The dry leaves and flowers instantly ignited! The flames spread rapidly! Thick smoke billowed up!
"It's on fire! The garden is on fire! Someone, come put out the fire!" The bodyguards' terrified shouts and the chaotic sound of footsteps, like a hornet's nest that had been poked, instantly shattered the tranquility of the mansion and surged madly towards the east side!
North Corridor.
Gray's figure appeared at the end of a magnificent long corridor hung with portraits.
"Ice Make: …Ice Rink!" He pressed his hands to the ground, and magic power surged! A smooth, mirror-like layer of ice instantly spread out from him, covering the entire corridor floor!
"Ah—!"
"Ya—!"
Two maids, carrying silver supper trays and coincidentally passing by, stepped onto the ice surface unexpectedly and immediately let out piercing screams! Their bodies lost balance, and their trays, along with the hot soup and exquisite pastries inside, flew out of their hands!
Clang! Crash! Splat!
The expensive silver utensils hit the marble floor (ice surface) with a loud noise! The scalding thick soup splashed onto the cold ice, hissing and releasing white steam! The delicate pastries shattered into pieces!
"What was that sound?!"
"Something's happening! North corridor!" The guards, who had just been drawn to the fire alarm on the east side, were startled by the loud noise here. A portion of them rushed towards the north side in a hurry!
"Alright! West corridor… most of the guards have been drawn away! The staircase leading to the basement… two guards remain! Location locked!" Happy's voice, transmitted clearly into Lucy's consciousness through the faint mental link established by Christian, delivered the information.
"Received! Act!" Lucy took a deep breath and, like a nimble cat, silently slipped out of the guest room.
The deep corridor was like a maze, but in her mind, a clear and precise safe route map marked with blue lines was visible.
"Ten meters ahead… turn right… ceiling… right eye of the angel relief… hidden surveillance magic eye… magic power fluctuation… low frequency scan… lower your head… walk naturally… look up after three seconds." The pendant's guidance was precise to the second.
Lucy slightly lowered her head, as if adjusting her cuff, her footsteps maintaining their rhythm, as she calmly walked through the monitored area. She could feel a faint magic power fluctuation sweep over her scalp, but it did not linger.
"Left side… third door… doorknob… magic trap… paralyzing current… trigger range… inside the doorframe… stick to the right wall… pass quickly…"
Lucy turned sideways, almost pressing against the cool, smooth wall, her steps light, as she glided past the dangerous door.
"Ahead… staircase leading down… target: basement entrance… two guards… positions: one front-left, one rear-right… alert status: high." Lucy hid behind a huge Roman column supporting the dome, holding her breath as she peered out.
The stairs leading to the basement disappeared into deeper darkness, and a heavy, riveted black iron door was tightly shut. In front of the door, two bodyguards, burly as grizzly bears, had their hands on the hilts of their swords, their eyes scanning the surroundings vigilantly, like two gate gods.
"Suggestion: feint… create temporary chaos… non-lethal incapacitation." Christian offered tactical options.
Lucy's gaze swept to the end of the corridor, where a huge portrait, almost covering the entire wall, hung—it was Duke Abar himself, in a magnificent marshal's uniform, with an arrogant expression. A cunning arc curved at the corner of her mouth. "Open up! Gate of Canis Minor! Nicolas!"
With a flash of golden light, Nicolas, the Canis Minor Celestial Spirit, holding a paintbrush and wearing a beret, appeared excitedly.
"Miss Lucy! Do you need my artistic talent?"
"Nicolas! Do you see that huge portrait of the Duke?" Lucy pointed to the end of the corridor, "Go! Give Duke Abar… a 'new image' that suits his temperament! Make it striking! Make it memorable!"
"Understood! Miss Lucy! Witness my artistic sublimation!" Nicolas's eyes gleamed, and he instantly transformed into a golden streak, shooting towards the giant painting!
A few seconds later.
"Oh my god! Duke! Your face!!" A maid's scream, so terrified it was distorted, cut through the momentarily calmed chaos like a sharp blade! This sound even overshadowed the commotion of the distant garden fire brigade!
On that huge portrait, which Duke Abar was so proud of, his arrogant face had been painted by Nicolas with an incredibly comical, enormous, ruddy nose using vibrant red and green paints! The tip of his nose was also adorned with several exaggerated green pustules! And his mouth was given two comically upturned, eight-shaped mustaches!
"Pfft!" Even the stern guards in front of the iron door couldn't help but glance over. One of them couldn't hold back and chuckled, then quickly realized his mistake and immediately straightened his face.
"Bastard! Who is it?! Catch him for me!" The other guard was both shocked and enraged, looking at the "artistically sublimated" painting, his anger boiling!
He roared at his companion, "You watch the door! I'll go catch that damned troublemaker!" With that, he drew his sword and charged in the direction of the screaming maid.
In front of the iron door, only one guard remained! His attention was also drawn by the hilarious painting and his companion's angry roar, creating a momentary lapse in his vigilance!
"Now's the time! Taurus!" Lucy summoned again without hesitation!
"As you command, Princess Lucy!" Taurus, the Taurus Celestial Spirit, instantly appeared behind the remaining guard, moving with lightning speed!
"Bull's Heavy Strike!"
Thud! A muffled sound.
The guard's body stiffened, the vigilance in his eyes instantly replaced by bewilderment. Without even a grunt, he fell backward limply as if his bones had been removed, leaning against the wall.
"Well done, Taurus!" Lucy and Christian, who had dispelled his mimicry, quickly approached the iron door.
The heavy iron door exuded a cold metallic aura. The lock was covered with complex and ancient magical runes, dark red magic swirling around them, emitting a powerful sealing aura. The door itself was also exceptionally heavy, with an incredibly sturdy physical structure.
"Powerful composite seal… physical lock core… and… magic power circuit… double-locked… highly coupled." Christian's gelatinous body floated in front of the door, his core glowing with a steady blue light as he scanned the lock and runes.
"Forcible breach… will trigger… a chain reaction… with the mansion's core alarm system… risk… extremely high."
"Then what do we do?" Lucy looked at the dark red magic flowing on the door, feeling a pang of trepidation.
"Solution: simultaneous erosion… physical lock core… and… core magic power nodes." Christian's core calculations accelerated. "'Predator'… precise mode… activated."
The blue gelatinous substance flowed out, a portion transforming into countless liquid metal threads thinner than hair, silently drilling into every keyhole and spring gap of the heavy lock; another portion covered several of the most crucial rune nodes where magic power flowed and converged.
"Analysis… commencing."
"Erosion… executing simultaneously!"
A series of slight, teeth-grinding cracking sounds came from inside the lock.
Click.
A crisp, almost relieved click. That heavy, riveted black iron door silently… opened inward, creating a gap just wide enough for one person to pass through. A colder, damper air, carrying the scent of rust and faint decay, surged out from the darkness behind the door.
"Done." Christian retracted his gelatinous form, re-coalescing into his Slime shape, and floated beside Lucy, his core light steady, as if he had just performed a trivial task.
Lucy looked at the open dark gap, then at the blue figure floating beside her, took a deep breath, and tightened her grip on the whip at her waist.
"Let's go!"