The black sun hangs high

Chapter 258 Weilin's Mission

Inside this makeshift laboratory, there is a row of hospital beds.

On these hospital beds, several constantly writhing figures were restrained by numerous silver shackles.

Healing mages and alchemists kept passing by the bedside, appearing very busy and tense, and they didn't react at all to Virin's arrival.

Weilin didn't disturb the others. She stood by the door, her eyes trembling and her expression somewhat stiff.

As a lake-level scholar who has participated in many magical experiments and personally dissected many magical creature samples, Veraine has a considerable resistance to those bloody and bizarre scenes. However, now, those figures bound and fixed to the metal hospital bed have made her lose her ability to speak for a short period of time.

If she wasn't mistaken, these figures should be the volunteer team members who had successfully returned from the Great Rift, but right now, Veraine couldn't associate their condition and appearance with the word "human."

A significant portion of their skin has mutated.

Unlike some of the magical illnesses and symptoms caused by malevolent rituals that Verin had previously learned about, these patients did not have severe ulceration, decay, or other symptoms on their skin and flesh, nor did they grow inhuman hair, claws, or scales like the "Wolf Plague."

Underneath the skin of these survivors, a large number of crystals had grown.

It was as if someone had used a crude surgical procedure to sew everyday magical crystals directly into their bodies.

She saw that half of one of the men's heads had completely crystallized. A large number of bright yellow magic crystals that shimmered with dazzling light had completely replaced half of his head. These shiny crystals, which had grown for some unknown reason, had far exceeded the size of the head itself. It looked as if a huge crystalline tumor had grown on his head.

Similar situations have occurred with other people as well.

One of them even had half of his body completely replaced by shimmering magical crystals. Vilin could even see the hospital bed below through the translucent crystals. Another person was obviously injured on the way back. He lost half of his arm, but crystals grew irregularly from his severed arm, making it look as if a cruel artist had attached an irregular crystal sculpture to the wounded man's severed arm.

Although these people with strange symptoms were constantly writhing, they did not make a sound, and their faces were incredibly wooden, without any extra expression.

“They are either soldiers of the Imir Legion or spellcasters within the Legal Committee and Council.”

Despite having witnessed it several times, the mage standing beside Vilin still showed a look of pain and reluctance on his face. He couldn't bear to see these elite soldiers and mages suffer such pain.

Vera nodded slowly, then asked uncertainly, "They...are they still alive?"

"Yes, they are all still alive, at least from our perspective."

However, she received a different response.

Vera turned her head and saw a mountain elf wearing a white lab coat walk out from another door of the laboratory.

It was none other than Finn, the butler and chief magic advisor of the Walter royal family.

Since she was in the laboratory, Verine did not bow to Finn. Butler Finn was quite satisfied with Verine's adherence to the rules of magical experiments. He forced a smile and then pointed to the room next to him: "Miss Verine, please come with me. The rest of you may go about your business."

After saying this, Butler Finn walked towards the door without looking back, and Vera quickly followed.

Behind the door was a relatively small but well-equipped laboratory. In the very center of the laboratory was a cylindrical alchemical vessel, large enough to fit two people, which was fixed horizontally in the very center of the laboratory and shrouded in a magical mist to obscure the view.

"You've arrived just in time, Miss Veraine... Did you have a pleasant journey?"

Vera quickly surveyed her surroundings and then realized that this place was more like an operating room than a laboratory, because she saw many tools and instruments that ordinary magic laboratories would not have. These things were usually used for the dissection of magical creatures and were not needed for ordinary magic experiments.

Vera replied, “Everything is fine, Mr. Finn, but my personal matters aren’t that important. Why did you call me here in such a hurry? What do you need my help with?”

Upon hearing Veraine's question, Finn nodded slightly, and then asked very directly, "So, Miss Veraine, how much do you actually know about 'The Poem of the Night'?"

Vera was already mentally prepared for the questions she might face, so she quickly replied, "Not too in-depth, but I should know more than most mages."

"very good."

Butler Finn raised his hand, and the magic in the laboratory immediately fluctuated. The mist that had been shrouding the central magical container also dissipated, and the object that had been soaking in some kind of alchemical solution appeared in front of Verin.

The moment she saw what it looked like, even Verine, who was usually calm and composed, couldn't help but let out a soft exclamation: "By the goddess Mel..."

Compared to the bizarre human bodies with magical crystals growing inside them that she had seen in the outer room, the body in the container before her was even more terrifying. Skin, flesh, internal organs, and bones had completely disappeared from this body. What Vilin was seeing now was simply a humanoid crystal.

Because of the rampant growth of crystals, the outline of this humanoid figure appeared uneven, and the position where its arms met its body had even become connected. For a moment, Vilin almost thought that what was soaking in the solution was a lifeless humanoid crystal sculpture.

However, she immediately noticed that the liquid inside the alchemical vessel was constantly flowing—it was being drawn in through a hole in the humanoid crystal "head" and then expelled, appearing as if it were breathing. Verine realized something and abruptly looked up: "This is also..."

"Yes, he was also one of those who returned from the rift, but his symptoms were the most severe. Within half a day of returning to the camp, his condition had already deteriorated to this irreversible state."

Finn's tone didn't change much as he said these words, but Vilin clearly caught a hint of helplessness on the elf's face. Then she heard Finn say, "He is my student, a distant relative of the princess, and a Valley-level mage within the council. He is very talented."

“I’m sorry, Mr. Finn.”

Veraine made a gesture of expressing her sadness, then her gaze fell again on the crystalline humanoid trapped in the container. After observing it carefully for a while, Veraine asked, "On the way here, the colleague who was in charge of bringing me here showed me some strange patterns and lines. He told me that those patterns and lines were imprinted on the bodies of these people who returned from the rift, but I can't see them now."

"That's normal, because those are the original traces."

"initial?"

"Yes, when they first returned to the camp, most of them were still able to move on their own, but they were delirious and had almost lost their ability to speak, only knowing to cry out in pain... When we examined their bodies, we found these strange lines on their bodies. The alchemists in the camp initially diagnosed them as 'burns caused by intense magic,' but as time went on, these wounds gradually began to change, and it turned out that they were actually 'seeds' of those magical crystals!"

Hearing these bizarre accounts, Weilin felt a chill run down her spine. She quickly asked, "You mean, these crystals are growing from those 'wounds'?"

“That’s right, I’ve personally examined it many times… So far, I haven’t found any records similar to this case, and I’ve tried all the mainstream treatments, but they haven’t worked.”

Finn paused for a moment, then continued, "I even performed alchemical surgery on them and tried to remove all the crystals from some individuals. However, the result was that new crystal traces would quickly appear before the wounds could fully heal, and they grew even faster than before."

As he spoke, Finn pointed to another container placed in the corner. Verine looked over and saw that the container contained a large number of magical crystals of various colors. Despite the isolation provided by the ritual field, Verine could still discern the abnormal activity of these strange crystals through their constantly flashing light.

“They seem to be minerals, but they are not entirely minerals… In my personal opinion, these things have certain similarities to flesh and blood. They grow, sense their surroundings, and can even react to damage inflicted by the outside world. Therefore, I personally think that they are likely some kind of lost existence that has long been forgotten, or perhaps… the result of some kind of ‘evil magic’.”

Finn smiled at Veraine: "Or should I say, lost magic?"

“I understand what you mean, sir.”

Vera breathed a sigh of relief: "So, what would you like me to do next?"

"Evil magic and the 'Poem of the Night' are your subjects. Now that you, Miss Vilin, have a certain understanding of the original manuscript of the 'Poem of the Night,' the task of finding these traces and patterns and verifying their specific meanings is entrusted to you."

As he spoke, Finn placed his palm on the surface of the container that bound the humanoid crystal in front of him. As a powerful spellcaster, his magic immediately enveloped the entire container. Sensing the injection of magic, the magical patterns engraved on the surface of the alchemical container began to appear. Subsequently, this foreign magic was successfully injected into the container and entered the crystal humanoid body along with the flowing alchemical liquid.

The next moment, Weilin saw that countless strange patterns appeared from the crystal body. These patterns were not static; they were wriggling, crawling, and constantly changing their shapes. When a line or pattern disappeared, a new line would immediately form.

"This was an accidental discovery I made when I was casting a healing spell on him. By controlling the infusion of magic, a similar phenomenon can be triggered... I hope this helps you."

"Time, how much time do I have?"

“I’m sorry, Miss Veraine, you may only have less than seven days left… and I must tell you, this time limit is not imposed by any country or organization, nor by any individual. The waves are raging, and if the ship cannot move before the waves crash down, it will only capsize.”

Vera's face turned pale. She closed her eyes and took two deep breaths.

She really hates countdowns.

What's more, during this countdown, she didn't even have anyone by her side to offer any help or advice, which made her feel somewhat powerless.

Finn also sighed, then, as if remembering something, he walked to the side, took out a badge with a golden eagle pattern from the pocket of his coat hanging on the wall, and placed it on the table beside him: "Miss Verin, you are still participating in this matter as a member of the Ernst family, an advisor to the royal family, and a mage of the council... This represents the royal family's reward and compensation for you."

Weilin stared at the humanoid crystal inside the container: "Sir, what's the point of discussing payment at a time like this?"

Finn smirked. "Perhaps. Take it. If your research makes real progress, you can make a reasonable request to the Walter royal family, the Ernst family, and the Highland Mage Council. I think they will agree."

Verine paused for two seconds, then finally nodded: "Please send me some more manpower, at least five Stream-level mages and fifteen apprentices... I need them to do some tedious work for me, as well as my old notes, and the records from these days about the Rift and those patients, please send them all here."

“That’s good, Miss Vera.”

Butler Finn took the coat in his hands and then said, "No matter what the outcome, I think Miss Verin has the potential to become a national magic advisor... So, would you like a refreshing drink? You seem a bit tired. I brought quite a few royal tea bags; they might help you relax."

"Thank you very much, Mr. Finn... Please add some extra sugar for me."

(End of this chapter)