Cursed

Ethan was seated directly in front of me. Mr. Chaffer then rang the bell of which I don't know where he took from. Seconds later, the door from across the room suddenly opened coupled with the creaking sound. From there, I didn't see anyone other than a food cart being pushed by literally no one. It was moving on its own!

It went directly in our direction and the dishes on it flew towards us. The smell of grilled lamb chops wafted into our noses — making my stomach growl. I looked at Ethan's plate and realized that we were served different foods. While mine's meat, he has got some sliced bananas, carrots, and some greens.

"Please enjoy this humble meal Mr. Jack, Mr. Ethan, as we await the arrival of our lord." Mr. Chaffer said. And while he was saying that, the floating wine bottle was pouring red wine onto our glasses. After all that was done, the trolley then started moving full speed in the direction opposite from where it came from. Crashing onto the wall as it disappeared into a pearly white smoke.

It took a while before I finally retracted my gaze from where it disappeared to. Though I have already pretty much accepted that literally, anything can happen from here on, my brain seemed to be having a hard time doing so.

Ethan was eating his carrots that were chopped into a shape of a french fry.

Feeling like it has been ages since I've eaten anything decent, I didn't think twice shoving a large slice of meat into my mouth. And trust me when I say that was the best bite I've ever had in my life. No kidding.

I was eating like nobody's business when I noticed the dessert by the side. It was chocolate oddly shaped into a frog wearing a cowboy hat. I was curious about what it tastes like given the weird shape. It wouldn't taste like a frog, would it? And so, I tried reaching for one.

"I wouldn't eat those if I were you," Ethan suddenly said making me freeze my hand midair.

I gave him a questioning look but he pointed to the chocolates and said, "Look!"

My eyes became wide as soon as I looked at the chocolates again. Their colors are changing until they turned into a real live frog! They have mostly green bodies with blue legs and undersides and bright orange feet.

All of them are staring at me with their bulging red eyes and grinning faces. It was a little offputting — and creepy.

They were synchronized when they stood on their two feet like a human, took their cowboy hats off, brought them to their chest, and bowed towards me and Ethan. After that, they simultaneously hopped off the table and disappeared in all directions.

"Don't mind them. They're just a bunch of security frogs. They were the first to notice anything suspicious. In charge of contacting the lord of this castle in case of emergency. And of course, the first to notice any changes in this place. They probably went here to check you." Ethan explained.

"Check me? What for?"

"It's most likely because it was your first time here and your presence is basically alien to them."

After he said that, I turned to where they disappeared to. But I realized they haven't actually disappeared but instead, they merged into the background. Matching their colors to the place they're at. At first glance, they were hardly noticeable but now that I'm already aware of their presence, I can now see that they were basically everywhere. In every corner, at the ceiling, on the floor… Heck! They're everywhere!

Now that I think about it, an owl that can grow into a giant and dig a tunnel really fast. The flying thing outside the castle, Mr. Chaffer, the skeletons… Nothing can be considered normal here! I mean… if we're gonna talk about my standards at least. Because as far as I can see, it seemed that "my normal" is either bland and boring for them or just straight up abnormal. Making me curious about the lord of this castle even more.

Speaking of Garv, he had been standing beside Mr. Chaffer all this time — still in his colossal form. Standing side by side, Mr. Chaffer looked like a toddler.

"Oh? The old man is here," Ethan said as he shoved the last slice of banana into his mouth.

I couldn't help but get excited as soon as I heard him say that. I had been anticipating it since this morning.

Not long after, we heard three brisk knocks on the wooden double door, along with the very familiar sound — a creaking sound of bones. It must be Monica and Victor. And I was right! As soon as the door opened on its own again, it revealed the two carrying a… coffin? Though I doubted my eyes for a second, yes, it was indeed a coffin. They placed it at the front and knocked on the lid three times.

After doing that, they distanced themselves.

Everyone in the room waited in anticipation as it fell into a pin drop silence. Approximately around five seconds later, there was a rattling sound coming from the inside. And the lid flew a couple of meters away — the one inside kicked it flying.

"Don't be fooled by his appearance, Mr. Jack. He's older than all of our ages combined," Ethan whispered to my ear. I didn't notice until now that he was already sitting by my side. Just how fast is this guy?

I returned my gaze to the coffin. The one lying inside slowly rose and lazily stretched. He was definitely taking his time. After finally finishing his full-body stretching, he walked swayingly and slumped on the chair at the very end of the long table. He has a glazed glassy-eyed expression. He seemed to be sleepwalking.

Wait! That's the old man? He doesn't look like one at all! He seemed to be in his early 30s.

"Just how many times do I have to be disturbed in a week?" he asked but no one dared to answer.

A wine bottle along with a glass flew clumsily towards him. Unlike its earlier graceful way of pouring, it was now shaky as some of its content spilled over the table. The man grabbed the glass from midair and drank it in one gulp. He then looked at me and said, "You!" he pointed at me, "Someone cursed you."