116 - The Butler Dismissed by the Saintess Couldn’t Possibly Be the Demon Dragon Princess

Chapter 116: The Concert "Am I in heaven?" Ian rubbed her eyes groggily and muttered, still half-asleep. "Hey, Alia, why are you here? Did you die too?" Ian, still dazed from sleep, spoke without thinking to Alia. In her mind, she believed she had been burned to death by those knights, so seeing Alia here could only mean that Alia had died too. Alia crossed her arms, raised an eyebrow, and with a sly smile on her face said, "So, heaven has such low standards that even, even an outlaw like you can get in." "Helping the infected harm residents, obstructing the holy knights in their duties—those are no small charges, you know." Ian seemed swayed by Alia, and she responded instinctively, "Then we're in hell?" She glanced around, taking in the divine and pure surroundings, as immaculate as swan feathers, and felt confused. "This doesn't seem like the hell I'd imagined. It feels more like heaven." "And you, a saintess of the Holy City, how did you end up in hell with me?" "Mischief like teasing an adorably clueless girl like Ian is an essential part of my life." Alia covered her upturned lips with a hand, her eyes shining with mischievous delight. "What do you mean? We're not dead?" Ian asked, puzzled. "Of course not," Alia grinned even more brightly as she reached out to pinch Ian's cheek. "You didn't believe everything I said, did you?" "How could someone so adorably naive exist?" "Shut up!" Hearing Alia's words, Ian's face flushed bright red. She swatted Alia's hand away, pouting. "That's only because you were talking so seriously." "Otherwise, I wouldn't have fallen for it." Alia blinked innocently, her expression that of someone wronged, "Oh my, it was you talking about hell and heaven. I just went along with it." "And if those knights knew their 'prisoner' was sleeping in the saintess's bed..." "What, the saintess's bed?" Ian looked around again, realizing this was indeed someone's room. She then turned to Alia, surprised, "Is this your room?" "Do we have any other saintesses besides me?" "And what about my charges?" Ian asked, her voice trembling. "They're gone, unless you still want to experience burning." "Absolutely not!" Upon hearing her charges were gone, Ian leaped out of bed, eager to leave. "Already in such a rush to leave? Not even staying a little while with me after waking up." Ian didn't halt at Alia's words, instead, she ran while asking, "By the way, where's Lilian?" "Lilian has gone back to the hotel you were staying at that night. If you want to find her, you should go to that hotel." Alia did not stop Ian this time, only leaning lazily by the window. After getting the information, Ian left the church and soon returned to the hotel. Standing at the hotel door, Ian hesitated to knock, her hand hovering mid-air. She wondered what kind of Lilian she'd find. Would it be the sweet, golden-haired Lilian, or the aggressive, silver-haired Lilian? She hoped it wouldn't be the red-eyed, berserker Lilian. Ian reasoned that if it were the berserker Lilian, Alia wouldn't have let her go; she'd probably be keeping an eye on her. As for the first two Lilians, Ian felt she could manage, but the first Lilian would be preferable. That way, she wouldn't have to expend too much energy fending off Lilian's advances. Just thinking about the fierce advances of the silver-haired Lilian sent a shiver down Ian's spine. Finally, Ian gathered her courage and knocked on the door. No response. Ian knocked again. Still no response. "Strange, could Lilian be out of the hotel at this time?" Ian speculated. Hesitant, Ian tried the door and found it unlocked—it opened with just a gentle push. "Lilian, are you there?" Ian called into the room, but received no reply. The room was empty, with the bed so neatly made it seemed as if no one had stayed there. Ian ventured into the bathroom and saw Lilian sitting there. Lilian had a serious expression, two chains forming in her hands. Seeing this, Ian's eyes widened in disbelief. After finishing the first trial of the Holy Test, she could no longer use the skills from her soul stone after leaving the mysterious space. But now, she saw Lilian using a skill strikingly similar to the Light Binding Art from the secret realm. Sensing someone enter, Lilian put aside her work, her expression shifting from concentration to acknowledgement, meeting Ian's gaze. "Thank goodness, it's the golden-haired Lilian," Ian thought with relief. The golden-haired Lilian was as gentle as a small bunny, without a hint of aggression. "You're back, Ian," Lilian greeted her. "Yeah." Ian breathed a sigh of relief and smiled warmly. "Lilian, were you practicing the Light Binding Art? Did Alia teach you?" Lilian looked down at the chains, watching them dissolve into tiny flecks of golden light fading into the air. She rubbed her slightly sore wrists and replied softly, "Yes, I'm now a disciple of Saintess Alia, so I learned a few techniques from her." "So that’s it," Ian thought. Although it was good that Lilian was learning useful skills, Ian felt uneasy at the thought of potentially being outdone by her. "It seems I need to finish my trial task quickly to earn my first skill." Noticing Lilian rubbing her wrists, Ian asked, "Is it tiring?" "Not really, as long as I can learn something, I can endure it," Lilian said, not daring to admit she was learning the skills to protect Ian. "Make sure to balance work and rest," Ian pondered for a moment before suggesting, "I heard there's a concert tomorrow, hosted by a star renowned across the continent. Would you like to join me?" Of course, Ian's reasons weren't that simple; she planned to challenge Alia there, having heard from a storekeeper that the star and Alia had an unusual relationship.