The Grand Duchess Escape - Chapter 116.1
Asella was dreaming.
She was following someone with cautious steps- the plush carpet on the floor muffled the sound of her footsteps, which was fortunate. Otherwise, she would have been caught a long time ago.
She didn’t know who she was following or why she was following them, but a strong sense of urgency guided her… as if it had to be done now… She had to go confirm something now…
Judging by the silhouette, it seemed certain that it was a man. Moreover, it felt strangely familiar. When Asella’s thoughts reached that point, she froze in her place as she saw the man turning the corner, revealing his profile.
‘Calix Benvito?’
She momentarily questioned why she was following him, but amidst that, her feet moved on their own accord. Her body was already out of her control.
When she regained consciousness, she found herself in a study.
She had been seeing it every day for the past few days, so it was familiar to her. Calix walked confidently inside. He walked all the way to the innermost part of the study, in front of the bookshelf filled with books that reached the ceiling. He pushed a few books aside one by one.
After a moment, Asella’s eyes widened as if they were about to pop out.
Click, clack…
The sound of interlocking mechanical gears filled the air, and a portion of the wall suddenly swung out. The protruding wall slid sideways like a hidden door, revealing a large secret passage.
As Calix entered the passage, Asella promptly followed suit. Fortunately, they were able to enter before the door closed.
‘I never knew there was such a space in the study…’
A spiral staircase descended below. It seemed to lead down to the basement. The only light came from sporadically placed torches on the walls, so the passage was quite dim.
As there was no carpeting on the stone floor, Asella moved even more cautiously, trying to avoid making any sound.
The fact that the staircase was spiral-shaped meant that even if Calix happened to look back, he wouldn’t notice her, which was probably a good thing.
The staircase was quite long. It started off narrow, but as they descended further, it gradually widened. Asella guessed that they were nearing their destination.
When the footsteps that had been heard at regular intervals ahead suddenly ceased, Asella instinctively halted her steps. She placed her hand on the inner wall of the passage and cautiously peered ahead to observe the situation.
‘Oh my goodness…’