Chapter 28: Damn, Goldshire Is Still Haunted |
Again?
It's not over yet, the Lion's Pride is still haunted?
That was Allen's first thought.
Then Allen immediately realized that the six eerie children he saw on his first day after transmigrating were a completely different incident from the supernatural event caused by that letter.
This was another supernatural event!
Farley, you innkeeper, how can you have the nerve to charge me money for this crappy inn of yours? It's haunted every single day!
Lightning flashed, and in that moment of blinding white light, Allen once again saw the six children arranged in a pentagram formation, exactly the same as the first time he saw them.
But this time, Allen was far calmer than the first.
He wasn't panicking. On the contrary, he wanted to see what the hell these six children were up to.
In the darkness, he saw the brown-haired boy step out from the formation and stand in the center of the pentagram. The other five children shifted and exchanged positions.
When lightning flashed again, Allen quickly closed his eyes to preserve his dark-adapted vision.
When he opened them again, he could vaguely make out the children pushing open the door and walking out.
Without even bothering to change clothes, Allen grabbed Xal'atath, Blade of the Black Empire from under his pillow, and in his thin pajamas, he crept after them on tiptoes.
The hallway was pitch dark, only occasionally illuminated for a split second by lightning through the windows.
Allen poked his head out and saw the six children lined up in a hexagram formation in the corridor. But this time, a red-haired little girl stood in the center.
Allen simply watched silently.
When he passed by Wen Lei's room, he hesitated for a moment, thinking about going in to wake him up.
But the children suddenly started heading downstairs. Afraid of losing them, Allen could only hurriedly knock on Wen Lei's door before quickly following.
When he passed by Morgan's room next door, Allen gave his door a knock too.
Downstairs, Allen saw them walk out of the inn and disappear into the curtain of rain.
He stood at the entrance, looking out at the torrential thunderstorm, hesitating.
[Side Quest Triggered: The Secret of the Pentagram]
[You have twice witnessed the eerie rituals of six children at the Lion's Pride Inn. Who are they? Why do they linger? What does the shifting pentagram mean? Where are they going in this rainy night? Curiosity killed the cat, but the choice is yours. Though from the look on your face, you've already made your decision, haven't you?]
[Quest Objective: Track down the six children and uncover the mystery of the pentagram]
[Quest Rewards: Free Attribute Points x5, Random Low-Level Spell x2, Random Mid-Level Spell x1]
The sudden side quest gave Allen a push. Gripping his dagger tightly, he resolutely charged into the rain.
The downpour instantly swallowed him.
The rain was so heavy he couldn't open his eyes. He raised his hand to shield his forehead, squinted, and struggled to search for those six small figures through the torrent.
His pajamas were quickly soaked through, the fabric clinging tightly to his skin, cold and heavy. He kept blinking, kept wiping the water from his face with his hand, but could never get it clean.
At first, the children followed the main road.
Then, they suddenly veered into the forest.
Allen hesitated for a moment but still followed.
He trudged along the muddy dirt path, his feet sinking with every step, relying entirely on occasional flashes of lightning to make out those six small figures ahead.
The children stopped in a forest clearing and arranged themselves into a pentagram again.
Allen hid behind a tree, holding his breath as he observed.
Just then, he suddenly stepped on something soft underfoot.
Allen looked down. A forest wolf was curled up under a tree, sheltering from the rain. His step had woken it up. It blinked its eyes dazedly, its pupils still adjusting, clearly not fully awake yet.
Their eyes met.
The forest wolf began to bare its fangs, a crimson gleam flickering in its eyes. Afraid that the wolf would either attack or howl and alert the children, Allen grabbed its snout, raised Xal'atath, Blade of the Black Empire, and plunged it into the wolf's neck.
A few seconds later, it stopped struggling.
Allen let go. The rain and wolf blood mixed together, instantly diluted.
Just as he was about to stand up—
"Darling."
That familiar voice sounded in his ear.
"How could you use me to stain myself with such filthy, lowly blood?"
There was resentment in the voice.
"What a faithless man. I gave you power, I gave you my favor, and this is how you repay me?"
Allen rolled his eyes.
She finally spoke. Xal'atath had finally shown herself. If she hadn't, he might have started to wonder what happened to her.
"Don't you dare roll your eyes at me."
The voice suddenly turned dangerous.
"Rolling your eyes right in front of me? Showing contempt for your master? Hmm?"
But then, her tone softened.
"But... I'll let it slide this time, my little boy."
Then, as if she knew exactly what Allen was thinking, she spoke again.
"Your master is very weak right now. I can't keep my eyes on you every second. I need to sleep too..."
Allen didn't bother to respond to Xal'atath, only asking quietly, "Can you tell what these six children are?"
Xal'atath, however, got angry. "Do you really think I'm some kind of wish-granting god? Your first words to me are a question, without even pledging your loyalty!"
"I am forever loyal, my lady. Ailan is always your most faithful slave, willing to give everything for you."
Xal'atath was finally satisfied. "That's more like it. They're just ghosts."
Did I need you to tell me they were ghosts?
Allen really wanted to blurt out a sarcastic remark, but he held it in.
Xal'atath let out a cheerful, tinkling laugh, as if seeing Allen choke on his own words brought her immense joy.
Just then, the children moved again.
They left the clearing and continued north. Allen hurriedly followed, crossing one patch of forest after another. The mud underfoot was getting deeper and deeper, every step requiring immense effort to pull his foot free.
Finally, the forest ended.
Before him was a lake.
The water churned under the torrential rain, countless raindrops hammering the surface, kicking up dense splashes.
When lightning flashed, he could see the lake surface glowing with an eerie, faint light, as if something was surging beneath the water.
The lake at Goldshire should be Crystal Lake.
The six children walked to the edge of the lake, then turned around and grinned at Allen. Their smiles were innocent, like children playing a game.
"Come play—"
"Come play our game—"
"It's so much fun—"
Their voices drifted through the rainy night, and then, in an instant, their figures vanished.
Allen stared at the spot where the children disappeared. It was a muddy patch of shore by the lake, overgrown with some weeds.
He walked over and crouched down.
Then, he began digging through the mud with his bare hands.
He hadn't dug for long before his fingers touched something hard.
He pushed away the surrounding soil. It was a bone.
Buried very shallow, so shallow it was almost right beneath the surface.
Allen held the bone, examining it closely under the flash of lightning. He couldn't tell if it was the bone of a small animal, or...
Just at that moment, a hand suddenly landed on his shoulder.