‘Rumble-’
I worried that Rod might be waiting like yesterday, but fortunately, there was no one in the parlor.
He was probably guarding the door, thinking I was still in the room.
Still, just in case, I looked around and quickly pressed the fireplace button.
I had plenty of time until Igor returned, so I intended to find the grocery storage room now.
‘He said it was a small grocery storage room, right.’
According to the man, it was located a bit away from the main kitchen, unlike the frequently used main storage room.
Although I had heard a detailed explanation, I was limited in fully understanding it since I didn’t know the mansion’s structure.
As expected, there was no surer way than searching for it myself.
I had to move as quickly as possible, not knowing when Rod might notice and come after me.
“First, I need to check the inside of the storage room… Chirpy?”
But as I hurried toward the kitchen, Chirpy, who had been following me well, suddenly canceled its transparency and started flying toward the dark corridor in the opposite direction.
I was momentarily confused by the sudden situation and hesitated.
Since I couldn’t call out loudly, I had no choice but to follow after the spirit.
However, the deeper I went into the corridor, my steps gradually slowed.
Upon closer look, the surrounding environment was quite messy.
It seemed this area was completely unmanaged; the windows were cloudy, and dust and cobwebs were intertwined on the floor.
It was a jarring sight for a mansion where I hadn’t seen a single small stain until now.
“Is there something here?”
I tilted my head at Chirpy, who was wavering from side to side as if telling me to keep following.
The rooms with wide-open doors were simply empty.
Aside from being a little spooky, there was nothing particularly strange.
Chirp.
Just as I reached the end of the corridor, Chirpy landed on a picture frame.
It was an old painting of bright red pomegranates.
Perhaps due to the brushstrokes’ texture, it felt slightly grotesque rather than appetizing.
‘What is it about this?’
Just as I was narrowing my eyes and examining the painting closely, a thin line caught my eye next to the frame.
Thinking I might have seen it wrong, I traced it with my fingertip, and I definitely felt an unfamiliar foreign sensation.
As I awkwardly stepped back, a line that I hadn’t noticed before was faintly revealed in the shape of a door.
“No way, did you find a secret passage?”
Chirpy shook its head at my words and seeped into the minute gap.
It was only visible if you got close, so I was amazed at how it had managed to discover it.
Clunk.
A moment later, with a dull sound, the wall split open and began to open like a door.
Chirpy, who had scouted the inside beforehand, seemed to have operated something cleverly.
However, as soon as the gap opened slightly, my neatly set eyebrows furrowed instantly.
“Ugh, what is this smell?”
A stench that I couldn’t bear without covering my nose permeated the air.
A smell like a mixture of sewage and dead animals was flowing out from inside the door.
‘What on earth is inside?’
If it were just the smell of blood, it wouldn’t be this repulsive.
How could anyone maintain composure after smelling something like this?
I was seized by an uneasy feeling, hesitant to even step inside.
I was afraid of the scene that might unfold in that darkness.
But I couldn’t turn back now.
Eventually, I calmed my pounding heart and took one step forward at a time.
And the scene that soon came into my sight instantly made me hold my breath.
“What is this?”
In the middle of the not-too-large room, a leather chair with restraints was sitting all by itself.
The problem was the things surrounding it.
Unknown apparatuses were lined up, all bearing an ominous appearance.
Models of a man’s genitals, molded exactly, were arranged by size, and whips and all sorts of torture tools were hung on the wall like exhibition pieces.
The sheer number of them was countless, causing me to gasp in horror.
One more strange thing was that the room was uncomfortably clean.
“Insane… you psycho bastard.”
A single small lamp barely illuminated that hellish space.
Should I be happy that, thankfully, there was no one tied to the chair?
However, I had no way of knowing where this horrific smell was coming from.
In this place, which was so tidy it seemed like a case of germaphobia, there was no reason for a dead body stench to be present.
It was then, while looking around for the source of the foul odor.
“Huh?”
A pitch-black door in the corner caught my attention belatedly.
I only found it now because the room was too dark.
Chirpy, who had entered at some point, was just coming out of that room.
But Chirpy’s reaction was very strange.
It trembled as if terrified and burrowed into my arms in the blink of an eye.
I was seized by an inexplicable ominous feeling, but I had no intention of backing down after coming this far.
Creak.
After a brief moment of deliberation, I grabbed the doorknob and turned it.
And almost simultaneously, I had to cover my mouth.
It was because a sudden bout of nausea surged up.
A repulsive smell, as if the stench I’d smelled until now was nothing, hit me.
‘What is this…’
Breathing was painful, and I instinctively tried to step back, but my legs halted.
It was right after the inside of the room was revealed as the door was half-opened.
The state of the two rooms, separated by only a thin wall, was starkly contrasted.
While one side was excessively clean, this room was filled with dried bloodstains and putrefied air.
The first thing that caught my eye was an iron cage similar to the one I was trapped in on the ship when I was kidnapped.
However, it was much smaller and more cramped.
So much so that I dared not even consider entering it.
In that absurd space, a man was sitting hunched over.
Since other postures were impossible, he was left neglected, crumpled up, in an unconscious state.
The shocking part was that there were four more identical cages, not just one.
“Hey! Are you okay?”
I frantically rushed to the nearest man, grabbing his shoulder and shaking him.
However, the man, who seemed to have lost consciousness a long time ago, looked to be in a very serious condition.
Due to all the torture, his body was so tattered that bones were exposed in many places.
The others were in a similar state.
Perhaps fearing escape, all their ankles were broken, and most were badly swollen because they hadn’t been treated in time.
Nevertheless, they weren’t making even a small sound of breath.
Even excluding the three unconscious people, the two who had their eyes open were merely staring blankly into space.
As if waiting for death, their vacant pupils no longer looked like those of living people.
They seemed to be enduring the harsh torture, simply waiting for the pain to finally end.
“Damn it.”
These were definitely the people Mateo had mentioned.
They had been dragged away after wandering around the mansion, and they were being subjected to such horrific acts in this hellish place.
Their condition was so critical that I didn’t even feel relieved that they were still alive.
‘If I had known this, I wouldn’t have used the highest-grade potion.’
Looking down at my palm that had been torn yesterday, late regret washed over me.
Creak.
Just then, a spine-chilling sound came from behind me.
When I immediately turned my head, Rod was quietly standing at the door.
He didn’t spare a glance at the cages, only staring intently at me.
In that moment, a strange anger surged inside me, more than the worry of being caught.
“Did you know about this?”
Of course, Rod was also a victim, and I knew well that he couldn’t move according to his own will.
But apart from understanding, my heart simply couldn’t accept the reality.
‘Are these people the first?’
Of course not.
Resentment welled up at the fact that he had only watched while these horrific acts were being committed.
“I won’t ask you to open it, so just give me a potion, even.”
“Return to your room. Master will arrive in 30 minutes.”
“What are you talking about? You said he would come back in the evening!”
My voice was somewhat agitated at the news I hadn’t expected at all.
It was because I had planned to carry out my scheme, thinking I still had plenty of time until the evening.
But not only had I not even gotten close to the grocery storage room, the situation was turning sour.
“Return.”
Despite my strong reaction, Rod’s final retort was cold, a warning.
For some reason, his attitude was subtly different from when I last saw him.
He exuded a chilling aura, as if he had reverted back to the beginning, allowing no gap for manipulation.
‘Damn it.’
If I lingered here any longer, the only outcome would be being dragged away by Rod.
I didn’t want to waste any unnecessary energy before an important moment, so I ultimately had to walk out myself.
Above all, if I failed the plan, those people would soon die.
To rescue them before that, I had to let go of any lingering attachment and immediately think of a new plan.
“The bath attendance should be done as you did yesterday.”
A moment later, when I arrived in the room, a familiar gown was laid on the bed.
I was sure I had carelessly thrown it on the floor yesterday, but it had already been cleanly laundered.
“He’s taking a bath now?”
I was severely flustered. I had only been thinking of ways to escape the mansion until now, and I hadn’t even considered the bath attendance.
I only had about 20 minutes left.
The moment of crisis had arrived earlier than expected, and I was deeply worried about what would happen next.
But before that, I had to entrust Chirpy with a crucial mission.
“Chirpy, when that bastard arrives, follow quietly behind him. Got it?”
Chirp!
From now on, our fate rested solely on Chirpy.
