If Linda could describe the place in three words, it'd be soot, soot and more soot. Every room she'd walked into was an utter mess covered in that awful black powder and she was starting to get sick of it. Literally sick, as it made her nose all sniffly.
Currently, Linda stood in one of those soot-filled rooms, looking at one of its walls. Thanks to a few beams of light leaking through the ceiling, she'd noticed the faint flourishes hiding beneath the accumulated filth.
These look exactly like the ones from that room I woke up in.
And the similarities didn't end there; The furniture, the curtains, the stone bricks, even the curved ceiling. Everything hinted at a time when this building looked just as splendid as that bedroom, possibly even more.
But for such a dreamy place to turn into this dump…What in the world happened? And… why…
"Why did I wake up here?" was perhaps the more troubling question, one which Linda didn't like to think about. That's precisely why, instead of dwelling on it, she focused her attention on that room.
She made her way towards a door in the back. As soon as she opened it, she was greeted by complete darkness. It only took her a few steps forward for her feet to bump into something.
"Ow!"
With her hand, she reached down, feeling a large smooth surface shaped in the form of a bowl: A bathtub.
From inside, she heard soft chirping sounds. A pair of small glowing eyes appeared, followed by numerous others. One of them moved into the faint light, revealing a small rodent. It squealed at Linda, showing its pair of large purple teeth.
"S-sorry…Didn't mean to wake you guys up…"
Linda whispered, gently closing the door. Carefully, she walked out to the corridor while not taking her eyes out of that door. Once she was out, she sighed and clenched her fists.
"Ughhh, I'm done! I'm officially done with this place! I need to get out of here now before I go crazy!"
She said, staring into that murky corridor. It hadn't been long since she'd gone down that path, only to discover a pile of debris blocking the rest of it. For the last ten or so minutes she had been searching for that floor's exit, with no success. She was getting increasingly anxious, and the fact that the whole place looked like it was haunted only made it worse.
An icy breeze blew against her back, making her entire body shiver.
Dang breeze! Wait a minute…a breeze! If there's air flowing through, then that means…!
She turned, feeling the wind blowing from the room right next to her. Hastily, she entered it, finding a half-open glass door among the large windows. When she opened it, the blinding sunlight overwhelmed her entire vision. Linda took a step out, her breath caught as her eyes slowly adjusted to that view.
She was standing on a high balcony, overlooking a vast sea of barren trees. The sight of that desolate landscape was disheartening…but something far on the horizon kept Linda's hope alive.
A city! I can see a city there!
Far away, she could see a couple of towers rising. The distance didn't seem too terrible from her position. If she got out, Linda could definitely reach the city by foot, although it would be a long walk.
"HELP! SOMEBODY HEEELP ME, I'M STUCK UP HERE!"
She screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice echoing in the distance. Her cries were met with silence.
At least it was worth a try…
There was still one option left for her. If she tied various clothes together, she could make an improvised rope to climb down through the balcony, although her entire body cringed at the thought of hanging from such a terrifying height.
Maybe I should go back and search to see if I missed anyth—
Linda started, hearing loud thuds come from inside, accompanied by a piercing cry.
What was that?
She rushed back in, listening to those thrashing sounds. They were coming from the room next-door, the one she had just visited earlier. She made her way over there, but stopped right at the entrance.
A deafening screech cut through the room as vases swung violently in the air, moving completely on their own. Rats were sent flying in all directions, while a couple of them somehow floated.
Screaming, Linda stumbled her way back into the broken window room, slamming the door close behind her.
A ghost! I knew this place was haunted!
The noise outside quieted down.Then, from the corridor, Linda heard the footsteps of someone approaching. Without anywhere else to go, she kneeled with her hands clutched together. The footsteps stopped, and a few moments later there was a knock on the door.
"I know you're in there! Come out, you ice weasel!"
"Please, please don't hurt me! I promise I'll get out of your precious home, Mister Evil Spirit!"
After a short pause, the voice spoke again.
"Huh? Evil spirit?"
The door opened. It was a young man carrying a lantern. He was wearing shorts and a shirt—both matching his black hair—with a yellow bandana covering his mouth. His clothing reminded her of a hip hop artist…except less stylish of course.
There was an awkward silence as both of them stared at each other.
"Oh, thank god! I'm so glad to finally see another per—"
"What the hell do you tink you are doin' there?"
The man spoke with a thick accent.
"...Tink? Oh, you mean this? Ah well, I was…praying."
She stood up, her entire face blushing.
"No, you wine! What are you doin' here in this place?! How did you sneak in here?!"
He said, getting closer to her. Now that she wasn't kneeling, the man seemed much shorter than before. In fact, he seemed around the same height as Linda.
"Sneak? I didn't sneak, I woke up in here! All this morning I've been trying to get down."
"Huh?! Woke up? Don't tell me you mean you've been bear here all this time?"
I've been…bear?
The man fell silent for a moment and put his hand to his forehead. He leaned back, and with his hands on his stomach, started laughing.
"That doll Vanka never sent a reply back, so I tought I was gonna get scammed! But there was no scam, turns out you're just a jam."
Linda looked at the man's eyes, squinting.
"Vanka…?"
"Oh, yeah, I meant your 'Lady Laforte'. Forgot how much you mullrats care about that shit. Now I see what those bastards meant when they said that pond was an unusual one. But to make a fellow noble lady wait in this cursed place, she really is desperate, huh?"
"Fellow noble…? Oh, right…!"
She looked down at her dress. Even though it had gotten dirty, it still gave her an unmistakable lavish appearance.
I forgot I was wearing this!
"Well, are you done praying? Don't assume I forgot you made me wait an entire day, y'know!"
He said, turning to Linda with an angry tone. She was at a loss for words.
Interesting…seems like this man knows the way out of here. But, he has mistaken me for somebody else. Should I play along or tell him who I really am?
"Y-you…are exactly correct! These clothes prove that I'm a noble woman, right? Just as you said, I was sent here to meet you; I wandered too much and accidentally ended up here. So that's why I—as the generous noble woman that I am—promise to give you a good reward if you help me get out of here, o-okay?"
She said fidgeting back and forth, ending her frantic speech with her index finger pointed right at him.
…Linda…that was painfully pathetic.
"Alright, alright, calm down! Tch, making me wait and then demanding my help…Come, the way out is over here."
He turned around and walked away.
"Wait, be careful, there's a ghost in that room!"
Linda hurried after him. However, instead of paying her any attention, the bandana man entered the dark bathroom with that rat-filled bathtub.
"Quiet, lady. There's no ghost in here, just a bunch of mullrats."
"But I swear it was right here!"
"Maybe that face of yours scared it away."
"Huh? Excuse me?"
With a frown, she chased after him. Thanks to his lantern she could now see the interior of that filthy marbled room. Across from her, the bandana man—crouching—was waiting for her beside a large opening at the base of the wall.
"Hurry, hurry, hurry! Let's finish this shit so I can get out of this noodle."
He crawled through the hole, disappearing into the shadows.
Unbelievable, this guy…Out of all people, it had to be this guy who came to rescue me.
And yet despite that, she still regretted misleading the man. Not because she found him annoying but more so out of…guilt.
Seems like some things never change.
Linda sighed, and proceeded to follow the man she had awkwardly lied to. The first of many, she feared.