"Of course. They haven't stopped praising you all day. They're looking forward to spending some time with you before the party starts," he added with a knowing smile, clearly pleased to see her mood lift.
Kayona couldn't stop grinning. "Maxwell, you're enjoying this, aren't you?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Huh? Enjoying what exactly, Lady Kayona?"
"Watching me trying not to explode from happiness."
Maxwell let out a sharp, genuine laugh that lasted nearly two full minutes.
"I'm just happy that you're happy, Lady Kayona," he said at last.
Kayona responded with a soft chuckle, her eyes briefly closing in contentment.
Even for a bodyguard, Maxwell fills the void of being an only child. She thought to herself.
"We have arrived at the store, Lady Kayona. Just wait a moment. I will briefly go in and get the wipes."
Maxwell turned off the car engine and stepped out.
Kayona watched him through the car window, her gaze unfocused. Her reflection stared back at her faintly in the glass.
Maxwell returned a few minutes later, holding a small pack.
"Here you go, ma'am."
Kayona accepted it gently.
"Thank you, Max."
She opened the packet and began to wipe her hands. One finger at a time. Slow and Careful. She worked until the last trace of blood was gone.
Maxwell started the car again. The vehicle rolled back into traffic, its passengers silent as the city moved around them.
After nearly thirty minutes of navigating traffic and weaving through vehicle hold-ups, Kayona and Maxwell finally reached the Obregón Archducal estate gates.
The iron gates creaked open slowly as two guards gave the nod. But before the car could fully pass, two servants sprinted down from the mansion steps, waving desperately.
"Master Maxwell!" one of them shouted, breathless with panic.
Maxwell blinked in confusion and immediately pulled the car over near one of the estate's garden mazes. He stepped out quickly.
Kayona followed, her heels hitting the stone with sharp, steady clicks.
"What's going on?" Maxwell asked, alarmed. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
The second servant stumbled to her knees, face pale, eyes wide with dread.
Kayona reached them, her calm expression only slightly disturbed by the strange welcome.
"Welcome back, Your Grace," the servants said in trembling unison, tears slipping down their cheeks.
Maxwell's patience snapped.
"Spit it out. Now."
The kneeling servant choked on the words.
"The… the Archduke and Archduchess… They've just been assassinated."
Everything went still.
The servants' sobs echoed faintly across the wide courtyard. Kayona didn't blink. Her eyes moved slowly from one face to another, searching for the truth in their fear.
"What did you say?" she asked, not because she hadn't heard them, but because she needed the words to sound wrong.
Maxwell sensed Kayona's fear, but he had been trained for moments like this. He stepped forward cautiously toward the sobbing servant kneeling on the ground.
"When and where did this happen?" he asked.
The standing servant sniffed, her voice shaking.
"An hour ago. In the Obregón event hall. They went in for the final inspection of the decorations before tonight's anniversary party. The culprits were assassins… disguised as event decorators."
Maxwell's eyes flared. He clenched his jaw in frustration.
"And none of the useless guards stopped them?"
"Everyone at the scene of the crime was killed. It was a silent assassination. The culprits escaped in disguise, but… they were discovered after."
Kayona stood still, numb and silent. Their words passed through her like smoke. She watched them, but her mind was far away.
"Where are the Archduke and Archduchess's bodies now?" Maxwell asked firmly.
"They're being kept in the inspection room…"
Those words struck. Kayona didn't wait. She turned and started walking toward the mansion. Her pace was steady and determined. Her face didn't change. She said nothing, but each step hit the stone like a drumbeat.
"Lady Kayona! Lady Kayona!" Maxwell called after her, voice rising with urgency.
She didn't stop. She couldn't hear him. The world around her had faded into silence.
Maxwell caught up quickly and grabbed her hand.
"My Lady, stop. Before you do anything reckless, make sure the mansion is secure."
Kayona turned to him slowly. Her face was unreadable.
"Maxwell, let go of my hand."
"Lady Kayona…"
"It's an order."
Maxwell froze, then released her hand without a word.
As if on cue, a guard sprinted toward them, panic written across his face.
"Master Maxwell! There's one culprit still in the estate. We've been trying to catch him, but he's too fast."
Without hesitation, Maxwell reached into his coat and pulled out his gun.
"Lead the way."
Kayona ignored them and walked quickly toward the mansion. The doors were already open. She stepped inside, not paying attention to the noise around her.
She headed straight for the inspection room. Just as she was about to turn into the next corridor, a masked assassin dropped from the open window above her head.
Her reflexes kicked in and she moved back, barely dodging the first strike.
She stared at him, unimpressed.
Did they send old geezers to this place? she thought. That attack was rusted.
The assassin did not waste time as he brought out his gun to kill Kayona. She froze out of extreme shock, her feet completely numb. Just in time, Maxwell appeared at the end of the hallway and shot him straight in the chest.
The assassin tumbled to the ground, almost out of life. Kayona's adrenaline surged as she grasped herself together. She moved quickly to the half-dead body, dropping to her knees as she yanked off his mask and grabbed his shirt collar.
"Who sent you to kill me? Who sent your allies to kill my parents?" she yelled, tugging him ferociously.
The assassin's mouth spilled blood, his heartbeat gradually fading. He smiled like someone who had won a lottery. It seemed like he was finally about to say the full truth, but his voice turned low and shaky.
"Kartegen… always… cleans up… shouldn't have… joined this…"
His hand dropped.
Kayona sat frozen on the ground, her face pale like someone who had just lost her mind.
"I am in a dream," she muttered, staring blankly at the deceased assassin.
"Lady Kayona, it's dangerous. Move away from him!" Maxwell yelled from the end of the hallway as he ran toward her. He wasn't sure if the assassin was dead yet.
Guards rushed in after hearing the gunshot. The hallway erupted in noise.
Kayona didn't move. She didn't speak. She sat still in the chaos, her mind trapped in silence.
Only one name echoed in her head.
Kartegen.