Chapter 440
Seeing the concern in Odalys's eyes, Percival shot her a wary glance before stepping forward, grasping her wrist and pulling her toward the exit.
"There's something wrong here. We need to get out, now," he said firmly.
As they moved toward the door, the red gates slammed shut with a loud clang just as they were about to leave. Percival froze, his gaze locked on the door.
"This door's different. It's not the same one we came in through," he said quickly, piecing things together. "This place is shifting moving."
Odalys's wrist remained firmly in his grip, and he made no move to let go. He stepped in front of her protectively, shielding her from whatever danger he imagined.
"Wait a minute," he suddenly remembered something and turned to her. "How did you even get here?"
Odalys glanced at him, then pointed to his coat pocket. "I put a talisman in your pocket this morning," she said casually. "The talisman is infused with my energy; I sense it."
"So, whenever you're in danger, I can sense" Percival fell silent as he processed her words.
"Then how did you know it wasn't me tempting you earlier?" she asked, her curiosity piqued, her tone light despite the heavy situation. Women, it seemed, could never resist the urge to ask about things like this, no matter how dangerous the situation.
"You would never do something like that," Percival replied, feeling slightly embarrassed. "And even if you did try to seduce me, you'd never do it in a place like this."
Odalys burst out laughing. She wrenched her wrist from his grasp and stood on tiptoe, looking up at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "What if I did choose a place like this?"
Percival's heart skipped a beat as she came closer. He felt his pulse quicken, and despite his usual control, his body betrayed him, a wave of desire flashing through him. He swallowed hard, trying to keep his cool, but the intensity of the moment made it harder to control himself. His eyes darkened, and he could feel the temptation clawing at him. He clenched his jaw, fighting the urge to give in.
"Odalys, stop playing around," he said, his voice low but strained, as he placed his hands around her waist, gently holding her back.
She looked up at him, the playful smirk still on her lips. "I'm not playing. I'm just curious," she said, her finger lightly touching his lips. Her touch was cold as ice, sending a shiver down his spine, but at the same time, it felt as though her finger carried with it a force of its own.
With a subtle push, she dispelled the negative energy that had been pressing in on them, clearing the air around them with an invisible force. A sudden bang echoed through the house, and the air seemed to explode with energy. The entire mansion shook, and the oppressive mist and dark energy surrounding them evaporated in an instant.
Without a word, Odalys turned and strode confidently toward the mansion's interior, while Percival followed closely behind. She walked over to a table where a coffee cup sat, still undisturbed. Odalys gazed at it thoughtfully, her expression complex. She picked it up, examining the dried remnants of coffee inside. She sniffed the cup, her face tightening.
"I just had a hallucination. I thought I saw my father," Percival quickly explained, his words tumbling out. "It felt so real."
He described the strange events that had just occurred, and Odalys listened carefully, not interrupting. She handed the coffee cup back to him.
"This cup is real," she said, her voice calm. "It still holds your father's scent. The hallucination you experienced wasn't just a trick. Your father's attachment to you was so strong that even after his death, he couldn't move on. He's been stuck, repeating the same actions over and over again, waiting for you to come back home. In the memory of waiting for you to grow up, to come back to him."
"He doesn't even realize he's dead. He's trapped"
Percival's grip tightened on the cup, his thoughts churning. He stared at the intricate patterns on the ceramic, his mind racing. This was his father's favorite coffee cup—there was no mistaking it. He had seen it countless times during his childhood. But how could it be here? He remembered it being placed in his father's coffin when he buried him all those years ago.
"This cup—this was buried with my father," he said, his voice tight with disbelief. "How could it be here? And if he's waiting for me why is he here? Why would he be stuck in this place?"
Odalys studied him carefully, her expression serious. "It's possible that someone swapped your father's body. I can sense his presence, and this place is saturated with negative energy—it's the perfect place for spirits to get trapped. There's a heavy air of resentment here, full of restless souls. It's no wonder no one dares to live here; it's a haunted burial ground."
She paused, then continued. "I suspect someone is trying to trap your father's soul here, preventing him from moving on and using his attachment to you to keep him tethered. His love for you has kept him in this place, endlessly waiting for you to return."
As Odalys spoke, she stepped forward, raising her foot and casually swinging it to the side. With a soft creak, the door to the living room, which had previously been tightly shut, opened. Inside, the furniture was covered in dust, but every piece looked like an antique—each item appeared to tell the story of past grandeur and the status that had once reigned here. The atmosphere was heavy with the weight of history.
"This place is decorated exactly like my family's old house," Percival said, astonished. He couldn't believe someone had managed to recreate the exact interior of the Stewart Villa so faithfully. It was almost unbelievable.
"The Stewart Villa? I've been there before, but I don't remember seeing this kind of arrangement," Odalys remarked, puzzled. She had visited the Stewart Villa a few times with Percival. The old house had a certain age to it, but this place was nothing like what she remembered.
"This room is the section that houses our ancestral tablet offerings. You've never been to that part of the Stewart Villa, so naturally, you haven't seen it. This space is exactly the same as the section where we offer to our ancestors," Percival explained. "Even the antiques are the same age." The Stewart family was never short of antiques, so Percival could easily spot real from fake. But what was truly strange was that everything in this room was authentic. These weren't just expensive reproductions; they were genuine pieces. It was hard to believe that anyone could have such an extensive collection of real antiques, especially to keep them in a place like this—something resembling a forgotten tomb.
"Interesting," Odalys murmured, her smile deepening as she listened to Percival. If it were just an ordinary situation, it wouldn't hold her interest. But the way things were unfolding felt increasingly bizarre. It was as though someone had been setting up the pieces long before, orchestrating it all from behind the scenes.
"To have found the exact replica of the Stewart Villa's ancestral offerings space, complete with the same era of antiques, and not rushed to sell them but instead kept them hidden away in a place like this It speaks volumes," Odalys continued, her eyes glinting with intrigue. "And then there's the fact that this place carries the unmistakable presence of your father. Someone here clearly knows the Stewart family inside and out—knows exactly what's happening, even when you'll show up here."
Chapter 410 (Note: This seems to be a continuation, not a separate chapter.)