The trap door screamed as I pried it open. It was obnoxiously loud. Now, all of Castillo de Nuantra knew that some old, dust-filled door had been opened—an exaggeration I know, but I felt like adding that part in.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
A cloud of dust flew into my face, tormenting my lungs.
I then crawled out of my hole with haste. A thundering thud shook the room as I dropped the trapdoor behind me.
"...Sh*t." I couldn't help but curse.
I was vaguely annoyed by such rusty hinges. I should've made it so that they had an anti-rust enchantment. That way, I wouldn't have to deal with the risk of being discovered so early on.
A few seconds passed and I fully expected a few servants to rush into the room. Camouflage activated naturally as I stood motionless and patient.
No one came.
"...Huh," I shrugged off my camouflage and looked around.
My eyes scanned the dusty, cobweb-infested piles of furniture all around me. The mountains spanned the entire basket-ball-sized room, and I was chest-deep in its flood. Any movement I made would cause all those heavy, hardwood pieces of furniture to fall and cause an avalanche.
In fact, just opening that trapdoor was a miracle. Nothing other than a horrendous shrieking of iron rang out. There was no crash of dozens of wooden crafts.
The sheer amount of old furniture that they had stored away was insane. I couldn't help but remember why I added such details to the de Nuantra castle.
The de Nuantra family had a hoarder mentality. They wanted to keep everything and obtain everything they encounter. Their great ancestor had built the family up because of such a mentality.
They had artefacts that others did not have because they valued everything... and I meant everything. Even the most mundane of items, they wanted to collect them.
All for that just-in-case moment that they believed would eventually happen—which, to their fortune, did indeed occur.
They were thus blessed with years of prosperity every time.
'And now, I will steal a few of those years away.' I thought to myself, grinning slightly.
I spent the next few minutes slowly wading through the wood-born sea, careful not to cause any more unnecessary noise.
When I made it out, a few voices caught my attention. They passed by the door to the room I was in.
I couldn't help but freeze.
Thankfully, they didn't even bother entering the room. I heard their voices slowly get weaker and weaker as they conversed and walked away.
"—is Patriarch Jin really going to send young lady Allyas away for such brutal training?" Someone asked. His words were relevant enough for me to pay attention to them.
"Brutal? It's more like impossible..." Another voice chimed in. "I don't think young miss Allyas will make it out alive..."
"Hush! What are you saying?!" The first voice chided. "We cannot mutter such matters!"
"But... it's true, no?"
"Whether it's true or not is not our business, Fiel..."
The voices were now too faint for me to hear clearly. I thus waited until I was sure that they were gone. I then went to unlock the two big double doors that led outside the furniture-filled room.
Click—
A muffled yet satisfying click resounded and I was able to push the doors open. This time, all was silent. The hinges seemed to be of a healthier breed. Well-oiled and cleaned regularly by magic.
I walked through and began with wide and confident strides to head down the long hallway.
I was currently in one of the larger buildings of the de Nuantra castle.
The windows were large and filled with stained glass that depicted different artistic creations ranging from portraits to landscapes. The floor was carpeted while suits of armour lined both sides of the hall. The glow of mana-powered lights above my head added an out-of-place futuristic vibe to the entire scene.
Suddenly,
Footsteps suddenly entered my visual senses. I heard their rhythmic thumps on the carpeted floor. The rustle of amour was evident with their every step.
'Guards,' I thought to myself.
I suddenly felt my heartbeat soar. The start of a cold sweat trickled down my back. A coldness also assaulted my stomach.
I was without a hiding place at this moment. I was out in the open and vulnerable. Nonetheless, I strove to keep myself mentally calm, even if my body was on the verge of panic.
I decided to continue with my confident stride. I crafted this castle, these guards and their behaviours, as well as their culture.
I knew how to act, but I couldn't help but feel a certain nervousness engulf me. If I made one wrong judgment, I would be doomed.
This was dancing on the edge of the knife but without violence. I was simply putting one foot in front of the other, acting like I had been living here ever since. I embodied the personality of someone who wasn't an intruder.
'I am not someone who wishes to steal a very important item from the castle.' I thought to myself with a sarcastic chuckle, 'I really don't have any reason to.'
Like this, the guards turned the corner. Being the only person in the hallway, their gazes instantly fell upon my form.
...But they didn't seem to pay much attention to me. They kept to their silence and continued marching forward.
I nodded once and made way for them.
"Mm," They both nodded back.
The gaze of one of the guards lingered on me for an extra unsettling moment just then. For one incredibly long second, we locked gazes. A frown appeared on his face.
However, he was pulled away by his partner before suspicion fully bloomed within him. It seemed like that partner of his saw no problem with my presence.
As they distanced themselves from me, I heaved a sigh of relief.
I just needed to act like this a few more times and walk through the halls of the entire castle. Then, I would be able to call the place my home.
No one would find anything wrong with me at all.
But such things were not a part of my goal. What I wanted was a swift and simple theft. There was nothing more valuable than that right now.