The Misadventures of Rodrick and his Assistant

The Lineage District was divided into three zones, or specifically, sub-districts: the slums, the Common District, and the Upper District.

The Upper District was where the rich lived, and more importantly, it was where the King of the Lineage District resided, always holed up in his own grand castle.

The Dragonclaw was one of the strongest Noble Families in Lineage, but ever since the Head's sudden death, its power grew weaker.

As his heir, Elizabeth was easily recognizable, so when she reached the gate leading to the Upper District, the guards, albeit surprised, didn't stop her.

Her kidnapping had spread across all of Lineage, and her worried stepmother hired a lot of people to find her. To think she would return on her own was unthinkable, especially to the people that knew the details of her circumstances.

Elizabeth slowly walked on the side of the wide street, soon reaching her home. Even amidst the darkness, the big manor was visible and surrounded by a tall fence.

"Miss!"

When the two guards saw her, they were beyond surprised. They eyed each other before one of them ran up to her while the other went to inform her stepmother.

In just two minutes, Elizabeth's stepmother ran outside, tears trickling down her face. She tightly hugged her and checked for any injuries.

"Ah! I was so worried about you! Are you harmed?!"

"I'm fine." Replied Elizabeth, however, that one response made everyone flinch.

Elizabeth rarely spoke, and even then, she never talked to her stepmother.

"It's cold outside! Let's hurry inside!"

With the guards on both sides, her stepmother quickly took her inside the manor.

As soon as they were out of sight, Elizabeth was put down.

"Mother!"

Her step-sibling, who was a teenager, was shocked to see Elizabeth. From the pajamas he was wearing, it was clear he was sleeping, uncaring about her safety.

Indeed, with only a few servants around, her stepmother didn't keep her act.

She coldly glared at Elizabeth, her eyes filled with malice and hatred. She didn't say a word, but Elizabeth could guess her thoughts.

'Why are you back?!' 'You should've died!' 'I'll make you regret coming back'.

After a brief yet tense silence, her stepmother took big strides, approaching her.

She grabbed her by the collar and then viciously slapped her across the cheek. The force of the hit made Elizabeth fall down on the ground.

Most of the servants looked away, though some seemed to enjoy seeing Elizabeth get hit. Of course, the latter were her stepmother's people and similarly wanted her to be gone.

Wanting to hit her more, her stepmother grabbed her again and raised her hand, but, at that moment, one of Elizabeth's hands moved.

A purple flame shot forth, instantly hitting her stepmother and making her stagger backwards. The purple flame spread in an instant, followed by the woman's hellish screams.

Her son, panicking, tried to help but the purple fire, as if it had a will, spread to him.

The servants, who were about to help, stopped in their tracks when they saw Elizabeth stand up and raise her hand.

Above her hand was a small ball of fire, not larger than her own hand, but still equally dangerous.

Everyone could only watch as the stepmother and her son screamed and rolled on the ground, literally burning to death.

At some point, Elizabeth saw three black-clothed men appear from the stairs, but once they saw their employer dead, they didn't attack.

"I will pay you." Said Elizabeth before turning to look at the servants.

No one would have ever expected the innocent and harmless Elizabeth would do such a thing. In fact, the very fact that she could use Dragonfire was a secret, which was why her stepmother was so unguarded against her.

In just a brief period of time, the tides turned. The ruler of the family died and all that was left was the young heiress, nonetheless, no one dared to talk.

All the servants were frightened, including the butler who had left her alone. They saw a girl use Dragonfire and they didn't know how proficient she was. For now, it was better to show obedience and not incur her wrath.

Elizabeth turned to look at the three assassins.

"I'm the head of the Dragonclaw Family now. I will pay you if you kill the people I point towards."

The assassins, as silent as ever, didn't give a response, but Elizabeth didn't care. She stared by pointing at the butler.

"My lady, please spare me! I wrong-"

He couldn't even finish as a dagger pierced his forehead. His lifeless body fell to the ground, the sound echoing across the hall.

What followed after that was a bloody purge that no one in Lineage would have expected from a girl barely 11 years of age.

Even after this incident, those in the dark never understood why those three assassins chose to accept Elizabeth's offer. Still, in retrospect, their bold decision to kill despite the fact that their target became their employer was what allowed Elizabeth to have a firm and unshakable grasp over the Dragonclaw Family, or at least what was left of it.