“What is that…?”
Juliet doubted her eyes.
She, along with the Duke’s secretary Elliot, was hiding behind the stairs at a corner of the banquet hall.
From their hiding spot, they could see the entire banquet hall where a snake stood.
Suddenly, with a bang, a smoke bomb went off, and soon after, a group of people riding white horses appeared through the smoke.
“Are those… the temple knights?”
It seemed like Elliot was right.
However, the knights that appeared looked somewhat different from the ‘Temple Knights’ Juliet knew.
At the forefront of the knights, a few individuals riding white horses looked nothing like knights.
They wore white robes resembling priest uniforms, holding glittering, ornate weapons in both hands.
And their way of speaking was peculiar too.
“Confess your sins!”
Leading the charge, the man swinging a shiny broadsword was someone Juliet knew.
‘Archbishop Gilliam?’
“Begone, you evil spirit!”
But the snake dodged the Temple Knights’ attacks with ease and scoffed.
“What do you hope to achieve with such toys? You should know that human weapons can’t harm me.”
“Ha, toys? This is a holy relic!”
At this, the snake hesitated, and Juliet noticed.
‘Relic?’
Juliet then realized why the priests appeared escorted by the Temple Knights, and why they had those glittering ornate weapons.
Those highly impractical looking weapons were for combating evil spirits.
While the Duke’s knights were engaging the demonic beasts, the plan seemed to capture the isolated snake with the relics.
…However, this ambitious pincer movement had a significant flaw.
“Accept the holy judgment humbly!”
The Temple Knights, or so-called Paladins, bravely escorted the priests, but the problem lay with the priests.
At the forefront, those adorned with relics were all elderly high priests.
Clank!
On the outside, these holy weapons adorned with jewels here and there looked glamorous but impractical. They were likely to be dropped with any misstep.
And embarrassingly, the priests seemed clumsy in handling these holy weapons.
Clatter.
As expected, Archbishop Gilliam, struggling awkwardly to load a crossbow, fell to the floor without getting a shot off.
Gilliam screamed in distress.
“Ah! Kivelle’s crossbow!”
A little distance away, watching the scene, Juliet facepalmed.
‘…I must be crazy!’
What could be done with glittering relics?
The high priests were of no help at all in battle.
Barely able to stay mounted on the gorgeously adorned white horses, they were a pathetic sight.
Two Temple Knights hurriedly approached Archbishop Gilliam who had dropped his bow and fallen from his horse.
“Your Eminence!”
“Pathetic.”
The snake seemed to share the sentiment.
With just one sword, the snake easily countered the charging Temple Knights and leisurely approached the fallen Archbishop.
“Ugh…”
The fallen Archbishop was terrified seeing the snake approach, but there was nothing he could do.
“Your Eminence!”
“Move!”
“Ah, Miss!”
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Juliet leapt and picked up the fallen crossbow.
She remembered Lennox just a few minutes earlier saying,
-Stay hidden.
And left with a stern reminder.
But at the same time, Juliet knew she could never abide by his instruction.
In front of her was the nemesis from her past life, and at her feet lay a weapon that could deal a fatal blow.
Who would let such an opportunity pass?
The crossbow Juliet picked up from the ground was ostentatious.
In fact, it was a bit small for a crossbow. Moreover, with jewels hanging all over, it looked like a comical prop.
Loading the crossbow out of habit, Juliet doubted whether this toy-like crossbow would shoot properly as she aimed.
But then…
Bang!
“Ugh!”
The arrow shot cleanly through the snake’s left shoulder, who had its back turned.
“Which human bastard…!”
Was it because it was a relic? Unlike the wound from the Duke’s sword, the hole the arrow made didn’t heal quickly.
Enraged, the snake gripped its shoulder, turned around and locked eyes with Juliet holding the crossbow.
“Ha! It’s you.”
The snake’s violet eyes gleamed with delight and madness upon discovering Juliet.
“Finally, we meet alone, and you shoot an arrow at the first meeting? This ungrateful human woman-“
For a brief moment, Juliet thought.
‘I definitely succeeded in drawing attention.’
However, now it seemed that the snake’s target had changed to her.
Click.
But Juliet didn’t panic or run away.
“Lies.”
She muttered as she calmly calculated the remaining distance and loaded her crossbow, more calmly than ever before.
“You, it’s not our first meeting.”
Bang!
As she spoke, the second arrow shot out, grazing the handsome right cheek of the snake, Count Jermang, as it flew by.
Instead of blood, a black fluid-like substance oozed out.
The holy relic definitely had an effect.
But for that evil spirit, it would only be a minor irritation,
“You, this.”
But the snake, feeling the long torn cheek with its hand, suddenly bared its fangs in rage.
“…How dare this thing scar my face?”
Was it just her feeling, or did it seem angrier than when its shoulder was pierced a moment ago?
“Eleanor loved this face so much.”
‘Again Eleanor.’
It seems her grandfather’s speculation was right.
Juliet frowned with sharp eyes.
An unusual, strong floral scent emanated from the snake. The sweet scent of chrysanthemums, strong enough to cause a headache.
Come to think of it, near the grave of the Carlyle family, where Eleanor Carlyle’s tomb is, were said to be full of chrysanthemums.
Click.
It was already the third arrow, but Juliet wasn’t anxious as she slowly pulled the third arrow.
‘The first hit the left shoulder, the second the right cheek.’
No matter how she looked at it, this flashy toy-like crossbow didn’t even have a proper sight.
But Juliet was sure that she could lodge the third arrow exactly where she wanted. The final target of the third arrow was between the eyes.
‘Snakes are just beasts after all.’
There are no beasts that can survive a shot to the forehead, a critical point.
Aiming at the snake beyond the sight, Juliet tried to calm her anger.
In fact, until a moment ago, Juliet didn’t realize how angry she was.
Snap.
But as she jumped in front of the snake and aimed her crossbow, in that short moment, Juliet felt a surge of rage.
‘How lightly this snake must have seen me.’
The snake’s plan was clever and childish.
By bringing Ronda to the Duke’s house and trying to shake Juliet with sandalwood.
‘I’m not a fool to fall for the same trick twice, right?’
But it seemed the snake thought differently.
Provoking Juliet’s anger, making her anxious, perhaps it thought she would swing around again as she did before. Because in her previous life, she foolishly fell for that shallow trick.
Juliet bit her lip.
She vividly remembered how this snake in front of her deceived her with cunning lies in her previous life, and how foolishly she had been played.
“Ha… Haha!”
The snake bared its venomous teeth and laughed madly as it rushed towards Juliet.
At the same time, Juliet released the bowstring.
Screeech.
The arrow sliced through the air, and at the very moment the snake lunged towards Juliet,
Flash!
“-!”
Suddenly, the stone floor where Juliet had been standing a moment ago emitted a blinding light.
And three things happened simultaneously.
One, the moment the arrow left the crossbow, Juliet lost her balance and staggered.
Two, at the same time, someone’s strong arm grabbed Juliet’s waist from behind, pulling her forcefully out of the snake’s range.
Thud.
Juliet rolled on the stone floor in someone’s arms.
And finally.
Boom!
With a loud noise, a thick cloud of dust settled down.
What happened…?
When Juliet barely opened her eyes.
“Got, got it!”
“Success!”
“What?!
“What? Wahahaha!”
“Look, Duke! It’s a success!”
Far away, a group dressed in white robes, Archbishop Gilliam and the temple knights, were hopping around and cheering like children, repeatedly shouting about their success.
It was as they said.