George watched as Frank walked away from him, shaking his head as he sat down in a chair facing the fireplace. He still couldn't believe the words of his servant, who dared to hallucinate in front of him. He intended to call Malcolm when morning came and ask about the origin of Frank, who had just started working in the castle. George was startled and his thoughts disappeared when he heard the bell ring once. His eyes were attacked by a strong drowsiness.
The wealthy man immediately got up and left the living room, heading to his bedroom. There, he saw his wife sleeping soundly. George lay down next to his wife, gazing at the woman he loved so much. He was very happy to marry a noblewoman who had been his childhood friend. Their parents had arranged their marriage when they both graduated from university and now they had three children. That night, George couldn't close his eyes, even though his eyes were sleepy. His mind drifted back to the past, and he still remembered a very sad event that broke his heart.
At the age of seven, he witnessed his grandfather Roger being killed on the highway. He cried and called out to his lifeless grandfather, who was covered in blood after being hit by someone. George could still see the shadow of the perpetrator, dressed in all black and wearing a mask, passing by the scene and looking in his direction. He screamed and tried to ask the people around for help in chasing the car, but some of them failed to catch the culprit. Shortly after, one of the villagers kindly brought his grandfather's body home, and at that time, George's parents looked shocked and cried as they mourned Roger's departure.
However, it was not the same for Brenda, who appeared to be very strong in accepting the bitter reality. The death of her husband deeply affected her, and she could only bow her head and shed tears during the funeral. At that time, the Mathew Barkeley family arrived, including Marinda, who was then their closest family
The night is creeping towards the second day, and George's eyes are still unable to close, he just stares at the wall of the house while continuing his memories of his childhood. It was then that he met Marinda, who was one year younger than him. The little girl invited him to talk when his heart was experiencing great trauma. Marinda tried to strengthen herself, who couldn't forget the tragic event that happened so suddenly, and since then they became even closer. Especially after George's parents enrolled him in the same junior high school as Marinda, George's first love began to blossom. Day after day, the two teenagers lived happily, learning and going through their teenage years beautifully until they entered adulthood. George's daydream was interrupted when he heard the howling of wolves in the Parvun forest. His heart, which was beating, seemed to want to stop, and now he heard the howling of the wolves inside his castle. George immediately got up from his bed and locked his door tightly, his face panicked and pale. Shortly after, the sound of the wolves echoed throughout the castle, startling all its inhabitants.
Marinda woke up and her face looked very surprised, then she looked at her husband with fear.
"What's wrong, my dear?" Marinda asked as she got up from her bed.
"It seems like the sound of wolves, my love," George answered as he got up from his bed.
"Damn it! If that animal is here, then we will all die!" Marinda exclaimed in panic.
"Try to calm yourself, I will investigate," George replied, trying to calm his wife.
The man walked to the door and opened it, then with long strides, he hurried to the living room. But when he arrived there, he didn't see any wolves, everything was still as it was before. George was just stunned, where he was now standing, many questions were reflected in his mind that were difficult to explain in words. Once again, he tried to look around the room, but there was still no significant change. Then, he returned to the room with a puzzled look on his face.
Marinda sat on the sofa, waiting for her husband with hope and anxiety, and shortly after, she heard quick footsteps and her husband entered the room with a gloomy face.
"What happened, my dear?" Miranda asked anxiously.
"There are no wolves in that room," George answered flatly as he sat on the bed.
"Then what does the howling mean?" Miranda asked, not understanding her husband's answer.
"I'm also puzzled by all of this," George replied, shrugging his shoulders.
"In that case, let's continue sleeping," Miranda said as she got up from her bed to lock the door.
George sighed deeply, he didn't understand the events experienced by his servants and himself. Finally, they fell into a deep sleep until morning came.
George woke up with a confused mind, then he looked to the side and saw Marinda still sleeping soundly. Shortly after, he got up from his bed and walked to his locked office.
This nobleman felt his way to his nightclothes pocket and took out the key, but after the door opened, he was very surprised to see a pile of money and gold bars on the table, there were so many. George quickly entered and locked his office, his heart pounding as he looked at the scene in front of him. Several times the same incident had happened in his office, and he didn't know who was doing this. "I'm amazed at how this can happen so often?" he wondered to himself as he looked at the money and gold.
Then he took all the items and stored them in the safe inside the room, locking it tightly. Although still confused, George's face showed overflowing joy and he imagined his wealth increasing since the wolf often visited his castle and he could rise from the poverty he had once suffered. In addition, he could help all the people in his village with all his wealth.
George kept all the events about the appearance of the mysterious money and gold secret from Miranda. He didn't want his beloved wife to be involved in something that was very impossible to explain. Then he returned to his room and saw his wife had woken up and was sitting on the bed, smiling at him.
"Where have you been, George?" Miranda asked as she got up from her bed and sat on the sofa.
"I just went around the garden and saw the beautiful morning view," George lied.
"Unfortunately, I woke up late," Miranda said.
"Next time we will go for a morning walk together, my love," George replied.
Not long after, George and Miranda left the room and went to the office to oversee the operation of their beverage company.
Two days later, while Frank was cleaning the grass, Malcolm suddenly approached him to deliver a message from George.
“Frank! Mr. George wants you to come to his office!” commanded Malcolm, staring sharply at the new servant.
“Alright, I will go there,” Frank replied.
They immediately entered the castle and met their master. Malcolm and Frank saluted the young nobleman, George, who stared at Frank for a long time. Then, he instructed the new servant to sit while Malcolm left the room and closed the door. Frank’s heart raced as he awaited what his master would say.
“Keep what you witnessed two days ago to yourself,” George said.
“Alright, sir, I will remember that,” Frank replied softly as if his inner self was also burdened by the command.
“And you don’t need to talk much if you want to continue working here,” George threatened.
“Alright, Mr. George,” Frank answered, his face lowered in fear.
George raised his right hand, waving his palm as a signal for Frank to leave the room. The servant hurriedly walked out and closed the door behind him. Frank walked towards the backyard where several gardeners from Hogan Village were planting various types of flowers. They looked at Frank, surprised by the new servant’s changed expression.
“Why do you look like that, Frank?” Willy asked, laughing loudly.
“I’m feeling a bit unwell,” Frank lied, glancing at his other friends.
“If you’re sick, it’s better to rest,” Willy said worriedly.
“It’s okay, I can still work,” Frank replied, grabbing the grass cutter.
From a distance, John looked at Frank, who was still talking to Willy. He felt sorry for Frank, who was unaware of the events that often occurred in the castle. He had experienced the same thing when he first started working here, but his attitude had changed, and he continued working for Mr. George to continue his life.
Coincidentally, Malcolm was not in the area, so John took this opportunity to approach his neighbor.
“Hey, Frank, it seems like you have a problem?” John asked, probing.
“I don’t have any significant problems,” Frank tried to convince John.
“Are you sure about that?” John asked suspiciously.
“Yes, I’m serious,” Frank replied, continuing his work.
Then, John revealed that he knew and had experienced the same thing as Frank, and it was not something new to him. To hear his neighbor’s words, Frank signaled John to be quiet.
Not long after, a man riding a horse appeared in the distance. He rode his horse at a fast pace, causing the sound of the horse’s footsteps to be heard clearly and startling the workers there.
As he dismounted from his horse, he ran towards John and asked about Malcolm’s whereabouts. Spontaneously, John escorted the man to meet the head of the household.
Malcolm was in the stable, overseeing some of Mr. George’s beloved horses when Bruce reported the incident of a villager’s death in Verase village.
“Mr. Malcolm! A villager was attacked by a werewolf!” Bruce exclaimed, out of breath.
“How do you know that?” Malcolm asked, confused.
“A specialist doctor said so,” Bruce quickly replied.
“In that case, let’s go see Mr. George,” Malcolm invited, leaving the stable.
John immediately returned to his work, but he accidentally overheard Bruce’s conversation with Malcolm. His suspicion was strong that the deaths of the villagers in the four villages were somehow related to Voltaire Castle.
“Frank! My suspicion was right, something terrible is happening in Verase village,” John whispered.
“We should continue this conversation tonight, I’m afraid someone might hear and report it to Mr. George,” Frank whispered back.
John nodded and resumed his task, while Malcolm and Bruce arrived at Mr. George’s office and informed him about the incident, leaving the castle owner shocked. George immediately gave money for the funeral expenses of the deceased villagers and promised to visit the cemetery the next day.
After they left the room, George fell silent for a moment. Deep inside, he felt a profound concern and tried to solve this mystery, but the veil of mystery remained unbroken.
Night had come, and all the servants were in their respective rooms. Only John couldn’t close his eyes. Shortly after, he walked to Frank’s room, which was right next to his, and gently knocked on the door.
I thought you were asleep,” John said as he sat on the sofa.
“Not yet, I haven’t been able to sleep either,” Frank replied.
Then John told him about what he had known since he started working at Voltre Castle several years ago, and Frank listened attentively. John said that this incident happened every six months after the Grape Harvest celebration, and the victims were the residents of the four villages.
The villagers didn’t know the cause, but they were always scared leading up to the end of the celebration. Unfortunately, they couldn’t do anything meaningful to solve this mystery.
“Why don’t they just call the police?” Frank asked, surprised.
“That would be futile,” John replied, lost in thought.
“Can’t they investigate it?” Frank asked again.
“Yes, but there are still victims after that,” John replied, shaking his head.
“What do you mean, please explain in more detail?” Frank asked, even more curious.
John got up from the sofa and walked towards the window. He took a deep breath, lit his cigarette, and started smoking. After a while of silence, he began to answer Frank’s question, his voice trembling, a sign that he held a tremendous fear.
John told him that the police themselves died and turned into werewolves after trying to uncover the mystery. Since then, no one dared to talk about or investigate this terrifying case.
Hearing John’s story made Frank even more frightened, but John reminded him not to tell anyone about what he experienced because he didn’t know who was responsible for the deaths of the victims. Frank could only nod his head, unable to say a word, as if his mouth was tightly shut.
The night grew late, and the sounds of nocturnal animals could be heard outside the castle as if welcoming the darkness. The two servants were still awake, continuing their conversation. Suddenly, John, who was still standing near the window, saw four black shadows running in the forest not far from the castle.
Then John called Frank to come closer to the window and see the activities of the werewolves. Frank immediately did so, peeking from behind the curtain. However, he was shocked to see four werewolves devouring a woman.
Oh my goodness, how terrifying!” exclaimed Frank with a stuttering voice.
“That’s the kind of thing I often witness while working here,” calmly replied John.
“No wonder no one dares to talk about this, including Malcolm,” Frank said, nodding his head.
“Now you know why Malcolm forbids us from discussing this taboo subject,” John replied, sipping on the warm coffee that Frank had been serving since earlier.
Frank was still watching the Werewolves with wide eyes when he witnessed them entering the castle grounds, causing him to panic even more.
“Hey, John! Quickly look, all the Werewolves are entering the courtyard!” Frank exclaimed in shock.
But John remained seated, seemingly indifferent to Frank’s recent misfortune, and continued to sip his hot coffee. Seeing his friend’s lack of concern, Frank became even more puzzled and approached John.
“Why don’t you care when I call you?” Frank asked, with a bewildered expression.
“I know the Werewolves will come to this castle after they finish their prey,” John replied, still sitting on the sofa.
“Why are they entering this castle?” Frank asked, puzzled.
“That’s the mystery that has never been answered until now,” John replied, taking a deep breath.
Frank fell silent upon hearing his friend’s words, but he couldn’t help but think that perhaps the castle’s servants would be the next victims of the Werewolves.
“Have the Werewolves ever preyed on the servants here?” Frank asked, with a worried tone.
“Never once has there been a victim among the workers in this castle,” John replied confidently.
“I feel relieved to hear that, my body feels weak and helpless,” Frank said with a joyful expression.
John stood up and left the room. He was already sleepy when it was 4:00 in the morning, and the same was true for Frank, who had fallen asleep. When they woke up late in the morning, Malcolm scolded them. The head of the household was angry because Mr. George and Mrs. Marinda were going to a funeral today. John and Frank apologized to Malcolm for their carelessness.
In the castle courtyard, there was a busy atmosphere as several workers prepared the car and all the necessities to be donated to the victim’s family. Shortly after, George and Marinda entered the car, and George asked Brad to drive him to the Charles Nixon family’s house. The luxurious car slowly left the castle grounds, accompanied by John and Frank’s strange gazes.
After both of his masters left, the atmosphere in the castle returned to silence as they resumed their tasks, while in the Parvun forest not far from the castle, a foul smell filled the area, emanating from the body of a woman who had been torn apart by a pack of werewolves.
Coincidentally, a hunter was passing through the forest, hunting a deer, when suddenly his sense of smell was disturbed by the foul odor, making his stomach churn instantly.
“Where is this foul smell coming from?” he wondered to himself as he tried to locate the source of the stench.
He was shocked to see the corpse of a woman with a large hole in her stomach lying stiff behind a big tree. Her entire abdominal organs were missing, both of her eye sockets were empty, leaving only her tongue protruding out, and her body was covered with scratches and tears, smeared with dried and musty blood.
“This is truly horrifying,” Roy said, trying to hold back his nausea.
Roy suspected that this woman had fallen victim to the ferocity of wild animals while crossing the forest. The young man immediately left the area and intended to report this incident to the head of the Hogan village.
Roy was a newcomer to the village of Hogan; he had just moved there yesterday with his mother and three siblings because their old house in London had been sold. Since the death of his father, his mother decided to move to the small village where there was a house inherited from his late grandfather. Now, the empty house was inhabited again and bustling with life.
Roy arrived at his village and hurriedly walked towards Mr. Tomy Brugman’s house. He knocked on the door, calling out the village head’s name, and footsteps could be heard approaching the door. Mr. Tomy now stood before him with a panicked expression.
“What’s wrong, Roy?” Mr. Tomy asked, looking at the young man in surprise.
“A woman has been killed in the forest, it seems like she was attacked by a wild animal!” Roy exclaimed, out of breath.
“Oh my goodness! Poor woman, let’s call some villagers to bury her there!” Mr. Tomy invited, closing his door.
The middle-aged man called out to several villagers through a loudspeaker, and in an instant, almost all the villagers gathered to hear the bad news. Among the villagers, Mother Lorena and his three siblings were present, listening to the announcement with worried faces. Roy approached his mother and explained what he had seen, reminding her to be cautious of wild animals.
“I saw the body in the forest and reported the incident to Mr. Tomy,” Roy said.
“How terrifying that incident was, my son,” his mother replied with a panicked face.
“I have to go back to the forest to escort them now,” Roy said again.
“Alright, be cautious when you are there,” his mother reminded her son.
Roy nodded and before leaving once again, he reminded his family to quickly enter and lock the house, as many wild animals were lurking in the surrounding area.
The village officials immediately headed to the forest and they were all shocked to find out that the terrible incident reported by Roy was indeed true.
Mr. Tomy, along with several villagers, began to dig a hole to bury the woman’s body, and then, after they finished, they held a simple burial ceremony in the forest.
After that terrible incident, Roy never went back there to hunt deer, he was very anxious that he might experience the same thing as that woman at any time. A few days later, a middle-aged woman came to Hogan village, she seemed busy asking some villagers and finally came to Roy’s house as directed by them.
The woman, with hesitant steps, knocked on the door and not long after, Roy stood in front of her, looking at her in surprise.
Then, the woman introduced herself and explained her purpose for coming to this village. Roy felt sorry for the woman, he found it difficult to explain the truth. So, he could only remain silent and at that moment, Lorena’s mother appeared and sat next to her son, smiling as the woman turned to Roy and gestured for her son to remain silent.
With confidence and calmness, Lorena’s mother explained the characteristics of the girl being sought by the woman, stating that the girl was not a resident of this village.