Two hours later, everyone returned to the lobby on the first floor.
Anna keenly observed that the intervening time had visibly altered many people's expressions. Some wore worry, others an inexplicable excitement, a few had ashen faces, and still others, an air of arrogance.
"It seems everyone has made a discovery," Anna remarked in a low voice.
"Everyone, please hold your questions for now and allow me to speak first," Grace whispered to the trio beside her before moving swiftly toward the brighter light. Addressing the group, she said, "Since you all returned on time, does that not imply a certain level of trust in me? If so, why not share your findings?"
"Humph, since you brought it up, shouldn't you be the first to speak?"
The speaker was a man dressed in the ostentatious style of the nouveau riche, his gaudy gold and jade jewelry nearly blinding, and a pearl the size of a pigeon's egg was even embedded in his collar—a truly tasteless ensemble. This man seem to be an European, had been timid initially, but upon his return, he exuded an unusual arrogance, as if everyone owe him money. His two teammates stood beside him, regarding him with respectful awe, the reason for which was unclear.
However, Grace, likely accustomed to such individuals seeking to cause trouble, maintained her composure. "That makes sense," She replied evenly. "Then let's discuss what our team found. We examined the study, including the owner's personal space and the adjacent room used as a reading room. The owner here appears to have been someone who studied various ancient and modern witchcraft spells. I suspect that if ghosts truly exist here, they are inextricably linked to the owner, Victor Ravencourt. Furthermore, we discovered this."
As she spoke, Grace produced the Mensal manuscript.
"This is one of the items listed in that catalog. It contains records of some black magic, which might prove helpful to us, but it is written entirely in Latin. My Latin is only passable, so interpretation may be challenging."
"You can entrust that to me."
A woman about 35 years old, wearing glasses, with a thin body, spoke up.
"I am a translator. My Latin proficiency is quite good. If you trust me, please allow me to translate it."
"Of course." Without hesitation, Grace pushed the book across to her. "Then it's yours. Please prioritize translating the most potentially useful passages."
The woman, surprised by Grace's ready trust, nodded. Her teammates also showed visible excitement.
"In that case, allow me to share my findings," Francesco said, taking out a cigarette but not lighting it. He placed it behind his ear and spoke slowly. "As a mechanic, I went to inspect the generators in the basement. There are eight small generators there, which supply power to the entire manor. They run on diesel."
"While they are currently functioning, due to wear and tear, four of them are already operating poorly, indicating a high probability of insufficient power supply in the future. Additionally, the fuel supply is not enough for seven days, but only for five. This means we either need to shut down some machines to conserve fuel, or prepare for two days without electricity."
After this lengthy explanation, Francesco finally lit his cigarette, ignoring the surprised looks of the others.
"Don't be surprised; I have good news as well. There is ample food and water in the storage room, and all the common ingredients are present. Furthermore, there are many tools and daily necessities. We can take some for self-defense." The handsome young man grinned.
"Self-defense? Against ghosts?" The nouveau riche scoffed with disdain.
Grace simply nodded and looked around. "So, does anyone else have any discoveries to share?"
Everyone exchanged glances, and the grumpy man scratched his head before standing up. "I knew you guys had issues with your brains. If you don't check the layout of this damn place first, you'll have nowhere to go when you need to escape. We walked around the house and the grounds and drew a sketch. Oye, Amir, bring it out for them."
The red-dyed-haired man quickly retrieved a folded piece of paper from his pocket and placed it on the table. It contained a simple map of each floor of the house, marked with various points of interest, such as obstacles, usable items, and potential jump-off points indicated by arrows of different sizes.
This action surprised many. From the beginning, The grumpy man and Grace had seemed to clash. Trusting Grace's calm demeanor, they had subconsciously labeled the grumpy man as a mindless brute. They hadn't expected such careful planning from him.
"Thank you for your hard work," Grace said to the grumpy man.
"I can only do so much. If you can't run away, don't ask me for help!" He retorted coldly.
Grace then turned her attention to another group. The three individuals in this group had been huddled in a corner since their return, clearly having encountered something unsettling. When they noticed Grace's gaze, they also looked over. Among them, a man in a white-collar shirt could no longer contain himself and shouted, "What are you looking at!?"
"We simply want to know what you found. Please calm down," Grace replied with a frown.
"Found? We didn't find anything! Damn it, you should focus on more useful things. You might as well think about how to leave from here, instead of bothering us!"
Grace paused, considering their reaction, before looking away at the remaining groups.
The group with the woman who had glasses had checked the guest rooms on each floor. The first floor contained simple rooms, while the second floor was more luxurious, with rooms equipped with a heater, a bathroom, and an old-fashioned television.
The television displayed only static and was unusable. There were both single and double rooms, and the number of beds was sufficient for everyone, eliminating the need to explore the third floor.
As for the nouveau riche, he simply stated with disgust that he had wandered through the kitchen and other areas and found nothing of interest.
The last group appeared to be the most formidable. They were led by a muscular man nearly two meters tall, a young man in a police uniform, a young woman with cold eyes and bandages on her hands, and a man with a slight hunch but a strong and agile appearance.
"My name is Noah, and I'm a fitness coach. Our group went for a walk around the back. Those three people..." The sturdy man gestured towards the still-trembling white-collar man. "We went to the gardener's hut. Perhaps something inside frightened them so badly. As for us, we explored the shooting range, the observation tower, and the surrounding area. There were no weapons. Of course, even if there were, I doubt they would be useful. Further in is the forest, so we didn't venture there."
"Did you notice anything noteworthy over there?" Grace inquired.
"There's a greenhouse with many unusual flowers planted inside. We don't recognize them. We can go and take a look later."
"Then let's not wait. Let's go now." The grumpy man couldn't remain still.
Grace agreed. "That's right. And while we're there, let's see what scared those three so much."
The sky had grown even darker than when they had first entered the villa as if an unusually heavy afternoon rain had occurred. The air was becoming increasingly humid, and the temperature seemed to have dropped slightly.
"It won't rain all these days, will it?" The girl who had initially been fascinated by the furniture complained softly, prompting a sneer from the nouveau riche beside her.
"When you're dying, you won't care about such things."
"You..."
The girl raised her eyebrows, appearing ready to argue, but was restrained by her teammates.
"Don't quarrel. It's not worth it with people like him."
Grace heard the commotion behind her but said nothing, perhaps too weary to involve herself in their petty squabbles.
As they approached the gardener's hut, the wooden door stood slightly ajar. The soil on the ground was damp, and scattered footprints were visible, indicating a hasty exit.
"There is no need for everyone to go inside," Grace said, stopping three meters away. She glanced back. "Who wants to come with me?"
"I'll go in with you," Anna responded immediately.
Noah also raised his hand. "I'll go over there too, in case there's any danger. I can protect you."
"And I," The handsome Korean man added, stepping forward.
Grace nodded, indicating that was sufficient. She then quickly approached the door, swiftly pushed it open, and simultaneously took a step back, anticipating any sudden movement from within.
Of course, nothing happened.
"It's safe," Noah said, leaning against the doorframe and looking inside before entering.
Despite being called a hut, the gardener's dwelling contained several rooms. A small hall with a stove was located at the entrance. To the left was the kitchen, which connected to a small utility room for tools. Two doors on the right appeared to lead to bedrooms.
Apart from being somewhat dilapidated, the small hall seemed ordinary. However, as soon as Anna entered, she detected a faint, rotten odor. Though subtle, it was undeniably present.
Grace quickly examined the small hall and found nothing unusual. It seemed the source of the smell, and likely the problem lay behind the two doors.
"I'll take this one," Noah said, striding to one of the doors and kicking it open. This time, the cause of the three people's fear was revealed to the four of them.
Traces of coagulated blood almost entirely covered the room, and even the ceiling was spattered with dark brown, congealed plasma. The thick curtains, partially drawn, allowed a sliver of pale light to illuminate shrunken and clumped human organs on the floor.
Two eyeballs hung from the chandelier, staring directly towards the door. A large area of blood clots with a human-shaped outline lay on the bed, surrounded by radial blood splatters. Encircling this human figure, someone had drawn a circle of blood on the bed sheet and the floor. At first glance, it resembled a crude imitation of Leonardo da Vinci's "Vitruvian Man."
Even with some mental preparation, the gruesome scene delivered a significant shock. Noah pressed his chest, looking unwell; Grace's breathing quickened; and the handsome man abandoned his cynical demeanor, gazing into the room with a newfound seriousness.
Anna remained at the door. The poor lighting prevented a thorough observation. However, the bloody spectacle didn't seem to affect her as strongly. Though initially startled and taking a step back, she quickly regained her composure.
"Hey, what did you find?" Someone shouted from outside.
"I suggest those of you who are faint of heart don't come in," Grace replied before carefully entering the room and pulling the curtains fully open.
"If I had to describe it, it's as if a person exploded in their bed and ended up like this," The handsome man said, deliberately raising his voice so that outside could hear. His description was indeed quite accurate. Besides the blood circles and intentionally placed eyeballs, the scene in the room could reasonably be interpreted in that manner.
"It's been too long," Anna murmured, squatting down to examine the blood and flesh on the ground. "Blood coagulates very quickly, but the organs and other tissues have completely shriveled and atrophied. This couldn't have happened in just a few days."
"What about the bones?"
Grace asked suddenly.
"I didn't see any," Anna replied, glancing around. The amount of blood in the room was consistent with that of one person, but strangely, there were no bones. Even if they had been shattered, there should still be fragments left, shouldn't there?
"Isn't it very strange?" The handsome man walked to the bed, carefully examining the large human-shaped bloodstain, even touching his face as he studied it.
"What's strange?" Anna asked confusedly.
"Maybe you don't play many games. This scene...how should I put it? If you summon a skeleton from a corpse, it would look something like this, right?"