Chapter 26: An Escaped Prisoner?

“How exactly is Carola watching me, meow…”

Phyllis scratched her head, searching the room for anything that might be a monitoring device.

Several days had passed since the incident where Carola had caught her comforting herself.

During those days, Phyllis had been trained within an inch of her life by Carola in the training room.

Fortunately, her various abilities had improved significantly.

At the very least, she now knew how to be on guard and observe her surroundings.

“Under the table? Nothing.”

“Behind the curtains? Empty.”

Under the bed and on the ceiling? Not a thing.

Since the two Little Bats were gone, how on earth was Carola watching her?

Otherwise, how would she have discovered…

Phyllis’s face began to flush the moment she thought about it.

Getting caught doing something like that… it was absolute social death!

Luckily, Carola hadn’t used the incident against her.

Otherwise, it might have turned into one of those classic scenarios she had read about in her previous life.

‘Madam, you wouldn’t want —’

Phyllis’s thoughts began to drift again…

“Wait…”

Coming back to her senses and realizing what she was thinking, she couldn’t help but feel her face burn.

‘What is wrong with me?’

She decided to continue searching for the monitoring device.

“It must be magic, right?” she muttered.

Unable to find any physical devices, that was the only conclusion she could reach.

“I should take a look at what I’ve gained over the last few days.”

Phyllis opened the System interface to check her attributes.

**[Name: Phyllis]**

**[Race: Catkin]**

**[Attributes: Strength: 20, Defense: 15, Agility: 45, Intelligence: 13, Luck: 7, Charisma: 25]**

**[Status: Healthy]**

**[Talents: Cat’s Agility (Advanced), Night Vision (Intermediate), Keen Smell (Intermediate)]**

**[Skills: Claw Strike (Expert), Stealth (Proficient), Combat Skills (Proficient)]**

**[Special: Master-Servant Contract, Protection of the Cat God, Carola’s Gift]**

Her attributes had indeed grown quickly after Carola drank her blood three times over the past few days.

Her Agility, in particular, was approaching the 50 mark.

As for the price she paid…

Phyllis touched the mark on her neck, her face flushing slightly again.

Best not to think about it!

Phyllis closed the System interface and walked to the table, picking up the clothes the Puppet Servant had left there.

It was a light blue dress with white lace trimming the edges.

Phyllis changed, then rang the bell on the table to notify the Puppet Servant.

She glanced out the window.

The sun was about to set.

“I guess it’s time for lunch? A very late lunch!”

After ringing the bell, she took out a small mirror to check her appearance.

After tidying up her hair, which had become messy from sleeping, she opened the door and headed to the Dining Room.

‘Something is wrong!’

That was the first thought that entered Phyllis’s mind the moment she stepped into the Dining Room.

Her footsteps lightened as her body instinctively entered the defensive state Carola had drilled into her.

Her claws extended slightly from her fingertips, ready to respond to any sudden situation.

This was her own method of attack that Carola had taught her.

For a Catkin, claws were the most convenient weapons.

Phyllis’s nose twitched.

There was a strange scent in the quiet Dining Room!

It wasn’t the usual scent of the Castle, nor the fragrance of flowers from the garden.

It was… a faint metallic smell of rust mixed with an indescribable sense of decay.

Phyllis knew that smell.

She had followed Carola to that place before.

It was the smell of the basement, the true heart of the Castle.

The Scarlet Dungeon!

What was down there? Only prisoners of the Blood Tribe!

‘Did a prisoner escape?’

Phyllis considered the possibilities.

However, according to Carola, the cells there were very secure.

Usually, no prisoner could ever escape.

And yet, given the current situation, had a prisoner really broken out?

Phyllis walked further into the Dining Room to investigate.

*Thump.*

A sound rang out.

It was the sound of something heavy hitting the floor.

Phyllis looked toward the source: the kitchen area.

A door leading to the kitchen was slightly ajar.

She moved closer to investigate.

She felt a wave of relief that her Stealth skill had reached the Proficient level; otherwise, her movements surely would have alerted whatever was behind the door.

The metal latch on the door was twisted and deformed, as if it had been forcibly torn apart by immense strength.

Furthermore, Phyllis’s ears caught the faint sound of ragged breathing coming from inside.

*Gulp.*

Phyllis swallowed hard.

She was now certain that a prisoner had indeed escaped.

In this Castle, aside from the prisoners, she and Carola were the only living beings.

Everyone else was a Ghost Administrator, a Puppet Servant, or a pile of skeletons.

The living being she could hear breathing was likely an escaped prisoner from the dungeon.

‘What do I do? What do I do?’

Phyllis’s mind raced.

She had no intention of charging in blindly.

According to Carola, the prisoners held here were all entities who had caused bloodbaths within the Blood Tribe.

Every single one of them was terrifyingly powerful.

She was just a little Cat Girl who had only been training under Carola for a few days.

She had no business facing such a monster.

‘Find Carola! Yes, find Carola!’

Making a snap decision, Phyllis mentally mapped out the shortest route from the Dining Room to Carola’s bedroom.

*Creak —*

Just as Phyllis was about to leave, the door suddenly swung open.

Their eyes met.

The stranger had turbid red eyes, completely unlike Carola’s clear, translucent ones.

These eyes were filled with violence, pain, and a near-feral madness.

Phyllis had seen this vampire in the basement before! The male vampire from the Gangrel Clan!

“Blood! Fresh blood!” he roared.

Phyllis turned to run, but the other was faster.

Though he looked too weak to stand, he erupted with incredible speed.

Fortunately, Phyllis’s high Agility allowed her to narrowly dodge the Gangrel’s attack.

The dining table behind her was smashed to pieces, splinters flying everywhere.

Using the wreckage of the table as a springboard, Phyllis leapt into the air, grabbed the chain of the ceiling chandelier, swung around, and landed behind the vampire.

This was something Carola had emphasized during training: use the environment to create an advantage.

‘Run!’

Phyllis took the opportunity to bolt toward Carola’s room.

Driven by the threat to her life, she ran with everything she had, her speed constantly pushing past her previous limits.

However, the male vampire was hot on her heels.

*Bang!*

At a corner, the Gangrel vampire finally caught up to her.

Phyllis was struck by a massive force and sent flying, slamming heavily against the wall.

*Cough…*

Sharp pain flared in her chest.

She felt like at least one rib had snapped.

However, she knew her injury wasn’t the most important thing right now—the vampire was.

She scrambled to find the Gangrel’s silhouette.

‘No wonder he caught up to me!’

The male vampire from the Gangrel Clan had transformed into some kind of feline, far larger than Phyllis. He looked like a massive black leopard.

Phyllis was in grave danger!