Troll

⁦⁠♡⁩ TL: Khadija SK

 

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“Troll Jean-Antoine?”

 

Curious about why Troll didn’t follow, Sergeant DeCaster approached and tapped Jin-ah’s shoulder.

 

But just as he did, a busy officer obscured the view, and Jin-ah could only move again after a while.

 

“Whit jist happened…?”

 

Still feeling numb and disoriented, Jin-ah’s senses were out of whack.

 

Her stomach churned, feeling like she might vomit at any moment.

 

Her hands were trembling so badly, and her legs felt weak.

 

Jin-ah clamped her mouth shut.

 

Otherwise, she felt like she might scream.

 

“Whit’s the matter wi’ ye? Why are ye reactin’ like this?”

 

Jin-ah couldn’t fathom why her body was reacting this way.

 

Why…?

 

Then it struck Jin-ah; she had felt something similar recently.

 

When was it?

 

“Ah…”

 

She realized.

 

It was back then.

 

When the lawyer handed her the photo.

 

That feeling of terror when she looked into the window of the mansion in the picture.

 

What she was feeling now was akin to that sensation.

 

Just on a much grander scale.

 

Jin-ah recalled the countless fears she’d experienced in life.

 

Almost getting hit by a car while crossing the street, getting chased by a vicious neighborhood dog, getting lost while camping with friends…

 

The fear she was feeling now was of a different magnitude altogether.

 

It felt like everything beneath her feet was crumbling away, leaving her to be swallowed by a giant beast’s maw.

 

“Are ye awricht?”

 

Seeing Jin-ah’s state, which seemed far from okay, DeCaster asked with concern in his voice.

 

Jin-ah took a deep breath before turning her head.

 

Ian Isford, who had been standing there moments ago, seemed to have disappeared into the ambulance by now.

 

Jin-ah’s body quickly started to feel better, as if whatever had been plaguing her had suddenly vanished.

 

Seeming to think Jin-ah was doing much better now, DeCaster suggested they continue explaining while heading to the mansion.

 

“Ye said it’s yer first time here. It’s quite an auld mansion.”

 

“Is it?”

 

Jin-ah hadn’t heard anything about when this mansion was built from the lawyer.

 

“It luks like it’s been standin’ fur aboot 200 years from the ootside, but wi’ th’ state o’ disrepair inside, ah’d say it’s likely surpassed 500 years.”

 

DeCaster, who had a degree in architecture and whose father was a well-known carpenter in the area, could estimate the rough age of the building.

 

“Maybe it’s even mair than 500 years. It wid be hard tae confirm withoot checkin’ th’ basement, but that micht be difficult wi’ it bein’ collapsed. Fur sic an auld mansion, it’s strang it wisnae even registered.”

 

They mentioned that Frida Troll inherited it in 1951.

 

Before that, it would have been owned by another branch of the Troll family.

 

If that were the case, when did the Troll family start living here?

 

‘Troll is not a Scottish surname.’

 

When Jin-ah had looked up the origins of the Troll family, records indicated it was a family that originated from Sweden long ago.

 

‘Maybe they immigrated to Scotland shortly after their establishment.’

 

Thinking that, Jin-ah followed DeCaster towards the mansion.

 

With each step, she heard the rustling of grass and felt the small, unknown plants under her feet.

 

She also felt like she were walking on mud.

 

There were various plants, some dried up, some blooming flowers or bearing fruit.

 

Despite the variety in species and flower colors, all the fruits were a deep crimson red.

 

Despite the path likely being covered in grass already, there was a clear path thanks to the police officers’ movements.

 

Late as it was, the police had set up a perimeter around the mansion.

 

Yellow and black vinyl tape fluttered in the wind.

 

As they walked up the stairs and faced the mansion head-on, Jin-ah could tell that this mansion was much larger than she had anticipated.

 

From a rough estimate, the width of the front alone seemed to be well over 30 meters.

 

And going backward, it was even longer, with three floors and a basement.

 

At the time it was built, it must have been a bustling mansion with at least 50 employees.

 

When inherited, the lawyer said there were no tourist attractions around here, let alone grass suitable for grazing, so the land around had been uninhabited for a long time.

 

So why did the ancestors build such a big mansion here in the first place?

 

“Watch yer step frae here. It’s dangerous as pairts of th’ mansion are decayed.”

 

The sergeant said as they reached the front porch.

 

The broken front door was hanging off to the side, and cries that sounded like people shouting echoed from inside the mansion.

 

It seemed like there were still people trapped inside, judging from the atmosphere.

 

Then, Jin-ah remembered something.

 

“Oh, by the way, Sergeant, I think my grandmother’s body might be in the middle room on the second floor…”

 

“Excuse me?”

 

She told him about the grandmother’s bequest, saying that she had instructed to leave her body there when she died.

 

Throughout Jin-ah’s explanation, the sergeant’s expression remained distorted.

 

“Leavin’ a body like tha’s illegal. Even if it’s no’ illegal, how could sic a thing…”

 

Was he a devout believer?

 

He muttered prayers with a grimace.

 

“Anyway, we’ll hae tae check. Hey!”

 

He called a passing officer and explained the situation, then ordered him to go upstairs and check if there was a corpse.

 

Receiving the order, the officer’s expression turned incredulous, as if questioning how such a thing could be possible, before reluctantly heading upstairs.

 

The sergeant began to explain amidst the noisy surroundings.

 

“Let me stert by explaining whit happened. This mornin’ at 8 a.m., we received an emergency signal requestin’ rescue. It was a brief call sayin’ they were trapped in the Kno-Dearg Mansion and askin’ fer help. The local polis were dispatched, but it took a while tae find this place because naebody around here kens it well. As ye ken, these days the sun rises late and the fog doesnae clear easily… Anyway, we finally confirmed the mansion and went inside, and as ye can see…”

 

He motioned for Jin-ah to follow him inside as he continued.

 

“This mansion’s centr’ has completely collapsed intae th’ ground. An’ from below, we could hear folk moanin’. Hey, Mark!”

 

When the sergeant shouted, the young officer who had been staring blankly at the collapsed edge looked up.

 

“This is th’ owner o’ this mansion, could ye explain tae her whit happened when ye first entered?”

 

“Uh, yes, sir.”

 

Mark started to explain hesitantly.

 

“We had to confirm the rescue request, but we couldn’t find this mansion for a while. The nearby villagers didn’t know about it either…”.

 

“The nearby villagers? Do you mean the village nearby, right near the road to here? I thought it was an empty village?”

 

“It’s empty, but the pub is always open, and we occasionally stop by for a drink.”

 

Always open.

 

It was totally closed when Jin-ah passed by, so there was nowhere to ask.

 

Interrupting Mark, Jin-ah questioned what was strange.

 

“As you said earlier, it really seems like there’s no reception here…”

 

Jina’s gaze was directed to the collapsed hole in the basement.

 

“How did they manage to send a distress call while trapped underground?”

 

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T.N: I hope that what the sergeant said is clear ಥ⁠_⁠ಥ