The method of opening the next door was still the same. Keira gropped on the door surface, pulled the colorless stone out, and tugged it into her bra in case she would need it later.
With great caution, she ducked into the room, carefully scrambling her thighs so as not to bump into anything else.
Aside from white cubics neatly stacked on animal hides, this room appeared to be similar to the last one.
Stepping closer, she looked through all of the valuables in the room and couldn't find a single flower in here.
Adding to her obstacles, the monsters crystal bars splattered around the room, They were too many for her to risk touching them. Honestly.. Those things were ridiculous time bombs.
Obviously, she had no idea what the thorn flower looked like or what its unique details were. But guessing from how it was called a flower, it would make sense if it was a flower with a thorn, right?
This was really disturbing. Her temples started throbbing in anger. Just why did the psycho give her this mission when she doesn't even know what exactly she was looking for? but what could she complain when a psychopath was a psychopath; there was no better way to describe his crazy and sloppy work.
After searching this room thoroughly, she was sure there was nothing left to search, so she ducked out of the door and headed to the next room.
_____
Keira paused in front of a door—a huge one made of polished stone that dwarfed the previous three doors she had ducked through.
She groped on its surface, looking for a colorless stone, as she thought this door would have the same technique to open as the others. However, instead of colorless stone, she found small circular holes on the door's surface, it looked like the keys needed to be put in.
Examining it closely, she noticed the holes seemed to match the colorless stone. Clearly, it must have something to do with it. So she reached into her bra, pulled the colorless stone out, and pushed it into each hole.
When the last stone was placed, the door echoed with grinding noises as it slowly unlocked. But this time something was different, the door didn't open on its own.
She groaned in frustration and pushed the door with her shoulders, but it didn't burge. Taking a few steps away off the door to gain her foothold, she dashed forward and smashed her shoulder against the door.
Wiping the droplets of sweat off her forehead, her chest rising and falling from her heavy panting, she rushed forward, smashing her shoulder on the door again.
Her arm was completely numb as she repeated pushing on the door over and over until she noticed it has a small opening just enough for her to squeeze through.
Unlike the other rooms she had searched, this one had furniture—a table, benches, and chairs. It was furnished more like a living space than a treasure room.
Keira was about to begin searching, but she ducked quickly into a corner after sensing a movement in the center of the room.
"Oh, my goodness.." She shrieked as her eyes landed on a small moving figure. It was held captive with a small water bucket inside a wooden cage.
Her heart raced as she approached it. She took a good look at the figure, and when her eyes met it, she was shocked in place.
In the cage was a child with round, doe-like eyes and plenty of dirt stains on the face. The blue hair was long and messy, like nobody cared for him or her. She couldn't tell the gender since the child was covered in dirt and very young—not more than five years old based on how small and frail he/she was.
Stepping closer, her breath was caught in her throat at the sight of the child's lower half. It's a fish tail, gleaming scales the color of vibrant turquoise.
The child looked up at her with a mixture of fear and curiosity, its tail flapping nervously against the floor. However, it appeared like the tail hadn't fully grown into a fish tail yet, as some parts had no scale, it looked like someone had scraped the child's scales off and been left with just bare flesh.
Keira hands were shaking, and her eyes were heating up at the thought of it. Who would have done such a cruel thing to a child? To scrap the scales off the child's tail—it's absolutely horrible. She couldn't imagine the pain and trauma the child must have gone through.
She carefully moved closer so as not to scare the child. "It's okay, I will help you out of here, don't be scared," she assured with a soft voice, trying to suppress the trembling anger that was boiling inside her. But the child was silent, staring at her with eyes wide open.
When there was no response, Keira asked, "Do you understand me?"
The child continued to stare at her in silent, but Keira had to act fast to save him or her out of this hellish place. She couldn't leave the child here, whether he or she could talk or not. The child needed help—how can someone put a childof that age inside a cage and abuse it like this?
She quickly scanned the cage, checking if there was any door. but it has neither a latch nor a hinged opening. This cage was deadlocked, and judging by how rusted it was, it had probably been here for many years.
Keira guessed she could break it open if she had a solid object, so she swiftly gazed around, and her eyes landed on a sturdy wooden chair. Lifting it up, she waved her hand, motioning the child to back away.
The sight of Keira gripping the chair caused the little child to tremble. It moved to the corner of the cage, flapping its tail as it went.
After making sure the area was clear and the child would be safe from any flying wood breakages, she swung the chair fiercely at the wooden cage and eventually, the cage began to crack under her violent striking.
Dropping the chair, she lunged forward and kicked the cage break off with a loud thud and a gap appeared large enough to squeeze through.
She beckoned the child to come out, but it was still trembling from the loud noise. Her eyes fell on the fish tail, and judging by it, the tail must add to the reason it couldn't move much.
Seeing that, Keira dove into the cage. She carefully lifted the child's frail body up and carried out of the broken cage. When she saw the face up close, she realized that this was a male, a little mermaid boy.
His sparkling, round eyes looked at her without blinking. "Eee.." the little boy let out a small squeak. She tried to read what he wanted as her legs crept out of the cage.
He seemed to be startled and lost, and Keira felt a pang of sympathy for the little mermaid boy. She wondered how he ended up in the cage and if he had any family.
Even though he was scared, he didn't move or struggle when he was in her arms, and that was just what she needed. Because now she had to help him rush out of here before the guards arrived.
From both the loud explosion of the monster soul and the crashing of wood breakage, she was sure it won't take long for the guards to show up.
She cradled the child tightly in her arms and slipped through the stone door out of the room. Glancing at the marks on her arm, she double-checked on each turning corridor and started sprinting off, following the way.
.
.