Her body felt exceptionally heavy, her eyelids weighed down as if filled with lead, and the aching in her limbs reminded Lulumiya that she ought to turn over and shift position.
Lulumiya furrowed her brow and twisted her body, only to discover that her hands and feet were firmly tied, making it impossible to move.
“Hm?”
Realizing something was wrong, Lulumiya opened her eyes, but before she could even raise her eyelids, a line of text popped up at the bottom left of her vision.
「Title Acquired: ‘Flutist’s Plaything’」
Huh?
Isn’t ‘Flutist’ Amy’s title? And ‘Plaything’ means…
No way.
Lulumiya’s heart tightened as a sense of dread crept over her.
She had slept like a log last night, totally unaware of anything that happened afterwards.
Still, although she herself was a Magitech doll, and Amy was a known Magitech doll enthusiast, Amy was timid and not the type to do something as daring as tying her up.
Even if, at the very worst, Amy did do it, Amy was a girl, and so was she; plus, she had reincarnated into the body of a young girl who looked only about ten years old.
No matter how she looked at it, there shouldn’t be any kind of risqué binding incident—this wasn’t some R18 light novel.
Summoning all her strength, she pried open her leaden eyelids—and was stunned.
She wasn’t in the familiar dormitory, nor was she lying on Amy’s soft bed.
This was a small, closed-off storage room.
She could barely make out her surroundings by the slivers of light seeping through the door: stacks of wooden crates everywhere.
The air was thick with dust and a faint, foul animal stench, as if the place was meant for keeping stray dogs and cats.
As for herself, her hands and feet were already tightly bound with hemp rope and she’d been carelessly tossed into a corner.
A fleeting thought flashed through her mind—maybe Amy, who appeared soft on the outside but was secretly a sadist, had locked her up while she slept for some unspeakable purpose—but she quickly dismissed the idea.
Because she realized that the situation was even worse.
She wasn’t alone in this cramped warehouse.
Scattered around her were other men and women, all bound with different kinds of rope, all sharing one characteristic: special magical marks carved on their necks or faces—the sign of a Magitech doll.
Everyone imprisoned here was a Magitech doll.
They were sprawled haphazardly on the floor like power-deprived machines, completely lifeless.
Moreover, this was not even on land.
Lulumiya could distinctly feel the gentle swaying of the entire room, the humidity in the air and the sound of waves confirmed she was aboard a ship.
Realizing this, it was as if she’d missed a step while descending a staircase—her heart lurched.
She’d been kidnapped.
She recalled Amy’s warning before bed: lately there had been many disappearances of Magitech dolls in the royal capital.
She remembered the heavy guard presence she’d seen on her way back to the dormitory last night.
With all this, she couldn’t think of any other possibility but kidnapping.
As for how she’d been taken from the dormitory, the likely answer was that Amy was the insider.
The dorm door had a Ban on Magic; only someone with the key could open it.
So that’s it…
In that instant, Lulumiya understood why Amy, who was from a rural noble family, could so casually display dozens of gold coins on her bed.
She’d had her eye on Lulumiya—the Magitech doll—from the start.
Since she had a way to quickly earn a large sum of gold, Amy no longer cared about money.
The excuse about using it for her mother’s illness was just a cover.
She didn’t want to believe her own deductions, but the title ‘Flutist’s Plaything’ made everything clear.
From their very first meeting, she’d fallen into Amy’s trap.
How childish I’ve been.
Lulumiya clicked her tongue in frustration.
She should’ve realized, upon seeing those ragged people in the streets, that this world was nothing like Earth.
In a world as cruel as this, one should always be on guard—people weren’t all as kind as Lijie.
“Tch.”
Regret was pointless now. Lulumiya forced herself to stay calm and think of her next move.
She remembered seeing a river running through the city when she visited Sean the carpenter’s house.
Since she had only just woken up, maybe they hadn’t yet left the capital’s range.
If she made some noise, someone on the riverbank might hear, and there’d be a chance of rescue.
But obviously, doing so carried a huge risk of death.
If the boat had already left the capital, and she’d actually slept for several days, the outcome was all too clear.
She glanced around the hold. Among the unconscious Magitech dolls, only one—an imposing, golden-haired adult woman with the title ‘Guardian Knight of the Hahn Family’—stood out.
The others all had the same title: ‘Naive Magitech Doll.’
No insiders.
Lulumiya took a deep breath.
There was too little useful information.
If only she could figure out how big this ship was, or how many guards were aboard.
Too bad the fourth princess’s order to Farias had only been to protect her for one day, and it was surely past midnight by now.
Otherwise, with that reliable-looking knight present, these smugglers would already be finished.
No, she couldn’t always rely on others.
That wasn’t the path to becoming a great mage.
“Creak~”
As if in response to Lulumiya’s irritation, the heavy cabin door was pushed open from outside.
A small, thin woman holding a lantern bowed as she entered.
It was Amy.
Her loose red hair flickered demonically in the firelight, and her delicate face no longer bore the weakness it once did; her smile was laced with mockery.
“Heh,” Amy’s voice was completely different from in the dormitory.
She kicked Lulumiya and looked down at her from above.
“You’re as naive as ever, huh? What’s wrong, still haven’t figured out what’s going on? You’re a prisoner now, Miss ‘Perfect Magitech Doll.’ Where’s that attitude you used to have?”
Lulumiya let out a “tch.”
The composure of an adult kept her from being intimidated by a girl not even in her teens.
The smugglers wanted profit; she was valuable merchandise, so they wouldn’t dare hurt her too much.
She answered coldly.
“No wonder you looked so shocked when you saw me in the dorm. That account book and those gold coins are your evidence.”
“So what?”
Amy raised an eyebrow.
Before entering the hold, she had thought that the arrogant Lulumiya would scream and order her to let her go, giving her the chance to torment the naive doll who always treated her like a joke and trample on her pride.
But now, Lulumiya was nothing like Amy had imagined.
This made her even angrier.
“The kidnapping of Magitech dolls in the capital is all over the city, even the guards are questioning people at the dorms, and you don’t know anything? Should I call you stupid or arrogant? Did you really believe the person you bullied would turn the other cheek and take care of you? What world do you think this is? Even toddlers wouldn’t believe such crap!”
As scenes of being bullied by Lulumiya and her cronies at the academy flashed through her mind, rage boiled up within Amy.
Especially now, with Lulumiya ignoring her, the anger burned even hotter.
She squatted down and grabbed a fistful of Lulumiya’s bangs, her twisted face coming close.
“Say something, huh? Weren’t you so cocky before? Where’s all that attitude now?”
As she interrogated her, Amy started slapping Lulumiya’s face, pulling harder and harder on her hair.
All Amy wanted was to vent all the humiliation she had suffered onto this doll who had bullied her countless times.
Her open-palmed slaps became gripping Lulumiya’s chin, smashing her head against the cabin wall again and again, venting her anger without restraint.
“Say something, damn it! Cry for me! Beg for mercy! Are you mute or what? Where’s all that bravado from before? Do you know how much I suffered, how many people laughed at me because of you? Huh?!”
The dull thuds rang out, the force of her grip making Amy’s own hand ache, but she seemed not to notice, venting relentlessly until her voice grew hoarse, her flying red hair making her seem almost demonic.
“I’ve been waiting for this day! The moment I saw you in the dorm, I plotted this! And you, you idiot, didn’t even notice. How does it feel to be in my hands? The pain you feel now is nothing compared to what I went through, not even a hair! Damn it, damn it, damn it! Did you go mute? Go to hell!!!”
Bang!
Amy’s strength grew more frenzied, and with her final word, she slammed Lulumiya’s back hard against the wall.
The whole cabin shook.
She was like a crazed bull, shoulders slumped, breathing ragged, hair in wild disarray.
But the tearful, begging Lulumiya she’d anticipated never appeared; instead, Lulumiya only lowered her head slightly, emerald eyes burning with anger.
If it weren’t for the ropes, Lulumiya would have already taken this madwoman head-on.
She wasn’t the one who bullied Amy; why should she suffer like this?
The ringing in her head and the dull pain in her back only stoked her fury.
Seeing Lulumiya’s defiant glare, Amy’s breathing grew even rougher.
She felt as if, no matter how much violence she inflicted on this woman, her resentment wouldn’t be satisfied.
It almost felt like she’d already lost to her.
Lose to a doll who knows nothing? Impossible!
Humiliated and furious, she channeled all her strength into her foot and kicked Lulumiya in the stomach.
A heavy, sickening thud resounded, making one’s heart tremble.
Just as Amy prepared to continue, a man’s voice called from the door.
“Hey, Amy, that’s enough. If you damage her, she won’t be worth anything.”
“Mind your own business!”
Ignoring him, Amy tried to kick again, but this time, Lulumiya didn’t wait for her to build up force and bit Amy’s wrist hard.
“Ah!”
Amy’s face twisted in pain at the merciless bite, jerking her hand away as if shocked by electricity.
“You little—!”
The woman, now more demon than human, searched desperately for anything to use, but there was nothing in this prison for Magitech dolls.
The stubbly man at the door strode over and forcibly pulled her back.
“Are you insane? She’s worth more than everyone else here put together. If you break her, can you pay for it?”
“She’s trash!”
“Whether she’s trash or not isn’t up to you. The buyer decides!”
The stubbly man clicked his tongue and dragged Amy away.
He gave Lulumiya, who hadn’t made a sound, a surprised look, but said nothing.
Instead, he jerked his chin toward the golden-haired woman with the title ‘Guardian Knight of the Hahn Family.’
“If you’re awake, get up. Amy, bring her out. I have questions.”
“Hmph!”
Amy jerked free and glared at Lulumiya, then turned her fury on the golden-haired woman, kicking her awake and dragging her out by her bindings.
With another “creak,” the room fell into darkness again.
“Hiss…”
Finally able to relax, Lulumiya sucked in a sharp breath as her stomach cramped in pain.
It was only because she was a thirteen-year-old girl that the blows weren’t worse—if it had been an adult, she’d probably have passed out.
Grimacing, she waited for the pain to subside.
Once the area quieted, with only the sounds of smugglers and the golden-haired knight talking above deck, she took a deep breath.
Waiting for death was the stupidest way to die.
Who knew if Amy would come back crazed and out of control?
Even without a staff, she had to try to escape.
She lowered her voice, forcing herself to focus on her palms.
“O tiny spirit of fire, gather a small flame in my hand—‘Spark.’”