Beast in the Woods, Deep in the Night - Chapter 32.1

Chapter 32.1

‘Did he say chimera’s blood can cause pain to mages?’

The words Toma had just said were information she had never encountered, not even in her previous life, which ended in vain, nor in this life, which was the second chance she had been given.

Christine’s heart began to pound, and she thought that Toma might have some information that could help her break her and her mother’s curse.

Unaware of that, Toma blurted out as if it wasn’t a big deal.

“It’s what I heard in the basement of the mansion where I was held as a gladiator slave. It’s been over ten years since I heard it, so I’m not sure if I remember it correctly.”

“Who did you hear it from?”

“There was a chimera grandma who was being held with me. She was the one who took care of me every day until she passed away. She would tell me amazing stories she had heard in the past when I couldn’t sleep sometimes.”

“…”

“I don’t remember the other part, but I remember the part where she said that the blood of a chimera could make a mage suffer. Did she say it was because the blood of chimeras tangles the mage’s mana flow?”

It tangles the mana flow.

Hearing that, Christine couldn’t help but be surprised. The symptoms Toma was talking about were exactly the same as what she had been experiencing.

It was as if her insides twisted and her heart’s mana didn’t circulate properly, causing her dizzying pain. They were symptoms she and her mother had experienced frequently before she came into contact with Edgar.

“What a strange story. Do you remember anything else?”

“I heard it too long ago. When I was a child.”

It seemed that Toma couldn’t remember the context of what the old lady chimera had said. Since he would have been trained and experimented on by the needs of greedy people at a young age, it was understandable that he could not remember the stories he heard while he was half asleep.

‘It would be nice if I could meet the chimera who told Toma about this.’

But she had already passed away, so it was impossible. She could take the opportunity to find out if her descendants were alive, but she had no confidence that she would be able to get any useful information.

Still, thanks to Toma, she was lucky to be able to find a way to investigate her curse.

Christine smiled flawlessly as she gazed at Toma’s new hairstyle in the mirror.

“A hairstyle similar to Edgar’s suits you well. You’ll be handsome too when you grow up.”

“Really?”

Seeing that he became enthusiastic when she mentioned being handsome, it seemed that Edgar’s handsome face also played a part in Toma’s fondness for him. He was a great man who would incur admiration and jealousy no matter who the other person was.

When Toma got up from the chair with a satisfied face, the other children’s eyes gleamed at the sight.

“Who wants to be next?”

“M-me!”

Sonia raised her hand. Christine smiled fuzzily and meticulously combed Sonia’s hair.

“What kind of hairstyle do you want?”

“Hm… I want to have braids.”

“Then, should I braid it and roll it up? It’s clean and elegant, so you’ll look like an adult.”

“Really?”

Christine nodded with confidence.

As the elite of the Golden Horseshoe Guild, she had practiced being able to finish the hairstyles women commonly used for her disguises in a matter of minutes.

“Let’s see…”

She skillfully divided her hair and began to braid it.

As she was doing the little child’s hair, she suddenly remembered the time when she used to play with the other girls in her neighborhood and they did each other’s hair, when her front teeth had fallen out and new ones were growing in.

When her father was still alive and her mother only needed to use Duff’s necklace once every couple of months, she lived in an ordinary private house instead of the guild’s hideout.

‘I wonder how they are all doing. I think a few of them got married and had children.’

She had once investigated out of curiosity. At that time, all the children who she played with and did each other’s hair were living happy lives, either by starting a family or continuing the studies they liked.

When she realized that she was the only one who had to take care of guild requests without a moment to catch her breath after her father passed away, she felt both relieved and saddened.

She was relieved that all the friends she had as a child were happy, but she was saddened that the children had completely forgotten about who she was.

It was also at that moment that she realized once again that unless she could release her curse, she could not love someone or settle down somewhere and live a normal life with her neighbors.

‘But who would have thought that I would end up spending this kind of daily life in the Black Fang Guild’s hideout?’

Christine enjoyed the unexpected peace of hanging out with the chimera children. She didn’t hate the feeling of time, which had always passed quickly, flowing leisurely like the clouds outside the window.