Chapter 252 The Ancient Manor (Modified)

It's not that Allen has never been to Aunt Josephine's house, but this is the first time he entered through the main entrance.

The car drove into the manor surrounded by high walls.

Allen looked at it and felt that it was magnificent, but the whole house seemed to be shrouded in darkness, hiding in the shadow of the tall peaks behind it.

Emily just got out of the warm car, and a chilly wind made her shiver.

Although the weather was indeed cold, Allen felt that the more he walked into the house, the colder he felt.

Emily approached Alan involuntarily. She was a little frightened. She pulled Alan's sleeve and motioned Alan to look at the second floor of the manor.

Allen looked up, where there were two large bay windows side by side, like two dark eyes staring at them.

"Do you want to live in those two rooms?" Aunt Josephine obviously misunderstood Allen's meaning. "Children do need more space for activities and a better view. Of course you can live there."

Passing through the living room with its massive fireplace, they followed a branching corridor to an upward flight of stairs.

It didn't take long this time, because the rooms that Aunt Josephine had prepared for them were all on the second floor.

"Look at these rooms, do you like them?" Aunt Josephine took Ellen and the others to look at every room on the second floor—a place they had never been to before.

Emily began to feel excited after getting familiar with the environment. What a nice house, so many rooms, so many closets. She couldn't imagine how many rooms there were.

There are many toys that little girls like in the room allocated to Emily. She happily caresses a fluffy kitten doll that has been washed a little white.

Albert volunteered to take on the responsibility of taking care of his sister.

Aunt Josephine took Ellen on the way.

They hurried along the narrow passage.

Allen noticed that all the portraits of men and women hung on the walls on the second floor.

They wore strange dresses of satin and velvet, all of different styles, but all very rich.

The people on the screen stared at Allen silently, only a portrait of a man with a mustache showed surprise, but they were all very quiet.

The room Allen was given was extra large, with a bathroom and an old-fashioned window seat. He could sit at the window overlooking the manor below.

"Okay, I think you guys need some time to pack your luggage. I'll prepare the food first, and you can come down after packing."

Aunt Josephine glanced at her watch and walked towards the front door of the room.

"The views from the rooms on the second floor are pretty good..." Which one did Allen like to have a bay window with a window seat, he stepped forward and looked out of the window.

Through the swirling snowflakes he saw the car parked in the driveway.

Over the fence, he saw some high and low farmhouses scattered on the wilderness.

After packing up and saluting, Allen walked towards the door.

At this moment, he saw the girl who impressed him so much.

The girl who used to guard the door of the room where he lived.

The girl in the red dress with lamé floats.

A dark green toad was squatting on her hand, she stood at the door with a blank expression, her eyes were sharp, but in just a second, she turned around and disappeared into the aisle.

"Hi!" Allen yelled, running down the hall, and then stopped outside his bedroom door.

He looked around, "Who is she?"

But the long corridors were empty, and all the doors of the houses were closed.

"Albert?" Allen called Albert's name loudly, but no one responded to him.

Allen took one last look at the dark corridor and hurried downstairs.

"Aunt Josephine," Allen calmed his heartbeat, "is this house haunted?"

Aunt Josephine glanced at Allen casually and laughed softly,

It seems that this question is very funny.

"Sorry, no," she said, and then, looking at Ellen with blue eyes that were slightly wrinkled around them, "this manor is old and huge, but it's not haunted."

"I... I think I saw a little girl in a red dress," Allen said, staring intently at Aunt Josephine's face, trusting his eyes.

"You may have seen Miss Clark's portrait. She is the only one that can walk freely in the estate."

Aunt Josephine said, and then directed a row of hot dogs to jump into the frying pan one by one.

Allen was sure that his eyes were right, she just appeared at the door, not in the portrait.

He was about to continue asking, such as who Miss Clark is; why only she can move around freely in the pictures of the entire manor; why the characters in those pictures don't speak or move...

But with the knock on the door, Aunt Josephine stopped talking to Ellen.

Ellen didn't miss the fleeting look of relief on her face.

Father Owen Harris and second brother Lun Harris walked in, carrying a few suitcases in their hands.

"Ah, the snow is getting bigger and bigger! I hope your mother and Daisy can come here soon." After packing up his luggage, Mr. Harris took off his thick coat and walked down wearing only an ordinary shirt. As he spoke, he tucked the hem of his shirt into his trousers.

Allen was surprised to find that his father was a little overweight after seeing him for a short time, and his shirts seemed to be too old to be stuffed and would always fall apart.

Mr. Harris gave up trying to tuck his shirt into his trousers, rolled up his sleeves, and sat down beside Allen.

"Ha, they really look alike." Aunt Josephine nodded in the direction of Lun and Allen, and said to Mr. Harris.

Allen couldn't tell if it was a compliment or not.

Both he and Len were tall and thin, with the same light-blond hair and light-blue eyes as Mr. Harris.

Even so, Allen still didn't agree with Aunt Josephine's words - how could he be as "serious" as Lun.

After all, Emily was a child. After playing in the living room for a while, she clamored to go out and build a snowman.

Allen accompanied her to the yard.

In the heavy snow, Allen piled up all kinds of small animals with the help of his father's magic wand, which made Emily very happy.

Allen, too, is infected and puts the past behind him.

Mother Morgan Le Fay Harris and sister Daisy Harris finally arrived before dark.

After receiving a big hug from her mother, Allen thoughtfully accepted the gifts she brought—all her homemade snacks.

Emily skipped ahead to lead the way, followed by Morgan Le Fay and Daisy.

But Allen stopped in his tracks, something caught his attention.

He looked up at the two identical bay windows above the porch.

He rested his hand on his forehead and squinted through the drifting snowflakes.

Yes, he saw it.

A face, in the left window.

that girl.

It was the same girl upstairs, looking down at Alan below.