"Creak."
Accompanied by the grating sound of rusty door hinges, the small gate at the corner of the wall was slowly pushed open. A tall, beautiful woman with fair skin and soft features slightly bent down to pass through the doorway, stepping into the now semi-abandoned garden.
Though it was already in a semi-abandoned state, this incredibly vast garden still exuded an elegant aura. Numerous plain stones engraved with peony motifs encircled the dried-up marble fountain at the garden's center, forming several petal-shaped secluded paths.
These pebble-laden and leaf-strewn paths, clearly neglected at first glance, crisscrossed and wound outward. They passed fallen stone pillars, abandoned sculptures, a delicate greenhouse with shattered glass, courtyard walls with peeling paint, and extended to the garden's farthest corner next to the only place still maintained—a small wooden hut.
"Ellie."
