Capítulo 168: Chapter 168: Ghost Town Part 3
– Bark, bark, bark!
– Ugh, ugh aaaargh!!!
The first to move was Ayla. Before I could even give an order, Ayla sprinted towards the source of the sound.
"El, stay here and watch the carriage."
I immediately jumped off the carriage and mounted Lloyd's horse. Lloyd's horse was as fine a horse as Storm, and it galloped at a decent speed even with two adults riding on it.
We zigzagged through the complicated paths and raced towards the origin of the sound. Ayla who had arrived first was circling in front of the gate as if she couldn't jump over the tall, pointed wall.
"Ayla, that's a height you could easily clear."
The wall was well over two meters high, but for Ayla, that was nothing. I dismounted and approached the gate, and then I realized why she hadn't jumped over the wall.
A strange magic, or rather, could I even call it magic? An unknown force and strange waves were pulsing through the wall and the gate. I immediately sensed that this was an evil and ominous power and pulled my hand back from the gate.
The friends of the moon and night, the shadow wolves, had a kind of "spiritual energy" similar to foxes and cats. It seemed Ayla had sensed this evil energy as well.
– Grrrrrr…
Just as I was about to take a closer look at the gate, Ayla began growling fiercely and her nose wrinkled as she stared into the mansion. Instinctively, I drew the dagger from my waist and looked beyond the gate. But inside the burned mansion, all I could see was a thin trail of smoke rising. There was nothing else.
Wait.
Then what was that scream we heard?
And what about the sound of the dog barking?
It had been a scream so terrifying, it sounded as though someone was moments from death, as if their limbs were being torn apart. It was the kind of sound you might imagine a soul would make if it were wrung out like a lemon. It was horrifying beyond words.
"There's nothing around, Theodore," Lloyd said quietly after quickly surveying the mansion. But despite saying there was nothing, he saw Ayla on high alert and, just like me, drew his sword.
Aside from the smell of something burning, there wasn't the slightest sign of life.
…Should we go inside?'
When I placed my hand on the tightly closed gate, the starfish leather gloves absorbed the ominous energy in the air, causing the space around it to warp. When I grabbed the rusty handle and pulled, the gate opened far too easily.
– Creak, creak creak…
Was it not locked, despite being shut tight? Well, the house had already been burned, so maybe there hadn't been a need to lock the door.
"I'll go in first"
Lloyd said and I nodded in agreement.
If we were ambushed, Lloyd would be better suited to handle it. Unlike me, Lloyd didn't bother concealing his footsteps as he strode inside and Ayla and I followed closely behind him.
Inside the gate, the atmosphere was far more ominous than in the village. It felt as though the darkness itself could be grasped, and the acrid smoke rising from various spots on the ground as if the place was still burning, only added to the sense of dread.
– Sniff…
Ayla wrinkled her nose, sniffing around as if searching for a scent. Maybe she was looking for the man who had screamed or the dog that had barked fiercely. I silently watched her movements as she began sniffing at the empty air and walking forward.
"Let's follow Ayla."
After a brief inspection of the entrance, we started to move behind Ayla. She would stop abruptly, as if confused, then circle around the same spot, prick her ears, or wag her tail. And then…
– Woof!
She barked at the empty air.
What is this?
The spot Ayla was staring at was literally "empty air". There was nothing there. She was barking at a space where no presence could be felt. Was something hiding there? Could it be that the darkness was too thick for us to see? That couldn't be. I could roughly discern what was in the darkness with my [Owl's Eye].
– Woof! Woof!
– Rustle, rustle.
But that wasn't the only strange thing.
As Ayla barked at the empty space, she wagged her tail. I realized then that she wasn't barking out of caution or to warn of danger. What could it be? Just as I was about to call her name…
"....!"
A sweet smell of butternut-berry-cold soup wafted through the air.
I quickly looked around. I thought I saw something faintly white dart behind the trees. The reason I say "thought" is because it appeared as a translucent figure.
"D-Did you see that?"
"What?"
It seemed Lloyd hadn't noticed anything. For someone like Lloyd, whose senses were several times—no, dozens of times—sharper than a normal person's, if he didn't notice it…
Did I just imagine it?
After what happened in Dihid, I had accumulated a lot of fatigue, and considering I hadn't properly rested since then, it would make sense if I were seeing things… No, actually, that didn't make sense either. I had a necklace made from the magic stone of the Sand Olaphant, and ever since I started wearing it, I didn't feel tired like I used to.
So, this meant I wasn't tired enough to be hallucinating. What I saw wasn't a figment of my imagination, it was real…
"Kyaaahhhhh!"
Just then, the scream rang out again.
Lloyd was the first to move. He darted around the mansion and ran toward the source of the sound. Ayla who was still wagging her tail continued staring at the empty air.
"Ayla!"
I called out to her again, and only then did she seem to snap out of it and turn her head to look at me. Her eyes were clear and focused. The chances of Ayla suddenly being enchanted or mind-controlled were close to zero. So, what exactly had she been looking at?
Unfortunately, there was no time to carefully think things over. I immediately headed in the direction Lloyd had run with Ayla by my side. As we rounded the mansion and reached what seemed to be the backyard, I saw Lloyd standing there and frozen in his place.
"Lloyd… that man…!"
I started to speak, but my words caught in my throat with a gasp. The figure that had been hidden behind Lloyd came into view. The man, likely the one who had screamed, had a grotesquely twisted appearance. His limbs, every joint in his body, were contorted in bizarre and unnatural ways. It was, in every sense of the word, horrifying.
The man was attempting to crawl across the ground as if he was trying to escape the mansion. No, to be precise, he was trying to crawl, but his twisted limbs made it impossible. With his rigid body, he staggered and writhed in a desperate struggle.
"Theodore."
Lloyd pointed to the man's legs. From his feet to his knees, the man's limbs were charred black as if they were scorched by fire. His melted skin clung to the burnt fabric of his clothes. This was a sight that was painful to even look at. But that wasn't the worst of it…
– Sssssss
Thin wisps of smoke were rising from each of the man's joints. It wasn't as though he had been burned by something external; it was as if the fire had started from inside his body.
"Uuugh, uuuuughh…"
His hands, arms, neck, and skin were slowly turning black as the flames that had ignited within him spread outward, burning him alive. Yet the man seemed unaware of this; he was frantically struggling to escape the mansion with all his might.
"..."
Lloyd turned and looked at me.
So, this man was experiencing the agony of being burned alive. And worse, he couldn't escape the flames or extinguish them, because the fire had started from within his own body.
It was clear that the man was going to die. In this situation, Lloyd was silently asking me what choice I would make. His sword gleamed coldly in the darkness, where not even the moonlight reached.
I slowly shook my head.
"…Cover your ears."
I used the acorns from my pocket to cover Ayla's ears, then pulled out the silver flute from my clothes. It was the item I had received from Darion.
– ♪♩♬~♪♩♬~.
The clear, fresh, yet soothing notes of the flute echoed like a gentle breeze. As the melody filled the air, the man who had been writhing in agony closed his eyes.
He wasn't dead. He was simply asleep. Though he would never wake again, it was sleep nonetheless… At least now, he wouldn't feel any more pain.
– Whoosh!!
Suddenly, the man's body turned completely black and small flames rose from the torn wounds. These flames, fueled by his very life, burned with a haunting glow before they flickered out. When the fire finally died, his body looked like nothing more than a lump of charcoal.
– Whiiiing…
Then, with a gust of wind, the man's charred body crumbled into dust before scattering in the air. All that was left where the man had been was a crude ring that looked like a wedding ring.
"....."
I picked up the ring. If I asked the villagers, I would be able to find out who it belonged to, and perhaps tell them how he had met his end.
I might also figure out what's happening in this village.
I removed the acorn from Ayla's ear and tucked the flute back into my coat. Even as Lloyd and I turned to leave, Ayla kept staring toward the mansion. It wasn't until I called out to her again that she finally followed, but even then, she couldn't stop glancing back at the mansion.
That wasn't the only strange thing.
As we left the mansion, I had expected a crowd. We weren't the only ones who must have heard the man's terrifying scream. Yet, mocking my expectations, the streets were empty and eerily quiet.
Not a single person had gathered outside the mansion. No one was out in the streets or peering through their windows. It was as if no one had heard a thing.
If it hadn't been for Lloyd who had entered the mansion with me, I might've thought I had imagined the whole thing.
What a strange town.
We returned to the carriage. I asked El who had been waiting for us but she too said she hadn't seen anyone.
"There were houses with lights on, but no one came out."
"It's as if they knew something like this was going to happen."
"Ugh, that's creepy."
"There's nothing we can do. Even if it's creepy, we'll have to stay in this village for a while. Lloyd, which way is the inn?"
"…It's that way."
We headed toward the inn.
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