Masked Knight

Rody’s expression changed slightly. He looked at the servant and took a deep breath before asking, "Where is your master? Is he in that carriage?"

The servant solemnly and respectfully nodded.

Rody sighed and dismounted. He then followed the servant to the carriage. He calmed himself, gritted his teeth and then opened the door of the carriage.

A young woman was sitting on a soft fur in the spacious carriage. She was wearing a long, white silky dress. Her eyebrows were hazy like the distant mountains. Her eyes were cold as she looked at Rody and seemed to smile yet was not quite smiling.

Rody immediately felt relieved and smiled. “So, it is you! Miss Myka, you have given me a fright!”

Myka gave a shallow smile. Her tone was still cold but her voice sounded eager. She then slowly said, “Your Excellency the Duke have made great contributions in the Northwest Region. I am afraid you may have forgotten your promise.”

Rody froze for a moment before he remembered his original promise to visit her. His face turned red and then he smiled. “I have only just returned a few days ago. I have been busy in the past few days and did not have the chance to visit you.”

Myka laughed and said, “A few days ago, Your Excellency the Duke went to the brothel but you did not visit me.”

Rody’s face turned red and he whispered, “That day, there were other people around. Besides that, I also bumped into the people from the Great Moon Kingdom. As a result, it was not convenient for me to visit you.”

Myka nodded and smiled, “Well, I do not blame you. However, you have returned for so many days, so I was worried about you and decided to come and see you. I was afraid that you have now forgotten this friend.”

Rody sighed and smiled, “Of course, I will not forget you. I will never forget my friends.” Rody paused for a moment before continuing, “How are you these days?”

Myka looked a bit gloomy as she slowly said, “Bayan came to find me several times but all of his attempts were stopped. Ever since you left for the Northwest, he is becoming bolder every day.”

Rody frowned and asked, “Bayan? Does he...not know about your relationship with Seth?”

Myka smiled and replied, "Do not forget that, right now, you are Seth. However, he is becoming more uncontrolled since you were in the Northwest Region."

Rody frowned and did not say anything. After that, Myka smiled and said, “I came to meet you today, not to discuss this matter. Even though I live in the Imperial Capital, I do not have many friends. I knew that you had returned, so I decided to come and see you.”

Rody also smiled as he replied, “This is great. Anyway, I do not have any more business today. I remember that your wine is good. It is not easy to get to drink it. Today, I can go and savor it.”

Myka also smiled and replied, “Well, not only you did not act as promised when you came back, but you even try to take advantage of me.”

Myka smiled as she ordered her servant to drive the carriage to the brothel. A servant had also tied Rody’s horse to the carriage.

Along the way, the two of them talked and laughed. Rody felt relaxed. He was an impostor of the Duke and was tired of acting in the Imperial Capital. He could only relax when he was with Nicole at home. As a result, he also felt happy meeting Myka. That was because she also knew his true identity, and he felt relaxed as he did not need to disguise his speech and manners.

When they arrived at the brothel, Madam Sophie saw that Myka and the Duke were together. She put up a smile but secretly felt scared. She felt that the Duke was someone who attracted problems. Even a few days ago, there was a fight in the brothel that scared off a lot of customers. She hoped that there would be no problems this time.

Rody also ignored her. He followed Myka into her room. Myka then took out the good wine, and both of them talked and laughed. They talked about the customs of the Northwest Region. Rody felt relaxed in front of Myka.

Although he talked about all things with Nicole, but, for some reason, he did not want to mention about his wonderful encounter with the Black Veil Saint. He wanted to hide his subtle feelings for Mouse from his lover.

However, it was different with Myka. When he first met Myka, he had been in a little bit of reverie. However, he had experienced a lot of things in the Northwest Region and that reverie had faded. The other party also knew his true self, and he felt close to her. As a result, he subconsciously told her everything.

When Myka heard that, she was shocked and turned pale. However, she was cold natured, unlike Nicole or Jojo who would turn pale and cry out in alarm.

Rody’s face was red as he slowly recounted his experience with Mouse. Myka just smiled and listened quietly. When Rody told about their separation, he looked a bit gloomy. Myka’s feelings were slightly stirred up when she saw Rody’s appearance and said, “The Black Veil Saint was right. Your position is now different and you would need to prioritize the overall situation.”

Rody gave a wry smile and said, “For a long time, I have not wanted to be the Duke anymore. I hope Nicole will be able to find Seth soon.”

Myka looked a bit sad. She sighed but did not speak.

The two of them were silent for a while before Myka smiled and said, “I have recently learned a new song but I have not finished learning it. The next time you come here, I will sing it for you.”

Rody smiled and replied, “Good! You dance well, therefore, your singing must be good as well.”

Myka sighed and said, “I am just not sure when will be the next time you will see me.” After that, she started to look lonely as she slowly continued, "I have no friends here. I hide inside my room every day. After Seth left, nobody visited me anymore. What a joke. In the Imperial Capital, I have no friends. The only one that can be considered as a friend is just you."

Rody raised his eyebrows and replied, “In life, one friend is enough! Miss Myka, no matter what, I am just an ordinary kid. I admire your conduct and your experiences in life. I have already considered you as my friend.”

Myka smiled again as she raised her cup of wine and said, “Among the men whom I have met, you are the only person who calls me a friend. The others look at me as prey.”

Rody drank another mouthful of wine and smiled. “Your words fill me with shame. When I first met you, I was also agitated for a long time.”

Both of them felt happy as they did not have any estrangement in their hearts. They felt great comfort in having such a trusted friend in the Imperial Capital.

When the sun had set, Rody, who was feeling a little drunk, got up and asked to leave. Myka sent him out with a faint smile. She saw several of Rody’s guards were already waiting outside the door.

Although Randt and a few of the guards were dismissed, they continued to follow Rody from afar. When Randt saw Rody enter Myka’s carriage and head towards the brothel, he gave a familiar laugh. He thought that the Young Master had not changed much, even though he was already a Duke.

They helped Rody get up on the horse. They noticed that the Duke was happy and that his depression from the negotiations with the Great Moon Kingdom was already swept away. The guards laughed in their hearts but kept a respectful look.

They slowly rode towards the Duke’s Mansion.

With the cold wind blowing at him, Rody gradually calmed down. He noticed that there were a lot of pedestrians around, pointing at him with respect. Some of them even stopped and saluted him.

Rody was touched as he thought of the victorious mood of the citizens in the public square.

The pitiful ordinary citizens thought that the Empire would be stable as long as the Tulip Family was around. However, how much could the Tulip Family banner do?

Rody was sighing when his mind suddenly gave him a faint sense of warning. He then heard Randt roar loudly and fiercely knocked into him. Rody was immediately knocked down from the horse. He then heard the sound of something whiz past as Randt also fell from the horse. An arrow had struck Randt in the left arm. The arrow was extremely powerful to be able to pierce through Randt’s arm.

A few guards shouted and immediately surrounded Rody. They pulled out their swords and looked around attentively.

The pedestrians on the streets were also in chaos. However, the guards stood firmly by Rody’s side and did not allow anyone to get close.

Rody got up from the ground and looked at the top of a distant building. He saw a figure with a longbow. With a flash, the figure disappeared.

“Alright! He has already escaped.” Rody spoke as he examined Randt’s injuries. Randt was extremely strong willed. Although his arm was bleeding and his face was pale, he did not even groan once.

Everyone got back on their horses and the guards surrounded Rody. They then picked up the pace and headed towards the Duke’s Mansion.

They hurried all the way back. When they arrived, Randt was immediately sent for treatment. Nicole felt extremely nervous when she heard of the attempted assassination.

After everyone had left, Rody pulled Nicole’s hand and whispered, “Do not worry. I am fine!”

Nicole started to calm down and then she asked, “Did you see who it was? In the Imperial Capital, who would want to assassinate you? Is it the Lionheart Family or is it the Great Moon Kingdom?” Nicole then paused and knitted her eyebrows. “Both seem unlikely. Even though Garoline is cunning and does not get along well with us, he would be more sensible rather than take such drastic action. The Great Moon Kingdom would also not do such a thing as they are trying to have peace negotiations."

Rody thought for a moment and then his eyes lit up and said, “I know who he is.” He took a breath and continued. “Do you know a man named Dark? He seems to be a subordinate of your father. When I met him in the Northwest Region, he seemed to have a hatred for the Tulip Family. However, when I asked Sieg and the others, they apparently did not know who Dark is. Do you know this person?”