Chapter 58 - Surprise!

The sheen of the bladed weapon in Cordelia's hand caused the maiden to hold a horrified scream. It became even greater when she realized that the bride was preparing to bury the dagger in the First Prince!

Magnus, in agile movements, was ignoring any obstacle to quickly reach the top of the float. Alexa could not allow him to be murdered, though.

Surrounding the big rose-shaped prop, the maiden arrived at the flowery throne at the same time as the Prince, only on opposite sides. She grabbed Cordelia's elbow from behind, and at that moment the maiden realized that it was definitely not her, but a stuntman. The killer was stronger than she was. And even though the assassin was taken by surprise, the false Cordelia gave Alexa a shove and freed the arm that held the blade.

That, however, was enough for Magnus to see and understand his mistake. In a movement so fast that Alexa barely saw it, he simply punched the veiled assassin's in the face. The fake Cordelia went back with the impact, and Alexa saw a devilish smile on the prince's face, which then focused on kicking the weapon that the assassin wielded.

However, Alexa jumped on him, and the two fell together, on the float's lower level where Cordelia's family was.

Magnus fell on his back, absorbing all the impact, and Alexa saw a pained expression on his face. The Prince opened his golden eyes, holding her by the arms, and Magnus' expression was not the best. But Alexa looked up for an instant, then pushed him aside as far as she could.

ZUMMMMM! The bolt stuck to the floor of the float, next to the Prince's face, at the same time that people were screaming. Looking to the side and seeing the bolt, Magnus grabbed her tighter and turned to the opposite side, dodging another bolt nimbly. Alexa felt pinned by something until she realized that her dress had been stuck by the second bolt. On impulse, she dropped the Prince and tugged on her dress, watching him get up too.

Chaos had set in, and people were screaming and running in panic. The Prince again jumped to the upper level of the float, knowing he had little time. Both the maiden and the Prince knew that even the best crossbowman would take at least another minute to reload before the next two shots.

Alexa followed him, while everyone else abandoned the float. They had to stop the killer from escaping!

Alexa was right behind the Prince, when she heard the humming near her ear, and pulled Magnus by the leg, preventing him from continuing. This time, the bolt stuck close to the Prince's hand, which supported him to rise to the level of the Bride's throne.

When they arrived at the Bride's throne, it was not quite a surprise that the assassin was nailed to the flowered chair by a bolt. Alexa wondered if this was not the plan from the beginning. The crossbowman being a securer of the Prince's death and the silence of the main assassin.

Magnus went to the fake Bride and pulled the veil from her face, and they both saw a completely different person from Cordelia. The false Cordelia was a young guy with makeup, but Alexa saw when life abandoned him abruptly.

The Greek maiden turned to the cathedral, straining her eyes and shielding them from the evening sun, trying to see the killer in the pinnacles of the tall building. But she couldn't see the crossbowman in the position on the buttress.

Any minimally intelligent sniper would have tried to escape with some time advantage after that failed attempt. Alexa remembered something important, though. She reached for the fake bride, feeling the assassin's body for signs of identification.

Yes! In a satchel, she found a black coin with an engraved symbol. This no doubt meant that the dead man belonged to an assassin's guild and was the symbol that would allow him to receive the rest of his payment.

Magnus looked around, as did the maiden. The population was in a panic, moving in the opposite direction, making it difficult for the soldiers to arrive. The Prince shouted orders to those already nearing, asking to 'save his Bride!'

Alexa glanced at Magnus, surprised by his wit!

Their eyes met at this moment. However, Alexa did not like what she saw in Magnus' eyes. In fact, she saw Magnus' expression change completely, seeming to be furious with the damsel.

"Y-you don't think I have anything to do with this, do you?"

The same sardonic half-smile Magnus had given the killer moments before appeared on the Prince's face.

"We need to talk about all these assassins, don't we ...?"

Alexa took a step back, at the same time that Capt. Gunnar and other warriors arrived at the throne of flowers. Magnus just ignored them, focused entirely on the maiden.

For a split second, they stood, prey and hunter, while Alexa tried to understand the reason for the sudden change. However, at the Prince's first move in her direction, Alexa fled.

Jumping out of the float, she crouched on the floor, beginning to feel her leg muscles complaining that day's overexertion. Looking over her shoulder, Alexa saw Magnus doing the same, just seconds behind her.

'Whatever this maniac is chasing me about, it doesn't look good!' it was her primary thought, and the maiden sprinted amidst the crowd, running away.

°°°

Exhausted, the maiden kept the beautiful mask in a trunk, while thinking about what to do next. It was night, and all she wanted to do was throw herself into bed and sleep. Her body hurt a lot!

She returned to the castle with her entourage, who had been in a panic at the event. It didn't improve at hearing the account of the assassin false bride from Lady Saskia. Maria was about to cry, imagining that they'd be in trouble, but Alexa said she would take any responsibility. In fact, that was one reason she returned to the castle. The damsel was afraid that those girls would end up trying to find her in the crowd and get in trouble. But the main reason was that she wanted to know if Cordelia was hurt. After that, she would look for Cordelia's father, with the information she had, about the assassin's guild.

After taking a shower and looking presentable, Alexa left her room to go to Cordelia.

As soon as she turned the hall, she was gripped by two men. Alexa tried to struggle, but they were stronger than her. At a glance, she realized that the men holding her by her arms were two young noblemen, and that made no sense. They had mockingly and mean expressions.

Then Alexa saw Prince Magnus, with a huge, derisive smile on his face.

"Now I've got you ... Alexios!"