through a large pine forest. A guard of the dwarfs wanted to accompany them to the south coast.His name was Karl-Heinz and it was the guard who pulled Destin out of the dungeon. On their way there was no sun, because the clouds covered the whole sky and it looked like a thunderstorm. Clouds of mist spread across the ground and clung to blades of grass and branches. The forest seemed eerie and almost endless. They made hardly any noise as the wet needles under their feet were soft as snow and gave way with every step. In the west they heard the calls of the wolves and felt encouraged to take the path faster than they would in the sun.


Ahead of them was a row of cliffs rising to a point from the green of the forest, which were washed around by the mist. At their feet, there were mostly small ponds and ponds, the water of which shimmered swampy in green light. The rock was overgrown with moss and lichen up to 2 meters and the rest was steep in the smoke of the mist.


The hikers did not have a very lively conversation, because the coats had gotten very wet from the dew and were difficult to pull off afterwards.

Now they came to the dark part of the forest, where deciduous trees loomed. This Walt called himself Weiherwald because of the ponds under the rocks. It was a very swampy area and difficult to traverse. The silence pressed the friends to the ground and let them move slowly. The weight of the coats was still on them, and when night fell the cold came. Even now there was no celestial body to be seen. No stars, no moon, no sun. The cloud cover always held up. Fortunately, they got out of the forest quickly, keeping to the south-east, because the only ferry going south was at the fishermen's huts. The forest they emerged from was dark and black. The sky had cleared up a bit, but it was still not starry. The silver crescent moon was the only source of light and all shadows grew longer. In front of them lay a wide river and then the notorious Black Castle. It was called the Black Castle because it was carved from black stone except for the roof and door.Many legends have grown up around it. A powerful lady of the castle is said to have lived here once, who had held two creatures of the forest captive. Some even said it was the two chosen ones, Demona and Toni. Besides, the black riders should have gone in and out here and killed the mistress. Your spirit is said to still go mad through the cellars of the walls and search for the chosen ones.


Now they stepped away into a field that had led close to the forest. The mist billowed like a white carpet over a lower marshland.


Suddenly they heard the impact of a hoof. Destin turned and looked into the oppressive blackness of the forest. Nothing happened. The sweat came on his forehead and he went on anxiously. Another hoofbeat and the neighing of a horse this time the others heard it too, but when they turned around, nothing could be seen. Their hearts began to beat louder and more hectically.For fear of being discovered, they walked faster and Destin hardly followed. The hoof clatter began again with the neighing of a horse and this time didn't stop when they turned around. There was still nothing to be seen, but the sounds came closer and closer. Soon they had the feeling that the riders had already ridden past them, but there was nothing to be seen far and wide. Suddenly it sounded as if the tones were coming closer from the left, but then disappeared into nothing and reappeared on the right.


"Somebody wants to play a game with us!" growled the stout dwarf, reaching for the hilt of his battle-ax. "No, it's the spirits of the deceased!" Benedict corrected and pulled his hat lower over his scarred forehead. His mind became finer than ever since he was blind, because he no longer paid attention to what he saw, but to what he could smell, hear and feel. The rider's smell was moldy, but this one smelled smoky.He confirmed his statement with a nod and the palpitation subsided a little.


Now it sounded like someone was pulling his sword out of its sheath and hitting someone with it. That too could not be seen. The screams of those hit grew louder and echoed across the night plain. Benedict thought a huge battle would be fought here but the others assured him that no one was there and that the noises would deceive him.


Despite their knowledge, they began to run, with the dwarf having to support Benedict. Since he was blind, he was safer and more careful of the ground. They wanted to spend the night in the ruins of the Black Castle. The walls would give them enough protection for one night if they didn't chase the ghosts.


It was cool in the castle and tufts of grass protruded from the cracks in the wall. All kinds of animals had found their home here. Bats and ravens lived in nests which were placed on the rotten roof beams of the towers.A deep moat had been dug around the castle and the drawbridge lay splintered on the ground. Once there had been water in the ditch, but now there were only fish skeletons lying around as memories. Moss and ferns grew on the broken pieces. When they were over the moat and in the castle, they marveled at the old construction technology and the high arches. In the middle of the castle courtyard they lit a fire and explored the area, if the dwarf noticed that the portcullis was still intact.


"What about it?" he asked the hikers. "Do you feel safe enough, or should I lower the bars?" "Yes, close it! I am still not entirely at ease with the ghosts!" answered Benedict and sat down on the rough stone floor. He put the gnarled walking stick next to him and unpacked his supper, an apple and a piece of bread.


Destin and the gnome had separated from the group and were talking to each other, creeping through the chambers and halls of the long-abandoned ruin.The first room was the reception hall, the second, the throne room and the third the bedroom of the lady of the castle. No gold or diamonds could be seen in any room.


"But they stole a lot!" said Albert and nodded. "Something must still be somewhere!" he then added slowly. "What do you think?" Destin asked, unsuspecting. "Well, gold, pearls, jewelery and jewelery, don't be so difficult as a boy!"


"Aha!" cowardly Destin and looked grimly at the gnome, placing the hang on the hilt of his sword. Albert also touched his dagger, but when Destin was already pulling out his long sword, the healer said soothingly: "Calm, calm! Easy, I didn't mean that!" Without noticing it, they had walked straight ahead and stood now in front of a marble spiral staircase. They eyed them skeptically and then decided to go upstairs first.


When they reached the top, they looked around the attic.Stuff, which had probably been lying around here for years, graced the floor and completely stuffed the room. Everything was full of dust and cobwebs hung in the corners, but not a fly moved.


Suddenly something rustled in the dark and three bats, which were hanging from the ceiling, screeched up and away. It rustled again and a rosy breeze washed around her as if it were going through her and then disappeared into the stairwell. It was now clear to them that it was one of the four demons of the vampire world, because the rosy creature, which had no body, was covered by a brightly shining veil. One of these creatures was killed by the legendary Tom 12 years ago. Even today he was referred to as a hero in the history books. At that time I had awakened the change in him. The steel spring should still be on Drecul 's balcony if Petrus had not found it.


Suddenly a deep, grumpy dwarf voice came up to them:

“Gnome, Destin, there is someone I don't know and Benedict can't see!” Immediately they fell down the tower and ran through the rooms. They had completely forgotten about the demon. Destin had run so fast that his cloak had fluttered wildly. When I arrived in the courtyard, Karl-Heinz continued: “Just when I wanted to lower the portcullis, of course on Benedict's orders, because ...” Benedict interrupted him in the middle: “Order? Hah, you asked me!” “Okay "So there this man was suddenly there. He's a vampire, but he's pretty nice!" With that he pointed to Mr. Gotthard, who was just sneaking around the corner. "Was a human in the past, am now a vampire. Knew Benedict, who is unfortunately now dead, pretty well! Was his teacher!" he said with a smile and shook hands with Destin and Benedict. "Teacher" asked Destin suddenly in astonishment. "Yes, teacher in school!" Gotthard answered his question. "School?" "Oh God, you don't know what is meant, right?So, a school is where you can go to learn something! " "Learn? "I give up!" The teacher huffed and wiped the sweat from his forehead. They were still shaking hands. Suddenly Gotthard snapped at him: "Now let go! "Destin grabbed his sword." Yes, that's good, hey, hey, uh, yes! "The teacher soothed him and waved his hand in thanks. Destin grinned stupidly and sat down next to Benedict by the fire. My IQ is just too high, thought Gotthard and shook his head.


"Hey, I'm Karl!" the dwarf greeted him. “What a coincidence,” enthused the teacher, “my name is Karl too!” “Great!” both shouted at the same time and performed a wild dance around the fire.


The gnome watched from a distance and shrugged his eyebrows. He was slowly getting fed up with everything. What they sang faded away in the dark for a long time:




"My name is Karl and your name is Karl,


on the bald head we are bald.

And we dance crazy


through the silent night


until the sun is laughing! "


"Learned something again!"




Dr. Gotthard stood on the battlements on the east side of the country. The sun was just rising and let the fog shine over the meadows and forests. He hadn't been able