The Queen Who Fights Back (by Lily Hastings) novel Chapter 173

Chapter 173

“BOOM!”

Even from over a kilometer away, the shockwave rattled the ground.

Mavis, Eric, and the rest of their group could feel the sheer force of the blast.

Nova and Yellowcat pulled the trigger without hesitation–one second they’re firing, the next they’re provoking the enemy. just like that.

They were downright reckless, not giving a damn about the consequences.

The rest of the group was left utterly speechless, like someone had slapped duct tape right over their mouths.

They could only stare wide–eyed, not uttering a single word.

“Thud.”

Listen up.

Nova finished watching the chaos break out among Brandon’s troops 6,500 feet away, then casually chucked her binoculars to the ground.

“Click, click.”

She racked the slides on a few hard–hitting firearms, then slipped them into her waist holsters without a second thought.

She grabbed a couple of grenades and clipped them onto the tactical straps at her thigh, locking them in place tight for

action.

“What are you planning to do?” Eric stammered, his voice high–pitched with shock and panic.

Watching Nova, Eric was caught totally off guard–her actions made his heart practically skip a beat.

Nova’s crazy sequence of moves had the whole group staring, jaws on the floor.

“Seriously, can’t you guys see? Nova’s about to head out and assassinate Brandon,” Yellowcat said, unfazed and dead serious.

He’d rolled with Nova for years–one glance at her and he instantly knew what she was up to.

Battle had broken out between both sides.

Assassinating the enemy commander is hands down the best way to throw their ranks into chaos and grab the win.

But pulling that off? That’s next–level insane–damn near impossible.

“What!?” Mavis completely lost it, her scream ripping through the silence in pure disbelief.

Mavis was stunned, couldn’t hold back anymore, her shock breaking the tense mood for everyone.

“Brandon? I’ve totally heard of that guy! He’s an absolute legend out there in the mercenary world,” Mavis stammered, voice full of disbelief.

“He’s a hardcore mercenary, not just some average soldier…

“And you–you’re just a college girl! How on earth are you supposed to take on someone like him?”

Mavis kept going, her voice trembling with worry.

“Really, you shouldn’t feel like it’s no big deal to put your life on the line just because of some old rivalry from school.

“And seriously, you don’t have to…”

Nova just cocked her head and replied with a casual scoff, her tone unfazed.

“I’m just here for the money,” she said flatly.

The only thing on her mind was pocketing the reward from this 55 mission–whatever rivalry Mavis cared about meant absolutely nothing to her.

That one sentence left Mavis completely speechless, shutting her down in an instant.

“Guard the armory–don’t let the enemy break in.

“Wait for my word,” Nova said, her tone steady and in control.

She shot Yellowcat a sharp tactical hand gesture.

She pulled a grappling hook from her left hip, swung it toward the rooftop edge, and with a swift move, latched it securely.

Then, without a shred of hesitation, she lunged off the tower–launching herself into the air like a predator on the hunt.

Almost immediately after, she was gone.

To Mavis, Vivian, Eric, and the rest of the students watching, Nova was like a ghost–she slipped right past the pre–laid minefields on the ground and vanished into the shadows, heading straight for Brandon’s squad.

Brandon’s squad–only about a hundred left, all handpicked by the man himself.

These weren’t just soldiers, they were legends–cream of the crop in the merc world.

Then, out of nowhere, that cannon blast took out ten of them in a heartbeat.

Just like Nova had predicted.

The nine guys who used to sneer at Nova and split from Columbus–Bulruce and his crew–were now up to their necks in

trouble.

They’d barely made it out of the armory before getting jumped and bagged by a squad from Orian.

Now, those nine were just lumped in with over a hundred other POWs, no longer hotshots–just unlucky captives.

The only reason they hadn’t gotten a bullet yet was because Brandon was marching them up front like disposable pawns, clearing the path for his own men.

The blast had already killed thirty prisoners–Bulruce and his crew were damn lucky to have dodged death this time.

“Shit! We need to do something, or we’re dead for sure!” one of Bulruce’s buddies muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.

Right now, Brandon and his squad were so rattled by the sudden cannon fire that everyone was watching their own backs, way too busy to even care what happened to the prisoners.

Bulruce rubbed his head, looking lost.

He was just about to say something when-

He and his crew all saw a stunning, out–of–place girl, maybe nineteen, seeming to materialize at the front lines of Brandon’s makeshift base.

“It’s that bitch!” Bulruce blurted out, his eyes going wide in shock.

When he realized it was Nova, Bulruce’s eyes bulged in disbelief.

“Who the hell are you? What do you want?” someone yelled, their voice sharp with suspicion.

After that surprise artillery strike, Brandon’s squad was on high alert, every nerve on edge.

In a split second, fifty guns opened fire on Nova, bullets tearing through the air.

Brandon’s right–hand man, standing close by, raised his pistol straight at Nova, his eyes cold and merciless.

“Girl, you’ve got three seconds to tell us why you’re here–or I’ll put a bullet in your head!” he growled, his voice dripping with lethal intent.

Bulruce and his crew were all left gaping in disbelief.

“She’s really like a cockroach!”

“She was out here talking big about turning things around for us, and now look–she ended up stumbling straight into enemy territory herself!” Bulruce snorted, voice thick with contempt.

The nine of them grumbled under their breath, sounding totally deflated.

They all figured Nova must have gotten herself lost and just blundered into Brandon’s turf by mistake.

But nobody could’ve seen this coming.

Nova moved her hands behind her back, wearing that clean, innocent–looking face of hers–then she dropped a bombshell that sent chills down every spine.

“I’m here…” Nova said, her tone ice–cold, as if she couldn’t care less.

“To claim your Brandon’s head, right here and now!”

The words hadn’t even faded before the air turned thick, everyone frozen in place.

Before Bulruce and his crew could spit out another snide comment, they were stunned–every ounce of their bravado melting away.

And from over a kilometer out, Mavis, Eric, and the others watched through their binoculars, jaws dropping as Nova did something so reckless and insane, it scared them stiff–like they’d just seen a ghost. ‘No way… Did she really just-?‘ ran through everyone’s mind.