Emerging from the dungeon, Lena encountered Lilith, who had hurried there upon hearing the news.
“Oh? You’ve already captured the infiltrating hero?”
The young woman was clad in a simple black gown, her bright eyes reflecting the starlight of the night sky, a truly captivating sight.
Yet, at this moment, a trace of bewilderment graced her delicate features. She seemed unable to fathom how Lena had managed to apprehend the hero, especially given her recent experiences in Saint Ser, where she had come to know just how cunning these heroes could be.
“Indeed, by chance,” Lena responded with an air of nonchalance.
“By chance? Miss Lena truly lives up to Meli’s approval. To capture a hero who has been a constant headache for Joiy, right after arriving, is truly impressive.”
Lilith brushed a strand of slightly disheveled long hair from her ear, openly praising Lena. However, a flicker of inexplicable disappointment crossed her face immediately after.
Joiy, standing nearby, echoed her sentiments.
“Yes, Lady Lena is even more formidable than I imagined. While these fifth-tier heroes are no match for me, they are incredibly troublesome. I simply couldn’t catch them. If not for you, I would have been tempted to let them search this mansion at will.”
Just thinking about those heroes made Joiy snort with annoyance, a spark of anger igniting in his heart. Yet, that anger quickly subsided, replaced by a smile.
With Lena now present, these heroes were no longer a threat. Even if someone were to attempt to rescue Betty later, he felt no urgency; in fact, he almost wished they would try sooner.
After all, his dungeon remained empty.
Lena showed no emotional fluctuation from their flattery. She glanced up at the sky, and upon noticing that the moon was already past its zenith, she instructed Joiy, “Leave Betty’s interrogation to me. You may focus on other matters.”
“Yes, my Lady.”
Joiy naturally chose to obey her command, though he couldn’t resist a final compliment. “With your abilities, my Lady, capturing a demon traitor will undoubtedly be effortless.”
His usual stern expression was completely absent, replaced by a remarkably gentle demeanor. If anyone in the mansion had witnessed this, their eyes would surely have popped out. To Lena, however, it was unremarkable.
“One must not be careless.”
Lena simply opened the door and stepped inside.
Before resting, she recalled Betty’s words: the news of Joiy colluding with demons had been shared by an elder hero. And for a seventh-tier hero to be unable to meet this elder… who could it be?
As Lena pondered, the elder hero became increasingly suspicious in her mind.
Joiy had hidden himself remarkably well; before their arrival in Saint Ser, no one had known of his connection to demons. How then had this elder hero come to know of his demonic collusion?
Moreover, if this elder hero possessed such information, why didn’t they personally deal with Joiy instead of relying on the Hero Guild?
Could it be that this elder was not a hero at all, but a demon traitor in disguise? Was their goal to make Joiy appear to be a false traitor?
Faint clues began to surface before her. The more Lena thought about it, the more convinced she became that this was the truth. If she could extract the elder’s identity from Betty tomorrow, the day of capturing the demon traitor would surely not be far off.
She closed her eyes and drifted into slumber.
****
The next morning, she donned a white lace gown and tidied her makeup before the dressing mirror, aiming to appear as amiable as possible. Then, she rose and left her bedroom.
After a night of darkness and solitude, the young woman in the dungeon would undoubtedly feel weary. The interrogation, she hoped, would proceed more smoothly.
Faced with helplessness and terror, offering her some delicious food at this moment would garner her considerable goodwill.
Lena could not bring herself to use torture or forced confessions. As their elder, she knew too well that they were all heroes willing to sacrifice themselves. Such methods would not work on them.
After quickly preparing some delectable pastries in the kitchen, she packaged them up. Then, she unexpectedly encountered Lilith in the villa’s main hall.
Lilith glanced at the pastries in Lena’s arms, her expression seemingly troubled.
“Lilith?”
“Let’s go together.”
Lilith knew Lena intended to interrogate Betty and wished to accompany her. Lena agreed, but after a moment, she couldn’t help but ask Lilith, “What’s wrong? You don’t look well.”
After a few seconds of silence, Lilith didn’t hide it. She shook her head and sighed, “It’s just a bit of a letdown. I’ve been in Saint Ser for so long, yet I’ve accomplished nothing.”
“Not only have I failed to find the traitor, but even the heroes can’t resolve these matters. It’s simply because you’re still too young. In a few years, once you reach the seventh tier, you’ll realize these things are nothing.”
Her words were true; her inability to catch the heroes was merely due to Lilith’s insufficient strength. If she had mastered more magic and reached the seventh tier, every movement of those heroes would be within her magical perception.
By then, no matter how cunning the heroes were, they wouldn’t escape her grasp. “And there’s no need for you to compare yourself to me; I am much older than you.”
“Oh? Really?”
“Of course. Why would I need to lie to you?”
Lilith was visibly swayed, her downcast mood somewhat alleviated. She gazed at Lena with wide-eyed astonishment, her mind beginning to guess at Lena’s age.
‘Thirty-something? Fifty-something? Or… nearly a hundred years old?’
She desperately wanted to ask Lena’s age, but her upbringing had deeply ingrained in her that such a question was impolite, especially to a lady.
Ultimately, she pursed her lips, leaving the question unasked.
“You’re so beautiful and so good at comforting people. You must have been very popular with others in the past,” she commented.
“Children are quite fond of me.”
“Children?!” A look of surprise flashed across Lilith’s face, and she paused.
“You’re married?” she asked.
“Yes.”
Lena’s answer made Lilith falter in her steps. Then, as if understanding something, she continued walking toward the dungeon.
There was nothing strange or curious about it. A woman like Lena would undoubtedly have many admirers, and given her own admission of not being young, having a few children was perfectly normal.
“With a mother like you, your children must be adorable.”
“And who says they aren’t? In my eyes, she is the most adorable.”
Lilith offered a casual compliment, but to her surprise, Lena covered her mouth and chuckled softly, a blissful expression gracing her exquisite face.
This reminded Lilith of Joiy’s flattery last night. Even then, she had noticed Lena seemed uninterested in such praise; no matter how Joiy complimented her, Lena’s expression remained serene.
Yet today, with a simple compliment about her child, Lena had blossomed into a smile.
‘So, in her eyes, her child is the most important thing?’
Lilith’s lips curved upward. She had found the correct way to flatter Lena.
“Lilith is also very adorable, especially in her mother’s eyes.” Lena looked at her and suddenly spoke, a remark that nearly made Lilith stumble.
However, in the next second, Lilith’s reaction defied Lena’s expectations.
Far from feeling happy, she seemed to feel a sense of shame. Her gaze inexplicably began to dart away, and a faint blush inexplicably colored her fair cheeks.
“I suppose… so,” she mumbled softly, hesitant to meet Lena’s gaze, a hint of awkwardness in her tone.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing!”
Lilith appeared startled and jumpy, shaking her head with much greater vigor than usual. This strange reaction naturally piqued Lena’s curiosity. Just as she was about to press further, the maid Aelin let out a small laugh and explained,
“Miss was very mischievous as a child, causing her mother quite a headache, so…”
“Aelin, if you say another word, I won’t pretend you’re not a mute!” Lilith interrupted Aelin directly, glaring fiercely as if to warn that if Aelin continued, she would ensure her silence forever.
However, such a fierce gaze combined with a shy expression had no intimidating effect whatsoever. Aelin waved her hand, took two steps back, and bowed.
“I apologize, Miss. I just feel you shouldn’t doubt yourself over such things. In your mother’s eyes, you are still the most adorable!”
Amidst her words, Aelin’s faint laughter could still be heard. Lena now understood why Lilith had suddenly reacted in such a way.
Because she was mischievous as a child and caused her mother a headache, she felt her mother didn’t consider her adorable?
In Lena’s opinion, Lilith having such a thought was already quite adorable.
“Aelin is right. How could your mother think you’re not adorable because of such a minor thing? Perhaps in a few years, she’ll even reminisce about those old times.”
“Really?”
“Of course.”
“Oh.”
Lilith gazed down at the ground, her thoughts drifting far away. Lena instinctively wanted to pat her head, but remembering they had only known each other for a few days and their relationship wasn’t that intimate, she figured such a gesture would likely be met with aversion. So, she reluctantly refrained.
Soon, they arrived above the dungeon.
After Lena recited the chant Joiy had taught her, a wailing sound accompanied the appearance of the entrance before them.
Even in daylight, the stone stairs within the dungeon remained intensely dark. Guided by the faint light emanating from the oil lamps on either side, they reached the prison where Betty was held.
The young woman sat slumped in a corner of the cell, appearing to have been awake all night. Dark circles heavily rimmed her eyes, and her gaze was utterly devoid of strength.
Upon hearing movement, her delicate body began to tremble uncontrollably. When the footsteps halted in front of her cell, she slowly lifted her head to look.
Discovering that the newcomer was Lena, she let out a heavy sigh of relief, and the trembling of her body gradually ceased.
‘Thank goodness, the person she least wanted to see had not come.’
“Miss Betty, did you sleep well last night?”
“How could I sleep well when you’ve locked me in here?”
Betty scoffed, clearly displeased.
She had slept alone in the wilderness before, and although it was also filled with darkness and solitude, the surrounding magic formations provided her with the greatest sense of security, allowing her to sleep peacefully.
However, this dungeon was different. Even if she wouldn’t be attacked by monsters at night, she felt no sense of security whatsoever. Her mind was consumed with thoughts of what might happen tomorrow.
How could she possibly sleep?
“Actually, you don’t need to worry. I won’t do anything to you. After all, I am human, not one of the demons you speak of.”
“Who knows if you’re lying to me? Perhaps before long, you’ll be like Joiy last night, using torture devices on me?”
“Torture devices? I’ve never used such things.”
Seeing that Betty didn’t believe her, Lena didn’t dwell on the topic. She took out the beautifully packaged pastries and extended her hand through the bars, offering them inside.
“Would you like some? These are this morning’s pastries; they taste quite good.”
Betty instinctively licked her lips. She was about to stand and take the pastries, but then she quickly remembered something and shook her head resolutely. “Not hungry. I won’t eat!”
*Gurgle—*
Terribly, her stomach chose that moment to rumble, not only exposing her lie but also causing her immense embarrassment.
“But your stomach doesn’t seem to agree.”
‘Hmph! Who knows if you’ve poisoned them!’
Seeing that Betty still refused to eat, Lena helplessly withdrew her hand. She walked to the side of the cell, opened the door, and stepped directly inside.
Believing her actions had irritated Lena, prompting her to drop her gentle facade and become cruel, Betty huddled in the corner, trembling as she asked, “W-w-what do you want to do?!”
Lena crouched down before her, amidst her frightened gaze, and offered the pastries. Simultaneously, she spoke softly, “Eat. If I truly wanted to harm you, there would be no need for poison, would there?”
Betty had long been their captive. If they truly wished to do something, she was utterly powerless to resist. Why would they still need to resort to poison?
The cruel reality struck Betty’s heart. Lena’s voice, as gentle as water, now sounded incredibly harsh to her.
This made her deeply understand how futile her resistance was.
Without another thought, she snatched all the pastries from Lena’s hand. Then, she hastily tore open the packaging, opened her small mouth, and took a bite.
The sweet flavor instantly filled her taste buds, and the soft, chewy texture made her eager for more. In just a moment, her stomach was conquered by the pastries, and her fearful expression gradually transformed into one of happiness and contentment.
“They’re delicious,” she said to Lena, smacking her lips twice.