Chapter 469 (1/2)

Andrea Family, that was, the ‘parvenu family’ Nangong Sanba was talking about, had been rooted in this snow land for three hundred years. They were wealthy and had a long history. They had incredible properties and ancient foundations in Europe. However, few people in the world knew the existence of this family: for more than three hundred years this family had always followed the strict admonitions handed down from ancient times—not getting involved with the outside world, not trying to escape the snowland, not attracting the attention of others—their ancestors and every patriarch were convinced that were the only ways to maintain the family’ wealth, and of course, their lives.

The mottled façade of the castle was the witness of the ups and downs the family had experienced. The elegant and luxurious interior of the castle displayed their wealth and history. The castle had undergone many renovations and modernization over hundreds of years, but without changing the most important parts of the framework. It was clear that every generation in this family knew what was hidden beneath their own castle: they were afraid to disturb the beast in this cage.

Later in the day, Hao Ren saw some of the servants in the castle began busily preparing the dinner, which somehow added live to this building castle. He was wondering where the servants of this place came from: such a lonely and remote place, also a mysterious, gloomy, reclusive castle; he could imagine people were recruited to work here.

Since Nangong Sanba had known a thing or two about the situation here, he naturally played the tour guide role. “Most of the servants in the castle are hereditary. The Andrea Family uses their wealth to feed these people so that their offspring will receive professional education as a servant. And they also recruit outsiders a high price, but even so, they still lose people every few years— some’ve died of accidents and some who couldn’t stand the atmosphere and fled, but in any case, the rich always have their own solution.”

Hao Ren and the others were now staying on the third floor of the VIP area. The gorgeous room was covered with thick velvet carpet, with palace-styled decorations, the firewood crackling in the fire, in addition to all the furniture and appliances which were needed. However, this luxurious and comfortable room did not make them feel at ease. Since the moment they entered the castle, Hao Ren always had an uncomfortable feeling coming from under his feet. He asked several others and found that this was not an illusion.

Vivian had had seceral encounter with the vengeful spirit. She could generally make of the situation here. “The vengeful spirit must be in the castle underground, but it hasn’t fully entered the material world. And to be honest … I’ve a weird feeling about the building.”

Hao Ren glanced at Vivian. “Yeah. It’s weird. The house looks like a prison from the outside.”

Vivian shook her head, opened the window of the room, and looked out at the dark atrium. The two wings of the building had two rows of low-rise houses that extended out to form a cage-like structure behind the castle. She looked at the gloomy and overcast weather outside in thought. “I mean something else… I feel that I’ve seen this place before.”

“I don’t know if you’ve really seen it before but I’m freezing,” Becky jumped around with her arms around herself, and then slammed the window closed. “It’s freaking cold here! Are you freaking out of your mind?”

Lily was lying in front of the fireplace staring at the flames in a daze. She threw a despised look at Becky when she heard her. “Oh, come on. At this temperature? I feel it’s right for me!”

Vivian chimed in. “It’s like fish to water, eh? After all, this is the Arctic Circle, your ancestors’ place. I bet you could make eighty pulling a sleigh behind you.”

The night fell, but the place was close to the Arctic Circle, the polar day and night phenomena could still affect the day-to-day life here. The sun gradually set to the position right above the horizon but stayed there, it stubbornly shone its weak light on the earth. The polar night sunlight did not give much light to the castle. Instead it cause the castle looked even more gloomy because of its angle.

After the dinner in the room, Hao Ren decided to take a stroll ouside in the hallway.

Outside the room was a straight hallway laid with dark red carpet with many portrait paintings on both sides, and the portraits here were no longer full-body images, but avatars framed in oval frames. These lifeless figures looked weird in the warm light. While walking, Hao Ren whispered to himself: he could not understand the pervenu who hung these portrait paintings in the hallway. Was it the parvenu was mentally too tough or something? As if the already gloomy hallway was not enough, he had also hung two rows of zombie faces of his ancestors in it. To make matter worse, the parvenu decided to place a pair of dim lights on both side of each portrait painting. Anyone who had a weak bladder and needed to make a trip to the loo outside at night would be scared the pee of them, literally.

Outside the castle, the temperature was minus tens of degrees below, but inside the castle it was still warm and pleasant. Wearing a unlined garment strolling in the hallway, Hao Ren suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He was counting the portraits of the ancestors of the Andreas, from the youngest generation—that was, the father of current head of family, Igor—to those of the Bolshevik period, the Alexander period, and Catherine period. Under the cold glances of the portraits in the oval frames, Hao Ren had unknowingly reached the end of the hallway.

In front of him was weird portrait hung on the wall at the end of the hallway.