The Heavenly Demon Cult’s Strongest Maid - Chapter 171
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 171
Swoosh!
Having entered the Namgung Family Manor, I first hid myself in the shadows of darkness.
As the night air brushed against my skin, my tension heightened even more.
I expanded my ki sense while suppressing my breathing as much as possible to explore the surroundings.
Then I felt rough, unrefined energy not far away.
‘Patrol guards?’
I quickly hid myself among the ornamental trees and the thicket below, waiting for them to pass by.
As the torches approached, I completely stopped breathing and closed my eyes.
‘I should find time to properly learn stealth techniques from Uncle Cheon-yeong. I’m trembling to death here.’
Fortunately, the first patrol passed by in front of me without any suspicion.
I cautiously raised my head to survey the surroundings.
‘I need to find the Small Main Hall.’
The best place to plant the Honcheongi would have been Gajujeon, but that carried too much risk.
If it were Namgung Cheon, there was a high probability he would immediately notice that my energy was not ordinary the moment he saw me.
That’s why I chose the Small Main Hall.
The problem was that I had no knowledge of the Namgung Family Manor’s layout at all.
It would have been great if I could have obtained blueprints like in movies, but there was no time for that.
Using my experience from my maid days to figure things out was currently the best method available.
‘Let’s start moving.’
From now on, time was not on my side.
With the mindset of tackling whatever came my way, I infiltrated deeper into the manor.
‘Why is it so quiet?’
Even though it was the middle of the night, I couldn’t hear any human voices at all.
I couldn’t tell if the family atmosphere was depressed due to recent events, or if it was always like this.
It was during this time.
‘A maid?’
I detected ordinary energy from the opposite direction.
Hiding behind a corner and peeking out just with my head, I saw a middle-aged person approaching this way.
‘It’s the Maid Supervisor!’
The design was similar to the maid outfit I was wearing, but the details were slightly different. The accessories she wore were also quite ornate.
‘What should I do?’
My deliberation didn’t last long.
It was all or nothing anyway.
In times like this, I had to act boldly.
“Sob sob.”
I deliberately made soft crying sounds. As expected, the Maid Supervisor hesitated and then walked straight toward me.
“Who’s there?”
I quickly poked my eye with my finger.
‘Ugh.’
It hurt, but tears weren’t coming out as expected, so I had no choice.
“Sob!”
I cried even more pitifully while putting on a masterful performance. Thankfully, tears began flowing down.
“I-I’m sorry…”
I stammered in a frightened voice and bowed deeply at the waist.
The angle is important here.
It’s like a subtle bow that only we maids know, which ordinary people wouldn’t understand.
“What’s wrong that you’re crying?”
See? She’s not even suspicious of my existence.
My experience hasn’t gone anywhere yet.
“Th-that is…”
“It’s okay, so tell me. Is someone bothering you?”
This was something that often happened among maids.
But my answer would be very different from that.
“…I went to the outhouse and got lost. I-I’m sorry!”
“You got lost?”
Anger crept into the Maid Supervisor’s voice.
I had to handle this well.
I could only proceed with my next move if I cleared the Maid Supervisor’s suspicions.
“Sob sob, I just started working here recently. To help with my sick grandmother’s medical expenses… sob!”
“Ah, right! You’re that child.”
The Maid Supervisor approached and patted my shoulder.
“It’s okay, it’s okay. The manor is so large that you could get lost.”
I couldn’t find even a trace of suspicion from her as she comforted me.
‘As expected, the sickly grandmother concept works well even in Jeongpa.’
The excuse I made wasn’t a gamble. What I realized while working as a maid was that hardly any of the girls had proper parents.
That’s why they jumped into that harsh profession from a young age.
“Which department were you assigned to?”
“The Small Main… Hall.”
When I answered timidly, the Maid Supervisor nodded in understanding.
“Follow me.”
“Sob, thank you so much.”
“Stop that!”
At her stern voice, I hurriedly stopped crying. Then I followed behind the Maid Supervisor with quick steps, keeping my gaze fixed on the floor.
“Thank you all for your hard work.”
We encountered patrol groups three or four times along the way.
Each time, the Maid Supervisor greeted them with dignity, and the patrol groups also passed us by with light bows.
I maintained my pitiful new maid cosplay while trying not to reveal my face.
After passing through two central gates, she stopped walking and turned to look at me.
“You can go alone from here, right?”
“Th-thank you!”
I kept bowing repeatedly, groveling to an almost pathetic degree.
This is another one of my specialties.
“If this happens again, you should know to ring the bell. Understand?”
“Yes…”
“As soon as day breaks, memorize the paths first.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Even though her tone was strict, seeing how she escorted me all the way here, she seemed like a good person.
“Phew!”
Once she completely disappeared from view, I straightened my back and let out a sigh of relief.
Thanks to my outstanding acting, I safely made it to the Small Main Hall, but…
‘There’s no guarantee there isn’t someone else inside.’
Still, it would be really nice if at least Clan Leader Soo was away.
I surveyed the surroundings and quickly entered the Small Main Hall before anyone could see me.
‘Huh? Is no one here?’
Whether it was heaven’s blessing, nothing was caught by my ki sense.
Seeing that even the working maids were away, it seemed like shift change time.
‘Then I should seize this opportunity!’
I immediately began scanning for where to place the Honcheongi.
The Small Main Hall was quite neat and modest, unlike the building’s exterior appearance. The desk was also tidy, and the books were well organized.
‘There? No. Below that might be better.’
I could see several places suitable for hiding, but I couldn’t bring myself to choose one readily.
If I hid it too deep, there was a possibility that Grandmother wouldn’t be able to find it.
The key to this mission wasn’t ‘hiding’ it, but making it ‘discoverable.’
On the other hand, it shouldn’t catch the eye of Namgung Myeong, the Clan Leader Soo, before the search.
I carefully examined the study once more.
My gaze then turned to the topmost shelf of the bookcase.
‘Right, let’s go with something ordinary.’
A corner spot, but not at the very edge.
It was surprisingly a position that didn’t catch the eye easily.
I carefully took out the celestial sphere from my bosom and inserted it between the books.
‘Perfect!’
It blended in harmoniously as if it had been there from the beginning, without any sense of incongruity.
‘Please let our Shin Geum discover this celestial sphere!’
I even clasped my hands together in prayer.
‘Now let’s get out of here quickly.’
Having completed the mission, all that remained was to make a strategic retreat.
“…!”
But it was still too early to feel relieved.
Just as I was about to leave the study, I sensed a presence outside the door.
I had been so focused on hiding the celestial sphere that I failed to detect someone approaching this close.
This was tonight’s greatest crisis.
As I panicked, not knowing what to do, the door suddenly swung open before my eyes.
“I’m, I’m sorry!”
I instinctively bowed deeply and apologized first.
“What brings you here at this hour?”
‘Huh?’
I expected to be scolded, but instead heard an unexpectedly gentle voice.
“Well, that is… I thought you might need something…”
“Is that so?”
“Yes? Yes, yes.”
“Very well. And from now on, at least light a candle when you do this.”
…What?
Why is he being so kind?
Mister, are you really Grandfather Namgung Cheon’s son?
The humanity flowing from him was completely different from Namgung Cheon.
“It’s late at night, so go and sleep now. That way tomorrow won’t be as tiring, won’t it?”
Wow, he’s really a kind person.
I had rarely seen anyone speak like this while I was working as a maid.
‘Namgung San took after his father after all.’
“…Thank you.”
The important thing at times like this was to absolutely not show my face.
I left the room with quick steps while keeping my back bent as much as possible.
‘I almost got into big trouble this time!’
Beads of sweat had formed on my forehead before I knew it.
I roughly wiped it away and retraced my steps, following my memory of the path I had taken.
‘Gasp!’
That’s when I was just crossing over a central gate.
A familiar figure was blankly looking up at the moon floating in the night sky. As if longing for someone.
‘Namgung San, why are you coming out here?’
If I ran into him, it would be the end.
‘Ugh! No!’
As if hearing my footsteps, Namgung San turned his head toward me.
“Excuse me…”
What, did he recognize me?
Then what would happen?
I was turning around by a hair’s breadth when I froze at the sound of Namgung San’s voice.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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