Chapter 56: Chapter 56: Stories We Tell in The Dark

"I'm home"

"You guys are a little bit late?"

"Ah, someone invited me to a cult"

"What? There are also cults in the city?"

"Yes"

Van nonchalantly said as he put his bag on a sofa. He then looked at the table filled with food and could not help but nod in satisfaction as he looked at Andrea.

Andrea winked and raised her thumb in response, she then turned her attention towards the two visitors, "How are the two of you?", she said as she gestured for Harvey and Beatrice to sit down.

"Great as always", Harvey said as he also let out a wink of his own, "...And always lured by your beauty"

"I see", Andrea just smiled back.

"Ah, you cooked all of this, Miss Andrea?", Beatrice said as she sat down, "You should have waited for us so I could have helped you prepare"

"No no", Andrea shook her head, "You've already helped me last time. Come, let's eat first before you guys do whatever it is you are doing"

"Okay!", Harvey said as he clapped his hand and started chowing down the food.

And Evans seemed to be happy as well, Andrea thought as he watched Van treasuring each bite of his food. Andrea still remembered how Van would look every day when he was still in the Relic Graveyard, not once was there even a smile on his face.

Every day, he walked with a bruise, either coming from his father or from an altercation with gangs.

And now, he walked with a smile. He no longer had to steal, and likewise, he didn't have to worry if someone was going to take his things.

He didn't have to fight or scavenged for food. His eyes, which were like that of a rabid animal, filled with nothing but violence, were completely gone.

The two of them, they were living now.

Andrea could not help but let out a sigh of relief. It would seem she was getting more and more emotional every day.

"Is something wrong?"

"No", she quickly answered Van's concern with a smile, "Everything... is great"

A few more minutes, and the group was finished with their meal. But before Andrea could pick up the plates, Harvey picked up his bag from the floor and removed something from it-- a set of clothes.

Van could not help but blink his eyes numerous times as he looked at what Harvey was holding, "What's that?", he stuttered. He had a very bad feeling about this.

"We, my friend will be sleeping over for the night!"

"..."

"...Maybe not everything", Andrea let out a silent whisper. As soon as she said everything was great, something like this happens. But nonetheless, chaos is good once in a while, Andrea thought as she tried to convince herself.

"...Where will you sleep?", Van furrowed his eyes as he looked at Harvey, who seemed very excited.

"In your room, of course!", Harvey looked at Van as if he said something weird, "And Bea will sleep in Miss Andrea's room"

"Or", Harvey continued as a serious expression suddenly painted his face, "Would you rather I sleep in Andrea's room? Ohohoho", Harvey mumbled as he raised both his thumbs playfully.

"I will suffocate you with a pillow", Andrea nonchalantly said with a smile.

"..."

"No", Beatrice shook her head, "We're sleeping in the dorms, Harvey. Besides, I don't have any clothes with me"

"No worries, I brought you one", Harvey said as he took out another set of clothing from his bag.

"..."

All of them stared at each other for a while, completely at a loss as to what to do. But after a few seconds, Beatrice could only sigh, "Fine", she said, "I don't want to leave the two of you alone with this buffoon in your house"

"I will protect you, Miss Andrea", Beatrice added as she fixed her glasses.

"Oh my", Andrea let out a chuckle, "I'll be depending on you then"

Seeing that everything seems to have been set without even asking for his opinion, Van could only scratch his chin. He just learned how to ignore the whispers that he has been hearing inside the house, and now he had to sleep with Harvey in his room.

Will he also learn how to ignore Harvey's voice if he practices it?

"Also!"

Van was instantly disrupted from his thoughts as Harvey once again took out something from his bag.

"...Why do you have a lantern in your bag?", Beatrice could not help but squint her eyes. And how was he even able to fit something like that inside his bag!?

"Ohoho!", Harvey let out a robust burst of laughter as he ran towards the ceiling and switched off all the lights in the house. He then turned on his crystal-operated lantern, placing it in front of his face as he made humming sounds with his mouth. "It is time, for scary stories"

"..."

"Goodnight guys", Van said as he stood up.

"Alright"

"No no wait!", Harvey quickly sat back to his chair, "I will tell my story first", and proceeded to tell a scary story for more than 30 minutes.

"...And so, it turns out it was only my shadow!"

"That was stupid!", Beatrice could not help but slam her hand on the table, "You built the story up for half an hour for that ending!?"

"No", Harvey shook his head, his eyes almost watering, "If you were there, I am sure your whole body would shiver in fear"

Seeing the two bickering with one another again, Andrea could not help but let out a light chuckle.

"W what about you, Miss Andrea?", Harvey stuttered as Beatrice choked the life out of him, "Do you have any scary stories to tell?"

"Well", Andrea placed her finger on her chin as she looked to the side.

Beatrice quickly let go of Harvey's neck as she waited for Andrea to tell her story.

"I have one about the Relic Graveyard", Andrea then said as she pulled the lantern to her side.

"I know the two of you are aware that the Relic Graveyard got its name because it's where they throw relics, right?", she said.

Harvey and Beatrice nodded their heads at the same time, their attention undivided.

"Well, that isn't true", Andrea dimmed the lights on the lantern, causing only her eyes to be the only thing that can be seen in the dark, "The truth is it truly is a graveyard, but not for relics but for people"

"!!!"

"Hundreds of years ago, a group of Explorers was excavating some relics, hoping to find hidden treasures within the rubble. But then, one Explorer got separated from their group because he heard something calling for him"

"!!!"

"And so, he ran towards it. Throwing some of the relics away and digging his way deeper into the mountain of trash deeper and deeper he went. And when he realized it, he was already below the pile. He started to panic, he knew if he removed one more relic, the pile would come crashing down on him. But still, the voice called for him, enticing him to continue"

"W what did he do!?"

"In the end, he decided not to continue", Andrea shook her head, "He quickly turned back however, before he could even take a single step"

"BAM!", Andrea screamed as she slammed her palm on the table, "Someone grabbed his feet!"

"What!?"

"And pulled him deeper inside!"

"!!!"

"He struggled, but in the end, his greed caused him to be swallowed by the mountain of relics", Andrea's voice went quiet and quieter as she raised the brightness of the lamp.

Harvey and Beatrice could not help but gulp as Andrea finished her story. It was short, but it had a lot of impact.

Van, however, could only smile. That was a common story circulating in the Relic Graveyard to prevent children from digging and picking up relics. But it was also a lesson about greed, or so Van thought.

"That", Harvey cleared his throat as he wiped the sweat that built up on his forehead, "...That wasn't really scary at all", he chuckled awkwardly, trying to mask his fear.

"W what about you, Van?", he then quickly turned his head towards Van, "Do you have any stories to tell?"

"I once ate maggots from a dead ra--"

"Okay, that's enough"

"They were unexpectedly flavorfu--"

"That's enough!"

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