RPL 4

Chapter 4

How much time had passed?

“Ah.”

I abruptly sat up.

‘I should have asked for daily necessities too.’

The thought only came to me belatedly.

Just how obsessed with food had I been that all I could talk about was food?

“Hey! You! Daily necessities too! Daily necessities!”

I urgently shouted with the small amount of strength I had recovered while resting, but the men had already left.

“……”

Listening to only my own voice echoing back, I flopped down again.

‘I’m so tired I could die.’

Regina’s frail body had reached a state of exhaustion after using just that much strength.

‘For now, rest. I’ll think about the next thing later.’

With that thought, I closed my eyes and immediately fell asleep.

* * *

“……”

I grinned as I looked at the steaming soup, soft bread, and the savory-smelling sausage and bacon.

It was the first proper meal I had seen since coming here.

Perhaps for safety reasons, there were no forks or knives—only a spoon—but at least proper food had arrived. That was something.

“Hey? Excuse me?”

I tore my gaze away from the food and pressed my face into the gap of the food slot.

In that position, I called out to the men.

“Since you’re giving me food, how about some daily necessities too?”

“……”

“Like toilet paper, or new clothes, or a towel. Huh?”

“……”

“Let’s keep things nice, okay?”

“……”

But the men ignored my words, turned their backs, and disappeared at once.

It seemed they had decided not to even speak with me anymore.

‘Should I try threatening them more?’

I hesitated for a moment, then looked away from the departing feet and stood up.

‘If they start bringing only bread again because of that, I’ll be the only one who loses.’

Even though I had thought about making the men regret it or whatever, the truth was that there was almost nothing I could do from inside here.

“Fine. At least proper food came. That’s something.”

I drooled as I stared at the appetizing-smelling food.

But even this single improvement only added to the misery. Because after eating, I got sick.

“Ugh…… Why is everything like this……”

My empty stomach could not accept the rich, greasy meal.

As soon as my body recovered somewhat, I dragged the chair over and sat in front of the door. To put into action the method of getting out.

“What song should I sing?”

The thought of singing alone made me feel embarrassed, and I scratched my head.

In the original, Regina had sung in this place.

The children who had come to play without even knowing where this was heard that singing and came looking for Regina.

Those very children would end up getting Regina out of here.

Therefore, in order for me to get out as well, I had to wait for the children who might come at any time and sing to hold onto them.

“A song……”

I looked down at the shackled ankle.

How had Regina been able to sing in an environment like this?

A young child—moreover, a child who had been imprisoned right after witnessing her mother’s execution.

Even I, an adult to whom nothing had happened, felt my throat tighten.

“Singing is nothing. Easy.”

I quickly shook my head to shake off the sinking feeling and cleared my throat.

If I couldn’t even sing in order to get out of here, then what?

“Euh~ Aaaaaah~ Like the wind~~”

In the past I had been a devoted viewer of a certain program. It was a program where trot singers appeared and competed in song contests.

* * *

I kicked the chair with my foot. The chair clattered and rolled across the floor.

Even that wasn’t enough to vent my anger, so I kicked the door and rolled the chair a few more times.

It had been a month.

A whole month since I had been locked up here. And yet only a month.

“How long……”

I knelt and covered my face with both hands. My voice leaked faintly through my palms.

There was nothing here. Only me.

Always in a pitch-black place, doing nothing, unable to talk with anyone, just breathing.

Boredom, loneliness, darkness, and silence gnawed away at my heart.

On top of that, I had not even been given time to prepare or steel myself. I had been locked up suddenly, and without any reason.

That made me feel even more like I was going crazy.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay.”

After repeating the words that it was okay countless times, I slowly took my hands away from my face.

“You might as well just die.”

I could not die here the way that woman had said.

“As if I’d collapse like this.”

Consoling myself, I brought over the chair I had kicked, stood it against the door, and sat down. Then I began to sing again.

And so time continued to pass once more.

* * *

At some point I stopped counting the days.

I left most of the food I had obtained by throwing a fit. I no longer sang either.

I just lay sprawled on the cold, dirty floor, blinking my eyes.

‘Can I hold on any longer?’

I had sworn I would endure somehow, that I would not die.

But as it approached about three months of being locked up, my will began to wear away, and from then on I collapsed helplessly.

“……”

Through the faint light I could see a fly buzzing around. The fly landed on the tip of my toe.

Looking at it made me feel as if bugs were crawling all over my body. It itched.

“Why……”

Next to the toe where the fly had landed, someone’s small, white foot came into view.

When I lifted my head, Regina was looking down at me blankly.

It was the hallucination of young Regina that had started appearing at some point.

Why did that child appear in front of me? What did she want?

No. Maybe this was a signal that I was going crazy.

“……place…… so……”

That was when it happened. Someone’s voice could be heard from beyond the door.

I hurriedly crawled over and quickly pressed my ear to the door.

“……here…… leave it.”

“……I…… fun……”

It wasn’t a hallucination. It was a person.

“Over here!”

I pounded on the door and desperately raised my voice.

No. Don’t go.

Please get me out of here.

“Help me! Help me!”

I’m scared. I don’t want to be alone anymore.

I closed my mouth for a moment and stopped moving. Then, with my eyes wide open, I pressed my ear to the door again.

I could not help but check out of fear that they might have left. The conversation continued without interruption.

“……did you?”

“……ghost……”

They were still there. They had not left.

“There’s a person here! I’m locked up here! Help me! Don’t go!”

Light, pattering footsteps could be heard. The footsteps gradually drew closer.

“Who’s there? Is someone there?”

At the voice coming from right in front of the door, my body stiffened.

I had given up, yet could it be?

“I told you it’s a ghost.”

“No. They said a person is locked up.”

A child’s distinctive voice that had not yet gone through puberty. Children. Specifically, a girl and a boy.

There was no mistake. They were the children I had been waiting for—the ones who had gotten Regina out of this place.

Thump-thump.

My heart began to race.

“Ghosts always lie to trick people.”

“Really?”

“I’m not a ghost.”

Listening to the continuing conversation, I hurriedly opened my mouth. I could not miss this chance.

The girl spoke.

“See! It’s a person. Who are you? Who are you and why are you inside here?”

I knew what I should say, and how I could get out.

I had recalled the scene of Regina meeting them dozens, hundreds, thousands of times.

“I……”

Even though I knew, the words would not come out easily.

Regina had become close with these children. Over several months.

Because they had built that long friendship, these children who had only met her by chance had gotten Regina out of here.

‘Several months. How many more months from now……’

I might have to stay locked up for as long as I had already been here, or perhaps even longer.

And it was not a perfect method either. If I failed to become close with them, it would all be over.

“……”

I swallowed dryly. Perhaps because I had shouted after such a long time, my throat hurt as if it would tear.

“I’m a fairy.”

“What?”

“A bad magician locked me up here. Please help me.”

Young children often believe that the mysterious beings that appear in their imaginations or in books actually exist somewhere.

That girl was the same. How did I know?

In the original, that child had called Regina a “fairy.” She had believed Regina was a fairy.

If I told a child like that that I was a fairy, wouldn’t it catch her interest?

“A… fairy? Fairies are real? Are you a real fairy?”

Judging by the girl’s excited voice, my prediction had clearly hit the mark.

‘Thank goodness.’

I felt no guilt about lying, about deceiving someone.

Even if the targets were young children.

As long as I could get out of this place, I could do anything. Truly anything.

“It’s probably a lie. Where in the world are there fairies?”

“There might be! I’ve never seen a fairy! I want to see one!”

“But……”

“Open this. I want to see. Now! Right now!”

A sigh could be heard. It was probably the boy who let it out.

“Kisella. I’m not your servant. And looking at how she’s locked up, she might be a criminal. It could be dangerous, so how can we open it carelessly?”

For a moment a curse nearly slipped out.

I barely swallowed back the swear that was hanging precariously on the edge of my lips.

“Besides, this door doesn’t even have a handle. It doesn’t budge even if you push it.”

“Really? You’re right.”

The girl called Kisella muttered dejectedly.

“I wanted to see a fairy.”

“So it might be a lie……”

“The way to get here—your father told you, right?”

The moment I opened my mouth, a short silence fell.

“How did you know? Because you’re a fairy? You know because you’re a fairy? You’re a real fairy!”

At my words, Kisella became delighted and grew convinced of my fairy claim. I hurriedly continued speaking so as not to miss this opportunity.

“Ask that person—ask your father.”

“Are you really a fairy? Is a real fairy locked up?”

“Yes. And also ask him how to open this door.”

Having said that, I stroked the cold door with my fingertips.

Kisella’s father. In the original as well, he had told Kisella the method.

“Okay! Let’s go, Yunid!”

“Kisella, I told you I’m not your servant……”

“I’m going to see the fairy! I’m going to see the fairy!”

“Lower your voice a bit. It’s echoing everywhere.”

“How dare you give orders to the Imperial Princess!”

“Orders? And I’m a prince too.”

Their footsteps and voices grew distant again. Leaving me here.

“Haa……”

I clenched into a fist the hand that had been resting on the door.