Chapter 53 - Our Horror House <3>
—Anna, who had collapsed in the chair, slowly stood up after a while. Sara cried out, thinking Anna had been saved, but the standing Anna didn't even glance at Sara, instead staring at her own palms.
"I did it, a body. I've gotten a body."
It was certainly Anna's voice, but it was not Anna. The one inside Anna's body was undoubtedly Anna Hall.
"…Oh, Evans-sama! Your Annie is here!"
With a feverish expression, Anna Hall, who had borrowed Anna's body—affectionately known as Annie—exited the room as if dancing, light and unsteady on her feet.
Left behind in the drawing-room, Sara continued to thrash about desperately inside the lamp. She had to somehow get near Anna, or Franz and Ritz.
Even Sara, who wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, could tell this was a major crisis.
"Kiiiiiiiiiiii<"
The lamp swayed just a little. A little more. Sara continued to shake her body desperately. The initial sway gradually intensified, turning into a clattering jolt.
"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii<"
After a considerable amount of time, the shaking reached its peak. It was about to fall. Sara mustered all her strength and slammed her body against the lamp's glass.
"Kiiiiii! Ki?"
The lamp fell.
Sara's objective was achieved, but the lamp rolled off in an unexpected direction. It continued to roll to the edge of the table and fell to the floor.
"Ki, ki, kiiiiiii!"
The lamp hit the floor with a loud crash and shattered into pieces. The sound echoed through the silent room.
All that remained was the metal fitting that had held the glass. Sara had finally escaped the lamp.
And then Sara thought… or rather, was bewildered. With her strength, it seemed impossible to open the door.
As she pondered in front of the door, Sara finally had an idea. Burn it… she thought.
Of course, she didn't consider what would happen after. Even for a Salamander, a juvenile one didn't have the mental capacity for that.
She opened her mouth wide, took a deep breath, and was about to spew flames at the door when it opened inward. Sara was sent tumbling backward as if pushed by the door.
"Anna!"
It was Ritz.
The two of them had finished exploring most of the second floor and were about to go up to the roof to remove the fireplace lid when they heard the sound of the lamp breaking, realized something was wrong, and rushed back.
Behind Ritz, of course, was Franz, who had desperately followed.
But even if he knew that, Sara's flame couldn't be stopped so suddenly. Sara, who had tumbled onto her back, released the air she had inhaled as a flame straight at Ritz.
"Whoa!"
Ritz, caught off guard, managed to dodge it by a hair's breadth. If it had hit him, he would have been severely burned.
"Th-that was close!"
Ritz, who had dodged to the side, looked into the room, breaking out in a cold sweat. And his eyes froze on one point.
"Are you okay, Ritz!"
Franz, who entered the room after him, was on guard. He must have thought it was an enemy.
Ritz, who had been showered with flames, froze as he looked at what was in his line of sight. The culprit of this flame was there.
Yes, right in front of the two of them was Sara, still on her back.
"Was that you, Sara?"
Ritz, knowing full well he wouldn't get a proper answer, couldn't help but ask Sara herself.
"Ri-kkii! Fla-kii! Ann-kii!"
As expected, he couldn't understand. But Sara seemed to be trying to convey something. Although he had no idea what Sara was trying to say, a glance around the room gave him a vague idea of the situation.
The lamp, fallen and broken on the floor, an agitated Sara, and… the vanished Anna.
"Anna's gone…"
Franz looked around the room, pale. He was even peeking inside the fireplace, knowing she wasn't there.
Even Franz must have known that the unwell Anna wouldn't leave Sara behind and go out alone. In that case, had she been taken?
Ritz couldn't help but stare at Sara. Sara was the only one who had seen everything. Yes, she had only seen it. She couldn't tell them what had happened.
"Ritz, what are we going to do? I told you we shouldn't have left Anna alone!"
"Calm down, Franz. Think about it."
"Think about what?"
Ritz decided to calm the slightly panicked Franz with logic. With Franz, it was a faster way than trying to soothe him emotionally.
"Listen, we heard the sound of Sara dropping the lamp and rushed here. That took two minutes at most. It's impossible to take Anna from this room in that time. Right?"
Perhaps to calm himself, Franz took a small breath and nodded. He seemed to understand that panicking wouldn't get them anywhere.
"We didn't hear any loud noises other than the sound of this lamp breaking. That's also true, right?"
"Right."
While exploring the house, the two of them had not neglected to pay attention to the first floor where Anna was. Therefore, they could confidently say that there had been no loud noises that they could hear. If so, what did that mean?
"There are two possibilities. One, someone silently took the sleeping Anna away. But I think that would be difficult."
Compared to Ritz and Franz, Anna was an unusually light sleeper. Even if she was feeling unwell, it was unlikely she wouldn't wake up.
"But what if it was a spirit magic user who could put Anna to sleep?"
"That's not possible. If so, they wouldn't have just left Sara, who had seen everything, here like this."
"I see…"
In that case, there was only one possibility left. Ritz felt that this possibility was high. But he had no idea why.
Why Anna…?
As he saw the pensive expression on Ritz's face, Franz, as if finally hitting upon the remaining possibility, cried out.
"…Anna left the room on her own?"
"Yeah, probably."
That was the only way she could have disappeared from this room silently, without making a loud noise. But a question remained. Anna had no reason to do such a thing.
"Why did Anna leave?"
Franz asked as he stood with his arms crossed, lost in thought. Even if he was asked that, there was no way Ritz would know.
"…I wonder why."
"You know…"
At Ritz's flippant reply, Franz scowled. But no matter how much they wracked their brains, they would never know. Thinking about it was just a waste of time. Their only option was to find Anna and ask her directly.
Once that was decided, there was no time to dawdle here.
"Anyway, let's search this area thoroughly. She must be in the mansion somewhere."
"You're right."
As Franz put Sara into the lamp, which was now just a metal frame, Ritz spread out the house's floor plan.
There were four rooms on the first floor. This drawing-room, a dining room, a sunroom with a large window connected to the dining room, and a study. In addition, there were a kitchen and a pantry. And apparently, there was a building for the servants outside, accessible through the back door.
"For now, let's start with the room next door and go clockwise."
"So… here?"
The room Franz pointed to was the study.
"That's right. Study, kitchen area, dining room, sunroom, and then back to this room."
"And if she's not there?"
As was typical of Franz, who tended to think of the worst, he voiced the worst-case scenario. Swallowing the words, 'You're being pessimistic,' Ritz shrugged.
"…We'll search from the second floor to the servants' quarters outside."
"And if that doesn't work?"
"You know…"
When he looked at Franz in exasperation, he could see that he was hopelessly discouraged. So he deliberately admonished him.
"What's the point of being discouraged before we even start looking?"
"You're right… forget I said anything."
"…"
Silently, Ritz patted Franz's shoulder. This house certainly had a strange atmosphere. It was natural for Franz to become pessimistic.
Ritz didn't like this situation either. After all, things had been a little strange ever since they entered this house. The chain that suddenly came off, the carefully removed chain at the entrance, the door that opened and closed on its own…
He could understand feeling creeped out and pessimistic, but their only remaining option was to find Anna. They couldn't just leave her behind.
"Alright, let's go."
With a deliberately cheerful declaration, Ritz opened the door to the drawing-room. The hallway was already dim.
"Franz, let me borrow Sara."
When he took Sara's lamp and held it up, the old Western-style mansion jumped into his vision with even greater presence.
"If Anna is just trying to scare us, she's going to get a beating, right?"
Muttering something dangerous, Ritz reached for the door of the adjacent study.
"You're right."
Franz also agreed with that dangerous statement. If he were to be scared now, Franz's heart might actually stop.
Ritz knew just how much Franz was pushing himself, having seen him terrified in the deserted village of Laria.
"I'm opening it, okay?"
"Yeah."
There was no one in the room that was opened all at once. The documents referred to it as a study, but most of the furniture had probably been sold off, leaving it just an empty room. There was so much dust on the floor that it would leave footprints.
With this amount of dust, it was highly unlikely that Anna was here. If someone had recently entered, the dust would have been more scattered.
"A miss, huh?"
"Yeah."
The two gently closed the door.
"Alright, next up is the kitchen area."
Franz nodded at Ritz's cheerful statement.
But despite their search, Anna was nowhere to be found on the first floor…
V
"This is strange…"
Back in the drawing-room, the two sat in chairs, dazed. The door to the drawing-room was left wide open.
Franz's energy was already spent, but Ritz, while appearing dazed, seemed to be listening for faint sounds through the doorway.
Ritz, who had started saying he was hungry, was eating the food they had brought next to him. Franz had no appetite whatsoever. How could he swallow food in a situation like this, with a friend missing in a haunted house? He envied that kind of thick skin.
After finishing his second sandwich, Ritz peered at the floor plan he had spread out. Ritz was tapping the floor plan with his finger, lost in thought.
Could it be that Ritz was also panicking, though he didn't show it on his face? Thinking that, he was able to look at the floor plan a little more calmly.
There was only one way to get here from the second floor. But from this drawing-room, you could go to various places, so if there was a time lag, Anna could go somewhere without them seeing her.
But he didn't understand why she had to disappear on her own.
Suddenly, an image of Anna's strange behavior came to mind. Anna had said she could 'hear a woman's voice.' Franz hadn't been able to hear it, but what if that woman's voice belonged to the ghost that was said to cry at night?
Had Anna been called away by the ghost?
In his imagination, a female ghost with a somewhat shadowy smile beckoned to Anna with a pale face, saying, 'Come here, come here.'
A chill ran through his body. This was bad, the more he thought about it, the scarier it got. Goosebumps were rising on his arms.
He truly hated incomprehensible beings. He wanted to say, 'Give me a break.' But there was absolutely no way he could leave Anna behind and run away.
"…Hmm."
Ritz folded his arms and groaned. He had a complicated expression on his face. If you looked closely, it almost seemed like he was regretting something.
"What in the world is going on?"
He sighed and, forgetting that Franz was watching, scratched his head vigorously. Ritz was probably also confused by the incomprehensible situation.
Franz carefully re-wrapped the sandwich that he hadn't touched and put it back in the basket.
"Should we look around a little more? I don't have an appetite anyway."
"You're right."
Ritz, who had already filled his stomach, seemed to have no objection to resuming their search.
"Alright, let's go."
Ritz, who had stood up, suddenly froze. He remained silent.
"What?"
"Shh! I just heard something."
"Eh?"
Franz also strained his ears. He couldn't hear anything. Ritz's ears, due to their length, were slightly better than others'.
"…Glass… the sound of dishes?"
Ritz muttered. But Franz could only hear the same silence as before.
"I can't hear anything."
He muttered, but Ritz didn't turn his gaze toward him and walked straight in the direction of his target.
"Wait for me!"
He followed after him with the Sara lamp. He didn't want to be left here alone.
"That sound is the sound of setting dishes."
Ritz said as he walked a step ahead.
"Dishes?"
"That's right, the pantry. My ears don't lie."
"Wh…"
Why the pantry? Franz swallowed his words. If Anna were to go somewhere, it would be the dining room, pantry, or kitchen, wouldn't it? She wasn't there before, but had she finally gotten hungry and couldn't hold back anymore?
He couldn't help but think that.
They headed for the pantry, relying on the uncertain light of the Sara lamp. From the layout, it was on the right side, across the hallway that continued from the entrance hall.
As they approached the pantry, Franz could clearly hear the sound of dishes clinking against each other. In addition to the sound of pottery, there was also the sound of metal. It was as if someone was preparing a meal.
"I'm opening it."
"Yeah."
Ritz quietly opened the door without making a sound. Franz had expected to see a slightly hungry, apologetic Anna there, but his expectation was completely off.
"…"
The two of them silently peered into the room from the gap in the door without a word. All they could see was the back of a maid.
A knee-length skirt, a white apron, long, straight hair, and a lace hair ornament.
The woman with her back to them was polishing dishes in the dim light of a candlestick. No, was she a little too small to be an adult woman?
Ritz closed the door silently and let out a big sigh. Behind him, Franz was in turmoil, silently thinking, 'It's a ghost, there was a ghost.'
He realized his knees were trembling. He desperately tried to hide the trembling so Ritz wouldn't notice. He had finally seen a real one.
But what came out of Ritz's mouth was something completely unexpected.
"Why is there a person here?"
A person?! It's a ghost! He swallowed the words just in time and muttered, hiding his agitation.
"I don't know."
Unlike Anna, aside from her small stature and youthful figure, her calm back exuded a mature atmosphere.
Still, he didn't understand. Why in the world was a ghost in a place like this?
It was then that Ritz, as if realizing something, looked up and straight at Franz.
"…Hey, Franz, if you think about it, there's no way there's a maid in this house, right?"
Ritz asked Franz as if for confirmation. He was starting to get a bad feeling.
"Ah, you're right."
"First of all, it was sealed with a chain, so no one could get in. That's also true, right?"
"Yeah."
Ritz opened the door slightly and pointed at the ghost with its back to them. It was scary, but he couldn't help but peek in with Ritz.
"Then the one over there has to be Anna, otherwise it's strange."
"You're right, but…"
When he nodded, Ritz lowered his voice considerably.
"If it's not Anna, then that's the one that cries at night…"
"Stop it!"
Ritz hastily covered the mouth of Franz, who had unintentionally shouted in denial.
"Y-You idiot! She'll hear you!"
But it was already too late.
"Who's there? Is someone there?"
The maid replied in the mellow tone of a mature woman… but her voice was familiar.
"That voice…"
"Yeah, that's Anna, right?"
Ritz quietly opened the pantry door. The maid was facing them. Franz stared at the maid from behind Ritz.
Her long, straight hair was red. And the eyes that peered at them were green…
"Anna? What are you do…"
Anna dodged Ritz as he approached, calling out to her.
"Who are you? What did you come here for?"
"…Anna?"
Anna glared at the still-approaching Ritz. Her appearance was Anna's, but the atmosphere she projected was completely different, that of a mature woman.
Though she had the same green eyes and the same face as always, her gaze held a touch of melancholy and even a hint of allure.
He had also never seen such a distrustful expression on Anna's face. Anna was always a good-natured person who wouldn't even notice if she was being deceived.
Her attitude was so different from the usual Anna that even Ritz froze with his hand outstretched toward her.
"Ritz… what on earth is wrong with Anna…?"
The words he muttered were a question, but he wasn't seeking an answer. They had slipped out unconsciously. His blood had run so cold that he was on the verge of fainting.
Ghosts were scary, but seeing a friend possessed like this was even scarier.
"Looking at her like this, Anna really does look like a woman her age."
Ritz's completely out-of-place, dazed remark made him snap.
"That's not it! That's Anna!"
Because it was that Anna, it was all the more terrifying. A ghost, and a mature woman at that, was inside the cheerful Anna. Was there anything more frightening?
"…I know that, but…"
"Then take this seriously!"
When he glared up at Ritz as if about to grab him, Ritz let out a small sigh and directed a quiet gaze at the woman.
"Who are you?"
Contrary to the retreating Franz, Ritz slowly closed in on the woman inside Anna's body.
"…I have no need to give my name to someone who has entered this mansion without permission."
"Alright. Then I have one more question."
"…"
The woman didn't answer, but Ritz took her silence as affirmation and continued his questions.
"Why are you using Anna's body?"
"…You two, you're this girl's companions, aren't you?"
"That's right."
Suddenly, Anna's expression changed. It was an expression of intense anger, colored with hatred.
"You're planning to separate me from Evans-sama, aren't you? I know you came to this house for that purpose."
"…What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb!"
It seemed they were being misunderstood. Who in the world was this Evans?
"Wait! We really…"
Without listening to Ritz's desperate attempts to explain, the woman in Anna's form continued.
"I will take this girl's body. It is your punishment for coming to this house. It is retribution for trying to tear me and Evans-sama apart."
"Listen to me!"
Shouting, Ritz took Anna's hand. For a moment, Ritz's face clouded over. The woman with Anna's face cried out and struggled, but Ritz held her hand firmly.
Ritz pulled the resisting maid's body closer. Then he wrapped his arms around Anna, as if to envelop her in his chest.
As he watched with bated breath, wondering what would happen, Ritz placed his hand on the back of Anna's neck, checked something for a moment, and then his face visibly relaxed in relief. He had no idea what he was doing.
Ritz held the struggling woman's body tighter.
"What are you doing! Let go of me!"
She thrashed about, but her body was that of the petite Anna. Once caught by Ritz, there was no way she could escape.
"I'm telling you to listen!"
"No! Evans-sama! Evans-sama<"
"I feel like the bad guy here…"
At Ritz's dejected murmur, Franz let out a sigh of relief. If he was still making jokes, they might be able to handle this. If Ritz could just carry Anna out of this house and take her to a priest of the Main Temple of Light, she would be fine.
"Just calm down. All you have to do is leave Anna's body. I don't want to do this either."
Ritz said this while still holding the thrashing woman, but she showed no sign of listening to him and was struggling even more violently.
"Hey, that's enough…"
Just as Ritz spoke to the woman with a hint of anger, a warm wind blew around them, clinging to them.
Suddenly, the strength drained from his knees as if it had been sucked away.
"Wh-what…"
His vision was slowly blurring. He could see Ritz's eyes widen as he looked at him, but he couldn't do anything.
He wanted to say, 'Be careful,' but he couldn't even speak.
"What is this…"
As Ritz muttered, a man's voice reached his ears, carried on that warm wind.
A low, and gentle voice…
'Annie, my Annie… come back…'
"Evans-sama."
The woman called Annie inside Anna's body slipped out of Ritz's seemingly powerless arms with a dreamy, rapturous expression.
"Wait! Give Anna back!"
Ritz, who reached for Anna's body with his last bit of strength, was sent flying by something like a shockwave.
"Ugh!"
It was a surprise attack.
Anna's figure was at the source of that shockwave. The shockwave was working to protect Anna. That meant the owner of that voice had released it…
Ritz also collapsed to the floor. Ah, Ritz is done for too, he thought, somewhat detached. If Ritz was done for, this was not an opponent Franz could face.
In his fading consciousness, he faintly heard a voice.
"Ritz, Franz… help me…"
He didn't know where it came from, but it was definitely Anna's voice.
"Your Excellency, Ritz-san! Get a hold of yourself!"
"Ugh…"
"Are you alright?"
Ritz opened his eyes as his body was shaken violently. The light streaming in from the window was dazzling. As he slowly sat up, Ritz finally recognized the person shaking him.
"…Kenny?"
"Yes, sir."
"Where's Franz?"
Looking around, he saw that Kenny's adjutant from their journey from Faldina, Gordon, was with Franz. It seemed he was alright.
"Damn it, we got hit by a surprise attack."
"A surprise attack?"
Without answering Kenny's question, Ritz asked him.
"Anna's not around here, is she?"
"No, sir. She is not."
Accompanied by the adjutant, Franz finally made his way over to Ritz.
"…What should we do about Anna?"
Franz murmured, looking completely worn out.
"…We have a lead. Let's investigate for now."
Ritz said, then shook his head. His neck was sore from collapsing on the floor for so long.
"What on earth happened?"
Ritz stood up and, while stretching his body, briefly explained the situation to Kenny.
As they listened, Kenny and Gordon's faces grew paler and paler. By the time he finished speaking, he was completely white.
"That is why I told you it would be better not to!"
Perhaps he had been taking it too lightly.
But according to the rumors, the ghost in this house just cried, didn't it? The impression was somehow different from what he had heard.
That ghost had taken over Anna's body, and that mysterious voice had launched a shockwave at Ritz.
Something was different…
That sense of unease swirled within Ritz. Perhaps after the house was donated to the royal family and some time had passed, the ghost had acquired some kind of power.
For now, their leads were the two names, 'Annie' and 'Evans'. From here, they would have to investigate what had happened in this house.
"Kenny, what's the surname of the original owner of this house?"
"Yes, sir. The Clayton Family."
"Then, quickly find a man named Evans Clayton and a maid of that house named Annie."
"Quickly… sir?"
"Yeah. We're going in again tonight."
"<"
Kenny, Gordon, and Franz, who had been listening, were left speechless.
"Tonight?"
Franz confirmed with Ritz in a bewildered voice. His face was admonishing Ritz, asking what they would do if the investigation wasn't finished in time. But there was a point Ritz couldn't concede.
"Tonight."
"That's reckless! We should wait at least one night."
Franz was also exhausted. He would like to do that if possible, but Ritz had a responsibility to Anna, having been asked by Father Anton.
That wasn't all. Ritz was quite fond of Anna. While he sometimes found her troublesome, he was never bored with her around, wondering what she would do next, and her stamina made her a fun traveling companion.
Moreover, like Ritz, she was a demi-human with a long lifespan. Ritz felt a faint sense of kinship with Anna.
"…Anna's arm… it was cold."
When he muttered this, Franz fell silent with a dark expression.
"…"
"She had a pulse, so she's alive. But if this goes on for a long time, she might fall into a state of suspended animation. That would put her life in danger."
Kenny and the others also fell silent. It seemed they understood the current situation. In any case, there was no time. If the ghost only appeared at night, they had no choice but to try again tonight.
Suddenly, Anna's voice, like a trick of the ear, came back to him.
That incredibly energetic Anna had said, 'Help me.' Without anyone noticing, he glanced toward the back of the pantry. The truth was, he grudged even the time they were spending like this. He wanted to rescue her, no matter what.
"You're right. Tonight it is."
Franz nodded as if convinced.
"…So, I'm counting on you, Kenny. Evans Clayton and his servant, Annie."
"…Understood. Then, after escorting you to the palace, I will immediately…"
Kenny said with a rigid expression.
"That'll be too late. Go right now."
"I cannot do that."
"Please, I'm asking you."
"I cannot."
Kenny declared, perhaps concerned for the still-unsteady Franz and the exhausted Ritz. Kenny understood the situation with Anna and Franz well, and it was certain that he had grown fond of the two he had traveled with.
But Kenny's duty was, above all, to be the minister's guard. So there was a line he couldn't cross.
Sensing Kenny's thoughts, Ritz smiled at him. There was only one way to move someone as stubborn as Kenny. And it was a method Ritz hated the most.
"Then I command you in the name of the Minister. Inspectorate Platoon Leader Kenny Fort. Find Evans Clayton immediately."
"<"
"Ritz!"
Franz raised his voice in protest, but Ritz deliberately ignored him. Instead, he stared intently at Kenny.
"You can hear me, can't you? It's an order."
"Yes, sir!"
With a tragic expression, Kenny raised his head and bowed deeply to Ritz.
If it was an order, he had no choice but to obey. That was a habit so deeply ingrained in him that it was painful. Ritz knew well that there was no way he could defy it.
Besides, he was of a higher rank than the Chamberlain who had requested Kenny's escort. If there was an order from the minister, it couldn't be helped if he broke the Chamberlain's order.
From Ritz's perspective, by giving the order himself, he was also preventing Kenny from being reprimanded by the Chamberlain.
It seemed Franz didn't understand at all, but Kenny seemed to, and his expression was close to a bitter smile.
"Understood."
To the back of Kenny as he left with his adjutant, Ritz threw some words.
"My bad. I'm counting on you, Kenny."
"Yes, sir."
Feeling Franz's stare on his back, Ritz stretched widely. His shoulders were still cracking.
"For now, let's go back to the drawing-room and eat the rest of the sandwiches."
"Ritz… you shouldn't have said that to Kenny-san."
So that was what he wanted to say.
"Hmm… you're right…"
"Don't try to change the subject."
"…You'll understand someday, Franz. The chain of command is a pretty complicated thing, you know."
"…I don't get it."
Seeing Franz's still-scowling face, Ritz laughed.
"Well, you're probably happier not getting it."
"…"
Franz glanced at Ritz, then left the pantry, clinging to the wall.
"Hey, let me give you a hand."
"…I'm fine."
Franz started walking, still touching the wall, in a bad mood. It seemed he had made him angry.
"Hey, I said…"
"Leave me alone."
With a helpless shrug, he slowly walked after Franz. After a considerable amount of time, they finally reached the drawing-room, and Ritz picked up the remaining sandwich.
"It's gotten all hard."
There was no point in complaining, so he brought it to his mouth as it was. But Franz didn't even pick his up.
He knew that saying anything more here would be counterproductive, so he stopped trying to persuade Franz any further.
Once his stomach was a little full, he spoke to Franz, who was staring blankly outside.
"For now, we have two choices: go back to the palace or sleep in the drawing-room. What do you want to do?"
"Here is fine."
"You're right."
As long as Anna was trapped here, Ritz had no intention of leaving. It seemed Franz felt the same.
"Well then, let's rest until Kenny comes back with something."
"But…"
"If you don't rest when you can, you'll regret it later."
With that, he lay down on the sofa and quickly closed his eyes. He knew that in times like these, pretending to sleep first was the most effective method.
After a long sigh, he confirmed with one half-open eye that Franz was pulling out a blanket, and then he closed his eyes for real.