There is No Key to His Cage - Chapter 13
Creak-
As she opened the door, a musty smell tickled her nose.
“Cough, cough!”
It was dusty as if it hadn’t been cleaned for a long time.
It was so hazy that she could barely see in front of her, like a sandstorm covering a city.
Elena pinched her nose with one hand and slowly descended the stairs.
Without a flashlight or phone light, it felt like exploring a cave.
She walked by taking one step at a time, barely managing each step.
“Ah, light.”
As she gradually descended the dim stairs, a beam of sunlight shone through a large window.
It felt like an unexpected gift, like an oasis in a desert.
“It’s a semi-basement.”
Looking from the bottom of the stairs, the ceiling was very high.
About the height of three Decarus stacked on top of each other.
Looking around, there were only bookshelves made of solid wood.
It didn’t seem like there would be anything special.
“Why Humans Live, 1+1, Ancient History of Estel….”
Just philosophy, mathematics, and history books.
She sighed in disappointment.
This wasn’t why she had worked so hard to push that big bookshelf.
“There’s no helping it….”
Just as she took a deep breath and turned around, that’s when it happened.
A few enormous paintings, the kind you’d see in a museum, caught her eye.
“What’s this?”
The paintings in the faded frames were covered in dust as if they hadn’t been touched for a very long time.
Elena moved closer and crouched in front of the frame on the floor.
As she extended her palm to wipe away the thick dust, a familiar face was revealed.
“……Me?”
Curly light pink hair and blue eyes.
Light pink hair as lush as cherry blossoms and blue eyes.
Fair skin and delicate features.
It was exactly like her as if she had been copied.
“What on earth….”
Creak-
In an instant, all movement stopped at the faint sound of the door.
There was only one person who could enter this place.
A red siren blared loudly in her head.
She looked around, but there was nowhere suitable to hide.
Thud, thud.
Her heart beat faster and faster at the sound of footsteps coming from the top of the stairs.
“Come out.”
A dark, low voice echoed through the basement.
The long-echoing voice sent a stop signal throughout her body.
Her arms and legs froze, and she could only panic, not knowing what to do.
The friction of leather shoes against the stone stairs was getting closer and closer.
The louder the sound became, the more wildly her heart pounded.
“Come out, Elena Helios.”
His voice, seemingly very angry, bored into her ears.
Her own name, pronounced clearly syllable by syllable, felt unfamiliar today.
The sunlight coming through the window gradually illuminated his silhouette.
“Haha… Hello….”
She tried to get out of this situation with an awkward laugh, but it was futile.
His face looked the angriest she had ever seen.
“Come out now.”
He roughly grabbed her small hand and climbed the stairs.
The dark stairs seemed familiar to him as if he frequented this place.
“Ouch…!”
He gripped so tightly that it felt like her fingers might break.
But because she was guilty, she couldn’t even talk back.
Thud-
“Elena!!!”
As soon as they reached the office, he turned around and shouted.
His face was as red as if it were on fire.
It was so red that one might believe it if told it matched his eye color.
The veins in his neck were bulging as if about to burst.
“Well….”
She had no proper excuse.
She could only keep wetting her dry lips with her tongue.
“Hah….”
She thought she might die right here.
Judging by his expression, it seemed she would die soon.
Elena bowed her head deeply and rolled her eyes around.
He took a deep breath as if trying to suppress his anger, then slowly continued speaking.
“Tell me exactly what you were doing.”
“Well….”
What would be the perfect thing to say in this situation?
Should she tell the truth that she sneaked into the room and rummaged through his things?
Or should she say she was sleepwalking and found herself here when she woke up?
It was a moment of confusion.
“I told you to speak. Elena Helios.”
The fact that he called her by her full name showed how truly angry he was.
His stone-like expression made her fidget.
“I didn’t do it on purpose…!”
“Hah….”
He closed his eyes tightly and repeatedly rubbed his face.
The veins on his neck stood out clearly like straws.
Thud-
In an instant, she was pulled towards him against gravity, like a magnet, by a strong force.
His arm gripped her lower back tightly, holding her in his embrace.
“I thought you had disappeared.”
A pitiful voice echoed in her ear.
As she slightly opened her eyes and looked up, she saw his face full of anxiety.
Could it be that he wasn’t angry because she searched the basement, but because she had disappeared?
“…..”
“I thought you had left me and disappeared again.”
Judging by what he said, it seemed that was the case.
He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against hers, as if finally relieved.
The hand patting her back was gentle.
Thinking that she wouldn’t meet her end today, she too let out a sigh of relief.
But that was short-lived, as he uttered words that made her doubt her ears.
“If I had known this would happen, I should have tied you up again.”
For a moment, she looked at his face again, wondering if she had heard wrong.
He had a rather serious expression.
“…What?”
Did she mishear?
She asked again, unable to readily understand what he said.
As he stroked her hair and looked at her affectionately, she felt an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.
“I should have cut your wings so you couldn’t spread them.”
Suddenly, she couldn’t move, as if cement had been poured all over her body.
His gaze, as if drugged, made her feel nauseous.
Fear crept up from her toes and quickly took over her entire body.
“What… do you mean?”
“I heard that people pluck the wings of pet birds so they can’t fly away.”
The faint smile that spread across his lips sent chills down her spine.
Elena slowly pushed his chest away with both hands.
“I’m going to go….”
“Where would you go when I’m right here?”
He caressed her as if touching a precious toy.
Each warmth that clung to her hair made her hair stand on end.
“I’m afraid you’ll fly away.”
She didn’t respond to his words.
No, she couldn’t even open her mouth.
She felt that if she moved her mouth carelessly, she might really become his pet bird.
“Don’t go anywhere now.”
“……”
“Promise me.”
She nodded mechanically, like an answering machine.
He then smiled and grasped her hand.
“Let’s go, to the room.”
***
Once they arrived at the room, neither of them said anything.
She was just sneaking glances at him, wondering what to do next.
His voice broke the silence.
“What were you doing?”
“…Huh?”
“I asked what you were doing. In the basement.”
Her heart, which had been beating slowly, gradually began to thump.
In truth, she wanted to ask about the painting on the floor.
Who that girl was.
Why he had that painting.
Somehow, it felt like it might be the key to recovering her memories from before the possession.
“Nothing….”
She had so much she wanted to say, but couldn’t ask anything.
If he had hidden it in such a secret place, there must be a reason.
If she said she saw it, he would surely question her further.
And so, she fell back into the labyrinth.
The memories were lost before she was seven years old.
In other words, the memories just before the possession were buried in the ground again.
Perhaps they would never be found.
Even though it wasn’t her real body, the disappointment was great.
“Come here.”
He spread his long arms and slowly embraced her as she bowed her head.
Elena, enveloped in his arms, was like a small kangaroo.
“From now on, stay with me.”
He said incomprehensible words as he slowly moved his hands behind her.
Then, a silk-like soft cloth passed through both her wrists.
When she raised her arms at the strange sensation, the long cloth painfully tightened around her wrists.
“What is this…!”
Startled, Elena looked up at him. His face, quite different from before, was as cold as snow.
“Shh, it’s okay.”
“What are you doing…?”
As her wrists tightened, she felt increasingly suffocated.
Old memories of the cold basement began to resurface vividly.
“What are you doing, I said…!”
“Yes, that’s a good girl.”
“Decarus!!!”
She screamed at the top of her lungs.
But he only looked at her with cold eyes.
“Untie this. Right now.”
Elena twisted her body this way and that, panting.
Her trembling voice and tearful eyes were full of anxiety.
“Don’t worry, I’ll feed you. I’ll help you even without hands.”
He seemed like a real psychopath.
His words, uttered with an emotionless face, sent chills down her spine.
“Untie this. Untie it right now!!!”
Elena struggled with all her might.
She screamed until her throat was raw, but it was useless.
“Now, come here.”
He pulled the rope that bound her wrists and led her to the bed’s headboard.
She tried to resist with all her strength, but in the end, she was dragged like an animal to the slaughterhouse.
“Stop, stop…. This isn’t right.”
Decarus took out another cloth and firmly tied her to the bedpost.
“You’re just anxious, right? Elena.”
He swiftly embraced her, her wrists tightly bound.
She tried to twist her wrists to undo the ties, but it was futile.
“You know it’s useless no matter what you do.”
“Why are you doing this to me? What did I do wrong…? Huh?”
Elena looked up at him, trembling like an aspen leaf.
But he just looked at her as if she were cute and stroked her hair.
“I’ve done everything you wanted until now. It’s time to stop… Why are you doing this to me…?”
Elena pleaded as if kneeling and begging.
She was afraid she might live like this, tied up, for the rest of her life.
Afraid of being trapped forever in his cage like a wingless bird.
“It’s okay, if you sleep like this, everything will be back to normal when you wake up.”
“Carus… please….”
“I like it when you call me that.”
He closed his eyes and slowly rubbed his face against the top of her head.
His lips curled up slightly at the fragrant peach scent.
“You smell nice.”
“Please untie this, Carus. Please. Please……”
Her aquamarine-like blue eyes filled with transparent tears.
Small droplets fell from her delicate eyelids, passing between her long lashes.
“Why are you crying?”
Small teardrops seeped through his shirt.
Decarus kissed her round forehead and met her gaze.
“What am I supposed to do when you’re pretty even when you cry?”
Elena glared at him with teary eyes, gritting her teeth.
Tears flowing down her cute cheeks gathered on his fingers.
“Don’t touch me.”
“Why have you become so fierce again?”
“You’re crazy….”
“You should only say pretty words.”
He smiled slightly and rubbed her rough lips with his finger.
Elena turned her head sharply, rejecting him.
“Well, I guess it’s useless now.”
“What do you mean….”
“It means nothing will change no matter how much you struggle.”
She slowly detached her shoulders and looked at his face.
His languid eyes were consumed by madness.
“Forever.”
