Welcome to the Rose Mansion - Chapter 81
“Ma’am…?”
Richelle called out cautiously to the elderly woman. Her complexion shifted restlessly from blue to pale white, then to gray, and back to blue again. It was clear something was wrong.
“Ma’am, are you feeling unwell? Or did I do something to offend you?”
“Oh, no. It’s nothing.”
Despite her words, the old woman’s tense expression did not ease. Richelle, not wanting to pressure someone she had just met, clasped her hands together and waited quietly for her to calm down.
The woman’s trembling finally ceased after she finished tidying up the sandwich wrappers. Even then, she remained silent for a long time, staring out the window.
As time passed, they were nearing Sylvester. Richelle closed the book she had been reading.
“You know, miss…”
The elderly woman finally spoke. Richelle turned her gaze from the window to the woman, who was anxiously clutching at her clothes.
“I’m not sure if I should say this. It will definitely sound strange, and it’s an unspoken secret in my hometown.”
“Ma’am, if it’s too difficult, you don’t have to force yourself.”
“No. If I don’t share this with such a kind young lady, I feel I won’t be able to sleep.”
The woman took a small breath and began her story.
“The truth is, I used to live in a small village near the Bertrand estate. I left when I got married, but… Sylvester is my precious hometown.”
“I see. Then you must know a lot about Bertrand as well.”
“Not quite. Bertrand never hired local workers, and it was very isolated. Besides, there’s a dangerous forest, known as the Black Forest, blocking the way, so we couldn’t even see it from a distance. If you work at Bertrand, you must know the dangers of that forest.”
If it was the Black Forest, Richelle had experienced its strangeness firsthand. She nodded, and the woman continued.
“No one in the village had ever seen Bertrand up close. But in our village, Bertrand was… secretly known as a cursed mansion.”
A cursed mansion.
Richelle clenched her clasped hands tighter.
“Why is that?”
“…”
It took a moment for the elderly woman to continue. Her eyes darted around anxiously.
Just then, a conductor entered and announced loudly that they would soon be arriving at Sylvester Station. Richelle stood to get her luggage ready, but the woman grabbed her hand tightly.
“Ma’am?”
“The only relatively safe entrance through the Black Forest is connected to our village. So, to get to Bertrand, you had to pass through our village.”
“…”
Richelle slowly sat back down. The elderly woman’s gloved hand was clammy with cold sweat.
“But in all my years living in that village… I never saw it, not even once.”
“…What didn’t you see?”
“The mansion’s servants!”
She shouted, her face now pale and overtaken by clear terror.
“Carriages regularly passed through our village, heading to Bertrand for interviews. The carriages that returned were always empty. So, it was clear that they kept hiring servants. But for some reason, not a single person ever came back from Bertrand. No one came home on leave, no one retired with age, no one returned after their contract ended. Not even a single corpse!”
“…!”
“It’s strange, isn’t it? How can that be? It’s as if the mansion swallowed people whole.”
The elderly woman’s throat bobbed with emotion. She slowly released Richelle’s hand, her face looking as though she had seen something terrifying.
“Do you understand? You are… the first Bertrand employee I’ve ever met.”
***
The white mansion, surrounded by a dense black forest, still looked elegant and beautiful, like a noblewoman dressed in her finest gown.
However, Richelle felt no emotion. The countless roses that adorned the white mansion, oblivious to the seasons, were not awe-inspiring but rather eerie and nauseating. The overwhelming scent of roses made it hard to breathe, so Richelle covered her nose and mouth.
As she was about to step out of the carriage, she noticed someone sitting on the central staircase of the mansion. Long legs stretched out and black hair reminiscent of the forest’s darkness.
Richelle immediately recognized him. Her heart pounded heavily.
Before long, the carriage came to a stop. The door opened.
“Richelle.”
There he stood, Rogéros Walter.
My savior, smiling as beautifully as ever.
Or, the enemy who killed my mother.
“I’ve been waiting for you every day.”
