"Is it an animal named Sally? I've never heard of such an animal before."
Soon, Eon's giggling laughter was heard. It was a laugh of utter amusement, like that of a child who had succeeded in a prank. It was as if he had brought me to the Magic Tower just for this very moment.
"That's an interesting thing to say."
Eon, who had been giggling for a while, opened his mouth.
"I believe I have mentioned Sally several times. If you don't remember, I can introduce her to you again."
I knew. In fact, I knew from the beginning. I just wanted to turn a blind eye to the fact that what was inside that glass tube was none other than a person.
“There’s no need for that.”
"Then, let me introduce it myself, at least as a sample. As you may have noticed, this is a Sally specimen."
However, with Eon speaking, it became an undeniable fact.
"Specimen..."
Unless this was a hospital, that word should not be associated with a person. It was certainly not a word that should follow a specific name.
"Of course, unfortunately, this is not the first specimen of Sally. She is not on display here."
Deep regret was embedded in the low sigh.
"If I had known this would happen, I should have made a specimen of her before she left."
My body trembled. The desire to get even a little further away from this mad murderer drove away the fear of the darkness. I moved forward alone, but all I encountered was yet another glass tube.
'Then, this, this too.'
I barely managed to turn my head to the right, as it did not want to move. As soon as I saw the long brown hair, I squeezed my eyes shut.
"Ah. That is also a Sally specimen. It is the eleventh Sally."
Eon's words did not register properly. The momentum with which he had been retorting had long since vanished.
'Then Tara too, like this...'
Perhaps displeased that I wasn't reacting, Eon wrapped his arms around my shoulders. Then, he forcibly dragged me closer to the exhibit.
"Open your eyes. Please open your eyes and admire my beautiful exhibit."
Eon spoke when he realized my eyes were closed. His voice was soft, but it was not a suggestion; it was an order. It felt as though he would force me to stare straight ahead, even if it meant flipping my eyelids back, if I didn't open them.
I opened my eyes with my teeth clenched.
'Ah.'
Of all things, I happened to make eye contact with an eye inside the glass tube. That vivid green thing was clearly staring at me, just like a living person.
"The Sally specimen is truly the culmination of my magic. It is a masterpiece completed after countless failures."
Countless failures were synonymous with Countless murders.
Eon raised his finger and stroked Sally from head to toe. Although the action clearly took place outside the glass tube, the hand looked as if it were directly touching Sally.
"Look at those green eyes and brown hair. Aren't they really beautiful?"
I couldn't give any answer. It was partly because my jaw was trembling, and partly because I felt like I was going to throw up.
"Why is there no answer?"
Eon lowered his body and met my gaze. Now that I looked closely, the luminous stone illuminating the glass tube was emitting a purple light identical to Eon's pupils. It was the color of a dead person's lips.
"I asked if the green eyes and brown hair were not beautiful."
"Ah... It is beautiful."
I barely managed to squeeze out a voice. At that answer, Eon smiled faintly as if satisfied.
"However, it is not perfectly identical to the real Sally's. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't find the same color as hers."
As Eon snapped his fingers, the luminous stones in the exhibition hall lit up simultaneously. It was a magnificent sight, if anything. Each and every one of those lights illuminated at least dozens—no, there seemed to be dozens—of women.
The fact that they all looked the same unless observed closely reminded me of the maids gathered in the dining room.
"A good child does not speak of the one who has disappeared."
"The good child... regarding the one who disappeared..."
"...don't say anything"
A singing voice, whether it was a dream or reality, began to ring in my ears. Sally, under the purple light, repeatedly moved closer and further away.
"Well then, shall we go meet Tara now?"
"Did Tara mean... she was here when you said she was in the Magic Tower?"
“Yes.”
"Then, do all the maids kicked out of the magic tower end up coming here?"
"No. You have to be at the level to be named Sally to come over here. After all, there isn't an unlimited number of spots."
Eon spoke as if this place were a luxury hotel.
"However, I brought that child here specifically because it seems Miss Selinia cherishes her."
Something hot trickled down my cheeks. Tears were welling up before I knew it.
"Miss Selinia? What is the problem?"
“Go back.”
"Are you saying you won't meet Tara?"
"Yes. I just want to go out."
"But if you go inside..."
"Please, please! Let me out of here!"
I grabbed his sleeve and pleaded. Eon looked down at me with purple eyes identical to the luminous stones illuminating the glass tube. His face seemed to hold a look of disappointment, yet also a satisfied smile.
"Someday, the day will come when you will like this exhibition room."
Eon led me to the entrance and said.
I heard the sound of the door closing. It was a sound that separated me from that terrible space. Although I had considered the magic tower to be like a prison, this was still the realm of humans.
I cautiously took a step forward. The sunlight shining in the hallway felt incredibly unfamiliar. It felt as if I had returned from hell, yet at the same time, it felt like a dream.
"Are you feeling better?"
Without saying a word, I simply shook off Eon's hand that was holding me. Eon let me go willingly.
'Sunshine, wind, the scent of winter.'
I walked toward the window. It was because the open window was calling me. My legs gave out, and I almost collapsed several times.
I held the wind in my hand, freely passing in and out of the magic tower. Naturally, it slipped completely through my fingers. I envied the fact that it could escape even through such a small gap.
'You're telling me to get out of here?'
The window seemed to be saying just that. Then again, given its size, even I could have slipped through.
'Then can I escape from Eon?'
It felt like someone was whispering that it was true in my ear.
"I see. It would be good to get some fresh air for a while. I will wait until things settle down."
Eon's words sounded very strange.
'Settle down?'
To others, my appearance standing blankly by the window might have seemed that way. However, for Eon, who could read my mind, this was not the time to be making such carefree remarks.
'I'm thinking of running away from you.'
I recalled the time Eon arrived late when I was being attacked by Marilyn. Even then, he couldn't read my mind. It wasn't that he was pretending not to know while listening to me; he genuinely had no idea what had happened to me. Otherwise, there was no way he would have looked so bewildered.
'Actually, you don't know what I'm thinking, do you?'
I looked out the window and muttered to myself.
Perhaps it was just a coincidence that I had believed he could read my thoughts all this time. It might have simply been that Eon, with his keen intuition, had inferred my thoughts from my facial expressions or the surrounding circumstances. After all, the claim that he could read the thoughts of his subordinates was merely Eon’s assertion, and there was no concrete evidence to support it.
'Then again, a murderer wouldn't be able to lie.'
Once the suspicion began, it gradually took firm root. As my dazed mind slowly cleared, an interesting plan came to mind. If Eon was lying about reading my thoughts, it meant one obstacle had vanished on its own. I resolved to find out the truth at all costs.
I wiped away my tear stains and muttered to myself.
'I'm going to fall from here.'
Fortunately, Eon was at a distance. No matter how agile he was, he wouldn't be able to run all the way here and catch me before I fell. Even if he used magic, it would take time to cast.
With that thought in mind, I blurted out a meaningless remark.
"Did you mean you would exhibit me in the exhibition hall when you said you would call me Sally?"
“That’s not it.”
"What about Senior Sally from the lab?"
I asked that, but actually, this conversation wasn't important.
'I'm going to fall from here.'
It was merely to find out if Eon could read my thoughts even without looking at my face or saying things that had nothing to do with them.
“It was a possibility.”
"There was..."
'I'm going to fall. I'm going to throw myself out the window.'
The windowsill was below my waist. If I just leaned forward from here, I could have easily fallen.
"You are speaking in the past tense."
"Thanks to meeting Miss Selinia..."
I couldn't hear what Eon said after that. As I tilted my slightly extended body downward, the world turned upside down.
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