The Mansion Awaits Spring
Chapter 22
People grew accustomed to misfortune more easily than one might think.
The fog that had repeated this year vanished, and before long, it faded from the people’s minds. Only those who had lost family members remained, clutching their aching chests.
The Grand Duchy was growing colder by the day.
April was quite sensitive to the cold for someone born in the Grand Duchy, and she found herself spending more and more time huddled under her blankets.
If she could, she would stay there all day. Had this mansion not required so much of her attention, she might have spent most of the last seven years in bed.
While she was drifting through another nap, Hannah came in once more.
“I’m going to the Provincial Capital with Grandfather now, Young Lady.”
“Alright, have a safe trip.”
April gave a distracted reply.
Today, Hannah planned to use the money April had given her to pay off the debt she owed to the factory.
Since it was always better to settle debts as quickly as possible, April had pressed the money into Hannah’s hand and sent her off immediately.
Worried about what might happen to a child traveling alone, Bauman had also bundled up in his warm clothes to accompany her.
Once the two of them left the mansion, April slowly climbed out of bed. With them gone for the day, she intended to go down and check the basement.
When she stepped outside, she saw that Bauman had already finished building the chicken coop in that short span of time.
True to his reputation as an architect, the wooden coop was magnificent. The chickens seemed to like it too; though they pecked at things outside, they occasionally ducked into the coop to rest.
After admiring the coop, April headed toward the basement.
As she prepared to descend the stairs, Sebio sensed danger and bit down on April’s clothes, tugging her back.
“What are you doing?”
When April forced him to let go, Sebio began to bark loudly.
April spoke with a firm expression.
“Be quiet. That place isn’t dangerous for me. Do you think I wouldn’t know if I were in danger?”
As she said it, Pezin suddenly crossed her mind.
The first time she had pulled the rope, Pezin was the first to appear. He knew she had sent a false signal just to summon the police quickly, but he hadn’t pressed her on it.
She didn’t know why she was thinking of him now.
April shook her head to clear her thoughts, eventually tied the dog—who kept trying to follow her—to a pillar, and descended the stairs.
Just like last time, the light from the oil lamp grew significantly brighter as she reached the second basement level.
April was certain that the source of what the people of the Grand Duchy considered ‘the witch’s power’ resided in this basement.
Taking a deep breath, April moved further inside.
The police arrived just after April had gone down to the basement.
“The, the basement door is open!”
Paul pressed a hand to his forehead at the report from the officer who had arrived first to investigate.
“Then you should have followed her down!”
“B-but… you know how it is! Everyone who goes down there collapses….”
He wasn’t wrong.
Paul immediately went back to Pezin, who was in the carriage.
“What should we do? For a moment….”
Paul trailed off, but Pezin knew what he was implying.
“I’ll go in,” Pezin said, stepping out of the carriage. “I’m on the sturdier side, at least.”
“And what if you collapse too? If you go down there, pass out, and no one finds you, you’re a dead man.”
“The rope.”
“Look, that’s not exactly a guaranteed lifeline, Superintendent-nim,” Paul grumbled, but he handed the rope to Pezin anyway.
As Pezin fastened the rope to his belt loop, Paul warned him.
“Be careful. It really does seem like she’s a witch.”
Pezin scoffed at that.
“Nonsense.”
“Isn’t it? She’s the only one perfectly fine in a place where grown men are dropping like flies.”
Pezin looked back at Paul and replied.
“There’s no such thing as witches in this world. They’re just illusions created for convenience.”
April moved through the second basement level.
On the walls were sconces where candles made of whale oil had been fixed with wax.
The intensity of the oil lamp’s glow had grown to a frightening degree, so whenever April found a sconce, she transferred the flame to the candle.
She walked deeper and deeper until she discovered a door in the furthest reaches of the second basement.
Opening it revealed a staircase leading down to a third basement level.
“…Something like this existed?”
April muttered, unable to believe her eyes.
She had managed to enter the second floor since she had been there before, but going any lower felt daunting.
However, driven by the conviction that she had to see it now, she stepped onto the stairs.
Just then, she spun around in a fright at the sound of someone behind her. There was someone on the stairs coming down to the second level.
April hated every uniform the police wore, but for the first time, she felt relieved by that black uniform.
It was the first time she realized that those clothes weren’t just for intimidation, but could also be a garment meant to reassure someone.
She felt even more at ease when she heard Pezin’s voice next.
“Stop doing suspicious things, Lunos.”
“I’d appreciate it if you’d stop wandering into other people’s houses as you please, too.”
“Why blame me? Didn’t you hear that even after the seven years are up, there’s a two-year surveillance period before the house arrest truly ends?”
“There’s no way I’d remember something I heard seven years ago.”
Since April’s retort wasn’t wrong, Pezin wore an accepting expression.
“Well, fair enough. But even if you don’t remember, that’s the law. If you act suspiciously, the police have to mobilize immediately.”
She wanted to ask why entering her own basement was suspicious, but frankly, it looked suspicious to anyone. Not that she was without a comeback, though.
“Then the police should have come and notified me again the moment my house arrest ended.”
“That is entirely the fault of the Grand Duchy’s police. Go ahead and complain to them; I’ll help you,” Pezin replied, drawing a line between himself and the local police. As he continued to approach her, April spoke up.
“Stop right there. You saw people collapsing last time.”
“I’ll handle it. Citizens shouldn’t worry about the police.”
“I’m not worried. I just don’t want to have to clear a corpse out of my house.”
“I didn’t think you were worried, either.”
Because Pezin was wearing a mask, his sarcastic voice was audible but his expression was hidden, which felt strange.
Perhaps because of the mask, the sight of Pezin Dieus walking through the flickering candlelight made him look like a demonic figure. Even though she knew the figure was Pezin Dieus, she felt a sense of wariness.
“I told you to stop.”
“I won’t die here.”
Saying so, Pezin finally reached the door.
He clicked his tongue as he discovered the door leading to the third basement level.
“Just how deep did they dig this house?”
Having reached a third level after coming to the second, Pezin’s bewilderment was understandable, especially since even April, who had lived here her whole life, hadn’t known about it.
April spoke.
“You stay here. I’ll go down and check.”
“I’ll go.”
“If you die here, I’ll become a murderer.”
“Go on then, take your time. I’ll wait.”
Pezin changed his stance the moment he was persuaded. At his shift in attitude, April’s tension eased slightly and a smile reflexively touched her lips before she quickly stiffened them.
She took a deep breath and started down the stairs.
She had been too scared to go down when she was alone, but having someone watching over her gave her a measure of courage.
Unlike the twenty or so steps between the first and second floors, there were a vast number of stairs leading down to the third basement.
As she descended the spiral staircase, she felt as if the pitch-black darkness was pressing down on her body.
The space was far too dark to be lit by a single oil lamp. Nevertheless, April continued her descent without stopping, until she suddenly froze in place.
It was because she heard something that sounded like human voices. It sounded like the wind, like a crowd murmuring, or like someone muttering to themselves.
April covered her mouth to keep from screaming. Goosebumps broke out all over her body.
