Chapter 280 Royal Peaks Manor
Chapter 280 Royal Peaks Manor
Charles continued to egg her on,
"I heard there's a lot of immersive role-playing in that haunted house, plus real people dressed up as ghosts for interactive scares. It's super thrilling.
Besides, you're always streaming, busy helping others solve paranormal cases every day. Aren't you tired?
Just think of it as giving yourself a break, a chance to unwind."
He paused, then added,
"Plus, I heard from Melinda that you'll be helping her plan her wedding soon, running around doing this and that. You're definitely going to be exhausted.
You happen to be free right now, so just come out and play with us. Relax a little."
Just then, the living room door was pushed open forcefully. Melinda ran in from outside, a thin layer of sweat on her forehead, muttering,
"Finally got rid of that clingy Brandon!
He insisted on following me around, even wanted me to go to work with him at the Tudor Group! What the hell! Why would I want to go to work! He kept saying he was worried someone would bully me. Who's going to bully me at home! So annoying!"
As soon as she entered, she caught the tail end of their conversation. Her eyes instantly lit up. She quickly walked over to Isabella, grabbed her arm, and said excitedly,
"Bunny! I just heard you guys are going to Royal Peaks Manor? I've heard of that place! It's super famous!"
Melinda tilted her head, thinking, then added,
"Though I think there was some news about it recently that caused quite a stir. I didn't pay much attention.
But I heard from friends before that the haunted house there is incredibly realistic, plus there's a beach and ocean. It's supposed to be amazing!"
Melinda leaned closer to Isabella, lowering her voice mysteriously,
"Bunny, haven't we always wanted to throw a bachelorette party?
Let's go with Charles and Dylan!
If it's just the two of us going, Jonathan, that jealous man, and Brandon definitely won't agree.
They'll probably even secretly follow us.
But if we bring Charles and Dylan along, they'll definitely feel reassured,
and maybe we can finally have our bachelorette party without any problems!"
When Isabella heard "bachelorette party," her heart stirred slightly.
According to the usual practice among Eltheron's noble ladies,
they would hold a bachelorette party before marriage, symbolizing farewell to single life and the commitment to devote themselves fully to family life afterward.
Although Isabella wasn't the type to follow rules rigidly, she didn't want to be too unconventional either, giving Eltheron's ladies reason to look down on her or gossip.
Isabella thought it over and felt Melinda actually had a point.
Royal Peaks Manor did sound a bit eerie,
but with Isabella there, even if there were any dangerous ghosts, she could handle them.
Plus, if she went with Charles and Dylan, Jonathan probably wouldn't object.
With that thought, Isabella finally nodded,
"Alright, I'll go with you guys."
"Awesome!"
Charles and Dylan cheered in unison. They exchanged glances, a barely detectable gleam flashing in their eyes.
They wanted Isabella to go to Royal Peaks Manor more than anyone, but as for the real reason, they couldn't tell her just yet.
Soon, this proposal to vacation at Royal Peaks Manor surprisingly received unanimous approval from everyone in the Tudor Family.
First, Charles and Dylan had indeed been behaving well lately.
Their grades were steadily improving, and they hadn't caused any trouble.
Their desire to go out and have fun was perfectly reasonable.
But the adults in the family were all busy with company matters and had no time to accompany them.
If they let sixteen-year-old Charles and Dylan go out on their own, the Tudor Family definitely wouldn't feel comfortable,
worried that being young, they might cause trouble outside.
This way, Isabella—already an adult with the ability to protect herself and the boys—became the most suitable 'parental representative.'
Second, Isabella had done several livestreams in a row and, by solving the paranormal incident at the Self-Study Building,
had gained massive popularity, with discussions about her all over the internet.
As a lady of the Tudor Family,
she really didn't need to constantly expose herself to public discussion. Keeping a lower profile would be wiser.
Jonathan shared the same view.
He adored Isabella, cherishing her like a treasure,
so how could he bear to let her be slandered by all sorts of messy online comments?
But the internet was an unfiltered platform—where there was love, there would be hate.
No matter how well Isabella did, there would inevitably be people finding fault.
So if Isabella could go out and have fun for a while, temporarily turn off her livestreams, and stay away from online drama, Jonathan was very willing.
Plus, Jonathan had been swamped with company business lately.
He really didn't have much time to accompany Isabella during her livestreams. After thinking it over, he agreed to the proposal.
When Sophie heard that Isabella, Melinda, Charles, and Dylan were going to vacation at Royal Peaks Manor, her eyes lit up.
Sophie was naturally someone who loved excitement,
especially anything involving spooky paranormal events.
Just hearing the word "haunted house" got her all fired up.
She immediately came over, shamelessly insisting on joining them.
Isabella initially disagreed, since more people would be harder to look after.
But she couldn't withstand Sophie's persistent pleading, especially when Sophie patted her chest and promised
that unless something special came up, she absolutely wouldn't stream or cause trouble.
Only then was she allowed to join the vacation squad.
And so, the group packed their luggage and set off in grand fashion.
It should be noted that Royal Peaks Manor wasn't in Eltheron,
but in Regal City, a coastal city thousands of miles away.
After several hours of driving, then taking a ferry, the group finally arrived at Royal Peaks Manor.
As soon as Isabella got out of the car, she was stunned by the scene before her.
As far as the eye could see was desolate land.
Weeds grew taller than people,
and several dilapidated villas stood alone in the distance, their walls peeling,
revealing the mottled red bricks underneath.
The sky was overcast and gloomy. Several black crows circled above the pointed roofs of the villas, cawing,
sounding particularly creepy.
Isabella frowned and turned to look at Charles and Dylan behind her, their faces guilty. Her tone carried a hint of exasperation,
"This is the internet-famous check-in spot you two were talking about? The place that's supposedly super popular and requires buying tickets to get in?"
Charles and Dylan grinned awkwardly, their eyes darting away, not daring to meet hers.
Charles quickly grabbed the suitcase from Isabella's hand, saying obsequiously,
"Cousin, you've been traveling for so long, you must be tired. Let me carry your luggage!"
Dylan also rushed forward, pulling Isabella's arm and enthusiastically explaining,
"Cousin, don't judge it by how it looks now.
It used to be super popular!
This manor did have some strange news stories, which is why it became so deserted.
But now that you're here, you can solve everything right away, can't you?
Sure, it doesn't have much traffic now, but it really was popular before!
And who says a place without crowds can't be fun?
There's a huge amusement park inside. Although it's a bit run-down now, all the facilities are still there!
We can also go out to sea, feel the ocean breeze—it's amazing!
There's even the back mountain where we can experience wilderness survival. It'll be so much fun!"
Charles and Dylan's nervous movements and tone were way too suspicious.