[echoing whistle]

I grabbed the metal bar of the prison and pulled it inwards.

Just a little bit…

clang clang

Hah~ Seeing how I am able to break it barehanded, seems like the security isn’t actually that impressive.

click

The guards told me that I am inside the castle’s dungeon so I should expect a spine-chilling experience on the way out. What would it be?

The floor is wet. I can also hear water trickling down the wall. Is there a river nearby?

[man wailing]

Oh, there it is. The spine-chilling event. Probably from the upper floor. I could tell by the way he sounds that he is currently tortured. I could only imagine what that man has gone through. I mean, the medieval era quite had a list of astonishing torture devices that were recorded in history. How’d I know that? It’s a secret~

Anyway, the hallway is ridiculously dark. There’s not even a single stray of light in sight. Not like I can just light a fire, no? That would attract unwanted attention.

We teleported on our way here and it was precisely 5 minutes ago. When the guards left me, I did not hear their voices echoing in the hallway, did they teleport back to the surface?

Hmm, should I use one of Gandi’s scrolls?

Although I only noticed it just now, there’s a sulfuric odor that comes from every corner so it’s probably a sewer nearby, not a river.

Uhg, it smells so bad.

“…sabi ko sayo eh. Eh diba nga inutusan ka na katayin agad ang balasubas na yon? Ginagawa mo? Ba’t mo hinayaang makatakas?”

Voices? Someone’s at the other end of the hallway. Guards? Probably. I did not hear their footsteps!

“Malay ko ba? Di ko alam anong nangyari. Ginamitan yata ako ng mahika tapos ang inosente din ng mukha nun eh. Tahimik na nga, tulungan mo nalang ako dito.”

The language they are using seems familiar but I don’t know where I heard it. Probably from one of my lifetime. They are getting closer. Door, door.

“Inosente? Dito? May inosente bang napupunta dito sa dungeon? Tatanga-tanga ka din eh. Pasalamat ka nalang at kinausap ni Kapitan ang namamahala sa atin, kundi, nagmimistulang lechon ka na ngayon.”

“Oo na! Oo na!”

Their voices became even closer so I silently pulled the closest door my hands can recognize by running my palms on the wet wall and entered.

“Lakas ng kapit mo sa guardian angel mo ha”

“Gago! Hahaha!”

“…di nga. Si Juls nga isang palpak lang, sumasakabilang buhay na agad. Ikaw, classified pa yung nakatakas sayo, di ka man lang pinarusahan. Medyo unfair ah. Abutin mo nga tong lubid. Kailangan natin isarado agad ang palapag na to. Sabi ni Maiksi, may bagong nilagay daw dito. Magician, ani nya.”

What are they talking about? It sounds like a juicy gossip. Magician? I have an inkling they’re talking about me. I mean, the badge I showed at the guild earlier was of Sarai and there was a magician label at the side of it. I couldn’t sense any life forms in this floor earlier either when I got out of my prison.

“Unfair? Gusto mo yata na madedo ako.”

“Di naman sa ganon. Kahit sino, maiisip talaga yun. Vino-voice out ko lang sayo nasa isip ko. Bilisan na nga natin to, gutom na ako.”

After a few minutes of listening to more of their conversation albeit not knowing what it is all about, the hallway became silent so I slightly opened the door and immediately closed it when I saw at least 10 figures marching in the hallway and each of them is holding a candelabrum.

A cult? They are all dressed like a priest. I can’t hear their footsteps either. Are they floating? Or did they disable the sounds of their footsteps with magic?

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In any case, I have to stay in this godforsaken smelly room until they are gone. There’s no reason to get myself involved in the current situation. I should’ve used Gandi’s scroll quickly earlier. There’s no knowing what those people are capable of if I use it now. Prevention is better than cure, they say. Haha~

“El prisionero se ha escapado! El prisionero se ha escapado!”

Uh-oh. That phrase sounded awfully familiar. I’m busted, eh?

“Well, here goes nothing~”

I pulled Gandi’s scroll out from the cube and tore it. The blinding light engulfed me and seconds later, I am standing at the very center of what looked like the palace hallway. I looked around and chuckled in relief when I see no one in sight.

I swiftly ran into the closest room I saw and entered. Glad no one’s in here too.

“El prisionero se ha escapado! ¡Busca en todos los rincones del palacio!”

Wow, they are rather quick.

“¡No la dejes escapar!”

“How did she even manage to escape? We already pulled down the veil before we left!”

Oh, I can recognize that voice. It was the guard who kicked me into my jail earlier.

But what veil? Is it somewhat similar to what Gandi did in the carriage?

“SEARCH EVERY CORNER!!”

My, my, someone’s in a hurry~

I pulled down the wig I was wearing and stuffed it in the cube. It was part of the clothing I bought in that store this morning. All just to blend in and make it appear that I’m an NPC.

When my natural hair is exposed, I stripped from the cheap fabric I was wearing and wore the maid’s clothing that Lyra prepared for me. Of course, thanks to our very kind Mr. Adam that provided us with all of the initial information needed. He’s quite resourceful.

Let’s go and check if my new look passed.

I pulled the huge curtains and hang them on my arms. I opened the door and went out.

Several guards were in sight while others were opening the room they could find. Some are stopping every maid they come across.

I continued walking normally in the hallways when one of the guards stopped me.

“Have you seen a woman with red hair?” His suspicious eyes wandered around my body as if I was the woman they were looking for, which is actually true. LOL.

“Red hair? Can you be more specific? I saw 3 people with red hair today.” I haven’t, of course. This much of a lie should be enough to let me off the hook.

“She’s wearing—” He halted his words and grabbed the other guard closest to him. “What was she wearing again? That escapee.” He asked with confusion.

The other guy looked confused as well and stopped another until they formed a little circle, discussing what the escapee was wearing.

Darn. What is wrong with these guards? What a let-down.

I sighed and left the hallway.

Which part of the palace I am currently in any way?

I hastened my footsteps and poked the back of the maid I saw nearby. She turned around and scanned my whole appearance. Everyone’s surely eyeing me today. Eye wish everyone the best in figuring who eye am.

That was a pun.

“What is it?” She asked with a thick accent while raising her eyebrows.

“I was about to put these curtains to the wash-house but I lost my way.”

She turned back and started walking without answering me. I snorted and followed her. After a few minutes of walking, she opened the door and pointed the laundry basket then left. Not even a word was uttered. I shrugged and threw the curtains.

That wasn’t much of a help at all. I guess I have to roam this whole place myself.

That being said, I started walking from corner to corner while eavesdropping on everyone’s conversation to gather some juicy gossip. It was meh, most of their topics are about their co-workers or lovers. Come on, give me something valuable.

I stealthily moved to the library and started grabbing books I deem interesting. I hid in one of the corners when I heard footsteps coming closer.

“The guild head called for a meeting tonight. His deputies were all over the place earlier to spread it.”

Hmm… yeah, sure.

“I received the news too. Sydney told me it’s because of the incoming cross-server guild annual celebration. You know what happened last year, the guild head is probably anxious about it happening again. I mean, what happened last year was totally outrageous.”

Cross-server annual celebration? I did not consider the fact that this game might have several open servers. Wait—

“Right. Any guild leader would be anxious. I wonder if he’ll disclose something tonight. It would be a long meeting considering how Kanzas is leveling up fast. The leader of that guild went nuts on leveling himself up. He also merged with other guilds and made them his soldiers. They’d probably surpass our guild in the next event.”

I also remembered the rude woman at the clothing store earlier while confirming if I’m from Vatiskaan Guild. Kanzas is a guild too? So is Cerres? Then, I’m a guild master instead of a king!

I clenched my teeth because of the unknown excitement building inside of me. That would mean that the books I’ve read on Aswain aren’t credible sources at all. Who the heck would call the guild a country?

Devs. Definitely devs.

“Hush! Someone might hear you!”

“Hahaha! If that happens, I’ll go pack my things and move to Kanzas.”

“As if! Cerres can hardly let go of low-ranking players and even accept random people into the guild. Do you think the deputies would let us go as easily as that?”

That would explain the lame actions of their guards. Those were probably low ranking players.

“Well… anyway, I got the book I was looking for. Let’s go back to the office, we have so much work piled up because of that said escapee.”

“Oh right. They haven’t even confirmed yet how that woman got the guild’s missing emblem.”

It was that important? Given the fact that it was handed to me just because I helped that boy pick up his tomatoes, I could tell that he was not from this guild.

The two ladies continued chatting while walking away from the shelf I was hiding.

That meeting tonight, I will surely sneak in to know what they would talk about.