Chapter 20: Room 102, Cursed Room – ‘Mansion of Fear’ (6)
[User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 7
Current Location: Floor 1, Room 102 (Cursed Room – Mansion of Fear)
Sages Advice: 3]
We arrived at the boat.
I took another look at the bottom right side where a small crack had formed, allowing water to seep in. After being left to fend for itself in the storm overnight, the crack had widened just a tad more.
Through that now gaping crack, a lot more water was pouring in.
“About a third of the boat is filled with water now. We really need to get this water out first before any repairs can begin. Thank goodness we brought a pump!”
And thus, the pumping in the midst of the storm commenced.
This is so hard.
Of course, since there was a clear partition between the inside and outside of the boat, we didn’t have to deal with that hellish Sisyphean nightmare of water endlessly flowing back in as we drew it out. But still, pumping out whatever massive volume of water was already sloshing around inside was arduous in itself. I regretted telling Jinchul-hyung to stay behind.
After about two and a half hours, we finally started seeing the bottom of the boat again. The butler, equipped with various tools, began repairs on the leaky crack.
I took a moment to collapse onto the floor, trying to catch my breath, when the butler stood back up.
“Mr. Butler, have you finished fixing the boat?”
“It looks like this will do. It doesn’t seem like any more water is coming in. Of course, considering how much water has soaked into the materials, this boat is pretty much done for. But thankfully, if it can hold out for just a day or two longer, we can still make it out to safety.”
“Then can we leave today?”
That seems pretty unlikely. If we try to venture out now, with this slightly dying boat in these raging storms, we’ll just be feeding the fish in the lake! I doubt the storm will rage on forever. You’re going to have to wait another day or two.”
So, besides the repairs, it seemed we still needed at least another day or two for us to escape. Since I didn’t know much about boats, I didn’t have much to argue with.
Dragging my exhausted body back home with the butler, I gingerly steered the topic back to what had happened earlier with Ahri.
“About what happened with Ahri earlier, as her ally, I apologize on behalf of my party. Jinchul-hyung has been a nervous wreck since what happened to Miss Elena and Eunsol-noona.”
“Don’t mention it! It’s only natural. Two people dying in one day? I’d say it’s weirder for him to keep a cool head.”
“Ahri seemed really angry for a moment.”
“She’s still just a child. When she was young, back when the church was still functional, the priest took good care of her. But after the conflicts that followed ruined the church, the priest disappeared and she’s been lonely ever since, which explains why she may have developed a tougher exterior.”
A laugh almost slipped out.
She looked young enough to be around 13 or 14, yet the butler said she had lived here even longer than that. How on earth would a child like that attend elementary school? I couldn’t quite picture a school existing in such a remote area.
Of course, if I started picking apart the absurdities of this ‘realism’, questioning how on earth there’s a church in such an isolated spot where the mansion is the only residence nearby wouldn’t be the least bit logical.
But honestly, I didn’t want to dig into all of that right now. More importantly… While I was somewhat expecting this, I felt like I finally understood the meanings of the two keywords that Eunsol-noona dropped earlier.
Maid. Cathedral.
One was a person and the other was a place. Apart from bringing the person to the place, I couldn’t think of much else, and it so happened that she mentioned having visited the church often ever since she was little.
I guess I should find an excuse to take Ahri to the cathedral when we get back.
Arriving at the mansion, I noticed the atmosphere had eased somewhat.
At least Hyung wasn’t yelling anymore, and Seungyub was buzzing around Ahri like an overzealous sparrow, helping so much that it was hard to tell who the guest was and who was the employee.
Honestly, I couldn’t wrap my head around how a child barely in her teens was managing a mansion.
In the wake of two lives lost, no one could whip up a grand meal. So, aside from our camping meal on the first day, we had sandwiches for every meal after that, and strangely enough, nobody complained about it.
At that moment, while munching on a simple sandwich, I pondered.
What kind of excuse could I come up with to take Ahri to the church? A conclusion came to me quite quickly.
“Ahri! Do you have a moment?”
“Thanks to Seungyub, I’m free! Is there something you need help with?”
Her previous sharp attitude had vanished like a mirage, returning instead to her lively self.
“Oh, it’s nothing too serious. Mr. Butler mentioned you used to frequent the church when you were younger. I need to find a few items there. Would you mind guiding me?”
“Of course! When do we leave?”
“Given the weather, I think it would be best to head out as soon as we can.”
“Okay! I’ll get ready right away.”
It wasn’t long before Ahri and I set off from the mansion once again.
As I turned to look back, I couldn’t help but admire her. They say love is blind, but even with a raincoat that covered everything but her face, this extraordinary girl looked like a fairy.
Is that why Seungyub can’t seem to pull himself together?
Suppressing a sigh, we walked toward the cathedral when Ahri unexpectedly halted.
“Are your legs hurting? Should we take a break?”
“No, it’s just…”
“Just what?”
“I feel like my head is clearing up a bit, and… it reminded me of memories from the past, back when I used to wander around with grandpa. Though I ended up settling in the mansion after I snapped back to reality.”
?
Had she moved around a lot during her childhood? It was strangely uncanny that someone her age would be reminiscing like this. Or was it because I was taking her towards the church, as suggested in noona’s message?
Once inside the church, nothing seemed to happen right away.
Ahri wore an expression of wonder as she admired the cathedral’s interior.
If I left her alone, who knows what kind of change might happen? Staring doesn’t seem to have any impact, so I decided to first head to where the bell was located.
The bell tower at the top of the cathedral appeared to have been added after the building was constructed, making the climb quite difficult and awkward.
Instead of steps, a rickety wooden ladder awaited—one that had clearly suffered from neglect and rain, making it all the more unsettling. After battling gravity and nerves, I finally reached the bell tower.
It was fascinating.
Considering the state of the cathedral and the bell tower, it made no sense that anyone would have maintained this bell, yet it gleamed mysteriously. Strange, unrecognizable symbols covered its surface.
I had never encountered a bell like this before.
It was most certainly not a normal bell. Sure, Eunsol-noona mentioned something about a bell in her message, but even disregarding that, the way it looked was just… something else. It wasn’t particularly big either.
I might not know how it works exactly, but bells are meant to be rung, right? I decided to give it a go to uncover whatever secrets it might hold.
Searching around, I hastily found some scrap material to use as a replacement for the deteriorated connection, crammed it in, and somehow managed to get the bell hanging.
Then, I picked up a nearby piece of metal and lightly tapped the bell.
Ding! Dong!
Rather than a crisp, clear tone, it produced a rough clang instead. Who knows if it was the bell’s fault or mine?
And then, it happened.
A sharp scream reverberated through the air.
“Ahhhhh-! Kyaaaaaaaah!”
I raced down the tower, back to the main chamber, only to find Ahri rolling around on the floor, clutching her head.
A bright idea struck my mind.
Was that the answer? Did the three keywords that noona had given me—cathedral, maid, bell—mean I needed to bring Ahri to the cathedral to ring the bell?
How on earth did she figure this out before her untimely demise?
That’s when Ahri suddenly sprang upright and locked eyes with me.
Her doll-like features persisted but her pair of dark red eyes sparked something different.
Yet, it was undeniably a different person.
She wore a colder expression now, her gaze sharpened like a dagger.
She looked nearly identical, but even subtle shifts in demeanor and expression turned her into someone altogether different.
“Looks like you’ve made it this far, huh, Oppa?”
Wait… what? Her tone had suddenly shifted, dramatically. It was reminiscent of how she shouted at Jinchul-hyung earlier—mocking.
“But what now? You’re too late. I’m already beyond saving. But listen closely. I can still sing the hymn!”
“The hymn? What on earth are you talking about?”
It was at that moment her eyes rolled back in her head.
Black, foul-smelling smoke oozed from her twisted mouth aimed at the ceiling.
Ahh, I’ve glimpsed the deep pit.
I’ve heard the cries of the unborn.
The father in heaven cherishes you all, yet has denied even a birthplace to the child of the lowest place.
The child is crawling up! Watch it squirm!
Do you see it? How can you not see?
Two have been offered up, and now only three remain.
All will be in balance again.
The time is drawing near for the one who wasn’t born to seize the positions of those who were!
A prophecy? A curse? Or was it that “hymn” she rambled about?
After spitting out a bunch of bizarre, hard-to-interpret lines, Ahri collapsed into a faint. With no other options, I scooped her up onto my back and trudged back to the mansion deep in thought.
What did it all mean? I needed to interpret this with as much of an ‘occult’ angle as I could manage.
Even as someone woefully inexperienced with the occult, I could sense that we were witnessing the birth of a devilish entity that thrived on sacrifices.
“The child of the deepest pit, the one who could not be born.”
The reason this terrible ‘song’ was termed a hymn, was likely because it was a hymn glorifying a demon.
“To the two that were given.”
This seemed to refer to Elena and Eunsol-noona.
What confounded me was the part about there being three remaining.
The survivors included me, Cha Jinchul, Yu Songee, and Park Seungyub.
Did this mean it only had to eliminate three out of the four of us? Or could it mean something else entirely?
Ideas began forming in my mind.
This was a thought I had harbored since Elena’s death. Initially, I set it aside, aligning with Eunsol-noona’s thoughts on burying it deep.
Yet slowly but surely, everything clicked into place.
I pieced those elements together.
I could feel clarity sharpening—what was threatening us? The devoted hand and the devil that sought to be born through sacrificial offerings.
There were plenty of revelations, yet still one crucial piece of knowledge eluded me.
How were we supposed to respond to this?
It was after arriving at the mansion that we found ourselves with the third victim.
Recently, those following the story may find some parts a bit puzzling. But I assure you, by the end of this episode, everything will become clear!
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.