area51novel Chapter 121: Riddle’s Old Mansion
Chapter 121: Riddle’s Old Mansion
The villagers of Little Hangleton still like to call this house "Riddle House" even though its owners, the Riddle family, have not lived here for many years.
This large building is located on a hillside, and you can overlook the entire village from its balcony.This was also one of the things its owners loved to do back then, which reflected their high status.
But now, the windows of this house have been sealed, the tiles on the roof are incomplete, and the ivy has crawled all over the house.
Riddle House, which was once a handsome mansion and the most spacious and imposing building for miles around, has now become damp, desolate and has lost its former splendor.
And because of long-standing rumors, the villagers of Little Hangleton have always believed that this old house is a haunted house.It is said that half a century ago, something so bizarre and terrifying happened here that even now the elders in the village like to talk about it when they have nothing else to talk about.
Because this story has been told over and over again, and many places have been added to by each narrator, no one can say for sure what the truth is in the end.
But every version of this story begins the same way: 50 years ago, Riddle House was a well-managed and impressive place.
It was at dawn on a sunny summer day that when a maid of the Riddle family got up and walked into the living room, she found that all three of her master's family had died.
The frightened maid screamed all the way down the hillside and rushed into the small Hangleton village below. Her screams woke up all the sleeping villagers in the village.
"They're all lying there with their eyes wide open! They're all cold! They're still wearing their dinner clothes!"
This was the only thing the frightened maid could say. Then the police were called, and the entire village of Little Hangleton was immersed in surprise and curiosity. Although the villagers tried their best to conceal their inner excitement, they failed. .
There is a saying that goes well: We are all professionally trained and generally don’t laugh unless we can’t help it.Obviously, the villagers of Little Hangleton are the kind who just can't stand it anymore.
Besides, they had no intention of wasting their energy on holding back and pretending to feel sad for the Riddle family, because this family was not very popular in the village.
Although these two old couples are rich, they are snobbish and rude.And although their adult son Tom has been missing for a long time, you may not believe it, but he is actually a bit worse than his parents.
Even though the villagers had been looking for him for a while because of the reward offered by his parents.But in the end he ran back by himself, and the villagers failed to get a penny. Instead, they were driven away by the Riddle family.
Therefore, when all the Riddles died suddenly, none of the villagers were sad. Instead, they were only gossiping about who the murderer was.
Obviously, even the villagers who have not read the book know that it is impossible for three seemingly healthy people to die of natural causes at the same time on the same night.
That night, the business of the Hanged Ghost Tavern in the village was particularly prosperous. Almost everyone in the village came here. Everyone, regardless of gender, old or young, was talking about the murder.
But what they don't know is that there is indeed a way in the world that can cause three healthy humans at different ages to die naturally at almost the same time.
This method is called magic, and it is not half magic, but Avada Kedavra, which is classified as the Unforgivable Curse in the vast classification of magic.
Of course, it is impossible for the villagers to know about magic. After all, they are just a group of uneducated country Muggles, not wizards who know magic.
Although the police, who are also Muggles, are more educated than the Muggle villagers, they also don't know what magic is.So they ended up arresting the Riddle gardener on the grounds that he was the only one who had the key to the back door.
Unbeknownst to them, the murderer did not use a key to enter the Riddle home, but used a spell called the Unlock Charm.So from the beginning, the Muggle police were on the wrong track.
But fortunately, the forensic doctors were professional enough, and they came to a relatively professional conclusion: No one in the Riddle family was injured by poison, sharp objects, or pistols, nor was they suffocated or strangled to death.
It can even be said that their family is very healthy, except that they have all died.Of course, it was not completely abnormal, that is, they all had a look of horror on their faces.
But their expressions didn't mean much, and given the conditions at the time, no one would assume that they were scared to death.So in the end, the Muggle police released the Riddle gardener. After all, they had no evidence to prove that he was the murderer.
However, their colleagues in the magical world did not follow such rules. They hastily identified the murderer's forged evidence and captured an unlucky guy who couldn't even speak human words.
Anyway, both parties finally closed the case and thought that was the end of the matter. They never thought that the real murderer was still at large.As for the two unlucky ones who were caught, the gardener, who was more lucky, returned to his small shack in Riddle House after being released.
As for the one who was more unlucky, he died directly in Azkaban.Of course, the gardener never thought that the real murderer would come back to kill him after more than half a century.
Of course, history should have developed this way, but this time there was a slight deviation.Before the real killer and his minions can show up, another magical visitor arrives.
"Are you Frank Bryce?"
"Yes, little one, whose child are you from? I don't think I've seen you before. Wait, you're not from Little Hangleton Village?"
"Of course not. My name is Rolf Scamander and I'm from Dorset."
"Dorset? What are you doing here?"
"Of course I'm here to find you, or to save your life."
"what are you saying..."
Old Frank, who was originally wary of Rove, immediately became furious and prepared to get a gun after hearing Rove say that he wanted to save his life.But as soon as he turned around, a spell hit him.
Then in the next moment, Rove caught the old man who almost fell to the ground, and then put him back on the bed in his small shack in Riddle House.
Then Rove's body shape and height began to change. His originally straight back began to become rickety, and his normal legs also became lame.
"Okay, from now on, I am Frank Bryce. Hehehehe"