Chapter 40: In the Carriage

Compared to the "time loop" and "people turning into sheep," the scene in front of him was not only just as shocking, but also gave Lu Mian a feeling that his eyes, heart, and spirit were suffering from severe pollution.

If he had known beforehand that he would witness such a thing, he would definitely have chosen to give up the action.

"What the hell is going on?

"Louis Londe is clearly still a man!

"Whose child is he pregnant with? The administrator's, or Madame Pualis's?

"Is this the mystical world?

"Aurora not letting me come into contact with it was indeed for my own good..."

For a moment, Lu Mian's thoughts were disordered, his spirit was chaotic, and he wished he could directly dig out his eyes and forcibly forget the scene he had seen.

"Waa! Waa! Waa!"

The baby born from Louis Londe cried out, making the filthy "delivery room" instantly have a few more breaths of sacred atmosphere.

This was the beauty of a new life descending, and Lu Mian, hiding outside the window, directly felt that kind of joy from the origin of humanity.

Of course, besides that, the feeling of weirdness, absurdity, filth, and disharmony was becoming more and more obvious.

Lu Mian finally came back to his senses and subconsciously looked into the room again.

The baby had been placed by the woman in the gray-white dress on the white silk spread beside Louis Londe. He was a boy, the blood stains on his body more than the milky white grease, but apart from this, there was nothing abnormal, like an ordinary newborn.

Lu Mian observed for another two seconds and found that the baby boy's ten fingers were curled, his fingernails very long, as if they were the claws of a bird.

Just now, he had used this pair of hands to tear open Louis Londe's stomach!

Louis Londe was lying there, already in a state of semi-coma.

The tear on his stomach hadn't been stitched up yet, blood was constantly seeping out, and one could vaguely see the intestines pressed to one side and a strange, bird's nest-like thing covered with a flesh-colored thin film inside.

After the woman wrapped the baby in silk, she took out the bird's nest-like thing, picked up a sewing needle and sheep intestine thread, and helped Louis Londe deal with the wound.

Amidst Louis Londe's painful groans, she muttered while sewing:

"You're still considered easy; when I gave birth to quadruplets last time, that was what you call painful..."

The muscles on Lu Mian's face twitched slightly, feeling that after his eyes, brain, heart, and spirit were affected, his ears were also polluted.

He withdrew his gaze and decided to leave here quickly.

With another light jump, Lu Mian jumped to the window he had come from and flipped into the room.

He closed the window, went out the door, and went straight to the stairs.

Avoiding a manservant coming up, Lu Mian returned to the hall lightly and very quickly.

"Where did you go?"

Suddenly, a soft, magnetic voice sounded by his ear.

With Lu Mian's "Hunter" senses, he hadn't even sensed that someone was standing by the entrance of the stairs beforehand.

He turned his body abruptly, looked over there, and saw Madame Pualis, who was wearing a blue corset dress with her hair half-tied and half-draped.

This lady no longer had a smile on her face, and her bright brown eyes clearly reflected Lu Mian's figure.

Lu Mian's spirit instantly tightened to the limit, and while feeling fear, he prepared for battle.

Just at this moment, Aurora came out of the side room and looked at him:

"Where did you go? The carriage is already parked at the door."

In a similar scene, Lu Mian was experienced and said half-truth, half-false:

"Didn't Madame Pualis say Mr. Londe was sick just now?

"I've had a few drinks with him and thought about visiting, but this castle is too big, and I didn't know where he lived, so I looked for a good while and couldn't find him."

Aurora nodded and exhorted:

"You can directly make a request to Madame Pualis; you don't need to hide it from us. This isn't a bad thing."

"It's my fault, I'm sorry." Lu Mian looked at Madame Pualis sincerely.

After seeing that scene upstairs, his fear of this lady outweighed his disgust.

Madame Pualis finally revealed a smile and was no longer so serious:

"I thank you for your intentions on behalf of Londe, but his state when he is sick this time is not good, and he doesn't want to appear in front of others with an indecent image."

It is indeed indecent... Lu Mian silently "echoed" in his heart.

Aurora then said to Madame Pualis:

"Then shall we get in the carriage? Thank you so much."

Lu Mian stared at Madame Pualis quietly, worried that she would find an excuse to let his sister and him stay a while longer.

If that were the case, it would mean she might have sensed the abnormality and needed to confirm if there were any problems with Louis Londe!

Although after reuniting with his sister, Lu Mian felt that the two of them weren't without the strength to fight Madame Pualis, this was her castle after all, and it was full of her servants. For a "Hunter," this belonged to the worst hunting environment.

Madame Pualis nodded lightly and smiled at Aurora:

"I look forward to the gifts you bring back from Trier; the fashion trends there always make me yearn for them."

"I hope to give you a surprise." Although Aurora didn't know if she could return to Cordu Village in her lifetime, she still had to express her stance.

Madame Pualis took her personal maid Cassie and sent the siblings to the door, watching them get into the box-style four-seater carriage.

The coachman, who had dark brown sideburns and a burly build, was wearing deep red clothes and yellow trousers, and was wearing a waxed hat. Except for not wearing a tie, he was almost the same as a professional carriage driver in the city.

This was the mandatory requirement of administrator Béost.

"Sorry to trouble you." Before closing the carriage door, Aurora said very politely to the coachman.

The coachman was named Séverin and had the blue eyes most common in the Intis Republic.

He was happy because of the respect from this beautiful lady, Aurora, and looked forward to the tips he would definitely have after arriving in Dariège, so he said very enthusiastically:

"Lady, sir, sit tight."

He raised his whip and let the horses take steps from slow to fast.

When the carriage passed through Cordu Village, it suddenly stopped.

Although he knew that the road to leave would definitely not be smooth and easy, Lu Mian still couldn't help but skip a beat.

"What's wrong?" He asked the coachman outside through the carriage compartment.

Séverin said:

"The lady promised yesterday to send Naroka to Junac Village. I was worried that if I went to Dariège and came back, it would be too late, so I thought I'd pick her up on the way. Don't worry, it won't delay your time."

Junac Village was closer to Dariège than Cordu Village, so going there first indeed wouldn't affect the time for Aurora and Lu Mian to reach their destination much.

Because this was someone else's carriage and they had no right to stop it, Aurora didn't raise any objections.

Lu Mian was more concerned about this person, Naroka—in the last loop, Naroka died suddenly, was suspected of being murdered by a relative, and was related to the parish priest's gang.

Séverin got off the carriage, entered Naroka's house, and then led this lady out.

Naroka was different from usual; she had changed into a black dress with exquisite patterns, was wearing a dark soft hat that old ladies liked, and her sparse and pale hair had clearly been carefully combed.

"Yo, my little cabbage, where are you going?" Naroka got into the carriage and was very happy to see Aurora.

Her face, which had many spots and wrinkles, was overflowing with irrepressible joy, and her eyes, which were usually slightly turbid, were much more spirited.

"I'm going to Trier to participate in a writer's salon, and by the way, take Lu Mian to inspect the universities there." Aurora said the absolute truth.

She then asked:

"Naroka, are you going to visit someone?"

Although it was normal for Naroka, as a widow, to wear black clothes, she only wore this dress for festivals, banquets, and the anniversary of her late husband's death.

Naroka revealed an expectant expression:

"Yes, going to see some people."

Lu Mian didn't speak, quietly observing Naroka, trying to see if he could tell anything from her.

The carriage drove again, heading outside Cordu Village.

Aurora and Naroka chatted one sentence after another, her attention more focused outside the carriage.

She was still worried that her brother and she leaving in a hurry would arouse the suspicion of some people.

As the carriage walked, Lu Mian suddenly sensed that Naroka's state had changed.

Compared to just now, this lady's face was much paler and bluish, her eyes were no longer so spirited, and she became completely silent, only answering one or two sentences simply when Aurora asked.

This was very similar to the Naroka Lu Mian saw in the middle of the night in the last loop!

Lu Mian secretly pulled Aurora's hand.

Aurora turned her head quickly, looked at him, and used her eyes to express inquiry.

Lu Mian pointed at Naroka covertly and drew an "X" in his sister's palm.

"X" was a symbol Aurora often used when grading his papers, indicating an error. At this time, Lu Mian used it to refer to Naroka's state being wrong.

Aurora was stunned for a second and soon understood Lu Mian's meaning.

She withdrew her attention, looked at Naroka, and clearly felt the abnormality.

She then raised her right hand and pinched her temples on both sides.

Her light blue eyes instantly became deeper, stained with a little gloom.

Just after one look, Aurora's beautiful golden eyebrows furrowed, her body leaned back slightly, as if she had suffered some kind of impact.

She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples, looking slightly tired.

After opening her eyes again, Aurora turned her head and said to Lu Mian:

"When we arrive in Dariège, you must follow me closely, no matter what the situation is, you must follow me closely."

She said it very seriously.

Lu Mian understood as soon as he heard it, knowing his sister meant that if anything happened next, he must stick to her, and she would handle it.

He nodded solemnly, deciding to confess to his sister that he had become a Beyonder later.

Aurora withdrew her gaze, looked at Naroka, and asked deliberately:

"Naroka, are you really going to Junac Village, or is it somewhere else?"

She was worried that if she waited for the carriage to stop on its own, things would be even more unsolvable. Since that was the case, it was better to trigger it in advance and not fight in an environment the other party expected.

Naroka's gaze was a bit hollow, and she answered in a low voice:

"No, I'm not going to Junac Village.

"Where I'm going is the Other Shore World."

As soon as her voice fell, Lu Mian felt that the outside of the carriage window had become abnormally dim.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 41 =====