Navia held her breath with a tense face. If there was someone outside guarding her, they might come in to check upon hearing this noise.
But nothing happened. It seemed there was no one guarding.
"Phew."
Navia sighed deeply and began to more actively check the interior.
The inside was definitely a warehouse, as she felt boxes stacked everywhere. However, most of them were empty.
'Maybe I'll find something useful if I keep searching.'
There was no rule saying one must die in any situation.
Despite the cold making her teeth chatter, Navia fiercely awakened her mind and checked the objects she could grab.
How much time had passed?
Navia noticed a sliver of light seeping through a crack in the wall.
There was no sound of crickets chirping in the dawn.
Chirp chirp!
Instead, the familiar chirping of sparrows announcing the morning was heard.
When Navia saw the light, she suddenly felt dizzy and hastily leaned to the side.
Grumble.
'Ah... I haven't eaten anything since yesterday morning.'
She was hungry. After shivering in the cold for a long time, her whole body ached.
Her concentration on escaping broke for a moment, and all the discomforts she hadn't felt until now hit her all at once.
Still, she kept moving.
Without finding any breakthrough, if she stayed like this and Wood came, she would...
Clatter.
Navia felt something caught under her hand and brought it close to her face.
A small handle, a palm-sized panel.
'...A hand mirror?'
If it was shaped like this, it had to be a hand mirror, right?
Navia lifted her head sharply.
A beam of light shining through a crack in the wall was within her sight.
The amount of light entering the warehouse was ridiculously small.
More light was needed to search the interior more easily.
'I can use the mirror to reflect light and improve visibility.'
Navia extended the mirror into the sunlight shining through the wall crack.
Twinkle!
The thin light flowing in hit the mirror, creating a new beam of light.
Navia moved this light to get a wider view and scanned the interior.
The sight of an abandoned hut covered in dust and cobwebs came into view.
It looked much like what she had guessed while groping inside all night.
'Was there such a place in the duke's residence?'
Even looking back at her past eight lives, she couldn't figure out what purpose this hut served.
It was surprising how Wood had found this place.
Navia soon figured out where the door was.
In such a rundown place, it might be possible to break the door with force. After taking a deep breath, Navia threw her body against the door.
Bang!
"Ugh!"
Despite being an old wooden door, it didn't budge with Navia's strength.
It seemed worse due to her weakness from hunger and shivering in the cold.
Navia tried a few more body slams and then staggered to a corner and collapsed.
Wood was very persistent. He would surely come to take revenge.
'Would anyone even know I've disappeared?'
Wood knew she could steal magic, so he would never use his powers.
Even in good condition, it was impossible to beat Wood with strength, and she was particularly weak now.
The best plan was to escape before Wood arrived.
Navia leaned on her hands and leaned against the pile of boxes.
"The floor is damp..."
Feeling the slight dampness of the floor at her fingertips, Navia frowned and quickly turned around.
'The floor is damp?'
Navia felt the floor. Only near the boxes on the ground was damp; the rest was dry.
Why was only this place wet?
'Come to think of it, it had been raining until a few days ago.'
If the rain had made the floor like this, other places should be wet too.
Navia began to move the boxes behind her.
'There must be a reason for the water to flow in here!'
Maybe, just maybe...
'There it is!'
When she moved the boxes blocking the wall, she felt a small hole.
Navia fixed the mirror towards the direction of the light and adjusted the angle to shine the light near the hole.
'Can I escape through here?'
She reached out to check inside.
It was narrower than she thought. But with her emaciated body, she might be able to pass through.
Navia stooped and entered inside.
The hole was narrower than it appeared to the eye.
In an effort to wriggle out, she dug her fingernails into the floor and scratched with all her might. Her clothes and face were getting covered in wet dirt, but it didn't matter. Escape was all that mattered now!
‘I see the light!’
Navia gritted her teeth and struggled.
"Please, just a bit more...!"
Fortunately, her waist, which had been stuck in the hole, began to come out.
I did it! Finally, the outside...
"What? Hey! She's escaping!"
Wood, who was coming to the warehouse with his servant, spotted Navia trying to escape and shouted.
Navia finally pulled herself out and ran forward with all her might.
"Catch her!"
At Wood's command, the servant ran and quickly caught Navia.
No matter how fast Navia ran, she couldn't outpace an adult man.
But she wasn't planning on getting caught just like that.
Navia pulled out the pearl hairpin she had in her hair and stabbed it into the man's thigh with all her might.
Plop!
The pearl hairpin was definitely not a good quality item. If it had been real silver, it wouldn't have pierced the flesh so easily!
"Aah!"
The servant screamed as he was stabbed in the thigh and let go of Navia.
Wood, witnessing this, flipped out in anger.
"You incompetent bug! Can't you catch a simple low class like that?"
'If I let this low class escape, it's over for me!'
There were several reasons for the chaos at home yesterday.
Initially, there was noise about the servants' embezzlement, and then the chaos erupted when Charlotte, whom he had ordered to be locked up, was discovered.
The fact that Navia had disappeared was quickly discovered by Nikan.
Wood was anxious that the servants might find Navia.
But maybe his choice of location was excellent?
No one had come this far inside.
Instead, they strengthened the search outside, suspecting outside involvement.
Wood, not wanting to seem suspicious to others, quietly stayed hidden and came here before dawn.
'I planned to threaten her into silence after beating her up!'
He had brought a strong servant to handle this more efficiently, but even he couldn't catch a half-wit like Navia.
"Catch her! Grab her, you useless thing!"
Somehow, he had to silence Navia.
It was certain Navia could steal his magic.
But there was a way to thwart it.
He wouldn't give her a chance to steal his magic! This was also the way to deal with copycat magicians.
Wood shot a stream of water at Navia.
"Kuh!"
Navia was hit by the water stream and fell to the ground.
Wood was completely exhilarated by his correct guess.
"Puhaha!"
Any lingering fear of Navia disappeared with this one success.
"This is what real power is. You stupid low class. You thought you could beat me just because you luckily used my magic?"
Wood approached Navia with a winner's expression. Meanwhile, Navia, trembling, propped herself up on the floor and shouted.
"Please spare me!"
At her powerless cry, Wood laughed even louder.
"You should have run away earlier, idiot."
Now it was proven that he was stronger.
"No matter how much a low class struggles, they're just a low class."
Thud!
Wood kicked Navia mercilessly. She rolled on the ground again.
She turned her head sharply and glared at Wood with fierce eyes.
Wood, initially smug, flinched at her chilling glare.
'As long as I don't use magic, I'll be fine. She can't have any other abilities since she's not a magician!'
"I don't need magic to deal with someone like you!"
Wood momentarily forgot his fleeting fear and grabbed Navia by the collar.
"Die!"
It was when Navia reflexively grabbed his arm.
Thump!
Suddenly, a massive reverberation echoed through her entire body.
As if her whole body had become paper and someone had struck it massively, it was a huge, resonating sensation.
With this one massive thud, everything changed.
The wind ceased.
