As the plane landed at Bucharest Otopeni Airport, Liang En and Joan of Arc finally set foot on Romanian soil after securing a castle a week earlier.
Upon arriving in Bucharest, Liang En had intended to explore the city, only to find it more rundown than anticipated, with a notably poor level of safety.
Compared to some Western European cities, Bucharest appeared somewhat desolate and dilapidated, with the city largely seeming stuck in a state from over thirty years ago, barring a few new buildings.
After briefly visiting landmarks such as the Romanian Parliament arch or the Old Town of Bucharest, they rented a car and headed straight for their destination: Brown Castle in Brașov County, Transylvania.
The location was not far from Romania's capital, Bucharest—about 170 kilometers—although it required crossing the Southern Carpathians.
After crossing the mountains, the ancient land of Transylvania unfolded before Liang En and his companion, distinct from the other side of the mountains, retaining much of its oldest character.
Located in the heart of Europe, west of the Eastern Carpathians, Transylvania became part of Romania following the Treaty of Trianon signed in 1920 after World War I.
Surrounded by the zenith of European civilization, it eschewed modern technological influences, with its natural wilderness and picturesque landscapes resembling the idyllic Peach Blossom Spring.
During ancient and grand festivals, locals would dress elaborately and partake in various ceremonies, creating a vibrant scene.
Locals invariably advised Liang En during their travels in Romania to visit Transylvania, which had preserved the medieval European ambiance.
Because they set out in the morning, they reached the town of Brown at the foot of the castle around noon. Under the sunlight, the castle perched on the rock appeared exceptionally lofty, while the surrounding mountain tops were covered with snow.
Brown Castle is a historically ancient fortress, tracing its origins back to a wooden stronghold built by the Teutonic Knights in 1212.
The earliest official record of Brown Castle dates from 1377, in a document signed by the Hungarian king allowing the local Saxons to build a castle on the foundation of the original stronghold to defend against Turkish attacks.
Completed in 1382, the castle gradually became a political center integrating military, customs, local administrative management, and judiciary functions.
Historically, the castle belonged to Vlad the Impaler of the Wallachia Principality, also known as Dracula, meaning "devil."
Despite his reputation, he wasn't bloodthirsty but instead devoted himself to national development from 1456. At that time, Wallachia was oppressed by the Ottoman Turkish Empire, and Dracula was a fearless and invincible warrior, albeit notoriously suspicious and brutal.
For example, he was fond of impaling, a method of execution where a sharpened stake was fixed into the ground, and a living person was seated on it, slowly sinking due to their body weight, much like skewering meat.
Eventually, the stake would emerge from the victim's mouth. The executed bodies would be displayed on the stake for days until they decayed into skeletons, serving as a deterrent.
Dracula once drove the Turks to the south of the Danube and captured two thousand Turkish soldiers, whom he ordered to be impaled en masse.
The Sultan at the time, the renowned Mehmed II—who conquered Constantinople at the age of 21, ending the Byzantine Empire—could not tolerate such a provocation.
Leading an army of one hundred thousand, Mehmed II personally retaliated. However, upon approaching and discovering what he thought was a "forest" was actually the decaying corpses of two thousand Turks, the horrific sight shattered the morale of the Turkish army, forcing them to retreat hastily.
From then on, "vampire" and "Impaler Prince" became synonyms for Dracula. Under his harsh rule, Wallachia indeed became a unified and strong state, but his brutality also made him many enemies.
In 1462, Dracula was killed in a war with the Ottoman Turks, and his subjects soon forgot the peace and prosperity he had brought, only remembering his cruel punishments and spawning local vampire legends.
This is also a characteristic of the entire Transylvanian region, from Eastern Europe to the Balkans, particularly in former Ottoman-controlled areas, where various folklore abounds, such as vampires, old witches, and even the Wild Hunt.
In fact, centuries ago, people truly believed in these dangerous creatures and carried various religious items for protection.
Each religion developed items to ward off these monsters, and believers wore these religious items for protection.
Interestingly, there was a local phenomenon unlike other areas: many people felt their religious items were ineffective and would borrow items from followers of other religions.
While these tales were widespread locally, only a few were known beyond, possibly only to some visitors who had traveled here.
However, since a Polish game company based a game on these Eastern European legends, these stories have become widely popular.
Contrary to what Liang En and Joan of Arc had imagined, the castle did not look particularly terrifying. Walking from the parking lot to the base of the mountain, the short path of just tens of meters was flanked by simple stalls, with tourists milling about.
Like any cheap tourist spot around the world, the stalls here sold items that one could tell at a glance were likely sourced wholesale from a common market.
After inquiring, Liang En learned that vampire legends were abundant throughout Eastern Europe, yet this castle did not stand out significantly, thus relegating it to just another budget tourist attraction.
Furthermore, the previously mentioned annual visitor count of forty thousand was only a record year, not an average. Based on Liang En's inquiries, the average was about twenty thousand visitors per year.
This explained why the seller had prepaid a full year of property taxes and maintenance fees, clearly as compensation for Liang En.
Fortunately, having anticipated this pitfall, Liang En was not disappointed. After briefly touring the town, the two ascended the foothills and walked over a hundred meters to reach the castle entrance.
In the Middle Ages, the castle had no doors, only a rope ladder thrown down from the south side for entry and exit. The current path, along with the castle gate, was actually constructed only in the 17th century.
However, the design of the castle gate and the road in front of it was indeed thoughtful. To Liang En, the gate seemed as if it had always been there, showing no obvious signs of later additions.
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