Chapter 22

Just like when he first arrived at this manor and suddenly it rained when he tried to leave the manor gates… And now the vague dreams from before also came back to mind. Probably things that the body’s owner would experience, unpleasant prophetic dreams.

For a moment his body swayed and he snapped back to attention, feeling the weight on his back.

‘I need to get it together.’

He had almost fallen. Wiping his chest, Ian straightened his mind. He adjusted Ash on his back. If he were alone, he would have been more terrified, but now he had a child to protect. That’s right, strange things happening wasn’t that strange.

‘The very fact that I’ve entered a game world is already strange.’

Trying to shake off the random thoughts floating in his head, Ian moved his heavy steps again.

He walked in the darkness for a long time like that. Though he couldn’t tell how much time had passed, his whole body was damp with sweat. At this rate, he wondered if he could properly walk to the village once he got outside the manor.

Feeling like something was watching him, he looked around, but the things visible in the darkness only remained silent. The ornate chandelier hanging from the ceiling and extending down to the second floor glowed faintly, reflecting the light coming through the windows, oblivious to Ian’s feelings.

‘There’s that secret passage in the study.’

At the sudden thought, life returned to Ian’s tired face. Other passages would be too narrow for both him and Ash on his back to get through together. But he remembered that the space in the study wasn’t too narrow, and through that passage he could go to other rooms, and through branching passages he could also get outside.

‘Why am I only thinking of that place now?’

Carefully going down to the second floor on trembling legs, he headed for the study. He silently opened the heavy door and entered. The study was cold due to the extinguished fireplace. He carefully headed for the large bookshelf beside the desk.

Though it was dark, the moonlight coming through the window helped. Standing carefully in the right place and feeling around with his hands, he soon felt the texture of cold metal on his fingers. Grasping the large raven-shaped bookend and pushing it once to the right and twice inward, part of the bookshelf soon rose upward.

A space that an adult would have to bend over to enter revealed itself, black as a gaping maw. Though momentarily frightened, Ian began crawling in, completely bending his body. Since he had prepared beforehand with rope to fix Ash securely to his back when starting out, there was no worry of him falling to the floor.

Small stones and sand were rough and painful under his palms and knees. His own panting breath filled his ears.

Throughout the time passing other passages that could lead to different rooms and escaping this place, thoughts circled of whether he might find himself back in the study without any reward for his wandering, or whether he might keep wandering this dusty-smelling passage. Crawling through the passage, worry from anxiety troubled Ian more than the discomfort of his palms and knees.

After crawling like that for a while with eyes accustomed to the darkness, he could see faint light at the end of the passage.

‘Just a little more to go.’

Working hard to move his arms and legs to get out, he could now see a wooden ladder he would have to climb up. Though his body hadn’t even escaped the manor yet, it creaked as if at its limit.

He felt like just collapsing and falling down. His trembling arms actually gave way. The body temperature he felt from his back made Ian move. Sitting down briefly to catch his breath that had risen to his chin, he slowly began climbing the ladder.

‘Almost there.’

Feeling around for the door in the ceiling, he could feel it pushing upward without difficulty. Cold but fresh air rushed down.

And someone grabbed the hand he was feeling around outside with.

Five fingers that were definitely human—that cold hand felt like it was gripping his heart.

“Where are you trying to go at this late hour?”

Though he tried to pull away the caught hand, since his strength was already drained he couldn’t free his hand, and fearing he might fall to the ground if he made a wrong move, Ian was eventually pulled out of the hole by that strong hand. The worker who had pulled him up returned to the side of those surrounding them.

Sitting down on the ground and looking around, he saw familiar faces. Though he couldn’t immediately confirm faces since they were backlit by moonlight, the voice of the person who had spoken was familiar.

That faithful, low voice—it was Clayton.

And several of those standing around him were familiar manor servants. Faces that had become familiar through months of living together—cleaning floors, serving meals, mending clothes—were wearing unfamiliar expressions. Their faces, frozen hard from the cold, were emotionless rather than angry.

Among them, Mrs. Gauner, who had the most similar face to usual, was looking down at him as he sat on the ground with both hands held.

“I, uh, that is…”

He could only pant, his parched tongue not moving properly.

He felt wronged that he had exhausted all his energy wandering around without even being able to leave the manor. How had he ended up in such a weak body? Ian looked up at Clayton with bewildered eyes.

“…We exist for our master’s sake, yet you tried to leave this manor with the young master without any consultation at all. How disappointing.”

Ian’s arms began trembling. It was his first experience of such fear. What had been accumulating bit by bit since he encountered a force he couldn’t control and wandered the manor now added to his sense of helplessness as he faced these people.

With a rustling sound, a heavy hand descended on his already heavy shoulder. Clayton’s face appeared before his eyes.

“If you truly wish to leave, one of the two must remain here. Which will you choose?”

Clayton spoke with his usual smile.

Dr. Sutton touched the smooth forehead of Ash, who had finally been able to get up from bed after being unable to rise for a while. The hand that briefly touched was dry and wrinkled. Something like the medicinal smell the doctor always carried brushed past his nose. The physician nodded and withdrew his hand.

“You’re all better now. Still, you should bundle up well for the time being.”

At those words, Ash sighed. He could finally be freed from that bitter medicine and bed rest.

After Dr. Sutton slowly packed his medical tools in the bag he’d brought and left the room, Mrs. Gauner entered with the same stiff face as usual, as if she had been waiting.

“I just met the doctor briefly, and he said you’re completely recovered, young master.”

As Mrs. Gauner poured water nearby and handed him a cup, Ash took the cup and nodded.

“Yes. Is brother in the study? I’d like to see him.”

Though young in age, unlike Ian, his ingrained attitude and manner of speaking were those of someone who commanded others. Since falling ill, he had sometimes felt Ian looking in on him, but it was just a feeling—he hadn’t directly met his face. It seemed like his touch had lingered on his forehead and cheeks…

Mrs. Gauner’s indifferent gaze rested on the child’s innocent face.

“The master said he would send young master Ash to boarding school once you recovered. Gabe has prepared the carriage, so please pack your things now.”

Mrs. Gauner’s tone was no different than usual, as she hadn’t been particularly warm in character until now. But perhaps due to the content, it sounded more heartless. The child’s eyes met Mrs. Gauner’s. It was difficult to read anything special from her usual face.

“…That’s impossible.”

Ash, who had been staring blankly at that face, got up. When he tried to go out as if to check on Ian directly, servants came in blocking the door. Seeing this and feeling threatened, the child stepped back.

“It’s the master’s order. Everyone, help the young master pack and change clothes.”

Looking at the men and women standing like a wall, Ash was at a loss for words. A young child would have difficulty breaking through those adults. The child moved swiftly to get under the bed, but was soon caught by adult hands and dragged out.

The child’s screams and shouts echoed throughout the manor, but no one came running.

Forcibly dressed in thick winter traveling clothes, Ash was dragged out and shouted—something he usually rarely did.

“You promised! You said the boarding school would be my choice. Please, brother! Let go! Let me at least see brother’s face. Brother! You promised me!”

He was caught while crying out until his voice was hoarse, his face a mess of tears.

Gabe, who had been looking at the child with pitying eyes, quickly turned his head at the servants’ glances. When the child was forcibly thrown into the carriage, the sound of the door being locked could be heard from outside.

Click—

He pressed against the window side and looked outside. He could see servants lined up as if to see him off.

And soon the carriage began to depart. With eyes full of tears, Ash looked at the manor. That heartless-looking manor was captured just as it was in his eyes.

‘Why on earth is this happening?’

The carriage ran like that for a long time.

He had never been this far outside in his life. Ash looked at the gradually changing outside scenery with confused eyes. Tears had dried on his cheeks before he knew it. Taking advantage of that chaos, wrapped in a blanket that one of the servants had thrown in for him, he looked out the window and then closed his eyes.

How much time had passed since then?

He woke up groggily to a careful touch shaking his body.

Outside looked dim, seeming close to dawn. The locked door had somehow opened, and large Gabe who had entered the carriage was carefully holding him.

When he set him down on the ground, the thick blanket from inside was draped over him again.

Unknown adults stood before him holding lanterns. Due to the bluish dawn and the lanterns they held, they gave the feeling of not being people of this world. Ash blankly wiped his face with his hand. The sleepy-faced child looked around.

‘Where is this…?’

It was an unfamiliar place, different from the bleak scenery of the manor where he had lived his whole life.

The roadside was a wide field. Long trees were sparsely planted on both sides of the road. And those wrapped in blankets by the roadside were examining him. Their touch wasn’t cold.

Gabe, who had unloaded all the luggage tied to the carriage, took off the hat he was wearing and stood before those standing beside Ash.

“Thank you for the trouble of coming this far. Is this child indeed young Ash of the Walton family?”

Someone lightly gripped Ash’s shoulder.

Somehow Ash felt like tears might flow. These people stood behind him as if they were now his guardians.

Gabe nodded and met Ash’s eyes.

Eyes so gentle they seemed dull looked toward him. They were full of regret and sorrow. As if about to say something to the child, his mouth opened and closed, then he soon closed his mouth and bowed his head to the boarding school teachers standing behind Ash.

Dawn was already breaking. Someone took Ash’s cold hand. It was warm. The child remembered the person who used to hold his hand like this.

The carriage slowly moved away, leaving Ash in the strange land.