Volume 18 - CH 8

「Strange. Where is she? Where are you, Elisa?」

I've been searching all over Rubidoux Castle, and I'm starting to get impatient.

Elisa was nowhere to be found.

I don't think it's possible, but did Frederick lie to me?

But he has no reason to lie to me where Elisa is imprisoned.

I didn't tell Frederick about my plan to sneak in here, so he wouldn't know either.

I'm sure the hard-headed Frederick can't imagine that I'm willing to trespass to save my beloved lover.

The sun had already set, and the only light in the castle was from the candles.

It seems that they don't use magic tools in this castle, so it must take a lot of time for the candle keepers to work. I guess this is also a religious reason.

It's okay for those who think it's normal, but it must be hard for the lowly who are forced to do it.

「All that's left is this room: ......」

Auto-mapping is almost complete, and there are only a few places left.

The room is heavily guarded, with four guards waiting at the door.

I wondered if Elisa was praying to the gods behind the tightly closed stone door.

Anyway, I should go inside and have a look.

【Instantaneous Movement】

I snuck into the room in an instant without the soldiers noticing.

But I couldn't help shouting in surprise.

「What!?」

Elisa is not there.

No, on the contrary, what is this pile of gold coins?

「I've heard that this is a place where prisoners awaiting the Inquisition are held, but ...... a treasure house?」

I don't understand.

It is human wisdom to want to hide gold in unexpected places, but this seemed out of place.

If there was any advantage to hiding it here, it would be that the security was extremely tight.

「And the number of visitors is limited, huh......」

It seems that permission to visit is not granted to the general public, and only a few powerful people know about the existence of this treasure house.

......Whatever, I didn't come in here to steal anything.

Of course, I'll put it in the item storage as much as I can in the middle of my trip.

In addition to the gold coins, there were also jewels and ornaments, so I had to rummage through the ones that seemed to have high value.

「Hmm? Is this a ...... blue ring?」

Why is this ring, a diploma from Austin Magic Academy, in this place?

It's a beautiful ring in its own right, but since it has the names of the graduates on it, it doesn't make sense for someone else to have it.

If it was worth a lot of money, Letty would have sold it right away, even if it belonged to her.

And it wasn't just one or two.

When I opened the box, I found a large number of blue rings, nearly a hundred.

I looked at the names engraved on them, but they were all different.

「Christina-von-Aradia ......? I've heard that name somewhere before.」

When I saw that one name, I tried to remember where I had heard that name, but it didn't come to mind.

Not the woman I fucked, but some kind of disgusting name: ......? Well, whatever.

I'll ask a member later, and I'll put the ring in storage, too.

「But then, where is Elisa being held captive?」

I refer to the 【Auto-Mapping】 again, and look at the floor in order as well.

「Hmm? There's a space here.」

There's a gaping void from the second floor on the far center side of the castle.

It reminds me of the exterior of Rubidoux Castle.

Come to think of it, there was a tall spire.

I must have missed the stairs to it somewhere.

There must be a hidden door nearby.

I made my way to the spot, and soon found the hidden door.

It was behind a large tapestry hanging on the wall.

There were tapestries of the same design here and there, so I guess I was fooled into thinking it was some kind of religious decoration.

It didn't look unnatural.

After all, it's better not to underestimate this country.

Religious people are not stupid.

It reminds me of what the headmaster said.

「You can't just look at the surface of things. Things are formed in the mind.」

Don't be fooled by appearances on the surface.

I kept this in mind as I climbed the spiral staircase in front of me.

When I reached the top, I found myself in a small, dark room.

「At this hour, who are you!?」

It was definitely Elisa's voice that sharply called out to me.

「Calm down, Elisa, it's me.」

「Alec...!」

「Wait a moment, I'll turn on the light.」

Starlight is shining through the window, but it's too dark to see her condition.

I lit a candlestick with flame magic, and saw Elisa chained to one leg.

I was a little relieved to see that she was properly dressed, but it looked like a prisoner's uniform, thin and shabby in this cold season.

「Please don't look at me too much. I haven't had a bath in days. ......」

I spoke softly to Elisa, who looked down with sad eyes.

「Don't worry about it, you can take a bath again.」

「You're right...」

In the Labyrinth of No Return, Elisa was a strong and interesting woman who didn't mind taking a bath, but now that she's a prisoner and her country has treated her this way, she seems to have weakened a lot.

However, it seems that she has been fed and is in no condition to fight for a moment.

「Ah, more importantly, Alec, what are you doing here? The guards downstairs are .......」

「No problem, no one knows I'm here. I'm here to help you.」

「Ehh? But I'm the one being held by the Inquisition.」

「What does it matter? It's none of my business.」

「Phew, You're right, you were that kind guy. ...... Okay, I no longer have a mission. Even if it means disobeying God, I will follow you from now on.」

「Elisa, after making up your mind, I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait just a little longer to leave here. I have a few other things to do. I just wanted to check on you today.」

「Okay. All right.」

「I'll see you later. ...... Oops, almost forgot.」

I unbuckled my lower belt and pulled out a piece of clothing.

「Hmm? You're doing this here?」

「No, I'm not, but I thought I'd cheer you up a bit. Mmm. ......!」

Stand on your head and get an erection.

「See, that's all I can do for now.」

「How can I be cheered up by being shown such a thing? Fufu」

Elisa laughed, so that's good.

Ugh, it's cold.

「Elisa, I'll take care of it tomorrow or the day after. Just be patient until then.」

「Okay. But be careful, Alec. The Inquisitor is a skilled man.」

「But not as good as me, right?」

I said this thinking Elisa would nod her head in agreement, but she didn't nod right away.

「No. ...... Yes, you're right. May God bless you, oops.」

「Don't worry about it, I'm sure the god you believe in is sane. I'll take care of the ones who don't.」

「The ones that don't: ......?」

Elisa tilted her head, but even though she believes in one God, people are different.

And there's not just one God.

I'd hate to think that the girl with the glasses was the only god in this world, I thought as I left the steeple of Rubidoux Castle.