Mystery Hunt (Complete - Under Major Editing)

3. Lost Cause

Dylan rushes to the office. James Reed? The person who knows about Castle of Nale more than him? He is waiting in their office? Does he want to work with them?

He dashes into the room, much to Jenny's dismay, and looks at everyone looking at him as if they just saw a ghost.

"James Reed?" Dylan points at him breathlessly. He ran all the way till here, not wanting to miss even a second.

James blushes and looks at William, "He knows me!" he giggles like a little girl whose crush spoke to her for the first time.

"Just sit down first. It seems you ran all the way here." Noah is a bit annoyed.

"But..." Dylan sits on the chair and looks at the young, brown-haired boy staring at him as if he would eat him alive.

"Yes yes, he is James Reed. The famous film director from the US." Noah still sounds annoyed.

What is his problem?

"The who?" Dylan asks confused. "Isn't he the one who posted the research on the archives?"

"Oh, that!" James looks a bit dejected, "Well at least I got noticed!"

Dylan ignores his subtle flirting and turns to William, "I heard he wants to work with us?"

"Yeah." William nods, "He wants us to make a documentary on the Castle of Nale with his team and research. We were going to talk about the contract once you come." He looks at James, "But if he is here, why don't we draft it?"

Noah scoffs again and says, "It's a lost cause. Please. We would just waste our precious time behind the whining of two 20-year-olds."

"It isn't!" James and Dylan say in unison. James then signals him to continue, "As I was saying, we now have proof. We just have to go there and do our thing which we always do. Our YouTube channel is to show people something new. And this is new!"

"You are just obsessed with the castle and everyone here is hyping you up. We never had anything regarding it and suddenly a guy comes in the office with whole ass research for it. He even put it up online so people can read it. Why do we need to make it a pain in our asses?"

"Firstly, he isn't 'some guy', he is The James Reed. He is the best in his field. And if he is showing interest in something like that, why don't we try it out? What can we lose?" Clive chimes in.

"Our time and energy." Noah folds his arms.

"The research put up online isn't enough. It doesn't even scratch the surface of what is Castle of Nale. We can only get more info from on-field research." James argues.

"Exactly! That's why it is our duty to bring out the truth." Dylan was now getting a bit pissed.

Why is Noah acting like this?

"But..." Noah starts but is interrupted by a bang on the table. It's David!

"Stop it you both! We aren't kids anymore. We can solve things with discussions and not arguments." He turns to William, "Your call. I can't handle this constant bickering. You decide."

William looks at Noah and then at Dylan.

"Let's do it this way. We will work on this project for a month. At the month-end, if it still feels like a lost cause to Noah, we will scrape this." Noah takes a sigh of relief.

"But this doesn't mean we slack off in the research. We give 100 percent and try to make the ends meet. I myself am in doubt about this so I guess this way is the best way. Cool?" He looks at everyone for approval. They all nod in unison.

"Okay then. We can work on the contract in a few days. We have some work to hand over to the juniors. Is it okay for you to stay in Deltora for a while?" he asks James.

"I don't mind staying here. I won't leave until I have found my answers." James assures.

"See, he is suspicious," Noah whispers to David.

"You are the one who is acting suspiciously." He remarks back.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"I see you are very interested in the Castle of Nale. May I ask why?" James asks Dylan politely. They were now in the office alone.

"No reason. I am just fascinated by its mystery. What about you?" Dylan shrugs and lies. He can't tell a total stranger why he is so into the castle.

"Ah...this might be a bit embarrassing but..." James fiddles with his fingers, "King Walter is my ancestor. I have to be interested in it."

Dylan couldn't believe his ears. King Walter? But what is his connection with Castle of Nale?

"But he was the king of Castle of Dorona in Keitheras. It is like miles away from Nale." Dylan runs his mind. James looks at him as if he just committed a murder.

"What?" Dylan asks being a bit creeped out.

"You don't know?" James is still in shock.

"What?" he is still confused.

James takes a sigh and wears his coat.

"And I thought you are really interested in the castle when you don't even know half of the details. I am disappointed." And walks away without looking back.

Dylan rolls his fist in anger. How can someone just humiliate him in his own office? That brat! He takes it on his ego to prove him wrong.

"Just wait and watch!" Dylan hisses.