"Okay," Ava said with a small nod. "At least I tried."
She turned to leave, ready to go back and reconsider her approach, when—
"Master!"
A panicked male voice suddenly rang from outside.
Ava barely had time to react before the door slammed open, and a man stumbled inside, breathless and frantic. His face was pale, eyes wide with urgency.
Behind him, four others rushed in—two men and two women, all appearing equally distressed. Their robes were dusted with dirt as if they had traveled in haste, and their faces carried the weight of something grave.
Ava's heartbeat quickened. She knew these people—not personally, but their reputation preceded them.
The moment she laid eyes on their dark, flowing robes embroidered with the delicate yet ominous sigil of a blooming lotus at midnight, she understood.
These were the Lotus Guards, Daoist Midnight Lotus's most trusted men and women.
