Chapter 2099: Unexpected Harvest

The Marchioness covered her face as she recounted the story of this cousin:

"I sent people everywhere to inquire, and I learned that she lost her tracks a week after her husband's funeral. That was also a night of the full moon. I worry about her safety, yet I don't know who to turn to for help. God, why must this fate befall us? Is Malika alright now? What have you done to her?"

"She is fine, but she needs to recuperate."

Xia De said with a cold face, continuing to maintain his "cold-blooded and cruel" persona, while Miss Lei Qianya explained with concern:

"This gentleman encountered her while helping me investigate outside the city, and they had a fight, which is why his attitude is poor. But rest assured, your cousin is fine now. If you wish, you can come with me to see her in a moment."

"Alright."

The Marchioness's emotions finally stabilized somewhat. Although Lady Malika Frost was a werewolf, she truly regarded her as family.

But although they had found the werewolf's relative and learned her identity, the investigation regarding the dragon scales in that ancient tree had hit a dead end. While the witch was still trying to think of a way, Xia De suddenly reached his hand out to the side. Soft starlight descended into the study with the curtains drawn, and the eyes of both ladies were drawn to that patch of starlight.

Within the starlight was an illusory three-tiered low bookshelf, and Xia De casually took out the book with the translucent starlight color. After opening it, he placed it in front of the Marchioness:

"Do you recognize this person?"

In the book was the appearance of the vengeful spirit that controlled the werewolf in the cave beneath the tree. The Marchioness was startled by the ugly and terrifying appearance of the vengeful spirit, but upon looking closely, she immediately nodded:

"Although it doesn't look quite like him, I should have seen his portrait. The ancestors of the man Malika married, named Jason Worsen, were once wealthy, and there were some old-era portraits hanging in their home. This terrible thing looks very much like Jason Worsen's grandfather, but whether it is truly him, I cannot be certain."

Xia De revealed a smile and met the eyes of the witch, who also wore an expression of surprise. In this way, it made sense that the werewolf was controlled by that tree. The husband of the female werewolf's grandfather had become a vengeful spirit long ago and attached himself to the ancient tree in the Whispering Hills, surviving to this day. And after his descendants died, the vengeful spirit, which originally could not leave the tree too far, contacted the werewolf who broke into the forest on the night of the full moon through some unknown method. Perhaps it was illusion magic, or perhaps some other ability, but the vengeful spirit in the tree relied on the connection between the two to eventually lure the werewolf to the cave beneath the tree and control her.

"What did that Worsen's grandfather do?"

Xia De asked, and the Marchioness recalled for a moment before saying uncertainly:

"He worked as a manager at the timber yard operated by the Wood family. When he was most trusted, he could even be called a Wood who wasn't a Wood."

"How did he die?"

"I don't know."

"Then are there any other people in the Worsen family?"

"None left. Malika's husband, Jason Worsen, was the last descendant. Because no relatives could be found, Malika's family belongings have been kept by me to this day. Oh, my poor cousin, why must such a fate befall us?"

She began to sob again, and this time, no matter how Miss Lei Qianya comforted her, she could not stop.

The helpless witch had no choice but to say:

"I promise I will not report you, nor will I tell anyone else about this matter."

"But you will keep threatening me with this matter, making me do this and that."

The teary-eyed woman said again, and Bella Bellindell nodded as a matter of course:

"Yes, I will keep threatening you with this matter, so I will not report you."

Having received the promise, the Marchioness of Ankala finally stopped crying:

"Malika's family belongings are all with me. You can investigate whatever you want. I will help you persuade Malika to tell you everything; she has always trusted me. Also, also, Lei Qianya, can you help me do one thing? Since you know a Ringed Shushi, I have happened to encounter strange things here; can you help me?"

"How did it become you asking me to do things?"

The lady with the cinnabar birthmark between her brows laughed, but she still nodded:

"No problem. Although this gentleman is cold and ruthless, he is absolutely a master at getting things done. It's just that if something is truly investigated, you will have to pay the fee... The Hou Jue of Ankala is responsible for managing the Kingdom's Moon Bay Navy, and there are some things I would like to ask about later."

The woman only hesitated for a moment before nodding:

"I can."

This was not a reward for Xia De's investigation at all, but a reward for helping her hide her bloodline; it was just that everyone tacitly agreed not to say it out loud.

Having obtained a result she was satisfied with, Miss Lei Qianya softly apologized again:

"We were a bit too rash just now, weren't we? Did we scare you? Please accept my apologies. Do you want to touch up your makeup? If you return to the salon like this, they will think I bullied you."

"If you want to apologize..."

The noblewoman suddenly raised her head, her eyes widened as she looked at the Countess, and her hands grasped the Countess's right hand:

"Can you give me the fabric you brought? I only want the black one! I can tell you the contents of the confidential document on my husband's desk, and also, do you know that before he came here, His Majesty personally received him and let him monitor the seven major families in the area on his behalf? Give me two, the black one and the flesh-colored one, and I will tell you everything. I want the finished product of the quality you are wearing!"

Xia De covered his mouth and leaned back slightly on the sofa, choosing not to understand the conversation that followed.

The outsider did not quite understand the thoughts of noblewomen, and sometimes he did not quite understand the struggles and cooperation of the nobles either. Now that the Marchioness's leverage seemed to be in the hands of the Lei Qianya family for a lifetime, whether the requests she made at this moment were a sign of strengthening cooperation or if she truly wanted those fabrics... perhaps it was both.

The subsequent investigation had to be carried out by Xia De alone, after all, only Xia De admitted that he was a Ringed Shushi.

The specific matter was not very complicated. The manor where the salon was held was one of the residences of the Hou Jue's family in Moon Bay, but since the end of winter this year, the family had frequently felt the house vibrate slightly when sleeping at night. At first, they thought it was an earthquake, but there was no news of earthquakes in the Moon Bay area, so they thought it was an illusion, but most people in the entire manor could feel the house vibrating.

But the vibration was very slight and only lasted for a few dozen seconds, so it was not a big deal. The Hou Jue himself thought it was a problem with the structure of the house when it was built, so he specifically found someone to come and check, but found no problems. So, for peace of mind, the family moved to other manors in the city, using this place only as a venue for banquets.

Facts also proved that nothing happened afterwards, and even after the summer, the servants left behind in the manor never felt that strange vibration at night again. Originally, this matter would have passed, until Xia De, this "Ringed Shushi," appeared today, and the Marchioness thought about whether this might be related to supernatural power.

Since it was a ground vibration, it was natural to go underground to investigate. The manor did indeed have a considerable underground space, such as the kitchen and dining room where the servants ate, and in addition, there were cellars and warehouses that were not connected to each other.

The witch would have liked to use her divination to help Xia De find the answer directly, but after Xia De left under the guidance of the servants, she never found the time to touch her divination cards.

Soon, the servant returned in a bit of a hurry:

"That gentleman said, Madam, you had better go down and take a look yourself."

The Marchioness of Ankala nodded:

"Lei Qianya, come with me to the study; the servants have found the book you wanted."

She and Miss Lei Qianya went downstairs together, passed through the corridor to the kitchen on the first floor, and then reached the vegetable cellar beneath the kitchen via the stairs.

The space here was not even as large as the kitchen above, and because it was summer and there was no need like in winter, there was not much food stored in the cellar. At this moment, the east wall seemed to have been blasted open by a great force, and scattered bricks and stones covered the floor, causing both ladies to cover their noses and mouths. Behind the wall, one could see a winding downward passage, but the Marchioness herself did not know that there was another space beneath her own manor.

She and the Countess certainly would not risk entering such a dangerous place, and Xia De walked out from the hole at this time, bending over. He had taken off his expensive coat for fear of getting it dirty, and the two sleeves of his white shirt were rolled up, revealing strong and powerful arms.

For the sake of secrecy, only the Marchioness's two personal maids knew about the matter here, so he did not hide it:

"I sensed a space behind here just now, so I knocked the wall down. Don't worry, it's not very deep below, and this passage connects directly to the Moon Bay city sewer. Madam, was this house built by you?"

"No, this house also has a history of several hundred years. It originally belonged to the Wright family, and later changed many owners."

"It was probably an escape tunnel dug by some owner."

He patted his hair:

"Find someone to seal this place later, or you can keep it as an escape tunnel. The end of the sewer has already been locked by a gate; if you are not at ease, find some steel pipes and weld that gate shut completely, so that no one can get in from the outside."

"What was the vibration caused by?"

Miss Lei Qianya asked, and the eyes of both her and the Marchioness of Ankala beside her swept across Xia De's strong and powerful arms.

Xia De did not tell the truth, after all, some things were not suitable for ordinary people to hear:

"I'm not sure, but I found some long-dried bloodstains outside the gate at the end. If I'm not mistaken, someone should have done something in the nearby sewer in the spring, which caused the abnormality in this house connected to the pipe. But now the other party has left. If you are really not at ease, find the church and let the church go and check."

This was only part of the truth; in reality, what he saw was a place very similar to the underground prison or underground laboratory in "Herman Wood's" memory. It was just that this place had been emptied, and it looked like it had been completely abandoned at least by the summer. Although he could not find any more clues here, Xia De at least knew that the illegal biological experiments conducted by the 【Dragon Feast Sect】 in the local area did not start from when they discovered that the local area might be related to the Chosen One.

The 【Dragon Feast Sect】 had long been conducting illegal experiments in this port city connecting to the New Continent, and the egg that was suspected of hatching the "Vampire Beast" was their final experimental result. ===== CHAPTER 2100 =====