chapter_001 : Entering the Haunted Villa

The world is filled with many unknown realms that humans have yet to explore. There are places that are off - limits, areas where humans should never set foot.

Once they do, the only fate that awaits them is death.

This story begins right here...

It was a night with barely any moonlight.

A villa near the outskirts stood alone, looking dilapidated and desolate, devoid of any signs of life.

"Zach, are we really going in?"

Outside the rusty iron gate of the villa, four figures stood. One of the shorter ones asked the tall figure beside him nervously, "People around here say that since the owner died, this place has been abandoned. They say you can hear strange noises coming from inside at night... I really don't want to go in..."

"Come on, don't be a chicken. There are four of us!"

The tall figure laughed, then took out a flashlight and switched it on.

These four were all college students, close friends who were interested in strange stories and anecdotes. There were three boys and one girl. The leader was named Zachary Thompson, the shorter boy was named Gary Johnson, and the other boy and girl were named Ryan Anderson and Lily Cooper.

"This lock is really old..." Zachary said, looking carefully at the rust - covered lock. He turned to Ryan behind him and said, "Ryan, can you open it? We're all counting on you." "Sure, I'll give it a try." Ryan took out a wire and inserted it into the keyhole. His uncle was a locksmith, so he had picked up a bit of the skill. As he tried to unlock the door, Lily asked uneasily, "Is this okay? Even though this house is abandoned, we can't just break in like this..."

"Don't be such a worry - wart, Lily," Ryan said, working on the lock by the light of the flashlight. "Didn't we all agree to come here for an adventure tonight, as the location for this year's courage - testing game? The places we went to in previous years were so boring. With cremation becoming more and more common, there are hardly any graveyards left. And most of the so - called haunted houses are fakes. You can't even find one real supernatural photo out of a hundred. So, we might as well come here. I heard that the owner here was a painter who could see ghosts. Whether it's true or not, it's much more interesting than the previous places."

As he said this, they heard a "click," and the lock opened more smoothly than expected.

Pushing open the iron gate, Zachary looked at the villa. It seemed to be in a German - style architecture. The trees on both sides of the courtyard had withered, and the house itself was very old. When they reached the front door, they found cobwebs everywhere and a thick layer of dust.

"Okay... let's go in now." The door wasn't locked and opened easily. The entrance led to a long corridor. The floor had cracks, and it creaked with every step, as if it could break with a little more pressure. The walls were cracked in many places, the wallpaper was yellowed, and lime was seeping out. There were lights on the ceiling, but there was surely no electricity. The flashlights they brought came in very handy.

After walking through several winding corridors, they finally entered the main hall.

"Cough... cough..." Lily couldn't help coughing. It seemed that there was too much dust in the air. She actually didn't really want to come. The main reason she came with the other three was because of Zachary. Everyone knew that they had feelings for each other. For example, because Zachary liked red, Lily always wore a dark red coat.

Slowly, they walked up the peeling - painted stairs. Zachary was in the front, followed by Ryan and Gary, and Lily, covering her collar and looking around, was at the end.

"This house... really feels creepy," Gary said, holding the handrail of the stairs and shining his flashlight around. He seemed to lack a sense of security without doing so. Ryan, on the other hand, was calmer, just quietly following Zachary.

Soon, they reached the corner of the stairs. Just as they were about to continue up, Gary's flashlight illuminated the wall in front. In that instant, he shouted, "Wow! Ghost, there's a ghost!" The other three immediately shone their flashlights in that direction. They saw an oil painting hanging on the wall. In the painting was a female ghost with a blood - covered face. It was really terrifying to see in this environment.

"What is it... just a painting," Zachary even stepped forward and touched it. "It's... quite realistic."

The background of the painting was a study. The female ghost's body was beside the desk in the middle of the study, curled up, hunched like a hunchback. Her eyes were all white, with no pupils, and blood was flowing profusely, even covering the floor.

"Gary, you're such a coward," Ryan said, helping Gary up with a contemptuous tone. "A painting scared you like this. If a real ghost showed up, you'd probably pee your pants."

"Hey, what are you talking about? Ryan, do you think you're so brave? I bet if this female ghost were real, you'd run faster than a rabbit! Believe it or not?"

"Okay! You two, grow up!" Lily stepped between them, trying to ease the tension. "We didn't come here to argue. It's just a painting. Let's move on."

"Hmph! I won't argue with you!" Ryan raised his head and continued following Zachary up the stairs.

When they reached the second floor, there seemed to be more rooms. The four of them randomly chose a room and entered. The floor was covered with papers and discarded paints. Some easels lay lonely in the corner, and a Western - style fireplace was on the left side of the room. "I saw a chimney on the roof just now," Zachary said, walking up to the fireplace and looking around. "It seems this was the painter's studio... There are some unburned scraps of paper in the fireplace. By the way, how did the owner of this place die?"

Ryan thought for a while and replied, "I'm not sure. But I don't think he was killed. When I asked the neighbors nearby, they didn't seem to want to talk about it in detail... Zach, do you feel anything about this house? Aren't you very sensitive to supernatural phenomena?"

"Do I sense the presence of ghosts... not very clearly yet. Anyway, let's keep looking. Gary, why are you staying at the door? Not coming in?"

"This room isn't big. I can see everything clearly from the door. Why come in?"

Zachary picked up a piece of paper from the ground. It was covered with a thick layer of dust. After shaking it off, the drawing on it was blurred, and the colors were chaotic. Was it an abstract painting? There were also many paint tubes scattered on the floor, all seemingly opened. The paint inside had dried up, but there was still a lot left. Was this painter so wasteful that he just threw them on the ground?

"Well... there are easels, paints, and paintings, but two things are missing."

Ryan asked curiously, "What are they, Zach?" "A palette and a paintbrush. I wonder where they are. This place seems so messy... I'm thinking, maybe the painter wanted to burn these paintings on the ground but didn't have time to finish before he died."

Lily frowned and said, "Don't make wild guesses, Zach."

"Who's making wild guesses... Maybe the palette and brush were thrown away by the original owner, and the paints were all spilled on the ground. Even the paintings were left aside. Why would the painter destroy his own paintings? By the way, who painted the picture at the corner of the stairs?"

"Probably the painter himself," Ryan said. "Didn't they say this painter could see ghosts and paint them?"

Suddenly, Gary rushed into the room and shouted, "Hey, you guys, come and take a look!"

"What's wrong with you? So fussy," Ryan couldn't stand this nervous guy. He always made such a big fuss. He regretted bringing him along. Although they all worked at the same internship unit, Gary wasn't in the same department as them. Usually, he acted fearless, but now his true colors were showing.

Zachary walked up to Gary and asked, "What happened?"

"Just come with me, and you'll know..."

The other three became curious and followed him around a corridor to a room. He pushed open the door, turned on the flashlight, and shone it inside. The other three were also a bit surprised. This was the study in the painting! Except for the absence of the female ghost, everything else was exactly the same. They couldn't help but admire the painter. It was like a photograph of the study... Thinking of this, their feet involuntarily trembled. Could there really have been a female ghost here?

"Hmph... What... What's so scary," Ryan said bravely. "The female ghost must be a figment of the painter's imagination. There's no such thing as a ghost. Right?"

"I think... we'd better go back," Lily said. After all, she was a girl. Whether there were ghosts or not, this atmosphere made her uncomfortable, and she wanted to leave early.

Zachary thought for a moment and said, "Okay, it's getting late. We've seen the whole house. Let's leave for now..."

Ryan had originally wanted to make fun of Zachary, but looking at the study, he felt a bit uneasy and said, "Well... okay then." As for Gary, he was more than happy to leave this place as soon as possible.

Then, the four of them ran out of the house as if they were fleeing.

Just as they reached the gate, Zachary accidentally saw the nameplate hanging on the door, with the owner's surname on it. He asked Ryan, "Ryan... what was the name of that painter again?"

"Hmm, the name? Let me think... Ah, right. His name was Neil Lawson." At the same time, in the Miller family's house in the city, Orion James Miller woke up from his sleep. Then, involuntarily, an image of a person formed in his mind, and some white shadows began to piece together, forming a name.

"Gary... this person... is going to die soon..."