My attention was still focused on the exit door as my eyes carefully traced the path through the garden. The layout was simple – a fountain stood directly in front of the mansion, surrounded by tidy flower beds. Trees, neatly arranged in a circle, bordered the lawn and a long path ran down the center of the garden. Low, full-branched flowering trees lined the path leading straight to the main gate.

It was easy to understand.

If there weren’t any guard dogs in the garden, I could make a run for it. I swallowed hard. On the other hand, there might be other variables. Since Theo used magic freely – something most Arkelians avoided – the main gate might have a fingerprint scanner or some other security device attached to the mansion’s doors.

I reminded myself not to act on impulse. Today was the first time the shackles had been removed, and I had just entered the living room on the first floor. I couldn’t afford to act rashly. One mistake could ruin everything. It was safest to wait and only move when I was sure of my escape plan.

This thought helped me to relax a little.

Then I noticed a telephone on the table next to the sofa and a wave of dizziness hit me. I quickly looked away, feeling as if I had committed a crime just by looking at it. My eyes landed on an abstract painting over the fireplace. I wasn’t much of an art expert, and this painting was no exception – I had no idea what it was.

To me, it looked like clusters of light swirling together in a meaningless dance.

Yet I couldn’t stop thinking about the phone I had just glimpsed. It hovered in my mind, impossible to ignore.

The phone line must be connected, right? At a glance, it looked perfectly fine, as if it would work without any issues.

But what if I picked up the phone to check for a dial tone and Noel caught me? I could make an excuse, but it wouldn’t be ideal. If I was going to check, I should’ve done it sooner.

The living room was full of temptations – devices that seemed to be beckoning me closer. If Noel had been watching me closely, with sharp, watchful eyes, I’d have felt more at ease, just happy to be out of the basement. But now that Noel had left the room, the endless possibilities tugged at me, both seductive and unsettling.

At the moment Noel was in the kitchen and the corner wall blocked any view of the living room. There might be cameras, but it was unlikely he was making tea and watching a CCTV screen at the same time.

This sense of ‘freedom’ made things difficult for me. I kept thinking, couldn’t I just pick up the phone for a second, just to see if there was a dial tone? The temptation nagged at me. But I stopped myself. Maybe this was another test – a way of seeing how I’d behave if I had a bit of freedom, left to my own devices.

As soon as I started thinking about it in this way, a strange calm came over me, as if the temptation had disappeared. I’d been too tense, too eager, ever since I’d started climbing those stairs. But I still had time. Trying to do too much too fast would only lead to mistakes. It had already taken me 20 days to get out of that room.

To make sure those days weren’t wasted, I had to be careful with every step, testing the ground before I moved forward.

“Do you like the painting?”

Noel asked as he returned with a tray. On the clear tray sat a neat, blue tea set.

I shifted my gaze back to the painting, which still left me with no particular feelings, and nodded.

“It’s pretty.”

The colors were indeed nice. The problem was why those colors were scattered around with no clear shape or purpose.

“It’s a painting by ‘Brian.’ He’s a well-known artist from Seyon.”

“Oh, I see. It’s from Seyon.”

“In art, there are no Seyon, Arkel, or Ham. There are only the artists themselves.”

“Is that so? But surely an artist can’t escape the influence of his homeland.”

“Brian was a free-spirited artist. This painting reflects his uninhibited style.

Too free-spirited. But the more I look at it, the more it grows on me. What can I say? It’s like looking at a vague world that doesn’t need to be fully defined. That doesn’t suit Seyon.

“This is a painting of the garden.”

Noel said, putting the teacup down on the table.

“The garden here? Did the artist visit this place?”

“He lived in this house.”

“Really?”

“After Brian died, Theo bought this place along with his works.”

A feeling of unease crept in. Something didn’t feel right.

“He must have liked the artist.”

I remarked, trying to keep the conversation light.

“It was Theo’s mother who admired Brian. They were good friends.”

This was new to me. I vaguely remember hearing that Theo’s mother liked art and music, but I’d never seen any particular work by an artist she liked.

“When did Brian visit Arkel?”

“…? Brian never visited Arkel. “

Noel explained quietly, his tone calm as if he didn’t expect his words to be shocking. But they were. A shiver ran down my spine.

“Didn’t you say Brian lived in this villa, Noel?”

“Oh, Yuel,” he said with a small smile. “This isn’t Arkel.”

I already knew what he was going to say next. I braced myself, keeping my expression neutral. I couldn’t afford to look too shocked, not when the truth was about to be revealed, something I hadn’t expected.

“We are in Seyon.”

I couldn’t believe it.

“How did I ever get to Seyon?”

“Theo often travels to Seyon on business. In these peaceful times, Seyon is still considered the greatest threat. He’s also fluent in the language.”

“Well, just because you speak ‘Ham’ fluently, Noel, doesn’t mean you own a mansion there.”

I said, trying to keep my voice steady. Noel laughed softly.

“Seyon… I thought we were in Arkel since you often bring things from there.”

“The medicines from Arkel are the best, so we’ve stocked up here, and the books and items were already part of the estate. But Seyon items… don’t you think they might have some strange spells or enchantments on them?”

Noel’s casual comment seemed odd, especially coming from someone who had worked alongside Cane, who had used Seyon devices to train and manipulate my body. And then there was the magic fingerprint lock on the wooden door.

“Seyon…”

I murmured again, as if saying it out loud would make it feel more real. I took a sip of the tea Noel had brought me. The fragrant plum tea went down easily, even though my stomach was in knots. I forced a calm smile and offered a simple compliment: “The tea is nice.”

“Are you surprised?”

Noel lifted his teacup as he asked, the delicate cup looking even smaller in his large hands. If Cane or Theo had been holding it, it would’ve looked completely out of place, but with Noel it somehow suited him.

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t surprised. I never thought I’d end up in Seyon.”

“Most people don’t.”

“Theo’s influence must be greater than I thought.”

“When you work on the front lines of national defense, you come across more extraordinary situations than you’d expect.”

My chances of escape had just become even slimmer. Although I knew some Seyonese, it was nowhere near enough. I could manage basic phrases like, “Hello, have you eaten? How are you? It’s delicious, sorry, thank you”. That was it. The situation felt bleak.

And apart from the language problem, I couldn’t immediately think of a way to escape from Seyon. I didn’t even know how to get out of the villa, and now I had to find a way to leave Seyon.

We sat in silence for a long time, sipping tea. The beautiful scenery, the luxurious living room, and the faint scent of roses from a hidden air freshener surrounded me. Everything seemed so peaceful, except for me – caught in the middle, anything but peaceful.

“You must be hungry. Let’s have lunch.”

As I finished my tea, Noel stood up and spoke, inviting me to follow him into the kitchen. The carpet that had lined the hallway gave way to marble as we entered the living room, similar to the marble floor in my basement room.

The villa was incredibly luxurious. I had heard that most artists lived in poverty, but that wasn’t the case with Brian.

I suddenly wondered how Theo’s mother, a noble Duchess of Arkel, had met Brian, a Seyonese artist. According to Noel, they had been close friends, but it seemed unlikely that she would have had any reason to visit Seyon.

The more I thought about Theo, the more I realized how little I knew about him. For all the time I had spent with him, the layers of mystery around him seemed endless. Everything I thought I knew had barely scratched the surface.

As we rounded the corner, a neatly arranged dining room came into view. Two elegant candelabras sat on the marble dining table and four expensive-looking chairs were neatly arranged around it.

The kitchen worktops and sink are also in the same rich, heavy marble, giving the room a cohesive and luxurious feel. In most aristocratic homes, the kitchen and dining room are usually separate, but here they have been brought together in a modern yet tasteful way.