Chapter 35: Hazel’s Decision

Chapter 35: Hazel’s Decision

After listening to Member of Parliament Macht’s answer and combining it with the information he had previously grasped, Klein made a preliminary judgment: the rat at the suburban manor should be the Marauder pathway demigod who had once remained at Hazel’s side. As for why that person had gone mad and why he had bitten Hazel, that was temporarily impossible to know.

He nodded slightly and tapped his chest clockwise four times.

“May the Goddess bless her.”

After saying this, he passed the host and entered the hall, waiting for the evening’s ball to begin.

…

In a bedroom on the third floor, Hazel sat somewhat dispiritedly in an easy chair, her feet curled up beneath her.

Her left hand was wrapped in thick bandages, and almost no blood seeped through them anymore. Her expression was gloomy, without her usual arrogance.

Ever since she had been suddenly bitten by that teacher who had transformed into a rat at the suburban manor, she had remained in a similar state. Her whole person appeared muddled and unfocused, as though what had been bitten was not the web between her thumb and forefinger, but her mind.

To Hazel, although her arrogance had been fostered by the education she received from childhood, by a learning talent surpassing that of ordinary people, by her rather outstanding looks, by a family that belonged to high society, and by thoughts more mature than those of many of her peers, before she came into contact with supernatural powers, that mentality had actually still fallen within the normal range. It had not made her feel that she was completely different from everyone else, or that she was fundamentally superior to ordinary people.

Therefore, when the teacher who maintained her pride, represented her fortuitous encounter, and symbolized the source of her strength suddenly became like a real rat—not only speaking with unclear pronunciation, but even biting her without reason—the blow to her was extremely heavy. She could not help wondering whether supernatural power represented transcendence over mortals, or proximity to monsters.

As all kinds of thoughts surged within her, Hazel unconsciously tucked a strand of dark-green hair behind her ear, feeling increasingly irritated by the melodious music coming from downstairs.

Just then, she heard the creak of a door opening and sluggishly turned her head to look over.

The one entering was a gray rat with smooth, glossy fur. Its eyes were darker than those of its kind, nearly dark red.

“Hazel,” the rat said in a deep voice.

Hazel first froze, then immediately became delighted. She hurriedly stood, blurting out,

“Teacher, have—you recovered?”

The moment she finished speaking, she suddenly saw gray rats crawl out from the corners of the bedroom, from the balcony entrance, and from beneath the bed. All of them had dark-red eyes, but they could only make squeaking sounds.

Frightened, Hazel took a step back. She stumbled against the edge of the easy chair, her body swaying, nearly falling before she finally managed to regain her balance.

At that moment, she discovered that all the red-eyed rats had vanished. The door was tightly shut as well and had never been opened.

Everything just now seemed to have been only an illusion, or perhaps a nightmare born from the worries in her heart!

After a period of silence, Hazel pursed her lips and exhaled as though sighing.

She sat back down and raised a hand to pinch the two sides of her forehead.

As she continued pressing, her brows gradually furrowed. She felt that the state she had been in just now had been far too dazed, too unreal.

Her dark-brown eyes shifted slightly. Hazel pulled out the necklace around her neck and held it in her palm.

The necklace’s main body consisted of seven translucent emerald-green stones. Around them were rings of tiny diamonds, and the distance between each stone was perfectly identical.

At that moment, one of the stones slowly lit up, emitting emerald-green light. It reflected against Hazel’s face, making it appear unusually moist and lustrous, while one mysterious symbol after another surfaced within her eyes.

Every scene from earlier reappeared in this dark-green-haired young lady’s mind. From a blurry, dreamlike state, they gradually became clear one after another.

As Hazel examined scene after scene, she noticed a few clues and confirmed that what had happened just now had not been a dream, nor a brief hallucination produced in a daze. Instead, she had fallen into an illusion lasting nearly ten seconds.

A Cryptologist!

“This…” Hazel’s dark-brown eyes suddenly widened, and a word filled with fear unconsciously escaped her lips.

She sprang to her feet and hastily looked left and right, but she found nothing.

Yet the more this was the case, the more terrified she became, because she had no idea what she would encounter next, nor what the person who had created the illusion truly wanted to do.

The only thing she could be certain of was that, in terms of the supernatural domain, the other party’s level and power far surpassed hers!

That shattered what little pride still remained in her heart.

Several minutes passed, yet the entire bedroom remained silent. Downstairs, the melody was light and lively, allowing one to instinctively picture nimble dance steps.

Hazel finally recovered somewhat, feeling that nothing else would probably happen afterward.

Only then did she have the spare energy and state of mind to think about why the person hidden in the dark had created that illusion.

As many thoughts rose and fell, Hazel suddenly had a guess:

That person had come for her teacher!

Through the illusion, he had confirmed her teacher’s current state from her!

Is he Teacher’s friend or enemy? He must already be going to find Teacher now. What should I do? He probably doesn’t know where Teacher is hiding yet… No, everyone nearby knows I was bitten by a crazed rat at the suburban manor… Hazel’s heart descended into chaos. Her hand tightened more and more around the necklace.

She could not determine whether that person from just now was good or evil, nor did she know what she should do.

She wanted to go to the suburban manor and tell her teacher about this, but she also feared encountering danger and becoming a sacrifice.

Moreover, her teacher seemed to have already lost most of his ability to communicate. Even if he received a warning, he might not be able to understand its specific meaning.

Without realizing it, Hazel stood and paced back and forth through the bedroom. Finally, she made up her mind. Pursing her lips tightly, she walked to the door and said to the personal maid outside,

“I’m rather tired. I’m going to sleep now. Don’t let anyone disturb me.”

“Yes, Miss,” the maid immediately replied.

After closing the door, Hazel began changing into clothes convenient for movement. Her expression was extremely solemn, and her teeth lightly bit her lip.

In the end, she still decided to go to the suburban manor and warn her teacher.

She did not want to become someone who looked arrogant but was in truth timid—someone who lost all principles the moment she encountered danger.

That would make her look down on herself!

When Hazel took advantage of the bodyguards focusing on the guests at the ball and entered the garden from the balcony’s water pipe, leaving 39 Böklund Street, Klein was holding a glass of slightly sweet sparkling wine with ice and discussing business matters in the Southern Continent with several gentlemen.

He tilted his head by a very small degree and glanced toward the garden. Relying on his intuitive premonition, he had already discovered Hazel’s actions.

…Although she isn’t a girl with a particularly likable personality, she still has something resembling a conscience… Klein nodded almost imperceptibly and inwardly offered a word of praise.

He was not worried at all about Hazel’s actions, because from Böklund Street in the North Borough to the Macht family’s manor in the northwest suburbs of Backlund, even by carriage, it would take three to five hours. Before then, he would be able to find an excuse to leave the ball, teleport over directly, and confirm the situation.

The Macht family’s manor was indeed in the northwest suburbs, but it was on the other side of the Tussock River. To reach it, one had to first detour to a place with a bridge. During the day, one could first use the steam subway to travel beneath the river to the southern part of the bridge district, but at night, only one of the three long bridges could be considered. Spending five hours in total was unavoidable.

Of course, because Klein had once used the Tinder glove and had read the files of 2-105, the Blood Vessel Thief, he possessed a certain understanding of the Marauder pathway’s abilities. Therefore, he suspected that Hazel, who had higher-level items, might be able to “steal” a bird’s ability to fly and use that brief duration to cross the river directly through the air. In that case, perhaps she would need only three hours to reach her destination.

But no matter what, I’ll still be faster than her… Klein withdrew his gaze and began considering who he should invite as his next dance partner.

…

Ten at night. Elk Manor, located in the northwest suburbs of Backlund.

This place had originally belonged to a viscount and had a history stretching back over a hundred years. After Member of Parliament Macht married, he purchased it and spent a sum each year on major repairs so that he could invite friends to spend weekends here in autumn and winter.

At this moment, the manor steward was arranging for male servants and maids to inspect every area and tightly close all doors and windows. This was something they did before sleeping every day.

After several maids came out of the wine cellar together, they headed straight for the kitchen area to confirm that every flame that should be extinguished had been put out.

They had only just arrived when they heard a squeaking sound. Focusing their eyes, they discovered a grayish-white rat gnawing at the leg of the long table.

The rat seemed to sense their stares. It did not flee. Instead, it turned its head and watched them with slightly reddened eyes.

At the same time, more squeaks rang out. From the rafters, beside the storage cabinets, among all kinds of miscellaneous objects, and near the stove where hot water was boiling, one red-eyed rat after another crawled out.

The maids were so frightened that they nearly screamed.

As members of society’s lower class, they were not unfamiliar with rats and had even beaten some to death before. But this was the first time they had encountered so many at once. Their minds were violently shaken.

“We—we should go find Ged and the others to handle this,” one maid suggested in great fear as she retreated from the kitchen.

Another maid nodded repeatedly.

“Miss Hazel was bitten by a mad rat before… These don’t look normal either!”

As they spoke, they retreated farther and farther away, ultimately leaving the kitchen behind.

At that moment, on the kitchen’s long table, a figure rapidly outlined itself. He wore a white shirt, a black waistcoat, dark formalwear, a half-height silk top hat, and a pair of shining leather boots.

Pressing down on his hat, this figure slowly raised his head and swept his gaze around, revealing black hair, brown eyes, a thin face, and sharply defined features. It was clearly Gehrman Sparrow.

After leaving the ball early, Klein had returned to Dwayne Dantès’s mansion, entered the bedroom, and teleported directly over with Winner Enuni.

Of course, he had left the latter outside the manor so that he could swap positions at any time.

One rat after another entered his sight. Klein tugged at the human-skin glove on his left palm and turned his gaze toward the part of the manor where flowers were planted.

Almost at the same instant, all the rats inside the kitchen trembled in unison. Their movements became sluggish, but it did not take long before they returned to normal.

They had already become the marionettes of a Bizarro Sorcerer.

And Klein’s current limit for controlling marionettes was fifty. Once he finished digesting the potion, that number would increase!