The Mansion and the Mysterious Senior

Scratch, scratch, scratch.

Black ink neatly appeared on the pristine white paper.

Currently, I was quietly writing in my diary, comfortably settled in a chair in the garden.

Pausing my writing, I glanced at the diary, a faint, wry smile gracing my lips.

‘I hadn’t expected even my handwriting to change…’

This startling truth had only just dawned on me, the first time I’d picked up a pen since becoming a girl.

‘What other transformations had occurred within me?’

There was no use pondering it; things would sort themselves out eventually.

I picked up the black tea a maid had placed beside the table and took a sip.

Huh? What was wrong? The maid beside me seemed to be watching me with a rather complex expression.

‘Ah… I see…’

‘My apologies, Miss Maid, but watching me won’t help.’

‘I couldn’t possibly manage to drink black tea with the artistic elegance Leidi possessed…’

I turned towards the maid.

“Ah, well, since I don’t know your name yet, is ‘Miss Maid’ an acceptable way to address you?”

This mansion reportedly had forty maids, and remembering all of them would be quite a challenge for me.

“As my esteemed master, you may, of course, address your humble servant as such, Miss Piengo.”

The maid bowed her head slightly towards me, demonstrating immense respect.

“…”

‘I… I didn’t do anything wrong, did I?’

Her reply left me somewhat bewildered.

Transitioning from a commoner’s life to that of the wealthy felt incredibly awkward.

‘It seemed I needed to memorize all the maids’ names as soon as possible, no matter how difficult, or things would continue to feel strange.’

“Miss Maid, what is the current time?”

“It is eight forty-seven PM, Miss Piengo.”

“Oh, thank you very much.”

“It’s nothing, merely a trifle.”

I turned my gaze back to the garden, propping my cheek with one hand as I leaned on the table, idly observing the clusters of flora.

They were pruned in a way that seemed haphazard yet also defied that description, and I simply couldn’t comprehend them.

‘Senior… still hasn’t arrived…’

After descending from the rooftop of the school building, the morning classes had just concluded.

In the classroom, we all ate our bento boxes with the other girls.

They were incredibly enthusiastic, constantly urging, “Here, let big sister feed you,” as they spooned dishes from their own bentos to my mouth.

Unable to refuse, I ate them, my face flushed.

Leidi, seeing that I had inadvertently stolen all the attention, seemed a touch jealous.

Later, with ample time before afternoon classes, and having developed a habit of napping at noon, I simply lay my head on the desk in a relaxed posture and drifted off to sleep.

Although I was startled upon waking to find myself surrounded, the girls were all gazing at my slightly disheveled hair (from sleeping) with expressions of envy.

‘Did I talk in my sleep? No… they wouldn’t understand Chinese, would they? And why were they all looking so envious?’

“Using your chest as a pillow… you’re probably the only one in the entire school who could manage that,” Leidi reminded me, his eyes deadpan.

“…”

‘So that was it…’

A single word had awakened me from my dream! (Double meaning!)

Given my ample chest, I had simply pulled my chair closer, rested my chest on the table, buried my head, and slept with my arms wrapped around myself!

It had been quite comfortable… the kind of sleep where you’d never get a stiff neck!

“Heh-heh-heh,” I chuckled, offering an awkward smile to everyone.

For afternoon classes, the classroom remained filled only with girls…

‘Boys… how much blood did you shed for me?! Get back to class!’

Afternoon brought a language class.

I opened what I presumed was the textbook, and aside from a few scattered Chinese characters, I couldn’t understand a thing.

However, the moment the teacher asked a student to stand and read aloud, I was utterly bewildered.

‘The textbook was filled with ancient Chinese poetry! Chinese poetry, seriously?! And by Bai Juyi, no less!’

‘Did Japanese language textbooks actually contain classical Chinese poems?! What a discovery!’

Japanese schools finished quite early in the afternoon, dismissing students around three o’clock.

After a brief farewell to everyone, we headed towards the spot where we had been dropped off that morning, where the driver was already waiting.

It had been impossible to get a good look at my new residence last night, naturally, and this morning’s rush to school had prevented it as well.

Though I knew it would be large, standing before the truly magnificent and opulent iron gates (I presumed they were iron…), I could only lament my own naivety.

Even with my limited vocabulary, I knew this was no mere ‘house’ but an edifice that defied such simple description.

“‘Chrysalis,’ Leidi announced, patting my dumbfounded shoulder before pulling me inside. “That’s the name of this mansion. I chose it.”

‘A mansion?! It’s a mansion! The kind of mansion!’

Overwhelmed by excitement, I had spent the entire time after returning, dragging Leidi along on an adventure through the mansion.

Although the maids kept giving us peculiar looks,

But!

But!!

But!!!

It was a mansion!!!!!

Please, indulge my humble commoner’s curiosity!!!!

****

After a sumptuous dinner, Leidi and I were relaxing in the garden.

However, Senior hadn’t arrived yet, so Leidi had gone off somewhere to pass the time.

Meanwhile, I had requested a diary from a maid and continued to record the day’s events in simple words, remaining in the garden.

Keeping a diary was a habit of mine; looking back on a life meticulously recorded was an undeniably wonderful experience.

“Miss Piengo, the guest has arrived at the mansion gates.

Miss Leidi is also waiting for you there.”

The maid’s voice drew my gaze away from the flowers and plants.

“Yes, I understand.

Um, could you lead me to the main gate? I haven’t memorized the way yet.”

I scratched my cheek, averted my gaze, and offered a small, sheepish smile.

‘How embarrassing… this place was truly enormous…’

“Please follow me, Miss Piengo.”

The maid politely led the way.

****

“Yo~ Sorry about that~ I had quite a lot of things to prepare~”

Senior, dressed in her school uniform, stepped out of a black, ultra-long luxury sedan, smiling.

I secretly peered inside, noting what looked like expensive sofas and a television.

Wait!? Was that a cocktail bar?

“You are a distinguished guest, Senior; a short wait is nothing at all,” Leidi said with a smile, leading Senior into the mansion.

‘Seriously… you say one thing and do another… You were so bored waiting just now that you went off somewhere to kill time.’

‘Well, I was pretty much the same.’

Due to the sensitive nature of our conversation, we escorted Senior to the bedroom.

After the maid had arranged the refreshments and tea, and then departed, our discussion began.

“Upon returning, I revised the training schedule for both of you.”

As she spoke, Senior produced a stack of papers from her chest and placed them on the table.

It was that same uncanny way of producing things from thin air, truly novel.

Leidi picked up the papers and quickly flipped through them.

“Senior, you declined the training grounds offered by my family. So, where will the training take place?” Leidi inquired.

“This morning, when I saw Ping-chan looking at the scrap metal in her hand with a ‘What just happened?’ expression, I realized that the grounds provided by your family were far too fragile…”

Senior continued, a long biscuit dangling from her mouth like a gangster smoking a cigarette.

“As for the venue, Number Two and I will provide it. You merely need to prepare the equipment and props listed there.”

‘So… she decided to change it after seeing me, huh? And what exactly does ‘fragile’ mean?’

“Senior, will our training require us to destroy the venue?” I asked, unsure if my phrasing was appropriate.

“No, of course not. It’s just… the current you will inevitably destroy everything unintentionally.”

Senior bit off a piece of the long biscuit, pointed it at me, and smiled with an expression that said, ‘It can’t be helped.’

“Heh-heh-heh.”

I could only offer a dry laugh.

“So, where is a venue that even she can destroy to her heart’s content? According to Senior, such a place shouldn’t exist on Earth…”

‘Oh, right! I could literally smash the Earth, so there shouldn’t be any place on Earth that could serve as my training ground, right?!’

“‘The Corridor.'”

Senior smiled, crossed her legs, and leaned back on the sofa, continuing.

“It’s a special space that every Gate Holder can create, starting from their Gate. Depending on how it’s used, it can offer incredibly convenient functions.

The power held by each Gate Holder is perfectly balanced, and the Corridor requires at least two portions of power to be damaged.

There, Ping-chan can go wild without restraint.”

“That’s truly sturdy…”

Leidi set down the stack of papers, apparently having finished reading them.

‘That was fast; there must have been at least forty or fifty pages!’

“So, can we also learn this in the future? The method for creating a Corridor?” Leidi posed a new question to Senior.

“The Corridor is created based on the Gate. Only you can learn it. Ping-chan, who holds the power to guard and manage the Gate, cannot.”

‘After all, Leidi and I were forcibly separated, weren’t we?’

‘I’m not jealous! Not at all…’

“By the way, so the power of each Gate Holder is actually equal?”

Leidi took a sip of tea, clearly surprised.

“Eh? Leidi-chan, you didn’t know? Doesn’t your family possess the most detailed information?”

Senior sat up, looking at Leidi with an astonished expression.

“Well… it’s currently undecipherable…” Leidi’s gaze drifted away.

‘The reason being…’

‘The scholars who could decipher complex ancient texts had, by an unfortunate coincidence, all gone to heaven to meet Jesus…’

“Don’t be lazy,” Senior admonished slightly. “What I can tell you is absolutely not as detailed as those records.”

“I’ll slowly figure something out…” Leidi said, trying to brush it off as she drank her tea.

‘Aside from taking the time to cultivate a new generation of scholars, I suppose there’s no other way… It’s truly a shame that such a gap has appeared in our knowledge.’

“Oh, and Ping-chan,” Senior turned to me.

“Once you’ve fully mastered your power, it can be redirected into other forms.”

“Eh! Really? So I won’t have to smash the Earth anymore?!”

It felt like good news.

“The power to manage and protect the Gate, bestowed by the gods, possesses an extremely high degree of freedom.

Its usage will change according to the will of the holder.

In your case, it was likely induced by previous physical impacts, such as your suplex.

Of course, this is predicated on achieving complete mastery. Historically, there have also been records of holders who never successfully altered their power…”

The good news had become half-good.

‘This meant there was still a chance I’d be stuck like this my whole life, right? But… if the condition was complete mastery, would I even want to redirect it then? Uh… why am I suddenly assuming I’ll definitely achieve complete mastery?’

“Senior, where did your power get redirected?”

Leidi asked a question I also wanted to know.

‘By the way, wasn’t Senior your mentor before? Why do you seem to know nothing?’

“I won’t tell you~” Senior stuck out her tongue, smiling as she directly refused to answer.

‘I guessed it was probably related to that ability of hers to ‘take things out of her body and put them back in.”

‘My ability, on the other hand, was purely destructive…’

Huh?!

Something suddenly occurred to me.

“Senior, if I may ask, even though everyone’s power is equal in ‘quantity,’ if power can be redirected, and considering the different levels of mastery among holders, wouldn’t that create differences in strength?

Among the four of you, who is the most powerful?”

It might have been a bit presumptuous, but I decided to ask anyway.

What if she answered?

“Who would pointlessly attack their own colleagues…?” Senior looked at me with an expression one might reserve for a rare animal.

“…”—from me

“…”—from Leidi

‘Awkward…’

‘I’m such an idiot; I knew it was presumptuous and still asked!’

Perhaps Senior didn’t mean to mock me, as she then offered her prediction.

“We haven’t competed, so it’s unclear who is actually stronger or weaker.

However, considering intelligence, Number One would probably win decisively.”

After saying this, Senior popped another long biscuit into her mouth.

“Oh, right. Since the holder of Gate Number Five has been missing for a very, very long time, it should only be three people.”

“Missing?!” ×2.

Leidi and I simultaneously asked in surprise.

“Yes, my predecessor, the previous Gate Holder, told me about it. It’s been over a hundred years.

But no one can find them; they’re likely deliberately avoiding the other Gate Holders.”

“It’s been over a hundred years. Could the holder of Gate Number Five already be dead?” I offered my guess.

“Power can be redirected to ‘immortality,’ so probably not.”

‘Was the freedom of this power a bit too excessive?’

‘That’s possible?! If I couldn’t change my abilities, wouldn’t I suffer a huge loss?’

“Why would the holder of Gate Number Five hide?”

“Who knows? But if they haven’t done anything bad, then it’s best not to interfere.

Ah, the topic has strayed, let’s bring it back!”

“Mmph?!”—from me, my mouth forcibly shut.

“Woah~” Leidi was also startled.

Senior suddenly reached across the round table and shoved a long biscuit into my mouth.

‘Wait! This is too thick!’

‘Huh? Did the maids prepare biscuits this thick and long?!’

‘……’

‘……’

‘Senior, you brought this yourself, didn’t you?!’

Still blocking my mouth, Senior looked into my eyes.

“Ping-chan, as for you, I’ll teach you how to control your power output during training.

At the very least, you’ll need to master it to a certain degree before the ‘Shackles’ can be removed. Otherwise, you’ll likely have to wear them indefinitely.”

Senior lifted my left hand, which bore the ‘Shackles,’ and waved it before my eyes.

I had been wearing them ever since descending from the rooftop of the school building; they were very important.

“Mmm, I kn-ow,” I mumbled indistinctly, my mouth full of the thick, long biscuit, as I nodded.

“As for Leidi-chan, for now, you should focus on familiarizing yourself with the different settings of the ‘Reverse Shackles’ in conjunction with martial arts,” Senior said, turning to Leidi, yet still using the thick, long biscuit to block my mouth.

‘At least remove it first… I truly couldn’t speak of my suffering.’

“I just looked at the training plan, and mine seems much simpler than yours,” Leidi said, smiling as he twisted the knife, seeing my comical state.

‘Why am I the only one suffering?!’

“So, the first training session is set for this Saturday.

Any questions?” Senior asked, making a final confirmation as she prepared to leave.

“None,” Leidi replied.

I could only shake my head, my mouth still stuffed with biscuit.

“Then, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

*Snap!*

A crisp sound echoed.

Senior rose, casually breaking the thick, long biscuit that was in my mouth, and put the other half into her own.

****

“Have a pleasant journey.”

At the mansion’s main gate, Leidi smiled as he saw Senior off, and I also waved goodbye.

Then…

*Crunch, crunch, crunch.*

I was still gnawing on the biscuit Senior had shoved into my mouth.

“It’s so long, why don’t you just stop eating it?”

On the way back to our rooms, Leidi looked at me with a somewhat complex expression.

“I can’t waste food, *crunch*~ Even though everyone fed me a ton of dishes at lunch, *crunch, crunch*~ I still made sure to finish my own bento! *Crunch*~ It’s just one biscuit, so I absolutely cannot waste it. *Crunch, crunch, crunch*~”

As long as I wasn’t overly full, I would never waste food!

Though I didn’t know why, it was probably a good habit I’d developed during my time at the orphanage.

At that moment, Leidi, who had been walking beside me, suddenly stopped.

“Hmm? Leidi?”

*Crunch, crunch.*

I turned to look at Leidi, continuing to eat my biscuit.

“Mmmph?!”

I was suddenly embraced by Leidi, nearly dropping the biscuit in my hand.

“W-what’s wrong?”

*Crunch, crunch.* I still hadn’t stopped.

The arms holding me tightened slightly.

“Enough. Stop now. Don’t eat it.”

Leidi’s voice had become somewhat strange.

“But if I don’t finish it, it’ll be wasted.”

*Crunch, crunch, crunch.* I continued.

“You won’t go hungry anymore.

Stop it…”

*Thump*—

A piece of the biscuit from my mouth fell to the ground, shattering.

‘So… that’s what it was.’

Leidi, who was holding me,

was crying.

‘He must be worried about me,’

‘This guy…’

‘Honestly,’

‘Who exactly is the one with overflowing maternal instincts?’

I hugged him back tightly.

“Thank you, Leidi.”

The faintly red moon hung in the tranquil, inky night sky.

The occasional cool breeze, accompanied by the intermittent chirping of insects,

found us holding each other like that, until the maids arrived.