Chapter 88 : Chapter 88

Chapter 88. Discovery

When Calf regained consciousness, the first thing he smelled was the foul stench of rotting corpses. His brows furrowed, and he instinctively tried to raise his hand to cover his nose.

But when he attempted to move, he realized his entire body was weak. Even lifting a single hand was extremely difficult.

He tried to tilt his head instead to shorten the distance his arm would need to move.

However, the moment he moved his head, a sharp pain erupted from the back of his neck. He groaned in agony and was forced to abandon the attempt, leaving his head exactly where it was.

“Awake?”

A gentle female voice sounded.

The pain from earlier had at least triggered his body to muster some strength. Calf suddenly opened his eyes and saw a woman slightly bent over, observing him.

Although he had only just woken up, his perception quickly returned. He sensed the vast magical power emanating from her, as well as the badge of the Modification School pinned to her chest.

“You… who are you?” he asked weakly.

The woman replied calmly.

“I am Lucy Rolz, the person in charge of the Modification School in Graysoil Province… I imagine you would rather not meet me.”

Enduring the pain, Calf forced himself upright and sat on the ground. He took several deep breaths, only to choke on the foul stench in the air and cough violently.

“The person who attacked me was… from the Modification School. How do you plan to explain that one of your school’s members assaulted an investigator who was carrying out his duties?”

“Oh?”

Lucy only knew that he had been attacked by a formal mage. In the chaos, those apprentices had no idea what spell the attacker had used. All they heard was Calf saying “formal mage” before he collapsed.

Since Calf himself was also a formal mage, it was natural to assume that only another formal mage could defeat him. Lucy therefore knew the attacker was a formal mage, but she had no idea which school he belonged to.

“Explain in detail,” she said. “Why do you believe the attacker belonged to the Modification School?”

Calf endured the pain and forced out a smile.

“Because he used the Modification School’s spell 【Disorder Touch】. With overwhelming mental power, he knocked me down… Of course, the reason he could defeat me so easily was also because he possessed a specialization in Modification School spells…”

“And… I suspect he even installed some kind of mental-power enhancement in his own brain. That is why his mental strength was so high. He could even split his attention to control Telekinetic Hand and restrain the evil spirit I had cultivated for three years.”

Lucy folded one arm across her chest while supporting the other arm with it. She raised her index finger as she spoke.

“In that case, it does sound like a mage extremely proficient in the spells of the Modification School…”

Calf felt he had rested enough. Supporting his neck with one hand, he slowly stood up.

Once upright, he sneered.

“So, Miss Lucy, as the person in charge, can you explain why someone from your school attacked me, an investigator?”

“If I report this matter, it could easily be interpreted as the Modification School deliberately obstructing an investigator in the execution of his duties.”

Lucy, however, let out a cold laugh. Her previously gentle voice turned icy.

“Who said that person belonged to the Modification School?”

“That is meaningless. He used the Modification School’s spells and specialization…”

“First of all,” Lucy interrupted, “I do not recall any First-Tier Mage in the City of Apprentices with such powerful mental strength.”

“Furthermore, we usually prefer using spell abilities granted by monster organs. Who among us would bother using ordinary spells to attack you?”

“But what if that person was trying to conceal his Extraordinary Organ? Perhaps he deliberately used only spells when attacking me… After all, the simplest way to identify someone from your Modification School is to look for the Extraordinary Organ installed in their body.”

Lucy did not even frown at the accusation. She replied swiftly.

“I already told you. I do not acknowledge that person as a member of the Modification School.”

“You—”

Lucy cut him off again before he could continue. She pointed at one of the enforcement officers nearby.

“I think you should stop dwelling on that matter for the moment and take a look at the records your enforcement officers made.”

Calf frowned, confused as to why Lucy had brought up the enforcement records.

After hesitating briefly, he took the notebook from the officer beside him and examined the section marked with a special symbol.

At that moment, Lucy spoke.

“Name: Rod. Wearing a black robe that concealed his identity. Upon questioning, his face was revealed to be covered with scars, which he claimed were caused by an experimental accident. He claimed to be a member of the Modification School but did not have his badge.”

“Remain within the crowd until the inspection is completed before being allowed to leave.”

“That is what the record says, correct? And this person is the one who attacked you.”

Lucy looked at him and continued calmly.

“Now let me ask you something. If someone claimed to belong to your Necromancy School but could not even produce a badge, would you believe he was truly from your school?”

“You…”

Calf realized that he could no longer use this incident to cause trouble for the Modification School. Lucy had already seen the contents of the notebook.

The Alliance was an administrative organization extremely skilled at smoothing over disputes. Without absolute evidence, it would never make a decisive ruling.

He knew that with this record alone, unless new developments emerged, the attack against him would never be attributed to the Modification School.

After all, if the Alliance’s own official records were not accepted as evidence, then what evidence could possibly be used?

He could already imagine the scene in court. The moment the Alliance’s official saw this notebook, the case would immediately stall. No matter what he said afterward would matter.

Destroying the notebook was impossible as well. Most likely, while he was unconscious, Lucy had already applied for the record to be transmitted to the investigator headquarters.

However, if this matter could not be used, then he would simply pursue another angle.

Calf rolled his eyes slightly and turned to an enforcement officer.

“Before I lost consciousness, who was the one dragging a corpse bag and saying it contained the thing I was looking for?”

“I… I was.”

One of the officers spoke timidly.

“Bring that thing here. Let us see what it is.”

Then Calf turned to Lucy and said,

“I believe you were correct earlier. We cannot determine which school someone belongs to merely based on the spells they cast. We must examine the situation carefully.”

“But right now, there is something that puzzles me.”

“Why did that person attack me?”

“And why did he choose the exact moment when I was about to examine that corpse? Not earlier, not later—precisely at that moment.”

He wanted to observe Lucy’s reaction. Yet Lucy remained completely expressionless. She gave no response to his long speech and simply watched the enforcement officer dragging the corpse bag toward them.

The officer hurriedly opened the corpse bag, revealing the body inside.

It was the corpse of a human man.

The body was completely intact, with no visible wounds. Yet a faint white light glowed from his chest.