I Was Just Enjoying the Discipline - Chapter 6

When she spoke the word escape, she lowered her voice until it was barely audible. Even so, those who caught it felt a spark of hope flare to life in their eyes.

“But how? We’re surrounded by walls on three sides, and the front is sealed with bars packed so tightly no one could squeeze through. The keys are in their possession.”

Emma’s question lingered in the air for a moment before Sophia finally answered.

“…If you examine the wall carefully, you’ll find a section that shifts slightly. Push that brick inward, and it’ll reveal an opening just large enough for one person to squeeze through. That’s our way out.”

“How do you know what floor we’re on? What if we’re at the top of a tower? We’d fall to our deaths the moment we crawled through.”

“We’re on the ground floor. The passage opens directly outside. There’s no risk of falling. We just have to run as fast as we can.”

“How do you know that?”

It was exactly the question Sophia had expected.

She fell silent. Her gaze drifted over the faces gathered in the deepest shadows of the cell before finally coming to rest on Lavina, who looked as though she might collapse from sheer exhaustion at any moment.

Only then did Sophia speak again.

“If you don’t trust me, you don’t have to. You can stay here, give the demons your life essence, and wait for someone to rescue you instead.”

“…”

“But none of you really want that, do you? Do you want to spend years waiting for help that may not come? One year… ten years… never knowing how long you’ll be trapped here?”

No one answered. Instead, every face grew a shade darker, as though each of them had involuntarily pictured themselves spending years imprisoned in this place, forced to labor under the demons.

Sophia gave them just enough time to dwell on that despair. Then she spoke once more.

“Even if you have doubts, if something is worth trying, then it’s worth trying. We don’t have much time left, after all.”

“…What do you mean, we don’t have much time?”

It was Lavina’s first words since Sophia had spoken up. Her voice was raw from crying, rough enough that each syllable seemed to scrape against her throat.

Meeting the anxious gaze in Lavina’s trembling blue eyes, Sophia answered evenly.

“The day after tomorrow, they’ll move us out of this cell and into the underground prison. Unlike this place, every wall there is solid iron, and the doors are made of steel. There won’t be so much as a crack for an ant to slip through.”

“…”

The color drained from everyone’s faces in an instant.

“We won’t even be housed together anymore. Each of us will be locked in solitary confinement. We won’t be allowed to speak to one another… Except during the brief rest period after lunch.”

“…”

“And even then, the demons will be watching. They’ll keep a close eye on us, making sure we’re not plotting an escape.”

A bitter smile tugged at Sophia’s lips. The very thought was enough to send a shudder through the group.

“I think pushing out a loose brick is a lot easier than clawing at an iron wall with your bare hands, hoping to find a weakness. And once we’re underground, the only alternative would be digging a tunnel. That would be much easier to discover.”

“…”

“And if we’re caught…”

Sophia let the sentence hang for a heartbeat before finishing it.

“I’m sure what comes afterward will be far worse. From their perspective, we’d be nothing more than troublesome prisoners who refused to obey.”

With that, Sophia fell silent. She wasn’t finished because she had no more information to share, but because she was giving them time. Time to imagine, to weigh the choices before them, and to decide for themselves.

Just as she’d expected, the prisoners immediately huddled together and began whispering among themselves.

Without realizing it, they naturally excluded Sophia from the discussion, debating whether her information could be trusted and whether following her plan might only lead them into even greater suffering.

The discussion, however, didn’t last long. Lavina’s words settled the matter.

“I want to trust Sophia.”

Her voice was quiet but unwavering.

“I don’t want to do nothing and let them take us away simply because we don’t know where she got this information.”

It was a firm declaration. And it was enough.

Silence swept through the group. It wasn’t the silence of uncertainty, but of people who had all reached the same conclusion. The tiny commotion, so subdued that even the guard failed to notice it, faded away.

Sophia looked around at the gathered prisoners before speaking again.

“…Then I’ll take it that everyone agrees with my plan. I’ll explain how we’re getting out of here.”

She began laying out their escape from the demons’ terrifying fortress.

“Tomorrow night, we escape. During the day, we’ll search the wall whenever the guards aren’t looking until we find the hidden exit. When night falls, we’ll slip through the opening.”

“…”

“Once we’re outside, run straight ahead. Eventually you’ll reach the outer wall. If you inspect it carefully, you’ll find a small hole near the base just big enough to crawl through. That’s how we get out.”

“…But once we’re outside, how are we supposed to get back to the village?”

Emma asked.

“We don’t even know where this fortress is. We have no idea how far it is from the village.”

“Once you’re outside the fortress, you’ll come to a forest. As long as you don’t wander off the path and keep running straight, you’ll find the stump of a felled tree.”

She continued without hesitation.

“Right in front of it is an abandoned teleportation circle. The demons hardly ever use it, but it’ll take you to the town closest to our village. From there, you can hire a wagon or find some other way home.”

“…”

As soon as Sophia finished answering Emma’s question, silence fell over the group once again. Part of it was because there was little they could fault in her plan. The other part was unmistakable suspicion.

‘They’re wondering how I could possibly know all of that.’

Sophia pretended not to notice their expressions. There was no point inviting questions that would only put her at a disadvantage.

“Then save your strength for tomorrow.”

“…”

“Get as much sleep as you can. And eat whatever food they give you. You’ll need your strength. Otherwise, you’ll only slow everyone else down when it’s time to run.”

Lavina’s large eyes quivered ever so slightly. She seemed to realize that although Sophia was ostensibly addressing the entire group, her gaze had been fixed on her the whole time. That the advice was really meant for her.

Without missing a beat, Sophia calmly looked away and said:

“Then get some rest, everyone. I’ll see you tomorrow.”