“Who could have guessed that Rohtas would turn the floor plans of the royal palace into a puzzle?”
“No one, I’m sure.”
“Right?!”
I was telling Mr. Fisalis all about how I’d spent the afternoon solving mazes, only for Rohtas to drop the bomb that they’d been the floor plans for the manor and the royal palace all along. I mean, using the super-duper top secret palace blueprint for a game? The Fisalis servants were something else!
“He just, like, handed me this sheet of paper! At a glance, it looked like your regular maze—just a bunch of boxes (or rooms, I guess) and the paths connecting them. I’d never really visualized the palace as anything but a three-dimensional space, so I didn’t make the connection.”
“That’s a fair point. A 2D model can give a completely different impression from the 3D version.”
“Exactly!”
Even the manor, which I’d been so sure I knew inside and out, had been unrecognizable in blueprint form. There was no chance I’d identify the royal palace, where I was only familiar with a few select areas.
“So how’d it go? Did you memorize the layout of the royal palace?”
“You better believe I did! I know its every nook and cranny, from the corridors down to the hidden passages!”
After how many puzzles I’d done with the map, it was only natural.
I threw out my non-existent chest, beaming with pride, only for Mr. Fisalis to turn around and compliment his butler. “Perfect. Nice work, Rohtas.”
“Thank you, Master Fisalis.”
“Wait...don’t tell me this whole game was your idea, Cercis?”
“No, I had nothing to do with it. Rohtas came up with the idea on his own.”
“I thought it might come in handy down the line.”
“And I must say I approve.”
“I’m honored to hear that.”
Now I see—it was all another part of Rohtas’s etiquette curriculum. That’s about what I expected.
“Now that you know the floor plan forwards and backwards, I can rest easy no matter what happens at the royal palace,” said Mr. Fisalis.
“Things don’t tend to happen at—hold on a second, Cercis! That was a pretty traumatic experience for me, I’ll have you know!”
“Sorry!” he rushed to apologize. And darn right he should’ve—I never wanted to play another game of tag in the royal palace again!
“Don’t remind me of that!”
“Look, I said I was sorry! Still, there’s no telling when you might get caught in some emergency situation there, right?”
“I guess you have a point. But memorizing the blueprint doesn’t mean I’ll know what to do when I’m there in person.”
2D and 3D were two different kettles of fish. I could find my way around a map, sure, but all the new factors in play when you were actually there (like the walls, pillars, etc.) were bound to throw me for a loop. Not to mention that the hidden doors were camouflaged so as not to be immediately apparent.
I envisioned the scenario with a groan.
“Don’t think about it too hard,” said Mr. Fisalis, all matter-of-fact. “Just picture the map in your head and move based on that information.”
He makes it sound so simple... Well, I guess that sort of thing is a part of his job.
“That’s easy for you to say—you’ve got actual training! I’ve never done anything like that before! Don’t assume we’re operating on the same level here.”
“It’s really not that hard... Here, for example: you’ve never gotten lost downtown, have you?”
“Of course not.”
I know my way around! I thought. Not that it was anything worth bragging about, really.
“What do you do when you go somewhere new?”
“I check the route on a map before I leave, and I don’t head out until I have a good idea of where I need to go. Once I’m there, I find my way around using buildings as landmarks.”
“It’s exactly like that. First you memorize the directions, right? And from there, you just have to recall the most distinctive features along the way.”
“Oh, you’re right.”
Explained in those terms, it was easy to visualize. Wow, is that really all there is to it?
“See? Anyway, here’s an idea: why not come take a look around our manor sometime so you can see for yourself?”
“Around the hidden passage and secret chamber, you mean? Am I allowed to see them?”
“Of course.”
“Yay! I can’t wait to see what they look like. Is it all dark and damp down there? Oh man, what if I find the skull of a servant who wandered down there and never found their way out?!”
“We don’t live in an adventure novel.”
“Oops. I was so excited that my imagination got away from me there.”
I’m going to explore the manor’s uncharted territory! Now I’m getting pumped. By the way, any chance I can see the hidden passages of the royal palace too?