Horror Mansion: Short Stories

Intermission

[you return in an instant]

Quick, yes? Did you learn anything?

The story seems a bit vague, but if you delve deeper

You'll find its meaning

Come, let us continue our walk as I explain

[you nod]

In the dream, what did you think of the woman?

...

Yes, it was quite sad

But no, the woman did not represent Master

At least not as much as it did with the one who watched her

In the dream, if you didn't know, the one who watched was something of a guardian

It was a guardian of the forest, and it could feel

And hear

Everything that happens around it

That's the first thing we use to compare

Unlike the guardian, Master doesn't know everything that happens around him

But he wishes to know, and not only on the scale of what is in his general vicinity

He wishes to know everything that happens around the world

He especially wants to know what others are thinking

Sure, it may sound like he's being a little greedy

What will he do with all that information?

If anyone had that amount of information, nothing will ever threaten them

But Master wants to know these things for other reasons, not to use it to move up in the world

To him, they are stories, different worlds, endless ideas

He wants to know them all, only because they fascinate him

To him, it's like living the story itself. He attempts to relive every word

Though, he is human. One cannot contain all and be expected to be the same

Which brings me to the second point of the dream

In the dream, the guardian wanted to do something for the woman

Something to help and make her happy after feeling her emotions

In the end, he couldn't

No matter how much he learns, there are things he can do nothing about

The guardian was beneath the water, the woman was not

They were living in the same world, but simultaneously in different ones

And much like the guardian, Master wishes to do something about despair

The dream only included one person and one story

But Master likes to read and listen to people talk, so the troubles he wishes to resolve are many

His journeys from one story to the next, after some time,

Eventually made him not only feel sadness and uselessness,

But also uncertainty. The uncertainty isn't shown in the dream, but it's what comes after

I only knew this after one of our conversations

The more he learned, the more he didn't feel right

Things he thought he knew for sure were wrong

Things he believed in before became myths

It has come to the point that even when the answer is right in front of him,

Master will make sure it is correct five times before believing it

And in some cases, even then it's wrong

Just like with the woman

...

Why doesn't he stop?

It does indeed seem detrimental to his wellbeing

But, he cannot stop

Several times, I've felt this corner of his mind closing, becoming darker and darker

At first, I believed it was going to happen

And for a long time before that, I was hoping he would do it someday

To completely forget about me, this mansion. For his sake, of course

Each time after that, I'd have a tiny amount of hope that he'll do it

Though it isn't all bad

He enjoys them also, remember?

The guardian learned a great deal about the woman other than her sadness

The guardian got glimpses of her past, her happiness

She told a story of her life

As for the third and last point, the woman herself

No, none of those things ever happened to Master

But he has had some complications and was troubled during his school days

Though, others didn't notice. He held either a blank or fake expression most days

He even contemplated suicide once, but thankfully he found that idea to be ridiculous

He still thinks about it though, and the whole idea, or lack of, behind death

[butler sighs]

He's much too complicated

Ah, the exit

I hadn't realized we were so close

Is there anything else you'd like to see before moving on?

Preferably something close

...

The last few windows, is it? Allow me

[snaps fingers, window turns into an opened]

[from the corner, a shadow moved]

Whenever you are ready

[take a step inside]

[black]