Two young artists, Rupert and Otto, travel to a haunted castle in the Tyrol region, seeking to debunk ghost stories. They stay at a local inn and learn about the infamous Count Albert, who once burned his guests alive in a debauched party before hanging himself in the keep. Undeterred by warnings, they decide to spend the night in the ruined Kropfsberg Keep, which is said to be haunted by Count Albert's ghost. As they prepare for the night, the innkeeper expresses his horror and refuses to assist them, believing they are courting death. The villagers, intrigued and fearful, gather to witness the two men enter the keep. Once inside, they set up their camp, play chess, and wait for midnight, when they expect supernatural occurrences. As the night progresses, they experience an eerie silence, and Rupert begins to feel a sense of dread. At the stroke of two, he sees the ghostly figure of Count Albert hanging from a hook in the ceiling, confirming the legends. The atmosphere shifts as Rupert hears distant music and follows the ghost through a rift in the wall into a corridor filled with faded portraits. Rupert enters a grand hall where he witnesses a grotesque dance of the dead—skeletons and corpses of Albert's victims, trapped in a macabre celebration of their demise. Count Albert commands Rupert to join the dance, but he defiantly refuses. In a moment of desperation, Rupert shoots at the ghost, plunging into darkness. When he regains consciousness, he finds himself back in the keep, alone and terrified. He searches for Otto, who remains unresponsive. In the morning, a search party discovers Rupert kneeling beside Otto's lifeless body, shot in the throat, leaving the mystery of Kropfsberg Keep unresolved and haunting.
By Ralph Adams Cram · First published 1914 · Genre: Gothic Fiction, Horror, Mystery