Chapter 7: I Thought Nobody Wanted It Anyway

“1145!”

A furious shout filled with draconic might shattered the eerie silence of the washroom.

The Minotaur, realizing what he had just done, stood rigid like a piece of spaghetti bent to its limit.

He didn’t dare to breathe.

Any slight movement and he felt he would snap.

1145 was the code assigned to him in this Prison.

“You’ve got some nerve, causing trouble while I’m around!”

Meeting the gazes of Hualí and the others, Warden Lilith’s brows furrowed tightly, a crimson flame seeming to blaze atop her head.

A few points of light flashed across the skin of her right hand as she removed her leather glove.

In an instant, fire-red scales as hard as armor spread over her entire arm, transforming her right hand into a fearsome dragon claw.

“Frog fun! So Lilith, you really can turn red!”

Hualí’s eyes lit up.

But the next moment, realizing Lilith had probably been drawn here by the commotion, she immediately shifted all blame away from herself.

“Lilith, I wasn’t trying to escape. The door was broken by the big guy, too. You can’t throw me into the Interrogation Room!”

Lilith’s gaze paused briefly on the small black Little Bat clinging to Hualí’s neck.

Seeing it showed no reaction, she then looked toward the Minotaur, whose body trembled like a sieve.

“N-no… I didn’t…”

All his earlier bravado vanished.

He was like a child caught doing something wrong, panicking to explain.

He hurriedly let go of Hualí and the others, stumbling backward.

His legs were as weak as boiled noodles, and he collapsed to the ground.

“Hualí, you too.”

Lilith glanced at Penina, then pointed out a direction for the two of them.

“Go back for now. I’ll come find you later.”

As a veteran inmate, Hualí knew Lilith was genuinely angry and didn’t dare linger.

She grabbed Penina and bolted.

No doubt, what awaited the Minotaur would be a severe punishment, but that no longer concerned her.

***

Night fell.

The moon hung bright and the stars sparse.

The clang of a steel trident striking iron bars woke Hualí from her sleep.

She rubbed her eyes and looked outside the cell.

A Doghead Guard glared at her impatiently, pulling the cell key from his belt.

He inserted it into the lock and turned it.

With a heavy creak, the iron door slowly opened.

“Hero Hualí, come out. Lady Lilith is calling you!”

“Lilith’s looking for me?”

Though uncertain about the details, it was probably related to what happened during the day.

Hualí climbed off the bed and drew the Saint Sword from beneath its frame, securing it to her waist.

It was her only means of self-defense in this Prison.

Before leaving, she straightened the wrinkles on her battle skirt and patted her cheeks to chase away the remaining drowsiness.

“Let’s go!”

To Hualí’s surprise, not only was she summoned, but Penina had also been woken in the middle of the night and now stood waiting outside.

The Doghead Guard led them down a long, straight corridor.

Most prisoners were already asleep, and the Prison was silent, the sound of boots on the stone floor especially clear.

“We’re here. Lady Lilith will arrive soon. Wait inside.”

“Oh, thank you.”

Once the escorting Watchman left, the two finally had a chance to talk.

“Didn’t you say everything would be fine if we blamed it all on the Minotaur? What’s going on now?”

Penina looked at Hualí with a hint of complaint.

Apparently, as a Saintess, Penina was a little grumpy when woken from sleep.

Hualí scratched her head in confusion.

“Maybe it’s about something else?”

She blinked, glancing at the door.

“Why don’t we go in first and talk?”

“Mm, let’s go inside.”

Whether it was good or bad luck, the two were now firmly bound together.

Even if she wanted to escape, she had no choice.

Penina didn’t say it, but in her heart, she was grateful to Hualí for protecting her during the day—even when faced with a much stronger opponent, Hualí hadn’t abandoned her.

They gently pushed open the office door, first peeking in to confirm it was empty before entering together.

The office wasn’t large.

The first thing that caught the eye was a solid wood desk.

On either side, tall bookshelves lined the walls, crammed with all kinds of books.

Most were related to magic.

There were also some Human Race texts about interrogating prisoners.

Hualí stood on tiptoe, pulling a book from the shelf at random.

She flipped through it, then snapped it shut with a red face, staring at the cover.

Damn!

Wrong book.

She glanced at Penina nearby, who seemed to be searching for something and thankfully hadn’t noticed.

As Hualí moved to return the book, a shadow darted from the corner of the bookshelf.

The breeze from its flapping wings lifted a few strands of her pink hair.

Hualí’s eyes widened.

She recognized the little creature as the same Little Bat that had saved her earlier that day.

“Little Bat!”

She held out her hand.

The Little Bat landed obediently on her palm.

“So human-like.”

Hualí stroked its glossy black head with her pinky finger.

“A bat? You rarely see one alone.”

At some point, Penina had come up beside her, her face showing curiosity at the sight of the bat.

In the Demon Domain, non-humanoid creatures lacking intelligence weren’t considered part of the Demon Race.

At most, they were Magical Beasts, the lowest tier, no different from pets or livestock.

“Hualí, don’t tell me you want to keep it!”

Penina found Hualí’s thoughts too easy to read, as if her intentions were written on her face.

“Don’t you feel it’s fate that brought us together?”

Hualí retorted.

Penina gave her a ‘Are you kidding me?’ look.

Even if the creature had saved her by chance, as a Saintess of the Human Race who worshipped the Goddess of Light, her kindness extended only to humans.

Magical Beasts didn’t count.

Before Hualí could act, the Little Bat suddenly leapt from her hand, squeezing through the office window and vanishing into the night.

“……”

“Want some baked biscuits?”

Penina offered a biscuit topped with tomato sauce to cheer up the disappointed Hualí.

Hualí took a bite.

Crunch.

Still pepper-salt flavor.

“Where did you get those?”

“From the desk. Figured no one wanted them. The tomato sauce, too.”

Bang—!

At that moment, the office door slammed open.

Lilith stood in the doorway, fists clenched, her smile dangerous.

“I believe I smell my favorite snacks. Any idea what happened to them?”

“You little rats!!!”