Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 39: A Story

“I was sixteen years old when I went to the Black Spruce Mansion. Ah……… Black Spruce Mansion is what is now called the House of Death. Since it was surrounded by black spruce trees, that was how it got its name. At that time, the ones who moved there were Lord Stephen Lancaster, his wife, and their child……”

“Normally speaking, nobles like them would never easily hire outsiders.

They usually had servants who served their families for generations.

But Lord Stephen was different.

I only learned later that Lord Stephen was a frenzied gambler.

Because of gambling, he nearly squandered all of his family’s property, even losing their lands.

Because of this, he had to dismiss the other servants and come here……… This house seemed to be the only property Lord Stephen’s family had left.”

“To be honest, that time was not a pleasant memory. The reason they hired us was because our wages were very low. Yet even so, that family still carried themselves as if they were members of high society. Though they had lost everything, they still wanted to put on grand banquets and invite guests, as if in this way they could prove to their friends and relatives that their lives were still going well. But I knew it was all a façade. Because after every banquet, that family would spend the next while eating bland and tasteless food. Of course, their attitude towards us servants was never pleasant either. At first, we really did fear Lord Stephen. After all, he was a noble. For people like us, serving at the side of a noble was itself an honor. And back then, we didn’t know much about their circumstances.”

“Oh……… Where was I? Right, that house. At the time, living in that house were Lord Stephen’s family of three, and us servants. Including myself, the cook, and the lady’s maid, altogether about ten people. Lord Stephen had a bad temper, and his wife also looked at us with disdain, as if seeing toads crawling in the mud. But all that was tolerable. The strangest thing was still their child……….”

The old woman’s voice grew tense, uneasy.

“At that time, the young master was fourteen or fifteen. Normally, he should have been attending school. But instead, he shut himself in his room every day and never came out. He wouldn’t allow anyone to clean his room either. Except for meals, he almost never left. No one knew what he was doing inside. Sometimes, while I was hanging clothes outside, I would see the young master standing at the window, staring at me with a gaze that chilled me to the bone………”

“Fortunately, I was the laundress, so I had little contact with him. But Annie……… oh, she was the lady’s personal maid, she wasn’t so fortunate. She secretly told me several times that the young master would stare at her and laugh strangely. It wasn’t the smile of a man looking at a woman, but a strange, unsettling laugh that made one’s heart freeze. And in his room, he kept many dolls. He seemed to be very fond of them. I was frightened too, because I also thought that young master wasn’t normal. In private, we even suspected he might be mentally ill, which was why he didn’t attend school. After all, dolls were usually for girls. It was rare to see a boy playing with them. During that time, all of us were uneasy. We even thought of quitting……… After all, that family treated us poorly, and the wages were low. At first, we had come because of the noble family’s reputation. But soon we realized our labor didn’t match the pay———I had to wash the clothes and sheets of the whole household every day, yet each week I only earned a little more than ten shillings. If I worked outside as a laundress, I would earn much more. It was the same for the others. We once asked Madam for a raise, but she told us that lowly people like us should consider it the greatest honor to serve the Lancaster family, and we ought not to harbor such presumptuous thoughts.”

“You ask about Mr. Stephen? He rarely managed affairs. Every evening he went out, returning drunk. Sometimes he even came back bruised and battered, and there were times the police brought him home after some brawl……… At that time, everyone was restless, thinking we might as well quit………”

“………And then, things began to worsen………”

“It started with Annie. One day, she suddenly vanished. Madam flew into a rage, thinking she had run away. She even reported to the police that Annie had stolen from the house, demanding they arrest her and bring her back. But I didn’t think it was that simple. The day before, Annie had told me the young master had asked her to his room, and she was terrified. I comforted her, telling her if anything happened, she should shout, since I was always outside.”

“Then……… Annie disappeared. I suspected the young master had done something to her, perhaps even killed her. But the police seemed to think it was simply a servant’s escape, so they didn’t take it seriously. I spoke to Mr. Darren—the coachman, and the pillar among us servants. I told him about this. He was shocked, but he also told me that he had noticed his carriage had been taken out at night—because every evening after work he always cleaned the carriage thoroughly, yet on the day Annie vanished, he found mud on the wheels, though he hadn’t gone anywhere like that. So Mr. Darren suspected someone had secretly taken the carriage while he slept. He promised me he would investigate, and tell me what was truly happening.”

“After that……… Mr. Darren disappeared too……… No, I can’t say he disappeared, because we still saw his carriage going in and out every day. But we never saw him again. Before, Mr. Darren would always sit in the back garden to rest and smoke when he returned. But afterwards, he never appeared there again. Yet, yet I knew Mr. Darren was still around……… Because one day, during a heavy storm, I saw him from the window. He was driving the carriage, stopped at the gate. His body sat upright, unmoving, even as the rain and wind lashed him. And then I saw Madam step into the carriage and leave………”

“Then…………… things became more and more strange. Madam vanished. Sir vanished. It seemed as though everyone vanished. Each morning when I awoke, there would be one fewer person. The cook no longer appeared in the kitchen, yet there was always a steaming breakfast on the table. Madam no longer showed herself, yet I could still hear her hysterical screams and furious shouts. Sir never appeared again either, yet from his room I still heard the drunken groans, just as before. But I felt as though I were the only one left in the house……… No, there was still the young master. Every day when I hung clothes, he stood at the window, staring at me.”

“……………That day was no different. I was hanging clothes, and I felt that terrible gaze. I turned, and saw the young master at the window, staring at me. As before, with that eerie smile. But not only that—I saw standing behind him the others. Sir, Madam, Annie, Mr. Darren……… They were all behind him, watching me. Suddenly, I felt that I too would disappear, that I would become one of them. So I ran……… Yes, I ran without looking back, out of that house, and I never returned. As for what happened to that family afterward, I don’t know. I only heard that they all disappeared……….”

“……………That is all I know……… I don’t know what has become of them, or what truly happened, but I know that in the end, I still cannot escape from all of this……………”

The old woman’s voice gradually faded.

By now, Katie’s entire body was trembling with cold, hugging herself tightly.

Though the old woman’s story was dry and plain, not like a storyteller weaving conflict and flair—in fact, even a bit muddled—the thought of that scene sent chills down Katie’s spine.

“Old… old granny, what do you mean? Did you discover something?”

Katie asked uneasily, but the old woman still said nothing.

At that moment, Levi stood up, reached out, and pulled open the curtain.

And then they saw it: a doll shaped like an old woman, leaning against the bed under the quilt.

Its entire body was made of wood, and its cloudy glass-ball eyes were staring out the window.

“Eek—————!”

At this sight, Katie nearly jumped out of her chair in fright.

She clenched her small fists, staring at the doll before her.

“Wh-what is going on here?”

“Well, now this is interesting.”

Levi examined the doll carefully, then glanced around.

“All right, the story is over. We should leave.”

“Ah……… Mm………”

Katie nodded, clinging close behind Levi as they turned to leave the room.

But just before leaving, Katie glanced back once more—

“Detective!”

“Hm? What is it?”

“The doll is gone!”

“Mm, that is indeed interesting.”

Levi didn’t look back, only replied casually.

“Let’s go.”

“Ah, mm……………”

Katie nodded, sticking close to Levi.

But now the girl was deeply uneasy, even afraid———just as Katie had said, she wasn’t afraid of monsters that could be fought with fists.

Those, aside from looking odd, didn’t seem all that dangerous to her.

But someone who had just been speaking to them, telling them a story, suddenly turned into a doll?

And then the doll disappeared?

That was another matter altogether!

When the two of them left the damp room and reached the doorway, they saw the laundress sitting on a stool by the wall, as if she had fallen asleep.

“Um……… Miss………”

Katie hesitated, not knowing how to speak.

Should she tell her that her grandmother had turned into a doll and vanished?

But just as Katie approached to speak, she froze stiff———because sitting on that stool was not a living person, but another doll.

It sat like one of those displays in a doll gallery, hands laid flat on its knees, with a few shillings resting on its palms.

“………………”

At that moment, every hair on Katie’s body stood on end.

“D-Detective! What do we do now?”

She clutched Levi’s coat tightly, staring at him with unease, terrified that if he turned around, she would see a doll’s face instead.

Thankfully, Levi was still Levi.

“Mm……………”

At Katie’s question, Levi thought for a moment.

“My personal opinion? Why not just set fire to the whole house and burn it down?”