Chapter 39: Sickness

If Pons Bénet entering Naroka's house was really to take away hair and fingernails, then it meant Naroka highly likely died from the murder of a relative. This was because Naroka had a good reputation, was the pillar of the whole family, and was relatively healthy in body and spirit, so it was unlikely she committed suicide... Lu Mian quickly had a series of speculations.

If Naroka really died from the murder of a relative, then what was it for?

Seeing her brother fall into deep thought and not speak for a good while, Aurora thought he was scared by "people turning into sheep" and "someone in the Berry family possibly dying from murder," so she comforted him softly:

"Although the matter is serious, it currently cannot affect us.

"It seems I have to reflect on myself. Always forbidding you from coming into contact with real mystical knowledge easily makes you fearful and panicked when encountering similar things, not knowing what to do. Hmm, in this world, in recent years, the frequency of Beyonder events has been getting higher and higher, and I can't be by your side at all times. You will always grow up and always have your own life..."

I've never heard that growing up means you must leave your family... Lu Mian retorted in his heart.

He could feel that because of the matter of people turning into sheep, Aurora's attitude toward him coming into contact with mystical knowledge had loosened.

A little more effort and I could directly confess to her that I've already become a Beyonder... Lu Mian hadn't had time to speak yet when Aurora made a decision:

"You go pack your luggage now. We'll use the invitation from the 'Novel Weekly' to leave Cordu immediately.

"What good luck, such a telegram coming at a critical moment, allowing us to leave openly without being suspected by anyone.

"Hmm, when there's no one around during the journey, I'll tell you some real mystical knowledge, but don't even think about becoming a Beyonder; it's too dangerous."

That's not good luck; the telegram was sent because problems were discovered, it's just that we only received the reply in this loop... Lu Mian muttered silently while feeling gratified that his sister was still that decisive person.

Although he didn't think his sister and he could smoothly leave Cordu Village, or in other words, get rid of the loop, they still had to try.

"Uh, those three sheep, those three people, aren't we saving them?" Lu Mian asked tentatively.

Aurora shook her head:

"This might trigger a conflict between us and Pierre Berry, and I'm not sure how strong he is, nor do I know how many helpers he has. Blindly saving people is too dangerous.

"Let the authorities do it; this is their responsibility. Hmm, once we reach Dariège and buy the steam train tickets, we'll send an anonymous letter to the authorities and let them handle it."

"But what if they don't believe it?" Lu Mian asked deliberately.

Aurora laughed:

"In mysticism, you are indeed an illiterate.

"If we describe the matter of people turning into sheep clearly in the letter, they will naturally find professionals to divine it. Even if they don't get any detailed revelation, they will be able to discover the abnormality in Cordu."

"I understand." Lu Mian didn't waste time and went upstairs to pack his luggage.

Not long after, the siblings came down, each holding a brown suitcase.

Aurora looked outside the door and said:

"Now go find Madame Pualis, borrow a carriage from her, and strive to reach Dariège as quickly as possible."

From Cordu Village to Dariège, ordinary people would walk for an afternoon. Lu Mian, as a "Hunter," certainly wouldn't need to, but in Aurora's eyes, he wasn't a Beyonder yet.

Hesitating whether to take the opportunity to confess to his sister, and thinking that it was basically impossible to escape Cordu Village, it was better to take the opportunity to go to Madame Pualis's house to see if he could find clues. Lu Mian let out an "Mm":

"Okay."

He reached out, took her suitcase from his sister, and walked toward the door, carrying two in each hand.

Aurora nodded, both satisfied and gratified, and then said with slight confusion:

"Your strength has increased; you're carrying them so easily."

She subconsciously wanted to raise her right hand to rub the sides of her eyes, but at this moment Lu Mian had already gone out, so she had to give up the attempt and follow quickly.

On the way to the administrator's residence, many villagers saw Aurora going out with a suitcase and curiously asked about the situation.

Aurora, who had a legitimate reason, was very calm about this.

Lu Mian, on the other hand, made up seven or eight stories on this short road to deal with different villagers.

Stories like Aurora receiving the Intis Honorary Legion Medal and going to Trier to receive the honor, him being specially recruited by the Trier Higher Normal School and being able to go register now, and Aurora going bankrupt from stock trading and creditors coming to the door, forcing them to flee to another place. The villagers, who had little knowledge, were stunned.

Thanks to Lu Mian's reputation, they all chose not to believe him after coming to their senses.

Not long after, the siblings arrived in front of the black building transformed from an ancient castle.

Looking up at the two towering towers, Lu Mian smiled:

"I don't know what's inside. Aurora, have you been in?"

"How could I wander into someone else's house?" Aurora rolled her eyes at her brother.

Lu Mian muttered in a low voice:

"I thought Madame Pualis would invite you to tour the castle. Don't people like them love taking guests to visit their big houses and precious collections?"

"What's there to tour..." Aurora's voice became lower as she spoke, because she thought this would be of great help to her description of the ancient castle in her work. "Sigh, we'll talk about it if there's a chance in the future. I don't know if we can even return to Cordu."

She then led Lu Mian through the colorful garden and walked toward the castle gate.

After walking a few steps, Aurora slowed down, looked left and right, and said with confusion:

"The flowers in this garden are blooming very early..."

Cordu Village was on the mountain, and there were plateau grasslands nearby. In normal seasons, the first wave of flowers in spring wouldn't arrive until mid-to-late April.

"Maybe Madame Pualis's gardener has a special method." Lu Mian thought that the lady was a Beyonder of an abnormal pathway and suspected that this was related to some kind of Beyonder phenomenon, but he couldn't say that.

Aurora just sighed casually and didn't think much about it. Together with Lu Mian, she arrived at the castle and received a warm reception from Madame Pualis.

This lady was wearing a blue corset dress today, the diamond necklace inlaid with gold still hanging on her chest, and her brown long hair was half-tied and half-draped, making her look younger than usual.

She sat on a single sofa in the small living room, listened quietly to Aurora's request, and smiled shallowly:

"No need to be so polite; we are friends."

Heh... Lu Mian mocked in his heart.

Where is there a friend who blindly introduces marriage partners?

He had just finished mocking silently when he saw Madame Pualis looking at him, her bright brown eyes carrying a smile like flowing water.

Lu Mian recalled the conversation with Madame Pualis in the last loop and felt a bit uncomfortable.

"Okay." Aurora looked helpless.

Every time she borrowed a carriage, she would offer to pay, but Madame Pualis would inevitably refuse, so she would usually bring some gifts that weren't precious but weren't cheap to the lady on the return trip, while giving the coachman a small tip.

While waiting for the coachman to prepare, Madame Pualis invited the siblings to taste the desserts made by her own chef.

Lu Mian tasted a pancake, looked around, and said:

"Where is Mr. Londe?"

Louis Londe was the butler of the administrator Béost and had followed him from Dariège to Cordu Village.

Lu Mian had the handle that he was having an affair with a woman in the village and secretly selling some collections in the castle, and through this, he had obtained the news that Madame Pualis was the parish priest's mistress.

The story about accidentally bumping into the parish priest and Madame Pualis having an affair in the church was all a lie for outsiders!

At this time, Lu Mian was looking for Louis Londe because he wanted to scold him, saying, "You sow-raised bastard, why didn't you tell me Madame Pualis was a witch?"

Madame Pualis let out an "Ah":

"Louis is sick and is resting in his room."

Sick? Lu Mian inexplicably felt that there might be some problem with this.

Taking advantage of his sister chatting with Madame Pualis, he made an excuse to go to the washroom, left the small living room, and went straight to the stairs.

This castle was very large, and the servants brought by the administrator couple weren't many, so everywhere looked empty, and one could even hear echoes in some places, which gave Lu Mian better external conditions for sneaking in.

Relying on his powerful senses, he simply avoided a manservant and a maid, walked lightly to the second floor, and found Louis Londe's room.

He didn't rush to knock on the door, turned his head, and pressed his ear against the wooden board.

"Ah!"

"Ah!"

Painful screams belonging to a man came from the room.

Really sick? Sounds quite serious... Lu Mian pondered for a moment, walked to the side, and opened the door of another servant's room—administrator Béost and Madame Pualis lived on the third floor.

After flashing into the room, he gently closed the wooden door, walked to the other side in a few steps, and pushed open the glass window.

Lu Mian looked down and, seeing no one, immediately supported himself with both hands and nimbly flipped out, "hanging" on the outer wall of the castle.

Following that, he jumped lightly, like a wild cat, and landed silently on the windowsill of the butler Louis Londe.

Then, Lu Mian stood on the edge of the glass window, turned his body, and quietly looked into the room.

He saw Louis Londe lying naked on the bed, his stomach bulging high, giving people a feeling that it would explode at any moment.

Seeing the butler, who was over forty, with his black hair all soaked in sweat, his face full of pain, and hearing him let out tragic screams from time to time, Lu Mian couldn't help but frown:

What kind of sickness is this?

Looks very scary, his stomach can actually bulge this big...

At this time, a woman in her forties was standing beside Louis Londe's bed.

She had brown hair and brown eyes, a beautiful face, few wrinkles, and was wearing a gray-white long dress, shouting at Louis Londe with excitement:

"Almost there, almost there."

What's almost there? Lu Mian had just flashed such a thought when he heard a scream and saw something bulging high from somewhere in Louis Londe's stomach.

Almost in the blink of an eye, that place was torn open; Louis Londe's stomach was torn open!

A bloody little hand reached out.

"Born! Born!" The woman shouted happily.

She then leaned over and hugged a wrinkled, dirty, bloody baby from Louis Londe's stomach.

Lu Mian was completely stunned:

"..."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 40 =====