The dart moving in its trajectory was precisely aimed at by an arrow shot from behind.

The enemy archer was quick-witted, but to win in the end, being quick-witted was far from enough!

The dart, maintaining the same trajectory as the arrow, was actually moving in the opposite direction.

In the next instant, the sharp part of the dart hit the arrowhead, knocking it off course and shooting off in the wrong direction.

Plomp!

Shortly after, the arrow hit its own ally, then Qiuyan lifted her other sleeve, sending a second dart flying forward.

Clang!

The second dart collided with the first dart from behind, changing their trajectories as they made contact, each flying toward their respective intended targets.

Phew phew!

The two sounds combined, and this time, the ones struck were the archer and his companion standing next to him.

There were no blood blossoms in the air.

In Qiuyan's every battle, at the moment of landing a fatal blow, the holy power attached to her weapon swiftly entered the opponent's wound, blocking the blood flow.

Thus, even if she severed an opponent's limbs, not a drop of blood would flow; this unique fighting style gave her attacks a distinctive feature.

Because of preventing blood loss, the enemies she struck could not bleed to death; therefore, Qiuyan had to pay special attention to her striking points.

She always struck to kill in one blow!

Even when using others' arrows, Qiuyan aimed for the target's vital spots only after determining the deflection direction, then released the dart.

The purpose of doing so, as she explained to the master behind her:

"I hate seeing blood. The sight of crimson will keep me restless during the day and at night, so..."

Crackling.

From the moment Qiuyan landed back on the ground, the rotating silver sword aura danced around, eliminating all nearby enemies, while the distant ones were taken care of by throwing weapons.

"Until this carnage ends, neither the master nor I will see a single drop of blood in our eyes."

Accelerating led to a second acceleration. Qiuyan had mentioned she would end battles swiftly, and she was not joking. She was indeed prepared to do so and was close to achieving it.

Looking around, there was only one enemy left standing.

The main reason the captain had survived until now was due to the subordinates who stood in front of him, all of whom had been mercilessly slaughtered earlier.

Standing alone, the captain raised the command sword and, as Qiuyan approached, prepared to strike down before her.

However, before the captain could strike, Qiuyan bumped her knee forward, hitting the captain's abdomen.

The captain, being the captain, was much better at handling pain than the subordinates who let go of their weapons with a single blow. Although now feeling excruciating pain, the captain's right hand holding the sword did not release it, only his arm slightly trembled.

However, it was still too early for the captain to relax.

Qiuyan raised her knee thudded it upwards. As her leg reached the captain's position, she suddenly extended it upward, raising the lower leg above his shoulder at that moment.

Subsequently, her shin turned inward, pointing the tip of her shoe toward the captain's side face, delivering a swift kick.

After enduring the second attack, the captain's vision blurred, and his hand holding the sword could no longer grip it, letting it slip from his palm the next moment.

At this point, Qiuyan shot out a third dart from her sleeve, aiming it into the trajectory of the falling sword, hitting the weapon and sending it flying upwards; simultaneously, she controlled her leg to launch a third attack, bending it almost 180 degrees, with the tip pointing at the captain's head and then slamming down in a straight line.

"Bang!" The captain's head drooped, and his body leaned forward significantly.

At that moment, as the sword, previously disarmed by the dart, fell back down under Qiuyan's control, it pierced the former master's neck artery viciously.

Chirp! The battle ended. If someone had timed from the moment Qiuyan acted to this point, it wouldn't have taken more than a few dozen seconds.

Certainly, the self-proclaimed maid, Wang Xiaole, had keenly observed Qiuyan's performance but remained focused on inspecting the package now.

The package was prepared for him before departure, containing food and drink. Unable to carry it by hand all the time, Wang Xiaole had been carrying it strapped to his back.

Removing the package from his back, Wang Xiaole opened the lunchbox inside and checked it carefully, letting out a sigh of relief:

Fortunately, nothing in the package was crushed.

As Wang Xiaole breathed out, Qiuyan walked over from a distance.

Without asking for permission, Qiuyan reached into the box and grabbed a pastry, popping it into her mouth to eat.

Chew chew chew, gulp... "Not good, too much seasoning," she muttered.

This maid, who helped herself to others' food without consent, noticed the unfriendly look thrown her way and began justifying herself:

"I went a day without eating, feeling hungry. Was craving food."

This excuse was far-fetched, okay, Wang Xiaole confirmed her guilt; his impression of Qiuyan had deteriorated further.

Before she could take a second pastry, Wang Xiaole placed his hand over the box to feed himself some midnight snack manually.

Chew chew, "For someone with this combat prowess, you cannot be an ordinary maid. Who are you? Why are you so fixated on me?" Wang Xiaole inquired.

"I've told my name to the master already, no need to emphasize my identity. As for the reason I'm so focused on the master, well, it's just because someone told me to be." Qiuyan grabbed food while replying, eyes fixed on the lunchbox.

"Who is that person to you?" Wang Xiaole didn't ask for a specific name, as even if he did, Qiuyan wouldn't answer.

So, he steered the conversation towards Qiuyan's relationship with that person.

"That person? She's my master, another master." Interrupting her food grabbing, Wang Xiaole placed his hand to stop her and asked, "What does your master want you to do by my side?"

"Probably to protect the master, I don't know the deeper reasons," Qiuyan replied.

"You're obedient to that master as a maid," Wang Xiaole pointed out.

"I obey any master's command, not just her. If someone becomes my master, I will follow orders; the master—no! Would Your Highness the prince want to be the next?" Qiuyan teased.

"If I became your master, would you obey my every command, excluding orders that countermand previous ones like going back to the former master?" Wang Xiaole continued.

"Any command apart from 'contradicting prior commands,' such as 'I revoke my earlier command, return to the previous master'; I can't accept that. Everything else is fair game."

Regardless of whether the master ordered Qiuyan's death or to assist in the master's death, she would carry out the commands without hesitation.

Having grasped Qiuyan's behavioral pattern, Wang Xiaole wondered, "Why do you always rely on others' commands? Why not make decisions for yourself?"

"Deciding on my own is too much effort. It's a waste of time and energy which could be better spent lying down or napping standing up."

"You seem to enjoy sleeping."

"Yes, sleeping is comfortable, especially on a soft bed; I sleep not out of boredom but out of pleasure."

Considering the lingering intent of the wicked maid to eat his food, Wang Xiaole tilted his head back and poured the pastries meant for several days into his mouth in one go.

Chomp chomp chomp, gulp! Indeed, the pastries were heavily seasoned, fine to eat one by one, but a challenge to swallow all at once.

Apologizing mentally to his suffering stomach and tongue, Wang Xiaole redirected his attention to Qiuyan and said, "I have important matters to attend to. You don't have to help, and if you're not going back, don't cause trouble."

Qiuyan shook her head in refusal, not just for the pastries.

"Although you address me as 'master', it's only a temporary title, and if His Highness the prince hasn't accepted the master-servant contract, I don't have to obey all your orders."

"Regarding the battle just resolved?"

"That wasn't your directive; it was my own decision borne out of our mutual interests - not just 'following orders.'"

"In the end, you want to become an official maid, right? To have a formal contract with me?"

"If Your Highness the prince is willing to cooperate, it would be beneficial to us both."

"If I don't become your master, what will you do, Qiuyan?"

"Continue tailing until you change your mind."

"What about encountering obstructive enemies later on?"

"I'll ignore non-obstacles and take out the obstacles! That's what the previous master taught me."

As their conversation continued while walking, their voices were not loud, ultimately not attracting new adversaries.

However, this casual chat state was unsustainable.

After leaving the teleportation room, the two steadily approached the palace, nearing their destination.

Dwindling time pressured Wang Xiaole to make a decision.

After contemplating for some time, he looked at Qiuyan and asked, "How do we form a master-servant contract? Do we need to shake hands or sign on a contract paper?"

Wang Xiaole considered a shift in thinking as he realized the dangers of having someone like Qiuyan around, who acted without instructions. Neglecting such a loose cannon could lead to trouble sooner or later.

"Those aren't necessary; a verbal promise is sufficient," Qiuyan unexpectedly replied.

This made Wang Xiaole, accustomed to magic and contracts, suddenly feel very uncomfortable.