Chapter 46: The Tale of the Castle
It seemed that Vivian was right. Though the haunting of Yorkford Castle had attracted unnumbered paranormal enthusiasts from other places, the town was not too crowded yet. There were still three unoccupied rooms left, the last three available at Angus’ Lodge.
The ideal arrangement would be four rooms for each of them respectively so that they could have their own rooms and not interfere with each other. Since there were only three rooms left, Vivian and Lily had no choice but to share a room. Needless to say, the vampiress was very much annoyed by the arrangement. She saw that Lily was still standing there, snoring. Therefore, she expected her to wake up in the middle of the night and repeat what she did last night, messing around while others need to sleep. She already gave up the notion that she would be able to have a good sleep as the girl who couldn’t deal with the jet lag was around.
After they got the key, Nangong, seeing that the boss wasn’t busy with his customers, leaned against the counter to have a little chat with him. “Hi, I have seen you on the news. You must be Mr. Angus, right? Is it true that there is a haunted castle nearby?”
“Oh, you are quite fluent in English, at least better than that Indian monk over there.” The boss seemed cheerful. As the owner of the inn, he was very easy to get along with and could strike up a conversation with anyone. “Are you guys here for the castle as well? It has been a big happening in town recently. It was an ancient castle, almost forgotten. The same could be said of Brewshire too if not for the recent haunting of the castle. In truth, it is a symbolic historical relic. Now, I’m afraid it’s going to become a popular tourist spot after this.”
“Truth be told, I’m an expert in this matter,” Nangong said solemnly while straightening his collar. “. I’m a professional demon hunter from China and I’m here to eradicate the evil spirits in the castle.”
Hao Ren couldn’t help but whispered in Vivian’s ear, “This guy is really high profile, going around telling everybody about his job.”
The vampire girl snorted, without any comment. Seeing that the groggy Lily was about to crawl on the floor, she went over and held her by the shoulders, saying, “I will send her to the room first. Come meet me after you talked to them, we have something to discuss.” Vivian then helped Lily to their room.
The lodgekeeper was amazed at Nangong’s statement. “Oh, you’re from the mysterious land of China? If I’m not mistaken, the ghost hunters over there were called … What’s it again? Dao Shi?”
To be honest, he was probably quite familiar with China as he pronounced the word “Dao Shi” accurately in Mandarin.
This time, Nangong didn’t spend time to explain his job as a demon hunter. He just smiled, nodded and said, “I’m not a Dao Shi, though I do know how to perform exorcism. I wonder if you have some time to spare to tell us about the story of the Yorkford Castle. It sounds very interesting.”
The lodgekeeper was overexcited. He got his stumpy body out from behind the small counter effortlessly and led the two to a long table at the side which served as a resting corner for weary customers. “Of course I have. Take a seat and let’s take our time. I had been telling the story of the castle for the past two days. Now, where should I start?”
“Err, let’s start from the history of the castle.” Said how Hao Ren as he was amused by the overexcitement on the face of the lodgekeeper. It almost felt as if this chap would not give up the chance to share his story. “I know nothing of that castle. I did’t even know its exact location prior to this.”
The lodgekeep was surprised. “Oh, your English is much better than mine…”
“…Eh-hem, let’s focus on the story,” said Hao Ren.
After Hao Ren’s gentle prompt, the attention-deficit lodgekeeper started telling the story with much passison. It all started hundreds of years ago when an English nobleman established the settlement here in Brewshire. He then took more than ten minutes explaining the history of the noble family. It was a tale full of love and hatred, ups and downs. The lord of the castle was likened to a knight of the Round Table. According to him, the nobleman and his family lived in the ancient Yorford Castle for less than 200 years. Within the 200 years, the family went through a lot of highs and troughs, the feud with palace, the rebellion from within Brewshire and wars without. In the end, the whole family collapsed under as a result of the rivalry between the three heirs. The eldest was killed on the throne of Yorkford Castle; the second died while battling the rebellion; and the youngest had gone missing. The family left countless of legends and tales behind. And the once flourishing Yorkford Castle had now become the biggest pending demolition project in the town.
“Yorkford was once prosperous. However, it was ruined by an insurrection. Numerous knights and soldiers were killed in that battle both outside and inside the castle. Their recovered remains were buried but some remained unfound. Many of these soldiers were trapped alive by the rebels in secret tunnels and cellars under the castle. After the family had passed on, nobody remembered the hidden rooms under the castle. Therefore, the soldiers who were trapped in the cellars and secret tunnels remained there.” The lodgekeeper smacked his lips and continued in an eerie tone. “It is said that those soldiers died down there and now they had come back to haunt the castle. There they were unable to lend their aid when the rebel army killed their lord. Thus, their souls were filled with hatred …”
Looking at Angus’s expressive chubby face, Hao Ren thought that this bloke must have been a tour guide in his past life.
“There were secret tunnels and cellars under the castle? Was it like a huge labyrinth?” Hao Ren asked curiously. Nangong interjected before Angus could speak. “It’s quite common actually. In those days, the castles weren’t just places for nobles to stay. They’re also the last fortress during times of war. There were usually be huge cellars and secret tunnels extending in all directions under the castles. Some of the castles would even have tunnels which extended to the borders of the territory to allow their lords to escape as far away as possible in emergencies.”
Angus nodded in agreement with Nangong and added, “Most of the tunnels had collapsed. People have also forgotten about the existence of Yorkford Castle. Nobody is interested in it enough to explore it and therefore, nobody knows the secrets buried under the castle.”
“Have you really seen the ghosts?” Hao Ren couldn’t help his curiosity as he looked at the ruddy complexion of the lodgekeeper. He didn’t look as if he had seen ghosts. Who in the world would look so cheerful after bumping into ghosts?
“Of course I did!” said Angus as he raised his voice in reply. “You are not the first to doubt it. I swear, it is the real deal. I saw the souls of the knights and mysterious flames around the castle… It was a dreadful night. However, it also brought me lots of customers. So maybe it’s not that bad after all.”
Hao Ren quickly reassured him that he trusted him when he saw that Angus was getting agitated. They continued to talk about the recent happenings in the vicinity of the castle. After a while, Hao Ren left them and went upstairs.
His room was at the west end of third floor, right opposite of the girls’ room while Nangong’s room was at other end of the corridor, far from theirs. When Hao Ren reached his room, Vivian was already waiting there.
“Let’s talk in your room,” Vivian said while pointing at her room, “The big dog is dreaming now. She was gnawing on the table leg so be prepared to pay for the damage tomorrow.”
“… Why didn’t you stop her!”
Vivian showed him the bite mark on her arm and said, “Hehe.”
Hao Ren had nothing to say.
The condition of the lodge at the countryside was so bad compared to the luxurious hotel in Central London. Each room was furnished with just a bed, a desk and a chair. However, a room like this did more in helping him unwind and relax. Vivian and Hao Ren sat on the bed. He roughly told Vivian about the story he heard just now and was quite worried about it. “I heard that a lot of people are gathering around the castle. Many of which are crazy enough to bring their own tents or drive there in their motor homes. They don’t stay in the town but instead, encamp outside the castle, waiting to catch sight of the ghosts. It’s no longer viable if we want to search for the client discreetly.”
“That means to say that regardless whether we act tonight or tomorrow, there will be not much difference?” Vivian blinked. “I was scouting that area just now and found something interesting.”
“?” asked Hao Ren.
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