Turning

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Chapter 319

"The place where we store the dissected corpse is here. The Magic Tool Materials Storage."

Kanna led them down to the basement of a vacant building. Yuder realized it was the place where they had once held the assassins who had infiltrated to target Ejain. Even though the culprits had been caught long ago, it seemed that the place had continued to be used for storage.

"I wish you didn't have to cut it. I wanted to see how big it was in its intact form."

"They had no choice but to cut it because it was so large. The mages have to do their research, and they can't go to the forest, right? I was only able to see a portion that the Commander had cut, and it was so large it made my jaw drop."

"Really?"

Upon hearing Kanna's words, Jimmy and the other members who had been lamenting regained their curious expressions immediately.

"Yes. Just don't be too surprised when you go in."

The warehouse was incredibly dark. Unable to see ahead, one of the members who had been included in the second dispatch team lit a small flame to illuminate the surroundings. However, the sight of Pethuamet's huge head, with wide-open eyes right in front of them, made the members scream as if they had seen a ghost.

"I reacted like that the first time too..."

Gakane murmured, laughing aimlessly with Kanna. The severed head of Pethuamet was placed in the center of the warehouse. Behind it, boxes were stacked, containing severed limbs like legs or tails. However, the monster's body didn't rot even after death, so there wasn't a bad smell.

The members realized anew how terrifying the monster in the rumors that Yuder had killed was when they saw Pethuamet's body. Jimmy shivered, noticing that one of the spikes stuck in Pethuamet's tail was larger than his own sword, while Ever stood in front of the giant head, trying to measure its size.

"I've never seen such a big monster before. It's impossible to even pierce its skin with a sword, let alone kill it."

"That's why the Commander had to dissect it himself. It was impossible for others to cut it so cleanly. The head part is going to be sent to the Emperor as a tribute."

"Really? Can't I try cutting the skin too? I'll only try a little bit! Really just a little bit!"

Yuder watched the chattering members from a corner. When he killed Pethuamet, he had never imagined such a mundane future. It felt almost like a lie that the members in front of him were the same ones who had been pained by the endless swarm of monsters in his previous life, their expressions fading day by day.

"Who's making such a noise... huh?"

At that moment, a faint voice was heard from behind. Yuder, who turned his head, blinked his eyes as he encountered the mage Lorna who just popped her head out of a small door stuck to the wall. The surprised expression was mutual.

"...It was you guys. Did you come to see the monster's corpse?"

"Yes. We didn't know you were here, we're sorry if we disturbed you."

"No, not at all."

Lorna subtly shifted her gaze, scrutinizing the members who still hadn't noticed her and were making a fuss. Yuder tilted his head, sensing a fleeting feeling.

"But... what were you doing inside?"

The only reason to come to the warehouse was to find something, but Lorna's hands were empty. He glanced inside to see if there was anything, but couldn't see anything due to the thick darkness.

"Um, well... I was..."

"Oh, someone was here first?"

Just then, one of the members noticed them, and Lorna could no longer hide. Kanna, noticing her, seemed to grasp something and exchanged glances with Gakane before approaching.

"Mage."

"I apologize. Knowing it's due to be discarded tomorrow made me feel regretful, so I wanted to take one last look. I meant no other intent."

Upon seeing Kanna, Lorna immediately raised her hands in an honest plea of innocence. Her words didn't seem to hold any deceit, but the content was still difficult to grasp.

'...Discarded? What are they going to discard?'

Other members wore similarly puzzled expressions. Kanna sighed and opened her mouth, after looking at her companions.

"Everyone, please wait here for a moment. I'm going to have a little discussion inside with the mage."

"Can I listen too?"

When Yuder interjected, Kanna seemed lost in thought for a moment, creasing her brow, then agreed. Gakane, already seemingly aware of what Kanna would say, calmly whispered his intention to guard the door, and courteously closed it after them.

Once the noises from outside were blocked, a heavy silence filled the darkness that engulfed them. Lorna murmured in a worried voice.

"I was really just observing, I didn't do anything else..."

"That's something we'll find out once we read it."

"Are you going to use your ability?"

Lorna seemed to have realized the power of Kanna's abilities in the meantime. Yuder, for the first time, became aware of the fact that Kanna could have such a stern and determined look in her eyes.

"If necessary, I will. Where is 'it'?"

Lorna sighed and moved deeper into the room. As she stopped somewhere and activated a small magic device, light seeped out, illuminating the surroundings. Only then did Yuder see the small cage in front of them.

Inside the cage made of sturdy iron bars was a small monster the size of a palm, hunkered down, nibbling on something. Seeing the spikes that resembled pine cones attached to its long tail, Yuder finally understood why Kanna had acted as she did. It was the Pethuamet, something they thought they'd never see again. For a moment, Yuder felt a chill run down his spine, and was unable to say anything.

"…Kanna, why is this monster... why is it still here?"

"There was something I didn't tell you before."

Kanna opened her mouth with a stern voice.

Her explanation was brief. Several ingredients were needed for the magic to remove traces of the Amplification circle from Yuder's body. Initially, they researched using the tongue Yuder had voluntarily given, but that alone was insufficient. Then, Kishiar decided to use the body and tongue of a massive Pethuamet, and it was during this time that Lorna, who had followed them, found this little Pethuamet.

"It must have been a lucky survivor. Fortunately, it hadn't absorbed any magic or other power yet."

Lorna thought the pure Pethuamet could be the breakthrough they needed for their solution. She risked her life to convince the others not to kill the monster immediately, and under the supervision of Kishiar and the Knights, she was able to prove that she was right.

The monster, having served its purpose, was scheduled to be disposed of the next day.

"I also agree that disposal is the right thing to do. But considering this situation, I wanted to take one last look. After all, the chance to see a monster capable of absorbing and releasing power won't come again...."

Lorna quickly interjected.

"So, did you finish your observations?"

"…I'm more than satisfied with the answers we got from this research. I truly have no intention of being greedy."

Kanna lightly tapped on Lorna's shoulder. Her stern expression didn't soften, but the fact that she didn't utter a word implied that there was some truth to what Lorna had said.

'A monster that absorbs and expels power... Indeed, they said that because of the amplifier created by the Western Mage Union before, the power was only amplified within it, so it should be able to expel it in a normal state.'

Perhaps the answer that Lorna had found was somehow related to that expelling part. Yuder was watching Pethuameth, who was uninterested in what humans were doing and was chewing on a large leaf. As if sensing his gaze, Pethuameth ceased the movement of his jaw.

'But if it absorbs by eating, does it expel... through excretion?'

While he was considering this question he had never been curious about before, the small Pethuameth suddenly dropped the leaf it had been holding in its mouth. It began to howl sharply towards the direction where Yuder was, scraping the bars like a four-legged beast. Even though Yuder showed no reaction, Pethuameth didn’t stop the movement of scratching the bars and wagging its tail. As a result, the conversation between Kanna and Lorna came to a pause.

"…Why is it doing that?”

“I don't know. This is the first time it’s reacted like this.”

“You didn’t do anything to the monster, did you?”

Upon Yuder’s question, Kanna, who was standing beside the flustered mumbling Lorna, lightly touched the bars. It seemed she was attempting to use her power. Before he could tell her not to, as it was dangerous, an odd expression suddenly surfaced on Kanna’s face.

"…Huh?”

In the midst of a tense atmosphere, Kanna turned her head towards the two of them and opened her mouth slowly with an uncertain look.

"I'm not sure if I read it right… but it seems like the monster feels that you, Yuder, are… how should I put it, a similar being.”

"… It thinks I'm a similar being? Are you saying I'm a monster?”

“Of course, Yuder, you're a human. You’re a human, but... I’ll use my power again. Maybe I read it wrong.”

"Don't."

But the result was the same. Despite Yuder and Kanna's dumbfounded reactions, the small Pethuameth continued to scratch the bars and made strange sounds. Lorna, who had been watching this, suddenly raised her head as if she realized something.

"Could it be because of the toxin you absorbed?”

Upon hearing this, Yuder turned his gaze towards Lorna, who started to speak rapidly in an excited tone.

"You were able to recover after absorbing the toxic fluid. I speculated once that you probably won’t be affected by the same monster's venom in the future. We still know little about how monsters recognize individuals of the same kind, but the stain that remained in your body has not fully healed. If that's why..."

It was a shocking conjecture, but it seemed to be the most plausible explanation given the situation. Yuder, looking down at the monster wagging its tail towards him, shook his head.

"…If I won't be affected by the same monster's venom in the future, that's good news.”

From Yuder’s perspective, who considered monsters to be his greatest weakness, it was indeed great news.

'Of course, it's uncertain when I'll encounter Pethuameth again, so it may be a moot point.'

“So before you leave, I wanted to ask if you could test the monster's venom…"

Lorna, who was continuing her sentence, promptly closed her mouth under Kanna's gaze.

So far, he had not felt any major changes except for the slow recovery of power, but as she said, there was a possibility that something might have changed without him knowing.

'What a bizarre turn of events…'

"You guys are here."

While he was lost in thought, someone who had come closer unnoticed, let out a voice from behind.

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