Chapter 68 A Rare Commodity to Harvest "I rarely talk this much, except when it comes to..."
I ignored him and stretched out my right hand. The instant it touched the fireplace, a tidal wave of vengeful spirits screaming and smelling of blood rushed towards me, fierce and overwhelming... I was so frightened that I fell to the ground.
Yes, I'm pretty sure it was the scream of a vengeful spirit—exactly the same scream as the dolls in the room of the Black Castle back in the day.
Is the story of Black Castle not over yet?
"What's wrong with you?" Mamboa asked curiously, reaching out to touch the fireplace as well.
I looked at him, both surprised and frightened. "Didn't you hear me?"
"What did you hear?"
“The cries of vengeful spirits,” I said directly, “the same cries of the dolls in the castle of the Land of Death back then.”
Mamboa shuddered slightly. "You heard the doll's cry?"
"yes."
“Who exactly are you?” Manberia stared intently at me. “From the moment you appeared in the castle that imprisoned us, fate began a strange trajectory.”
“I’ve been searching for the answer to why I’m here.” I avoided his gaze.
Mamboy didn't press further, but instead touched the fireplace. "Do you know the secret of this thing?"
I was startled. "What secret?"
"I don't know, that's why I'm asking you."
"I don't know either."
Mamboya smiled slightly and changed the subject, "Do you know why this room is off-limits?"
Why?
“You may have seen me before, the time I met you,” he said with a slight smile. “My father was a naturally philandering man. One day, he had an affair with the maid my mother trusted most. My mother was devastated when she found out and begged my father to break off the relationship with this maid, but they refused. In fact, my mother was this maid’s savior. Back when she was a tavern maid, she was harassed by a group of thugs, and my mother rescued her and kept her as a maid. But instead of being grateful, she had an affair with my father, which caused my mother great distress.”
At this point, a strange smile appeared on Manberia's lips.
"And then?" I asked. His version was different from Dailin's. Dailin said that she had saved the Countess from being chased by a group of bandits, and that's how the Countess took her in as a maid.
"And then?" Manberia scoffed. "What do you think would happen to a woman like that? She was obsessed with becoming a countess. During an argument with my mother, she grabbed a fruit knife to hurt her, but my father stabbed her in the throat. But her vengeful spirit wouldn't rest after her death; it always haunted this room, giving my mother nightmares. My mother couldn't bear it anymore and moved out. Later, occasionally, guests would stay here and find ghostly figures wandering around at night, screaming in terror. From then on, this room was sealed off, and the door was kept closed except for cleaning every few months."
I remained silent for a long time. What I said was completely different from what Daisy had said.
Delin said that in order to marry the Prime Minister's only daughter, the Earl did not hesitate to let the daughter poison the Countess, and even killed Delin himself.
Who is lying?
"What happened to your mother later?" I asked again.
Mamboa laughed, his purple eyes sparkling.
"You seem quite interested in me, don't you?" His smile was beautifully sly.
“I’ll tell you next time,” he said, pulling me up. “I’m tired today. I rarely talk this much, except to you.”
"How could that be?" I chuckled to myself.
"Really." He looked like he was swearing an oath. "I've never talked this much to a girl before. I usually just go straight to it."
I was speechless.
When I returned to Princess Yanni's room, it was empty. I asked the maid on duty and learned that Princess Yanni had gone to the ball again. Since I wasn't there, she had taken two beautiful maids with her.
I collapsed onto the floor mat, staring at the dim candlelight, overwhelmed with mixed emotions.
Two people are telling the same story, but different versions.
Perhaps it doesn't matter who is lying, but what matters is the information they reveal.
Mamboy deliberately downplayed her father's cold-heartedness, while Dahlin deliberately downplayed the Countess's kindness.
Neither of them harbored any deep hatred for the Earl, who was clearly the instigator—harming his wife, abandoning her after starting a relationship, and being ruthless.
Why is this? Is it a weakness of human nature? To worship the strong and despise the weak?
Perhaps there are deeper stories hidden, but I haven't uncovered them yet.
After thinking it over and over, I fell asleep.
In the middle of the night, there was a sudden knock on the door. I groggily opened my eyes and called out, "Who is it?"
“Lady Lanna,” the maid said from outside the door, “Princess Yanni is about to leave, and she says that if you are to come with her, you must leave now.”
I regained most of my senses, immediately got up, put on only an outer robe, and went to open the door.
"Come with me quickly, Princess Yani is waiting for you outside the palace." The maid grabbed my hand and rushed down the corridor.
A cold wind swept in, and large snowflakes fell on my head. I had been pulled by a maid to the garden, and I was chilled to the bone, even though I was wearing an outer robe.
"Why did you leave so suddenly?" I asked.
"I don't know either," the maid replied.
Just as I was about to run out of the garden, a whooshing sound came from behind, and a sharp arrow shot out from behind, piercing the throat of the maid who was pulling me along as I ran.
Without uttering a sound, the maid fell to the ground, her blood staining the snow.
I slowly turned around, trembling.
Surrounded by several guards, Su Luo held a longbow and stood about ten paces away from me.
She wore a white fox fur cloak, which made her exquisitely beautiful face even more stunning.
"Tell me, should I shoot my next arrow at you?" She smiled, raised her longbow, and slowly aimed it at me.
I was so terrified that my whole body froze, unable to move, and I could only utter, "Why...why did you kill me?"
She just smiled, but her eyes were cold, completely devoid of the pitiful charm she had shown when they first met. "I don't understand why my prince would fight with someone else for you? Is it really because you're such a rare commodity?"
It turns out that the phrase "a rare commodity is worth hoarding" also exists here.
Her expression grew even colder, and she tightened the bowstring. "Brother Manboa said you helped him escape the Land of Death and also helped Prince Bernot eliminate the zombie army and deal with Rosie. I believed you at first, but after seeing you, I don't believe you at all. What can you do with your stupid appearance? You must have used some tricks to deceive my brother Manboa. Tell me, or I'll pierce your throat with an arrow."
I stared intently at the arrow, breathing rapidly, unable to utter a single word.
"You won't tell, huh?" she smiled gently, just like the delicate and charming woman she used to be. "Then let me teach you a lesson first."
A whooshing sound came from the air, and an arrow left the bowstring, piercing through my left arm, causing me to cry out in pain.
She laughed heartily, "How was it? Not bad, right?" She raised the longbow again, drew the string tight, and said, "How about one more time?"
I screamed and barely managed to raise my arms in surrender. "I'll talk, I'll talk, I did use tricks."
I secretly moved across the ski slope using the light. There was a clump of grass on my left. If I slid into it, I might be able to confuse her and give me a chance to escape.
"Speak! What methods did you use?!" she demanded sharply.
As I slid through the snow, I replied, "I'm exceptionally good in bed. Every man who's slept with me is completely infatuated with me, unable to get out of bed, and utterly dependent on me."
"Impossible!" she roared, raising her longbow again to aim at me. "Tell the truth!"
“It’s true,” I argued, “otherwise why would they all be trying to take it from me?”
She flew into a rage, her face contorted in anger, "You're talking nonsense!"
Another long arrow flew from the bow, hurtling towards me. I screamed and rolled on the snow, then quickly rolled into the grass, but the arrow still pierced my shoulder, causing me to writhe in pain on the ground.
Her anger hadn't subsided, and she raised her bow again. I thought I was going to die this time, but just then I heard a furious shout from Manboya: "Suluo, stop!"
I breathed a heavy sigh of relief, and then peacefully fainted...
I don't know how long it was before I woke up, lying on a magnificent and comfortable bed, with silver-embroidered gauze curtains falling from the sky.
As soon as I opened my eyes, I heard a maid's voice, "She's awake. Go and inform Prince Manboa quickly."
I suddenly remembered the phrase "a rare commodity is worth hoarding".
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Author's Note: Thank you all for continuing to follow the story!
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