Our Family Has Fallen

If it were outside, Dismas would have pulled the trigger without hesitation, but this is Hamlet, and the mission requires a secret capture; otherwise, they wouldn’t have been waiting for half a day.

Shooting would undoubtedly alarm many people, rendering it meaningless.

Without much unnecessary talk, the battle suddenly commenced.

Audrey drew the dagger from her waist and suddenly accelerated towards Dismas.

Thrust!

This sudden attack might catch many off guard, but Dismas is skilled in this move too, he lunged forward and swung his short sword.

Duel!

The short sword and dagger collided, followed by unseen movements in the dark, yet audible with two or three more clashes, sparks bursting brightly in the dimness.

In this simple confrontation, both could sense the other’s formidable strength — the dagger was nimble, but the short sword was more powerful.

Audrey decisively distanced herself, realizing this man is an expert; there are no benefits in the confrontation, and her arm grew weary.

The more direct reason is the pursuers catching up; she must decide.

While retreating and distancing herself, she spun and threw the dagger to fend off Amanda. This technique of special throwing was quite covert; she had used it to handle many individuals.

But Amanda was also skilled in throwing; her long whip swung out, striking down the dagger Audrey threw.

Audrey clashed blades with Dismas and threw objects at Amanda, all in the areas they excelled in; this move was somewhat abstract.

Audrey naturally noticed this too; her already grim expression twisted, realizing this woman’s prowess was beyond expectations.

No more choices left; Audrey drew a pickaxe from her waist and swung it towards Dismas’s face blocking her path.

Head on!

The pickaxe’s tip, driven by force, could easily break bricks, let alone armor.

For someone like Dismas who had no armor, Audrey intended to crack open his skull.

Such a fierce move right from the start showed her urgency.

But Dismas wasn’t a mere scarecrow; he slightly sidestepped to evade the strike, his short sword already swung, craving blood in the swift motion.

Audrey realized the dodge, yanked the pickaxe back fiercely, clashing to interrupt Dismas’s attack.

She dared not linger for a moment, hearing the whip’s air-tearing whistle beside her.

It forced her to use her big move: retreating to distance herself from Dismas, a mysterious force activated, cloaking her in shadows and vanishing.

Shadow Escape!

Being forced to use this move, go to hell!

Audrey no longer chose to leave but planned to eliminate them in the shadows’ sanctuary, or they’d pursue her.

She was already prepared to enjoy their surprise, but unexpectedly, the enemies remained unprecedentedly calm, and that woman even wore a smile, like her gaze could see Audrey.

Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

Audrey didn’t know they had mixed in the Beast Lair; some Pigmen had similar abilities, so sneaky enemies weren’t too surprising.

Originally intending to act, but at this moment, Audrey made the most crucial decision: flee.

But did Amanda think she was blind?

Windmill Blade thrown directly, Audrey raised her hand to swing the pickaxe, blocking, but the exploding force tore through the shadows’ sanctuary, breaking her invisibility.

Simultaneously, Amanda’s whip whipped twice directly onto her body, causing her to cry out in pain.

"Ah!"

A bit of pain for Audrey was far less than the humiliation from the whip, reminding her of some unpleasant memories and immediately driving her to madness.

"Get lost, you barbaric lot! You stupid pigs, scum!"

Taunting and cursing escaped her mouth as she turned to throw something at Amanda.

Amanda, while toying with her prey, sensed the threat, always confident in her instincts, stepped aside to dodge.

When the object hit the wall and fell, she realized it wasn’t a dagger but a bizarrely shaped dart, the strange colors made her aware.

"Careful! It’s poisoned!"

Almost simultaneously, Dismas also suffered an attack, but timely reminders allowed him to pull up his coat, blocking the poison dart.

Roaming and navigating, who didn’t carry something?

But by now, Audrey had already fled, her recent taunting as if it never existed.

From the rooftop, Laura finally took action, her light posture traversed between buildings, surpassing Audrey’s path within mere seconds, jumping down directly.

Her cloak fluttered like an eagle spreading wings, the final glide quickly approaching the prey, surpassing Audrey to confront her.

"Stop, or die."

The words, cold and simple, stopped Audrey in her tracks, for the figure ahead had drawn a bow, bizarre eyes under the hood locked onto her.

Audrey had no confidence to dodge those arrows, but she also wouldn’t surrender meekly, especially with Dismas and Amanda catching up.

"Let me go, all my money, you can have it. I have..." Audrey suddenly dropped her struggle, pretending to reach into her pocket.

The next second she pulled out not a purse but a dagger, almost instinctively throwing it at Laura.

Does repeating this technique imply exhausting one’s tricks?

But what happened next was unexpected; the dagger emitted blinding brilliance, exaggerated in the dim surroundings.

Unprepared, everyone lost sight of their target, but Audrey had already turned her head in advance and wasn’t affected.

She bypassed the blinded two and wildly fled to another direction.

Her face revealed a manic smile, her golden hair freely dancing without the hat’s constraint.

The feeling of a turnaround was thrilling!

Think you can catch me? Eat dirt!

But then, a whistle sounded in the darkness, a short figure rushed out from the black alley; the ecstatic Audrey couldn’t react in time.

As it approached, Audrey saw clearly it was a dog; its ferocity instinctively made her attempt to dodge.

But even realizing, it was too late, her running momentum too strong, causing her to lose control.

Her body pitched forward, tumbled several times before stopping.

As ecstatic as she laughed, as unlucky she became now.

This left Fergus baffled; didn’t even touch you, yet you fell?

Faking injury, are you?

The strange situation puzzled Fergus’s sharp mind, merely barking beside Audrey without daring to rashly bite.

If biting this fool makes you foolish, then what?

Audrey was durable; after a brief pause, she recovered from dizziness and pain, crawling up to continue fleeing.

But at that moment, her slightly dazed mind heard surrounding voices, next second losing consciousness.

"All evil will eventually face justice!"

William, wielding a police baton, charged forward, swinging and smacking Audrey on the head.

Sneak attack!

"Thump" a crisp sound, and Audrey, midway in getting up, fell again, plunging into deep sleep.

William withdrew the police baton, it being ordinary rather than spiked, or the head would split rather than merely.

"No criminal can escape our arrest, right, girl?"

William raised his hand to call Fergus back, readied the dog leash, rewarding him with a pat.