatever these creatures pretending to be rogues were.

I didn’t wait.

I grabbed a handful of dust from the ground, my fingers moving instinctively, quickly forming a mixture as old memories guided my hands.

Alchemy wasn’t always fire and explosions.
Sometimes it was speed.
Precision.
Instinct, it was the science of magic.

As the two attackers lunged, I whispered the words:

“Ignis fractum.”

A sudden burst of light and heat flared from my palm
Not enough to injure,
just enough to blind.

The two rogues recoiled, stumbling, giving me room to step forward and sweep one off his feet with a kick.

Maximus froze mid-strike, staring at me
in astonishment.

Abel’s eyes widened too, but there was no time for more.

A third rogue charged from behind.

I twisted, grabbed the fallen rogue’s weapon, and blocked the incoming strike with a clang. I elbowed him in the ribs, and used the momentum to flip him onto the dirt.

Abel reached my side instantly.

“Anna!”

“I’m fine,” I said, breathing hard but steady. “Focus.”

He hesitated… just long enough for me to see it in his eyes:

He wasn’t just shocked that I could fight.

He was shocked that I fought like someone who had lived this battle before.

Another rogue tried to flank us.

Abel struck him with enough force to send him tumbling back.
and for a second, his eyes turned gold again.

I pretended not to notice.

A fourth rogue came for me, and this time I reached into the small pouch on my belt one I had prepared earlier, just in case.

I threw a pinch of powder at his feet.

A thick, shimmering fog erupted upward, making him cough and stumble in confusion.

A binding mist.
Harmless, but still effective.

Maximus looked between the fog, the fallen rogues, and me.

“Luna…” he breathed, voice low, stunned. “You… fight.”

I didn’t answer.

I didn’t have to.

Because above us, on the rooftop, I saw a figure step back into the shadows
calm, watching, satisfied.

Not a rogue.
Not part of the ambush.

A mastermind.

Someone testing me. Testing Abel. Testing the king.

Someone who wanted to see how far I could go before breaking the timeline.

A cold realization slid down my spine.

This wasn’t an attack.

This was a warning.

And I had answered it loudly.

The last of the fake rogues limped into the trees, disappearing like shadows swallowed by the forest.

For a moment, the world fell silent.

Only the heavy breathing of guards, the crackle of disturbed dust, and the distant whimpers of frightened villagers hid behind doors remained.

Maximus stepped forward, sword dripping with dirt, not blood. His chest heaved as he searched the treeline.

“Show yourselves!” he barked.

No answer.

No movement.

I kept my eyes on the rooftops , where I’d seen a slim silhouette just moments ago. Cloaked and Watching

But now?
It was Gone

Like they had vanished into air.

Whoever it was… they wanted to be seen only by me.

I stepped closer to Maximus. “The villagers,” I said quietly. “They’re terrified.”

He straightened. “Guards! Tell the people it is safe. But No one leaves their home until we secure the area.”

But even the guards looked shaken.

The attack was too coordinated, strong and clean.

Yet… wrong.

Very wrong.

Maximus turned sharply. “Take the injured ones,” he ordered, voice cold, controlled. “I want them dragged to the dungeon. They will answer for this”

He didn’t get to finish.

One of the “injured” rogues the one Abel had slammed into the ground twitched.

Then twisted unnaturally.

Then his head snapped back, his mouth opening wide in a silent scream.

And he collapsed into dust.

Fine, pale granules that blew away with the slightest wind.

Every guard froze.

Then
One by one
Every half-dead and dead rogue began spasming violently.

“STAND BACK!” Maximus roared, shoving Abel away from one that had been at his feet.

The rogues’ bodies cracked, split, and turned dry like brittle stone

And in seconds

They disintegrated
into dust and empty clothing.

My stomach tightened.

Maximus stared at the remains, horrified, whispering more to himself than anyone else:

“…what sorcery is this…”

Abel stepped closer to me, his hand brushing mine as if checking I was real. “Anna… this wasn’t normal. Not even for rogues.”

“I know,” I said quietly.

Because real rogues bled. Real rogues didn’t… evaporate.

Not unless someone altered them.

Created them.

Maximus knelt, touching a pile of dust. It sifted through his fingers like it had been waiting for this exact command.

“They weren’t real people,” I murmured aloud.

Maximus turned sharply. “What did you say?”

“They were constructs,” I said. “Copies. Artificial bodies. Someone created them not to kill us, but to watch how we fought.”

Maximus looked around the rooftops the same moment I did.

The figure was gone.

Whoever had sent these things was already five steps ahead.

Maximus rose slowly, jaw tight, voice dangerously low. “Find me the creator of these… abominations.”

Abel touched my arm lightly. “Anna… you need to be careful. Someone knew exactly how to strike today.”

Yes.
Someone who had been waiting.
Someone who wanted me to see them.

And the mysterious presence, wherever they were, would be back.

They had tested me, and I had passed.

But now?

They knew exactly what I was capable of.