After Work, I Brought Home a Devilish Beauty - Chapter 42

The laboratory door wasn’t locked.

With only a slight push, Lucifer opened it.

That alone made both demons wary.

Every room they had searched so far had either been locked or protected by elaborate mechanisms.

Yet the final room…

The most suspicious one…

Had opened far too easily.

The two exchanged a glance.

Neither of them believed it was a coincidence.

Without another word, they stepped inside.

The laboratory was in complete disarray.

Large experimental machines filled the cramped room, leaving barely enough space to walk.

Broken syringes littered the floor.

Glass bottles containing unknown liquids were scattered everywhere.

The stale air carried an unpleasant chemical odor.

It was hard to imagine anyone willingly spending time in a place like this.

Then…

Chiba noticed someone sitting among the equipment.

“…”

Her eyes widened.

“…Yuichi?”

Lucifer took a closer look before nodding.

“Yes, my Lord.”

“It’s definitely that foolish human.”

The familiar, slightly messy hair left no room for doubt.

Yuichi was tightly bound to a chair with thick ropes, his entire body tied up like a crab.

His clothes were wrinkled, and he looked utterly miserable.

Normally…

Chiba would have laughed at his ridiculous appearance.

But not today.

The dark room was cold and suffocating.

Even spiders seemed unwilling to build webs in such a place.

The thought that Yuichi had been imprisoned here…

Filled her with quiet anger.

She slowly walked toward him to untie the ropes.

Only then did she notice the strip of white cloth tightly gagging his mouth.

Yuichi’s face had already turned pale.

Even so, he desperately struggled, trying to warn them.

Without hesitation, Chiba removed the gag.

The moment his mouth was free, Yuichi shouted,

“It’s too late!”

“Run!”

Chiba blinked.

“…What?”

Before anyone could react—

Bang!

The laboratory door slammed shut.

The entire room fell into darkness once again.

Yuichi immediately rushed toward the door.

“Hey!”

“Jebecarred!”

“What are you trying to do?”

“Open this door!”

“Or I’ll call the police!”

He pounded on the heavy door as loudly as he could.

Unfortunately…

No one answered.

In reality, Yuichi didn’t even have his phone with him.

Calling the police was impossible.

After pounding on the door for several minutes…

Silence was the only response.

His shoulders slowly slumped.

With a helpless sigh, he slid down against the wall and sat on the floor.

“…We’re trapped.”

Lucifer, who had remained silent until now, looked toward him.

“…You said…”

“…Jebecarred?”

Yuichi nodded weakly.

“…Yeah.”

“He kidnapped me.”

Chiba frowned.

“…Why?”

“I thought you two got along.”

Yuichi laughed bitterly.

“So did I.”

“But apparently…”

“I was just bait.”

“He wanted to lure both of you here.”

“I have no idea what he’s actually planning.”

The irony wasn’t lost on anyone.

A Hero…

Someone praised as humanity’s guardian…

Had kidnapped an innocent human.

Lucifer narrowed his eyes.

Something didn’t add up.

He had fought Jebecarred countless times back in Anstertandin.

For nearly six months, the two had clashed on the battlefield.

Jebecarred wasn’t the kind of person who relied on schemes like this.

Which meant…

There was only one explanation.

Someone else…

Was pulling the strings.

Lucifer walked toward the laboratory door.

Placing both hands against it…

He pushed.

Nothing happened.

He frowned.

This time, he used even more strength.

Still…

The door didn’t budge.

“…”

Without hesitation, he poured magical power into his arms.

Ordinarily…

The metal door should have shattered instantly.

Instead…

It remained completely motionless.

“My Lord…”

“I can’t open it.”

Chiba looked surprised.

“…Not even with magic?”

Lucifer slowly shook his head.

Then…

A distant memory surfaced.

Long ago, during one of his battles against the Church…

The Church’s mages had used a forbidden technique.

A technique capable of completely suppressing magical power.

Looking at the unmoving door…

The situation felt almost identical.

After a moment of silence, Lucifer spoke.

“…This room has been sealed.”

“A curse is preventing magic from functioning.”

“…A curse?”

Chiba’s expression immediately changed.

“…You mean…”

“…The Imprisonment Technique?”

Lucifer nodded.

“…Yes.”

Chiba remembered reading about it in an ancient grimoire.

The Imprisonment Technique was an extremely rare forbidden art.

Once activated…

It could completely suppress magical abilities within a designated area.

Its power was terrifying.

However…

The price was equally severe.

Every time the technique was used…

The caster’s mental age would permanently regress.

Very few people were willing to pay such a cost.

Which was precisely why…

Seeing the technique appear here again…

Filled Chiba with a deep sense of unease.

This…

Was far worse than she had imagined.