Finally free from Angelina, Lisbeth wasted no time and headed straight for the second secret passage leading to the treasury. As a secondary transit route, she had numerous options at her disposal. However, after learning that Kristia had ordered a thorough search of most passages this morning, Lisbeth knew that the more obvious entrances were likely already sealed.
“Hah… there’s no other way. It seems I can only take that one path.” A sigh escaped Lisbeth as she considered it, shaking her head in resignation. Truth be told, that was the one place she truly wished to avoid. Yet, she also knew it was the only route guaranteed to remain undiscovered.
‘Ugh… I have no idea which twisted genius created a secret passage there, but now, I suppose it’s truly saving me.’
After a moment’s hesitation, Lisbeth left the small garden and re-entered the main Demon Lord’s Castle. The treasury was located deep within the upper district of the castle, while Lisbeth currently found herself in the lower district.
To travel directly from the lower to the upper district, bypassing detection spells that would trigger upon activation, Lisbeth absolutely had to use a secret passage. However, the one she was now heading for was situated in a most awkward location.
“Damn it, which bastard put the secret passage *here*?”
After covertly bypassing the guards outside the Demon Lord’s Castle, Lisbeth easily slipped inside. She traversed the main hall of the lower district and walked through several corridors before a massive door came into view. Behind that door lay the secret passage’s entrance, which also happened to be the public bathhouse used by the castle’s servants.
‘Surely no one would be bathing here at this hour, right?’
Lisbeth had two reasons for choosing this particular route. Firstly, the secret passage’s entrance within wasn’t the usual sliding hidden door she was accustomed to. Instead, it was formed by a magic array. This meant that as long as no one discovered the array itself, no one would ever know the passage’s true location.
Coincidentally—or perhaps inconveniently—the magic array for the passage was located at the spring’s eye within the bathhouse, specifically the *women’s* bathhouse. Consequently, unless it was an extremely critical matter, no one would casually search that particular spot. The person who placed the magic array there was, in a strange way, a genius.
The second reason was that even though this bathhouse was open twenty-four hours a day for all Demon Lord’s Castle servants, surely no one would be taking a bath in the dead of night. Considering these two points, this seemed to be Lisbeth’s only viable option. With a deep breath, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.
“Wow, it’s remarkably clean in here.” After stepping through the door, Lisbeth took a few paces and found herself in what appeared to be a changing room. Though her current body was female, her soul remained distinctly male, and the sight before her still made her involuntarily nervous.
Truthfully, this was her first time using this particular secret passage, so she had no idea where it would lead once she entered. Nevertheless, with only one path available to her, she sighed once more and walked directly into the bathhouse itself.
‘Good, just as I thought—no one here. I can finally relax.’ Gazing at the bathhouse, still steaming warmly, Lisbeth knew she would be in serious trouble if anyone were soaking there now. But since the room was empty, she didn’t need to worry about her footsteps. She strode purposefully, then leapt into the bathing area, making directly for the spring’s eye.
“Ah, found it.” Lisbeth quickly located the magic array beside the spring’s eye. After injecting a small amount of magic power into it, a greenish-blue array shimmered into existence before her.
“Alright, here goes. Ha, ugh!” Having made up her mind, Lisbeth held her breath and pressed her entire body against the magic array beneath the spring’s eye. After a brief moment of breathlessness, she found herself standing in a pitch-black tunnel.
“Phew… it seems I made it.” Having just submerged herself in the bathhouse, Lisbeth was now completely drenched. Yet, with a successful transfer into the secret passage, she had nothing to complain about. Taking a deep breath, she continued towards the other end of the tunnel.
“Ah, I seem to have arrived. It was surprisingly short.” After roughly ten minutes of walking, Lisbeth quickly reached the other exit of the passage. Just like the entrance, this exit was also a magic array.
‘Hmm? Why is the exit also a magic array? Well, never mind, it’s probably for secrecy or something.’ Gazing at the array before her, Lisbeth didn’t dwell on it. She simply extended a hand and activated it once more. The next second, she stepped through the magic array without hesitation.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!!”
The instant she passed through the magic array, a rush of warm water suddenly enveloped her. This caused her to instinctively shriek and violently surface from the water.
“Is that bastard out of their mind? Why is the exit *also* in a bathhouse?!”
“Who’s there?!”
“Eh!?”
The moment she broke the surface, a familiar female voice echoed from the other side of the bathhouse. Hearing it, Lisbeth’s entire body trembled. She quickly darted behind a nearby rock. Meanwhile, the voice from the other end grew stern. “Who’s there? Show yourself!”
‘Th-that voice… why does it sound so familiar?’ Ensuring she remained out of sight, Lisbeth stealthily swam to the other side of the rock. She then cautiously poked her head out to see who it was. The next second, she felt her heart stop once more. For bathing in the upper district’s bathhouse of the Demon Lord’s Castle was none other than its Head Maid, her direct superior—Hilda.