Building A of the Ballet Tower — in front of the emergency generator room.
"Ellen, did you pick up another doll?"
Phaga glanced over and saw Ellen holding one tightly in her hands.
It was tattered and dirty, its fur matted and grimy, its original color long lost.
"Yeah. I don't know why, but there have been so many dolls along the way... Phaga, something feels off."
If it were just one, she could have ignored it—but there were far too many. That made it suspicious.
Ellen frowned slightly, her eyes fixed on the doll's chest.
As expected, another eerie rhyme was scrawled there:
[Three little dolls... one hides in a tower...]
[A humble room brings fleeting peace... bones decay for a thousand years...]
"Hmm. Yeah, this isn't right," Phaga muttered.
He pulled out his phone, reviewing the operation plan Lycaon had sent earlier. It contained background details about the Ballet Tower.
After scanning through the document, he summarized:
"When the Hollow outbreak occurred, the Ballet Tower was hosting an extravagant gala. At that time, the Bale brothers were struggling financially—they desperately needed new business partners to survive."
"So, everyone invited to the event must've been high society. The elite of New Eridu."
He gave a dry chuckle. "People like that wouldn't bring their kids to crash a party, would they?"
Phaga's expression darkened as he lowered his phone and turned his gaze to Ellen—or rather, to the doll in her hands.
"No children were present. So what, were the guests expected to show up carrying teddy bears?" he said quietly. "And it's not like the Bale brothers made these for decoration. With words like that written on them, they were bound to go bankrupt."
"Agreed," Ellen sighed softly.
After glancing at the exquisite doll hanging from her waist, she hesitated briefly before unhooking it and tossing it to the floor.
It landed beside the ragged one with a soft thud. Because it had fallen face-down, neither of them noticed the faint, eerie light flickering inside its eyes.
Then, Ellen clapped her hands and stood up. For some reason, she felt heat rush to her cheeks as she looked at Phaga. Compelled by an impulse she couldn't explain, she walked behind him and suddenly wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her full weight against him with a sigh.
"Hurry up, Phaga. Let's get to the emergency generator room and install the Ether battery. We shouldn't keep Rina and the others waiting."
Phaga's mouth twitched. He couldn't see Ellen's expression from this angle, but he could definitely feel the warmth radiating from her pressed against his back.
He sighed helplessly. "You know, you're basically hanging off me right now. How am I supposed to walk like this?"
"Then just carry me! It'll be easier that way!"
"Tsk..."
...
"This is..."
Corin lifted her head, looking around in confusion.
Shelves. Cardboard boxes. Entertainment equipment of all kinds lined the walls, stretching more than ten meters from one side to the other. A massive bookshelf stood at the far end, filled to the brim with books.
When she turned around, she noticed the bed she'd been sitting on—covered in pink bedding and surrounded by rows of neatly arranged, delicate dolls.
As Corin stood up, she felt a sudden chill on her arm. Panic surged in her chest.
She jumped away like a startled rabbit, clutching her chainsaw close and staring in fear at the spot she'd just been.
But there was nothing there.
Or... not quite nothing.
Beside the bed lay a small, ornate doll—identical to the one whose tentacles had bound her earlier.
Did it... fall off her?
Frowning, Corin looked down at her left arm.
The tentacle was gone. Only faint red marks remained on her skin. If not for those, even she might have thought the tentacles had been a strange illusion.
"So... where am I?"
Corin stood up, hesitant to take a single step.
But the thought of waiting helplessly for Mr. Lycaon and Miss Rina to find her made her chest tighten. It would trouble them—and maybe even disappoint them.
"Mmm-mm-mm!!"
She quickly shook her head. Just imagining Mr. Lycaon's disappointed face made her heart pound in fear.
Taking a deep breath, Corin gripped her chainsaw tightly and started forward, dragging her small, pudding-like feet across the floor.
One step...
Two steps...
Her eyes brightened.
Good! There's no danger here!
Her confidence grew, and she began walking faster.
"Mr. Lycaon... Miss Rina... are you... here?"
Her small voice echoed uncertainly.
No one answered.
The beautifully decorated room was completely silent. Even her own words didn't echo back.
All she could hear was the sound of her own breathing.
Keep moving, Corin... just keep going.
She tried to encourage herself, raising her chainsaw and holding it forward in a defensive stance as she carefully walked around.
But after a full circuit, she realized it was just a massive, sealed room—nearly four hundred square meters. The only door led to a small bathroom.
"There's... no way out..."
The realization froze her in place. Panic welled up, and she stumbled backward.
Her foot caught on a box, and she fell hard to the floor.
"Ow!"
She winced, scrunching up her small, delicate face in pain.
Sitting up, Corin rubbed her sore backside with one hand, muttering softly to herself. "Miss Rina said if you rub it, it won't hurt anymore..."
After checking, she sighed in relief. "Good, no wounds. Corin didn't bring any spare band-aids."
Thinking that, she subconsciously touched her inner thigh.
There, hidden where few would see, were three band-aids—left from old scrapes she'd gotten by being careless.
They never seemed to heal completely. One wound would close, only for another to open—like biting your lip again just after it heals.
Her skin never stayed perfect, and she always blamed herself for it.
But Miss Rina would always smile and tell her, "That's part of Corin's charm. Maybe one day, lots of people will love it."
"Would anyone... really like Corin?"
Her voice trembled with a sigh. Melancholy filled her eyes as she thought about Mr. Phaga, who had only recently joined Victoria Housekeeping.
He'd fit in so quickly. Everyone liked him. He took on more commissions than she did, completed them perfectly, and never once received a complaint.
Then there was Miss Ellen.
She joined after Corin, yet she spoke with confidence in front of Mr. Lycaon and Miss Rina. Everyone liked her too. Even Mr. Phaga talked to her more often.
Corin had joined Victoria first...
"Corin... is really useless, huh..."
Her voice broke as she collapsed to the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks.
[Yes, you've always been useless.]
The sudden, raspy voice made her jolt upright.
Wiping her tears away, Corin jumped to her feet, gripping her chainsaw tightly.
"Who's there...?! Stop teasing Corin! Come out right now!"
"Or... or Corin will hurt you!"
[I've been right beside you this whole time, lovely maid.]
The voice came again.
This time, Corin found its source.
Her gaze dropped—to the cardboard box she'd tripped over earlier.
[Yes, I'm inside the box. Please pick me up... and meet me, lovely maid-san.]
(Fun fact: Victoria's recruitment order—Rina was the original member, followed by Lycaon. Little Corin was found as a child, and Ellen joined last.)