Forensic Imperial Concubine

After briefly glancing at Diana who was becoming paler by the second, Harper quickly looked in the opposite direction. From
where they were situated, there were two roads that she could see. One was the road where they had come from as they left the
Starry Palace, and the other was the road behind it. But the road in front of them led to the South Kingdom's Labyrinth Swamp
which was extremely dangerous. Up until then, it was said that no one could get out of there alive.
Moreover, the Holy Mountain served as a natural barrier, blocking the swamp from flowing to the South Kingdom. Harper thought
that no matter which road they chose, it would be extremely difficult to survive. Entering the swamp would mean risking their
lives. On the other hand, if they went down the mountain, the situation wasn't any better.
When Howard finally caught up with Harper, he was surprised to see that she had stopped walking. So, he anxiously asked,
"Why did you stop?"
"It wouldn't be wise to go down," Harper stated in a soft tone while looking at the road which descended to the foot of the
mountain.
Howard frowned and immediately responded, "Don't worry. Even if it meant fighting our way out, we'll definitely find a way for
you!"
"We don't have to fight head-on. I'm afraid that the army in the imperial capital has been waiting for us at the foot of the
mountain. If we go down, we will have to defend ourselves from countless enemies. By then, we will be too exhausted and even
killed." Harper turned to the other direction where weeds had overgrown and few people had been there, because it was the
notorious Labyrinth Swamp. "Everyone, come with me. Let's enter the swamp!"
"You're crazy!" Howard exclaimed while quickly blocking Harper's way. "Do you know how dangerous the swamp is? Once you
enter it, you won't be able to come out alive!"
However, Harper looked very calm. "The worst possibility is death. But, I really think that we have at least a chance of survival
there. On the other hand, if we go down the mountain and force our way out, there is not a bit of that chance and we will certainly
die. Catherine is not going to let us leave the South Kingdom alive."
"But you can't just walk into death!"
With utmost gentleness, Harper said, "Brother, trust me."
For a moment, Howard looked extremely moved. His eyes started to get red when he heard the word "brother" from his sister.
He couldn't remember how long it had been since she had called him like that. All the tension and strain vanished into thin air

with the single word. He turned around to avoid anyone from seeing his embarrassment, because he didn't know how to react to
suddenly being called "brother".
Gathering up all of his composure, Howard exclaimed, "Let's go!" He then took the lead in entering the Labyrinth Swamp.
Leaving Diana to the secret guards, Harper followed his brother. Meanwhile, when Catherine, the Holy Maiden almost caught up
with the runaways, she saw a group of people disappearing at the end of the road.
She sneered, "You have a way of surviving, but you didn't choose it. You're asking for death! Harper, now that you entered the
Labyrinth Swamp, you wouldn't be able to come out alive. However, you're doing me a favor. With this decision, I don't have to
stain my hands and kill my sister. So thank you for that!"
The captain of the guards approached Catherine in a rush. When he noticed that Diana was not with her, he asked, "Your Grace,
may I know where did Princess Diana go?"
With eyes that started to become red, Catherine solemnly said, "Diana... She had been taken away by Harper. The latter was
escaping so quickly that she didn't pay attention to the route and led a group of people to the Labyrinth Swamp."
In an instant, the captain turned pale with fear. Everyone knew the dangers that came with the Labyrinth Swamp. Even if the
most powerful shaman were to enter the place, they wouldn't be able to find a way out. Princess Diana would certainly die if she
had been taken in there!
"I need to go back to the palace and report this unfortunate event to His Majesty."
With a worried expression on her face, the Holy Maiden added more fuel to the fire. "And, Diana had been hurt by Harper. The
Labyrinth Swamp is shrouded in heavy miasma. I'm afraid... I'm afraid the situation is extremely hopeless. Please tell His Majesty
what exactly happened to Diana and make sure that he is well prepared for any disastrous situation that may occur. Besides, the
Holy Article had been stolen by Harper."
"Yes, Your Grace."
Meanwhile, back in the royal palace of the South Kingdom, Lance was anxiously pacing back and forth. He just received a war
report from the frontlines. The Birch Pass had fallen under the control of Matthew. In a few days, he had taken control of the
pass. It was a clear indication of how terrible yet capable he was. The two hundred thousand soldiers of the south domain were
completely defeated in a few days. Also, their leader Luther had been killed in the battle while Francis had escaped. Now, every
inch of the Birch Pass was entirely in Matthew's hands!

What made Lance even more annoyed and unbearable was that after Matthew took the Birch Pass, he led fifty thousand soldiers
of the Black Flag Army and marched to the capital of the South Kingdom! Along the way, he and his army moved forward with
vigorous momentum. The army of the South Kingdom could not stop them at all. If things went on like this, the entire South
Kingdom would be conquered in a short time! A few days ago, when Matthew left the capital, he emphasized that if something
were to happen to Harper, he was going to destroy the entire kingdom. It seemed like he was staying true to his word.
"Your Majesty," the captain of the guards greeted Lance.
"Is Princess Diana back?" Lance asked with great concern.
The captain instantly looked sullen. "Your Majesty, something bad happened to Her Highness. Prince Harper ran out of the ruins
and escaped. She held Princess Diana as a hostage and severely injured her!"
"She's crossed the line!" With one tremendous banging of Lance's fists, the tables were smashed into pieces. "This couple is
outrageous! Where is the Holy Maiden? Is she all right?"
"Fortunately, Her Grace is fine. She wanted to rescue Princess Diana. So, she chased Prince Harper as far as she could. But
Prince Harper and her companions were so startled that they chose to walk inside the... the Labyrinth Swamp with the seriously
injured Prince Diana." As soon as the captain finished speaking, Lance staggered and collapsed into his chair. The eunuch next
to him quickly helped him up.
"Your Majesty, please take care!"
Lance felt that he was both sad and furious and that blood was about to burst out of his mouth. He didn't know if he should
swallow the blood or spit it. Then, he heard the captain continued, "I'm sorry, Your Majesty, but you need to know about this. The
Holy Maiden said that the Holy Article had also been taken away by Princess Harper."