The black sun hangs high

Chapter 81 "Want to play a couple of rounds of Dragon Tooth Cards?"

"Let's play a couple of rounds of Dragon Tooth Cards."

When Hugh actually heard these words from the mouths of these living people, he still couldn't help but feel a little taken aback.

"Logically speaking, shouldn't I be the one saying these things to others? Why are others asking me this..."

He almost laughed, but that would be impolite, so he spread his hands and said apologetically, "Sorry, of course I know about Dragon Tooth cards, and I'm very interested in them, but... I've never had the chance to try them before, so I don't have any decks."

"Ha, who says writers only sit at their desks all day?"

The older Niels smiled at his brother: "Mr. Hugh knows about 'decks,' which is better than most beginners, especially the young ladies. It's really too difficult to teach them how to play this game."

"Exactly, and sometimes they even lecture us for having indecent designs on the cards..."

"Oh, that's really vulgar."

The two brothers laughed as they talked. Dietrich, the younger brother, pulled over a chair and invited Hugh to sit down: "Actually, a lot of people were already talking about you before you came back, saying all sorts of things."

Hugh took a liking to the two enthusiastic young men, so he asked, "What did they say?"

Dietrich took his deck in his hand and, as he flipped through it, said, "The good ones are naturally very good, and the bad ones are naturally not so nice to hear, just like that word, uh..."

Niels promptly pointed out: "Polarization!"

"Yes, that's it!"

Dietrich nodded, straightened the velvet cloth spread on the table, and then, together with his brother, placed the decks in place. The two eagerly drew seven cards from their respective decks and held them in their hands.

Hugh noticed that compared to the cards that ordinary people usually played, the Dragon Tooth cards in the hands of these two brothers were extremely clean and exquisite. Not only that, their cards even used magical images. These characters, which seemed to be alive, kept repeating specific actions on the cards, making Hugh feel a little dazed.

"How about it? Interested in giving it a try?"

Seeing that Hugh was staring at the patterns on the cards, Dietrich laughed and said, "Of course, the cards circulating on the market are not like this. These two sets we have cost a lot of money... They are masterpieces by Mr. 'Magic Painter Gerhard' from a while ago, sold in limited quantities, and have been certified by the Dragon Tooth Card Association. They are genuine products."

"No, you guys fight, I'll just watch."

Hugh shook his head: "I just returned to the manor and I'm not very familiar with the situation here, so I have some questions I'd like to ask you two."

"No problem, go ahead and tell me."

Dietrich tossed a coin, and he and Niels guessed heads or tails, thus determining the order in which they would play their cards.

"When did you arrive? I mean... at the Manor Hotel."

"The afternoon before yesterday."

Niels drew a Dragon Tooth card and placed it on the table: "We've always lived in the manor, so when we received the notice, we brought the card directly over. To be honest, for the two of us, there's no difference between living in the manor and here."

"Don't you get bored?"

Niels shrugged: "Maybe, but we're discussing some business matters, so it's not like we're completely idle..."

"It's not much different from usual, except that there are a few more guys around who like to talk big."

The more lively Dietrich made an exaggerated gagging expression: "Hearing it too much can make you nauseous."

Hugh recalled the murmurs he heard when he first entered the hotel lobby and nodded with deep feeling. Although the Ernst family could indeed be considered an elite among the nobility, its members had none of the usual flaws. These flaws were always more pronounced in proud and arrogant young people. The two people in front of him, focused on playing cards, were a rare breed.

However, Hughes finally remembered that the father of these two brothers, 'Earl Oliver', was also an anomaly in the Ernst family. As a true nobleman, this earl was passionate about the arts and was said to be an outstanding poet and painter. Children raised by such a father would probably find it difficult to be interested in things like power and status.

"So was there anything else mentioned about the manor? All the younger generation were sent to hotels to avoid the renovations of the manor?"

Hugh questioned, "But I remember the Winter Solstice is just around the corner, why would they choose to carry out renovations at this time?"

Dietrich nodded in agreement, "It was indeed strange. I was taking an afternoon nap when the butler suddenly woke me up. Looking back, it was as if they were in a hurry to kick us out. However, the hotel was very well prepared, at least I didn't think there was any problem. As for the ladies... they probably had more objections."

"Strong opinions? Are you dissatisfied with the environment?"

"No, they don't like the rats here."

Upon hearing this, Hugh raised an eyebrow slightly.

For most people, the presence of rats in their home is certainly not a good thing, but for Hugh and Sniggy the Runaway Rat, it's excellent news. With Sniggy's abilities, those creatures hidden in the crevices can be turned into weapons and informants at any time.

Niels played another card, expressing his disagreement with his brother's statement: "I think it's unlikely. This is a place that can accommodate and receive VIPs. If there were rats running around, the family would have lost all face. Anyway, I didn't find anything."

He turned to look at Hugh: "I've heard about you. You don't know much about the manor or the people here, do you? Let me tell you a secret: it's better to argue with those arrogant guys who have their noses in the air than to mess with our sensitive older and younger sisters... Their temperaments are as unpredictable as the weather in the Black Nest Mountains."

"Thank you for reminding."

“I think I overheard the mansion’s butler and some servants talking, and they seemed to be discussing how to deal with the rat infestation.”

Dietrich added, "But that should be normal prevention. When we were renovating the shops in the Leland district, I talked to the workers and they mentioned that this kind of problem always occurs in 'old' houses. After all, rats on the plateau are not afraid of the cold, so once we renovate, we must check all these hidden dangers."

He lowered his voice at this point: "There are too many old men in the family. If two of them were to be scared to death by rats, that would be a big problem."

"play cards!"

Niels glared at his brother. How could he just say such things so casually? Hugh knew he couldn't get anything more out of his two brothers, so he nodded his thanks to them and then walked away.

This time, his target was a group of women gathered on an elegant sofa in the corner of the hall.

In terms of blood relations, they should all be considered my cousins.

Hughes noticed that they seemed to have been watching him, so when he came to the sofa, he was greeted by several greetings.

"It seems the Niels brothers were right; they do seem to be quite friendly towards me."

Hugh greeted the four young women in front of him politely, but before he could speak, one of the younger, slender girls in a long dress spoke up: "Mr. Hugh, we were just talking about you."

"We've heard some things about you. It's hard to believe that someone could actually escape from Seren... That experience must have been incredibly dangerous!"

As soon as she said that, several young ladies next to her chimed in, their voices chattering like a flock of delicate birds hopping around in a cage.

The questions they raised all revolved around the dangers that Hugh might encounter when he fled Seren, and the experiences of Prince Havid of Walter in Seren.

Clearly, in the eyes of these young ladies, the city of Seren and the plight of its residents were not very important.

They were more interested in a thrilling and dangerous adventure, and the tragic story that befell Prince Harvid.

Hughes discovered that even before he could interject, they had already conjured up many bizarre details in their minds. One of the older ladies even brought up a version she had heard—that Prince Harved's death was actually related to a crime of passion.

This is pure nonsense.

Hugh felt he had to deliver a powerful blow.

"In fact, what happened in Seren... might be closer to the version told by the Legal Committee."

In a calm and steady tone, he spoke of the tragic reality of Seren City as he knew it: "The sludge-like magical beasts summoned by the bizarre magical ritual, the huge explosions and the sudden assassinations, in addition to the many robberies and arson cases that have not been reported in the news, plus the latest shelling, Seren City and its residents are probably doomed."

This statement is quite powerful.

The four young ladies, who had been discussing something, fell silent. After several seconds, their expressions returned, and one of the quieter ones asked in a low voice, "I heard... before the assassination, some strange cases had already occurred in Seren City. It's said that a newspaper editor was gnawed to death by a swarm of rats in his office?"

"Hannah, you've been reading too many horror stories!"

The slender girl who spoke first clearly disliked this topic. She frowned and scolded, "It's because you always look at these kinds of things that you've been having these crazy thoughts lately!"

"That thing did happen, and it happened twice."

Hugh added quietly from the side, successfully shutting the other person up.

Of course, he wouldn't tell these people that the person who created this horror story was right in front of them.

The atmosphere of the conversation suddenly became a bit awkward. Perhaps feeling embarrassed, the girl who had been rebuffed twice quickly stood up. She forced a smile and then walked towards the elevator. The other two people on the sofa, who were obviously closer to her, followed her.

Only the quiet girl named Hannah remained, sitting blankly on the sofa.

Her attire was slightly simpler than that of ordinary noble ladies, and she possessed a scholarly air that was somewhat lacking in the aristocracy.

Of course, you could also call it a nerdy temperament.

Seeing that Miss Hannah also wanted to leave, Hugh quickly called out to her, "Excuse me, Miss Hannah, I have some questions. Could you please help me answer them?"

Hannah asked somewhat cautiously, "What's the problem?"

“You should have heard that I’ve created… uh, some works before.”

Upon hearing this, Hannah's expression became even more cautious, and her face even turned slightly red, but she still nodded in the end: "I've heard of it."

“I don’t want to keep writing that kind of work, so I’m going to try to expand into the thriller and horror genres. In other words, I’m gathering material.”

Hugh noticed that the other person's expression seemed to have relaxed a lot, and his eyes had begun to shine, so he quickly pressed his advantage: "I just heard someone mention that recently, at the manor's hotel, someone seems to have noticed some ominous signs. Is that true?"

"Yes, the person they're talking about must be me."

Hannah nodded, a look of confusion and unease appearing on her fair face: "It happened yesterday at noon. I was taking a nap... just as I was about to fall asleep, I heard a sound next to my ear."

"You mean the sound of a mouse?"

"Maybe? It's like something's moving around, and there are occasional faint cries."

Hannah recalled carefully: "So I woke up then, but there was nothing in the room, everything was normal. I thought I had misheard, so I tried to fall back asleep, but soon I heard that sound again."

"Where did it come from?"

"I couldn't hear very clearly, but it felt like it was against the wall next to the bed... I even called the butler and waiter, but they told me that the walls of this hotel are solid and there's no way a rat could run inside."

Hugh nodded. The other party's description matched the "inspection results" that Sniggy had given him earlier—the basic structure of this manor hotel was very solid, and there were no gaps in the walls that one could pass through.

However, Hannah's account did not end there. She said with lingering fear, "That night, the sound appeared again. This time I heard it very clearly. The sound was not actually in the walls, but right in the room."

"It's like... it's like there's an invisible person running around in the room, that feeling is terrifying."

(End of this chapter)