Whether it was the middle-aged man’s sudden inquiry, the guard’s explanation, or his departure, all were controlled by Angel using the Nightmare Illusion from behind. They themselves wouldn’t notice anything odd. Even if they sensed something, they could rationalize it. But surrounding bystanders would find it peculiar.
But strange things are plenty, and besides, the fat guard’s mood swings unpredictably; perhaps he even enjoys being cursed at?
Thus, after the fat guard left, nearby prisoners whispered among themselves for a while, then continued to go about their business as if nothing had happened.
And Angel, overhearing from the fat guard that Lady Melo was on the fourth floor, naturally had no intention of staying on the second floor.
Although the fat guard said there was a Talented One sought by Lady Melo on the second floor, with so many cells there, he didn’t know who Lady Melo had found, hence couldn’t save anyone. It’s better to wait for Lady Melo to identify the person herself.
Not lingering, Angel increased his speed, even surpassing the "patrolling" fat guard.
The fat guard was completely unaware.
The corridors ahead had locked doors, but these posed no obstacle to Angel; he didn’t even break the locks, merely transformed into paper and fluttered through.
Finally, after passing through several doorways, Angel arrived at the last corridor of the second-floor prison.
At the end of the corridor, he could already see the staircase leading down.
Angel hurried forward, and halfway down, was suddenly struck by a strange inspiration.
He turned to look at the adjacent cell.
Inside the cell sat a thin girl, her black hair cascading over a slightly tattered long dress; her looks weren’t striking, but a naturally cold aura surrounded her.
The odd inspiration Angel felt was emanating from this indifferent girl.
The exact nature of this inspiration, Angel couldn’t quite determine at the moment.
Angel took a deep look at the girl and decided to temporarily disregard this inspiration, focusing instead on rescuing Lady Melo.
All the way down, the third-floor prison guard was an old woman with a sinister air; she wasn’t patrolling, just stayed in the guardroom, casting eerie glances down the corridor.
This guard’s strength was approximately that of a Second Level Apprentice, slightly higher than the fat guard upstairs.
However, she still couldn’t detect Angel.
Angel swiftly moved through the third floor, ignoring the prisoners and heading straight for his goal—the fourth floor!
Soon, he arrived at the fourth floor.
Upon entering the fourth floor, Angel immediately sensed a binding force, absent from the upper floors.
This binding force came from a Magical Energy Array carved into the ground.
It could somewhat constrain the Magical Core within, preventing it from reacting with trick models. It equated to Arcane Nullification, though weaker than true Arcane Nullification.
Moreover, it had no effect on Official Wizards, whose bodies contain a Magic Vortex, and thus couldn’t be restrained.
However, the presence of a Magical Energy Array on this floor indicates that even the Princess is wary of the prisoners here.
The guards on the fourth floor were different from the previous ones.
The guardroom was empty, with only Gargoyles positioned at each side of the entrance corridor.
Apparently, these two Gargoyles were the fourth-floor guards.
Unlike the Gargoyles on the first floor, these two at the entrance featured one whose inside glowed an orange-red hue, and another that’s entirely pitch-black.
One was a Flame Stone Gargoyle, the other a Shadow Gargoyle.
Among Gargoyles, these two types are quite renowned; one commands flames, while the other represents darkness.
Angel recalled that in Lassudral, he encountered a pet Shadow Gargoyle during a nocturnal visit.
However, the Shadow Gargoyle there was quite powerful, unlike the current one, whose strength was merely at the Third Level Apprentice standard.
The other Flame Stone Gargoyle was also around the Third Level Apprentice level, but in a real fight, even a peak Third Level Apprentice might not necessarily prevail.
However, Angel was not afraid of the Flame Stone Gargoyle; it couldn’t detect him.
Yet the Shadow Gargoyle, Angel remembered, was gifted with sensitivity to all living beings approaching its vicinity. Even if a creature concealed its aura, it could still be monitored.
And the corridor entrance wasn’t large, so one must pass by the Shadow Gargoyle to get inside.
Angel didn’t know if his Nightmare Illusion Shield would evade the Gargoyle’s detection, but to be safe, he summoned Earl Mi.
He transformed Earl Mi into a shadow to envelop himself.
In the darkness, the hardest thing to identify is a shadow, and Earl Mi mastered shadow manipulation.
Under Earl Mi’s shadow, Angel effortlessly entered the corridor. Both Gargoyles remained in statue form, evidently unaware of Angel’s presence.
Entering the corridor didn’t lead directly to the prison, but rather a long tunnel.
Seemingly ordinary, but underneath the stone slabs, the Magical Energy Array emitted a faint aura.
The tunnel contained a major mechanism requiring special access to proceed. Even the leader encountered before couldn’t pass.
However, for Angel, it posed no challenge; instead of damaging the array, he quickly located its energy-output pipeline within a tangle of hundreds of conduits and precisely identified the input core conduit.
Casually, he flicked a poker card, which gently floated and slipped into the center of the energy pipeline.
Silently, the tunnel’s mechanism halted.
Angel leisurely traversed the tunnel, finally reaching the fourth-floor prison. The last floor’s cells were conspicuously fewer.
Only over twenty cells, most of which were empty.
Due to the low prisoner count, Angel immediately spotted Lady Melo with a face full of worry.