Marvel Magic Case Files.

Chapter 26 The Witch's Tale (Seeking Investment!)

"Mr. Barnabas..."

"Lord Jesus, reveal the heart of my prayer, touch me with your hand, and make me strong and courageous in all things..."

"Mr. Barnabas..."

"You are the source of my salvation, in you I am filled with joy and hope, even when walking in darkness your light shines forever..."

Salomon breathed a sigh of relief.

He gave up. He figured the vampire in front of him might be a little mentally unstable. If the local legends and his investigation were correct, this vampire had probably been buried in a coffin for two hundred years, so it was understandable that he might have some mental issues. He glanced at the Collins family sitting on the opposite sofa. They didn't react to the vampire's behavior at all; instead, they served Salomon cookies. Even the wild-looking Caroline had relaxed and was fiddling with her nails.

Only David Collins tried to stop Barnabas, but he was also pulled into the prayer.

"Young Master David," the vampire said, "I have sold my soul to the devil, and now only prayer can get me into heaven."

"Does he...do this often?" Salomon refused the dessert offered by the Collins family, pointed to his head, and asked them.

“Often. He does this whenever Victoria isn’t around.” Elizabeth, with her full head of silver hair, didn’t mind Salomon refusing food. She solemnly told Salomon, “Before you came, many people came to our house claiming they could help us break the curse. We only realized the curse was real after our ancestor appeared before us.”

"The black magic in that book can only be countered in the Book of Vishanti," Salomon shook his head. "But, Lady Elizabeth, my goal is to find that book, or rather, the paper or book that copied that knowledge. That is my purpose."

"I can help you." Barnabas sprang to his feet, radiating coldness as he sat down beside Salomon with astonishing speed. "Angie's collection has become relics, preserved in a museum, but this is Collins Port, founded by the Collins family. I can help you get those things, but..."

"The relics?" Salomon asked. "That's my first question. Where is Angelique Butchard?"

"She's dead." Barnabas pouted, his eyes downcast, his hands resting on his cane, his fingers fidgeting restlessly. "She died right here, from her own curse."

Seeing Salomon's puzzled expression, Barnabas began to recount his past. "It was my fault," the vampire said.

This story begins in 1750. Joshua Collins and Naomi Collins, along with their youngest son, Barnabas Collins (the vampire points to himself), traveled from England to America in pursuit of a better life. They established their own fishing empire in a small town on the coast of Maine and named the town after themselves—Collins Harbour.

"Colin Manor was also built around that time." The vampire pointed around, "But not this one now. This was renovated later, as you probably know. The original Colin Manor took fifteen years to build, and twenty years later, I had grown up."

Barnabas Collins was rich and powerful, but he was also a notorious womanizer until one day he made a mistake he would later deeply regret. At this point, the vampire stood up, raising a hand as if tapping something.

"I have fallen in love with a beautiful woman named Josette Dupres," Barnabas said with a sorrowful expression. "But I have broken Angelique Butchard's heart, because I cannot marry her."

Barnabas still remembers the gloomy weather and the biting wind blowing from the sea that day. On that day, Angie controlled Josette as she leaped off the cliff, crashing onto the rocks by the sea. Overwhelmed with grief, Barnabas followed suit.

"But she cursed me, condemning me to a fate worse than death!" The vampire waved his arms excitedly, pacing back and forth in the living room, his shoes clicking on the marble floor. "Until the icy sea awakened me. When I awoke from the rocks, I found Josette lying beside me, her body cold, my fingers sharp and bloodshot, like a demon descended from hell. I saw the witch standing on the mountaintop, cursing me loudly! I was incredibly thirsty, and no amount of water could suppress this urge. I could never be in the sunlight again. Angelique cursed me to become a vampire, so that my suffering would never end."

"I think you know what happened next. Angelique led the villagers, carrying torches, to Colin Manor. She accused me of being the devil, so the villagers sealed me in a coffin and buried me underground." The vampire's tone slowed down. "Two hundred years later, I was dug up and returned here."

"At the time, only Elizabeth believed my identity, and of course, not because my portrait was hanging in the living room." The vampire pointed to the wall where his portrait was hanging, one of the few things that had survived the fire. "Until one day, a governess named Victoria Winters came to Colin Manor."

According to Barnabas, this Victoria looked exactly like Josette. After returning to the family, he sold off the family's treasured possessions, revitalizing the Collins family, and at the same time, he and Victoria developed feelings for each other; everything was so wonderful.

"But your exact words were, 'That's the most fertile buttocks you've ever seen.'" Caroline showed no mercy to her ancestor. Barnabas, however, ignored her.

"But! That witch! Angelique Butchard knows I've awakened!" The vampire's emotions surged again. "The Angel Bay she founded controls most of the fishing industry in Collins Harbor, making the Collins family's income insufficient! She's spread her hatred to the Collins family; she wants to see the Collins bloodline scattered on the streets! This is intolerable! And after I woke up, she even wants to repeat what she did in Josette on Victoria! That wicked woman!"

"In short, we fought when she tried to use the same methods as before, to incite the residents and the police to arrest me. Her skin shattered like glass, and Collingwood Manor caught fire as a result, destroying the Collins family's most important property."

"She's dead," Salomon said. "And you're standing here."

"Yes, she took out her heart, a heart as pink as glass, covered in cracks," Barnabas said in a low voice. "I watched her heart shatter into pieces, and she lay there motionless, like a doll."

"That's quite an interesting story, Mr. Barnabas." Salomon, while secretly becoming more vigilant, pulled a few sheets of printed paper from a small pouch at his waist. He smiled at the vampire and said, "So, could you tell me which murders you committed?"

P.S.: I want votes! I want investments! If my collection increases, so should my investments!

Good morning!

(End of this chapter)