Behind the door was a short, straight corridor with a staircase leading to the second floor at its end.
As the waitress ran into the corridor, Milady started to follow. Unexpectedly, a door in the corridor opened and a man with thinning hair poked his head out. Milady quickly ducked back behind the main door, peeking through the crack. With his back to her, the man shouted at the waitress, "Qun? What's going on out there? Why is it so noisy?"
"A fight broke out," the waitress said, hurrying up the stairs. She suddenly remembered something, turned, and asked the man in the room, "Asenbo, Mr. Hanrui hasn't left, has he?"
"Still in the accounting room," Asenbo replied, pulling his head back inside. Even after the waitress was long gone, he was still muttering, "They're auditing the books today. They've been turning our warehouse upside down all afternoon."
'Auditing the books?'
Milady could hardly believe her luck. 'Could the casino's ledgers contain a link to the High Tower Clan Leader?'
She suppressed her frantically pounding heart. After Asenbo shut his door, she slipped back into the corridor, slowly and silently closing the main door behind her.
Ever since encountering the dredger on the sea that farewell night, she'd felt as if her mother was guiding her from the great beyond. It was as if some invisible force was laying stones at her feet, one by one, paving a path to a place where she could avenge Yidan.
'If only the next part goes this smoothly…' All she needed was a single piece of evidence—something that could link the High Tower Clan Leader to this underground casino.
After sneaking up to the second floor, Milady found herself facing another straight corridor: no corners, no side paths, no place to hide.
'What if someone comes out?'
The thought had barely crossed her mind when the indistinct murmur of voices from a room at the end of the hall suddenly grew louder. A familiar, heavy voice cut through the noise, shouting orders, "Go get some battle mechanisms, and grab everyone nearby! Hurry!"
It was her cousin, Huai Tuo.
'If they see me in the casino, my entire plan will be ruined. But where can I possibly hide in this empty corridor?'
There was no time to hesitate. Milady spun around and rushed back toward the stairs. At that exact moment, the door at the far end of the hall was thrown open with a BANG, and a wave of furious voices surged into the corridor. "Dammit, what the hell is the North Sea Patrol Team even good for…"
She didn't dare hesitate, let alone look back. Before anyone could spot her, she hurried down into the first-floor corridor and stopped outside the warehouse door. The sounds of footsteps and shouts echoed, drawing closer to the top of the stairs. With nowhere else to go, she decisively gripped the doorknob, gave it a gentle turn, and pushed the door open just a crack.
'Since this is a warehouse, maybe I can slip inside and hide among the inventory without being found?' Milady thought, clinging to a sliver of hope.
But at that very moment, a voice rang out unexpectedly from just inside the door. "Who's there?"
Milady's heart sank.
Her cousin Huai Tuo and his men were striding down the stairs. She was about to be cornered in the middle of the corridor.
'Did I go through all this trouble to get in just to slink back out in defeat?' She couldn't accept that.
'Mother, please, pave one more stone for me.'
'Asenbo?'
As an image of her mother flashed through her mind, inspiration struck. Milady quickly pulled Yidan's long overcoat from her backpack, bunched it up to cover her head and face, and pushed her way into the warehouse. "I work out front," she said. "Qun sent me…"
The old man, who had stood up defensively, relaxed slightly when he saw her. "What happened to you? What is it?"
"There's a fight outside. I got hit by mistake," Milady said, quickly shutting the door behind her.
The instant the door clicked shut, a group of people strode hurriedly past outside. A cacophony of orders, footsteps, and curses echoed in the corridor. Her cousin Huai Tuo's voice was especially loud and clear among them.
"I came to see if you have any medicine," she said to Asenbo, her voice muffled by the bundled coat.
An echo came from the corridor as another door was slammed shut.
'Looks like my cousin and his men have gone outside…' Milady finally let out a silent sigh of relief.
"Oh, dear," Asenbo said, waving his hands dismissively. "I don't have anything like that here. You should hurry to a clinic."
She didn't need his urging; she was already prepared to leave the moment she heard the outer door shut. Most of her face was hidden by the overcoat, with only one eye visible, and her voice was muffled. Even if someone asked about her later, Asenbo would be unable to give an accurate description.