Chapter 8: A maze
I thought it would be pretty easy to sneakily follow a middle-aged woman. But now, I realized it's the complete opposite.
At every slightest creaking noise my sneakers make, she will definitely turn around and glance back. It's either she got more acute hearing than me or she had experienced some kind of trauma due to a stalker, a reason that made her extremely sensitive to any suspicious noises.
I mean, why on earth my luck has to be this crappy?
In the end, I have no choice but to take off my sneakers and walk barefoot, using a special technique to walk silently, taught by my grandmaster.
After all, I can't afford to let the maid's suspicion grow any further, right?
I've never known that there would come a day when I need to be extra sneaky like this.
In the past, when dad hired a martial artist to teach me some basic fighting techniques, I thought he was just being over worried, never knew it would come into practical use like this one day.
When I shift my weight correctly while controlling my steps and momentum, I can walk extremely stealthily. As for my grandmaster, he can even run and jump silently. But, as I didn't have enough patience to learn every trivia like this, my ability isn't as good as his.
Hugging my sneakers in my arms, I managed to stealthily follow the maid without attracting any more suspicion from her. Just as I thought, this was the end of all troubles, I was yet again proved to be wrong.
Just why....
why the hell there has to be such a large maze at the end of the garden?
The maid I've been following, casually walked into the maze as though it is a usual thing to do, as though she's been doing this in day-to-day basis.
There's no way I'll be able to keep following her in there. If I try, I know l'm definitely going to get caught.
And if I get caught, I'm sure she won't even need anyone else's help to drag me back to the mansion. Apparently, her faint pheromones are telling me that she is a female alpha.
A couple of seconds later after that woman entered the maze, I also walked over to the entrance. I checked my left and right before realizing the entire garden has been surrounded by this maze.
I spotted another entrance to the maze a couple of meters away and figured out this probably would be the kind of maze with many entrances but only one exit.
The magnificent mansion is surrounded by a giant garden when the garden itself is surrounded by a maze.
Just what's going on in that alpha's head to build a mansion in such pattern?
Struggling to accept my current situation, I settled my nerves down. I have no other options anyway. Going back is out of question. Though entering the maze may probably result in myself getting lost there, it still worths a try.
Honestly, I'm a genius at finding ways out of a maze. Just give me a map of that maze. And, I can figure out the right path on the map in less than ten seconds.
My sense of direction is especially sharp in a maze and getting lost in there is never my trouble. But, this is it.
My sense of direction only works when the map of a maze is in my hand.
Not a hardcore challenge like this with no map.
The more I stared at the entrance of the maze the more nervous I become. I know I should be going in there already lest other servants and gardeners spotted me.
I took a deep breath in and let it out.
After a minute of inwardly motivating myself, I finally went in with my poor heart pounding so hard in nervousness.
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So far, it's been at least half an hour I've been wandering in this maze. My feet are sore. The wound on my heel opened and started bleeding again.
As the bandage on my heel has already gone dirty from walking barefoot earlier, I undressed it and used the headscarf instead before putting my sneakers back on. Yep, I mean that headscarf torn from my pillow cover though.
This maze is created using well-kept hornbeam hedges with their height easily standing past at least 2 meters. There's no way for me to see and inspect the way ahead even if I jump with my mere 1.5 m height.
There are common tricks people tend to use to find their way out of a maze.
Wall following, right- hand rule, and even Tremaux's Algorithm...
But, none of the rules seem to work. The maze pattern is unimaginably complicated. No hope for wall following and right or left hand rule.
My only hope is Tremaux's Algorithm. But, I'm currently lacking in any objects to keep tracks of which paths I've chosen.
At first, I made an effort to take advantage of my high IQ and memorize all the paths I took, imagining the structure of the maze like a map in my head. But, the maze is unexpectedly larger than I expected. So, It's impossible to memorize every route I took anymore.
As I stopped to take a rest, I glanced down at the maze concrete floor in disappointment. The white floor tiles are clean and are devoid of any stones or even little pebbles.
To successfully use Tremaux's Algorithm, I need at least some little objects to keep track of every route I take.
As my gaze landed on my black and white maid uniform, a sigh of resignation left my lips.
To be honest, I've already had a vague idea on what to use to mark my paths. I'm hesitating like this only because I don't want to look like a beggar when I finally step out of the maze.
But now, since memorizing isn't working properly anymore.....
Making up my mind, I grabbed the hem of my maid uniform and tore a small piece of it before sticking that piece at the bottom of a hornbeam hedge beside me.
Can't help it. This is the only way if I want to find a way out of the maze.
Everytime I follow a path, I mark it using a torn piece of my clothing.
When I reach an intersection, I took an unmarked path. But, if both of them are marked at least once, I took a random one.
Paths that are already marked twice with two pieces of torn clothing, are not my options anymore as it means that route isn't going to take me to the exit according to Tremaux's Algorithm.
Finally... after a good hour of wandering in the maze like this.....
I made it!!!
Despite my sore feet, I enthusiastically ran towards the exit. My joyous reaction is not only because of managing to make an escape from the hand of that alpha. It is also because this is my first time finding a way out of an intricate garden maze without the help of a map.
But, my gleeful smile is forced to retreat yet again once I witness what is awaiting me outside the maze.
This mansion.....
Was it built in the middle of a forest?!
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