Mated To The Cruel Prince
Chapter 558: Coordinated Attack

Chapter 558: Coordinated Attack

Islinda knew the hit was inevitable and had already braced herself for the pain. She wasn’t going to die, although it was going to hurt like hell. However, it was unfortunate that her secret would be exposed so soon. How was she going to explain her ability to heal from such wounds without revealing the truth about her connection to a certain demon? And if the Fae found out, they would surely see her as an abomination and seek to eliminate her by any means necessary.

However, aside from feeling a rush of air against her face, Islinda didn’t sense any pain, having braced herself and squeezed her eyes shut. As seconds passed with no impact, she cautiously opened one eye, then the other, to find a familiar Fae standing right in front of her.

"Y—You!"

Islinda was stunned at the sight of Derek. Where did he come from? Didn’t Valerie promise he would not join her? It seemed the Fae had lied! If she confronted Valerie now, he would likely exploit some loophole. Islinda could never get used to the cunning nature of the Fae.

However, she couldn’t deny her relief at Derek’s presence. He had just saved her life—and kept her secret from being revealed. Derek had deftly intercepted not one, but two daggers, preventing them from embedding themselves in her, leaving Islinda utterly flabbergasted..

Were these people for real? Not one, but two daggers? What had she done to warrant such aggression? She was nothing but a harmless human! Who wanted her dead? Islinda was baffled, yet had a sinking feeling deep down about who might have sent them.

Now, the culprit was no longer content to hide in the crowd and stepped forward as soon as Derek straightened up. The assassin wore dark clothing befitting his profession, his face entirely covered, making it impossible to deduce his identity. However, the glowing eyes were evidence enough that he was Fae.

The innocent bystander Faeries backed away from them, sensing a fight was about to go down. Islinda leaned closer to whisper into Derek’s ear, "Not that I’m doubting your ability, but it’s just one assassin, you can handle him, right?"

Derek shot Islinda a dirty look, causing her to cringe. So much for trying to gauge when to lend a helping hand. Islinda snorted beneath her breath.

"I suppose that intense glare answers my question," Islinda said, stepping away from him before he had any other sinister intentions, like offering her up to the assassin. Problem solved. They were undoubtedly after her. Islinda could recognize a targeted assassination when she saw one.

However, Islinda might as well have jinxed her luck because more assassins began to emerge from the crowd until they were utterly surrounded.

"What the...." Gabbi cursed under her breath, staring at the outrageous scene with wide eyes. Milo bumped into her, their eyes meeting, and she spotted the fear in the boy’s eyes. Where had all his confidence in protecting Islinda from danger gone? Not that she could blame him. If these assassins came for them, then they were in deep trouble.

Thanks to the appearance of the assassins, commotion ensued, and Faeries began to close down their stores, while the rest ran for safety. No one wanted trouble or to be a casualty. They peered at the group from their hiding places, none of them willing to lend a helping hand. Cowards.

"There are more than one now. Do you think you can take them all?" Islinda said, pointing out their dire situation to Derek, who gritted his teeth and shot her a look that demanded she shut up.

However, Islinda was not deterred and continued, "Valerie had been confident; surely, there is something you can do, or just offer me up to them. It’s me they want. I don’t want Gabbi and Milo caught in the line of fire."

Islinda had thought it through. If these assassins took her and left the others alone, they would undoubtedly kill her and abandon her supposed corpse. She would probably wake up later as long as they don’t burn her body, decapitate her head, or bury her alive. Islinda had not experienced such versions of death and couldn’t tell how that would turn out. Not to mention, it sounded so gory she wouldn’t even imagine it happening.

"Shut up," Derek retorted, without taking his calculated gaze off the assassin in front of him. "I’ll handle this."

"I’m giving you a better alternative that doesn’t require the loss of innocent blood," Islinda hissed out, annoyed over his stubbornness.

"Prince Valerie demanded I keep you alive. The others are secondary. Have a little faith in me," Derek spoke, just as the assassin made the first move, probably irritated by their heated hushed conversation.

As soon as the assassin got close enough, Derek released a blaze of heat that crossed in front of the assassin like a wave, causing the assailant to stumble back from the sudden attack, while sweat beaded on Islinda’s forehead from the heat.

Everyone was taken aback for just a second because all the assassins lunged at the same time. "Oh Fae," Islinda swallowed, feeling her heart leap up to her throat.

Before the assassin could get close enough, Derek lifted his hand and conjured a stunning yet fierce wall of fire that surrounded them from all sides, preventing the assassins from getting through. Or so Islinda thought. It turned out Derek was not the only summer Fae around as one or more of the assassins threw a fireball in Islinda’s direction, and she dodged at the last minute, the flame singeing her hair.

Damn it. She really didn’t want to end up as roasted meat.

The real battle began, and Islinda yelled at Gabbi and Milo to keep their heads down and find a place to hide, just as a punch caught her in the eye. Islinda didn’t have time to get angry because the assassin yanked her hair back, and she yelped in pain. Meanwhile, the other assassins engaged Derek in battle, recognizing him as the biggest obstacle to their coordinated attack.

The assassin began to pull her away from the others, only for him to suddenly let go. Islinda turned at once, expecting the worst, only to watch the assassin struggling with the dagger he had pointed towards his own eyes.

What in the Fae ....

Islinda was left dumbfounded by the scene unfolding before her. At first, she thought it might be a trick of the eye, but she could see the fierce struggle, fear, and apprehension in the assassin’s eyes, as if this was happening against his will. It almost reminded her of that time when Aldric got into her head...

Fuck.