Chapter 208: Infiltrating the Fire Phoenix Mansion and Encountering Kosa

Chapter 208: Chapter 208: Infiltrating the Fire Phoenix Mansion and Encountering Kosa

Ophelia dressed herself and Dan’er in the linen clothes she had made earlier, then stepped out of her spatial dimension. She had noticed that the residents of the Holy Capital mostly wore linen. Her previous animal hide clothing stood out drastically in the crowd, making it glaringly obvious that she was an outsider.

Not knowing the exact location of the Fire Phoenix Clan, Ophelia didn’t dare ask anyone at random. She could only wander aimlessly through the city with Dan’er. Even after searching for a long time, she still couldn’t find their location.

"Dan’er, can you sense where your father, Zerev, is? Let’s go find him first," she asked.

"I can, Mother." Dan’er nodded and focused on sensing Zerev’s whereabouts.

It wasn’t until noon that the boy finally pinpointed his father’s location. "Mother, he’s over there."

Ophelia hurriedly picked Dan’er up and headed in the direction he pointed. But after walking for only a short while, the child in her arms suddenly began to tremble.

"Dan’er, what’s wrong?"

"Mother, my body hurts so much. They’re hurting Kohen again."

Hearing this, Ophelia immediately grew anxious. She stopped in her tracks, unsure of what to do.

"Mother, I sense Kohen! He’s over there." The intense pain had strengthened the psychic connection between the twins.

Ophelia looked toward Zerev’s location, then toward Kohen’s. They were in completely opposite directions. With Kohen in immediate danger, she couldn’t afford to waste any more time looking for Zerev. She tightened her hold on Dan’er and sprinted toward Kohen’s location.

They ran until they reached a magnificent mansion, where Dan’er confirmed his brother’s presence. "Mother, Kohen is right in here. They’re still hurting him."

"Alright. Go into the space first; I’ll find a way inside." Ophelia brought Dan’er into her spatial dimension and smoothed out her clothes, which had grown disheveled from the run. Forcing herself to stay calm, she walked up to the mansion’s main gates.

A male guarding the entrance blocked her path. "Who are you?"

"I am a cousin of the Winged Dragon Clan. The Winged Dragon Family Master sent me to deliver a message to the Fire Phoenix Family Master." Ophelia clenched her fists, maintaining a composed facade even though her heart was pounding out of her chest.

"The Winged Dragon Clan sent you to deliver a message?" The two guards exchanged doubtful glances. They hadn’t heard anything about the Winged Dragon Clan having a female cousin. Furthermore, the two Family Masters usually delivered messages in person and never relied on messengers.

"What, you don’t believe me? Do you want to go ask the Winged Dragon Family Master yourself?" Ophelia feigned annoyance.

Seeing her indignant reaction, the two males were slightly swayed. However, they remained cautious. "Wait here while I go inform the Family Head to see if he will grant you an audience."

"Fine, I’ll wait right here," she replied flatly.

Ophelia didn’t show any signs of panic at the male’s words. After one guard left, she covertly observed the remaining one, silently calculating the odds of successfully knocking him out. Thinking of the torture Kohen was currently enduring, she threw caution to the wind.

She pretended to stumble and fell to the ground. "Ah, it hurts!" she cried out. "I injured my ankle. I can’t get up... Please, come help me."

Unsuspecting, the guard hurried over to assist her. But the moment he bent down and reached out, a sharp pain struck the back of his neck. His vision went black, and he collapsed to the ground.

Wasting no time, Ophelia gathered the hem of her linen skirt and rushed into the Fire Phoenix Mansion. Having no idea where Kohen was being held, she slipped into a nearby room to hide. By sheer coincidence, it happened to be Kosa’s room.

"Ophelia? How did you get in here?" Kosa was taken aback by her sudden intrusion.

Before he could fully react and call for help, Ophelia darted forward and pressed a dagger flush against his throat. "Where is Kohen?" she demanded.

"Give it up. I’ll never tell you." A dark, malicious gleam flashed in Kosa’s eyes as he stubbornly refused to reveal the boy’s location.

Steeling her resolve, Ophelia pressed the blade deeper. A thin line of red immediately appeared on Kosa’s neck, blood trickling down his skin.

Kosa’s pupils constricted. He had thought she was merely trying to scare him; he never expected her to actually draw blood.

"Are you going to tell me or not?"

"I won’t say a word," Kosa declared, a look of steadfast defiance on his face. He refused to give Ophelia any chance of saving Kohen. They had long been mortal enemies. Even if he died, he was going to drag her down to hell with him. Mustering his breath, he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Intruder! We’re under attack!"

Ophelia’s eyes narrowed. Without a moment’s hesitation, she drove the dagger fiercely into Kosa’s throat. Blood geysered from the wound. Kosa clutched his neck, unable to utter another sound.

Biting her lip, Ophelia brought Dan’er back out of her dimension. "Dan’er, hurry! Try to sense Kohen’s location again."

Knowing time was of the essence, Dan’er didn’t delay and carefully focused his mind. "Mother, he’s to the south. There’s a small hill to the south with a karst cave inside."

Because they were much closer now, Dan’er’s senses were far more precise. Just then, the chaotic thudding of footsteps echoed from outside the room, clearly attracted by Kosa’s earlier shout. Unfazed, Ophelia took Dan’er’s hand and slipped back into her spatial dimension.

The door burst open, and two Fire Phoenix Clan males rushed in. The first thing they saw was Kosa lying in a pool of his own blood.

One of the males stepped forward and propped him up. "Kosa?"

Kosa was still hanging on by a thread, his pupils dilated in shock. He couldn’t fathom how Ophelia had vanished into thin air right before his eyes, but he was certain she hadn’t left the room yet. He desperately wanted to warn the two guards, but his severed throat rendered him mute. All he could do was stare helplessly at the spot where Ophelia had disappeared.

Naturally, the two males had no idea what he was trying to convey. Neither made any effort to treat his fatal wound. They simply watched in silence as Kosa took his final breath and went limp.

"Kosa is dead. Should we inform the Family Head?"

"No need. He’s just a male from some low-level tribe. The Family Head couldn’t care less whether he lives or dies."

"Good point. Ever since he arrived, he’s been acting superior just because the Family Head showed him a tiny bit of favor. He got what he deserved."

"I wonder who killed him, though."

The other male glanced at his companion. "Who cares who killed him? They did us a favor."

"True."

Showing absolutely zero interest in hunting down the killer, the two exchanged a few more words and simply walked out of the room.

Ophelia didn’t step out of her dimension until the sound of their footsteps faded completely. She looked down at the male on the floor, who had died with his eyes wide open, and couldn’t help but shake her head. For Kosa to live his life in such a way that his brutal murder caused not even a single ripple of concern—it was almost impressive.

Ophelia waited a moment longer. After confirming there were no footsteps outside, she headed in the direction Dan’er had specified. Whenever she encountered anyone along the way, she ducked into her dimension and waited for them to pass before re-emerging. Twice she came face-to-face with someone, only to vanish into thin air a split second later. The Fire Phoenix Clan members would search the area briefly, find nothing, and brush it off as their minds playing tricks on them.

Using this method, Ophelia successfully reached the small hill to the south and located the karst cave Dan’er had described.