Beast in the Woods, Deep in the Night - Chapter 39.2

Chapter 39.2

Another week passed like that.

Finally, the bag of jewels Christine had collected became as heavy as the jewel on Duff’s necklace. She closed her eyes and brought the bag closer to her chest.

A somewhat cold yet heavy power calmed the stuffy feeling in her heart. It was the same reaction as when Duff took the necklace out of the safe and gave it to her.

‘With this, Mother and I will be able to relieve the pain without Duff’s necklace.’

That meant… She could take a chance and leave Duff and the worthless Golden Horseshoe Guild.

If she didn’t have to give him a large sum of money to borrow the necklace…

Without realizing it, Christine imagined a dream-like future.

First, she could take her mother to a place where Duff couldn’t reach them, and then buy a small house. If she used the emergency money she had been saving up inside her pillowcase, it seemed like it wouldn’t be difficult to find a room to rent.

And it was clear that if she worked hard while her mother rested at home, they would be able to live more comfortably than before. Objectively, her abilities were quite excellent.

If that was the case, at least she didn’t have to live her life struggling to give money to Duff.

However… it took her a while to realize that if she couldn’t break the curse fundamentally, no matter how many chimera’s tears she used, she would one day die a sudden death.

‘Is what Toma said the only new information about the curse that I’ve learned?’

“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?”

Toma said that the old chimera lady who told him that had already passed away. She knew she couldn’t ask questions to a dead person.

However, those who had been connected to the old lady while she was still alive might know something. So, before leaving the Black Fang Guild, she wanted to get information about the old lady’s acquaintances.

‘Melkin said before that in the archives of the main building of the guild, there is a book containing personal information of the chimeras.’

And the room she had trespassed the other day with Ein was none other than the archive room. He said that there was a kind of genealogy book there that recorded in detail which chimera was found where, and what their blood relations and acquaintances were.

But it would be dangerous to enter the same place again in just a few weeks. She had no excuse to go there, so if she got caught this time, there would be no justification.

“…”

Nevertheless, Christine wanted to hold on to that glimmer of hope that might free her from the curse.

Even if she had to go beyond her limits, as long as it meant she could be happy.

***

Just as she was deciding what to do before leaving the Black Fang Guild, Edgar was receiving a report from Isaac.

“Edgar. From what I was able to track down, it seems like the Blue Hammer Guild got their hands on Noah by land. It seems that there are people experimenting by breeding chimeras outside of the Grand Duke’s territory.”

“Without any fear…”

Edgar skimmed over Isaac’s report. He wondered where the Blue Hammer Guild had gotten the young chimera from, but there seemed to be another laboratory that had never been identified.

He suddenly remembered the moment when Karl and his mother were dying in the iron cage and frowned.

“If it’s a research laboratory founded by my father, there’s no way I wouldn’t know about it.”

“I think so too. We destroyed all the chimera laboratories that the late Grand Duke had put his hands on. The laboratory where Noah was born must have existed for decades, maybe even centuries.”

“Is it a laboratory set up in my grandfather or great-grandfather’s generation?”

“For now, it makes sense to think so. Chimera research has happened in every generation.”

Edgar stared at the report silently. He knew that Richard was proud of his bloodline in relation to the chimeras, but when he heard that there were victims outside of the duchy’s territory, he was exhausted from his obsession with power.

Even if he didn’t have to interact with other territories or the capital due to the closed policy, he already had a headache for a while trying to search through the vast territory of the duchy; but now he had to search even outside.

“Keep investigating for now.”

“Understood. And…”

Isaac hesitated for a moment and looked at Edgar.

It wasn’t until Edgar, feeling frustrated, gestured at him to speak quickly that Isaac’s tightly shut mouth finally opened.

“While recently investigating the Golden Horseshoe Guild, I found out why Christine can’t escape it.”