"This is for you." Austin gave her a large brown box.

Eva felt genuinely surprised to be receiving a gift. "I didn't prepare anything for you."

"You don't have to. You already gave me something precious on my birthday. This is just something small in return." Austin said with a smile.

She took the box and Austin looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to open it, so she did. Inside the box was a pair of brown boots that would reach up to her calves. Just as she reached for it, Austin placed his hand over hers and whispered, "Be careful. There are hidden blades in the soles and here..." He moved his hand to take the boots up for her to inspect more closely. "You can store your smaller weapons."

Eva's eyes sparkled. She had considered creating something like this for herself but she had shelved the idea, prioritising ones that would help the bodyguards and Austin first. She remembered briefly mentioning the idea to him long ago but she had not breathed a word about her wanting it. Moreover, her plans always lacked the aesthetic appeal. She was more into the functionality and practicality. The ring that she made for him was indeed a first for her and she had to crack open her brain for that. In contrast to what she would have designed, the boots looked really neat. She could not wait to try it on.

BaoBao giggled to himself thinking that he was getting the knack of what to tell and what he could hide from Eva.

Austin saw the glee in her eyes and felt relieved and happy that he made the right decision. Before this, he had tried gifting her a simple necklace that has some diamonds and a rich pink gemstone called Kunzite as the main pendant. It was a gift for no reason or occasion. Although it had surprised her equally much and he could tell that she truly appreciated the thought, it did not sit right with him that she did not seem to genuinely like the gift itself. He also never saw her wear the necklace afterwards and later realised how he had acted without thinking things through properly again. He had wooed her in the same way he would woo someone of his social class, neglecting to think of she may feel that it was improper and unsuitable for her to wear something like that, at least when she was not his wife yet. As such, he became a little stumped about what he could get for her and how he could chase her. It was thanks to her gift to him that gave him an idea of what would please her.

"You can try it on now."

When he noticed her looking around at the crowd in the dining hall, he quietly led her away to a connecting room that was equally large but without a large dining table in the middle of it. Instead there were couches lining the wall and pretty paintings hanging on the walls. He brought her to the nearest couch to help her put on the boots.

Eva immediately started testing the way the hidden daggers could either appear at the front or back of the sole. She was also impressed with how comfortable it was.

Suddenly, BaoBao greeted her with news that would ruin everyone's festive mood.

There's a huge flock of birds approaching and there are explosives strapped to them! I think they're trained, they're homing in on the mansion!

What?!

Eva snapped her head to look outside the large window that spanned from the ceiling to the ground and was facing the front garden. The sky was too dark for her to see clearly but she immediately sprang into action. While walking towards Austin, she was already scribbling on her notebook as quickly as she could.

Austin was equally alerted by her sudden tense behaviour. He had been admiring her joyful expression when she suddenly froze then looked outside. He was already making his way towards her when she started writing on her notebook.

"What happened?" She would have ran into him if he did not speak up.

"Incoming bombs. Evacuate everyone now!"

Austin moved without asking a question. He shouted for everyone to follow him immediately and without delay while Eva slid open the large window to the backyard.

The servants picked up on the tense and serious looks of the bodyguards, Edwin, and the doctor, so knew that something bad was going on. They panicked and started running to follow Austin into the next room and out into the backyard. It was lucky for them that everyone was already gathered in the dining hall so there was no time wasted in the evacuation.

Just as the servants started feeling that it may have been a false alarm, random small explosions started to go off. Terrified shouts and screams rang out together with the sound of explosions. Most of the explosions happened above the mansion while some managed to deal some damage. 

BaoBao kept Eva updated on everything that was happening for the entire time.

The explosions immediately drew all the guards surrounding the premises into the mansion to inspect the chaos. Following that, another wave of birds flew in, and someone drove a large bandwagon into the front garden through the front gate that was left wide open by the bodyguards that rushed in. He then released the hundreds of rats that were confined in the bandwagon into the garden. Like the birds, the rats also had explosives strapped to them. The rats scurried away fast. They soon filled the gardens and headed towards the backyard.

Eva! Somehow the rats are sniffing out almost every trap that you set and setting them off. The man's just standing on the bandwagon watching everything happen! Is he not afraid of getting caught in any of the explosions?

I should use this chance to get to him. I can use the ring as long as I'm not seen using it by anyone in this world, right?

Yes!

When Eva wanted to take off, Austin grabbed her by her arm. "Where're you running off to now?"

"I think he's in the gardens orchestrating everything. I can get to him without being noticed. It should be easier with all the chaos around. And alone." Eva decided to add in the last part in case Austin decided to follow her.

Austin gritted his teeth. He really did not want Eva to dive into danger all by herself but he knew that the bulky build of him and his bodyguards were not ideal for the stealth that Eva needed at the moment. Moreover, he was convinced that staying with him may be more dangerous since he was the target. The rats were already making their way into the backyard and the bodyguards were constantly shooting at any rat they saw, sometimes triggering a chain of explosions.

If being away from me makes it safer for her... He reluctantly let go of her hand. "Be safe."

Eva nodded and left immediately. She ran to the side of the backyard and put on the ring as soon as she went behind a tree that blocked her from everyone's view. She then proceeded on to change directions, heading into the mansion through the still open window, running through the mansion, then out to the front garden through a broken window that BaoBao informed her of.

However, along the way towards the man on the bandwagon, they quickly realised that more and more rats seemed to be following her. This was bad since it would seem very odd. BaoBao estimated that by the time she reached the man, there'd be countless of them in her trail.

What's going on?

From the way their noses twitch before following you, I think they recognise a certain smell on you!

Smell? But I don't use any- Suddenly, the thought of how the rats found all her hidden traps sprang up in her mind.

My poisons! That man is making use of my expertise!

Eva quickly ditched all her weapons that had any hint of poison on them, which was a huge majority of them since she had made herself into some poison expert. She was now regretting overdoing it and not being careful.

She only made it halfway to the man when he frowned. He noticed how a whole mischief of rats were congregating at one spot. Suddenly, he jumped onto the horse and turned it around while shooting at those rats, setting off a large chain of explosions. The spooked out horse galloped away as fast as it could, safely bringing the man who clung onto it for dear life away from the danger.

On the other hand, Eva got completely caught in the explosions. She got knocked out instantly while her body was hurled towards a tree. In that short few miliseconds, BaoBao calculated that the force of impact would be too great for her spine to take and that she would end up crippled if she continued in her trajectory. He quickly materialised a squishy version of himself, taking the full brunt of the hit. Lucky for him, systems do not feel physical pain so it did not hurt for him.

Eva was lucky that there was no one around her at the moment, otherwise he would not have been allowed to do something like that. BaoBao then quickly helped her to take the ring off and kept it in her pocket before Austin arrived.

Austin had realised that something seemed wrong not long after Eva left his side. Fewer rats were coming into the backyard and a bad feeling constantly grew within him. Just as he considered if Eva was in greater danger than he thought, an especially loud explosion came from the front garden. Austin broke off into a run almost reflexively. He broke through the line of bodyguards who had placed themselves between him and the mansion.

As more explosions rang out, the greater fear he felt. The bodyguards attempted to stop him from running into the rats but he punched the lights out of whoever tried to. Everybody stopped shooting at the rats and nobody tried to hold him back any longer. While the bodyguards hesitated about following Austin in his reckless behaviour, Edwin and the doctor followed him without a single hesitation.

As if fate was on his side, none of the rats around him exploded and he steered clear of the ongoing chain of explosions. Although he had no idea where Eva could possibly be at, he managed to find her just by following his gut feeling.

He dropped to his knees as soon as he reached her side. "I- I'm not hallucinating this time, am I?" Her body was covered in blood and bad burns. He was just about to touch her when the doctor yelled for him to stop. Austin had easily outran the both of them so the doctor took awhile longer to reach Eva's side.

Panting heavily, he explained while his hands got busy. "She likely crashed into the tree here. Let me check if it's safe. To move her." After checking that there were no serious broken or fractured bones, he held her head steady while Austin carried her very carefully back to the mansion.

While they brought Eva to her room, Edwin got busy preparing everything the doctor told him to.

By the time they settled Eva down on her bed, the doctor immediately started on her treatment. Upon closer inspection, the doctor realised that she was bleeding from her ears as well.

Austin noticed his grim expression. "What's wrong?"

The doctor never stopped moving his hands while he explained her condition. "She has really bad burns and deep wounds that requires stitching. But these aren't a problem. The worrisome issue is the bleeding from her ears. Her eardrums may be ruptured, but there is a chance that it's not. Let's hope for the best."

Austin clenched his fists and felt overwhelming regret for allowing her to leave his side. Before his was consumed in his sadness and guilt, a firm hand was placed on his shoulder. "Let's help in any way we can for now."

Austin looked at Edwin tearfully then nodded resolutely. He wiped his eyes dry of tears then assisted the doctor with Edwin in any way they could.

By the end of the treatment, Eva was almost covered in bandages and put on a drip. Seeing her like that really broke Austin's heart. He knelt on the floor by her bed, gripping onto the bed sheet tightly. He badly wanted to touch her and hold her in comfort but now he was afraid that it would only cause her pain. If only I can take on all the pain she feels...

The doctor's heart hurt to see Austin look so despondent. Hoping that it would reassure Austin somewhat, he spoke. "Her condition is stable now. Let's just hope she did not suffer too bad a concussion..."

Receiving no reply from Austin, they left the room silently. They knew that Austin would be unwilling to leave Eva's side now.

Edwin proactively took charge of handling the aftermath of the attack.

He found that the bodyguards were already hard at work either putting out fires that started or cornering the rats into a far corner before shooting them. Watching Austin run through the rats had made them realise that the explosives strapped to the rats were actually triggered and not timed.

The servants that were still in shock were managed by the doctor, while the more resilient ones were directed by Edwin.

Some time in the middle of the night, reinforcements had arrived with the notice that they were sent out of concern by the royal couple who had noticed something wrong with Austin's estate. Just as Edwin was about to go back to the mansion to inform Austin of their arrival, Austin appeared outside the main door.

Austin was so angry at the moment that it made all who saw him think that they met the devil himself.