During the education period, the subject is completely isolated from the outside world.

This is because, during this time, they are highly susceptible to absorbing anything rapidly.

A mind emptied through the education process can be filled even with the slightest stimulus. The duke repeatedly mentioned that if an outsider interrupts the process in the workshop, the education could deviate in unexpected directions.

What if I could steer that deviation in a direction favorable to us?

‘The duke would never instill a positive perception of our family. Even the servants know this. He governs through sorcery and fear, not affection.’

The servants who weren’t allowed in the workshop.

‘That’s why Zachary, once freed from the brainwashing, killed us all.’

When he regained mental freedom, he brutally annihilated our family.

The duke never bothered to instill affection in them. Affection increases the likelihood of unpredictable problems.

Of course, I understood the duke’s reasoning, based on his longer experience with research, but this time was different.

“We’re going to die anyway.”

Even if I don’t act, Zachary will eventually succeed in breaking the sorcery on his body. Then, naturally, he will annihilate the people of the Serpentine family who tormented him.

Thus, to avoid the foreseen future, the only option left was for me to take action myself.

‘Of course, even if I instill a friendly perception, if he’s not released, he’ll surely die after his awakening.’

It’s a given, but fitting for a protagonist, Zachary Thaddeus’s abilities are tremendous.

Since he could escape on his own eventually, my survival chances would be higher if I assist him until then.

‘Obviously, I won’t just help him without any conditions.’

Next to the note about helping, I wrote ‘conditions’ in small letters. If I earn his affection, can I negotiate for him to spare at least our family members when he escapes? Technically, this whole situation was a result of the Solaris king’s orders, so in a way, our family is also a victim.

The people to ask him to spare would be my mother, me, and perhaps the duke. If I were to choose one more person, maybe Erhan?

‘I wonder how he’s doing.’

How has that young boy grown up?

He would be graduating soon and returning here, so I’d see him soon, but I couldn’t be entirely happy about it.

‘I need to make a good impression on Erhan too.’

For a comfortable future, I needed to make a good impression on both Erhan and Zachary. I had many people to impress.

As I pondered, I found myself a bit envious of Erhan. He was blissfully unaware of the impending catastrophe, living his life in peace.

‘If it gets too difficult, I’ll just run away with my mother.’

The situation was so challenging that I started to feel resigned to whatever happens.

No matter how hard I try, there’s no guarantee of a positive outcome.

If I had been reincarnated as the heir of this family, maybe I could have found a solution. But all I knew about sorcery was what I overheard, and the only future I knew was one of annihilation. Just as I felt utterly hopeless, something suddenly flashed through my mind.

‘The Serpent’s Passage.’

The Serpent’s Passage, also known as the secret passage of the Serpentine family.

The duke used to tell me stories about this passage, placing young me on his knee. There’s a secret passage in the Serpentine mansion, shared only with the head of the family, the heir, and close family members. He said he would reveal it to me once we truly became a family.

And I knew who had the blueprint of this passage.

It was my mother.

Not long after their marriage, the duke had given the blueprint to her as a gift. I remembered the duke looking dejected, saying he thought my mother would be happy to receive it, but she seemed indifferent.

And later, my mother told me…

“That’s right, she gave it to me.”

Yes, she had given it to me.

When was that?

Honestly, I had no interest in a blueprint like that. Why would I want to delve into the secret passages of an already intimidating mansion?

Moreover, my mother gave it to me when I was quite young, so my memory of it was vague.

‘I need to remember.’

But I had to figure it out. As I delved into my memories, I recalled the countless nights of fear when my mother was by my side.

As a child, I often fell ill, seemingly not well-suited to the energy of the mansion.

I must have seemed pitiable to the adults, frequently fainting, constantly catching colds, and, due to my fragile constitution, unable to play outside, plagued by nightmares every night.

Then one day, my mother said…

“If you know a way to escape, it lessens your fear. Shall I share a secret with you?”

She offered the blueprint as a solution to my nightmares.

‘Where did I put it?’

It was clearly an important and valuable blueprint.

If my mother hadn’t given it to me, perhaps I would have received it only after becoming an adult. Given the lack of mention from the duke, there’s a possibility he knows the blueprint is in my possession…

‘But since I’ve never used it before, he probably won’t notice if I use it now.’

I remember hiding it in a very secretive place, mindful of my mother’s warning that no one else should find it. Fortunately, the furniture in my room had remained unchanged since my childhood. As I circled the room, the most used item, a drawer with lots of hand marks, caught my eye.

Staring at the drawer, I suddenly realized something and quickly opened it, emptying all its contents. Then, I just reached my hand inside.

It didn’t reveal itself easily, maybe because I hadn’t taken it out in a long time. As I was feeling around the bottom of the drawer, I found a spot slightly raised, almost imperceptible unless touched. A flush of excitement came to my face.

Click, something clicked, and the dusty bottom of the drawer seemed to lift slightly. I pulled out an old, yellowed piece of paper with a slight grin.

“Found it.”

I unfolded the aged paper, again and again.

“The Serpent’s Passage.”

Fortunately, although the paper had faded, the drawing was still clear enough to make out. I scanned the secret passage with my eyes, reassured by its details, then folded it back and placed it in the drawer before standing up.

‘First, let’s meet.’

Zachary Thaddeus,

I need to meet the protagonist.

…And that resolution was made two days ago already.

‘Easier said than done.’

The Serpent’s Passage, despite its grand name, turned out to have many problems. There was another secret passage, not directly connected to Zachary but from my room to the lower floor. I tried it for practice and almost got myself killed.

‘Is this a military training ground…?’

I wondered why such a difficult path was constructed as a passage.

Crawling on my stomach, even on the relatively easy path leading downstairs, I was drenched in sweat, as if caught in a downpour, and ended up bedridden for days.

Having never really exercised, how could I navigate a passage that required low crawling?

But even setting that aside, there was a separate issue.

‘The duke isn’t leaving his post.’

The whole point of struggling through the passage, even to the point of getting sick, was to avoid being caught by the duke, right?

For two days, I watched the duke’s movements.

He dined with us as usual. The regular tea time was missing, but he still showed his face to us often. However, regardless of his presence…

‘Shouldn’t he be leaving now?’

Ah, why. Why isn’t he going out!

The plan was for me to sneak through the passage as soon as the duke left, to meet Zachary Thaddeus and somehow take action.

‘How can I do anything if I can’t even meet him?’

Instill affection? Cause disruption?

Despite my ambitious intentions, I had no clue how to proceed. I needed to meet him first to devise any plan!

Moreover, five days had already passed. By this time, he would have undoubtedly progressed to the third stage of the ‘education’, and my patience was wearing thin.

‘It seems he has no intention of leaving today either.’

Even now, that was the case. The duke, visible through the window, was leisurely strolling through the garden after his meal.

I felt like grabbing him by the collar and shouting, asking if now was the time to casually walk in the garden, telling him that in a few years, we would all be buried beneath this very garden. That’s when, in the distance, the gates opened and a carriage entered the estate.

The carriage boldly made its way deep into the grounds. This raised an immediate question in my mind, as carriages weren’t typically allowed this far inside unless it was for a party hosted by our family. Watching the carriage with a puzzled expression, I saw a person hurriedly jump out and run towards the duke. I tilted my head in confusion and murmured,

“Why would the royal knights be visiting here?”