The night had settled over Harborside, and Sebastian stood at the threshold of the haunted house, his hand resting on the doorframe, his yellow eyes scanning the darkness within.
The house was not what he had expected.
It was organized, clean. The furniture was covered with white sheets, but they had been arranged with care, not the haphazard abandon of a place that had been abandoned. The floors were swept. The windows, though dark, were free of grime. The air smelled of dust and old wood, but beneath that, there was something else that surprised him, a floral smell, like perfume.
Sebastian stepped inside, his boots echoing against the wooden floor, his medallion was still, silent against his chest. No wraiths. No specters. No malevolent presence lurking in the shadows.
"The specter... or whatever haunts this place, kept things tidy," Sebastian murmured to himself. "If it is a specter, this would be very unusual."
He moved through the rooms calmly, his eyes cataloguing every detail. The kitchen was bare, the cupboards empty, the hearth cold. The parlor was orderly, the furniture arranged in neat rows. The study was filled with empty shelves, their surfaces dust-free, as if someone had recently wiped them clean.
Nothing unusual, nothing out of place, if anything it was unusually clean for a recently abandoned house.
Sebastian's brow furrowed. "Vogler mentioned that people start hallucinating as soon as they enter. But it didn't happen to me.."
He continued his search, his senses reaching out, probing the darkness for any sign of the supernatural. He found human activity, a strand of hair on the arm of a chair, long and dark, clearly a woman's. He found faint footprints, each one different than the other, leading toward the back of the house.
He followed them.
The room at the end of the hall was different from the rest of the house. The door was slightly ajar, and through the gap, Sebastian could see that the space within was in disarray. The bed was unmade, its sheets tangled, its pillows dented as if someone had recently slept there. Clothes were draped over a chair, a woman's dress, a silk robe, a pair of delicate slippers. A vanity table held a collection of cosmetics, their containers open and half-used.
Sebastian pushed the door open fully and stepped inside.
"Well," he said, his voice low, "this is interesting."
He surveyed the room, his mind working through the possibilities. The house was not haunted by a specter but it was occupied. And if his current theory was correct, to him that would be extremely funny.
"The smell here alone is..." Sebastian paused, inhaling deeply. The perfume was stronger in this room, mingled with something else, something that might have been incense, might have been musk, might have been the lingering trace of a very particular kind of magic.
He looked around the room, taking in the details. The bed was clearly used often. The clothes were not old, not abandoned. The cosmetics were fresh.
"It seems I was an unwanted presence here," Sebastian said to himself. "Either she saw me coming and left, or she's not here yet."
He turned and walked back through the house, his mind already forming a plan.
Outside, Vogler and Dandelion stood near the entrance, their breath misting in the cold night air. Zoltan had stayed behind at Vogler's other house claiming that he was too old for late-night haunted house investigations and too sober to deal with Dandelion's dramatics.
Vogler's face was pale with anxiety, his hands clasped together as if in prayer. Dandelion, by contrast, looked curious, his eyes bright with the anticipation of a good story.
"So?" Dandelion asked, stepping forward the moment he saw Seb. "What did you find?"
Vogler echoed the question. "So, Master Witcher? Did you find the specter?"
Sebastian closed the door behind him with a calm expression, but there was a glint of amusement in his yellow eyes.
"I'm afraid there is no specter activity at all," Sebastian said. "No wraith at all."
Vogler's face fell. "What?! But I swear to you, Master Witcher! The place is haunted! The neighbors themselves could tell you so!"
Sebastian held up a hand. "Oh, it is haunted, alright. But not by a specter."
He reached into his belt and pulled out the strand of hair he had found, holding it up so Vogler could see it.
"I found this," Sebastian said.
Vogler squinted at the hair. "Hair? That's... that's just hair. What does that prove?"
Sebastian's smile was thin. "A woman's hair, Your house has a very busy resident." He paused, letting the words sink in. "I'm almost sure it's a succubus."
Dandelion's eyes went wide. He swallowed audibly. "Seriously?"
Vogler took a step back, his face paling further. "Eternal Fire preserve me... a succubus?!"
Sebastian nodded. "Yeah. She lures men there and does what she does best." He glanced at Dandelion, his expression sharp. "And don't even think about it. They're still dangerous. They can kill you."
Dandelion raised his hands in defense. "What? I didn't say anything!"
Sebastian continued. "Speaking of killing, I found no trace of blood or any sign of murder. Did anyone die in there that you removed, or...?"
Vogler shook his head vehemently. "No, no! No one died! Some people went a bit crazy for a time after entering the house, but no one died."
Sebastian's brow furrowed. "That's... reassuring, I guess."
He looked back at the house, his eyes narrowing in thought.
"I just need to ask your neighbors a few questions now," Sebastian said. "If it really is a succubus, then she clearly escaped seeing me coming. That makes her extra smart, smarter than she already is. She won't show herself now." He turned to Vogler. "We'll return tomorrow."
Vogler nodded, relief washing over his features. "Very well, Master Witcher... we'll do as you say."
Sebastian turned to Dandelion, his voice dropping to a whisper.
"I've got an idea. Stay here."
Dandelion blinked. "What?"
Sebastian stepped back, leaving Dandelion standing alone in the middle of the street.
"I must go back and rest.. Hopefully, this whole matter will be resolved tomorrow. I have faith in you, Master Witcher." Vogler said.
Sebastian nodded. "Yeah. Don't worry, tomorrow, you'll be free of this whole mess, of that I promise you."
Seb waited until Vogler had shuffled back toward his other home, his hunched figure disappearing into the darkness.
Sebastian and Dandelion were alone.
"So?" Dandelion asked, turning to Sebastian. "What did you want to talk about?"
Sebastian met his gaze. "Listen. I've got an idea. A bit risky, but seeing how she's not exactly a lethal succubus.." He paused. "I will use you as bait, this is what you do best afterall."
Dandelion's eyes widened. "What? No, no, no! I'm good with women, not women with horns! I have my limits! Besides, you said yourself she's still a monster!"
Sebastian held up a hand. "Relax. I'll make sure she doesn't have her way with you. You'll be bait just to lure her out. Clearly, she picks her victims here, people that pass by. The hallucination part is her magic, and you might get affected, but it's not a big deal."
Dandelion's face was a mask of horror. "Even Geralt never suggested this sort of..."
Sebastian cut him off. "I'm not Geralt. Sorry I'm not that nice, but if you want to get this over with quick, we can still do it now. No need for tomorrow, and we'll be on our way to Temeria."
Dandelion was silent for a long moment, his expression shifting from horror to reluctant acceptance.
"Shit! Alright, since this was my idea I might as well take part in it.." Dandelion said finally. "Alright, damn it. I lost interest in the house already, though I had a great plan for it after hearing from you that a succubus occupied it." He paused, a thoughtful look crossing his face. "Succubi Alcove... or something that rhymes with it... oh it would have been a lovely name for a Brothel or..."
Sebastian sighed.
"Will you kill her, though?" Dandelion asked.
Sebastian's expression was unreadable. "I'll see what I can do. If I must, I will."
Dandelion nodded slowly. "Fine, let's get this over with."
/-\
If you Like this story! Check out my other stories! Shadow Monarch: In One Piece / Shadow Monarch in DC
&
If you wish to read more or simply support me than check out my pat-reon / FrenzyAren"
You can Get Access to More Chapters Ahead of Release on All of My Stories!