NOVEL NEXT Chapter 164: Preparation
Victoria waited for a response, and although she didn't get one, she was thrilled to know that the sword her father had brought wasn't ordinary.
She had worked hard to secure a spot at the battle academy and knew her talent wasn't the most impressive. Having a powerful weapon might be exactly what she needed to become a key figure at the academy.
"I'll keep it a secret, just like the sword said, and I'll surprise my father and everyone at the academy!" Victoria declared.
Soon after, she returned to her training. William was observing everything she was doing, but from time to time, he had to shift his focus back to his main body.
The reason was the slave 03, who had come to the back of the cave to talk to him. William noticed him approaching before he arrived and returned to avoid looking suspicious.
"So this is where you've been mining," 03 said. "Are you antisocial or something?"
William smiled. "Yeah, a little. What brings you here, my friend?"
It was the first time 03 had come to talk to William like this. They usually only chatted during lunch or breakfast, never during mining hours.
In fact, it was 03 who had warned William to be careful about talking too much, as getting caught would lead to penalties.
"Well, I came to convince you of a risky proposal. Can we sit and talk?" 03 said.
William frowned but agreed. Both sat on the dirt floor and began to whisper.
"Tomorrow is our day off," 03 said. "Our shift will end earlier, and we'll have some free time. But more importantly, Jonas is hosting a special dinner with the other noble families in the region."
Still not understanding where this was going, William asked, "And what are you thinking?"
"This will be our best chance to explore the mansion! I'm thinking of checking out that cabin you mentioned."
William stroked his chin and began to reflect. Indeed, a dinner of that scale was the perfect opportunity to explore.
The guards would be more focused there, and everyone would be busy with conversations and wine. This would certainly give William the chance to investigate.
"And why not escape from here?" William questioned.
03 shook his head. "There's no way. They'll have guards stationed at every exit. The best we can do is to explore this shed and hope to find something useful."
William decided to go along with it. Standing still and hoping for a miracle wasn't going to get them anywhere. The mine's oppressive darkness seemed to close in around him, the faint glow of mana stones offering little comfort. His heart raced as he weighed the risks. Exploring the mysterious place behind the mansion was tempting, but the thought of Jonas's cold, calculating gaze sent a shiver down his spine.
"Alright, let's do it," William said, his voice low. "But how do we get there without being seen?"
03 hesitated, his brow furrowed. "We'll use the darkness as cover. They'll be too busy with dinner to notice us."
William's jaw tightened. "And the guards? Jonas isn't stupid. He's not going to let us roam around unsupervised."
"We'll handle them," 03 said, his tone firm. "Trust me. This will work."
William nodded, though doubt gnawed at him. As 03 returned to the other slaves, William's thoughts churned. The plan was risky, but what other choice did they have?
Just then, a soft rustle came from his spatial bag. Out popped Stuart, his fur shimmering faintly with residual mana. The magical rat scurried onto William's shoulder, his beady eyes gleaming with intelligence.
"I've been listening," Stuart whispered. "That place behind the mansion… it reeks of strange mana. We need to check it out."
"Stuart!" William's face lit up with relief. "You're back!"
"For now," Stuart said, his voice urgent. "I can't stay out long. They'll sense my mana, and that'll draw attention. I'll hide for now and come back tomorrow night."
Before William could protest, Stuart vanished back into the bag.
Alone again, William returned to his mining duties, but this time he chose not to bring his consciousness to his sword, Asura.
He needed to stay focused, to think about this plan and whether it would succeed. He was incredibly anxious, as this could mean discovering something useful, or facing punishment...
William was lost in thought throughout his shift, and although he saw 03 during meals, they didn't discuss the matter. The reason was obvious: there were too many ears in the mansion, especially in the kitchen where the cooks loved to gossip, and seemed to dislike William and the others.
Once again, when William returned to his room at night, Wendy was gone. He was starting to get worried, unsure of her whereabouts.
The same guard as always stood there in front of the two rooms, acting as a kind of watchman. William approached him and inquired about Wendy in the most respectful way possible.
"Excuse me, sir. Could you tell me where the young woman who sleeps in the room next door is? I haven't seen her for two days."
The guard initially considered responding rudely, but perhaps due to William's polite demeanor, he decided to be more friendly. In truth, the guards weren't inherently gruff; they were simply following orders from the noble family who employed them. However, it was nighttime, and no one from the noble family was around.
"Listen, young man, I know she was working in the plantations and I've seen her there a few times, but she's no longer sleeping in that room. I have no idea where she is. Now, go to your room before someone shows up and reprimands you."
William quietly thanked the guard and returned to his room, even more pensive. Where could Wendy be? Enjoy new adventures from My Virtual Library Empire
She seemed to have enjoyed her first day of work—or at least it seemed that way when she spoke with William—but now she had vanished. What on earth was going on?
'If only I could go to the plantations during the day to talk to her... Could I manage that tomorrow?' William wondered.
He knew that for three days of the week it was possible to wander around the mansion at night, but according to 03, tomorrow's shift in the mines would be shorter due to the dinner. In other words, he might be able to walk around the area in the afternoon and look for Wendy! The thought made William eagerly anticipate the arrival of dawn.
With his body and mind exhausted, William laid his head on his bed's pillow and drifted off, sleeping like a log.
The next day, he woke up feeling energized and went straight to breakfast, where he found Jonas, who came to speak with him and the other miners.
"Today you'll only be mining in the morning," Jonas said, "and after that, you'll take a bath and make yourselves presentable. I don't want the other nobles to see you and think I don't take care of my employees. Understood?"
With that, he left. 03 glanced at William and gave him a smile, but said nothing. After breakfast, they all returned to the mines and began extracting mana stones.
03 approached William again, leaving his work area at the beginning of the mine and going to the back where William usually stayed.
"I told you we'd have more time today. It's the perfect opportunity for us to find out something. Are you ready?" 03 asked.
William had already accepted that he would have to go with him and take a chance. "Absolutely. In the afternoon, I want to go to where the plantations are. Do you know where they are?"
03 frowned, "And why do you want to go there?"
"Remember the woman who came here with me? She was working on the plantation and ended up disappearing, and now I want to find out what happened."
"Yes, I remember. I can show you where it is."
"Thanks, buddy."
After that, the two parted ways and continued working. The hours passed slowly—perhaps because William was anxious—and when lunch finally ended, he was free!
"Free for one day, what a pitiful situation," 03 remarked.
The other two slaves who worked with them decided to leave and didn't want to be part of their plan. In fact, they didn't even know about the plan.
"I'm going to take a shower and then you can show me where these plantations are," William said.
"Sure thing."
William went to the public bathroom—the only one he was allowed to use—and took a cold shower. The shower was simply awful because it was already very cold, and he still had to shower with cold water. Luckily, his body was very resilient and he survived it just fine.
After that, it was time to meet up with 03 and go look for Wendy.
'What exactly happened to her?' William wondered as he left the mansion.
He met with 03 on the back part of the mansion, and the two left, going toward the forest.