Die drei Geistergeschichten von Jinzhong Zwei Tai Sui zerstören die Stadt

Kapitel 15

Jack found a broken door and, following the sounds of the broken coffin and the light, easily found his four friends. He had just joined them inside the chapel when the group saw Quincy suddenly retreat hastily from a corner he was inspecting.

Then they saw something gradually emerge from that corner, as Huck later described in his notes: "a large cluster of phosphorescence, shimmering like stars." Those bright dots were tiny eyes, reflecting the light of the lanterns.

Everyone instinctively backed away. The whole place was teeming with large, lively rats!

The old professor paused his work on the holy water and shouted, "He did this! Arthur, your dogs! Call them!"

Arthur immediately blew the silver whistle around his neck. His three-headed hound, which had been curiously exploring the other rooms of the old house, rushed into the abandoned chapel at the sound of the whistle, barking urgently as if to fight off the rats.

Arthur whistled again, seemingly out of nowhere. His dogs were well-versed in the game and the same killing technique, swift and decisive: grab a rat by the neck or back, size or small, lift it high, bite hard, and then shake it roughly to make sure the spine was broken, before tossing the dead victim aside and immediately replacing it with another. For some reason, these rat-killing dogs were rarely bitten by their own enemies.

The dusty floor of the chapel was soon littered with the corpses of dead rats. Yet the scurrying rodents continued to swarm in, their terrifying little eyes reflecting the firelight, their writhing black bodies making the whole place look like a large patch of black mud teeming with fireflies.

The hounds had already killed dozens of enemies, but an ever-growing swarm of rats was approaching. When Jack arrived, his friends were preparing to burn a pile of firewood made from fragments of Dracula's coffin; this plan would now have to be postponed as they fought off what was clearly a deliberate attack. The sharp-toothed rats seemed to come from all directions, emerging from the earth and even from the darkness itself, trying to overwhelm the men.

The intruders cursed these flea-infested, disease-ridden animals, disgustingly tearing them off their white sleeves and trouser legs, shooting them with repeating guns and pistols, and then slaughtering them with swords, shovels, and axes.

Howsin splashed the swarming rats with holy water, and then used the kerosene he had brought to intensify the fire, and found it quite effective.

After confirming that both men and dogs had a way out, they set fire to the pile of firewood, gathered their most valuable tools and weapons, shielded their faces from the raging flames, and retreated in an orderly fashion.

In the mental hospital, Dracula easily subdued the burly, muscular madman. Enraged, he lifted Lamfey off the ground and slammed him against the door bars several times.

After pausing to observe the results, Dracula continued forward—passing through the door and entering the hospital building without hindrance.

Although Lanfair was fatally wounded, he was still breathing. He lay where he had been thrown, collapsing to the ground from the impact with the railing. Pain, numbness, and paralysis spread throughout his body, making him aware of the severity of his injuries. In a semi-conscious state, he could see and hear the footsteps of several nurses rushing to his room to investigate this unusual disturbance.

Lamfey murmured, "His destruction...is what will save her. I am free..."

Having said those two sentences, he knew his death was near. This dying phase felt incredibly long, stretching on endlessly.

Chapter Sixteen

Mina was completely unaware of what was happening in the Bluefield ward downstairs, and equally helpless, completely oblivious to the possible situation at the Caffy Manor. As soon as Jonathan and his companions entered the old house, even the lights in their room went out completely.

But whenever she closed her eyes, her vivid imagination would conjure up horrifying images. Even now, her prince was suffering the same tragic fate as Lucy—beheading and impalement. Or her husband was undergoing the same gruesome treatment, aging rapidly, trembling and with a full head of white hair.

If Howin and the others were right, the prince was indeed there… but Mina had no idea where he was. As Dracula disappeared into the crowds of London, he vanished completely from her sight.

If only she knew... but she can't.

With that thought in mind, Mina stood up and left her observation post by the window of her suite's living room. She wearily walked into the bedroom, collapsed onto the bed fully clothed, and thought that after a few minutes of rest, she would return to the window to keep watch.

Mina Harker had only been asleep for a few minutes when the first red glow of the fire appeared on the nearby window of the Caffy Manor.

She slept restlessly, disturbed by strange dreams.

One of the strangest dreams involved a prince—Mina's secret lover, whose fate was intertwined with her own since time immemorial—somehow found himself with her in this strange room on the same bed in the mental hospital.

In Mina's dream, it was only natural for him—the man she truly loved—to appear there. He lay down beside her and began to embrace her, as if he were her real and legitimate husband, not Jonathan.

In her sleep, Mina murmured helplessly:

“Oh, my love—yes—you’ve found me.”

When he answered, his voice, though unchanged, was even gentler than she remembered.

"Mina...my most precious life—"

In this moment, in the free and unrestrained dream, she can escape all conflicts and be incredibly happy.

She replied softly, "I've been longing for all of this. Now I know—I want to be with you forever—"

Then, in shock, Mina suddenly awoke. This wasn't a dream. Or rather, it was a dream come true. Mina sat up, gasping for breath.

The prince, her lover, was in this dark bedroom. He was as real as he had been ever since they met, in any time and place.

He lay beside her and whispered, "I will leave you at your command. But no ordinary person can interfere between us. Will you order me to go?"

“No. No, I should, but I can’t say it. I’m afraid I’ll never feel your touch again—I’m afraid you’re dead—” Mina paused in fear. “But you—can’t be human.”

Upon hearing her words, the prince she loved sat up and took her hand. He gently pressed her hand and heart against her chest.

He said, "Your heart beats here—" Then he moved her hand to his bare chest: "But here—"

She was terrified of what she had touched; or rather, of what she hadn't touched. There was no heartbeat.

He said to her solemnly, "There is no life in this body."

Mina involuntarily shrank back a little. "But you're alive. What are you? I have to know. You must tell me."

Can you accept the truth?

"I must know. I cannot tolerate ignorance."

“Okay. People say I have no life and no soul. People hate me and fear me. I have endured for a long time—committing countless acts—just to survive until I can find you.”

"No!"

“Yes.” His voice pressed her relentlessly. “I am the demon that the living want to kill. I am Dracula.”

After a long silence, Mina remained seated on the bed, but as if she were shivering, she covered her shoulders with the sheet. Finally, she spoke: "Then the old professor was right. That's exactly what I feared. You're the one who imprisoned Jonathan. You're also the one who turned dear Lucy into that."

Dracula nodded slowly. "I acknowledge those evil deeds, and more than that."

"No--"

"Yes! I'm telling you, without you—without life, without the love you gave me—I have lost my humanity. Without you, I am nothing more than a beast that feeds on human blood!"

His words broke Mina, and in a fit of rage, she futilely swung her fists at her lover, but Dracula only managed to avoid her face.

But in the next instant, she grabbed him, clinging to him desperately, like a drowning woman. "God forgive me! I love you! I really love you!"

She gently embraced her lover, stroking his long, black hair. Dracula turned back to her face, his expression filled with tenderness and unwavering love.

Meanwhile, downstairs in Lanfe's ward, a nurse was leading Jack and Haoxin into the small, railinged room. The severely injured patient, his bones shattered, lay on the floor in his own small pool of blood.

Both doctors were covered in dust and dirt, and their clothes reeked of rats and smog. They were both exhausted from the struggle they had just endured at the Kafi Manor, yet neither of them had a chance to rest.

As soon as Jack entered the ward, he immediately ordered more lights to be turned on. Then he knelt down and used his skilled hands to examine the patient lying on the ground.

Lanfei let out a faint groan when touched by the doctor.

“His spine is most likely broken,” Jack reported, frowning. A moment later, he added, “His skull is also fractured. I don’t understand how he could have caused this injury himself. One of them is possible; but it’s impossible for both to be injured.”

Howsin also knelt down nearby, frowning sympathetically at Jack's patient, and joined in the examination.

“Poor fellow!” Howsin muttered. “We have to try to open his skull—to relieve the pressure inside. Hurry! Only then will we have a chance to talk to him.”

The lights the doctors had requested arrived quickly, held silently by the nurse. Jack then sent another assistant to fetch the necessary surgical instruments.

A moment later, Lamfey's heavy body was slumped onto his usual narrow bed. After Jack brought the bag of medical supplies, he selected a rather large double-handled drill from it—a circular saw for cutting open skulls, somewhat like a carpenter's crank drill. Jack had a nurse hold a lamp, and Professor Howsing supported Lamfey's head as he quickly cut an opening in Lamfey's skull with a small knife. Then he picked up the drill and began drilling a hole about an inch in diameter in the back of the unconscious patient's skull.

The drill made a grinding sound as it pierced the bone. A large amount of blood flowed from the opening in Lanfe's skull, staining Howsin's clothes red. The old professor held the numb patient tightly, preventing any potentially fatal spasms.

Within seconds, Jack's efforts paid off; a small, round piece of skull detached, its pale white color horribly visible under the light. With another gush of blood, the internal pressure eased.

The patient's body twitched; for a moment, Jay thought he was dead. But then Lamfey's eyes opened, and the two doctors immediately leaned forward to hear what he might have to say.

The first few words were: "Doctor, I'll be quiet. Tell them to help me take off my coat. I had a nightmare, that's why I'm so weak and can't move... What happened to my face? It looks swollen..."

Howsing said in a calm yet serious voice, “Mr. Lamfey, tell us what you dreamed about.”

“Dr. Hausin—I’m so glad you’re here…Where are my glasses?…He promised me—immortality.”

"Who?" Jack asked.

Lamfey seemed not to hear. “But…the thought of him taking her life made me angry. So tonight when he came to my window, I was confident…until I saw his eyes.” The patient’s voice weakened, and his breathing became rapid. “Those eyes felt like they were burning me, and all my strength left me…”

Lamfey's eyes closed again; he seemed to be on the verge of death. Haussin hurriedly ordered a nurse to fetch brandy.

Jack was gradually losing control of his nerves, so he put down the drill that had completed its task and shook his helpless body violently.

"Who are you referring to as 'she'? Tell me quickly! Which woman are you talking about?"

Lanfei opened his eyes for the last time. He was clearly running out of strength, so he could only utter a few words.

"Hausin...you and your foolish theories. I warned Dr. Jake...the master has come, and he lives off beautiful women. She is his bride...his destruction will save her...I...I am free!"

After saying this, his body convulsed and he died.

Meanwhile, in the guest room upstairs, Mina and Dracula lay in bed, making love gently and quietly.

Mina pulled aside her restrictive clothing, removing the obstruction, and whispered softly to him, "No one can be between the two of us. I want to be like you, seeing what you see, loving what you love—"

“Mina—if you wish to walk with me, you must sacrifice your life of breathing and be reborn as my life.”

“Yes, I will. Yes…” She agreed without thinking, not truly understanding the meaning behind his words. She was willing to do anything to be with him.

Dracula stroked her hair, her smooth back, and her fragrant shoulders. He murmured, "You are my love, and my life. Forever."

He gently turned her body, exposing her neck, and kissed her throat.

Mina groaned, and winced slightly as he entered her veins. The pain intensified, but it also transformed into pleasure, gradually becoming a blissful, ecstatic frenzy.

Dracula released Mina's neck, causing her to let out a disappointed groan. He sat up in bed and used his long, sharp thumbnail to pry open a vein above his own heart.

Mina vaguely heard her lover whisper to her: "...Our bodies are one...you are my flesh and blood...my blood..."

Then, he let out a passionate murmur and pulled her supple head to his chest. "Drink it, and share eternal life with me!"

She drank his blood, and when her lover's life entered her, she almost fainted.

Then, unexpectedly, in shock, at the height of passion, the prince hesitated and pushed Mina away.

"What's wrong?" she asked in a thick, guttural voice.

He replied, "I cannot!"

Mina cried out, "Please—I don't care—make me yours—help me escape this death!"

But her prince suddenly became cold and distant. He said, "I lied to you, and I lied to myself. The gift of eternal life is far beyond my reach. The truth is, you will be cursed, just like me, and must forever wander in the darkness of death. I love you too much! I cannot harm you!"

“I love you too—” Mina pressed her lips to her lover’s chest once again.

In that instant, the bedroom door was suddenly kicked open, and standing in the doorway were Howin and the three hunters who had returned from Kafi Manor. The old professor, due to the force of the impact, fell to the floor as soon as he entered, but got up on all fours.

The intruders held lamps aloft, and the bright firelight in the corridor behind them illuminated the two people embracing on the bed. The four people standing in the doorway were stunned, while Howin remained kneeling on one knee. What they saw was Mina naked, with Dracula's blood still on her lips, her head resting on Dracula's chest, still sucking his veins.

After a long, stunned silence, it was Huck who spoke first, screaming his wife's name in utter panic and despair.

She flinched, instinctively pulling the sheets over her head to hide her shame.

At the same time, her lover underwent a sudden and convulsive transformation; his form became grotesque, somewhere between a human and a giant bat. Dracula roared, flew towards the high ceiling, and then swooped down to attack those who persecuted him.

The intense light from the burning Kafi Manor streamed through the window, illuminating the room brightly. Hark and his men launched a fierce attack on him with various sharp weapons.