Chapter 71 Time Chase

◎ Melia opened her eyes again, and for a moment even the sky turned crimson.◎

Huh——

As if a drowning person exhaled his last breath of air, Melia opened her eyes again, and in an instant even the sky turned crimson.

It was not until the sound of the wind in my ears was driven away by the noise of the city that the smell of blood in my nose slowly disappeared.

"Hmm." She covered her mouth and squatted down with a pale face. Strange, I didn't feel this nauseous when I came back before...

"Meliya? What's wrong with you?" Elena turned around, quickly grabbed her wrist and tried to pat her back.

"I didn't... Ugh, don't pat my back yet."

Melia took Elena's hand and stood up straight, looking around: this time they were not standing by the fountain, there were people queuing in front, behind, and on both sides, and not far away was the clothing store she invested in.

It turns out that it goes back to the time of queuing. It seems that the resurrection time has been moved back a bit.

Having died in the same way twice in a row, the assassin must be targeting her. She can no longer slack off.

"Phew~ I need to find a place to lie down. Maybe I didn't sleep well this morning."

If you waste time again, you might be hit by arrows when you are resurrected next time, and you will have to rely on Elena to kill her.

Even if I enter Shadow Rome and escape by force, skipping today, as long as the assassin is not caught, there will be a risk of unlimited resurrection in the days to come, and there may be no one around me by then.

The pain of death seemed to still linger in her abdomen, coming in waves. Melia clutched her stomach and struggled to leave.

"Lie down? Okay, let's go find her." Elena simply held her in her arms and walked out of the group. The people behind her quickly filled their spots and joined the others in watching the excitement.

The shop manager heard the noise and came out to take a look. Unexpectedly, it was his young lady. He quickly ran over in his slippers, "Miss, what's wrong? There's a witch doctor's clinic nearby. I'll take you there!"

"It's okay. Is there a couch for resting in the store? I want to lie down."

"Yes! Please follow me. Everyone, make way, make way~"

The store manager led them into the store through the back door.

The clothing store has two floors. Most of the upstairs area is used to display and store clothes and sundries. There is also a small employee rest room at the innermost part.

Melia quickly lay down on the couch and fell asleep under Elena's worried eyes.

Huh~Breathe... Hurry, take me to Sura, it must be this old guy who did it... I hope I'm right.

A clear-cut idea immediately took effect, and a little white cat opened its eyes in the grass: This is not Sulla's courtyard, nor does it look like a palace. Where is it?

Melia spread her claws and flew away, finally seeing the familiar buildings: the iconic high dome of the Temple of the Gods and a large pile of beautiful white stones.

Temple? Could it be the High Priest's doing this? The glass industry's profits are almost entirely fed to the church. Isn't that enough to feed him? What reason does he have to kill me? Doesn't he want the money anymore?

The little white cat walked out along the gravel path with a puzzled look on his face, and finally saw Sura's back: the old man was sitting in the pavilion, with only a red-faced young man next to him, and no priests of the temple were to be seen.

Melia realized belatedly that today was the Moon Goddess Festival, and the priests of the Temple of the Gods were very busy, so it was impossible for them to specially invite Sura to discuss things.

Unless the trick had to happen today, or...according to the rules, Sulla should also be here? He is the Supreme Elder after all.

The little white cat hesitantly lay down and walked to the pavilion under the cover of the bushes. Upon closer inspection, he saw Muro and another elder sitting in the pavilion not far away.

She felt a little relieved: ever since Artetippus was executed by Caesar, Muro had restored their "alliance" relationship.

One of them needs someone above him, the other needs money below him, and they are nominally brother and sister. Isn't it a perfect match?

Melia restored Muro's money supply, and he gained fame at an astonishing rate and became very good at socializing.

Even though Caesar did not want to increase the number of supreme senators and left the two vacant positions idle, everyone believed that Muro would take one of the positions.

In return, Muro would reveal some of the actions of others every now and then, and the assassinations and unfavorable rumors against Melia gradually decreased by half.

Sulla certainly would not trust Muro. His appearance here meant that the senators entered the temple mostly because of the festival.

"The First Maiden will light the sacred fire in the Temple of Diana with Caesar at night."

Elena's words inadvertently flashed through his mind, indicating that Caesar would arrive at the Temple of Diana that night. As a very important member of the gods, the Moon Goddess's temple was intertwined with the Pantheon.

No wonder the veterans are here. The leaders are personally here to have a good holiday with ordinary employees. How can a group of directors go home to rest?

Melia squatted for a long time with her cat's face gently pressed against the pillar, but the young man did not talk to Sura.

Speaking of which...it seems like it's been ages since I've heard about Sulla's plot. Has he changed the way he delivers information? Or has he limited dangerous communications to a room with only two people, after so many leaks?

It would be a waste of time to squat any longer, so she raised her paws, walked stealthily to the bottom of the temple, and then flew out at the fastest speed.

Clues, cats need clues!

There were many senators in the courtyard, probably waiting to suck up to the leader, but it was useless.

There's a lot less gold in the room, and uh... it's useless.

The priests were chatting about what to have for dinner and discussing the identities and breast sizes of the beauty contestants, which was useless.

A very beautiful guest room was filled with a lot of miscellaneous items, including a few small boxes containing golden lotus and golden moon, which were useless.

The cat's paws moved faster and faster, her plan clear: from the Pantheon to the Temple of Diana, she wouldn't miss a single spot. "If you want to die, it's tonight. I'll uncover all your secrets!"

Brush, brush, brush——

The cat's claws almost scraped a trail of sparks on the ground.

"Wow, what's that fast?!"

"Your Highness, it should be a white mouse."

Melia felt her vision blur, and when she looked up, a magnified face appeared before her. The owner of the face studied her for a few seconds, then, holding the cat's scruff, replied meticulously, "Your Highness, I was mistaken. It's a white cat."

"Meow, meow, meow, meow!" You, you let go! Cats still have to save the world——

The little white cat meowed in dissatisfaction, making Antonio laugh out loud: "Whose cat is this? It's so cute."

However, when the guard loosened his fingers and threw the cat towards him, he dodged over his shoulder as quickly as possible, fearing that he would be touched by the cat's fur.

With a plop, the little white cat dove headfirst into the bushes by the roadside, leaving only half of her butt exposed. She pulled her head out with a laugh and disappeared into the garden at a speed faster than the fat mouse.

"Meow——" I'll remember you, Antonio——

Melia ran through the corridor angrily and was surprised to see the statue of Diana: It turned out that the Temple of Diana was a little further inside. What was Antonio waiting for here?

Are you trying to please Caesar, your future father-in-law?

Elena probably rejected him, but after careful consideration, Ophelia was also a good candidate. As a Roman princess, Ophelia's family background was more "noble" and she was also deeply loved by the temple and the people.

Well, let’s not worry about Antonio for now, the “Assassin” is more important.

When the previous death occurred, many people appeared on the streets. Letting so many people mess up the city of Rome would be a slap in Caesar's face, and they would be suppressed by the legions in no time.

Their target must be more than just Melia. To dare to cause such a commotion...Caesar! It can only be for Caesar!

Connecting the clues together in the mind, foresight is a huge advantage, but sometimes it can also mislead your thinking.

She always remembered that in "The Rose Princess," Caesar's death was next year, but what if an unsuccessful assassination attempt occurred this year? Or—the "plot" had changed, and even important characters would die in the butterfly effect.

Gulp, Melia swallowed nervously.

If Caesar died prematurely, what would happen to many important moments in the book?

According to the original book's plot, Persia would be the first to attack the Roman border, and then Caesar would run over to seek revenge.

At the beginning, everything must have gone smoothly and he showed his kingly style. However, it is not known whether there was a traitor or the Persians were too powerful, but Caesar, known as the conqueror, actually died from a small poisonous blade.

The book does not detail Caesar's death, nor does it name the murderer. All that is known is that the assassin used a dagger coated with magic potion and stabbed him more than once.

In the later part of "The Rose Princess", after ascending the throne, Elena finally found the murderer of her father, but unfortunately there was only one sentence in the book.

[The emperor looked coldly at the night sky: "Really? Execute them all and cut their bodies into pieces with fishing nets with iron hooks."] There was no explanation of who assassinated Caesar.

The temple is heavily guarded, and the top is not a window but an air vent.

Fortunately, these could not stop a kitten at all. Melia jumped lightly, used the stone pillars and big trees to jump to the second floor, and slipped into the hole.

"who?!"

The sound in the darkness startled the cat's paws. No way, is there someone here too?! This is the beam of the house!

"Meow..." The little white cat hopped onto the beam, tail between its legs. The only heavy objects nearby were stone pillars. No one would be so heartless as to climb up the beam and kill a cat, right? Cats have nine lives, and so do assassins?

"Hush, hush!" A figure emerged from the darkness, its face masked, revealing only a pair of silver-gray eyes. It was impossible to tell whether it was a man or a woman, and its voice was neutral and low.

That person was hiding on top of the temple like Melia, but he wasn't a cat. Even if he crouched on a beam, he would be spotted if someone looked up. He could only rely on his strong balance to hide behind the arc-shaped gap at the top of the stone pillar: there, it happened to be covered by the wings of the goddess's attendant.

He hissed and waved his fingers, obviously trying to drive away the kitten that was in the way.

Melia glanced at the crossbow hanging at his waist and a series of suspicious blade-like tools, and sneered in her heart: Sure enough, someone is hiding here and wants to assassinate Caesar. If it was a secret guard, there would be no need to be so cautious!

She didn't even bother to meow, she just flicked her tail and leaped to the other side, disappearing behind a pillar. "Before I leave, let me see how many assassins there are! I'll catch you all in one fell swoop."

Hehehe, the credit for helping Caesar cannot be given away.

…

"Hmm~" Melia stretched and rolled off the couch: "Elena, let's get going quickly - eh?"

A powder blue veil gently covered her head, along with a warm kiss.

Elena slowly raised her lips: "Okay, it seems that you are really tired, let's go home."

"......" Melia leaned towards her with a blushing face and tapped her shoulder with her chin: "No, wait, actually, I, I want to tell you something!"

"What's up?"

Tsk, there really has to be a logical explanation for being exposed as Kitten. And... I should tell Elena about some things, too. Keeping things secret for too long could lead to trouble.

Melia thought for a few seconds and raised her head: "Someone wants to assassinate Caesar."

"What?"

"The information I received from a special channel is 90% true." She stroked her surprised brow. "Also... I've built some special archways. Once you pass through them, you can safely reach the temple. No one will stop you before you enter."

Elena pondered her words for a moment. "The most urgent task is to stop the assassination. You mean..."

TΨ

"Elena, this is a good opportunity." Melia stared into her eyes, and sure enough... the desire for power was burning in the deep sea.

"We can stop this assassination."

Melia stood on tiptoe: "Let's get started. Get His Majesty's approval and step forward."

The author has something to say:

Thanks to Luchen_piuma, Chufan, and Leilei of Seventeen Not Soft~

Thanks to Quanxue, Yinliuhua, Siye, and jgbvgyfch for their support~