Chapter 28: Counting Money, Dreaming!

Chapter 28: Counting Money, Dreaming!

The strangeness of this matter involved not only Dean Darn, but the bell tower itself was equally peculiar!

The sun in the dock area rose from the sea, and to greet its arrival earlier, the buildings here were all constructed facing the direction of the sunrise.

But this bell tower, it was the opposite! The main gate faced the mountains, turning its back to the sun, which was the reason the entire room was overly dim.

He wouldn't simply think this was due to an accident during the construction of the bell tower.

"There's some sense to that, but since we've come all this way, not taking a look inside would always be worrisome."

Instructor Folen was still inclined to enter the basement to search, although the chances were slim, what if his teacher was hidden there? Dean Darn, with a kind face, said, "This basement isn't too large, with only twelve small compartments, a search won't take much time."

Hugh also persuaded, "Not taking a glance inside, no one would be content."

"…"

Hastur couldn't argue with them alone and had to nod in agreement.

"I'll lend a hand."

Hugh stepped forward, opening the trapdoor on the ground with Dean Darn.

As soon as the trapdoor opened, a cold wind blew out, carrying the scent of earth and a slight stench.

"This smell is really unpleasant." Hastur held his right arm under his nose, showing a face of disgust.

Dean Darn awkwardly said, "The basement is perennially devoid of sunlight, cold and damp, the smell is indeed unpleasant."

Hastur looked down at his clothes worth dozens of pounds, waved his silver-plated cane, and said solemnly, "This place is not suitable for a noble to enter."

"This…"

Dean Darn was at a loss for words, after all, standing before him was a baron, a nobleman, indeed it was hard for them to lower their status and enter such a dark and cold basement.

Hugh, with a meaningful look at Hastur, said with a smile, "How about this, you stay outside, and the three of us will go in."

Hastur didn't speak, using silence to consent to the suggestion.

Instructor Folen, although puzzled by Hastur's actions, said nothing and silently held the kerosene lamp on the side.

Seeing this, Dean Darn could only let Hastur stay outside alone.

The three of them entered the basement one after another, with Dean Darn leading, Hugh in the middle, and Instructor Folen at the back.

Hastur silently watched them enter the basement.

His insistence earlier was mainly due to his distrust of Dean Darn; having one person stay outside was better in case something happened and help was needed urgently.

Seven or eight minutes later, a slight tremor came from below, and Hastur immediately became alert, gripping his cane and staring in the direction of the trapdoor.

Sure enough, there was a situation! The previously opened basement trapdoor was starting to close automatically, attempting to seal itself again!

Hastur's expression changed slightly, and with quick reflexes, he stepped forward and wedged his cane into the trapdoor, holding one side. But the force of the closing was strong, making it difficult to stop the trend. Eventually, the cane was stuck in the middle position, prying open a small gap, preventing the trapdoor from closing completely.

"Good thing this cane is sturdy enough."

Hastur was relieved that before leaving home, to prevent any fights, he had specifically chosen the sturdiest cane.

If it were an ordinary cane, it would have been crushed directly.

Hastur tried to shake the cane, but to no effect; it was stuck tight and couldn't be pulled out.

He went to the edge of the trapdoor, lifted his foot, and tried to kick it down forcefully, but still could not open the basement trapdoor.

If only there was a large stone.

Using a stone to break through the trapdoor would have been a good choice.

But obviously, that wasn't an option now.

He tried shouting a few times, wanting to understand the situation of Hugh and Instructor Folen.

"Dean Darn has run away! We're locked in a solitary confinement room! Quickly find someone to help us!"

Soon, Hugh's angry voice came from inside.

Phew, it's good that nothing serious happened.

Hastur breathed a sigh of relief; being locked in a solitary confinement room was much better than encountering other dangers.

"I'll go find someone to rescue you right away!"

Hastur shouted three times, and after getting a response from Hugh inside, he quickly left the bell tower and headed for the central square.

There, two police officers were gathering people and asking for clues about Professor Wayne.

Hastur hurried over, explained the situation, and quickly caught the attention of the two officers. They led several strong young men, following Hastur back to the bell tower.

On the way, they picked up a few tools suitable for breaking doors, and upon arrival, they all exerted force together and soon smashed the entire trapdoor.

The two officers, carrying kerosene lamps, led the two young men into the basement.

Hastur still did not go in but spoke a few words to Hugh from a distance to confirm their safety.

After a few words, Hastur turned his gaze to the other two young men.

They were about eighteen years old, wearing brown jackets and black pants, with messy hair and calloused palms, clearly used to hard labor.

But when Hastur caught their gaze, a chill ran through him.

Their eyes looking towards the basement were too calm!

At such a moment, even if they didn't discuss it privately, they would surely be curious, right?

How could they be like a piece of wood, showing no other reaction?

Feeling Hastur's scrutinizing gaze, the two young men looked over together, their eyes still very calm, without a ripple.

"Have you finished your work for the day?" Hastur quickly found a topic to chat about, fearing for his safety.

"We don't have to work today; we're busy looking for someone."

"It would be good if you came here often."

Both men's answers were short, their emotions still not fluctuating much, but they also didn't show any malice.

Hastur curiously asked, "How is Dean Darn to you on a regular basis?"

"If we can complete our work every day, he lets us eat our fill."

"He doesn't like boys, he likes girls."

Hastur continued to ask, "What work do you do every day?"

"We mine stones in the mountains, starting from eight in the morning until nine at night."

"After you came, we only had to work six hours a day, and the food was even better."

The two men answered every question, and except for a noticeable emotional fluctuation when talking about eating their fill, their other answers were very calm.

As if they were answering something that had nothing to do with them.

This strange phenomenon made Hastur increasingly uneasy; could it be that they had been brainwashed?

He thought for a moment, then patiently asked, "Besides liking to make you work and liking girls, what else does Dean Darn enjoy doing?"

"Counting money."

"Dreaming."

"…"

Such answers almost made Hastur lose his composure.

He knew the two men were answering different things, but put together, it created a strong comedic effect.

Hastur took a few deep breaths to suppress the urge to laugh.

Counting money was understandable; he liked counting money too.

But liking to dream was interesting; for a person to like dreaming and for everyone to know about it was indeed not a simple matter.

Hastur tried to ask, "What kind of dreams does Dean Darn like to have?"

"Finally, they're out!"

Before the two young men could answer, Hugh's voice came from the basement.

The voice was loud and full of vitality, sounding very healthy.

"Ah, so Dean Darn is that kind of person."

Then there was Instructor Folen's sighing voice.

With these two voices interrupting, the two young men said nothing more, exchanged glances, and stood silently to the side.

Hastur asked again, but they refused to say a word.

Soon, Hugh and Instructor Folen came out from the trapdoor, looking no different from when they had entered.

Hugh tidied her hair slightly and hummed, "It's good that you agreed to stay outside at that time, otherwise we would have been locked up for a long time."

Instructor Folen came to Hastur's side and whispered, "We didn't find the teacher inside."

Hastur wasn't surprised by this and began to inquire about their experiences inside, as well as how Dean Darn had escaped from their sight and locked them in the solitary confinement room.

Hugh was not in a good mood, so Instructor Folen recounted their recent experience.

The basement was very dark, and even with the kerosene lamp lit, it couldn't illuminate a large area. There was also a constant damp and cold, walking through it felt like traversing a sewer.

On each side of the interior, six solitary confinement rooms were separated, with a rest room at the end.

Of the twelve solitary confinement rooms, only three actually held people.

Dean Darn led them to open each one, until the second-to-last solitary confinement room was opened, inside which was a huddled figure. To get a clearer look, Instructor Folen and Hugh went inside.

As they both entered, Dean Darn, who was standing outside, suddenly closed the door of the solitary confinement room, locked it, and then ran away without looking back.

When they realized they had been tricked, they were already unable to get out.

At that time, they also saw the figure huddled

…at that time, they also saw the figure huddled in the corner of the wall. It wasn't Professor Wayne, but a dead person.

The body was thin and small, not older than sixteen, dressed in tattered clothes, and wearing a dark hat.

According to Hugh's analysis, the person had likely starved to death.

Dean Darn's escape was probably also due to the dead person in the solitary confinement room.

Later, it was Hastur who found people to rescue them.

After leaving the solitary confinement room, they followed the two officers to search each room, but after a long time, they found no secret passages.

The two decided to come out first, while the two officers continued to carefully check every inch of the place with the two young men.

(End of Chapter)