Chapter 131 : It Depends on Your Performance
Chapter 131: It Depends on Your Performance
“Master? Are you there? This is your loyal little pendant. Please respond when received.”
At last, that lazy voice in her mind sounded.
【What’s the rush.】
Lilia almost dropped to her knees on the spot.
Not in a rush?
Down below, several thousand people were shouting so loudly that the canyon was shaking, and their slogan was something as rebellious as “The tyrant must be executed.”
If this were a palace intrigue drama, the imperial guards would be charging in to purge the scene in the next second.
【Since it’s so lively, why not grab a seat in the front row?】
Lilia froze.
Grab a seat?
Watch the show?
“Master, let’s not joke around.” Lilia felt the corner of her mouth twitch. “This group is clearly well-prepared, and that ruin… it doesn’t look like a proper place.”
【I know.】
The voice remained calm like a pool of stagnant water, even carrying a hint of amusement.
【That’s why you should go take a look first.】
Huh?
Lilia’s eyes widened as she pointed at her own nose.
Me?
Alone?
Into that crowd of several thousand crazed lunatics pumped full of adrenaline?
“Um… Master, I’m just a physically weak maid.”
Lilia tried to awaken what little conscience her boss might have, “Although I know a bit of massage and some blade techniques, this is a war…”
【Not going?】
The chill within the shadows deepened slightly.
【Then I’ll come out right now and flatten this place.】
“I’ll go!”
Lilia answered decisively.
What a joke.
If those lunatics discovered her, at worst she’d just get beaten to death by a mob.
But if Hera made a move now, would there even be a single living being left within a ten-mile radius?
She might even get silenced along with everything else as the only witness.
And…
Lilia glanced at the massive construction site below, bustling like an anthill.
If something truly capable of threatening Hera was hidden beneath.
Whether for survival, or for that damned “loyal guard dog protecting the master” persona—
She had to go.
“Um…” Lilia made one last struggle, “Does this count as a work-related injury?”
【It depends on your performance.】
That was enough.
These days, risking one’s life for the boss—wasn’t it all for the year-end bonus?
As long as the money was right, even a demon god could be taken down for you.
Lilia let out a sigh and reinserted the two pitch-black short blades into the sheaths at her outer thighs.
She tidied her slightly messy skirt and tightened her gloves.
Her gaze fell once more upon the bottomless basin.
Several thousand fanatics.
And an ancient ruin of unknown age.
“Hell-level difficulty…”
Lilia muttered.
The next second—
Her figure melted silently into the shadows at the edge of the cliff like a drop of ink.
……
At the edge of the basin.
This was where the searchlights were weakest, and also a blind spot formed by piles of rubble and discarded mining slag.
A dark figure slid down the steep rock wall like a gecko.
There was no sound at all.
Even the lesser demons patrolling just a few meters away noticed nothing unusual.
After landing, Lilia did not move immediately.
She curled herself behind a massive black rock, held her breath, and activated 【Absolute Senses】.
Everything around her instantly became clear.
The noisy chaos was filtered out, leaving only useful streams of information flowing continuously into her mind.
That smell had grown stronger.
The scent of blood and sweat.
Lilia frowned.
She recognized this smell.
Back in Batori’s biochemical mine, when those insect eggs hatched, it had smelled just like this.
Only now, it was even “fresher”… and far more nauseating.
Lilia cautiously peeked out half her head.
Less than fifty meters away from her was a row of crude sheds.
That should be the resting area… or rather, the feeding area.
Dozens of ragged humans stood in line, holding broken iron bowls, waiting to receive food.
The one distributing the food was not a cook.
It was a figure in a gray robe, wearing a strange device on its face that resembled a gas mask.
Holding a massive iron ladle, he scooped black paste from a large pot emitting green smoke and roughly dumped it into those people’s bowls.
“Eat! All of you, eat it clean!”
The gray-robed man let out a muffled roar, “This is divine nectar bestowed by the gods! Only by eating can you have the strength to work for the new god!”
Lilia looked at that so-called “nectar.”
That was no food.
It was clearly swill mixed with some strange powder and what looked like chunks of internal organs.
What was even more terrifying—
Those people in line had greedy glints in their eyes.
After receiving their bowls, they didn’t even glance at it, immediately tilting their heads back and pouring it into their mouths.
Some didn’t even waste a single drop spilled onto their hands, frantically licking their fingers clean.
Had they gone mad from hunger?
Or… were they addicted?
Lilia noticed—
After consuming that paste, their bodies would undergo violent convulsions.
Immediately after—
Beneath their originally pale and shriveled skin, purplish veins bulged out violently, writhing like earthworms beneath the flesh.
Their breathing became heavy, and their previously dull eyes turned bloodshot and fanatical.
Their hunched backs were forcibly straightened by some unseen force.
Some even threw away their bowls, let out beast-like growls, grabbed stones weighing hundreds of pounds, hoisted them onto their shoulders, and sprinted toward the entrance of the ruin.
Stimulants?
No.
Lilia dismissed that thought.
This was clearly burning through their life force.
They were being used like disposable batteries—used up and discarded.
Once this “effect” wore off, these people probably wouldn’t even leave behind intact corpses, turning directly into piles of rotten flesh.
“What a bunch of beasts.”
Lilia cursed inwardly.
Even though she was a maid of the demon faction.
Even though she served a demon king who killed without blinking—
Hera at least pursued a sense of artistry in killing, valuing efficiency and decisiveness.
But this method—turning people into walking corpses and draining every last bit of value—
It was utterly revolting.
Lilia suppressed the anger in her heart.
Her target wasn’t these small fry, nor the gray-robed distributor.
It was that ruin.
And the red-robed deacon standing on the high platform, acting like some kind of ritualist.
She needed to get closer.
Closer still.
At the very least, she had to see clearly what was being transported out of that cave entrance.
Lilia observed the terrain.
She was still several hundred meters away from the central area.
Between them were countless laborers transporting materials, along with several patrol squads of armed beastman guards.
Sneaking through directly would be difficult.
Although 【Shadow Step (Intermediate)】 was useful, it wasn’t invisibility. If she bumped into someone in an open area, that would be awkward.
Just then—