Free Web NovelChapter 227: The Spider and the Empress (4)
Flustered, Professor Baldwin stared at me. “W-what were you thinking when you said something like that?”
I shrugged with feigned innocence. “What do you mean ‘something like that’?”
Her violet eyes flashed sharply. “Are you seriously asking because you don’t know? It wasn’t enough that you rejected the Empress’s offer, but you even dared to address her casually!”
Well, that part is true. But still...
I shot back at her. “Do you really have the right to lecture me on that, Professor Baldwin?”
“What do you mean?”
“You also disobeyed the Empress’s orders and said whatever you wanted, didn’t you?”
Professor Baldwin averted her gaze, flustered. “T-that’s...”
Honestly, between the two of us, I had indeed caused the bigger problem by casually speaking to the Empress herself. However, Professor Baldwin was the one who had escalated the situation to begin with.
She lowered her head, looking deflated. “I’m sorry.”
I suppressed a laugh and gently took her hand. “Anyway, why did you suddenly jump in back there?”
“What are you talking about?”
“That whole thing about the Tri-Nation Treaty preventing her from scouting me.”
Even I hadn’t expected her to intervene at that moment.
“I only stated the facts,” she answered.
“Hm. But you knew Empress Camellia wouldn’t care about any of that, didn’t you?”
“That’s...”
Her mouth clamped shut as if she had run out of words. Then her eyes drifted away.
I smiled at her. “Don’t tell me... were you jealous?”
“J-jealous? What nonsense are you spouting, Dale?”
It was indeed that. Hearing Empress Camellia talk about making me her personal servant had definitely made Professor Baldwin snap. I chuckled at the realization.
Professor Baldwin stomped on my foot with a glare. “D-don’t laugh!”
A metallic rattling echoed as she did so.
“Well, it’s fine. It’s not like that caused a huge problem, right? It’s not like we were kicked out of the palace,” I said.
She frowned and looked down at the source of the noise. “You think this isn’t a huge problem?”
A massive shackle was clasped around my ankle. Naturally, thick handcuffs bound my wrists as well. After that whole incident, we had faced the consequences of our actions.
Professor Baldwin let out a deep, aching sigh and pressed a hand to her forehead. “If being thrown into the Empire’s underground prison doesn’t count as a huge problem, then what does?”
I casually leaned against the cold stone wall and glanced around. A dim torch flickered through the thick iron bars, and a rotting stench hit my nose. It was almost unbelievable that this gloomy dungeon was located beneath the same dazzling Imperial Palace we saw above.
“They didn’t imprison us,” I said.
“How is this not imprisonment?”
“There aren’t even guards stationed outside. And also...” I lifted my wrist to show her the handcuffs.
Created with the power of the Blessing of the Seven Stars, these shackles couldn’t be removed by ordinary means. I channeled the power of the Primordial Flame, and a flare of Ashen Flame consumed the blessing. The cuffs broke apart instantly and fell to the ground.
“They only put on restraints that can be removed this easily, didn’t they?” I explained.
“The only person who can remove them easily is you, Dale,” Professor Baldwin replied.
“And Empress Camellia would definitely know that.”
Suppressing another laugh, I removed all of Professor Baldwin’s restraints as well.
“What now? Are you suggesting we escape together?” she asked.
“No.”
Why did we have to bother escaping? They were going to come let us out anyway. I leaned against the dungeon wall and turned toward the barred door. Soon, footsteps echoed faintly from down the corridor.
Camellia appeared, no longer in her usual nightgown but in a lavish gown, and frowned at us through the bars. “You truly can nullify the power of my Blessing of the Seven Stars.”
She clicked her tongue quietly at the broken cuffs scattered across the floor. Then, she looked between Professor Baldwin and me, letting out a short sigh. “Forgive me for locking you up. But if I hadn’t done this, Melina would have made quite the scene.”
“Melina? You mean that uptight maid?” I asked.
Camellia smiled softly. “Yes. My most loyal attendant. When I destroyed Gehenna City, I personally took her in from the ruins.”
The Gehenna City assault, huh. It was the event that instantly cemented her as the first-ranked Hero. But hold on, she personally took Melina in from Gehenna City?
Confused, I asked. “Then... Wait. You mean?”
“Just because Gehenna is the demons’ city, it doesn’t mean only demons live there. Just as Valhalla City isn’t only home to heroes.”
When she put it that way, I couldn’t argue. So, I replied, “Fair enough.”
“Melina was one of the kidnapped children. If not for me, she would’ve been used for all kinds of experiments by demons before being brutally killed.”
From Melina’s perspective, Camellia was basically the person who saved her life.
“No wonder she looked like she wanted to kill me,” I muttered.
“Her loyalty becomes a problem sometimes, I admit.” With a casual gesture from Camellia, the prison door unlocked and slid open. “You came here to pursue the Church of Eternity, didn’t you?”
“You already knew?”
Camellia raised her chin proudly. “Heh. No truth in this world can escape my eyes.”
I quietly responded, “You heard it from Headmaster Ryu, didn’t you?”
She clicked her tongue, clearly because I hit the mark, then said, “You really are a man without even a speck of cuteness in you.”
Professor Baldwin muttered, “Hm.”
Camellia shot a sharp glare at her. “Do you have something to say to me?”
Professor Baldwin replied with a relaxed smile on her lips. “Well, I actually think Dale has quite a lot of cute sides.”
“Oh? Did you just dare to contradict my words?”
Professor Baldwin replied firmly. “And if I did?”
Their gazes collided. Just as tension was about to ignite again between the Empress and the Spider, I chimed in. “That’s enough from both of you.”
The two women, who had been glaring daggers at each other, cleared their throats awkwardly.
Camellia jerked her chin toward the outside of the dungeon. “Anyway, returning to the main topic. If you wish it, I will help you pursue this so-called Church of Eternity.”
I stared at her. “I thought you weren’t interested in the Church of Eternity.”
“That is correct.”
“Then why?”
“What interests me isn’t the Church of Eternity or those mongrels. It’s you.” Camellia’s eyes sparkled like a child discovering a box full of gifts. “I want to see it. The true extent of your abilities.”
I finally realized it. Investigating the Church of Eternity was just an excuse for her to see what I could do. However, in that case, Professor Baldwin would probably be the one showing more results than I could. Still, whatever the reason was, receiving the Empress’s support while hunting down the Church of Eternity was invaluable.
Camellia stretched her hand toward us. “Stand still for a moment.”
Seven-colored light flowed from her fingertips, and a prismatic aura enveloped both Professor Baldwin and me.
“What is this?” I asked.
“With my aura cast upon you, you may move freely throughout the palace,” Camellia explained.
Basically, it was a full-access pass.
“Now, come out.”
“Speaking of which, what do we do if we run into that maid, Melina, during our investigation?” I asked.
Since Melina was the reason we were confined here, we would definitely run into trouble if we met her inside the palace.
“You need not worry about that. Melina is outside the palace at the moment for work.”
I tilted my head slightly as I looked at Camellia. “I see.”
“Do you have something to say to me?” she asked.
“No, I just found it surprising.”
Given Camellia’s personality, I assumed she wouldn’t care about anyone’s feelings, not even her favorite attendant. But she seemed genuinely considerate when it came to Melina.
“I am endlessly generous to those who have sworn loyalty to me,” she replied.
The word “generous” didn’t quite fit the woman in front of me.
“If you were to become my attendant as well, you would feel that generosity too,” she added.
“I believe I’ve already given you my answer.”
Camellia smiled leisurely, her eyes gleaming. “Heh. You still don’t understand me at all. What I desire always ends up in my hands.”
“Ah. Yeah yeah. I’m sure that’s the case. ”
She was definitely a troublesome personality. Suppressing a wry smile, I stepped out of the prison. Professor Baldwin, who had been glaring at Camellia the whole time, followed close behind.
When we had walked far enough that Camellia was no longer in sight, Professor Baldwin said, “Dale.”
“Yes?”
“Give me your hand.”
Walking behind me, she grabbed my hand and pulled it toward her. Without looking at me, she laced her fingers with mine. I looked at her, confused. We weren’t on a date. We were in the middle of tracking the Church of Eternity infiltrators in the Imperial Palace.
“Why? Is something wrong? Do you have any complaints?” she asked.
“No, no complaints at all. It’s just...”
“Then stop talking and hold my hand properly.”
She strode forward briskly, still clinging to my hand. I couldn’t see her expression, but from the red flush on her ears, it was obvious she was embarrassed. Honestly, she did have a lot of cute sides.
Professor Baldwin took out two small glass bottles filled with red liquid from inside her coat. “Now, let’s begin our investigation in earnest.”
“What’s that?”
“The blood of the wolf-masked man and the fox-masked woman. I collected some just in case, but I didn’t expect to use it here.”
She had planned to drink their blood to maximize the Blessing of Insight. With just body fluids, her Blessing of Insight could detect even the bombs that the Archbishop of Madness desperately tried to hide. So, the blood would definitely help us locate the Church of Eternity.
After she drank the blood, her pupils changed. Yellow, reptilian slits gleamed in her eyes. Her Cursed Eye darted around, scanning the surroundings.
A moment later, she said, “For now, I don’t see anything that looks like the Church of Eternity’s trace.”
“Let’s keep looking.”
We continued roaming the palace together when she sensed something.
Professor Baldwin suddenly stopped, her reptilian gaze fixed on a wall with a large painting. “Wait. Behind that... I sense something suspicious.”
She approached the wall and sent threads of spider silk from her fingertips behind the painting. With a low rumble, the section of wall behind the painting rotated, revealing a hidden passageway.
