An ornament imbued with pure faith, a strand of spirituality to activate it, and a manor model capable of influencing reality from within...
The combination of these three created a set of "living armor" seemingly driven by a ghost.
On this foundation, it possessed many characteristics of Grey Knight armor.
Although it was just an ordinary suit of knight's armor, relying on nearly instinctive combat skills, it even showed a tendency to suppress the sludge humanoid in their entanglement.
Davis followed Fran out of the bedroom into the corridor.
He looked around constantly as they walked, glancing back from time to time, only relaxing slightly after confirming the monster had indeed left completely.
"What exactly is that thing? And... who lured it away?"
Full of doubts, after much consideration, Davis finally voiced his question to Fran ahead of him.
Although she might not know the details either, judging by her calm and composed demeanor... she probably knew more than he did.
"I'm afraid I'll disappoint you. I know nothing about what's happening in the manor right now."
"But I found a diary in my room. All other parts were torn out, leaving only a partial poem."
When leaving the bedroom, Fran had conveniently taken the room owner's diary with her. Now, with a slight lift of her hand, she deftly tossed it to Davis.
Davis caught the diary, opening it to look while walking.
[Deep within the manor's splendid rooms, my angel once resided here, palace magnificent—radiant for her—scattered across the heavens.]
[Within the dream's spirit realm, the childlike visage unchanged;]
[Slender white dress as in days past, smile and voice remain.]
[The filthy decay unseen, forever lurking timidly, pursuing relentlessly.]
Is this the first chapter of that short poem?
Davis's gaze fixed on the last line of the poem, lost in thought for a moment.
"'The filthy decay unseen, forever lurking timidly, pursuing relentlessly...'"
He murmured it once, immediately associating it with the monster that had earlier broken into his room.
Decay, lurking, pursuit—each characteristic seemed to correspond.
But the short poem that appeared in my room described my past with Dusan. If Dr. Fran has turned into this little girl-like appearance... is it also because of a "past event"?
What kind of event could it be? Truly curious...
Among his peers, Davis was considered technically proficient, with decent skills in both ancient text interpretation and field surveys. The main reason for his lack of fame was his mentor, who was keen on reaping the fruits of his labor.
And the reason he persisted in his work despite this was more to satisfy his innate curiosity.
Seeing he was still pondering, Fran proceeded to explain her viewpoint.
"That thing, I'll tentatively call it 'Corruption.'"
"It possesses some intelligence, but currently seems to only act by chasing sound. It lacks visual and olfactory senses."
Corruption itself carried a very strong stench; the inability to smell was quite reasonable. As for why it could hear sounds around... probably stemmed from some "organ" within its body capable of sensing vibrations.
While speaking, Fran had already led Davis to her own guest bedroom.
Although she had already memorized Hanover Manor's entire architectural structure, the model in her room could observe the manor's situation in real-time. It was safer to take a look before deciding on the next course of action.
"Only acts on 'sound'... Indeed, I have deep personal experience with that."
Thinking of that highly oppressive monster, Davis still felt a lingering fear.
In his room, he had remained face-down, not daring to look up and observe the sludge humanoid, afraid his gaze might attract its attention. He only risked a very cautious sidelong glance when it was leaving.
It was a bloated humanoid form made of muddy filth, its entire body embedded with numerous human limbs.
Hands, legs... It used these limbs to move its body, pale hands and feet writhing wildly, like a centipede's legs.
"Oh, so this is the guest room Count Ferdinand prepared for you..."
Even with some psychological preparation, Davis couldn't help but narrow his eyes and sigh upon seeing Fran's room.
Peach-pink wall paint, a bookshelf full of fairy tales, and a plush bear occupying half the bed... décor entirely for a little girl.
"Judging from that short poem, this room has an 'original owner.' But whether she is from the Count's family still needs verification."
Fran explained, then went to the manor model to check the specific situation.
The living armor of the ancient knight had chased Corruption all the way to the end of the side wing corridor. Although it possessed some of the Grey Knight armor's combat experience, limited by this suit of armor's hardware, it couldn't cleanly resolve the opponent either.
But if it was just to keep it entangled... that was more than enough.
Come to think of it, the number of Count Ferdinand's servants is somewhat abnormal.
The knight's armor and Corruption fought all the way, yet no one paid attention to this extremely abnormal commotion. The guards outside the manor also seemed nonexistent.
Based on the scale of the entire manor and external estate, at least twenty people would be needed to maintain normal operations. And if wanting to display status and wealth, this number would rise to over a hundred...
Taking advantage of the interval while checking the manor model, Fran inquired about the specifics of Davis's past.
Since the anomaly presented in the guest bedroom was related to his past, there was value in understanding it.
"Davis, would you like to talk to me about your story?"
Fran often served as a psychiatrist, so this psychological consultation could be considered her professional habit acting up...
"Not much to tell, a very clichéd story. If you heard those few sentences I said earlier... you could probably guess the general situation."
Davis let out an almost imperceptible sigh, but out of respect for Fran, he gave a brief account.
"For a long time, my mentor would publish my research and survey findings under his name."
"Two months ago, we were conducting a survey on the Fenrir together. Later, we found the entrance to the Wenlanta undersea ruins on a nameless island... Professor Dusan stayed on the ship, and I almost died inside the ruins."
"That place was very dangerous. Of the seven sailors who entered the ruins with me, only two survived."
Davis's gaze shifted slightly, as if unwilling to explain in detail what he encountered inside the ruins.
"During the return voyage, he forcibly took my exploration notebook. Later... the Fenrir sailed into a sudden storm."
Here, he fell silent, not continuing to narrate the subsequent events.
But based on the information gleaned earlier from Davis's mutterings, Fran could easily infer what happened next.
A ship wrecked due to a storm, survivors tight-lipped about the details, and Professor Dusan dismembered into pieces with a kitchen knife... Simply combining these clues made the truth obvious.
"Mr. Davis, do you know that navigator named Krul? He seems to have served on the Fenrir."
Considering the folklorist's somewhat unstable mental state, Fran shifted the topic to other areas.
"...I know him."
This was a relatively ordinary question. Davis pursed his lips tightly, answering only after a moment.
"He was always taciturn on the ship, but during the shipwreck, he displayed extraordinary calmness, and cruelty... a very terrifying person."
Hearing this, Fran nodded slightly, seeming to have fully grasped the situation.
"I see."
"If I'm not mistaken... you and Krul have some cooperative relationship. Probably he received Count Ferdinand's invitation letter, then persuaded or even threatened you to forge your mentor's letter of recommendation, demanding you come along."
Her voice was light and slow, like a true psychiatrist, full of reassurance.
But the content caused Davis's eye to twitch slightly.
Fran's speculation was reasonable. After all, these two had spent time together on the Fenrir; they should know each other. If they met by chance at the Count's manor... there should have been some surprise.
Moreover, Davis's relationship with his mentor was abysmal; it was unlikely Dusan would have written him a recommendation letter before his death.
Of course, this wasn't their flaw.
If no anomalies occurred today, no one would know Davis had been on the Fenrir. Nor would anyone know his mentor had quietly perished on that ship. Even if Dusan's obituary came out later, it wouldn't matter; they could say it was left before his death.
"Dr. Fran, you are truly... insightful." Davis's expression was somewhat complex.
The facts were no different from what Fran said.
Krul wanted to seek wealth from the chaotic Count's manor but was afraid of its strange legends... then thought of him. Ultimately, he almost coerced and persuaded him to forge his mentor's letter of recommendation.
"Doctor, you know my secret, but you could have chosen not to say it. Aren't you afraid... I might do something to you?"
After a moment of contemplation, Davis finally voiced his doubt.
Hearing this, Fran calmly looked at the young folklorist, her amber eyes glimmering like candlelight.
"That's true; only the dead can keep secrets. But I'm a bit curious, would you really take action?"
"No." Davis shook his head slightly.
"I won't do anything to you, but I still hope you can keep the secret."
As he spoke, his expression turned serious.
"And, Dr. Fran... no matter what, don't let Krul know you are aware of that past event. He's not like me; to ensure this doesn't leak, he would absolutely silence you."
Davis's attitude was quite grave, seemingly wanting to warn Fran of the danger.
"Rest assured, I have no interest in spreading your secret."
Fran spread her hands slightly, the corner of her glossy lips curving up.
She reached into the medicine case she carried with her, slowly pulling out a classic, exquisitely crafted pistol. It was a standard-issue firearm of the Secret-Hunters cult, the grip engraved with a horizontally faceted saint emblem.
Yes, this gun came from Sister Haida.
Earlier, in the Children of the Whiskered Tree library ruins, she had taken the two guns from Haida's waist but later only returned one, keeping one as a memento...
"And even if you were to do something rather unseemly, I have rather unseemly methods of resolution... I'm glad you didn't choose the wrong answer."
Looking at the classic-style firearm in Fran's hand, Davis felt a chill.
Why would a doctor prepare a pistol in her medicine case? Do patients really need such a thing?
"Your sense of security awareness... is truly admirable."
He responded with a slightly dry tone.
In fact, even though Fran was currently reverted to a childhood state by Hanover Manor's influence, she could still easily subdue Davis. The reason for showing the firearm... was because it was a deterrent method more easily accepted by common sense.
During their conversation, Fran had already rechecked the situation in the manor model. The others were still in their bedrooms, and the door of the nearest room was, for some reason, in an open state.
That was Krul's room.
"Should we go there first..." Although they were cooperative partners, Davis still felt some fear towards this sailor.
"Let's go take a look."
Fran didn't mind the specific order of investigating the rooms; they all needed to be visited anyway. However... she planned to leave Lawyer Tamesis for last.
"Mmm."
Davis didn't question her decision. After all, only Krul's room door was open now.
Besides, Dr. Fran has a gun; there shouldn't be any danger, right? As long as we don't encounter the monster...
As he followed Fran, preparing to leave the room, he glanced at the manor model. He then noticed that in Priest Gorn's room, besides the priest himself, there was also that young male servant from Hanover Manor, and both ceramic figurines were placed on the bed…
Davis pursed his lips slightly, his expression momentarily turning strange.
It seemed this priest had a very ancient, very traditional, and very stereotypical little preference.
He shook his head, clearing the odd thought from his mind, and then left the guest room.
+++
T/N: Hey readers~! New Translator here! Before I say anything, I'd first like to thank the original author for creating this wonderful story. Without them, I wouldn't have the chance to share this adventure with you. I hope my translation does justice to their work, and that together, we can enjoy this story.
With that said, I'm happy to let you know I'll be uploading daily chapters. And for those who wish to support my work and gain early access, I've set up a Patreon where advanced chapters will be available.
[email protected]/PeakTL