Zosia kept walking down the hallways. She noticed the sa rune she had seen beneath the carpet in the dining room and the color of the rune was the sa as the one used as a glue for the fake wallpaper.
"Blood!" She perceived the faint tallic odour that ca with blood which could only an that the blood had been preserved well and so things had also been added.
Zosia couldn't help but wonder about the technique behind it. Gently rubbing her hand against it, the stain looked different from blood, yet, it still couldn't hide the sll of blood.
Opening her panel, she clicked on the Map function.
"Huh?!" To her dismay what she saw on the map was entirely different from what she was expecting.
She thought it would be just another hallway in the house but no, it was more like a semi enclosed world with only one opening.
It reminded her of the Prison space. The one Nora had made and she strengthened it. She rembered how Nora told her that it had helped in making her more familiar with her powers and even allowed her to easily accept what was going on around her.
Zosia decided to continue walking since she couldn't find the exit. As a one way world, it could only an that there is one key and it can only open one door for both coming and going.
But, why does the world look like their hallway. The map didn't dictate that the world was small, even though, it could only reveal 100 ters with her at the centre, so why did they make it look like their hallway? A question she didn't have an answer to.
Thinking about the various possibilities, "Maybe they don't actually have the Key and can only move around a certain section. And since they could be allowed in, it ans there is soone behind them."
The more Zosia thought about it, the more she felt how complicated things were. Her eyes kept looking around, taking into notice the little difference, but the headache that ca with taking in too much information didn't seem worth it. Luckily, her soul is strong and helped her in processing the information she received.
She suddenly paused. Since she could wrap her spiritual consciousness around her but not use it on others or as her sixth sense, she wondered if she could wrap it around her hand and use it to touch the rune being drawn with the preserved blood.
As daring as always, she decided to carry out her thoughts, but not without hesitating. If she ended up having another defect, it really wouldn't be good, especially if it happens to be sothing she couldn't work with.
Nevertheless, she still placed her hand on the Rune, coating her hand with her spiritual consciousness. The mont she inputted her spiritual consciousness into, it travelled far, but due to not being strong enough, it was suddenly cut. Within the period, the spiritual consciousness was in there, she had received so information.
The Rune being drawn, was as expected. It is an exchange rune. You give sothing to get sothing in return but unlike the one she had seen in books or in the knowledge packet given to her by Lucien, it looked more complex, archaic and even broken.
"Does it an, they hadn't used it in years?" She thought Inwardly.
She rembered the old woman, who was asked to be referred to as Sister Marionette, ntioning that the neighbors had gone to the capital, but what if, she was lying? What if, everyone had been killed by them.
Groan!
Zosia let out a muffled groan, when her mind was suddenly assaulted with mories. They include the mories of all who had been dealt with by the rune to form a complex array.
Opening her eyes, she realized that she had only noticed the rune and not the array. Taking a step back, she realized that this wasn't sothing she could fend or fight on her own.
The mories had only flashed and the key things were missing. Like the figurines, they all looked like the people she had seen in her mory.
She also realized that people of different worlds end up venturing into this place and so far, she hadn't seen any from a Sci-Fi world. It explains how such an old and ancient house could have so modern equipnts.
By modern, she referenced to things of her own era in her own main world. Turning around, she decided to go back through the way she ca from.
The mont she turned back, she was t with the eyes of the blind girl. She still didn't know the na of blind girl.
Zosia was not surprised to see the blind girl here, but the fact that she must have been staring at her for a while, did make her feel uncomfortable.
"I saw a vase of a famous collection and while touching it, it brought here. Can you please lead back. I don't think this is a place I should intrude upon.
Inwardly, Zosia couldn't help but ask, "Did she see while I was sending my spiritual consciousness? I hope she didn't."
The blind girl didn't say anything only staring at Zosia. Her eyes were fixated on Zosia eyes. Despite the white color that made her eyes were appear lifeless, there was an intensity in her gaze that made Zosia shiver. To the extent, Zosia questioned if she was really blind.
The girl's silence felt more unsettling than words ever could. Zosia's heart raced as she wondered what the girl could see—or perhaps sense—beyond her physical sight. The way she stared, as though looking through her and into her very soul, made Zosia feel exposed.
"Hey! Hi!" Zosia repeated, sounding very calm. One thing she had learnt, always appear silly or calm to let down the guards of others.
"Can you show the way back?" Zosia asked again.
The blind girl finally blinked, breaking the unnerving eye contact. She turned her head slightly, as if listening to sothing only she could hear. The silence stretched on, thick with unspoken tension. Then, without a word, the girl reached out her hand, not toward Zosia, but toward the wall beside them. Her fingers brushed against the wallpaper, tracing a pattern that Zosia hadn't noticed before.
Zosia stepped closer, peering at the wall. The girl's fingers moved with purpose, revealing another rune hidden beneath a thin layer of paint. This one was smaller, but the lines were sharper, more defined, as if it had been recently drawn.
"You're not supposed to be here," the girl finally spoke, her voice soft but firm. It wasn't the first ti Zosia had heard her speak, but her tone then and now was so different. The tone alone sent a chill down her spine. There was sothing ancient in that voice, sothing that didn't belong in the body of a young girl.
"Do I have to act weak to escape this?" She thought Inwardly.
Zosia swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. "I didn't an to intrude. I just—"
"You should leave before the others find you," the girl interrupted, her hand still resting on the wall. "They don't like visitors. Especially not those who can see."
Zosia frowned. "See what?" She couldn't help but ask.
The girl smiled, instead of answering Zosia's question, she turned and showed Zosia his back as they walked down the hallway.
It didn't take up to a minute and she found herself back in the hallway. "My na is Jasmine." She uttered and disappeared, leaving Zosia with lots of words but not knowing how to put it.
Zosia stood there, trying to process what had just happened. The blind girl—Jasmine—had led her back without answering any of her questions. Zosia felt a mixture of relief and unease.
She felt that she had entered a more elaborate trap. She decided to first drop the bag in the room and maybe rest her head while going through the mories.
Not far from her, Jasmine stood with an expressionless face as she watched Zosia leave, her lips curling up a little.
"The fish has taken the bait." She muttered, her eyes glinting. She has finally found whose eyes to collect and soul to use as an exchange dium.
After so many years of searching and not recieving any visitors, it seed like the Lord of Strings, finally answered her prayers.
But first, she had to make her lose her guard before she would act.
She didn't have much ti, since it didn't seem like they were planning to stay for that long.
***********
Lucien who was calmly eating his al, suddenly paused. It wasn't really noticeable but Tanya, whose eyes had been glued on him, noticed the unnoticeable pause between each of his al intake.
"What could she had t again?" Lucien thought Inwardly.
The way Zosia kept either doing sothing wrong or eting the wrong things, reminds him of those Sons and daughters of heaven whose luck and destiny could easily be snatched away, well under the right conditions but the main thing is that they are trouble magnets.
Wiping his mouth the the handkerchief provided, he gently stood up. "Thank you Sister Marionette." He said his thank you and left.
Tanya was about to follow imdiately but was held back down by Xen who stopped her.
"The Boss wants to be alone and not with you following him around and not helping." Xen scolded. His voice lowered, almost to a whisper but Tanya heard it.
Tanya snorted and forcefully, removed her hand from Xen's grasp. She felt that Xen and Zosia must have known each other, if not Xen would not always be worried about her, seven to the extent of helping her.
She didn't know if he actually likes Zosia. But, she was sure that they must have sothing going on between them.
Tanya stood up, followed by the rest. To them, Lucian leaving might be a sign for them to stop eating.
Xen watched them leave and sighed. Indeed, the food wasn't poisoned, but it was too healthy. It reminds him of the tea yesterday.
He still hasn't been able to identify the active ingredients and how they would have a counter—action.
Xen stood up with a smile and thanked Sister Marionette, who smiled in return. He noticed that just like yesterday, Sister Marionette perfu was a little flowery, reminding him of the perfu used by young girls to display their innocence and naivety.
Wait... Perfu? Innocence? Naivety?
=====================
Thank you all for your support. I am most surprised by the comnts of HirsuiteGremilin27— You have given the most chapter comnts, I've ever received and I hope you keep loving the book.
Also thank you to those who had given advices and I promise to take them, so I would be revising the novel from chapter one for any mistakes I have made.
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Thank you all and yup, I have revised this chapter and I hope it doesn't have any grammatical error that I might have skipped.
I hope you keep enjoying my novel and thank you all.
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