CHAPTER 37: HOLY MAIDEN

Stepping into the night, the silver-haired maiden walked alone under the moonlight. Her footsteps were silent, causing not a single stir, and she effortlessly entered the Lily Estate.

She tilted her head to gaze at the Lily Estate crest, an expression of clear admiration, yet the maiden exuded a silent pride.

Night maids carrying lanterns passed by, and the maiden met their gaze with an impassive face.

The original look of surprise in the maids’ eyes instantly turned to bewilderment, and then they fell to the ground without a word.

"Good night," she politely said.

The next moment, she was inside the Estate, an invisible consciousness spreading outwards from her, centered. Passing by Enie’s resting room, she paused once again.

Frowning her delicate brows, she felt a chill run through her as she sensed the foul stench emanating from within.

Approaching Enie, she bent down to look.

The little maid was drenched in sweat, her face terribly pale, and her life force as weak as a dying patient with a terminal illness.

The silver-haired maiden nodded slightly, reaching out to grasp Enie’s wrist.

The aura of the scorching sun spread, melting away all of Enie’s ailments, but at the same time, she also had to endure a pain comparable to her soul burning.

She moaned in agony, yet the silver-haired maiden still held her wrist impassively.

After a long time, she finally released Enie’s wrist. Enie’s arm fell limply, and she completely fainted.

Quite resilient

, the silver-haired maiden thought, then turned and left the room.

Following the guidance of her consciousness, she walked step by step towards the dungeon beneath the Estate.

Arriving at the main entrance, a chain secured the iron gate, blocking her path.

Frowning slightly, the silver-haired maiden’s mood was a bit sour. She continued forward as if nothing was in her way.

If she continued at this pace, in the next second she would walk directly into the iron gate of the dungeon.

However, the silver-haired maiden showed no sign of stopping. The moment she was about to collide with the lock, a miraculous scene occurred.

The lock inexplicably melted in mid-air, falling with red-gold streaks. She simply pushed gently, and the dungeon gate opened.

If it were her usual temper, the dungeon gate would likely have been completely reduced to ashes by her. Out in the open, she had to somewhat rein in her temper.

"Oh?"

Upon entering the Lily Estate dungeon, the silver-haired maiden was clearly surprised.

Contrary to her imagination, there were no dead corpses, no filthy waste here. The smell was barely tolerable, and upon closer inspection, it was even... clean?

It seemed no one had been imprisoned here for a long time.

The silver-haired maiden’s impression of the young count improved by several degrees.

It wasn’t until the depths of the dungeon that she discovered the unconscious Tania.

Her beautiful eyes immediately showed a look of disgust, as if looking at it too long would contaminate her eyes. She averted her gaze, looking at the objects on the dungeon table.

It was an ancient-looking pipe, appearing to have nothing unusual about it, yet in the maiden’s eyes, she could clearly see the demonic nature within it.

It wasn’t a wasted trip

, the silver-haired maiden thought. After taking the item, she looked at Tania, who was still imprisoned in the dungeon.

According to the request from the Heretic Arbitration Bureau, it seemed she also needed to take her.

Frowning slightly, she didn’t object to the matter itself, only to the idea of touching Tania’s filthy body while taking her away.

As she hesitated, a cold gust of wind suddenly swept through the room.

The maiden stopped, and after steadying herself, slowly said, "Come out."

No one responded, making the maiden’s questioning of the air seem somewhat humorous.

She suddenly felt a sense of being played with, and her already not-so-good mood immediately worsened.

"Get out," she said coldly, and the surrounding air instantly evaporated under the high temperature.

The dungeon walls began to emit burning sounds, their black surfaces gradually turning crimson.

If no one came out soon, Tania would be burned alive, and this dungeon would turn into a sea of flames.

"Please stop, your highness." A figure appeared in the darkness. Despite the high temperature, she seemed completely unaffected.

Slowly standing upright, her tall and slender figure finally revealed its true appearance: Alice, the Estate’s head maid.

"You’re quite interesting," the silver-haired maiden commented.

Alice nodded elegantly, showing humility.

"Is there something you need?" Clearly, she was the Estate’s intruder, but she looked as if she were the Estate’s owner.

"Greetings, Princess Myris. It is a deep honor to behold your presence," Alice replied, avoiding the direct question.

The silver-haired maiden, who was Myris from the Holy City, showed an intrigued expression and replied, "You know me?"

"Of course I remember the name of the Holy Mark of Judgment."

"Is that so?"

Myris stepped out of the shadows. Moonlight fell upon her, and a nearly perfect, flawless face finally became clear before Alice.

In addition to her perfect features, she had a head of sacred silver-white long hair. The strands on her forehead completely covered her left eye, revealing a bright and beautiful right eye, though its gaze was a bit too cold.

Gently curving her faint lips, Myris asked, "You are quite good. I want to know your name."

"You may call me Alice."

"Then, Alice, may I take it and her with me?" Myris weighed the pipe in her hand, then pointed to the unconscious Tania.

"No," Alice said, maintaining a respectful tone.

"What if I insist?"

"Then please step over my body first," Alice replied, neither arrogant nor humble.

Myris encountered this kind of stubborn, unyielding woman, like a rock, and couldn’t help but shake her head, saying, "I came to find something, not to kill people."

"Then please wait a moment."

"Wait for what?"

"Until the lord wakes up."

There wasn’t much time left until dawn, but Alice’s words directly angered Myris.

The next instant, Myris was in front of her. A gentle breeze passed, and her left eye appeared before Myris.

It was an eye with a cross-shaped pupil, looking strangely sacred. The entire eye was a golden-yellow, completely contrasting with the ice-blue color of her right eye.

The oppressive aura from deep within her soul almost made Alice involuntarily kneel. Biting her teeth, her figure once again merged into the shadows.

Myris’s left eye widened slightly. To her surprise, she truly couldn’t detect Alice’s location.

"’Phantom Shadow’ is merely an intermediate Holy Mark, yet you have pushed its limits to the extreme," she praised.

However, contrary to her expectations, Alice once again actively abandoned her advantage, her figure appearing before Myris.

"Please wait a moment," the head maid said again, maintaining a proper and elegant demeanor, speaking respectfully.