Darkness, thick as ink, draped over the long and shadowy corridor, with only a few faint threads of light falling at Su Ling’s feet, illuminating her field of vision.
Relationship? Investigation? Tii… what exactly is she doing? And what’s her relationship with that maid?* Su Ling had already begun to sense that Tii was not as simple as she appeared.
Beneath the guise of an ordinary maid, there seemed to be another side to her that no one knew. Those shadows hidden behind her gentleness and smiles were as unfathomable as the night itself. **Tap, tap, tap.
Tii’s footsteps rang out especially clear in the silence, like the beat of a drum in the dark, striking Su Ling’s taut nerves one after another. Su Ling curled up in the shadows of a pile of junk, surrounded by messy planks and broken chairs.
Her throat felt as if it was being gripped tightly by an invisible hand. She didn’t dare raise her head, afraid even the slightest movement would give away her hiding place, forcing herself to keep her gaze locked on the tiny patch at her feet.
The footsteps drew closer and closer, until that familiar presence nearly drowned her. An indescribable terror surged up within Su Ling, the kind of despair and helplessness felt by prey locked in the eyes of a leopard.
She finally couldn’t help herself and jerked her head up. In that instant, time seemed to freeze. Their gazes collided in the air, Su Ling’s pupils dilating suddenly, reflecting Tii’s figure within them. In the dim corridor, those emerald eyes flickered with a strange light, like a wild wolf in the deep forest, staring straight at Su Ling without wavering.
So—she’s been found after all? Tii’s figure also stiffened slightly at the sudden eye contact. In that second, a complex emotion flashed through her eyes—surprise, confusion, or… was it a hint of barely detectable anger? Su Ling had no time to ponder.
Her mind was already in chaos, her blood seeming to freeze in that moment, even her breathing became painfully difficult.
“Tii, why aren’t you saying anything? The cooperation you mentioned just now, what exactly is it?”
Marentia’s voice shattered the suffocating silence. Seeing the odd look on Tii’s face, she stepped forward curiously, body leaning slightly as she reached out to grab Tii. In a split second, Tii spun around, emerald eyes flashing sharply as she seized Marentia’s outstretched hand.
“Hey, what are you doing!” Marentia was stunned by the sudden move, her face full of confusion as a wave of pain shot through her wrist.
“Come with me.” But Tii offered no explanation, simply gripping Marentia’s hand tightly and dragging her toward the room. Marentia’s body was pulled along by that force, stumbling as she had no choice but to follow Tii’s pace.
“Hey! Wait, let go of me, you can’t just stop talking halfway through…”
She tried to break free, but Tii’s grip was too strong for her to escape. Marentia’s brows furrowed tightly, her displeasure plain to see. “What’s with you just now? Why did you look at that pile of junk? Is there someone else out there?”
“Miss Tii, didn’t you say you wanted to talk about cooperation? Let’s go inside and discuss it in detail.”
“Hey, at least tell me…” Tii did not slow down, almost half-pushing, half-dragging Marentia forward.
Forced by her strength, Marentia had to stumble along, pulled by Tii through the corridor, far away from the pile of junk where Su Ling was hiding. Su Ling held her breath until the BANG of the door closing sounded, and the sliver of light from the crack was shut away on the other side.
Only then did she dare to carefully let out a sigh of relief. Her heart was still pounding wildly in her chest, as if she’d just escaped a brush with death.
Slowly, she crawled out from the pile of junk, her body trembling slightly from being tense for so long. The surroundings fell silent again, broken only by her own breathing and the occasional howl of the night wind in the distance. Su Ling looked up at the tightly closed door, her feelings a tangled mess.
Marentia is Princess Nori’s personal maid. If Tii is secretly negotiating with her… could it be that Tii is on the same side? Has she stayed by Sista’s side all this time because of Princess Nori?
Tii’s identity, her secrets, and that complicated relationship with Marentia—all of it was like a fog swirling in her heart.
But she knew now was not the time to drown in confusion. She had to leave this place as soon as possible. Su Ling stood up as quietly as she could, trying not to make a sound, and began to feel her way along the other end of the corridor.
The sweltering heat of midsummer had faded away, and the air under the night sky seemed to carry a bit more chill than usual. Sneaking back to her own door, sure enough, it was still locked. She’d have to go to the tool room for lockpicking tools, but that would mean borrowing the key from Karsanna the next day.
There’s no way I can go back to Tii now, and as for the other maids, I don’t dare bother them either.
“Looks like… I have to sleep outside tonight.” She let out a sigh. The living conditions for the lower servants were already harsh, and now she didn’t even have a place to sleep tonight. Truly unlucky.
Fortunately, Moria Anderson had recently improved the servants’ living conditions, placing a long bench in the storage room by the kitchen. The space wasn’t very roomy, but for the petite Su Ling, it was just barely enough to lie down.
“No big deal! It’s just one night outside. I’m not a child anymore, this is nothing.” Su Ling encouraged herself, feeling her way through the darkness into the empty kitchen.
She searched the storage room for quite a while, finally dragging out the heavy bench from a pile of pots and pans with great effort. The dust on it hadn’t been wiped away, so Su Ling just used her apron to give it a quick rub.
“Whew…” She was truly exhausted today. Her mind could barely function anymore. Though the bench was terribly uncomfortable, fatigue overcame all discomfort. Su Ling laid her hands by her head, and before she knew it, drowsiness crept over her.
Maybe it was because the night was so chilly, but half-awake and half-asleep, Su Ling felt cold all over, tossing and turning constantly.
Vaguely, she saw a girl’s face—a girl with fiery red hair and gentle emerald eyes, with two shallow dimples appearing on her cheeks when she smiled.
“Tii…” she murmured the girl’s name softly.
The girl stepped out of the darkness, quietly standing by her side, bending down to gently drape a blanket over her. The warmth of the blanket slowly calmed her heart, and she drifted into deeper and deeper sleep.
“Sorry.” A small voice whispered softly in her ear, so light, so faint.
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