Ghost Stories: First Lead

“Are you sure it was the right decision to do all this in front of a crowd?” Mozuta asked. After they had finished, a group of people came over to them and tried to talk to Leontina. They were clearly amazed by her powers and the spectacle they had just witnessed. People were now coming up to them and telling them all sorts of ghost stories.
“Don’t worry,” said Leontina. The moon was still hanging overhead, though the sky was slowly growing lighter as the sun rose. “Rituals themselves can be public events in some cases.”
“Is that so?” Mozuta didn’t sound quite convinced. Leontina wasn’t surprised by his reaction. After all, she had said that the details of her powers were a closely guarded secret.

But rituals were only a small part of their power. They were supposed to help ordinary people send away dangerous ghosts or their family members. Simply observing the ritual and recalling a few words wouldn't enable ordinary people to harness the powers of Soul Guides. They would have to be born with them.
Mozuta would be better off not knowing the full extent of it.

That’s why she was happy when they found a clue about Count von Firnau. If they got rid of him, Mozuta would be able to return to his village and live there safely.
At least, that's what she hoped.

The very next morning, they went back to Adam Posiadly’s house to ask him more questions about Johan’s death and his attacker. They were tired, but they couldn’t afford to lose this special clue.
Adam had slipped out of the crowd after the ritual had finished, and had probably come back home. They knocked on his door, but there was no answer. Worried, they decided to go in, as the door had been left open, but there was nobody inside.
“S-s-statue,” said Leontina, who was now slouching with her mask and hood on.
“Right.”
She and Mozuta came over to the statue of Trinka’s lovebirds, and just as they had expected, they found its creator standing before it, basking in the morning sunlight and admiring his work.

“What do you want?” asked the sculptor.
“Ask about the one that attacked Johan,” Mozuta replied immediately.
“Why?”
The boy took a deep breath and said:
“Because I nearly had my blood drained, and I think the person behind it might be the same one.”
Adam turned around, visible shock spreading across his face.
“Is that monster still alive?”
“P-possibly,” Leontina answered.
The old sculptor closed his eyes. He would prefer not to talk about it anymore. He glanced at the boy. He was so young.

Now that everyone knows what I did, I am already an outcast. At least I can help this kid.

“I didn't see his face. He was wearing a cloak and he smelt awful. It was a stench you’d never forget.” his face contorted at the memory. “The only things I could see were the golden threads and the gemstones attached to his garment. Whenever he moved, his cloak would uncover his expensive clothing. He said he was looking for a kind foreigner, as he hadn’t tried working with someone like that yet. I thought it would cause Johan trouble, and maybe this stinking rich man would take him away... I never would have dreamed that he would kill him like that...” Adam sat down under the statue and looked up at the smiling faces of the pair, his eyes getting wet. Then, he digressed. “I can’t believe that Johan is waiting for me in Weles...” He lowered his head and started crying. Leontina came over to him and patted him on the shoulder.
“Y-y-you still have some time. M-make sure you reach Weles,” she said gently, before standing up. She then went over to Mozuta, touched his sleeve and signaled that they should go. They both thanked Adam and left him alone with the statue. There were many things this old sculptor needed to think about alone.

After the ritual, finding an inn wasn’t difficult. People offered them lodgings at one of the best inns in Grudond.
Mozuta immediately collapsed onto his bed and fell asleep the moment his head touched the pillow. Leontina took a blanket and covered the boy. Once again, the boy had spent the whole night, and now the morning too, helping her with her duties as a soul guide.
She left him to sleep and went to her own room.
She had some things to go over.

The monster that had attacked Johan was definitely an undead. Undeads needed the warm blood of the living to keep themselves alive and prevent their bodies from rotting. Decaying flesh isn't exactly the most pleasant of smells, so the stench Adam caught a whiff of, had to be it.
The monster's wealthy clothing suggested one of two things. Either the undead was someone rich, or they had stolen clothes from a wealthy victim. If it was the former, she could assume it was von Firnau, but she couldn’t be sure. Moreover, the timing doesn't add up. Adam is now an old man, and Johan looked around twenty years old. This meant that the attack had probably happened around sixty years earlier.

Mozuta was only thirteen years old. He hadn't even been born yet.

She closed her eyes, jogging her memory as she tried to recall what she had seen during Jawozina’s trial in the underground castle.
As she revisited memories of Jawozina’s life, the Count’s words echoed in her mind.

Words that he said to his beloved maid.

I need its blood. Of something like me and you, as if we were one.

Leontina opened her eyes.
“This is it.”
Count von Firnau was an undead that kept itself alive by drinking human blood, but that was only a temporary solution.
But what if he used the blood of a being that stood on the border between life and death?
“Half-alive, half-dead,” she said to herself. “Half-undead.”
That’s probably what Mozuta is.

Mozuta woke up in the evening. When he did, the residents of Grudond invited him and Leontina to the small festival they had organized in celebration of the passing of the lovebirds' souls. Lights were strung up and illuminating the entire square.
They could hear people laughing happily all around them.
An old lady wearing a headscarf came over to them.
“Hello, thank you for your help,” said Leontina, bowing gently. As it was already night, her beautiful face was fully visible.
“I’m happy my love for gossip could help,” the old lady replied, laughing. “May I ask a favor?”
“Does it concern a ghost?”
“Yes!” the old woman beamed. “You know… My dear daughter was traveling once, and one day she nearly got killed by a ghost named Bernard Shumborski. She wasn’t the only one. Would it be possible…?”
“To send it away, of course.” Leontina smiled. “Together with my assistant, we will move in the early morning.”
“Thank you! I’ll tell you what I know.”

After hearing the woman’s story, they found their next target.
The ghost that lingered around the town of Chelmo.

Everyone looked their way in amazement, reminiscing about yesterday's ritual.

Mozuta looked up at Leontina. Now, everybody could see her face.

Right now, they could see a beautiful woman.

But in the morning, it had been a strange girl hiding behind a mask.

He could not comprehend how one person could stammer and hide behind a mask during the day, yet become a confident woman, certain of her beliefs, at night.

Wouldn't it be better if people that looked at them didn't connect the two?

“There's something I'd like to ask.”
“Yes?”
“What if I introduced you as an another apprentice during the day? It would make your change in personality easier to hide.”
Leontina pursed her lips.
“No,” she said, tightening her hands around the hem of her skirt. "I know I should, but in all honesty..."

“I want whoever closed me in that coffin to find me as quickly as possible so I can ask them some questions.”

She looked at Mozuta, her eyes ablaze with fiery radiance.
“Is that so?”
Leontina nodded, proud of herself. “This gorgeous lady won't stop until she knows the truth!” she said, winking at Mozuta.
“There's one more thing I'd like to ask.”
“Yes?”
“Are you not worried that someone might get jealous of your looks at night?” It bothered him, so he had to ask.
“Why would it? Visibility at night is worse.”
Mozuta blinked a few times. He wanted to ask, Are you sure about that? But he stopped himself.

“Let’s leave,” ordered Leontina. She pushed Mozuta towards the inn where they were staying. “You need to sleep well if we’re going to travel to another town early in the morning.”
“Already?” the boy asked, raising his head to look at her. The shadows under his eyes were clearly visible.
“Yes, so be a good boy and go to sleep.”

Leontina hoped that she wouldn’t cause any more problems for Mozuta. After all, he was already talking to people during the day when they were looking for stories about ghosts. She had to make sure that he rested and ate well. Since she didn’t have to do either of those things, she had to be extra careful not to forget. She did make him accompany her all night while they were exorcising the two children, and listen to the story of the two lovebirds.
Now, they were going to find out more about the ghost of Bernard Szumborski near the town of Chelmo. Apparently, he could be an evil spirit, so he would certainly prove to be quite a problematic case. She tightened her fists and promised herself that she would protect the boy who had come with her on this journey. He was three years her junior, or rather, thirteen, if she added the time she had spent in the coffin.

She needed to be a good older sister to him so she made him sleep before they moved to their next ghostly target.