Chapter 41

A sacred silence enveloped the laboratory.

The swirling shadows had faded, leaving only the faint scent of blood lingering in the air.

The fierce battle had finally come to an end.

---

"......"

In my arms lay a girl with azure hair.

Perhaps it was from relief, or perhaps she had simply reached her limit. The girl, beautiful like a flower blossoming in snow, had lost consciousness.

Her faint breaths brushed softly against my collar.

"It seems you were quite exhausted."

Her eyelids were delicately closed.

I gently lowered her to the floor, careful not to wake her.

Beside her, a girl with pink hair lay unconscious as well.

Both of them were covered in dust, but fortunately, neither appeared to be injured.

This was at least a small comfort.

---

"I may have taken some precautions, but... it was hard not to worry."

A bitter smile crept onto my face.

Though I knew they wouldn't be harmed thanks to certain safeguards, I couldn't help but feel anxious.

That lingering unease—perhaps it’s just something adults are cursed with.

"Maybe it was all needless worry."

The girls had done far better than expected.

Even in such a terrifying situation, not one of them acted selfishly.

Feeling proud, I gently patted each of their foreheads.

"Well done. Both of you."

The pilot and the vainglorious one—each had played her role to the best of her ability.

More challenges lay ahead, but for now, they needed rest.

I draped a shadow over them like a blanket.

"May you have pleasant dreams."

---

*Snap!*

I snapped my fingers.

In an instant, a small barrier formed around them, twisting the space around to keep them safe.

Not even the headmaster of Galimar would be able to penetrate it.

---

"I may have said it was over... but I still have personal matters to handle."

I dusted the darkness off my fingertips.

Since arriving in this lab, quite a bit of time had passed. Soon, the academy would locate our position.

I had about thirty minutes left.

Was it enough?

With the upcoming episodes in mind, I needed to build up enough here.

Lost in thought, I turned my gaze.

---

<Aaaah... Aaahhhh>

A grotesque figure writhed within my view.

Despite being split in half, unable to even move a single tentacle, it clung to life with a stubborn vitality.

It seemed that soon enough, it would finally stop breathing.

---

<Aah, aaahhh...>

A moan seeped through its gaping mouth.

Its red eye flickered one last time, almost appearing... sorrowful?

I met its gaze in silence.

Dark, rotting blood streamed down its face like tears.

---

"......"

The monster couldn’t smile.

It was the worst experiment Baob had ever created—a chimera of disaster that had claimed countless lives.

---

"Poor thing."

It, too, was only one of many victims.

Through experiments it had never chosen, it had mutated, lost its mind, and become a creature driven by bloodlust.

How could I not feel pity for such a wretched being?

"This is the ugliness that adults have sown."

While most of today’s chimeras had been crafted from beasts, this one was different.

It was the only one made from a human.

The ragged, skin-covered form...

She had likely once been a young girl who smiled purely.

She hadn't even reached ten years of age before becoming a monster.

Not a single adult could truly blame her if she never had a chance to experience childhood.

All anyone could do was pity the tragic remains of a life wasted.

---

‘A promise is a promise.’

Quietly, I extended my hand.

A shadow crawled up from the floor, consuming her broken body.

The monster resisted briefly.

Then, with a sigh of resignation, she sank into the darkness.

I placed her in a pocket dimension.

There, no one would see her, and she could rest in quiet peace.

Whenever I wished, I could retrieve her.

---

"...Hm."

Though a pang of unpleasantness lingered, I swallowed it.

A bitter smile tugged at my lips.

Time was running out.

Now it was time to conclude the episode.

---

---

The boy smiled calmly, his narrow eyes gleaming.

Though his smile seemed harmless, alarms blared in the man’s mind.

If he didn’t move now,

There would be no escaping death.

Instinctively, he tried to channel mana into his fingers, conjuring an attack.

---

"Interesting attempt."

*Snap!*

A sharp snap of the boy’s fingers dispelled the magic instantly.

Every muscle in his body froze.

As though he had been paralyzed by poison.

He couldn’t even blink.

---

"I have many questions for you."

The serpent smiled sweetly.

But the air around them brimmed with murderous intent.

---

"You’ll answer every single one."

The boy’s hand covered the man’s face.

A chilling touch shattered his sanity, wrapping him in a deep terror.

The serpent murmured,

"No need to trouble yourself with speaking."

Those glowing white pupils bore down on him.

With eyes fully open, the boy gazed, an unexplainable dread crushing the man.

The gaze was like Death itself.

---

"I’ll simply listen directly from your brain."

"Aaaah..."

*Snap!*

The snap of his fingers once again shattered the silence.

The shadows covering the man’s face exploded in a final burst.

---

"Sleep soundly in your nightmare."

The last image the man saw as his consciousness faded was a pair of contemptuous white eyes.

---

Some time later,

In the now quiet basement, several people burst in.

It was a group of professors from Galimar.

---

"Find the students immediately!"

After a two-hour delay caused by the mana interference, the professors had finally tracked the teleport’s destination and quickly mobilized.

They walked hurriedly down the corridor.

The professors soon found two students lying on the laboratory floor.

A girl with

pink hair, and another with blue.

---

"Students located here!"

"Regia Pyloratz and Emilia Beniti—two of the three missing students."

"And the third?"

"Search the surroundings!"

"But... what exactly is all this lying around?"

"...Beast corpses?"

---

The professors looked around the laboratory in shock.

The chaotic scene left them speechless.

Two unconscious students, surrounded by strange chunks of flesh.

Wolves, spiders, tentacles... creatures fused together, all in pieces.

The professors were at a loss for words.

---

"What... is all of this?"

"......"

"What on earth happened here...?"

Lost in thought, they heard footsteps approaching.

They held their breath, bracing themselves.

A voice suddenly whispered in their ears.

---

"Oh dear... seems you're all a step too late."

Their gaze was drawn to the figure emerging from the shadows—a golden serpent with a sinister smile.

"You’re already too late."

---

A sentence, heavy with meaning.

It was the last student they’d been searching for, yet an uneasy feeling prevented them from relaxing.

An ominous sense of foreboding tightened around their throats.

---

"......"

The professors swallowed hard, their bodies tensed without even realizing.

The boy continued to approach them calmly, ignoring their apprehension.

---

"Hmm~ No need to be on edge."

"......"

"The situation concluded a long time ago."

With the pungent scent of blood in the air, the serpent flicked his tongue in delight.

"Please, rest assured."

A greeting that chilled the basement even further.