It wasn't until her face was slapped several times that she heard someone calling out in her ear, "Wake up! Quick, wake up!"
Sophie Sullivan opened her heavy eyelids to an unfamiliar environment unfolding before her.
Before she had time to examine her surroundings, she was suddenly yanked off the bed.
The rough treatment left no room for gentleness; she staggered, almost falling to the floor.
Two maidservants, dressed in black and white color-blocked dresses reminiscent of the European Middle Ages, flanked her and led her into the bath chamber.
The large bath chamber was resplendent in gold, exquisitely tasteful and supremely extravagant.
The bathtub, large enough to accommodate several people, was filled with water, its surface strewn with fresh rose petals. The faint scent of essential oil also drifted through the air.
The refreshing aroma cleared the mind and seemed to soothe her tense nerves.
As the servants began to remove her dirty patient clothes, Sophie's heart sank. She immediately grabbed their hands, glaring at them defiantly.
One maidservant remained expressionless. "The Young Master is waiting. You only have half an hour to get cleaned up."
Young Master? Who could that be? Could it be... the man from last night?
Sophie clenched her fists tightly. I hadn't even gone looking for him, and he's delivered himself right to me!
But the servants cared little whether she cooperated or resisted; their only goal was to bring her before the Young Master within the specified time.
Otherwise, they would be the ones punished.
Sophie raised a hand, intending to grab the nearest maidservant's neck and attempt an escape.
But the maidservant was quick-eyed. She swiftly seized both of Sophie's hands, pinned them behind her back, and warned expressionlessly, "Behave yourself, or you'll be the one to suffer."
Unwilling to give in, Sophie struggled with all her might, but she was no match for the two maidservants.
Unable to resist, she had no choice but to passively accept.
They cleaned her, exfoliated her skin, applied body lotion, and spritzed her with a light fragrance.
Each step was meticulous, performed without the slightest negligence.
After changing into a freshly ironed robe, Sophie was led out of the bath chamber by the servants. They guided her out of the bedroom and down the corridor.
Sophie clutched the revealing neckline of her robe tightly with one hand, her eyes warily scanning her surroundings.
Down the long corridor, colored glass windows cast vibrant, multicolored patterns of light.
Walking along the corridor, lined with priceless oil paintings and expensive antiques, Sophie couldn't help but carefully observe the layout.
"Stop looking around!" a maidservant whispered, quickening her pace and urging Sophie onward.
Arriving outside the audio-visual room, one of the maidservants bowed her head to Charlie River, who appeared to be in charge. "I've brought the person the Young Master requested," she reported.
"Is she clean?" Charlie River asked, his voice devoid of warmth.
The maidservant replied truthfully, "Yes, she has been cleaned."
Sophie's freshly washed hair hung smoothly, its thick strands obscuring half her face.
The other half of her face was exceptionally beautiful.
Her bewitching eyes, with a single glance, could easily steal a person's soul, leaving them to drown in her allure.
If he hadn't seen the terrifying other half of her face, Charlie River wouldn't have been so surprised. What a pity. Without that horrifying other half, she would be a beauty capable of toppling nations. The Young Master probably hasn't seen that side of her face yet...
But now, the Young Master had specifically asked to see her.
Charlie dared not disobey the Young Master's orders. Steeling himself, he had no choice but to bring her.
Charlie's expression grew serious. He nodded slightly and pulled open one of the double doors to the audio-visual room. "Follow me inside."
Sophie stood rooted to the spot. If I'm not mistaken, she realized, her eyes fixed on him, the man who captured me that night and shoved me into a car was... this man! He's the culprit!
She glared at Charlie River.