Chapter 215: Damn... The worst has happened!

I searched through my storage belt and found a silver chain approximately half a meter long.

I attached the chain to the book and then tied it around my waist.

I moved around a few times to test it, and it worked perfectly.

Now, all it took was a thought, and the Scroll would automatically fly into my left hand.

As for the secret of its contents... I wasn’t worried.

After gaining complete control over the book, I had established a constant connection with it.

Even if someone managed to steal it, they wouldn’t be able to access its true contents.

To anyone else, the pages would appear completely blank.

Perhaps this was the greatest benefit of having paid the maximum price to unlock it.

Suddenly, I noticed that Raticati was still working.

I looked at him.

— Are you still searching?

His tiny hand had found something.

He began slowly pulling at it.

— What is it?

I approached him.

Among pieces of dry tree bark, there was a sticky green liquid.

There were also some strange fragments that looked like parts of human internal organs.

My expression became serious.

I carefully picked up the fragments.

They appeared to be remnants of the Mosquito’s true form.

They had probably been left behind during the transformation. Perhaps some unexpected mutation had occurred while she evolved.

But the instant I held those fragments, my mind was flooded with alerts.

[Beep!]

[Unique active lineage gene molecules detected.]

[Data saved.]

[Beep!]

[Unique active lineage gene molecules detected.]

[Data saved.]

[Beep!]

[Unique active lineage gene molecules detected.]

[Data saved.]

[Beep!]

[Beep!]

The messages continued appearing.

For a moment, I thought the Biochip had malfunctioned.

But then I realized that wasn’t the case.

Each alert meant one thing.

The Biochip was finding a new lineage gene.

I continued holding the fragments as the data was recorded.

Twenty-seven new lineage genes identified.

I froze completely.

That made no sense.

The Mosquito was a demon leader trapped in that place.

So where had she obtained so many lineage genes?

Lineage genes were practically priceless treasures among Mages and Mage families.

They weren’t things someone could simply buy on the market.

A small bottle of purified ancestral bloodline would already be enough to put an acolyte on the path of a Bloodline Mage.

And now I had found twenty-seven different genes within the remains of the Mosquito’s true form.

For some reason, I had the feeling that I had unintentionally intruded into a dangerous domain where I should never have set foot.

The more I thought about the twenty-seven lineage genes found in the fragments of the Mosquito’s true form, the more uneasy I became.

It was simply impossible for that creature to have absorbed so many lineage genes relying solely on its own abilities.

Then, there was only one possibility.

The lineage gene fragments had been stored within that Tower of Mages.

When the outlaw Mages abandoned that place, the Human-Faced Blood Rose that had survived for some reason managed to absorb the different lineage genes stored within the tower.

And that was precisely what allowed it to evolve until it reached a level comparable to that of a Mage.

My expression grew increasingly serious.

After all, due to the absurd value of bloodlines and the powerful influence of the families behind them, throughout the entire Mage Continent, any behavior involving the theft of bloodlines was strictly prohibited.

Not only that.

Any research involving this kind of practice was also considered an absolute taboo.

So why had I found so many lineage genes precisely inside a Tower of Mages built by outlaw Mages?

The more I thought about it, the more I felt that there was an enormous secret hidden behind this situation.

My first hypothesis came naturally.

Lucary, that Level 2 outlaw Mage.

Perhaps he had secretly conducted some kind of experiment related to the creation of synthetic bloodlines.

The deeper I delved into my reasoning, the harder it became to breathe calmly.

Could a single Level 2 outlaw Mage really have been capable of conducting bloodline research on such a massive scale?

I didn’t think so.

Bloodline acolytes were extremely valuable resources.

Clans of all sizes desired them.

They received treatment far superior to that given to Elemental Acolytes, Body Refinement Acolytes, and Profound Acolytes.

If more than ten Bloodline Acolytes had been murdered or simply disappeared in the Kar-Dur region...

A massive storm would have erupted long ago.

The families behind them would never have let something like that go unnoticed.

But I had been in that region for some time.

And I had never heard any rumor of that kind.

There were only two possibilities.

Either that Level 2 outlaw Mage had managed to hide everything with terrifying efficiency... Or there was an unknown but extremely powerful clan protecting him from behind the scenes.

But, thinking about it more carefully, even the great families of the Kar-Dur region would have difficulty covering up a matter of this magnitude.

So... If no ordinary family could do it...

My mind reached a conclusion that made me slowly turn my head.

I looked toward the Tower of Mages in the Underground Cave.

The Lumentrix Association.

Only they possessed enough authority and influence to make something like this disappear completely.

If my hypothesis was correct, then there was another, even more disturbing question.

What was the true purpose of the Underground Cave?

At first glance, that place seemed to be nothing more than a conflict zone.

Some outlaw Mages had fled into the Underground World, established their territories, and waged an endless war against the Mages on the surface over rare resources.

It was a perfectly plausible explanation.

But... If I looked at the situation from a higher perspective, it took on an entirely different appearance.

The Underground Cave seemed less like a natural battlefield and more like a deliberately created conflict zone.

For example, what if the higher-level Mages responsible for managing that region actually had a hidden motive?

What if they were taking advantage of the war to secretly conduct forbidden research?

In that case, the very structure of the Underground Cave would provide the best possible cover.

After all, it was a war zone.

Death was an everyday occurrence.

From time to time, acolytes would get into conflicts and end up dead.

People would mourn their deaths.

But they would hardly connect those deaths to secret bloodline research.

If I were the mastermind behind all of this, I wouldn’t even need to take great risks.

All I would have to do was create a few mandatory missions.

Deliberately assign more Bloodline Acolytes to certain missions.

Then, during those missions, small conflicts could be deliberately provoked.

My expression darkened.

How had I not noticed this before?

If my hypothesis was correct, then I was an outsider who had accidentally entered someone else’s experimental field.

And what would happen to me?

They could simply assign me an extremely dangerous mandatory mission, and I would die in the Underground World.

Or the person responsible for all of this could personally deal with the problem.

A Level 2 Mage could kill me in an instant.

Who would stand up against a Level 2 Mage because of the death of a mere acolyte?

Without saying a word, I reached into my waist pouch.

My fingers touched a cold object, and I pulled it out.

It was the insignia representing the Nark family, the one I had received from Mage Pretel.

I stared at it for several seconds.

Then I carefully fastened it to my chest.

It was only at that moment that I realized just how important that small piece of metal could be.

For the first time, I truly understood the tremendous benefit of having the support of a Mage family.

An hour later, I was already near the entrance of the Tower of Mages.

Ruby was sleeping soundly in my arms.

Raticati walked right behind me, carrying a huge bag on his back.

However, just as I was about to enter, a gigantic figure blocked our path.

A magical Golem.

I stopped immediately.

— What...?

We didn’t even have the opportunity to ask why.

The Golem simply escorted us.

We were led directly to a huge secret room on the ninth floor of the Tower of Mages.

My expression became serious.

This was exactly the kind of situation I wanted to avoid.

As soon as I entered the room, I felt a terrifying pressure.

My entire body tensed.

Standing before me was an elderly Mage.

He had deep wrinkles across his forehead and around his eyes, marks that seemed to have been carved by centuries of knowledge, experiences, and spells.

His hair was completely white.

So was his long beard.

Despite his aged appearance, there was something extremely imposing about him.

Something that made my mind instinctively recognize his superior position.

If it weren’t for the powerful magical pressure emanating from his body, I might even have thought that the man was in disguise.

But then I felt his explosive and immensely powerful mana.

It was like looking directly at the sun.

A light so intense that my eyes immediately began to hurt.

I lowered my head.

I slightly bent my back, showing respect.

At the same time, I discreetly released a small amount of elemental energy and used it to protect my eyes.

Only then did the pain lessen somewhat.

In my arms, Ruby shifted uneasily.

She had apparently sensed that threatening presence as well.

Without waking up, she buried her face even deeper into my arms.

Behind me, I heard a noise.

I discreetly glanced to the side.

Raticati had completely fainted, and the floor was covered in shit.

The little Rat had shit himself while fainting in the most embarrassing way possible.

It wasn’t difficult to understand why.

As a demon, Raticati’s danger senses were much more direct and sensitive than those of a human.

Consequently, the pressure he felt should have been far more intense.

...

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