The soldier was mesmerized by her smile. Zhi Rui chuckled and passed through the gates, the soldier hurriedly followed.

Zhi Rui walked through the stands as if looking for the perfect gifts, making the soldier at the distance feel his heart warming up.

Zhi Rui went to a liquor stand and put on her most innocent and beautiful smile as she asked. "The soldiers from the front lines, do you know where they live? I want to deliver some gifts for them."

The old man standing behind stood up and bowed "Young lady is the daughter of the general, I'm honored."

Zhi Rui wave her hand giggling. "There's no need for much of that."

the old man's face went red as he stammered, "Y-Young lady, might not know it, but soldiers mainly the one who comes from the frontline, usually pass their first night on the brothel, and now that a new one opened I'm afraid they won't be home." The man spoke trying to not sound vulgar or offensive.

Zhi Rui eyes opened wide "Oh, I forgot about that. Haha"

She bought a few expansive liquors and went back to the carriage.

She told the coachman the direction of the new brothel, the soldier that followed Zhi Rui mounted on his horse and frowned. "Young lady it's better to send a servant to deliver into their houses than to go to the brothel, it might affect your image.

Zhi Rui laughed innocently "I don't owe anything to anyone why would I care what they think of me? god knows my will and actions."

The soldier had a troubled expression.

Zhi Rui stared at the coachman and he started driving.

---------------

The carriage stopped one block away from the brothel, the soldier passed beside the carriage's window mounted on his horse and spoke.

"As I thought Young lady, is better for me to call them here then you can deliver it to them."

A sight came from above the carriage. In a reflex he looked up, only for everything grow dark for him, the coachman stared as the man fell from his horse his face caved in.

"W-wha!?" the coachman jumped from the carriage to run away, he heard a whizz sound before falling to the ground, Zhi Rui wearing armor of the country's colors with a red mask she looked at the two corpses.

'Unfortunately, only very special soldiers get to refine a core, so these are practically mortal.'

Zhi Rui looked at the brothel

'The ones inside came from the frontlines, even if they only formed their core but did not refine another, they still have abundant experience, If I don't use my illusion attribute, I might gain something.'

Zhi Rui slowly walked towards the brothel, Hilda saw things from the ceiling, she recognized the form of the masked assassin carrying a spikeless heavy mace. She sat down to watch the show.

Hearing the people screaming and running just outside the brothel.

Five soldiers got out of the brothel "Who dares to cause trouble on the General's area!"

Zhi Rui did not say anything she just looked at the five of them naturally standing on a formation with the bearded man at its center.

The soldier's eyes squinted seeing no reaction from the masked perp.

"Using our colors to kill us, you'll really suffer for causing this humiliation."

Said the bearded man.

Zhi Rui jumped up and fell right into the middle of them.

She barely adjusted her stance when a shiny blade passed a hair's distance away from her neck, she threw her upper body back and swung her mace at the front, from up to the ground

The bearded man jumped backward, the mace tore a piece of his boots. and smashed the ground raising dust everywhere, as the dust settled they looked where it landed, there was an enormous dent on the ground.

"tuuf" they all looked at the left, one of their companions fell to the ground the back of his head was red and he did not move anymore.

"Back to back!" screamed the bearded soldier clenching his teeth.

Zhi Rui saw as they formed a circle with their back inside and head looking straight ahead covering alll sides.

She smiled 'time to actually fight now.'

She ran smashing her feet on the ground, holding the mace at her waist heigh with both hands the soldier saw her on his line of sight "With me!" he warned, the others all took defensive stance beside him, they all had the same sword and armor.

Zhi Rui came running and stretched her last step into the soldier's distance bringing her mace from behind using the speed to multiply the weight of the blow.

The poor soldier stood still and tried to counter it with his blade. Zhi Rui frowned at the stupidity.

With a muffled scream the arms holding the blade caved in his chest and he flew away destroying their formation.

Zhi Rui decided to let go of her mace. 'it's too much.'

Two of them got up in the nick of time and combined to attack,

one swing at the waist and another at the neck. Zhi Rui finally felt something resembling a threat.

She jumped in a horizontal movement accompanying the direction of the blades, she evaded both, once with feet on the ground she didn't wait for them to continue and charged at the nearest one with punches, she took posture putting all her weight on a straight punch to the neck, he fell down. The other took the opportunity to swing his blade while she was still in position, Zhi Rui jumped back evading it,

The soldier paled, as he did a long swing, his reaction slowed and she was already throwing a punch at him, with three dull sounds his armor caved in on three different places. he coughed blood and fell to the ground.

Seeing as they all fall, with not one coming back up Zhi Rui sighed.

'this wasn't nearly enough.'

Then she saw the last one slightly far away from her. She smiled and ran after him.

The bearded man had tears in his eyes, he ran away, praying to god, to save him.

Zhi Rui took three steps, then stopped. she knelt down on one leg and put her hands on her forehead.

"ughh" she grunted. 'Something is splitting my head open.'

Her chest tightened and her vision blurred, she saw the back of the man running away. but her body wouldn't move, suddenly she heard a sound as if a piece of glass broke. She never felt so much pain, she struggled with her darkening vision when the thought crossed her mind "I need to kill them. three of them are only unconscious, I need to kill them." Zhi Rui mustered her willpower and jumped at each one of them with her mace she gave one swing each.

She hit their heads ceasing their breathing.

She took out the armor and left it right there.

Hunched over and leaning on the wall she walked to her carriage.

Sweat was pouring out of her forehead, as she entered it she fell to the floor. She closed her eyes fading onto unconsciousness the last thing she saw was her cracked core.

-------------------

At the distance, the soldier was still despairingly running, he looked behind and did not saw pursuer but he did not stop, when he reached almost twelve blocks away he stopped to catch his breath, he tried to inhale when a black arrow pierced his eye.

Hilda ignored the corpse and looked at the carriage, she saw everything from the beginning. She jumped down to catch the mace Zhi Rui left on her way to the carriage. 'So she does have a weakness. I have to investigate more.'

Hilda walked in the brothel's direction.