"Huh? What did you say?"

Merlin's force remained terrifying. Although he seemed calm, his calmness seemed like a volcano that was about to erupt. This made the full-shifting contender very alarmed.

Faced with Merlin's inquiry, this full-shifter stood up hurriedly and looked around before saying secretively, "Marquis Leon, in fact, this is a body double of Her Highness. The Princess Royal had always been very cautious and prudent. She had many body doubles to guard against the unexpected."

"Body double?"

Merlin carefully looked at the corpse on the ground; he did not know the Princess Royal very well. Even after that intimate encounter, he was merely able to identify some aspects of her presence. Nonetheless, this corpse on the ground had the same force as the Princess Royal. It was unbelievable.

"Where's Lisa now? Bring me there!" Merlin said in a low, urgent voice.

"Marquis Leon, please follow me. However, to prevent the people of the second prince from discovering their error, I must conceal this truth."

Therefore, with this full-shifter covering up the truth, almost all of the palace learned that the Princess Royal was killed by an assassin. Conversely, Merlin was led by the full-shifter back to the Princess Royal's palace.

As soon as he stepped into the palace, Merlin saw a familiar face. It was the Princess Royal.

"You're really not dead?"

Merlin carefully looked at the Princess Royal. She looked rather the same, and her force had not changed. Still, after knowing that the Princess Royal had many body doubles, Merlin was even starting to suspect whether the one whom he had intercourse with was the real Princess Royal.

"I'm so lucky. I'm really not dead. I've never thought that brother of mine would resort to such underhanded means, but how efficient it was. If that was really me, I would have been dead by now!"

The Princess Royal had learned about everything that happened within the palace, and her voice had an icy edge to it.

"Lisa, how many body doubles do you have?" Merlin asked coldly.

"Body doubles? I do have a few. In a precarious situation like this, of course, I need plenty of body doubles, but Leon, don't worry. That day, it was the real me! If you don't believe me, you may check for yourself."

With that, Lisa wound both hands around Merlin's neck, her fragrance drifting into Merlin's nose. This time, there was no aphrodisiac. Merlin could have held back, but at this moment, he did not wish to do so.

Therefore, he swiftly swept the Princess Royal up in his arms and entered the inner chamber. At that point, moans began to sound.

After a few hours, Merlin stared at Lisa who still wore a playful, taunting expression, and shook his head. This Lisa was enchanting indeed. Merlin did not feel much love for her, only pure lust. Although Lisa was not someone with absolute beauty, the scent of her body was astonishingly tempting to the senses.

"Lisa, tell me, what are you going to do?" Merlin asked in a calm voice.

"That good little brother of mine had gone against protocol. However, we're not in a rush. I'll see how King Father's side reacts. If he exploits this chance to sort out that good brother of mine, of course, that'd be ideal. If he's unwilling, humph, then don't blame us if we break the rules too!"

Merlin could sense murderous intentions coming off Lisa. This ambitious woman would be vicious and merciless once she intended to kill; not softening in the slightest.

To avoid suspicion, Merlin did not stay on in the Princess Royal's palace for long and quickly left the place.

…

"Swish."

A pitch-dark shadow appeared before the second prince without making a sound. The second prince had not even noticed, nor did the three full-shifters from the army. Only until Shadowthorn spoke did they realize his presence. They swiftly moved to shield the second prince and hissed. "Shadowthorn, what are you trying to do?"

These three full-shifters, despite having heard about how strange and powerful Shadowthorn was, only now discovered that Shadowthorn was right beside them. They had not even sensed him in the slightest. This was too scary. The thought of it was enough to induce fear.

A smirk crossed Shadowthorn's lips as he glanced at the three full-shifters, following which he settled his gaze on the second prince and said evenly, "The Princess Royal is dead. When will you bring me to the Sacred Lion Beast's head, so that I can look at it closely?"

"What? The Princess Royal is dead? You… You've really succeeded?"

An astounded look appeared on the second prince's face as if he dared not believe this. He had only made the agreement with Shadowthorn a few days ago. Plus, the Princess Royal was guarded by full-shifters by her side. How could she be killed so easily?

Nonetheless, when they thought about how Shadowthorn appeared before them noiselessly, the second prince could somewhat believe this. If Shadowthorn had made a move instantly, the second prince had no assurance that he would be able to evade Shadowthorn's assassination.

"This… Shadowthorn, I have to determine the truth of this. If we ultimately determine that the Princess Royal has died, I'll let you know," the second prince calmed himself down and replied serenely.

"You have three days to ascertain this. I'll return then!"

Shadowthorn's gaze would cause one to tremble with dread. Clearly, Shadowthorn was not even a full-shifter, but he still inspired fear in full-shifters.

"Swoosh."

Shadowthorn quickly vanished from the second prince's sight without a sound. The three full-shifters cautiously inspected the surroundings. After making sure that Shadowthorn had left, they heaved a sigh of relief.

"D*mn it, that Shadowthorn is really too arrogant and bold."

The three full-shifting contenders felt that Shadowthorn had disregarded them, and their hearts naturally were filled with rage.

Even so, the second prince appeared placid and said softly, "Forget about Shadowthorn for now. Go at once and find out if the Princess Royal is truly dead."

Since he thought about the numerous benefits that would come of the Princess Royal's death, the second prince who had always remained composed could not help his excitement.

"Your Highness, we'll find out immediately. However, at this time, stay in the palace as much as you can, in case anything happens."

The second prince nodded. He knew that at this moment, anything could happen. His safety was the priority.

…

The king of the Holy Dragon Empire was currently feeling slightly agitated. There was only one person standing before him, and that was the mysterious Minister Farron who controlled Phantom.

Farron did not say a word and only stood silently before the king.

After a long while, the king stopped his pacing, his brow still tightly knitted. He growled. "Farron, Lisa is dead. That second son of mine is really too brazen. He has disdained the rules of the royal family, and me as well!"

Farron still did not say anything. He knew that the king was venting, but this matter could not be resolved by getting angry.

At last, after the king had gradually calmed down, Farron ventured to say, "Your Majesty, I think that priority now should be to explain things to the Princess Royal's people, especially that Leon!"

"Explain? What's there to explain? Lisa is dead. I'll take back all the authority she held. Moreover, Farron, go and give the second prince an admonishment, then spare no effort to capture Shadowthorn. We can't let him live. As for Leon, now that Lisa is dead, he has no other choice."

At this time, the king's first thought was to regain his power. As a king, he was rather aggrieved. His own authority was not even as great as his own children.

Farron was inwardly calm. In the royal family, there was no affection to speak of. Power would always be the focus of everyone's struggle, without exception.

"Your Majesty, rest assured. I'll deal with this matter properly."

With that, Farron took his leave. In his view, the king was about to reduce this problem into a small matter, then nothing. He was only seizing Shadowthorn, which meant he was sparing the second prince.

"I hope that this Leon can see the situation clearly!" Farron mumbled softly. He did not know why, but he had always felt an ominous premonition towards Merlin. In so many years, Farron felt that Merlin was the greatest threat other than Doomsday.