Upon taking the ladder to the upper floor, we found ourselves inside a closet with three exits:

one leading to the main bedroom, another to a different bedroom, and the last one was the ladder we just climbed.

"So which room should we check first?" I asked Rose, who had just climbed up.

"Let's go to the main bedroom fir—"

*Scratch*

Before she could finish her sentence, a blood trail appeared, leading towards the other bedroom.

"Never mind, then."

We ventured into the unknown bedroom, which was decorated with now-decayed pink wallpaper.

The color pink seemed to be the "life" of this bedroom everything was pink: the bed, curtains, tiling, along with some toys and decorations.

"Seems like a room for a little girl," I said.

"This could be the lady's room, considering she was still a child when the family first visited here."

"But wasn't she grown up when she decided to leave the village? Why not redecorate the room?"

"Hmm? Why redecorate? What's wrong with the room?"

"What do you mean? It's a little girl's room with toys and all the decor."

"Is it really the time to talk about decor? There could be another bedroom she used when she was older."

*Clank*

It seemed the maid had gotten so irritated by our meaningless conversation that she hit something hard enough to shake the room.

"Okay, okay, I'll stop criticizing the room's decor."

"Like I said before, stop making fun of it."

"It's okay. I think she is not hostile towards us; otherwise, we would be dead by now."

"You can't know that. She might just kill us as soon as she doesn't need us."

"Does she need us in the first place? She seems to be handling herself just fine."

"Now that you mention it, she could've just found her eyes and thrown them into the Water of Regeneration along with her body by herself."

"Then why did she ask us to do it is the question."

Rose put her right hand to her chin and started to think.

After a few brief seconds, she suddenly spoke.

"Look, behind you!" she exclaimed, pointing towards my back.

I turned my head towards where she was pointing, which was a drawer with a bloody palm print on it.

"It must be what the maid just hit to make the room shake. I'm surprised it's still in one piece after that hit."

"She must want us to look in that drawer."

We looked at each other in worry.

After all, we didn't know what was in that drawer.

After some silence, I handed the iron stick I was holding to Rose and spoke.

"I'll open the drawer. If something comes out, you hit it with that stick, got it?"

"Yeah, okay. Ready when you are," she said, nodding.

I carefully put my hand on the suspicious drawer's handle and opened it.

*Swang*

Before we could even comprehend what was inside the drawer, Rose wildly swung the iron stick into it. U

pon taking a closer look, I noticed that what she had hit was a book, possibly a diary.

"You can't hurt knowledge, dear Rose, but your lack of knowledge seems to have hurt you dearly."

"Shut up or I'll hurt you next," she said, putting the iron stick close to my face.

"Yeah, okay, just put down the stick."

"Just read that book already."

"Fine."

I picked up the book and turned to the first page.

"Well, what does it say?" asked Rose, curious.

"It says, 'You hurt me, so I am coming to hurt you,' signed by 'The Ghost of the Book.'"

"Let's burn the damn book."

"Relax, I'm just joking."

"Let's burn you alive."

"Let's not do that. I'll just read the book, so calm down."

I read the book, or rather the diary, out loud:

"After a long trip, we arrived at our new home in the village of Unut. The mansion is a lot smaller than the one in the castle."

"I wonder how big the mansion in the castle is if she calls this one small," said Rose, interrupting me.

"No idea. Don't interrupt me."

"Sorry, keep going."

I coughed and continued reading,

"The servants immediately started carrying our baggage into the mansion. I asked Mother if I could go out to play, but she said I couldn't because I might get a sickness from the peasants."

"What a sick mind. She disgusts me already," said Rose, interrupting me again.

"Don't let anybody hear you say that."

"It's the truth."

I coughed once more and continued to read aloud,

"I wasn't allowed outside the mansion's garden, and today it's raining, so I can't even go out to the garden for a stroll. I am stuck inside, forced to study by my tutors."

"Some kids would die to trade places with her," said Rose, interrupting me yet again.

Can we trade you with someone who doesn't interrupt me?

"You seem to be irritated towards the lady. Any reason why?"

"My mom sometimes told me stories about her that she heard from older folks nothing good about her."

"Such as?"

"They kept their distance from the rest of the village because they were disgusted by them. They used violence towards the servants, and some even went missing."

"That's..."

"I heard other nobles treat their subjects better, helping them, giving them food and even education."

"Well, not like I can do anything about it now. Let's just keep reading this."

Hopefully without interruption.

"Today, a maid broke some plates while she was bringing me breakfast.

Mother decided that I should be the one to punish her, and she forced me to slap the maid.

I apologized to her later, but I still feel bad. But I have to listen to Mother."

Suddenly, the room started to shake, and an unknown woman's voice echoed through the mansion.

"Yet, listening to her mother's words and orders, the little lady grew violent. She started to act more rudely towards the common folk and servants."

"What the?" I shouted.

After the voice faded, my vision went white, a bright light blinded me.

But it lasted only for a brief moment, and the light was gone after a few seconds.

The first thing I saw was Rose shielding her eyes with her arms.

Then I realized that I was no longer holding the diary.

As I comprehended what had just happened, I noticed that the room now appeared as if it were new.

All the decaying decor had been restored and was now shining.

The plush toys looked as if they were new, as did all the furniture.

"What happened?" asked Rose, awed by the transformed room.

"The room looks like it was just decorated."

"Is this how it was supposed to look while it was still being used?"

"How would I know?"

A woman's voice whispered into my right ear,

"Keep reading."

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

Then an eerie wind bypassed me, followed by a clank noise.

I turned towards the drawer, which was slightly shaking.

"Seems like Miss Maid wants us to keep reading the diary."

"Then keep reading. Where did you put it?"

"I don't have it anymore; it was gone from my hands when we were blinded."

"What? Maybe you dropped it?"

*CLUNK*

A strong clunk was heard in the room, and the drawer shook violently as if hit with more force this time.

I gathered my courage and opened the drawer once more.

The diary that was in my hand just a moment ago was now back inside.

"How did it get there?"

"Take a guess."

"The ghost of the maid put it there?"

"Most likely."

"Wonder why she took it away from you in the first place if she was going to give it back?"

"She wanted to make an interesting show, why else?"

*SMASH*

A loud noise echoed through the room. Upon looking towards the source of the noise, we saw that the wooden drawer had been smashed with such intense force that it broke completely. Miss Maid was getting anxious; we should read it before she loses her patience.

"I'm reading then," I said, worried.

"Yeah, go for it," Rose answered, her voice shaking.

*Cough*

"I am B O R E D. I can't go out, and I strolled every part of the garden that is possible to walk. Why can't I just go out?"

It seemed like she was getting really frustrated about being trapped inside this mansion, just like us right now.

"That's it! I am getting outside tomorrow, and nobody will stop me!"

Oh, it looks like she was getting rebellious from a young age.

But can we blame her?

I turned to the next page.

"I am never going outside ever again."

"What?" Rose and I looked at each other in confusion.

Just then, we heard the woman's voice once more.

"That day she came home crying, all her clothes covered in dirt. She managed to run away from the mansion without being noticed, but—"

She took a second to laugh and continued,

"Apparently, everyone she tried to speak to ignored her. Everyone in the village knew who she was and, scared they might offend a noble, decided not to talk to her at all."

That's just sad.

"Kids apologized and moved away when she tried to approach them to ask to play together.

Trying to chase them, she stumbled and fell into mud.

Some adults who saw what happened turned their eyes away to avoid making eye contact."

That must have created trauma for sure.

"After that day, the way she saw common folk changed. She started acting more furious and mad. When she was a young adult, her punishments were so severe that a slap was considered a reward."

Once again, everything went white, and I lost the sensation of holding the book.

Upon regaining my vision, I saw Rose shielding her eyes from the light.

Then I saw the rest of the room. It was different the walls were painted gray, with no more toys or flashy decor.

"Now it has more of an adult soul to it."

"Does the word 'adult' mean depressing to you?"

"Does it mean something else to you?"

Once again, an eerie wind swept past me, urging me to keep reading.

The destroyed drawer had been restored and looked brand new.

I opened the drawer and picked up the dia—

"What the!?!?!?"

Inside the drawer were a whip and a knife covered in blood, alongside the diary.

"What's wrong?" asked Rose.

She came over to take a look, sparing me from having to answer that question.

"Let's not pry too much into that," she said, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"I agree."

"Keep reading then."

"As you wish."

*Cough*

"Are you thirsty?"

"No, why?"

"You keep coughing."

"I'm just clearing my throat. Don't worry."

*PAT* *PAT*

Miss Impatient struck the drawer twice to urge us on.

"Oh, pipe down. You won’t die even if we take a few seconds," Rose snapped.

"Look at the person who said not to anger the danger."

"She’s so impatient; I wonder how she stays dead."

"Okay, now you’re insulting her."

"Shut up and just read."

"Okay, calm down."

*Cough*

"*Sigh*"

Ignoring her sigh, I started to read:

"Days are boring; the servants are boring, and so are the maids. The only fun person to be around is my grandfather, who is bedridden with sickness.

Father has called countless doctors, shamans, and even people who claimed to have healing abilities, but it has all been a waste of time."

I turned the page.

"Father invited a doctor visiting the village to the mansion, who apparently achieved great feats in organ transplants. He sounds interesting."

Once again, the maid’s voice echoed through the room:

"That doctor managed to cure her grandfather’s sickness, and he was more energetic than ever. The lady took a liking to that doctor and chained him to her bedroom, where she forced herself on him."

The voice continued:

"She became pregnant with the doctor’s baby. Sadly for her, her grandfather died soon after the birth of the baby."

A breeze swept past me once again, and I heard the voice say, "Keep reading."

I continued to read without delay:

"Recently, I’ve been having some fun now and then, but there is something that is slightly bothering me, my eyes. My vision is getting blurry."

I turned the page.

"My vision is getting worse by the day, but Grandfather gave me great advice. If it's getting blurry, I should just change my eyes with someone else's. We have just the person for the job anyway."

The diary continued:

"There is that maid with the beautiful green eyes. She has just the eyes I am 'looking' for, hehe."

This maniac actually wrote "hehe" in her diary.

But more importantly,

"Wait! Are you suggesting that your eyes were taken by Lady Unut? How are we supposed to get them for you?" I asked.

The voice answered,

"The Unut family used the doctor they kept in captivity to steal other people's organs. He was tortured by the lady day by day and was only released into the garden if he helped with transplants."

The voice continued:

"Lady only took my eyes, but her grandfather? He conducted experiments on other humans to attain immortality. Dozens were tortured and killed."

The voice continued, but this time it was clearer, as if coming right from behind us:

"Poor souls endured so much pain. When they died and came to this place, they erased their own souls so they wouldn’t exist with the humiliation they had."

We turned our heads towards the bed where the voice was coming from and saw her:

A woman in a maid’s attire, sitting on the bed, smiling at us. She could be described as beautiful, with short black hair and emerald green eyes similar to mine.

"We can see you?" Rose asked.

"Yes, I made myself visible to both of you since you are going to help me." She say as she jumps down from the bed.

"We didn’t agree to help you just yet. And what do you mean they erased their souls?" I said.

"Oh, you will help me. If not, you’ll be stuck here forever. After all, I’m the only one who can get you out."

"What do you mean?"

"When you first stepped into the mansion, you also stepped into this place. To make it clearer, you are no longer in the Unut mansion. This is just a replica I created."

"You didn’t really make it clear. What do you mean, 'this place'?"

"I can’t tell you much. There is a terrifying being here that will erase me if I tell you too much information."

"A being that scares you, even though you are so powerful?"

"Yes. I’ve never seen or heard him, but my existence somehow knows he’s here. If I defy him, my very soul will cease to exist."

"You keep talking about being erased. What are you actually talking about?"

"I think I can tell you that. In this place, you can do whatever you want—eat whatever you want, drink whatever you want, do whatever you want. We are eternal here."

"That’s amazing," said Rose.

"But our souls are bound here. When we first came here, we were given a choice: to either stay here eternally or erase our souls and cease to exist."

"Given a choice by who? God?"

"I don’t know. I only know that I had those two options. Nobody asked me to make a choice; I just knew I had to."

"So anyone can do what they want here? Won’t that cause problems? Some might want to see destruction, stars falling from the sky, or something like that."

"That won’t happen. Think of it like this: everyone here has their own room. The room can change its size indefinitely and you can do as you wish in it, but we can’t enter each other’s rooms,

though we know who is here with us."

"So we are currently in your room?"

"That’s correct. I made my room look like the Unut mansion."

"Wait a second. If you can do anything here, can’t you just erase that terrifying being?"

"We can’t. He is beyond anything we can imagine. We can’t even comprehend him."

"So if—"

Before I could ask more, Rose interrupted me,

"Sorry to interrupt, but can we get back to the point? So you’re saying that we’re trapped in your room and you won’t let us leave unless we help you?"

"Yes, that’s correct."

"And by 'help,' you want us to get your eyes from Lady Unut? How are we going to do that? I doubt she’ll just hand them over if we ask nicely," Rose said.

"I’d be grateful if you could do that, but I know it’s asking the impossible."

"So what do you want us to do then?" I asked.

"I will take her son’s eyes. Those eyes were made from my own, so they should suffice."

"That’s still impossible. Isn’t her son just as difficult to deal with as she is?"

"Why? He is here," she says, looking directly at me.

"Huh?"

"You are her son."

"That’s impossible."

"How so? What was your father’s occupation again?"

"He was a doctor... But I know my mother, she—"

"Your father was a traveling doctor. He stopped at the Unut village during his travels and met the woman you call ‘mother.’ They fell in love.

At first, he decided to live with her in the Unut village."

She continued after a brief pause:

"But one day, he received an invitation from the Unut family, promising great fortune if he helped them.

He thought he could use the money to convince your adoptive mother’s family to agree to marriage.

Unfortunately, Lady Unut took an interest in him and locked him in the mansion for months.

But your adoptive mother was clever; she managed to hire some mercenaries to rescue him from captivity.

She didn’t know about you, but when she saw you, she accepted you as her son.

Together, along with the mercenaries, they fled to the city where you grew up.

That about sums it up."

"T—that can’t be true..."

I refused to believe what this crazy maid was saying.

"Hey now, it’s rude to call me crazy, don’t you think?"

"Y—you can hear my thoughts?!"

"Yes, and some of them are actually pretty funny."

She began walking towards me while humming.

I tried to slowly back away but stumbled and fell.

The maid crouched and put her face closer to mine.

"I can’t tell you about your future, but I know about your past and your current thoughts. Your feelings, I know all of them. Even the pain you’re feeling in your butt right now."

Then she stood up and reached out her hand to me.

"Here, get up." She looked at me and smiled.

I took her hand, and she pulled me up.

"Here, let me handle that pain," she said after pulling me up.

She didn't make any hand movements or gestures, but the pain in my butt from falling vanished in the blink of an eye.

Meanwhile, Rose watched what happened in silence. Her hands were on her chin, and she seemed to be deep in thought.

"Rose?" I called out.

"I'm sorry, I got lost in thoughts."

The maid looked at Rose and smiled.

"You don't have to worry; I'm not going to hurt your friend."

"It really is inconvenient for you to read our thoughts," Rose replied.

"Don't worry. I'm trying to be respectful of your privacy."

I felt like I should say something here, so I interrupted,

"Hold on, what do you mean you won't hurt me?"

"Think carefully. If what she just said is the truth, and she wants the eyes of the Unut family's son, then..." Rose trailed off.

"She wants my eyes?!"

I was so shocked by the conversation that it flew over my head.

Regardless of whether what she said is the truth, she believes that I am the son of Lady Unut.

That means I am in grave danger.

"Relax, you are not in grave danger, and what I said is the undeniable truth," the maid reassured me.

"Even so, I can't just let you take my eyes."

"Oh, those? I already took them."

She showed me a pair of green eyes floating right above her hand.

"What?! But I can still see?" I exclaimed in confusion.

Rose looked at me in worry.

"Don't worry, your eyes are still intact."

"Allow me to explain," the maid continued. "I took these from your real body, but you are not in your real body right now.

Your souls are currently inside a replica body I made, using your original body as a model."

"You just keep saying weird things." I muttered, trying to process everything.

"I'm only telling the truth." she insisted.

"Wait, so if our souls are in a replica, what happened to our real bodies?" Rose asked.

"They are in a sleeping state inside the real Unut mansion. I don't have the power to bring your real bodies into this place."

"But you can take my eyes?!" I questioned, still in disbelief.

"Sorry, I misspoke," she corrected herself. "I can bring both your body parts and your souls here separately, but not together at the same time."

"So my body is just lying there, eyeless and asleep on the floor?"

"That's one way to put it," she replied. "But don't worry. If you help me, I'll create replica eyes for you so you can still see."

"Why do you want those eyes so badly, anyway? You're already dead. What use do they have for you? And your current body seems to have eyes already."

"Just like your bodies, the one in front of you is a replica I made and placed my own soul inside,

I need you to take the original eyes, which I'll place in a jar of regeneration water, and perform the ritual of organ transplant on my deceased body when you wake up."

"Why don't you just do it yourself?"

"I can't. I'm not allowed to perform that ritual."

"You'd be erased?"

"Precisely."

"One problem, though: your body has probably decomposed or been eaten by pests by now."

"That can be fixed."

She snapped her fingers, and a replica of her body, dressed in a white gown, rose from the ground.

"I took what was left of my original body and completed the missing parts. I'll give this body to you along with the eyes. Perform the ritual with them."

Great, not only did she take my eyes without my consent, but now she's making us do her dirty work.

I don't even know why I'm not angry at her. I can't even figure out how I should be feeling right now.

She looked at me with a smile.

"That's to be expected. I made it so you can't get angry or stressed here."

"Of course you did."

Meanwhile, Rose had gone silent again.

"Rose, snap out of it! I need you right now!"

She shook her head and responded,

"I'm sorry, I'm listening."

"Cut her some slack, Her mind is full of tactics and strategies to get you out of here safely, but none of them will work."

"*Tch*"

Rose clicked her tongue in dissatisfaction.

"Don't worry," the maid continued. "I'll abide by our deal. As soon as you complete the ritual, I'll give you the replica eyes in a jar of regeneration water.

And as an extra, I'll give you the key to the prison where your little friend is trapped."

"You know about Angel?!"

"Of course I do. She's the reason we're able to interact in the first place."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked.

"She's like a door between this place and your realm. Normally, we can't interact with the outside world or talk to the living, but thanks to her, we can pass most things in and out."

"Right, I was just wondering why there isn't more chaos with powerful beings like you around," Rose said.

"What do you mean by 'passing things in and out'?" I asked.

"Using her as a door or gate, we can send the things we create to the outside world, and likewise, we can take things from outside as well."

"But doesn't that mean all the deceased could come back to life?" I asked.

"That would be the case, but I doubt they're aware of this gate yet. Another reason you should hurry and help me. The gate should be closed when she's awake or out of deep sleep."

"We saw another Angel when we first entered the mansion," Rose said, worry evident in her voice.

"Another deceased must have created a replica of her and escaped the mansion. They're probably the reason she's trapped in that prison."

"What do you mean 'probably'? Can't you just look into Angel's memory and find out what happened?" Rose asked.

"Alas, her memories are unreachable to me," the maid replied.

"Just great. But wait a second,you said that you can't interfere with the outside world if there's no gate. How did they manage to trap Angel in there in the first place?"

"I believe it's possible for some grudge-holding spirits to linger in the living world. If Angel was sleepy when she first entered the mansion, the gate might have opened."

"What's the connection between this gate and Angel sleeping?" Rose asked.

"I don't know. But the gate only opens when she's asleep."

"Rose, we shouldn't tarry any longer. We must get to Miss Pearl,she might be in danger," I interrupted.

"You're right. Sadly, it seems like we don't have any other choice but to proceed with this deal," Rose said, pointing to the maid with her eyes.

"One last thing,you still haven't told us why you want those eyes so badly, even though you're already dead."

"Something was forcefully taken from me... stolen. It's only natural that I want it back."

"But you stole my eyes from me!" I protested, though I couldn't muster the anger I should have felt.

"They were made from my eyes. It's the same as them being mine. I didn't steal them; I simply took back what was rightfully mine.

And I'm not entirely bad,I will give you something else in return, with interest."

"We really have no choice here. I guess we'll take your deal. You better keep your word."

"I promise I will. Now, it's time to wake up."

This was the last thing I heard before everything went dark.