New World with Four Husbands-Chapter 661: Attack
Coco’s eyelids fluttered open, her vision hazy with drowsiness.
The warmth of Heiren’s embrace, the gentle rocking of the wagon— everything felt slow, syrupy-thick with sleep.
She blinked slowly, trying to clear the fog from her mind.
Where is she? The last thing she remembered before falling asleep was leaning her head on Heiren’s shoulder and feeling Quizen’s fingers carding through her hair.
After that, it was just pure darkness.
Coco groaned and a familiar voice became a low rumble above her ear.
"Still sleepy?" Heiren hummed out.
Coco made a small noise, neither confirmation nor denial, before burrowing herself deeper against him.
Indeed, she still felt sleepy, but she didn’t have the energy to say it out loud.
Coco’s consciousness wavered once again, her body falling limp as sleep pulled her under once more, and just before she fully drifted off, she felt strong hands lift her carefully from Heiren’s lap.
The shift was seamless, practiced, as if whoever had taken her had done it a hundred times before.
A new scent enveloped her senses. It was something sweet, like honey and vanilla, causing her to instinctively curl into it.
The arms around her adjusted, cradling her closer to a sturdy chest, and the last thing she registered was a soft hum— low, familiar, before sleep claimed her completely.
Coco’s worries about the Baroness’ men melted away into the depths of sleep, leaving her in a cocoon of warmth and quiet.
When she finally stirred again, the light filtering through the wagon’s curtains was brighter, golden, and softer— indicating late morning or early afternoon.
Blinking groggily, she realized she was still nestled inside the wagon, surrounded by the same arms that wrapped around her earlier.
Coco looked around, but didn’t move her head, just her eyes, and saw that Heiren was still beside her, though he now lay curled against Quizen’s side instead, his fingers clutching Coco’s pants as if she would disappear.
The scent of honey and vanilla lingered faintly, the source of it was the person who’s holding her.
Outside, she could hear birds chirping faintly and the road seemed smoother now due to the less rough shaking of the wagon.
We must have entered a different route. Coco thought and for a moment, she simply lay there, listening to the quiet breaths around her, the occasional rustle of fabric as someone shifted, along with the steady rhythm of heartbeat against her ear.
Then, softly, Quizen spoke, his chest rumbling. "Awake?"
Coco hummed in response, too comfortable to form words just yet.
As if she was an alarm clock, Heiren opened his eyes and looked down to Coco, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he took in her disheveled appearance— her hair a mess, her shirt wrinkled.
"Good morning." He murmured, his voice rough with sleep.
He gently brushed a strand of hair away from her forehead, fingers lingering against her cheek. "You slept like a log. I had to hand you over to Quizen because you were practically hanging off me."
Coco’s cheeks flushed with warmth and she was just about to respond when the entire wagon jolted to an abrupt halt.
The sudden lurch was enough to shake her out of her sleepy haze completely, her senses suddenly sharp and alert.
Coco huffed and quickly got off Quizen’s lap, rubbing her eyes before crawling toward the wagon’s exit, ignoring the protests of her stiff muscles.
Jacques and Jonathan, who had been abruptly jostled awake, immediately perked up and were already alert despite their drowsiness.
"You don’t have to go out every time something happens." Jacques stared at Coco, concern lacing her voice as she reached out, as if to stop her friend.
But Coco was already pushing aside the curtain, squinting against the sudden flood of daylight.
"I want to." She muttered and the moment she stepped out, though— she froze, because standing directly in front of the wagon, blocking their path, was a cloaked figure.
Coco’s eyes widened in shock, just in time for the hooded figure’s fist to connect squarely with her jaw.
The impact sent her stumbling backward, pain exploding across her face as she barely managed to catch herself against the wagon’s steps and behind her, chaos erupted.
"COCO!" *Heiren screamed, his voice was sharp with alarm, followed by the sound of scrambling bodies.
The hooded figure didn’t stop and was already lunging forward again, their movements deadly and precise— Coco was still reeling when realized with a sinking dread that this wasn’t just an ambush.
This was a hunt.
"Stay inside!" Coco yelled as she brought out her unbreakable hoe, the tool materializing in her hand.
She immediately lashed out on the man the moment the hoe finished materializing, the metal end of her tool hitting her attacker squarely on the head.
Blood spurted out, staining the dirt, and the body fell back— not moving, but the moment of victory was short-lived because suddenly, she heard the sound of a carriage toppling over, and then she saw it happen.
The carriage was on its side, and something massive, something slimy was pursuing the other hooded figures in the distance.
Coco’s heart hammered against her ribcage, a cold dread spreading through her veins as she took in the sight of the fallen carriage.
Cleora. She has to find her!
Coco tore her gaze away from the carriage, turning to glance back into the wagon.
Heiren and the others were crowded together at the exit, their faces pinched and pale with worry and they were all looking down at her, eyes fixed on her with an intensity that made her skin prickle.
She forced her own expression to steady, hiding the anxiety churning in her chest because she didn’t want to scare more than they already are.
"Everything’s fine." Coco lied smoothly, her lips curling into a smile. "Just stay inside, okay? I won’t be able to protect all of you if one of you steps out right now."
