33、The Phantom of Vendée(1) 旺代的幽灵 ...
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On this night, Fiona was lying on the hard bed in the convent, resting with closed eyes, when she heard athrill whispers of a few girls from the neighbouring beds.
"Fiona? Fiona! You're not asleep either, are you?" one of the girls nudged her.
"Come on, let's listen to Daisy's ghost story together!" exclaimed the elder girl Charlotte, her voice brimming with excitement.
"And not just any ghost story! It's a tale of vampires!" Amy, Fiona's bed neighbour, added.
Curiosity piqued, Fiona rubbed her eyes and sat up.
"Shush! This is a true story told by my maid! You must not spread it around!" Daisy, surrounded by the girls in the centre of the bed, assumed a serious demeanor.
"Don't keep us in suspense any longer! Come on, tell us!"
"You know, we have a maid who came from Vendée in France. She's getting old, as timid as a mouse herself, yet always loves to tell spooky tales to scare others. And she always swears with an extending finger that everything she says is true.
"This maid hails from the area called La Garnache. Their local lord, Comte de La Garnache, passed away approximately seven years ago. He lived his entire life as a bachelor, leaving no lineal descendants. The comte's longevity was truly uncanny, with no one knowing exactly how many years he had lived. Even the local old peasants claimed that they had known him as an elderly man since their earliest memories.
"The Comte had silver hair, and amidst the wrinkles, his features remained fairly good. It is said that one could discern his youthful beauty, though unfortunately, no one had ever laid eyes upon his visage in its prime. During his lifetime, he was known as a lord with a kind heart, generous and charitable, frequently extending aid to nearby orphans and widows. However, he also possessed a trait that drew criticism - he hardly ever set foot inside the church to worship or invited priests into his castle. To say 'hardly ever' would be a gross understatement; honestly, there was no record of this lord ever stepping into a church!
"You see, the people of that region were exceptionally devout, to tell the truth, almost - don't split on me to the Mother - almost bordered on the absurd! Therefore, the Comte's unconventional behaviour inevitably gave rise to speculations about his lack of faith in the Lord. Coupled with his reclusive nature, rarely seen in public, and his almost nocturnal habits, some even suspected that he worshipped Satan himself. In the eyes of those peasants, such suspicions were enough to outweigh any of the noble deeds performed by this lord."
"He truly was an eccentric man!" commented Anne, the older girl among them, whose religious fanaticism ran relatively deep.
"Now, let's return to our maid: The beginning of this story is her retelling of her mother's words. At that time, her mother was still a young peasant girl of fifteen or sixteen. One night, she ventured out to engage in an affair that required her to sneak around, thus had to hasten home alone in the dead of night. Well, let's just say it outright, after all, this peasant woman has been dead for quite some years, no one would care about her repute - she had gone to the wilderness to rendezvous with her lover!"
"Haha, Daisy, you know so much!" mischievous Amy giggled, covering her mouth.
"Come, stop interrupting me. I was just about to get to the crucial part!" Daisy herself blushed a little after speaking.
"Those lower-class girls have quite the boldness, especially just after spending a romantic night with her lover; She, alone, ventured through the silent and pitch-black woods and paths, feeling not a shred of fear. As she passed by the castle of La Garnache, she unconsciously glanced upward and saw a child standing on the terrace extending from the French windows on the third floor. Judging by the size, he appeared to be around ten years old, dressed like a young noble childe. But wasn't Comte de La Garnache a single man? Moreover, he hardly ever entertained guests!
"The country girl was curious, so she approached, taking lighter steps. Illuminated by the moonlight, she could tell that it was an incredibly beautiful little boy, with golden curls cascading down his head and a face so pale it was almost translucent. His large eyes sparkled like sapphires in the darkness. In short, he was the kind of child who could instantly enchant people and make it impossible not to love him.
"However, upon closer inspection, she felt goosebumps all over her body, for the child's face lacked any trace of innocence or childishness. His eyes even glimmered with a cold light, as if the soul of an □□ had been placed inside the body of a child. Do you understand? It's just that unsettling feeling one gets when encountering a dwarf!
"This fearless girl immediately recoiled, growing more and more uneasy. Even the silhouette of that ancient castle in the night now appeared eerie to her eyes.
"For several consecutive nights, as she passed by, she would see that peculiar boy. It seemed as though he never slept at night, standing there motionless on the terrace like a pensive sculpture.
"Perplexed, she went to inquire with the people around her the following day while working in the fields: 'Has Monsieur the Comte taken in a small child?' But everyone claimed to have never seen such a child before. Reluctant to reveal her secret love affair, she fabricated a story, saying she had spotted the boy on the terrace during the daytime. Upon hearing her description of the boy, people all believed that she must have been mistaken. If there truly was such a conspicuous young master, it didn't make sense for him to remain unseen for such a long time.
"That night, as she returned from her rendezvous, she made a conscious effort to avoid glancing towards the direction of the castle. However, at that moment, she heard a long sigh, hauntingly carried on the silent night breeze, almost whispering in her ear. It bore the tone of a child, yet the air was entirely not something a kid of that age would produce.
"Trepidation seized her as she timidly lifted her gaze and locked eyes with those bluish-tinged pupils. Those eyes seemed to burn with anger, scorching on a ghastly pallid face as they stared directly at her. In an instant, her scalp tingled, and she couldn't help but flee, running for her life. Breathless and terrified, she dared not stop, fearing as if at any moment an icy tiny hand would seize her from behind, clutching at her throat.
"From that day forward, she never dared to sneak out again to rendezvous with that man. The following year, she married - of course not the beau with whom she had tumbled in the hay - and bore a series of babies. Like all women of her class, she transformed into an ordinary peasant woman, broad-shouldered and full-waisted.
"One day, her five-year-old youngest daughter - that is our maid who tells this story - was running errands for her mother in another village. On her way back, the playful little girl got carried away and ended up getting lost. Vendée was covered in dense forests, and as night grew deeper and dead silence reigned, the trees all transformed into gruesome specters. The rustling sound of stepping on leaves became indistinguishable; she couldn't tell whether it was her own footsteps or those of lurking wild beasts. The little girl was too terrified to cry, could only keep shaking the basket in her hand, creating some noise to keep herself company.
"Fortunately, she gradually recognised the outlines of Comte de La Garnache's castle, and there seemed to be faint lights emanating from a window on top. Once the little girl found herself back on a familiar path, she let out a sigh of relief, and her fear all at once dissipated considerably.
"However, as she passed by the castle and looked towards the candlelight that had given her courage, she was surprised to see a beautiful, pale and thin boy standing by the window. He extended his head and arms outside the window, tears streaming down his face, his hands reaching out as if seeking help from the outside world. There was a captivating enchantment in both his appearance and demeanor, leaving the girl momentarily spellbound, feeling that he would at any time fall from the upper floors or even... fly out of the window.
"At that moment, the girl's mother, who had come out searching for her, finally spotted her daughter. Anxiously and reproachfully, she rushed over and embraced her tightly. Seeing the girl staring blankly in the direction of the castle, her mother also followed the girl's gaze: When she saw the scene at the window, her eyes suddenly widened in terror. She abruptly pushed her daughter forward, crying out in a desperate voice, 'Heavens! It's that ghost child! Run, run, Jenne! Run!'
"When the mother and daughter finally returned to the safety of their home, the peasant woman locked all the doors and windows tightly, trembling with fear. Only then did she recount to her daughter the nearly forgotten story of the ghost boy. 'His appearance hasn't changed at all,' her mother shivered all over, "I saw it very clearly. He looked exactly the same as twenty years ago!'"
Daisy intentionally paused her storytelling at this point, smirking as she looked at her young audience's eyes shining in the darkness.
"Nice story, but what does it have to do with vampires?" Charlotte curiously asked.
"Be patient, Charlotte, we're about to get to that part," Daisy waved her hand and continued:
"The peasant woman told her husband about this, and naturally, Jenne couldn't resist telling the other children she played with. The story spread like wildfire, and soon several villages nearby knew about the little ghost being kept at Comte de La Garnache's mansion. Someone testified that the peasant woman had indeed mentioned this when she was still a maiden. Encouraged by these accounts, some bold ones ventured out under the cover of night to the castle to have a secret glimpse. They returned with confirmation that such a creepy child indeed existed. Therefore, almost everyone believed it without a doubt.
"Only such a story alone may not have caused much impact. However, soon after, there were incidents of children going missing in the village. Initially, it was a sporadic occurrence of one or two, but quickly escalated to several children disappearing every month. According to reliable sources, most of these vanished children had been playing before their missing in the Vedis Woods - the very forest adjacent to the castle of La Garnache."
"Truly chilling!" Anne hugged her arms and rubbed the goosebumps that had suddenly appeared.
"In the region of Vendée, vampire lore was already prevalent. In the 15th century, it was exactly in Machecoul of Vendée where the Baron Gilles de Rais secretly abducted and slaughtered hundreds of children for his Satanic alchemical experiments, draining these poor children of their lifeblood!①
"Hence, the whereabouts and fate of these children became easily associated. The peasants were abuzz with speculations that the Comte lured the little ones into that woods with witchcraft and then imprisoned them in his castle, slowly draining their blood.
"The story of that ghost child was then naturally linked to these events. Some speculated that it was the spirit of a child who had been persecuted by the Comte, only able to emerge at midnight to call for help. However, based on the description of the little ghost's luxurious attire by the peasant woman, more of them believed that the ghost child was the demonic companion of the old comte. The Comte shared his blood with the boy, or the blood was simply to serve as offerings to this devil's little minion. Since the boy only appeared during the depths of night, pale and beautiful, never aging or dying, this explanation apparently carried a lot of credibility."
"These rural legends truly send shivers down one's spine!" Charlotte muttered.
"Could it be that the suddenly missing Mother Agatha was also taken away by a vampire?" Amy whispered mysteriously, covering her mouth.
"Mother Agatha died a violent death too?" Little girl Barbara'face turned white.
"Don't say such terrifying things! Just listen to me continue," Daisy cleared her throat and went on, "The best part is yet to come!"
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第33章 The Phantom of Vendée(1)
