༒𝑰 𝑩𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝑽𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏༒

In the Trap

💮

The quiet of the hidden house was almost suffocating, broken only by the faint scratch of a quill against parchment.

Tamayo sat by the dim glow of a paper lantern, her slender fingers turning through the latest report.

Her brows furrowed, eyes sharp, though her expression never betrayed the unease that gnawed at her heart.

Beside her, Yushiro lingered in the shadows, silent as always, his presence steady and watchful.

Yet tonight, even he seemed more restless than usual.

And then—

A sound.

Faint at first.

Subtle enough that another might dismiss it as wind against the wooden frame of the house.

But Tamayo froze, her hand tightening around the edge of the paper.

It came again, low, deliberate. Something dragging, scraping softly along the floorboards.

She rose from her seat without a word, her steps soundless as she moved into the narrow hallway.

The lantern light flickered behind her, casting long, distorted shadows across the paper walls.

The air felt heavier, the silence pressing against her eardrums.

Tamayo’s sharp eyes swept the corridor, though nothing stirred.

Still, the sound lingered, something alive, something unnatural.

Yushiro’s voice broke softly behind her, low but tense. “Lady Tamayo… stay close.”

She did not respond. Her steps carried her forward, deeper into the house.

The old wood creaked beneath her weight, but the other sound, the slithering, crawling noise, seemed to dance just beyond reach, teasing her ears with its presence.

Her hand brushed the frame of a door, hesitating. The sound had vanished again.

But as her gaze shifted to the far end of the hall, her stomach turned cold.

A figure.

Barely lit by the dying lantern glow behind her, Tamayo could make out the outline of a girl, a slender silhouette framed by flowing hair, standing unnaturally still.