Chapter 91

The fat assassin almost tumbled and crawled to hide behind the stone pillar at the monastery gate. After confirming his safety, he drew a deep breath and looked at his arm with a heart full of fear...

A long, jagged wound had suddenly appeared on his arm, blood streaming down—just a few seconds ago, that arrow had almost pinned his arm to the ground. If he hadn't changed his attack direction to dodge the arrow, his strike on the temple guard would have been flawless!

In the three-person assassination team, the fat assassin's main role was to "coordinate" and "cover"—the strongest among them was the assassin who had already rushed into the monastery, while the fat assassin and his companion were more for "finishing blows." Today, the monastery's guards were almost entirely absent, making the defense unusually weak. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and failure seemed impossible... But now, his mood had plummeted to the bottom because all their plans had been completely disrupted by the sudden cold arrow!

The fat assassin had already seen the warning arrow and had been on high alert, so he had tried to stay behind several innocent civilians as he approached. When the other side didn't act, he relaxed a bit and didn't consider it a serious threat—yet when he attacked the temple guard, he never expected the arrow to be so precise, almost sealing off his attack route!

He would rather believe it was a coincidence, but after countless brushes with death, he no longer believed in coincidences in life-and-death battles...

Perhaps, there really was a formidable opponent watching from the shadows.

"Quick, get out of the way!"

Thinking of this, he was worried about his companion who was fighting with two mercenaries, so he shouted a warning from behind the stone pillar. But the only response was the clashing of weapons, followed by the dull thud of a blade slicing into flesh...

This sound made the fat assassin's heart sink. Leaning against the stone pillar, he immediately wanted to check what had happened—turning his head slightly to look outside, but as soon as his face was halfway out, he felt a sudden sense of foreboding. A black shadow shot towards him almost simultaneously, and he instinctively pulled his head back, but a spray of blood still splattered out!

"Rip!"

In that split second, the spinning arrow grazed his chubby cheek, almost slicing his face open!

Because the arrow was spinning in flight, the double-edged tip tore a large chunk of flesh from his face, and the gushing blood instantly soaked half his clothes. The searing pain made him howl in agony, but he didn't dare stand up to retaliate—because he had no ranged weapons and didn't even know where the attacker was!

What frightened the fat assassin even more was that in the moment he had poked his head out, he saw the state of his companion...

The weapons of the two mercenaries were already embedded in the neck and chest of the last assassin, the sharp axe almost decapitating him, and the curved sword piercing his abdomen—clearly fatal wounds.

And the cause of all this was the long arrow that had pierced his thigh... Clearly, he had exposed a fatal weakness due to the arrow!

It was that hidden archer again! It was him!

"Damn it!"

The fat assassin, hiding behind the stone pillar, gripped the short sword in his hand, gritting his teeth to endure the pain in his arm and face—he had never faced an archer in such complex terrain... After years of living on the edge and completing no fewer than thirty assassination missions, he thought he had seen it all, but the terrifying "suppression" from a single archer was still unheard of!

In modern times, the one with the commanding height and the most intimidating presence is not the archer but the "sniper" with a rifle. In the medieval era of cold weapons, the threat of a bow could not be compared to a rifle... Unless a formation of arrows was used for a concentrated volley, a skilled assassin would never fear an archer!

But after three precisely timed arrows, not only the assassins but everyone present, including Ryan and Booker who had witnessed everything from a distance, could see just how terrifying this hidden archer was!

Every shot was aimed directly at the vital points, truly "no arrow misses its mark."

The two mercenaries, having killed the arrow-wounded assassin, exchanged glances and realized that the hidden archer was on their side. They immediately charged towards the monastery gate, one of them throwing his weapon to the disarmed and kicked-away guard, while the other picked up a longsword from the ground and shouted, "Go help!"

The latter adjusted his slightly askew helmet and immediately ran towards the church, intending to find the assassin who had already rushed inside... But at that moment, a scream echoed from the church's front hall, followed by a white figure flying out and rolling down the stone steps...

The white robe was torn, and the frail body lay in front of the church. When everyone recognized it was Sally, the previously chaotic monastery fell silent for a moment.

The silence was broken by a large pot of flowers suddenly falling from a three-story building nearby.

The "clattering" sound drew the attention of Booker and the others, and they suddenly saw a figure standing in the shadow of the window, pushing away the flower pots that obstructed the view and hindering the shot, and raising a short bow!

At that moment, everyone's minds were filled with questions. Ryan and the others couldn't understand why Sally, who had already rushed into the church, was thrown out, and the assassin hiding behind the stone pillar couldn't understand why his remaining companion hadn't killed the duke's daughter inside...

******

Let's go back one minute.

When the assassin outside the monastery who was fighting the mercenaries had not yet been killed, Sally had already run into the church without stopping—less than half a minute had passed since the crossbow bolt had grazed her back. In that half-minute, she had given calm and composed orders, effectively coordinating the monks to assist the guards in a counterattack and sending the nuns to seek help from the deacons and the bishop. The entire process was highly efficient and without any mistakes.

When she ran into the church, Sally had secretly breathed a sigh of relief, as there were usually at least four guards on duty inside. In her mind, these guards would certainly help her escape the crisis—

But when she scanned the surroundings, her heart turned cold, as there were no guards in sight in the entire church, only a dozen curious believers standing up to look outside...

Bishop Benjamin had not informed Sally, a nun, about the guard arrangements for the day, and since no one had ever dared to attack the monastery, Sally had no idea that all the guards had been reassigned—this situation made Sally even suspect that the guards had been bought off by Francis!

But time did not allow her to make any other assumptions. In a flash, she decided to run through the church to the rear buildings, as Bishop Benjamin would certainly provide her with protection besides the guards—only to find that the path in front of her... was completely blocked by believers standing up to leave.

The chairs in the middle of the church were divided into two areas on the left and right, with a 1.5-meter-wide aisle in the middle. To reach the back door, the fastest way was to go through this aisle, otherwise, she would have to go around the chairs on either side—now, the aisle was blocked by five or six believers standing up to leave. Sally knew that if she rushed through, she would not have time to get past before the assassin caught up!

The footsteps of the pursuer were getting closer.

Sally knew she had no time to hesitate. Taking a deep breath, she ran toward the slightly longer route on the right. After a few steps, she heard a scream behind her, but she did not turn back. Instead, she grabbed the back of a chair to counteract the inertia of her turn, and after confirming there were no obstacles ahead, she glanced sideways...

A sword flash appeared not far away, as the assassin had already cut down an innocent believer who had not managed to dodge. He had clearly determined Sally's intention to run, so he took a shortcut and sprinted to block her at the back door. His speed, enhanced by his high level, was clearly faster than Sally's, and even the onlookers could see that Sally would not be able to outrun the assassin...

Sally also realized this. Without hesitation, she suddenly grabbed the heavy wooden chair, stopping her body abruptly, and then turned and ran back toward the main entrance—running to the back door would mean certain death, and she had no other choice but to "bet" that the guards at the main entrance had already resolved the crisis and could help her...

The assassin also stopped, holding his longsword. Though he did not speak, his eyes, fixed on Sally, and his murderous demeanor made it clear who his target was. A deacon who happened to be in the church immediately reacted to Cris's cries for help and the shouts of "assassination."

This deacon's divine magic skills were among the best in the monastery, and from a player's perspective, he was a level 10 basic character with a level 2 "Holy Priest" advancement. Though he had few skills, he was still an advanced priest, so he immediately began reciting a prayer and successfully cast the divine spell "Holy Bind" when the assassin was ten meters behind Sally.

Golden chains condensed from the air, suddenly appearing around the assassin's body and tightening—startled, the assassin's running speed slowed, almost colliding with the rows of wooden chairs. However, the "Wandering Swordsman" had a "Combat Stance" that increased resistance to control spells by 15%, so the level 1 "Holy Bind" only flashed on him and was then broken with a "snap" as he pushed his arms apart!

Turning to look at the deacon, the assassin ignored him and continued to chase Sally—clearly, he knew the deacon posed no threat and chose to kill Sally first!

He took large strides, his speed suddenly increasing, and in an instant, he caught up to Sally, who was running for her life. Facing this defenseless "prey," he swung his sword horizontally, about to cut Sally in two, but just as the blade was thirty centimeters away from her, a golden shield suddenly appeared at her side...

"Holy Shield!"

"Die—"

The deacon said the name of the defensive divine spell, but the assassin also roared his first word upon entering the church, and his horizontal slash hit Sally with perfect force and angle...

"Bang!"

The golden light flashed and disappeared, the level 1 "Holy Shield" absorbing 180 damage and then shattering into fragments. Immediately, the assassin's longsword struck Sally's back...

Even with the shield reducing the force, the blade's impact was still too much for Sally to resist. She screamed involuntarily, her body flying out and crashing down the steps in front of the church.

The killer standing inside the church had a slight smile on his lips, believing that even if Sally didn't die, she would certainly be severely injured—walking out of the church confidently, but his confidence was immediately replaced by shock...

His companion outside the monastery gate was lying in a pool of blood, and the other was hiding like a rat behind the stone pillar, covered in blood!

"What happened? You