"Oh, you actually beat him?"
The old curator was not curious about the strange profession of "demon scholar", but was surprised by what Xia De said:
"That's impossible, Stone Oxenfurt can also lose?"
"But I really won, that's why I got into a lot of trouble later, until I came here to ask for help. Mrs. Haila Oxenfurt didn't want to talk to me, but it seems that you know Issues?"
Mr. Fernandez swallowed, and turned his head again to look at the holy emblem of the righteous **** [Old Man with the Lamp], as if it could give him strength.
Of course, this can really give him strength, after all, this righteous **** really exists and affects the material world all the time. Even if you talk about demons under the holy emblem, you don't have to worry about being noticed by the other party.
"Young man, would you like to hear my story, my story?"
he asked suddenly.
"certainly."
Xia De nodded immediately, he came today to listen to the story.
"That was not so long ago, probably two years ago, in the winter of 1851. At that time, Stone Oxenfurt and Hella Oxenfurt had just married, and I was the exhibition hall curator."
The two got married two years ago, but it was the first time Xia De knew the exact time of their marriage.
"I can't forget what I did at that time, and I always hope that time can turn back and let me now stop me at that time... I asked about Stone Oxenfurt through my acquaintances. It houses a very precious antique stone sculpture. It is a full-length figure that was unsealed from the stone by a well-known sculptor from the Randall Valley about 200 years ago."
The old curator showed a sad expression, and Xia De understood what he had done:
"Did you visit Oxenfurt Manor?"
"Yes, I wrote to Oxenfurt, hoping to acquire the statue, but he ignored my letter. I think I was not sincere enough. Although Oxenfurt's business at that time was not as good as it is now, it was still He is a well-known businessman in the Randall Valley. So I brought a gift and made an appointment to visit in advance. In a snowy day like today, I took a carriage to the old house of Oxenfurt...the place It's really out of the way."
Shad imagined the scene where the carriage pulled the old man in front of him through the snowflakes to the gate of Oxenfurt Manor two years ago:
"What happened next?"
Fear pervaded the old man's face again, he closed his eyes and prayed again, and then he had the courage to continue the story:
"I saw Oxenfurt in the manor, and also saw his so-called friends. Oh, God, I thought I had come to the robber's den. They surrounded me laughing and laughing, and let me go to the second floor to meet The living room. At that time, Oxenfurt was sitting in the living room with a bottle of wine in his hand. Although he was not drunk, he was definitely not particularly sober. I knew that I probably picked the wrong day. He was in a very bad mood that day. not good."
The old man told about a day he will never forget:
"Although I also felt that something was wrong, since it was already here, I still expressed my request to acquire the statue. But Stone Oxenfurt ignored me, but leaned on the sofa and picked up the statue. holding the wine bottle, with his legs spread apart, cursing in a low voice, as if he didn’t care about me at all.”….
"What did he scold?"
"I only wish I had been deaf, but my hearing has always been fine. He muttered a few words in Ancient Speech, and then started cursing... demons. He used the vulgar Randall's Vale Local slang, and some sailor's vocabulary."
Shad knew that Oxenfurt had also been a sailor before.
"Civilized people don't use that kind of language. He didn't look like a businessman, but a highwayman. Although I was still thinking about the statue, I knew that if I stayed there, I was afraid my own safety would be affected." Something went wrong, so I just wanted to leave."
Mr. Fernandez, the old curator, shivered suddenly.
"He won't let you go?"
"He held the bottle
, took my hand and took me to his workshop on the second floor, where I saw the statue I wanted. "
Xia De has also been to that workshop.
"In the middle of the room was his own work. He asked me to comment on his work, and then in front of my face, he smashed a statue of a slender woman who was carved just short of an eye. I can't describe what happened next. After the statue was smashed, the whole house seemed to vibrate. I thought it was an earthquake at first, but then I had a huge dizziness, and there was a horrible, indescribable human sense. Oh, those visions still appear in my nightmares. I saw many dead people crying, and heard screams that seemed to come from the world of the dead..."
The old man covered his forehead, as if a little dizzy. Shad then gave him a glass vial filled with a clear, colorless liquid, and after Mr. Fernandez drank it, he immediately felt much better.
"Look, as a demon scholar, I still have some skills, otherwise I wouldn't have found this place."
Xia De said with a smile, and the old man was able to continue his story:
"The discomfort at the time, and the pain of shattering my soul, almost made me beg Oxenfurt to smash my head with the same hammer that smashed the statue. But he just laughed, and what I saw There are also more and more strange scenes, black stone roses, color blocks without any logic, and transparent human figures dancing and twisting."
He clutched the empty vial, his knuckles turned white:
"If you hadn't showed up today, I would never have told anyone about it in my life. I had a gradual breakdown, yes, I remember it well, a complete breakdown. If it hadn't been for my youth as a folklorist, see I have experienced some terrible things, and I vaguely understand that this world is not as simple as most people think, and I am afraid you will not see me today."
Xia De showed a look of admiration. Under such circumstances, Mr. Fernandez two years ago could still maintain his sanity, which is enough to show how tenacious his will is.
"I tried my best to escape from the house, but Oxenfurt stopped me, put the carving knife into my hand, and smiled and asked me to kill him with the knife. Although I still kept Reasonable, but I can no longer comprehend what is happening in front of my eyes.”
"You really stabbed him?"
Xia De asked curiously, the old man shook his head tremblingly: ...
"No, I used to be a scholar, and now I am the curator of the statue museum. Neither of these two identities allow my hands to be stained with blood. I threw away the carving knife, hugged my head and huddled against the wall and wailed, while Oxenfur Got angry."
The old man gasped, his face turned pale:
"But fortunately his wife appeared at this time, she stopped Stone Oxenfurt and told me to leave quickly... I can't remember how I escaped from the manor in a mess. After returning to the city, I became seriously ill and stayed in bed for a long time, until the end of the spring of 1852, when I could barely get out of bed and walk about normally.”
"During this period, Oxenfurt didn't come to see you?"
"No."
"So you didn't go to the local church for help? You should also know how unusual what happened to you?"
Mr. Fernandez shook his head again:
"I was so sick that I couldn't even speak for the first few weeks. When I regained mobility, sorry, I didn't mean to express my vulnerability, but I... I was afraid to go to church. I have seen the scariest thing, the most incomprehensible scene. I just want to forget about it, completely forget it, and never have anything to do with him again.”
"But it looks like you didn't succeed."
"Yes, in the summer of 1852, driven by curiosity, I wanted to investigate the ancient words that Oxenfurt said when he scolded the devil at first. At that time, I was really in a daze, obviously doing nothing, Treat that as a nightmare so it won't be what it is now... I actually found something, yes, I can't believe it myself, I actually did it with just a few
With just one pronunciation, such a terrifying truth was investigated. At that time, someone visited me..."
"Oxenfurt?"
"Yes ~www.mtlnovel.com~ but also not."
Xia De raised his eyebrows suspiciously, and Miya stood on Xia De's shoulder and looked around. Because of the existence of this cat, the "horror story" told by Mr. Fernandez is not scary at all. This cat has a kind of magical ability, every time he sees it, Shade will feel very comfortable.
"The thing that visited me with the black umbrella that rainy summer evening did look like Stone Oxenfurt, but I knew it wasn't. It looked exactly like Stone Oxenfurt It's the same...the skin is probably a little darker, and the eyes are completely black. Yes, there are no whites."
The old curator bowed his head to pray again, and Xia De waited patiently.
"He took all my research materials, and praised me as a very talented person, but I know too much, I should not get involved in his research. He didn't kill me, but put a curse on me .”
"What curse?"
"I must be watched by four different stone statues at the same time, all the time. If this condition is not met, my lifespan will pass four times faster."
The old man said softly:
"This is not a joke. Look at my old appearance. Partly because of that serious illness, partly because of being tortured by nightmares, but more because of this curse. It didn't directly kill me, but it sharpened For the remaining value of my life, I cannot leave this statue exhibition hall, I am imprisoned here by the sculptures. I think, I probably won’t survive the next winter.”
He coughed a few times, and Xia De blinked in surprise. When he shook hands with the old curator just now, he felt a strong curse on the other party, but he didn't expect it to be in this form.
Salted fish pilot
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