第四十三章
“Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! That hurts so much! Let go of me, you old hag!”
The moment Lisbeth’s ear was seized, she instantly knew that only Hilda, the Head Maid, would dare to grab her like that here.
When she twisted around, wincing in pain, she saw Hilda indeed, glaring at her with a furious intensity.
However, unlike her usual fits of pique, Hilda did not release Lisbeth’s ear this time.
Instead, she fixed Lisbeth with a chilling stare.
“Who permitted you to treat the Demon Lord so disrespectfully?” she demanded. “Who gave you the authority to act in such a manner? Answer me, Alex.”
“Ah… no… I…” Lisbeth stammered.
Truthfully, while Hilda often grew angry, this was the first time Lisbeth had ever seen such an icy gaze, or heard Hilda call out her original name.
Faced with this terrifying display, Lisbeth immediately darted a pleading glance toward Chris, hoping for some intervention.
“Hmph!” Chris scoffed.
Unfortunately, Chris seemed just as angry and completely ignored Lisbeth’s desperate look.
No matter how Lisbeth tried to convey her plea, Chris simply averted her gaze, choosing to see nothing.
Seeing Chris abandon her to her fate, Lisbeth could only sigh and prepare to beg Hilda for mercy.
However, the moment she turned back, the tugging on her ear vanished.
In its place, a hand roughly seized her cheek, forcing her mouth open.
“So this is the tongue that defiled the Demon Lord’s sacred feet, is it? Hmm!?”
“Mmmph! Mmmph!!!!” Lisbeth struggled.
Staring at Hilda, whose eyes seemed to promise to sever her tongue, Lisbeth finally grasped the true gravity of the situation.
She desperately clutched Hilda’s hand, pleading with all her might, “I-I’m sorry… I know I was wrong! Please don’t cut off my tongue!”
“Silence!” Hilda snapped. “Given your actions just now, cutting off your tongue wouldn’t even begin to atone for your transgression! Do you understand me!?”
“I… I…” Lisbeth stammered, seeing Hilda was truly serious.
Panicked, she cried out to Clotilde, who was attached to her hand, “Little Sword, what do I do now? I’m going to be killed!”
“Then just die, you pervert.”
“Huh!?”
Even Clotilde refused to help her this time.
In that moment, Lisbeth realized she might actually meet her end right here.
“Alright, alright, Hilda, calm down,” Chris interjected, just as the situation threatened to spiral out of control.
Chris sighed softly, then continued, “Hilda, you know as well as I do that for us demons, an act of swearing loyalty is to lightly kiss a toe, isn’t it? So, I merely had her perform the same gesture.”
“Hmm? Is that so?” Hilda questioned.
“Yes, yes! It is, it is!” Lisbeth nodded frantically, as if clinging to a lifeline under Hilda’s scrutiny.
Once assured Lisbeth wasn’t lying, Hilda released her mouth and sighed in relief. “So that’s what it was. I thought you were trying to offend the Demon Lord. Though you may not understand our demon customs, licking the Demon Lord’s feet like that is still not appropriate.”
“Yes… I’ll be more careful next time…” Lisbeth mumbled.
“You actually think there’ll be a next time!?” Chris, seated nearby, immediately flushed crimson and pointed at her, fuming.
At this, Lisbeth quickly shook her head. “No, no, no, there won’t be a next time, absolutely no next time!”
“Alright, alright, if Lisbeth knows she was wrong, that’s enough,” Airenst interjected, quickly coming to Lisbeth’s rescue after she misspoke again.
Airenst, who had arrived with Hilda, continued, “Besides, if she was willing to kiss the Demon Lord’s toe, doesn’t that mean she has already expressed her loyalty to the Demon Lord?”
Staros, who had been observing the drama, nodded in agreement, adding, “Airenst is right. Since she’s already shown her loyalty, this is actually a good thing. So, Hilda and Demon Lord, there’s no need to be angry anymore.”
“Fine, if everyone’s vouching for her, I’ll let it go this time,” Hilda conceded, waving a hand in resignation after everyone spoke up for Lisbeth.
Realizing she was finally saved, Lisbeth gratefully nodded towards Airenst and Staros. “Thank you for speaking up for me. I would have been in serious trouble otherwise.”
“It’s nothing,” Airenst replied. “After all, you did help us distract the magic beasts and collect so many herbs, so helping you is only right.”
Seeing Lisbeth genuinely thank them, Airenst and Staros waved their hands magnanimously.
However, Staros’s next remark made Lisbeth’s mouth twitch, almost making her want to punch her.
“Yes, yes, and I might have said a few extra things to Krus earlier, so consider this my compensation,” Staros added.
“Ah… well, thank you for that…” Lisbeth responded.
Any gratitude Lisbeth had felt towards Staros instantly vanished after that statement.
With the matter settled, Chris cleared her throat softly and addressed Hilda. “So Hilda, could you please report what happened earlier? I believe you were supposed to be gathering herbs, weren’t you?”
“Ah, yes. This is what happened…”
Over the next ten minutes, Hilda recounted the entire incident in detail.
Notably, Hilda omitted any mention of the Holy Light Potion Lisbeth had used.
After listening to the concise report, Chris nodded. “I see, it appears to have been an accident. Be more careful next time you gather herbs; make sure there are no more incidents.”
“Yes, we understand.”
Receiving Chris’s instructions, Hilda and the others nodded gratefully.
It was true that while Chris usually maintained the proud demeanor of a Demon Lord, she was always deeply concerned for the safety of her subordinates.
With everything resolved, Chris suddenly recalled something and turned to Hilda.
“Hilda, could you please go to Olivia’s place later and inform her that tomorrow I’ll be going with her to that agreed-upon location for some business?”
“And if she receives your notification, could you ask her to prepare in advance?”
“Yes, I understand. I will convey your message to her as soon as I see her.”
“Good,” Chris affirmed.
After speaking, Chris instinctively glanced at Staros before lowering her head to review the documents before her.
Observing this, Lisbeth realized that without Olivia’s prior information, she never would have detected anything amiss in their conversation.
Now, knowing that Staros was taking her to Olivia’s laboratory purely at Chris’s behest, Lisbeth smiled faintly.
Then she spoke to Clotilde, “Little Sword, Olivia was right about this after all. It seems Chris really intends to test my loyalty through this.”
“Hmph, who cares about you, you pervert who loves big breasts and other people’s feet!”
“Hey! That’s going too far!” Lisbeth protested. “I was forced into doing that!”
“Huh? Forced?” Clotilde retorted, her voice filled with extreme displeasure after hearing Lisbeth’s shameless words.
“Given your disgusting laughter and the way you licked someone’s feet like a pervert, you should have been arrested by the guards long ago!”
“Huh? Was I really that bad?”
“Of course!”
Listening to Clotilde’s indignant voice, Lisbeth awkwardly scratched her cheek, then shook her head.
“Anyway, let’s not dwell on that. Since Chris is going to test me, I need to be prepared.”
“Well then, Demon Lord, if there’s nothing else, we shall take our leave.”
“Very well, you may go.”
With all matters concluded, Lisbeth, Hilda, and the others departed from Chris’s office.
As previously arranged, after learning that Olivia would be away from the Demon Lord’s Castle for a day, Staros secretly sought out Lisbeth.
“Lisbeth, I’m sure you heard what happened just now. Tomorrow is the perfect opportunity to make our move.”
“How about we proceed right after your scheduled cleaning duties at noon?”
“Understood,” Lisbeth replied. “Should I make any preparations beforehand? Like changing into more suitable clothes for action?”
“No, no, that won’t be necessary. We’re just grabbing something and leaving, not secretly infiltrating under the cover of darkness.”
“Just know that I’ll come find you once it’s time. Don’t do anything extra before then.”
“Alright,” Lisbeth agreed, nodding her assent to Staros’s words.
As time passed, the next day quickly arrived, and with it, Lisbeth’s test began.