Even at this late hour, there seemed to be quite a few servants walking around the corridor.
Normally, everyone would be asleep by now.
It seemed like, in addition to the wolves of Hamilton, there were internal threats targeting us, making them all the more cautious.
At this rate, I would be trapped in my room with nowhere to go.
I think I just saw three people pass by.
There was no sound of footsteps now, so it seemed no one was currently walking around nearby.
I activated my Flocking Cloud Walk skill and stepped forward cautiously.
In fact, there were secret spaces in this mansion that even the servants didn’t know about.
These were places that my grandfather had secretly shown me when I was young.
“Such a mischievous Mei! How is it that you cause more trouble than your father, Beran?
Ha-ha….”
My grandfather, unlike my clever and intelligent cousin Cherrybell, always favored me.
Even when I accidentally broke one of his cherished decorations, he never scolded me, saying that as long as I was enjoying myself, that was enough.
Naturally, I became closer to him than my parents.
But beyond that, my grandfather knew even my worst traits, which I tried to hide from others.
“Why can’t I awaken my magic no matter how hard I try? Today, during class, I couldn’t do anything. Maybe people like me, who are useless, shouldn’t have been born in the first place. Sniff, sob…”
Whenever I hid away and cried like this, my grandfather would come to find me, as if by magic.
“There you are, my mischievous Mei. You don’t have to swallow your sadness alone. Sometimes, you need to learn how to show that you’re struggling.”
“But people might hate me more if I do. Right now, they even call me the problem child of the Slimela family!”
“Such nonsense… There’s no such thing as people who are born useless. You should be grateful for your existence because you’re a precious child.”
Whenever I cried, my grandfather would tell me stories from the past—about the times when he was a successful troubleshooter or about absurd incidents involving my father.
He would always cheer me up and make me feel better.
And perhaps it was because he couldn’t bear to see me holding back my tears, he showed me the hidden spaces in the mansion.
“These are secret spaces that I created when I was younger. In here, you can cry all you want without anyone hearing you.”
These secret spaces were connected by small doors and even had paths that led outside the mansion.
After my grandfather passed away, I hadn’t been back to those places.
I couldn’t bring myself to go, as his last words to me had been to stop crying alone in those spaces.
To think I would use these secret spaces my grandfather showed me this way.
I hid in the cracks of the walls whenever I sensed someone nearby.
Since it was already late at night, I didn’t pay much attention to the details, probably because I was too tired.
When their footsteps faded into the distance, I moved again.
This should be the place…
Soon enough, I arrived at the entrance to the secret space my grandfather had shown me.
Near the annex stairs, there was a stone wall that produced a hollow sound when tapped.
I found the spot, pressed on it, and the hidden door slid open.
I checked one last time to make sure no one was around and then slipped inside the secret space.
***
Inside the secret space, I could see the toys I had played with when I was little scattered around the corners.
Dust had piled up, showing how long they had been abandoned.
Everywhere I looked, memories of my grandfather and I came rushing back like scenes from a movie.
“Our beautiful May, one day, people will recognize you. They’ll see the infinite potential you have.”
“Well… who would want someone like me?”
“Of course, by then, there will be people who truly love you by your side. So, this old man has nothing to worry about.”
“I’m not sure. You always say such nice things.”
“I don’t say things that aren’t true. So always remember, you are a one-of-a-kind, lovely child.”
Just recalling those memories with my grandfather brought a wistful smile to my face.
I’ll be back soon, Grandpa.
After a moment, I turned and began my journey.
It didn’t take long before I reached the secret exit leading outside.
This exit was connected to the back of the mansion, so it was a good place to slip out unnoticed by the servants.
Just as I thought I had safely made it outside, I encountered an unexpected problem—someone wandering around the mansion grounds.
“Uh…?”
For a moment, time seemed to stop, and an eerie silence filled the air.
When I gave an awkward smile, a scream suddenly burst out.
“Everyone, come here!”
“What’s going on? Uh…? Isn’t that Mei-Hen from the Slimela family?”
“I think it’s her! Why is she suddenly out here? Did she bring servants to drag us out?”
They began to murmur, eyeing me suspiciously. But there was no one else around.
As the situation sank in, the people who had figured out what was going on began to approach me with angry faces, surrounding me.
“How are you going to take responsibility for this?”
“I have a baby who was just born. You know that only troubleshooters can go freely beyond the terrifying walls of Medderland, right? What terrible sin has this poor child committed that she must die?”
“At the end of the day, she must’ve done something wrong, and that’s why those cunning wolves have come. So… just close your eyes and die for us. Please.”
They begged me with words I could barely bear to hear, but all of them were filled with rage, and I could say nothing in response.
I had to remain silent like a sinner.
“We should just hand her over to the wolves! Who knows? If we take her ourselves and say she cooperated, maybe they’ll spare us!”
Someone spoke confidently, and one by one, others started to agree.
The atmosphere became increasingly bizarre.
The eyes of the people, filled with madness, began to suffocate me.
I was about to scream.
“There’s no need for that…! I was planning to go by myself anyway.”
But it seemed like my words didn’t reach them.
Someone grabbed my wrist tightly, and another person yanked at my clothes from behind, tightening around my neck.
“Ugh! Please stop. Can someone, anyone, let go of my hand…!”
At that moment, amidst all the chaos, there was one person who, despite the turmoil, maintained their composure and couldn’t hold back their anger any longer, shouting out.
“What is going on here?!”
It was the dean.
His usually neat clothes and perfectly styled hair were unusually disheveled today.
Even through his glasses, his eyes looked tired, and it seemed like the dean had had as long a day as I had.
“No matter how great the danger we face, do you really want to do such things in front of a child who has barely come of age?!”
The crowd fell silent in an instant.
The strong grip that had held me vanished.
As I finally caught my breath, I couldn’t stop coughing.
The energy of those trying to drag me away had completely dissipated, and now everyone was just looking around, unsure of what to do.
“Do you think you could hand over your own family to the wolves, if that was your child? What are you trying to do to this child who went out alone in the middle of the night to save all of us?!”
His cry almost sounded like a desperate scream.
Now, people were bowing their heads, their lips tightly pressed together.
“Shame on you, all of you!”
With those final words, the dean took my hand and led me through the crowd.
Thankfully, no one tried to block us or argue with us.
We walked in silence.
Our steps naturally led us toward the boundary of Medderland, where the wolves awaited.
We had been walking for quite a while, and the mansion, which had once been so large, was now out of sight.
The people who had followed us quietly had also gradually disappeared.
When the dean looked around and grabbed my arm, he spoke.
“You’d be better off running now, Mei-Hen.”
It was a completely unexpected statement.
Surprised, I opened my eyes wide and stared at him.
I had thought the dean would scold me or lecture me about something.
“…Why would you say something like that? Didn’t you hate me?”
“I do hate you. How could I like someone who constantly causes trouble like you?”
“Then why…?”
“No matter how much I dislike you as a student, there’s no teacher who would push a student to their death, knowing full well what awaits them.”
For a moment, tears almost welled up in my eyes.
No matter how much I had tried to convince myself, seeing all the people who were angry and blaming me made my body stiff with fear.
The emotions surging inside me made my excuses seem so weak, I couldn’t even speak them out loud.
The fear I had suppressed suddenly overwhelmed me, a storm of anxiety.
“Actually… I’m really scared. I still don’t understand why I have to be in this situation. All I ever wanted was to follow in my parents’ footsteps and become a troubleshooter for Medderland…”
“…I know. More than anyone, I know you’re not the type to have bad intentions.”
“I’m so frustrated by all of this… but in the end, it’s all because of me, so I have to take responsibility.”
The dean’s face contorted in a way that made me think he looked sad.
His eyes, looking at me, seemed to carry a sorrow I hadn’t expected.