NOVEL NEXT Chapter 197: Demon in the Bottle – End
Maya, who descended from the observatory first, took a carriage back to her lodging.
Her mind was in disarray, mixed with various emotions.
At first, anger at the disappointment was the strongest.
But as time passed, all that remained was remorse towards the Director.
The Director had never harboured any ill will towards her.
He had simply fulfilled his role as a mentor as usual.
He worried when she was in distress, taught her when she struggled.
Yet she had become annoyed with him, misinterpreted things, got upset arbitrarily.
It was childish behavior.
Although it was a misunderstanding, she had done something she shouldn’t have to someone who had sincerely explained things to her out of concern.
But apart from those feelings, the Director’s insight was truly astonishing.
To solve a puzzle that no one had been able to solve for the past 100 years so easily.
Maya created five differently coloured glass beads in the air as a illusion.
Oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, phosphorus.
The elements combined to form a single unit, repeating and forming a double helix.
And the two of them twisted around each other again.
When did the Director find out about this?
They had been in this city for over a month.
It could have been probably be noticed by passing by.
But Maya was more drawn to a different hypothesis.
The Director had known about this from the beginning.
Judging from his attitude during the explanation, it seemed like he already knew the answer when she started trying to solve the problem.
Perhaps he had been here before and solved it then.
But then another question remained.
Why didn’t the Director reveal what he had discovered to the world?
There were many aspects of his adherence to secrecy that she couldn’t understand.
If he didn’t like attention from people in the first place, it didn’t make sense for him to lead a circus troupe and stand on stage.
Was there a reason he knew that she didn’t?
As she pondered over this, the carriage had arrived at the lodging.
“Oh my, Maya dear, did you come alone? And what about the Director?”
Yurakne, who had rushed out upon hearing the carriage, looked around anxiously.
“He had something to attend to, he’ll come later.”
Wonderstein said he’d be examining Clara this afternoon.
Maya intended to follow suit.
She had heard rumors that there had been some deep interaction between them after she had fainted off in front of Wonderstein last time.
But she had decided not to believe such rumors anymore.
Misunderstandings were now tiresome.
Perhaps the Director’s pure kindness had been distorted and misinterpreted.
Neither Ella nor Reyna nor she herself could tempt him.
The Director didn’t see a girl ten years younger than himself as a woman.
Even if it was a difference of nine or eight years, it didn’t make a difference.
“Oh, a package has arrived. It’s placed in front of Maya’s room.”
After experiencing the incident in Dvallchep, she contacted the Academy’s guidance professor.
She requested the latest research materials on Debulroots.
It seemed like they had arrived.
She tossed the professor’s greeting letter into a corner and began to read through the materials.
The amount of data was vast.
Two things caught Maya’s attention.
One was the connection between the “Black Magician” and the Curse Plague.
This was a study released by the Orthodox Church about a month ago, suggesting a similarity in patterns between the activities of the Black Magician and the outbreak of the Curse Plague.
The Black Magician.
Maya’s hand clenched around the paper.
It was the first time she had been separated from someone she loved.
Ordinary people might have thought that Maya wouldn’t remember what happened when she was a few months old.
But her memory was almost perfect from two months after birth.
She could vividly recall the happiness and joy of her infancy.
And the despair she felt when she heard that her mother was no longer there.
It was the first sense of loss Maya had experienced.
She could never have good feelings about the Black Magician.
Maya continued to read the last piece of data.
It was the image of Debulroots captured through the latest observation equipment by IMT.
Even with the latest optical microscope, Debulroots could barely be seen wriggling as a cluster.
It seemed that the engineers at IMT had found a way to capture it.
On the back was a sketch drawn by the researcher who had observed it.
Maya shivered when she saw it.
The drawing skills were pathetic.
To Maya, who was at the level of a professional painter, it looked like nothing more than a doodle.
But the content was incredibly astonishing.
What they had observed in Debulroots.
It was two double helixes twining around each other like snakes.
***
I was in the visiting room in front of the dormitory, organizing the results of this time while waiting for Clara.
What I gained from defeating the Avatar was two things.
[You have completed the ‘Sub-Quest Disease Demon.’ As a reward, the ‘Professor’s Flask’ is provided.]
I slowly retrieved a transparent glass bottle spinning around in the status window with my hand.
Name: Professor’s Flask
Target: Blood filled in the flask.
Effect: The creature which drinks from the flask can be trapped and freely put in or out. The contract maintenance period is 30 days. Renewable.
Required resources: None.
The reward was similar to that of the ‘Ghost of the Cabaret.’
It was an item that could use the power of an ally.
This time, it seemed like a reward was her ability because she could secretly collect creatures like demons or monsters.
It was a perfect item to give to Ella.
I tossed it into my hat and pulled out another loot from my pocket.
It was a glass bottle slightly smaller than a fist.
Inside, it was filled with sparkling sand-like fragments.
I knew what this was.
It was a Shard of Tril.
In TT3, Wonderstein’s colleagues, the ‘Three Witches,’ used this to perform biomanipulation.
Back then, I thought it had power because it contained Wonderstein’s soul.
But considering that Tril had to be eaten to manipulate the ‘unique traits,’ I hadn’t thought that this gem itself might have had a connection to Debulroots.
I opened the third main quest window.
*Main Quest – Tril
: It’s what you wanted to get your hands on.
Condition for completion
: Consume it after Tril turns completely red.
Reward upon success
: Ability to manipulate ‘Unique Trait’ without ‘Modification Penalty’
No penalty upon failure
: None.
To manipulate ‘unique traits,’ Tril had to be ‘eaten.’
What would happen if I tried it now?
It wasn’t a complete Tril, and it wasn’t completely red.
Would it have any effect at all?
Or perhaps, would it unlock some abilities?
I opened the lid of the bottle and brought it to my lips.
My heart pounded.
The Smiling Man which always maintained his composure reacted strongly only to ‘Tril.’
Just as I was about to put it in my mouth.
The door opened, and someone entered.
It was Clara.
She looked at me, observing my actions closely.
I hoped she wouldn’t mistake me for a drug addict.
I put the bottle back into my pocket and casually spoke.
“Hehe, I’ve been taking medicine because I haven’t been feeling well.”
“…I see.”
I glanced briefly at the bag she had brought.
“Are you leaving?”
“Yes. I’m taking a leave of absence.”
Many of the students who woke up after yesterday’s incident applied for leave.
The influence of the curse of the Avatar had a strong effect on their minds.
Some even decided to quit being acrobats.
“Come here. Let’s start the treatment.”
She undressed in front of me.
She didn’t seem embarrassed.
After all, it was strange to care about such things when she was about to die in a few days.
Her skin was cracked like a dry rice paddy during a drought.
Through the cracks, I could see blood pooling, shining like a red gem.
Some areas turned into dry flakes, revealing a rosy flesh beneath.
The Evolution Research lab explained that it was a phenomenon that occurred when a crack between the soul and the flesh occurred.
It seemed to be a very rare disease.
I examined every inch of her body and restored it with Debulroots.
As the treatment neared completion, she spoke first.
“May I ask what the Director’s purpose is? Why does he insist on running a circus troupe?”
It was a tiresome question.
It was a question of why I was running the circus having such power.
I shrugged my shoulders and answered.
“It won’t be any different from what you already know.”
With that said, I added one more thing.
“Wonder Stage.”
Her back muscles trembled.
Meanwhile, the treatment was over.
I turned around and waited for her to change her clothes.
But suddenly, she hugged me from behind.
“Clara?”
“Can you accept me?”
She spoke with a soft voice.
It was one of the offers I had expected.
To heal her body, treatment had to be done every two weeks.
It would be more convenient to travel together instead of finding the city where we stayed each time.
I also thought that her joining would be a great help, considering she was once the top candidate of Lekachep.
However, I didn’t feel good about using her as a bargaining chip for her treatment.
“Give me a chance to repay your kindness.”
“I didn’t help you expecting something in return. Besides, people who were part of the Six Theatres at the start of the competition would be prohibited from participating throughout the competition.”
Clara buried her face in my back and nodded.
“The limitation applies to those who ‘perform on stage.’ It doesn’t matter if I don’t perform on stage.”
“Then what will you do?”
“I’ll work as the Director’s secretary. I’ll do anything, whether it’s errands or anything else. I’ll definitely be of help to the Director.”
I sighed softly.
I didn’t know what extreme choice she might make if I refused.
“Alright. Do you have any desired compensation other than treatment?”
“No. I don’t have such things. But there’s just one thing I’m curious about. It’s about me. …Why was I born?”
It seemed like she was questioning her existence.
It was a complicated issue.
She was a child who was desperate enough to contemplate suicide due to despair in life.
It wasn’t strange for her to ask such questions.
All I could say to her was to live for now.
“You might find the answer as we travel together.”
“Really? …Okay.”
She seemed to have hoped for a clearer answer, but she nodded as if she didn’t care much.
“Alright. Welcome, Clara.”
[‘Clara’ has been added to the member list.]
“But for now, could you please put on some clothes?”
Only then did she remember that this was the first floor of the dormitory, and she quickly picked up her clothes and put them on.
Clara glanced at her Master while riding the carriage together.
She had guessed one of the Master’s purposes.
It was based on the rumors and information she had collected.
To steal the artifact of Kirku, ‘Tril.’
And her guess was correct.
She didn’t know what the purpose was, but the Master wanted Tril.
Seeing him trying to eat the Tril fragment as medicine, could it be that he also had some kind of problem with his body like her?
She wanted to ask in detail but decided against it.
She didn’t want to make her master uncomfortable by asking questions he didn’t want to answer.
The important thing was the master’s goal.
He was undoubtedly trying to do the same thing as 17 years ago.
Turning the whole world into an enemy.
However, Clara wasn’t afraid.
A spark of ambition ignited in her heart once again.
It was the dream she had when she was ill.
To spread her wings on the world stage.
The day her master stood at the top of the highest city in the world.
She would be by his side.
As his most trusted subordinate.
As the person he relied on the most.
She realized this when she came out of the illness.
She preferred to move passively rather than take control of something.
A position of someone being in charge of her instead of standing above others.
That was her new goal.
She vowed to be of help to her Master.
The demon who came out of the bottle made a vow.
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Chapter 196: Demon in the Bottle – 35