If Mio’s suspicions were correct, Yuel was being held captive in this mansion.

The idea was too shocking for Mio to accept – that Yuel was being held captive in the mansion. But after what she had witnessed the day before, this disturbing theory seemed almost certain.

Yesterday afternoon, the two of them had been sitting together in the large living room, enjoying cookies and quince tea. They were chatting away when suddenly the phone rang. Mio tilted her head in surprise. Rarely did someone call the Goldrain mansion directly.

Of course, Mio expected Yuel to answer the phone. But instead, Yuel sat frozen on the sofa, staring at the ringing phone. Her expression seemed calm and neutral at first, but after spending so much time with her, Mio could see that Yuel was deeply frightened. The subtle tension in her posture betrayed the fear or anxiety she was trying to hide.

Yuel’s expression was changing rapidly as if a whirlwind of emotions were playing across her face – joy, contempt, and relief all at once. The complexity of it all made Mio unsure if what she was seeing was even real. The phone continued to ring, breaking the tension.

Finally, Mio approached and picked up the phone.

“Goldrain Estate, Mio speaking.”

“Is the Commander at home? He doesn’t answer the phone or check his emails.”

Mio was momentarily taken aback; this was the first time she had received such a business-like call. After a short pause, she looked towards the study.

“I’ll check for you.”

Mio hurried to the study and knocked on the door. It took quite a while for Theo to slowly emerge. As she waited, Mio glanced back at Yuel, who sat on the sofa like a picture-perfect statue, gracefully holding her teacup as she gazed out at the garden. Her delicate profile, bathed in the soft light, seemed fragile as if she might break at any moment.

Beneath Yuel’s calm demeanor, Mio sensed an undercurrent of unease, a subtle but unmistakable tremor. Yuel hadn’t answered the phone on purpose, that much was clear now. Thinking back, Mio realized that her master never touched the computer he used so often, and Yuel never left the garden without Theo’s express permission. Yuel was always aware of the cameras, always looking towards the back gate.

She had no one to contact, no one to meet. Yuel simply existed, beautifully and quietly, in the secluded villa. She read books, swam, learned to ride a bike, and took the occasional nap, but despite her quiet routine, Yuel was like a flower – delicate, carefully tended, yet tightly controlled. She didn’t live; she was ‘preserved’, like a rare, fragile flower, stored away in the mansion.

Mio snapped back to reality as Yuel, laughing brightly, splashed water at her playfully.

“Mio, did you fall asleep while swimming?”

Yuel asked her tone light and teasing.

‘What are you really doing here, my lady?’

Mio wondered. She liked Yuel – much more than her master, Theo. Yuel asked Mio many things, always curious, but she rarely shared much about herself. There was a silent distance, an unspoken wall between them.

Mio wanted to know more about Yuel, not just the surface smile that seemed to be painted on her face, but the deeper truth hidden beneath. She wanted to truly connect with the woman who seemed so beautiful yet fragile like a painting come to life.

“Miss Yuel… are you imprisoned here?”

Mio blurted out, her voice was soft but firm, the question hanging in the air between them.

It was an impulse that made Mio ask the question. The suspicions and questions she’d been pondering in silence finally burst out.

Yuel’s once bright smile slowly faded. A cold silence settled between them, and the water around Mio suddenly felt colder, as if the tension had seeped into it.

***

After meeting Mio, Yuel’s escape plan had begun to take shape, although it was still just that – a rough outline. The problem wasn’t the plan itself, but how to carry it out.

The outer wall near the back gate required someone inside the mansion to grant access. However, from the garden side, one could pull a lever to open the back gate on their own. I stood there, watching as Mio pulled the lever to open the gate, my feet rooted in place as if nailed to the ground. All it would take was a single step forward, and that gate would lead me to the outside world. Yet, I remained frozen, staring at the door that promised freedom.

The watchful eyes of the three men had grown lax. Even if I escaped through the back gate right now, they probably wouldn’t notice until evening. Theo had been unusually busy lately.

But there were three problems. First, I needed money to hire a carriage to get to the harbor. Second, there was the matter of leaving Mio behind – what would happen to her once I escaped? Finally, I needed to find a broker to help me stow away on a ship, which would require connections and more money.

If I could solve these three problems, I could break through the back gate and leave this big prison as early as tomorrow.

But my biggest worry was Mio. I could sell the jewelry in my room to scrape together enough money, but to leave Mio behind… what if Theo took out his anger on her when he realized I had fled? The thought weighed heavily on my mind.

And yet here was Mio, asking the very question I never expected her to ask.

“M-Miss Yuel, are you being held here against your will?”

I couldn’t hide my reaction. I should have deflected the question with a nonchalant laugh and dismissed it as nonsense. But something about the concern in Mio’s eyes, the way her lips were tightly pressed together and her determined expression made lying impossible.

“Is the master keeping you here?”

Mio asked again, her voice softer but still insistent. My expression must have given away more than I realized.

The truth was more complicated. Strictly speaking, I wasn’t exactly a prisoner anymore. It was more accurate to say that I was here by my own choice – or at least that’s how Theo would see it. But that choice came with its own set of invisible chains.

That’s why no physical chains were binding me, no locked doors. I was free to roam the mansion and its gardens as I pleased.

But there were lines I couldn’t cross. I couldn’t stray far from Theo’s side, and I couldn’t leave the villa without his permission. Our relationship wasn’t normal – there was something subtly but unmistakably wrong. After all, Theo had kidnapped me and brought me here.

During those long hours in the basement, I had pretended to accept my situation, pretended to embrace him. In return, I was given the ‘privilege’ of living on the first floor.

The question was, could I trust Mio? She had already provided me with valuable information, but exposing my raw, unfiltered thoughts to her felt like too great a risk. Revealing the full extent of my plans, my true feelings – what if that pushed her away, or worse, endangered us both?

I hesitated, wondering how much I could share without upsetting the balance of this fragile trust.

“It’s not like that.”

I replied, avoiding the truth. I wasn’t in the mood for swimming anymore, so I swam towards the terrace. Mio followed close behind, of course.

“If you’re being held here, I’ll help you. I’ll find a way, Miss Yuel.”

Mio said, her voice full of conviction. Her words were frightening, the kind of statement that could be dangerous for both of us. I turned to look at her. Did she understand what she was offering, the gravity of her words?

Her wide, innocent eyes, shining like those of a young fawn, stared back at me with such sincerity that I couldn’t help but let out a small, bitter laugh. Mio’s naivety, though impractical, was strangely comforting in this bleak situation.

“You can’t help me, Mio,” I said quietly. “But… thank you for offering.”

In truth, it was Mio who made me hesitate to run away. I didn’t want to hurt her. Over the past few days, she had become a good friend and a great teacher to me. She brought such peace and comfort that I found myself thinking, ‘Maybe I should just stay here.’ The thought crossed my mind that perhaps Theo had strategically placed Mio by my side – a paranoid theory, but one I couldn’t completely dismiss.

Theo was no longer someone I could trust.

Living in a constant state of suspicion and doubt towards someone you loved was far from a happy reality, that much was certain.

“I can help you, Miss Yuel.”

Mio said firmly as she stepped onto the terrace. Her words were firm and determined. What made her so brave? I knew Mio liked and cared for me, but I hadn’t imagined she would go so far as to act out of a sense of justice in such a serious matter.

Why was she so determined to help, even at the risk of her own life?

“If you’re being forcibly imprisoned in this villa, then you must escape and go to Arkel, right? That’s why you asked about the airport and the docks, isn’t it? But it’s too much for you to go alone.”

Mio said, her words unnervingly precise. I frowned, amazed at how well she had put it all together. She had understood more about my situation than I had given her credit for. She was right – it would be difficult for me to escape on my own. The thought had been in my head for days.

“How did you figure it all out, Mio?”

I finally asked, looking directly at her. By asking, I was practically admitting that I was actually being held here. There was no turning back now.