Chapter Sixteen
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On the other hand—
“Hilda, aren’t you ready yet? I can’t hold out much longer!”
After leaving the VIP room, Airenst rushed towards Lisbeth’s room at her fastest speed. Meyfield hadn’t said anything explicit, but who knew what might happen if she kept him waiting too long.
Having temporarily entrusted Meyfield to Angelina, Airenst had hurried over to check on Lisbeth.
Seeing Airenst’s anxious expression, Hilda waved her hand apologetically. “Airenst, I’m so sorry. I didn’t expect it to take longer than we thought. But it’s alright now, Lisbeth is ready.”
“Is that so? Let me see.”
Upon hearing Hilda’s words, Airenst instinctively turned her gaze towards Lisbeth. Soon, her eyes were utterly captivated, unable to tear away from the sight before her.
Lisbeth was adorned in a long, flowing pink gown, which only further accentuated her already charming appearance.
The light foundation on her face looked natural, not at all artificial, as if applied by a young maiden just beginning to experiment with cosmetics.
Most strikingly, her long, golden hair had been meticulously styled, now shimmering with a faint halo of light. Airenst felt as though the person standing before her was not a maid, but a veritable princess.
“H-how do I look? Does it seem strange?”
Faced with Airenst’s silent gaze, even Lisbeth, with all her usual brazenness, felt a touch of embarrassment.
She could only turn to Hilda beside her. “Old woman, I told you this dress wouldn’t suit me! No matter how much I look like a woman on the outside, I’m still a big man on the inside. So, in terms of temperament, it’s impossible for me to…”
Smack!
“Huh?”
Before Lisbeth could even finish speaking, Airenst, who had been frozen moments before, suddenly seized Lisbeth’s hand. With an expression full of deep affection, she declared, “Lisbeth, be my woman! I will make you happy!”
“What!?”
As Airenst’s words fell, everyone present wore an expression of utter shock.
Meanwhile, Lisbeth, whose hand had been grabbed by Airenst, violently yanked it free. “What time is it for you to be making such jokes?!” she fumed angrily. “Even if this dress doesn’t suit me, you don’t have to treat me like this!”
Clearly, Lisbeth had interpreted Airenst’s sudden gesture as nothing more than teasing. However, upon hearing her outburst, Airenst, with a genuinely hurt expression, embraced Hilda.
“Waaah, Hilda, I’ve been rejected…” she wailed, her voice thick with tears.
“Alright, alright, how long are you going to keep this up?” Hilda interjected. “Does Lisbeth really not suit this dress? I think she looks quite lovely.”
“Yes, I agree,” Christy added. “Lisbeth looks very good in this outfit.”
Listening to Hilda and Christy, Airenst simply smiled, then spoke with a seemingly earnest expression. “I wasn’t joking just now. If Lisbeth were truly willing, I would accept her without hesitation. This outfit makes her look so incredibly cute; I almost mistook her for a real princess standing before me.”
“Is that so? Well, that’s fine then,” Hilda said, though a hint of warning entered her voice. “However, you’re aware of Lisbeth’s identity, so don’t do anything unnecessary.”
Airenst’s earlier declaration had evidently given Hilda a sense of impending crisis. After all, Airenst had a notorious history, having flirted with roughly a third of all the maids in the Demon Lord’s Castle.
Thus, before things could truly become irreversible, Hilda quickly made her stance clear.
“Yes, yes, I know,” Airenst conceded.
It seemed that no matter how bold Airenst usually was, a serious warning from Hilda was enough to make her pout and nod in reluctant agreement.
Seeing this, Christy also nodded. “Then it’s about time we left. Lingering here any longer might genuinely cause problems.”
“Yes, let’s go then.”
Finally, with everyone’s agreement, Hilda led the group towards the VIP room. The thought of soon meeting the current Grand Marshal of the Demons filled Lisbeth with a slight thrill of anticipation.
*Knock, knock.*
“Lord Meyfield, I’ve brought the person you wished to see.”
“Come in.”
Hearing Meyfield’s voice, Hilda, who was at the front, pushed open the door and ushered everyone into the VIP room.
“Meyfield, long time no see. You look quite lively.”
As soon as they entered the VIP room, Christy was the first to greet him. Upon hearing her, Meyfield let out a hearty laugh.
“Christy, you’re still as petite as ever after all this time. I thought your chest might have started developing by now.”
“You!”
Even though she was facing the Grand Marshal of the Demons, the mention of her chest size almost made Christy hurl a spell at Meyfield’s face. Fortunately, Hilda was by her side, preventing Christy from doing anything truly irreparable.
After exchanging a brief greeting, Meyfield surveyed the room, then frowned. “So, where is that man? Why have you brought a princess instead?”
Meyfield’s reaction was entirely expected by everyone present, as he was still unaware that Lisbeth was the former Hero.
Taking a deep breath, Airenst stepped forward. “Lord Meyfield, she is the person you wished to see.”
“Hmm?”
As Airenst’s words settled, Meyfield cast another scrutinizing glance at Lisbeth, then asked with evident surprise, “What’s going on? Explain it to me.”
“Certainly. The situation is actually like this…”
Finally, Airenst explained Lisbeth’s situation in the most concise terms possible. Fortunately, Lisbeth’s circumstances were not overly complicated, allowing Meyfield to quickly grasp the full story.
“I see. So, you transferred the Hero’s soul into her current body, and her original body has been sealed away, is that right? Excellent, a truly interesting, yet practical and straightforward approach.”
It appeared Meyfield approved of Christy’s method, and seeing his acceptance, everyone unconsciously let out a sigh of relief.
At the same time, Meyfield waved a hand towards Lisbeth. “Then come over and sit. I don’t care what you look like now; as long as you are still *you*, then my visit here will still be worthwhile.”
“…”
While Meyfield’s lack of objection to Lisbeth’s current appearance was a relief to everyone, hearing the high expectations he held for her caused a collective, unconscious silence to fall over them.
In Christy’s eyes and those of the others, Lisbeth’s usual demeanor was that of an absolute fool. If she were to say anything superfluous here and anger Meyfield, everything could be ruined.
However, even as everyone watched Lisbeth with worried expressions, she merely smiled, her inexplicable nervousness from earlier having vanished without a trace.
With confident composure, she sat down before Meyfield. “Alright, since we’ve met, allow me to introduce myself. My original name was Alex, the Hero of the Human Race. However, I am currently working here as the Demon Lord’s maid.”
“Although we haven’t met before, I was actually looking forward to meeting you.”
“Is that so? Is that so? You really wanted to meet me, didn’t you?” Meyfield seemed quite pleased upon hearing Lisbeth’s words.
Yet, before their conversation could continue, Sid, who had been standing beside Meyfield, suddenly spoke up.
“You, Lisbeth,” Sid began, his tone sharp. “While you may have once been the Human Hero, addressing Lord Meyfield with such a disrespectful tone is unacceptable.”
Upon hearing Lisbeth’s introduction, Sid, Meyfield’s attendant, immediately glared at Lisbeth with an expression of displeasure, voicing his objection.
Seeing this, Hilda’s heart sank. She was about to urge Lisbeth to apologize immediately.
“Hilda, wait a moment.”
But before Hilda could act, Christy grabbed her arm and whispered, “Hilda, Lisbeth’s attitude just now wasn’t wrong. Just watch.”
“Yes…”
Despite her visible unease, Hilda complied with Christy’s instruction and halted her steps.
Meanwhile, observing Sid’s discontent, Lisbeth merely smiled, then slowly inquired, “You, barking over there, do you even know who you’re talking to?”
“What do you mean?”
“What do I mean?” Lisbeth scoffed. “You look so smart, yet you don’t even know the most basic things?”
As if truly exasperated, Lisbeth shook her head, her gaze chilling as she fixed it on Sid. “Even if I am currently the Demon Lord’s maid, I am still, at this very moment, the Hero of the Human Race. I am also the supreme commander who controls millions of allied human soldiers.”
“In other words, my status among humans is equivalent to your demon race’s Grand Marshal.”
“Therefore, what exactly are *you* to speak to me in such a tone?”