Chapter 209 Beast Nature, the Soul, and Treatment Methods

The sudden lycanthrope attack had left Mint with only minor injuries.

Yet the morale of the entire Sea Thorn Squad had soared in its wake.

With the sudden appearance of their target, their investigation quest had made massive progress. The upgrade materials for his Snake-Scale Arm Shield were right in front of him, and Xia Nan naturally felt a surge of anticipation.

To Veris and Cash, the mane left behind in the clash not only proved their elusive target was nearby, but also confirmed its identity. This was no cunning beast as they had previously assumed—it was a lycanthrope, transformed from an intelligent creature.

In just one night, the team's entire atmosphere underwent a dramatic shift.

They hid it well, but Xia Nan's sharp perception still caught the quiet change in his two temporary teammates. He noticed it in the Drow half-elf, who had spent half her night watch coating her daggers in poison, and in the subtle shift in Cash's tone when he spoke this morning.

Before this, whether during those beast-clearing commissions or on the road to Green Wheat Village, the pair had acted professionally enough not to slack off. Yet they gave the impression of assembly-line workers, going through the motions with near muscle memory: preparing supplies, setting traps, making camp, fighting enemies as they came, and harvesting materials for loot when the battle ended, over and over again.

There was nothing exactly wrong with that, but they definitely lacked any real drive.

It was as if some far more important matter lay ahead of them, and everything else was just a stepping stone.

But now, even though only a single night had passed since the lycanthrope attack, the two of them showed clear enthusiasm when discussing their follow-up plans this morning.

Cash explained this away by claiming that since they hadn't found anything before, a pure investigation quest just couldn't get his blood pumping.

Now that the lycanthrope had shown up, they actually had a shot at the full reward. A proper E-Rank Quest could finally be completed.

Hence the shift in mindset.

Xia Nan remained noncommittal. He certainly didn't swallow the excuse whole, knowing full well the pair was hiding something.

But to some extent, this was a good thing.

This was only an investigation quest, after all. There was no strict rule demanding they bring back the lycanthrope's head.

Theoretically, even if they turned back right now and handed in the intel they had gathered, the quest would count as finished. It just meant he definitely wouldn't get the materials needed to upgrade his Arm Shield.

In that scenario, if they faced even a slightly dangerous encounter, Cash and the others could easily choose to retreat and avoid the fight. There was no need to risk their lives.

Now things had worked out perfectly. Judging by the attitudes the two had subconsciously revealed, Xia Nan suspected that even if he suddenly quit, his teammates would carry right on with the quest.

Outside the window, the last traces of night melted away beneath the morning light.

Xia Nan packed his bags and did a thorough sweep of the room. Once he was sure he hadn't left anything behind, he pushed the door open and stepped outside.

In front of the wooden cabin, Mint stood quietly waiting, her yew Branch Staff in hand.

She had discarded her tattered, blood-soaked robes, replacing them with a fresh set in the exact same color and style.

It was a plain, unadorned robe without a hint of flashiness.

Xia Nan nodded in greeting and asked casually, "How are your injuries healing up? Are you good to go?"

"They were just minor injuries. A single night was more than enough," Mint replied with a smile.

As she spoke, she raised her left hand and gestured to show that she was fully recovered.

Xia Nan knew that, of course; he was just making conversation.

After all, he had watched with his own eyes last night as an emerald orb of light bloomed in Mint's palm and pressed against her wound.

In just a few minutes, she had healed completely, without even a single scar left behind.

The sheer convenience of magic in this world amazed him.

If he could learn a similar ability in the future, he might even save himself the cost of those Healing Potions that went for 50 gold a bottle.

Turning the thought over in his mind, he noticed that Cash and Veris still hadn't shown up, so he struck up an idle chat with the girl beside him.

"I heard you mention before that you used to visit the Misty Forest quite often years ago?"

"I did say that, but actually—" Mint gave a slight nod. A night of rest had returned a little color to her face, which had been pale from blood loss. "I just followed behind my mentor. I didn't dare do anything myself."

"Your mentor sure is confident, letting you out here on your own to the point where you have to find teammates on the fly," Xia Nan said. His eyes swept over the dilapidated houses on both sides as he asked the seemingly casual question, though it carried a subtle hint of probing.

It really was strange.

To become a magic-oriented Class Holder at such a young age meant she had to have some sort of background, especially with a veteran Class Holder looking after her as a mentor.

Yet here she was, adventuring on her own. Her close-quarters combat ability was concerningly weak, and she hadn't even brought a guard, just casually joining a team she found on the spot.

Based on Xia Nan's observations over the past few days, she knew even less about Cash and Veris than he did.

Whether it was this mentor of hers or the girl herself, they were both far too careless.

Mint replied, "I've acquired my Class Level, after all. I can't hide behind my mentor forever. Going out to temper myself for a few years and meet new people won't do me any harm."

"Right..." Xia Nan felt a bit skeptical, but he didn't show it. He smoothly carried the conversation forward, asking, "So you've lived with your mentor since you were a kid?"

"You could say that." A flicker of hesitation crossed Mint's face, making it clear she didn't want to dig any deeper into the subject.

Catching her drift, Xia Nan knew he had probed enough. He pivoted the topic effortlessly, turning to the girl with a much more serious tone. "Since you have a Druid background, how much do you know about lycanthropy?"

His experiences in Nym City and his battle against the lycanthrope Buck had piqued his interest in this ancient and terrifying curse.

Well, rather than interest, it was more out of concern regarding the beast-transformation effects.

Xia Nan was extremely satisfied with his current body. He had no desire to mysteriously grow a tail or find himself helplessly howling at every full moon.

Because of this, he had immediately begun researching and studying the curse in detail after returning to Rivervale Town.

By now, he had managed to gather a basic, albeit incomplete, understanding of it. He knew there were two general methods for a cure.

The first was to directly cleanse the lycanthropy using a spell like [Remove Curse].

However, [Remove Curse] itself was a 3rd-Circle Spell from the School of Abjuration. It possessed a high barrier to entry, meaning not every Spellcaster had the time or energy to learn it.

Predictably, unless you had some special connection with them, hiring a Spellcaster of that caliber would cost an absolute fortune!

It was certainly not something an ordinary commoner could afford.

The second method was to rely on special items like potions or magic scrolls.

Of course, setting aside the issue of where to even buy them, the price alone was an astronomical figure for normal people.

In summary, if a commoner in this world accidentally contracted lycanthropy, there might truly be no cure available to them.

Though Xia Nan sometimes wondered if the Clerics in territories governed by certain divine Churches might offer some assistance.

When it came to the terrifying curse of lycanthropy, Mint—who claimed to have a Class Holder mentor—undoubtedly knew far more than he did.

"[Remove Curse] works, of course, but it depends on the stage," Mint said. The hem of her robe fluttered lightly in the morning breeze. She kept her head slightly lowered, her short, pale-green hair falling softly against her cheeks.

"If a person has just been wounded and realizes they might be infected, there's a chance to eradicate the curse completely as long as they are treated in time."

"But if it progresses into the later stages and the symptoms grow severe, it becomes much more troublesome."

Her slender, pale fingers rubbed against her staff, the veins faintly visible beneath her fragile skin.

"After all, lycanthropy is a curse, not a disease."

"It is, at its core, a war between humanity and beast nature."

"It doesn't just affect the flesh—"

Mint suddenly lifted her head, staring straight into Xia Nan's eyes.

"And the soul."

The intensity only lasted for a moment before she lowered her head again, burying her eyes in the shadows of her face.

"In the vast majority of cases, lycanthropy cannot be cured through sheer will. No matter how resilient a person's willpower is, they can only suppress the beast nature temporarily. They can never root out its influence."

"Someone infected with lycanthropy might normally be a caring husband, a reliable coworker, or a friendly neighbor. But on nights when the moon shines bright... you don't want to know what they are forced to endure."

"And if their humanity is suppressed, allowing their beast nature to take the upper hand, or if they actively embrace the beast within... they will succumb to its wildness and bloodlust. Their personality will be quietly warped until they become just like a beast."

"Simply put, as long as someone is infected with lycanthropy and doesn't receive immediate treatment, they become an unstable element within a city—a walking bomb ready to explode at any moment."

"This is exactly why so many cities despise and banish lycanthropes as a whole."

"When a pure soul is corrupted by beast nature, it's like ink mixing into clear water."

"At that point, a single 3rd-Circle Spell like [Remove Curse] is no longer enough to solve the problem."

Hearing this, Xia Nan felt even more validated in his long-term plan of keeping a solid savings cushion.

If he ever accidentally fell victim to the curse, whether he bought the relevant potions at the alchemy shop on the Association Second Floor or posted a commission to hire a Spellcaster, it was guaranteed to be a hefty expense.

As he pondered this, he cast a glance at the girl in front of him.

He had only asked offhandedly, never expecting her to actually know so much about it.

He seized the opportunity to dig deeper. "So if those infected with lycanthropy want to live in the city long-term, they have to live carefully and avoid being discovered?"

"It's incredibly hard to hold it back," Mint said, shaking her head. "The influence of the lycanthropy curse isn't something an ordinary person can withstand."

"There are many intelligent creatures in this world infected with lycanthropy. Out in the remote wilderness, there are numerous settlements made up entirely of lycanthropes. It isn't a deep secret; many people know about them."

"Some people will even intentionally infect themselves and embrace their beast nature just to gain a rapid surge in strength."

"There are even descendants born from the union of humans and lycanthropes—'Shifters'."

Spanning a long history from ancient times, boasting massive numbers, and possessing a terrifyingly high transmission rate, the horrific curse of lycanthropy had given birth to far too many things across the continent.

It wasn't something that could be fully explained in just a few words.

To gain a thorough and comprehensive understanding of it, one would probably need to visit a library in a major city or seek out scholars and professors in the relevant fields.

Normally, Xia Nan had no channels to look up this sort of knowledge. The only high-level Class Holder he had ever interacted with, Forgan, had long since left, leaving behind nothing but a Wolf Fang as a token of goodwill.

Even if he wanted to ask someone, he wouldn't know where to start.

Seeing that Mint seemed to know quite a lot, he wanted to take the opportunity to learn more about the Transcendent Tier from her. However, before he could speak, Cash and Veris approached from the other side of the road.

The lycanthrope attack last night had smashed a large chunk of their wooden cabin and caused a massive commotion in the village.

The two of them had gone out at the crack of dawn to find the village chief and handle the fallout, only returning just now.

"Are you all ready?" Cash asked the two of them standing in front of the cabin.

Seeing that neither Xia Nan nor Mint had any objections, he gave a slight nod.

"Then let's move out. It's time to go."

To a certain extent, the appearance of the lycanthrope had disrupted the Sea Thorn Squad's plans.

After all, their original intention had been to find the villagers in Green Wheat Village who had interacted with the attacked Adventurers. They wanted to get a detailed understanding of the situation, and then use that information—along with the rough coordinates provided by the Association—to explore the Misty Forest.

Now that the lycanthrope was already nearby, that second step was completely unnecessary.

The group immediately began searching the surrounding area, using Green Wheat Village as their center point.

They were incredibly meticulous, sweeping outward circle by circle.

Xia Nan hadn't held out much hope for this.

In his view, a lycanthrope capable of attacking Mint and vanishing in an instant without leaving a trace—even fooling veteran Adventurers like Cash and Veris—clearly possessed some form of stealth. It shouldn't have left behind any clues for them to track after it fled.

To his surprise, before the sun even reached its peak, they discovered their first potential trace of the lycanthrope.

It was the mangled corpse of a sheep.

This wasn't the work of a typical plains predator.

Though its limbs and organs were scattered across the ground and its head had been ripped straight from its spine, a closer inspection revealed that none of the sheep's flesh was actually missing.

If pieced back together, it would form a nearly complete body.

This meant its killer hadn't slaughtered it out of hunger or a need to hunt.

It was purely an act of violence, a monster venting its murderous desires on another living creature.

Even more crucially, a ring of footprints encircled the corpse—footprints almost identical to the lycanthrope's tracks from last night. And just like before, they vanished abruptly in a random corner, as if the creature had teleported away.

The group continued to scour the area.

Before long, they discovered a second corpse, and then a third.

And the path they formed pointed squarely at the Sea Thorn Squad's original destination—the Misty Forest!