Chapter 3.1
The mansion was like a candy house from a children’s book. Whether it was an illusion of grandeur or something more, it was nonetheless a clever device to send a poor human into the deepest pit of despair.
But it was getting late. Emma was beginning to think it was easier to die playing with the illusions in the mansion than to try and face the notorious monsters of the Perrigans in this heavy rain.
She frowned heavily at her own internal conflict. ‘There must be someone inside, right?’
While the exterior of the building was strange, she was sure there would be a housekeeper or caretaker inside, especially if this was a noble family’s mountain cabin.
‘There has to be. Otherwise, why would it be lit up like this in the middle of the night?’
She hesitated for a moment, glanced at the ground, and sighed. She wasn’t ready to face more strangers, but she didn’t have a choice. When faced with the choice between life and death, there was no other option but to seek help. There was no time to be polite or save face.
If she stayed out here a moment longer, she had no doubt she would collapse from exhaustion. Her stamina had run out long ago. And now, there was nowhere else to go aside from the mountain cabin. ‘I just hope there is someone with a kind heart in there, someone who won’t turn a blind eye to a person in need.’
She hurried forward, becoming restless with impatience.
Emma grabbed the knocker and gave two heavy pounds against the front door. She could hear the sound vibrating deep within the heavy door that was decorated with the most intricate decorations she had ever seen.
She shrunk back a little at the unexpectedly loud noise and blew onto her blistered hand.
She tried to calm herself after her headlong dash through the woods. A cool breeze had started blowing without her noticing. It chilled the sweat that had broken out over her body when she’d climbed the mountain. She shivered, suddenly feeling chilled to the bone.
Her headlong rush through the woods had eaten up most of her energy, and she had injured herself when she rolled down the hill. The cold, piercing rain caused her to shiver like a leaf in the wind.
She gritted her jaw to prevent her teeth from chattering too badly and waited. She even held her breath in hope, but it seemed that there was no one inside.
‘Maybe they’re sleeping?’ It was the middle of the night during a heavy rainstorm.
It was also a reasonable enough thought that the wind and rain blasting against the windows and walls could have drowned out her knocking.
She grabbed the knocker and tried again.
Her bottom lip trembled, and her nervous heart thumped loudly in her chest. The last thing she wanted to do was wake someone, but she had no choice. Her pursuers were gaining on her with each minute she stood here.
Just as it had been before, the house remained quiet and unresponsive.
‘This cannot be happening.’ Emma’s impatience soared at the thought of being caught after doing something as stupid as this.
She grabbed the knocker and knocked three times again. This time with more urgency. The knocker’s thumping sounded in time to the chilly vibrations coursing through her hand.
If she kept this up, she might end up revealing her location to the enemies.
‘I don’t have time for this! Answer me, please!’
As the knocking sound faded to nothing, both against the door and through her body, a little flicker of light appeared.
“Oh.” Emma raised her head in surprise to see a rectangular gap had appeared in the middle of the tightly closed door. It was a viewing hatch.
The light leaking from the narrow hole, no bigger than her finger, was like that of an angel descending from the heavens to save her.
Emma was so thrilled she almost burst into tears. “Oh, hello. H-hey…” she said in a strained voice.
The eyes looking at her from the hatch were as cold as ice. Because of the backlight, it was hard to tell what color the eyes were, and what the person was thinking. But Emma could make out enough to see they were indifferent and defensive. They held the air of someone who didn’t want to get involved in the affairs of the outside world.
“I mean you no harm. I came here after running through the forest,” Emma said earnestly, in a trembling voice, coughing to clear her throat. “Please help me. I desperately need help.”
The person inside didn’t say a word. Judging from the fact that Emma had to raise her chin to meet their eyes because they were so tall, this person was probably a man. The hatch was a considerable amount taller than she was as well, so the person had to be a man, unless there was a step on the other side of the door.
Anyway, it was rare to see a woman living alone in a remote mountain cabin, let alone a married couple.
‘I wonder if he is alone?’ As soon as she settled on the person being a man, she suddenly felt a pang of fear. But now wasn’t the time or place to worry about something like that.
He was nothing more than a cabin keeper of some noble family. And from this angle, he looked a lot less threatening than the monsters chasing her.
“Please. I…” Emma looked pitifully at the man. “I am not a crazy person. Th-that is the…” her words failed her, and voice trailed off.
It suddenly occurred to her that a thief or a swindler never identified themselves as a thief or a swindler.
Embarrassed by what she’d just said, she hunched her shoulders. She wanted to crawl into the nearest hole and never come out again.
“I’m sorry. I know this is rude since it’s so late… But I have no other choice but to ask for your help. I am really sorry.”