The members of the First Knight Brigade raised their hands in greeting when they saw Hakkin and his group but were surprised to see Evenel following them.

“It’s Lady Evenel. She said she’s curious about our abilities.”

“So, we’ve decided to have a test of skills. All the better with a large audience.”

Hearing the situation, they couldn’t hide their disbelief. Their eyes clearly underestimated her.

Of course, Evenel didn’t care at all.

“Who will be my opponent?”

“Doesn’t matter. If choosing is a hassle, I’m fine with facing all of you.”

To Hakkin, Evenel’s actions appeared as nothing but reckless confidence. He even doubted her sanity. What was she relying on to act this way?

In Karies, right in the middle of the imperial palace.

‘I really don’t like this.’

So, he was thinking of completely crushing her. To make sure she never dared to climb up again.

From his standpoint, the more Evenel stepped up, the better. That way, it would be more humiliating for her when she lost later.

“Ah, I don’t have a gun right now.”

“We have a spare.”

Indeed, a gun was provided. Although it functioned, it was clearly not well-maintained, covered in dust.

As she looked at the gun, he mockingly said,

“Will it be difficult because you’re not used to it?”

“No, it’s fine.”

Evenel saw the intent to make things difficult for her but accepted it willingly. It seemed like they didn’t know they were shooting themselves in the foot.

‘But I welcome it.’

She fully loaded the bullets and showed a leisurely smile.

“Let’s begin.”

Shuher, who stopped by the training ground during his official duties, thought of a face he hadn’t seen in the morning and asked Demil,

“Did Her Highness come here today?”

“No, she did not.”

“That’s strange. She’s usually here before us.”

The knights were also puzzled, as Evenel had shown up at the training ground every day. Had they perhaps gotten used to her morning greetings?

However, only Demil, who was there, seemed to have a faint idea why she hadn’t come.

“Is it because of that incident?”

“What do you mean, Demil?”

“Ah…”
He noticed that Shuher knew something about Evenel Istella from his reticent behavior.

“Actually.”

Demil thought it was probably related to yesterday’s incident with the First Knight Division, but hesitated for a moment, recalling Evenel’s forced smile.

Just then, a knight entered the smoky chamber.

“Hey, what I saw earlier was—”

He belatedly noticed Shuher and quickly bowed his head. But Shuher seemed more interested in what he was about to say.

“What is it?”

The knight took a moment to catch his breath and described the scene he had accidentally witnessed.

“It was Evenel Istella, she was going somewhere with knights from the First Knight Division.”

“With the First Knight Division?”

It was puzzling to Shuher as well since they had no prior interactions. Demil then asked in a voice tinged with urgency.

“Why were they together?”

“I don’t know that much. But the atmosphere didn’t look normal.”

The knight who had witnessed the scene didn’t know any more than that.

‘With the First Knight Division.’

Shuher thought that Evenel Istella wasn’t one to act recklessly without reason. It was clear that something bad had happened in connection with the First Knight Division.

And in a bad direction.

“What will you do, Your Highness?”

It was something that could be let alone. As long as she wasn’t killed, there wouldn’t be a problem.

But what he said was not that.

“Where did she go?”

“Based on the direction, it seemed like she was headed to the First Knight Division’s smoky chamber.”

Upon hearing the answer, Shuher immediately exited the smoky chamber and was closely followed by Demil. The other knights, sensing the atmosphere, hesitantly followed the two.

When they arrived at their destination, Evenel Istella was there. But the atmosphere was completely different from what they had expected.

Among all the people present, she was the only one leisurely smiling.

“Who’s the next opponent?”

As she discarded the empty shells and reloaded, Evenel Istella’s voice was utterly unfazed.

In contrast, the expressions of those watching her were anything but normal. Each face looked stupefied, unable to believe the reality unfolding before them.

“I don’t mind doing it a few more times.”

Hearing Evenel’s words, Shuher’s gaze shifted to the target directly in front of her. From that, it was easy to deduce what had happened.

There was no reason for him to be here since the moment she had pulled the trigger.

Hakin’s trembling eyes conveyed his flustered state.

“What are you saying…”
“You’re not saying it’s not allowed, right? The conditions were the same for everyone. I even used the gun you provided.”

Evenel Istella completely shut down his excuses. She knew her conditions were not favorable, yet not unfair either. Knowing this, everyone else remained silent.

“Then, no one else is stepping forward?”

‘How could this happen?’

Ha Hyun couldn’t believe his eyes. Her skills were overwhelmingly superior.

Even after his defeat, a few knights tried to challenge her but stood no chance. She fired dozens of shots in a row without a single one wavering.

There was now no one confident enough to challenge her immense skill.

“I’m sorry for disappointing you. I’ll give you your gun back.”

Evenel handed him back the gun she had been holding. Perhaps due to its poor condition and significant recoil, her hand felt a bit numb.

Of course, it didn’t affect her skill in the slightest.

“Now it seems it’s time to fulfill the promise.”

At the word ‘promise,’ Shuher stopped Demil from making any moves. There was a need to find out why this situation had occurred in the first place.