Lost and Found: Return of My Mysterious Fiancee

Philip grunted in agreement with what was said.

Hearing this, Eric finally breathed a sigh of relief, his grip on Griffin's sleeve tightened, and he looked down, lost in thought.

The group continued forward for an unknown duration, faintly discerning a light ahead.

Seeing the light, Eric couldn't help but exclaim with joy, "Finally, it seems we've found the way out!"Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

Having walked through the underground mine for so long, he felt nearly suffocated.

Philip eyed the light ahead and furrowed his brow, skeptical of their smooth progress.

If the exit was found this easily, why would someone go through great lengths to capture and bring them here?

Treading more lightly, he whispered a warning to the two behind him, "Be careful, something's off ahead."

As they advanced, the light grew stronger.

Despite suspecting a trap, they had no choice but to move forward, prepared for whatever lay ahead.

Upon exiting the mine, they found nothing but a large empty space.

"Did we actually escape?" Griffin looked around in disbelief.

Philip's brow remained tightly knit, having anticipated some sort of incident here.

Finally free from the dark mine, Eric let out a sigh of relief, eager to avoid reliving the ordeal.

Despite being with Philip and Griffin, he couldn't shake his fear.

"Tsk." As he thought this, a woman wearing a half gold-thread mask and a red cheongsam, which accentuated her curvaceous figure, appeared out of nowhere. With her hands on her hips and a silver folding fan in hand, she slowly fanned herself, seemingly having been there for a while.

She looked at the trio, snapped her fan shut, clapped her hands, and laughed with a tone of slight praise, "Not bad, you're quicker than I expected."

Philip, the only one among them capable of fighting, stood at the forefront.

Now that the effects of the drug had worn off, his strength and martial skills were nearly restored.

But he knew clearly that this woman's martial arts skills were superior to his own, by a significant margin.

Otherwise, it wouldn't be possible for her to have remained unnoticed for so long.

"Who are you?" Philip looked up and asked in a flat tone.

Having no acquaintances in Alderanth, he knew confronting this woman would be a challenge.

Under her mask, the woman's red lips parted slightly, her gaze filled with disdain, "You don't have the right to know who I am."

At her words, Philip moved quickly to attack.

But before he could reach her, she perfectly anticipated and dodged his attack.

As she moved, she opened her fan, revealing several silver needles that shot straight at him. Had his reaction been even slightly slower, the needles would have struck him.

To dodge the needles, Philip rolled awkwardly on the ground, his body covered in dust, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood.

He had not expected to be so thoroughly defeated by this woman with just one move. The woman spoke lightly, "People from Serenity Ridge are nothing special." Hearing this, Philip couldn't help but cough up another mouthful of fresh blood. Observing his state, the woman couldn't resist mocking him, "You're not still hoping that Serena from the Mountain Veil Order will come to save you, are you?"

Philip was taken aback that she knew Serena was from the Mountain Veil Order. Why then did she deliberately leave a way out for the three of them, if not to mock and humiliate them? He always felt that the woman's purpose in bringing them here was not simple, but he was still unclear about the reason they were all kidnapped together.

"Those marks you left along the way have probably been cleaned up by my people by now," the woman said as she opened her folding fan and gently fanned herself, exuding elegance and composure. In another setting, one might think her a young princess enjoying afternoon tea.

Just when the group thought there was no chance of survival, a noise suddenly came from behind. "People from Serenity Ridge are nothing special? Hmm?" In the darkness, Tina and Jared walked out hand in hand, their expressions calm. Seeing them, the woman's scornful expression softened slightly and she remarked, "Oh? The two of you are together?"

To an outsider, they seemed like old acquaintances. "You needn't worry about that," Tina replied sharply, before lunging at the woman with a silver needle. The woman, unfazed, easily parried the attacks. She chuckled and said, "That's rude. I held you when you were a child."

Hearing this, Tina paused, then launched into an even fiercer barrage of attacks, all of which the woman in red deftly neutralized. Philip watched, struggling to contain his shock, realizing that even Serena struggled against her. "Are you from the Five Poisons?" Tina asked, stepping back. The red-clad woman casually dodged her attacks, her disdain apparent when she heard the name. "Five Poisons, he's hardly worth mentioning."

It seemed that even the Five Poisons were beneath her notice, indicating a larger organization and conspiracy behind her. With his current abilities, Philip feared he was too out of his depth to understand her true identity. The woman continued, "However, I am quite pleased that Dorothy brought these people here."

Tina frowned at that; her previous suspicions with Uncle seemed correct. "Uncle, help us out," Tina said as she disengaged and looked towards Jared, who was standing aside. Jared chuckled, "Alright." With that, he dashed towards the woman, attacking directly with formidable force.

With Jared's involvement, the situation quickly shifted. Seeing the tide turn, the woman swung her iron fan towards them. Philip, having seen its power before, urgently warned, "Be careful, there are poisoned needles in that!"