Luckily, William still had the map he had taken from the room Jhen had used. It was a complete map of all the palace’s areas—but the most interesting part was that it also showed some secret passages.

These passages had been drawn over the map by hand. They weren’t part of the original blueprint.

William searched for the part of the castle where that mysterious woman had entered a hidden passage through the statue. He found the location, but there was no secret passage marked on the map.

“That’s a passage Jhen didn’t know about… or at least didn’t mark on the map.”

Still, he found other secret paths close to the one the woman had used. William tried to estimate where she might have gone—where that hidden path could have led.

It was difficult and imprecise. There was no way to know exactly where she ended up. That woman could have exited the passage into one of the hallways, stayed hidden inside it, or taken another secret route entirely.

There were too many unknowns, and William knew finding her wouldn’t be easy.

“She definitely wanted to get to that room too. Would it make sense to just wait for her here?”

She was with Kier’s group, and everyone in that group seemed interested in reaching the same destination. So, there was a chance she’d show up at this door eventually.

And that’s exactly what William decided to do—but with a twist. He sent his magical armors down the corridors to search for anything unusual.

Thanks to his connection with them, he could sense traces of mana. He couldn’t see through the armors, but even sensing some remnant of mana that might belong to that mysterious woman would be enough.

Two hours passed—and nothing. She never showed up at the door where William waited, and the armors found no traces either. It was as if she had vanished.

That gave William one clear answer—she was inside one of the secret passages, hiding.

“Maybe she’s resting?” he thought.

He was getting tired too. He had been inside that palace for hours. Even though it was hard to tell how much time had passed—without sunlight or a view of the outside—he could feel it was getting late. William was starting to feel drowsy and physically worn out.

But he couldn’t stop. He had to find that woman as soon as possible.

Jhen had betrayed him, and she had desperately wanted to reach that room.

Which meant—whatever was coming, it wouldn’t be good.

That thought only made William more anxious.

Knowing that waiting there wouldn’t lead to anything, William decided to move on and leave the area. He searched for a secret passage near the one the mysterious woman had used, hoping to somehow cross paths with her.

He also chose to keep the armors at a distance. That way, he could move more quietly. It was simply impossible to be discreet with those armors making the floor shake with every step.

Alone, he was at least certain he could move silently. The only downside was if he ran into some kind of creature.

Even though Jhen had warned him that there were monsters inside the palace, William had only found remnants so far—never a living one. Considering she had lied to him, well… maybe that part had been a lie too.

Either way, William sprinted down the palace corridors. His high agility allowed his footsteps to make barely any sound, even as he ran.

His speed was impressive too. Since he didn’t have to worry about the traps scattered throughout the castle—thanks to his detection skills—he moved swiftly and without hesitation.

In no time, he arrived at the secret passage marked on the map. Strangely enough, this secret passage worked the same way as the one the woman had used!

William had to perform a specific hand gesture in front of the statue, and then it opened, revealing the hidden path. The gestures, however, were different. If they had been the same, he could’ve accessed the same route she took.

What he saw was a narrow, dark, and extremely uncomfortable corridor. Even so, he went in. The path continued straight for quite a while, just like it was marked on the map.

Eventually, though, he came across a turn to the right. That direction matched exactly where the other secret passage—the one the mysterious woman used—would likely be heading.

“That could mean all these secret passages are connected,” William thought.

It was the most logical assumption. But instead of turning right, he decided to keep going straight. Taking that side path would only increase the chances of getting lost, and he wanted to see where the tunnel ended.

He kept moving forward until he reached a door. When he opened it, he found a hidden room—like a secret bedroom tucked away behind the walls of the palace.

And lying on the bed… was the woman he’d seen before.

She looked utterly shocked to see him. In a flash, she reached for her magic staff.

“Wait,” William said quickly. “I’m just here to talk. I need your help. Things went wrong…”

“Where’s Kier? Did you kill him?”

“No, I didn’t kill him. Wanted to, but… didn’t.”

William quickly realized he was starting to lose control of the conversation.

“I was betrayed! The person who came with me entered the lineage room and took them inside, leaving me outside. It takes two people to open that door—so I can’t get in!”

“What? What woman brought you here?” the woman asked.

“Her name is Jhen.”

The moment the woman heard that name, her expression changed completely. Shock, surprise—it was all there. William wasn’t stupid. He noticed.

“You know her, don’t you? Who is she? She said she used to work here in this castle.”

“Worked in this castle?” the woman started laughing. “You really have no idea who she is, do you? She’s the king’s bastard daughter! No one knows the truth, but I do.”

“What?”

That changed everything. Jhen was actually the daughter of the king with another woman—not the current queen. That meant she was part of the royal bloodline too, in a way.

But no one knew about that. If people did, she never would’ve been allowed into the army. The current noble family would’ve hunted her down the moment they learned.

So how did this mysterious woman standing in front of William know the truth? How did she know Jhen’s real identity?

“I know because I’m one of the princesses who escaped before my family was attacked. They’re all trapped inside the lineage room!”

“What? No, that’s impossible,” William said. “How am I supposed to believe you? That sounds insane.”

Without proof, it was hard to believe the things she was saying. Anyone in William’s shoes would’ve thought the same.

“I’m telling you the truth. How do you think I know this palace so well? Look, I can help you get into the bloodline room. We need to stop Jhen.”

William decided to go along with it.”What does she want in there? To increase her own powers?”

“Yes—and to kill the royal family. They’re in a weakened state, so she might actually succeed. We must stop her, please!”

The girl looked desperate. She wasn’t acting aggressive or scared anymore. She stood up from the bed, ready to leave.

William decided to trust her. Not like he had much of a choice. If he wanted to follow Jhen into the bloodline room, he needed her. She was the only person in the palace who could help him get through that door.

So, without any other options, they left.

On the way there, the girl asked him something.

“Can you tell me how you were able to control the magical armors? They’re supposed to only obey members of the royal family.”

Since they were already sharing secrets, William decided to do the same.

“I have a royal bloodline. Jhen tested me for it—that’s why we became friends. Well… at least until she betrayed me.”

“Wait, what?”

“There’s no way you have a royal bloodline. You’re not even from the Demon Island, right?” the woman said.

“Yes, that’s correct. I’m from far, far away. But I do have a royal bloodline. I don’t know how, but I do. There’s no denying it. You’re just as lost as I am.”

The origin of William’s bloodline was still a mystery to him as well.

After hearing that, the girl looked at him differently. Her expression softened, like she was more at ease with him now—maybe even friendly.

Anyway, they moved through the palace as fast as they could. She didn’t need to disarm the traps anymore. Both she and William carried royal blood.

“I only had to disarm the traps because of Kier and the others,” she explained.

They quickly arrived at the massive door that led to the bloodline room. Each of them placed a hand on the surface—and the door opened, just like before.

William was finally going inside that place.

He just hoped he wasn’t too late.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep