Chapter 1 - The Bloodstained Beginning

Clang- the dagger fell from my grasp and tumbled to the floor. I stared blankly at the scene before me, frozen in place.

A man was lying on the floor, blood continuously running down his throat.

I staggered backward. My feet kept slipping against the blood pooled on the floor.

'This is...’

Maybe it was because things were so unrealistic. I sorted the situation rather quickly.

I was holding a dagger until just now. The man was lying on the ground, bleeding as if he had been stabbed. Therefore, did I... kill this man?

There were more problems. I had no recollection of where the hell this place is or who this man was.

I traced my last memory. It was a very normal day. Going home after work...

'How did I get home?'

From that point on, my memory was cut off. I frowned and subconsciously lowered my gaze to the unfamiliar attire.

It was an old dark dress. It was not the type of gown you see often, but a rich frock only perceived in movies. I've never seen such a thing up close, let alone tried it on.

'Why am I wearing something like this?'

The same was true of the fallen man's clothes. It was hard to discern because of the overflowing blood, but the white shirt he was dressed in did not seem ordinary.

The garment was secured with a string, and its collar and sleeves had a rounded shape. Additionally, his pants lacked any visible zippers or buttons.

As I pondered, I couldn't help but notice the ambiance of the room. The furniture appeared to be devoid of any modern touch, and the locks on the doors and the shape of the window frames were unlike any that I had seen before.

'Where the hell is this place?'

At first glance, the place appeared to be a set for a play or a movie, but the realism that sent goosebumps down my spine couldn't be disregarded.

Above all, the scene in front of me did not appear to be a product of human creation. The fallen man was gazing at the ceiling with his eyes wide open. Blood drained from his face, and his body was becoming stiff.

'If his eyes were at least closed, I would have regained hope.'

Even I, a person who had never witnessed a corpse in person, could tell. This man was dead.

I was initially confused, but my confusion quickly turned to horror when I saw a strange face staring back at me through the window. I instinctively covered my mouth to stifle a scream but was even more startled to see that the face in the reflection was also covering its mouth.

I waved my hand. The hand reflected in the window mimicked my movement in the same manner. I shook my head. The head reflected in the window turned from side to side.

'Is this me?'

I experienced a peculiar sensation that I had been pretending to disregard- my eye level was elevated and my limbs felt heavier. My body appeared unfamiliar, as though it had taken on the form of someone else's.

As soon as I approached the window to take a closer look, I picked up a sense of movement outside the room.

The creaking sound of the floorboard and the clanking of metal grew louder. It wasn't much later that I heard someone knock on the door.

I stiffened, forgetting to even breathe. My heart started beating like it was going to jump out.

'What do I do if someone enters this room right now?'

It was just me and a dead corpse here. Blood was splattered on my clothes and the body still seemed fresh. This was a situation sufficient for me to be suspected as a murderer. I knew that claiming ignorance or amnesia would not suffice as a viable excuse in this situation.

"Your Excellency, are you there?"

A man's voice was heard through the door. I was still holding my breath, frozen in place.

"Your Excellency, your Excellency?"

I heard a few more knocks, and the man continued.

“…Sir, I'm coming inside. Please pardon my rudeness."

The door handle turned and the door shook, but thankfully it appeared to be locked.

"Tsk...”

After several unsuccessful attempts, the man eventually gave up and left. I only breathed a sigh of relief when I was certain that the presence outside the door had completely disappeared.

But I couldn't be relieved. The man probably left to find the key. He would come back any time.

'Flee, I have to flee.'

The idea of getting the heck out of this place dominated my mind.

I quickly scanned the room. The only ways out were either the door beyond the corpse or the large window to the right.

If I go out the door, I won't know whom I would encounter on the way. In addition, the view outside the window seemed to be telling me that this place was at least three stories high. If I jump, I'd have to be prepared to break a few bones.

Moreover, even if I did successfully leave this building, there was no guarantee that I would be able to pass through that vast garden.

I nervously clenched and spread open my fists, my mind racing faster than ever as I struggled to come up with a solution.

It was that moment. A voice rang in my head.

[Julia Reitz moved hurriedly.]

I looked around quickly, my hands covering my mouth to stifle any potential scream.

'Wha, what is this?'

It was different from the voice of the man who had just knocked on the door. It felt peculiar, almost as if it was being transmitted directly into my head rather than through my ears. It was difficult to classify it as a voice.

[There was only one way for 'Julia Reitz' to escape the Duke of Bolev's residence. The key was a secret passage that she was aware existed.]

The calm voice continued, indifferent to my quick head movements as I searched the floor and ceiling for its source.

Even in this ridiculous situation, I tried to comprehend the content of the voice.

"Are you saying that if I find a secret passage, I can get out of here?"

To me, that information was more important than finding out who Julia Reitz was and what this voice is.

I waited with bated breath for more. I realized that this voice was my only rope.

[Julia scanned the room, her eyes darting around in search of a cabinet adorned with three candles.]

Whether by chance or not, as the voice articulated, a candlestick adorned with three lit candles lay right behind my back.

'Is there a secret passage behind here?'

I tried to touch the cabinet, but it didn't budge.

[First Julia blew out all the candles.]

Fortunately, the voice continued with the next step.

[Afterward, she rotated the candle on the far right three times clockwise and once counterclockwise.]

After blowing out the candles, I followed the instructions given by the voice and turned the candle. Despite my trembling hand, the cabinet lifted slightly with a faint vibration, and thankfully the candle remained intact.

Let's push it like this. It was easily pushed unlike before. I could perceive a large space that seemed unending.

Despite my haste to move forward without hesitation, I was stopped in my tracks when I heard the voice.

[Julia remember to bring the dagger. It meant more than just a means of destroying evidence. No one knew what could pursue along the path.]

'The dagger…!’

Leaving it behind could prove to be a mistake. As the voice suggested, I needed to arm myself with tools to defend myself in this unfamiliar environment.

I retrieved the dagger while searching for any other potential weapons before entering the secret passage.

Then, when I pushed the decorative cabinet back to its original position from the inside, I felt a weak vibration. Soon after, the cabinet fell with a thud.

The entrance was completely covered and I was suddenly in the dark.

As I pushed the decorative cabinet back to its original position from the inside, I sensed a slight vibration before it closed, completely sealing the entrance and leaving me in complete darkness. My faint breathing echoed through the closed space.

"Hah, haa...”

I stumbled and fell inside a pitch-black space. Despite the usual fear that accompanies such an environment, I felt a sense of security.

Perhaps it was due to being separated from my body or the absence of immediate danger. It was only upon entering this space that I experienced this newfound feeling of safety.

'They said it was a secret passage, not a secret space.'

That meant this space led outside. I looked around with my darkened eyes.

Despite the darkness, I could make out a long stretch of road ahead that seemed to go on endlessly.

Although it was daunting, I knew I couldn't stay still and had to move forward. As I made my way, I tried to make sense of the absurd situation I found myself in.

Where this place was, who this body belonged to. How I spawned here, and what the voice inside my head came from. There were more than one or two questions to be answered.

'I might have an idea.'

The name Julia Reitz, the Duke of Bolev, the addressing of 'Your Excellency', and the voice in my head that spoke with a tone as if it were reading words from a book.

'It's only logical for me to think that Julia Reitz is the name of my, or this body.'

Of course, it was a name I had never heard of.

Next, the Duke of Belov and the title 'Your Excellency'.The man knocked on the door outside, seemingly looking for someone of high rank. It appeared that the room belonged to a Duke.

I initially thought that the person he was searching for might be Julia Reitz, but my attire was too outdated. On the other hand, the man who had fallen appeared to be wearing well-maintained clothing, indicating that he was likely the Duke of Bolev or a closely related individual.

'Bolev... there's a familiar ring to it. Where did I hear it?'

I tried to recollect the image of the man who had fallen. Black hair, red eyes, and a shirt that seemed to be habitually pulled down.

'Bolev, Bolev... Bolev?'

I stood in the darkness, repeating the familiar name to myself.

Russell Bolev. It was the name of the male lead from the novel 『Trap and Swamp』.

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