The Act

Chapter-6

~The Next Morning~

'We talked until 11:30pm last night and I ended up sleeping until late in the afternoon, goodbye my sweet headstart. Let's just get out of the bed and go investigate shall we.'

"..."

"..."

"Madam Celina has asked to see you in the study today."

"O-okay."

'Why god, why isn't anything going as planned? Also there is something seriously wrong with that maid'

~At The Study~

"I'm sorry to call you here all of a sudden Navia but we got a letter this morning. It seems we must go to the capital right away."

"I-I see."

'Does this mean I will be here by myself for a few days. If that's how it is then I can investigate all I want.'

"Thus I'm asking you to pack your bags."

"I understand... Wait what?"

"You are coming with us, since we can't leave you unattended, after all you are here because of us to begin with so you are our responsibility, especially your safety."

'Why meeeeee.'

~That Afternoon~

"You don't look so well Navia, are you okay."

"Yes I am perfectly fine, just a little tired but thank you for your concern Sir Mekiel."

'I said with a smile but I am not at all well. I don't want to go, this is a serious set back on my research.'

The trio boarded a train to the capital city of Pallova and the duo took this chance to ask Navia if she was interested in continuing where they left off last time since she looked a little tired and very bored.

"Would you like it if we continued the story or do you want to take a break Navia?"

"I'm fine either way Madam Celina, since you would be the one doing all the talking, I am concerned wether you two would be in any condition to work by the time we reach Pallova."

'The two of them exchanged a few glances at each other and then sat quietly with a thoughtful expression as if contemplating what I had said before.'

"Maybe you're right Navia, maybe we should put this little discussion of ours for some other time, since we aren't as young and energetic as we used to be, Celina and I may not be able to get any work done if we exhaust ourselves on the way there itself."

No one talked for the rest of the journey. As the trio reached Pallova, an old man stood awaiting their arrival at the station.

"Welcome Master Mekiel and Mistress Celina."

'As the man greeted the two of them with a huge smile on his face I stood there dumb struck for this was the first human being working under the duo who was capable of showing facial expression and humanly emotions.'

"And this must be our guest Miss Navia, am I right?"

The old man asked with a warm smile and kind expression.

"Ye-yes, that would be me. It's nice to meet you sir."

The old man smiled and nodded. He took all the luggage from us and loaded it in the car.
The old man had white hair and wrinkled face which reflected his maturity. He always wore a kind smile and spoke in a soft tone. He wore a black suit and properly polished black shoes.
The trio stayed silent on their way to the mansion and neither did the old man try to initiate a conversation.

"Miss Navia, my name is Paul and you would be under my care while your stay at this mansion."

The old man said taking Navia to the room that had been prepared for her.

"Um Mr. Paul may I ask something?"

"Yes, please go ahead Miss Navia."

"Did you know someone named Katherine, by any chance."

"..."

'Oh my god, why is Katherine's name such a taboo to people who knew her?'

Paul and Navia stood in the hallway for about 5 minutes with Paul's back facing Navia. After the brief interval of silence Paul turned around and smiled.

"I believe Miss Navia must be very exhausted. I shall prepare a hot bath for you to relax your body. Until then please rest in this room."

'He just left without answering me. He even changed the topic. But I'm glad I can finally rest a little, also this room isn't as extravagant as the one back in Arvania. I wonder if I can find any information on Katherine here.'

Navia dozed off as she thought of all the things she had found out about Katherine so far.

~The Next Day~

After breakfast Navia found herself freely roaming and exploring the mansion.

'I must say, it is way easier to roam around in this mansion rather than the one in Arvania. Since Paul is busy with his daily work I am going to go explore this place today.
As I went around from room to room peeping inside the ones that stood out the most. One of them was quiet peculiar. It was the only room that wasn't cleaned whereas all the other rooms are made sure to be cleaned by Paul every single day wether they are being used or not. Unfortunately my curiosity won over my disgust and I entered the room which was extremely dusty inside. It was covered with spider webs and the sheets had not been changed in forever. Not even an inch of floor was visible under the thick layer of dust and the room was dark and smelly. I made my way towards the window and tried to open the window curtains. As soon as I tried to slide them the curtain rod broke and fell down. It startled me at first but it did the work anyway.
There was a desk at the far end of the room. I carefully walked towards it. The table was filled with papers and books covered with spider webs, dust and something that looked like mold. There was nothing out of the ordinary on the desk so I tried to open the drawer under but it was locked. I tried to pull on it with all of my force and the lock broke, maybe because the desk was old and weak. In that drawer there was a single maroon diary. It looked old and the pages were yellowish in colour, so I opened the dairy.'