True to Stephan's usual direct and forceful methods, his original plan was to level the entire mountain with repeated bombings. That way, no matter what threats Johanna or her accomplices posed, they would all be buried under the rubble. He had already begun mobilizing his men and firepower to bombard the mountain.

If Felicia and Imogen hadn't risked coming here, Stephan would have continued. But now that they were present, he had no choice but to halt the operation.

Felicia instinctively shrank back, trying to nudge Imogen forward as a shield. Imogen caught her movement, glanced at her, and stepped forward, addressing Stephan directly: "What are you glaring at?"

Stephan was speechless. Felicia suppressed a laugh, thinking Imogen's fierceness was unmatched. Caught off guard, Stephan looked helpless and innocent. "Imogen, who am I glaring at?"

"Don't you think I can tell!" Imogen, fiercely protective of Felicia, took an unreasonable, overprotective stance. "You'd better treat your wife well. If you're mean to her, I'll give you a spanking myself!"

Stephan glanced at Felicia again, seeing her hiding behind Imogen, avoiding his gaze. She looked exactly like someone who had been wronged. Stephan sighed. It was hard to argue with such misplaced accusations.

Scarlet, observing quietly, concluded, "Poor Mr. Russell."

Imogen, resuming a serious tone, furrowed her brows. "Have you found any sign of them? Could they have been killed in the explosions?"

"We're still searching," Stephan replied, scanning the area. His men were swarming the mountain, but the complex terrain made the search time-consuming.

Stephan guessed Johanna wouldn't have dared to make such a bold threat without powerful backing. That someone could only be Fiete. If they were both here, he intended to subdue them swiftly.

The faint bruise, clearly from being tied up, stood out against Felicia's fair skin. Felicia glanced at it. The mark didn't hurt, but it looked worse than it felt.

With a sigh of resignation, Felicia stepped forward. "It's nothing. There was a minor incident earlier. It's fine now."

Stephan frowned, unwilling to let the matter drop. "What kind of situation leaves marks like that?"

Before he could press further, Imogen remembered something. "Oh right, there's something more important about Felicia!"

"What is it?" Stephan asked.

"Felicia's been—" Imogen began, but a sharp gust of wind swept past, and an icy presence enveloped the group.

Felicia spun around, seeing a figure lunging toward Imogen. The gleam of a blade flashed, blindingly cold. The attack was so fast, no one reacted. Imogen froze.

Stephan, however, lunged forward, grabbing Imogen and pulling her out of harm's way. Scarlet caught her as she sprawled. Instead of dodging, Stephan charged the attacker, meeting the blade with a fierce counter-attack.