The two friends stayed still for a moment until Alyssa decided to act.
"All right, let's follow her."
"What? Are you crazy?" Bradley crossed his arms.
"Maybe she'll lead us to the way out…"
Bradley was about to protest, but Alyssa was already heading towards the ghostly bride.
"If we die, I'll kill you."
Hastily, he followed Alyssa, who was keeping an eye on Melanie. The bride was singing a melancholic song with her head down.
"So what's the plan exactly? To let her take us to a crypt where she can finish us off more comfortably?"
"Don't be stupid, maybe she'll lead us to some…"
The bride was no longer in front of them.
"What? Where is she?"
"Where is who?" a voice said behind them.
Melanie Ravenswood herself was standing there, staring at them.
"Please don't eat us!" Bradley knelt down.
"Why would I eat you? It's my wedding," Melanie replied.
"Your… wedding?"
"Yes… My love is waiting for me at the altar, I'm sure of it…"
The friends looked at each other, confused.
"The wedding wasn't… a long time ago?"
Melanie fell silent for a moment.
"No. It hasn't. " she replied curtly.
"Okay… Congratulations on the wedding then."
"Huh?" Bradley whispered. "But it's impossible that…"
Alyssa nudged Bradley.
"Play along."
"Thank you," Melanie replied with a nostalgic smile, as if it were a smile of deep pain.
"By the way, have you seen a man around here named Lucius?"
"Lucius… Yes, I have seen him, follow me."
Lifting the chandelier, Melanie began to guide the duo towards Lucius.
The ground crunched with every step the trio took.
"My idyllic Friday afternoon: following a ghost."
"Bradley, this is not the time. I don't think she will harm us."
"I remind you that her suitors disappeared without a trace. I don't want a crazy bride to cut off my head or something like that."
"You watch too many documentaries on the internet, Bradley", Alyssa replied, rolling her eyes.
"Did you say something?", Melanie turned, her smile fading.
"No… Sorry."
Melanie nodded and looked ahead again.
"Bradley, trust me."
"If I die, I'll kill you."
"This way…", Melanie advanced to a room with a huge coffin in the center.
"Alyssa, please tell me this will make you come to your senses."
"That coffin is not for us… I think…"
Before she could say anything else, the coffin began to shake, and to the friends' astonished gaze, a skeletal hand emerged from it.
"Get me out of here, please, get me out of here!", It said while trying to lift the coffin lid, unsuccessfully.
"A zombie, a zombie!"
Melanie had continued on her way without paying attention.
"Let's get out of here.", Alyssa ran until she reached Melanie.
"Hey, didn't you see that over there?", Bradley was breathing heavily.
"That's normal here…", Melanie's response was completely unexpected.
"Wait… Are you saying you know there are ghosts in the mansion?"
"Of course, you're talking to one."
Alyssa and Bradley looked at each other without saying a word.
"Are you the Phantom, that evil spirit who dwells in this house?"
"Alyssa, don't say that!"
"Of course not, the Phantom has been tormenting us for a long time."
"For a long time? Do you know why?"
"I don't know… I just know that it's very powerful, and it's always watching."
Bradley swallowed hard upon hearing that.
"That sounds terrible… Is there no way to get rid of it?"
Melanie looked around at Alyssa's words.
"I think there might be… But only Madame Leota knows, a medium who is somewhere in this mansion. But we can't do it, we are very vulnerable to him."
Alyssa looked into Melanie's haunted eyes, feeling a strange sensation inside her, as if destiny had placed them there for a reason.
"What if we went to talk to that medium ourselves?"
"Have you gone crazy?" Bradley crossed his arms.
"We can't leave them like this; we have to help them, don't you think?"
Bradley looked at the young ghost and sighed.
"Alright, but if things get bad, I'm out of here."
Melanie, for the first time in a long time, smiled genuinely.
But what the group didn't know is that the Phantom heard everything, lurking in the shadows…
In a nearby tavern, Sheriff Edwin Moon was waiting seated.
"Ah… here you are.", A voice said behind him.
The Phantom entered the room, which filled with a heavy atmosphere just by his presence. A raven, his pet, rested on his shoulder.
"What is the purpose of this meeting, Phantom?"
"Some foolish mortals have arrived at the mansion. And it seems they want to play the heroes."
Edwin laughed at that.
"It seems like you're losing your essence…"
The Phantom grabbed him by the neck, and Edwin started trembling.
"Be careful, sheriff, remember we made a deal… And if you break it, believe me, there are fates worse than death."
"Y-yes, Phantom."
Edwin fell to the floor, completely terrified.
"W-what do you want me to do?"
"Make them leave and never return… And if that doesn't work, invite them to rest eternally", Laughter echoed through the hidden corners of the place.
"Why do you want me to put them to sleep?"
"I mean you have to end their lives, idiot!"
After this, Edwin ran out scared, with the Phantom shaking his head.