"The most recent person was the owner of the Silversilk Castle from thirty years ago. We don't know which Antique of Tragedy it is, but this time we are going there specifically to see if we can find the hidden Antique of Tragedy," Dale Quicksilver added.
Garon nodded.
He knew that the so-called Antique of Tragedy was most likely the Bronze Cross Medallion that he carried with him. Although the Potential provided by the medal was negligible and only increased by a little every week, it was still better than no improvement at all. It was better than nothing.
Garon was also very curious as to why the Antique of Tragedy could provide potential and why it was called Antique of Tragedy. That was why he agreed to Dale Quicksilver's invitation to go to the Silversilk Castle.
The carriage traveled from noon to afternoon. The orange sun had already set halfway below the horizon when they finally stopped at the top of a yellow-green slope. Below the slope was a continuous green forest.
The four of them got off the carriage and stood at the top of the slope to look ahead.
In the distance of the continuous dark green forest, on a similarly higher slope, a broken gray castle could be seen clearly.
The castle looked as if it had been burned by fire. There were traces of smoke everywhere. There were no traces of green plants.
The exterior of the castle, the lawn surrounded by railings, and the small trees around it were all gray and black, as if it had just been burned not long ago.
The whole castle had three points, shaped like a mountain. The surface was densely covered with square cross-shaped windows. From afar, the windows were dark and nothing could be seen clearly.
"This is the Silversilk Castle. It was said that there was a fire thirty years ago, and the subsequent owner didn't have the money to repair it, so it became like this. Unfortunately, this was a famous garden castle in the records. Silversilk means that the surface is covered with a layer of silver gauze, beautiful and dreamy, hence the name. "
Dale Quicksilver pointed at the castle and sighed.
Ge Reese was puzzled. "That can't be right, Mr. Dale. After a fire thirty years ago, why is the castle still gray and black? How is it possible that there are no green plants growing?"
Miss Si Lan took over. "No one knows. Some speculate that the ash covered the growth of the surrounding plants. Others speculate that there were no plants growing on that piece of land. There are even a few more strange rumors, but none of them are credible. "
"Have you asked the people around here?" Ge Reese frowned.
"There are no signs of human habitation within a radius of 30 miles around the castle. The surrounding terrain is rather complicated and not suitable for growing crops. Therefore, the nearest farm and village would require a long walk."
Garon stroked the fake beard on his chin.
"In other words, we might have to rest here for the night? Are there any problems with food and drinks? "
Dale Quicksilver nodded.
"No problem, Si Lan and I have been resting here for many days. Other than the fact that it wasn't convenient to go out and communicate with others, the environment here was pretty good and suitable for cultivation. Alright, let's continue walking. From here, it seems to be close, but in fact, we still have a long way to go. It will take us at least half an hour to reach the castle. "
"What about the carriage?"
"Tie them up here. Someone will take them back later. I've arranged everything. It's just that when we came here, we could take a carriage. If we want to go out, we can only walk. From here to the nearest town, Canoe, it's a 4 hour walk. "Dale Quicksilver explained. "So we must plan to stay here for a few days."
"That's not bad. It's like a vacation. Ge Reese, go back to the city and inform them. " Garon lowered his voice, "Tell them that I'm visiting a friend's house. Tell them not to worry and that I'll be back in a few days."
Ge Reese knew what he meant. He wanted her to help keep it a secret. After all, Garon was only a high school student. It would be worrying if he went too far away.
"Then why don't I just drive back and return the carriage to the town."
"Sounds good." Dale Quicksilver nodded in agreement.
The three of them watched as Ge Reese drove the carriage back. It wasn't until it disappeared around the bend of the road that they came back to their senses.
"Let's go. It's getting late. The earlier we get, the better we can get a good night's rest." Dale Quicksilver carried a long black bag in his hand, "I brought a hunting rifle. We can hunt some game for barbecue later!"
"That's not bad! You're so thoughtful. "Garon laughed.
Si Lan smiled and lifted the small red bag in her hand. "I also brought some spices, tea leaves, and coffee beans. There's a river nearby. We can get some water to make tea and coffee."
"A badly ground coffee is not a good thing."
"I have a secret weapon! Haha … "Si Lan smiled mysteriously. "Mr. Kelly rarely comes out for picnics, right? Unlike us, sometimes we have to learn how to make preparations when we're chasing criminals deep in the forest. "
"That's true." Garen shrugged. "I only brought some emergency tools and a set of plain clothes to change into. I also brought some spices. I'm not as thoughtful as the two of you. "
"Okay, let's go. Let's go to the castle early and tidy up the room. We'll use the oil lamps we brought here earlier." Dale Quicksilver looked at the setting sun and said in a low voice. "It'll be inconvenient if it's too late."
"That's true."
The three of them walked quickly along the slope to the Silversilk Castle.
*****
Walking through the castle's iron gate, the ground was a strange color of black and gray mixed with white powder. It looked like the path was paved with ashes after a big fire.
On the left and right sides, there was a triangular fire platform made of black metal. There was a brazier on top of it, but it was made of an unknown metal. The fire platform was connected to a black fence, separating the castle from the forest outside. It was like two different worlds.
Outside the fence was a dense, dark green thicket, and inside the fence was a scene of a big fire. The lawn inside the castle was pale yellow, and a few black, withered trees gave people a feeling of death and stillness.
The three of them carried their things and walked through the gate. They walked along the straight path paved with black ash until they reached the castle's main gate.
The door was black and had an arched wooden frame. There was a white circle in the middle, and inside the circle was a wide keyhole.
Dale Quicksilver took out a brass key and inserted it. He turned it a few times and pushed the door open.
With a whoosh, the door opened inwards, revealing an empty hall.
Garon followed Si Lan into the hall and looked around. There was nothing in the hall. No furniture, no decorations, no carpet. Even the wall lamp holders were taken off and sold. The whole place was a grayish black.
A ray of red sunlight shone down from the skylight facing the main gate. It shone on the black floor, making the hall even more empty and silent.
"Let's go get your bedroom first." Dale Quicksilver closed the door and hung the key back on his waist. "Pick a room to rest in. Then we'll have to prepare dinner ourselves. "
"Cooking in a castle by myself, that's a novel idea. Haha. "
Garon followed Si Lan and picked a room on the right side of the castle as his bedroom. He tidied up the metal bed and put it on the spare bed.
After a quick dinner, the sky was completely dark. There wasn't enough kerosene in the castle to keep the lights on for long, so the three of them agreed to go to bed early and check out the castle the next day.
They went into the room and sat on the bed to rest.
The room was abnormally quiet. There was a rectangular floor-to-ceiling window on the side, and the floor was covered with light red hexagonal tiles. There was nothing else in the room except for a large bed. There were also metal frames for mosquito nets around the bed.
Garen sat on the bed and didn't dare to move too much. If he moved even a little, the rust on the iron frame might fall off.
The kerosene lamp beside the bed was placed on a temporary stool, giving off a pale yellow light.
Garon walked to the window in his underwear and looked down. It was dark outside the window.
There wasn't a single person on the grayish black grass field at night. There wasn't a single sign of life on the mountain in the distance. There wasn't a single sound coming out of the castle. Dale Quicksilver and Si Lan went to bed early in their respective rooms.
It was as if he was the only one with light in the entire castle.
Garon pushed open the window. The cold air rushed in, and the faint hooting of an owl could be heard from afar. The hazy moonlight shone down, and he could barely see the scenery outside.
"I should sleep early. I'll see if Dale Quicksilver can find any clues here tomorrow. He might have already figured out that I came in disguise. Let's not talk about his brain, just his observation skills alone are extraordinarily strong. " After practicing a round of boxing in the room, Garon slowly stopped, closed half of the window, and laid on the bed to rest.
He didn't know how much time had passed.
Garen turned over. While he was in a daze, the door to his room suddenly opened with a creak, as if someone had quietly pushed it open from the outside.
He was shocked and sat up to look at the door. The door was half open, and he couldn't see outside. There wasn't any movement.
He got up, walked over, and gently closed the door.
"Maybe the wind blew it open." He guessed.
He went back to bed and fell asleep again. Suddenly, there was another soft sound.
Creak …
The door opened again.
Garon sat up abruptly, and unconsciously grabbed the bedside lamp. He stared at the half-open door.
He still couldn't see anything.
"Who's joking with me?" He raised his voice and asked. "Dale?"
His voice traveled into the hallway outside the door, and echoed in the empty hallway.
No one answered. It was quiet outside the door.
Garon got down from the bed, put on his slippers, and carefully walked to the door with the bedside lamp. He gently closed the door, locked it, hung the chain, and bolted it.
Click.
As the last bolt was bolted, the door was completely locked.
Garon let out a long sigh and went back to bed. He didn't sleep. He just sat on the bed, vigilantly listening to his surroundings.
Suddenly, there was the sound of someone fiddling with the keyhole outside the door.
Garon got up abruptly, rushed to the door, and slammed it open. The sound stopped abruptly.
It was empty outside the door. There was nothing.
Suddenly, he froze.
"Didn't I lock the door?" He looked back at the bolt and was shocked.
"I clearly locked the door from the inside, and even put in a few bolts!!??" He clearly remembered that when he pulled the door, it opened directly!
"What's going on!!?" "What's going on!!?"
He slammed the door shut, and his scalp went numb as he stepped back. His feet hit the bed, and he sat down.
"If I find out who's playing a prank on me, you're dead!" You're dead meat!! "He roared.
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