Investigation Begins

Morning light streaming through the dusty window was a welcome sight. It felt like a promise of relief after the oppressive darkness of the night. I took a hot bath, hoping it would wash away the lingering fatigue and fear.

As I dressed, I couldn't help but grimace at the sight of my torn coat, a relic from last night's ordeal. "I don't have the money to waste on new clothes," I muttered, cursing the Fool's Card under my breath. Then, I hesitated. Did the card move? I questioned my own perception as I shoved it into a different pocket. "What have I come to? Afraid to even curse a card," I said, shaking my head at my own predicament.

With a resigned sigh, I put on my remaining clothes and left my room. The creaky stairs of the inn seemed louder than usual as I descended, my mind still reeling from the previous night's events. Despite my apprehension, I knew I couldn't let fear get the better of me. There were too many unanswered questions.

When I reached the ground floor, the innkeeper greeted me with a knowing nod. I chose to ignore it, focusing instead on the tasks ahead: finding new clothes and seeking answers. This night was quite and piecefull for me, a stark contrast to the gloom and hortor that had settled in the inn.

---

My duties at library o ly begins at 12 pm, so before that, I returned to the Crossroad Inn, now known as the Traveller's Inn, determined to dig deeper into Jasmine's death and the odd occurrences I'd experienced. The building looked unremarkable in the daylight, and inside, it was as expected empty and vacant. "Which fool would stay here," i thought, and anwser was as always me! Shaking my head on my poor self humor. My attention was drawn to the toothless shopkeeper, who was chatting with the young boy.

When he saw me, his face lit up with a grin. "Ah, you're back! Here to stay again?"

I shook my head. "Actually, I have a few questions."

The shopkeeper's smile faded, and his eyes narrowed. "Questions? What kind of questions?"

"About Jasmine," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "And the strange noises at night."

The shopkeeper's expression darkened. "Get out," he snapped. "I don't want to see you here again. Leave and don't come back."

I stood my ground. "I just want to know what happened."

The shopkeeper's anger flared. "You're in the wrong place. Get out, or I'll call the police," he said, his voice harsh.

I took a deep breath, knowing I had to leave but unwilling to give up. The shopkeeper's reaction had only confirmed that there was more to uncover, but for now, walking away was my only option.

Before I left, I noticed a boy outside sweeping the floor. I figured I might test my luck with him. "Hey, did anyone leave their room the night while I was staying? Or did you hear any loud creaking?"

The boy paused, a knowing smile creeping across his face. "No, sir. Nothing happened last night. All quiet," he replied, his voice laced with a hint of amusement. It was clear there was more to his answer, but it would come with a price.

My jaw tightened as I reached into my pocket and pulled out ten silver karkass notes, holding them out to the boy. "Tell me what you know," I said, keeping my voice low and insistent.

The boy's eyes widened at the sight of the silver notes. He glanced around nervously before nodding. "Follow me," he whispered, leading me away from the entrance of the old inn to a more secluded spot in the alley beside it.

Once we were out of earshot, the boy began to speak, his voice hushed. "There's a story about the gezzers younger sister. She died here, they say it was a suicide, but no one really knows for sure."

"She's what people think is behind the strange noises? Thats Why does no one stay here?" The boy flashed me another smile and added, "Of course, some idiots come often, but never stay long."

I cursed at the boys teasing, but pressed on, focusing on Jasmine. "What happened to the innkeeper's sister?"

The boy glanced around again, as if checking for eavesdroppers. "She died nearly twenty years ago, in room 11 on the second floor. The inn was popular back then, with all the rooms booked. But the strange phenomena didn't start until about five years ago."

I raised an eyebrow. "What happened five years ago?"

The boy's face took on a serious expression. "Well, a strange man stayed here. The innkeeper— the toothless gezzer —said that the man was dangerous and didn't like to talk to me about him. I remember him too. He wore a ring with a skull on it. The gezzer should have known better than to argue with him back then, but his greed always makes him stupidly couragious."

"What happened?" I asked, my curiosity piqued.

The boy sighed. "The gezzer asked for more money from the stranger about breaking some vass or something —Mr. Churchill, I think was his name. The old man to scared and sponeless to speak his first name now. But on second thought, the gezzer truely had the reason to be afraid.it was after his argument with that chur hill guy that the old man lost all his teeth."

"What you mean he lost his teeth after argument, did he got punched on face?" I asked, frowning.

"No, The man gave him the money he asked for but said, 'The price will be your smile.' after that, For sixteen days, the shopkeeper lost one tooth every day. And then, On the seventeenth day, all his remaining teeth broke while he was eating. He spat them out all together. he had vomited blood that day." the boy said shivering at the memory.

A shiver ran down my spine as well. The story felt almost like a dark jest, but with everything I'd encountered, it was unsettlingly believable. "What does this have to do with the creaking last night?"

The boy looked even more nervous. "Ever since that man's stay, strange things have happened. People hear music at night, see shadows moving, and sometimes they hear creaking, like footsteps reaching for their door. Some say it's the spirit of the innkeeper's sister trying to warn people. Even the old man blames that stranger for the inn's decline and bad luck. So we don't stay here anymore, and use the small cottage behind instead."

"Damn oldman," i cursed the old innkeeper for making me stay in the inn, while he avoided it himself.