Chapter 173
Chapter 173
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 173
Chapter Title: Ghost City (8)
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Midnight.
The moon isn't visible today either.
As the darkness deepened, Ayla paced restlessly near the window. It was as if she had to go outside, staring at the window but unable to bring herself to urge me, her flattened ears and pitiful eyes whimpering softly.
“We'll head out soon, so quit fussing, Ayla.”
-Kyuuung....
We slipped quietly out through the second-floor window. Hiding beneath the building's shadow made it hard to even distinguish each other. The villagers would never know we were wandering the town at this hour.
‘Ghosts roam near the mansion at night. The hellhounds do too. So stay inside after dark.’
A sort of curfew was in effect in the village. That was why no one could be seen after sunset.
‘Then that man we saw when we first arrived in the village...’
Why had he been at that mansion despite the curfew—not just any place, but the one where ‘ghosts’ and ‘hellhounds’ appeared?
He surely hadn't gone there seeking a gruesome death.
There must have been a clear ‘purpose’ for entering that mansion.
“......”
That was probably what the villagers and the chief were hiding.
-Woooooo....
Upon reaching the mansion, a chilling, eerie aura brushed against our skin. Along with a acrid smell. Even though the fire had happened long ago, smoke still rose—was it really because the mage couple had cursed this mansion?
Unlike the previous day, the mansion door was tightly locked with iron chains. The chief had said to come to him for the key if we entered. He'd clearly had the villagers lock it on purpose.
‘It was wide open before, but after assigning us the job, he locked it?’
And having to get the key from the chief every time we entered... I couldn't shake the feeling of being ‘watched.’
Well, a locked door wouldn't stop us. We hopped over the wall. Inside, the fog was even thicker. Maybe due to the smoke.
“Ayla.”
At my call, Ayla quickly scouted around the mansion. After circling it once, just like before, she sniffed the ground and headed to the mansion door.
-Kreeeek....
And once more, with not a breath of wind, the door swung wide open as if welcoming us. I secured it firmly with vines to prevent it from suddenly closing again, then stepped inside.
“W-Wow... It feels so scary somehow.”
Elle muttered, her face paler than usual from tension.
“Don't worry, Elle. With your skills now, you could even cut down a ghost.”
Lloyd reassured her.
Ghosts, lacking physical form, can't be felled by simple physical attacks. That's why warriors aren't favored for ghost extermination, unlike against zombies or skeletons. But for someone with a certain level of skill, it's different. They can slash ghosts with ‘sword aura.’
‘Elle's skills have already reached that level.’
I was pleased. But there was no time to praise her leisurely, so I held my tongue.
-Creak....
-Creak....
-Creak....
The wooden floor creaked with every step. No other sounds could be heard. The mansion interior was eerily quiet and....
-Swoooo....
...cold.
‘This feeling again....’
We passed the portrait of the Dawson couple and headed for the stairs. We'd roughly checked the first floor last time, so this time we'd properly search the second floor.
“I was attacked on these stairs. Something came rushing down from above and tackled me.”
“Did it seem aggressive?”
“It felt that way at the time, but....”
“You came back unscathed.”
“Yes. The only injury was a bump on the back of my head.”
“Anything else you remember?”
“Nothing. I couldn't even see what it looked like properly.”
“I'll take the lead.”
“I'd appreciate that. My head's throbbing for some reason.”
Lloyd and I chatted at the base of the stairs, checking the edges and railings for traps. Confirming none, we cautiously began ascending.
-Creak....
-Creak....
-Creak....
About halfway up, I glanced back absentmindedly. Ayla was following, tail swishing. And....
“...Wait, Ayla. Why are you the only one? Where's Elle?”
-Krrung?
Ayla tilted her head. I craned my neck and peered down the stairs, but Elle was nowhere to be seen.
A bad premonition.
“Lloyd! Elle's gone!”
“...!”
We hurried back down. Even in the dim first floor, no sign of Elle.
“Ayla, search outside the mansion.”
-Woof!
Ayla bolted out like a shot.
“I'll check this way....”
“No, Lloyd. We don't know what's happening, so we can't split up.”
Unfortunately, the genre unfolding before me was a horror movie. In horror movies, the group starts dying off the moment they separate. Sticking together boosts survival odds fivefold. I closed the distance with Lloyd and pulled the Dark Lantern from my subspace ring. The item that had been so useful in the Silver Mountains. Who'd have thought I'd use it again in a mansion like this? Using Dawnstar Tree or candles might let someone in the village spot the lit mansion. That would complicate things. So the Dark Lantern was the way.
Turning on the Dark Lantern, the oppressive darkness around us visibly lightened. We slowly searched the first floor thoroughly.
‘...I didn't even hear Elle moving separately. Where the hell did she go?’
In this creaky-floored mansion, no matter how careful, it was nearly impossible to hide footsteps from me or Lloyd. For her to vanish without a trace? Even with all her growth, impossible.
‘Some kind of trap? Or a ghost...?’
But in a mansion like this—not even a dungeon—there was no way a trap could evade my [Explorer] trait. Unless the Dawson couple were beyond ‘archmages.’
“Theodore.”
Then Lloyd called me. Before him was a door I hadn't noticed on my previous visit.
“......”
I nodded, and he turned the knob. It wouldn't budge. He tried forcing it, but despite its worn look, the knob didn't yield.
“Wait a sec.”
I handed him the Dark Lantern and pulled the key from around my neck. The ‘key that opens anything,’ rewarded by Goddess Riadel for saving the cats. Holding it to the knob, the key's tip glowed faintly and reshaped perfectly to fit the lock.
-Click.
-Rattle.
The door opened.
-Clang!!
-Clang!
-Clang!
The moment it did, unheard noises began. Like pounding, no, smashing something.
“......”
“......”
Lloyd and I exchanged glances before entering. The Dark Lantern sucked in the room's darkness, revealing its outline. The room was tiny, very tiny. Like the one-room studio I lived in as a college student. It was cramped with just us two inside.
-Creak....
Shifting to touch the wall, the floor creaked subtly. I knelt and placed a hand on the floor. Beneath the dust-covered wood, I felt a groove.
“......”
I slipped my fingers into the shallow groove and pulled. A square floor panel lifted, revealing a narrow staircase barely wide enough for one person. It was long and deep. And from within....
-Clang!
-Clang!!
-Clang!
The very noise we'd heard echoed.
Lloyd led with the Dark Lantern. We descended hastily. Whatever it was, I strongly sensed it involved Elle.
Sure enough.
At the bottom was a space slightly larger than the room above. Two red candles lined each wall, their wicks burning with green flames.
“Elle!”
The green flames flickered, casting elongated shadows that writhed unpleasantly. At the end of one shadow was Elle. She didn't even react to my voice, swinging her sword relentlessly at something. It looked like a small door. She was hacking nonstop at a padlock sealing it.
-Mumble mumble....
Muttering something.
“What the....”
As I moved toward her, Lloyd grabbed me. He shook his head, drew his sword, and approached her. When he gripped her shoulder....
-Slash!
-Kagagak!!!
In that instant, Elle swung. The sword tip, gleaming ominously in the green light, narrowly missed Lloyd's neck as he parried with his own blade. The shock sent her tumbling back, but she sprang up immediately.
“...Must... find it.”
She kept muttering, regripping her sword. Ready to charge again.
‘Her eyes are gone mad.’
As Lloyd reset his stance, I quietly drew a seed from my pocket. I'd capture her with [Vine Bind] the moment he subdued her.
-Clang!!!
-Grgrgrak!
-Kakak!!
Pale sparks flew with each sword clash. Unlike Elle's reckless assaults, Lloyd was restricted. He moved to avoid hurting her while seeking an opening, but his direct student's skill exceeded expectations—she wasn't yielding easily.
“The gold....”
Elle's mutterings grew louder and clearer.
“Must find it....”
A voice full of conviction.
“...Must find the gold!!!!”
No, a voice steeped in madness.
-Sring!!!
The moment Elle raised her sword high,
-Paat!
The seed sprouted.