The Teacher Had Turned Into an Old Geezer

After asking his three questions, Lude had a better understanding of his own situation, the structure of power, and the level of his enemies.

But by then, Lude's feelings were rather complicated.

As a mentor, the old man had told far too many lies. As a powerful figure, though, he had been honest enough.

Whether it was the history of the Lord Society or Malinkov's past, Lord Hypnos had concealed or altered plenty as he spoke. He hadn't even tried to hide it. Lude had the inexplicable feeling that the lies came from instinct.

Now Lude was even more interested in the secret society known as the Lord Society. He had a feeling he would fit right in.

For a short while after that, neither the old man nor the young one spoke. They quietly moved their knives, forks, and wineglasses. As they ate and drank, Lude found himself with an unusually good appetite. Everything he had seen today had delighted him.

After the meal, Lord Hypnos took out a handkerchief and wiped his mouth. "It's time for me to take my leave, young man."

He stood up as he spoke. "Come to think of it, I should warn you: any supernatural art or occult technique leaves behind a trace called an [Influence]. Even though I've tried to restrain myself as much as possible, my arrival inevitably left one."

"That means that once this train reaches the station, the people from the Black Tide Society will probably swarm over like sharks scenting blood."

"So I've planted a contingency on this train. It'll activate after I leave and completely erase any traces the train might have left behind. But you'll have to activate it yourself, so be careful not to get hurt."

"Understood, Mentor." Lude replied with a smile. He already understood how to deal with this powerful man.

"One more thing." The old gentleman spoke up. "You should make good use of those three vials of Wyvern Blood Essence."

Lude nodded seriously. "I'll use them where they're needed."

"Wrong again." The old gentleman frowned in disapproval. "I mean, you should use them up as soon as possible!"

"Whoever gave you the Wyvern Blood Essence must have a very shallow understanding of alchemy. They actually had you use it as a temporary stimulant for an outburst of power! You could use it to speed up the gestation of your Secret Art!"

Lude chuckled awkwardly. "M-maybe. I still think I should keep one as a trump card..."

The old gentleman shook his head. "As you wish. I don't like interfering with my students' choices. But using Wyvern Blood Essence to nourish a developing Secret Art gives it a permanent enhancement. If it were me, I wouldn't pass up this opportunity."

"After all, for spellcasters like us, the flesh is merely a Vessel in which we temporarily dwell in this world. The soul is what truly matters. I thought you, having already experienced a change of body once, would find that easier to understand..."

As the old man's voice grew fainter, his figure slowly lost its color. In the end, he became a puff of white mist that scattered with the slightest breeze, mingling with the cold and spreading throughout the carriage before vanishing completely.

Watching Lord Hypnos disappear, Lude sat in the compartment for a long time without saying a word.

The good news was that the people in this world seemed quite reasonable. When they met a talented young person, their first thought was to recruit him, not eliminate him. That meant the world was still developing rapidly, both on the surface and beneath it. Everyone was trying to make the pie bigger instead of taking someone else's slice.

In a world that had already settled into a slow decline, those with vested interests would probably only think, This kid is too dangerous. He must not be allowed to live.

The bad news was that he had ventured into deep waters too soon, before he'd even managed to find his footing in this world. That only strengthened Lude's resolve to go develop himself in Enamel City. He had to get away from the mess in the Rhine Region and spend some time quietly building himself up.

But just as Lude made up his mind, the train suddenly shook violently, followed by a scream.

"Sir! Sir!"

The carriage door was yanked open, and Vernon rushed in, wailing, "There's a monster! There's a monster on the train!!!"

"What the hell?"

Lude pulled Vernon aside, drew the Dragon Tooth Sword, and charged out. The moment he saw what was happening, his head started ringing.

It was a pinkish mass of flesh, constantly shedding flesh and organs from its surface. On the front of its maggot-like body, a cluster of bulging eyeballs jutted out like a sunflower. Each eye was surrounded by countless teeth, forming yellowish-white little flowers that writhed incessantly.

A stench of blood and rust rolled toward him. In an instant, the carriage walls began to buckle and warp under the pressure.

Dozens of arms and legs grew haphazardly from its body. They stretched out like oars, pushing it forward before retracting back inside. Wherever it went, tables, chairs, and shelves were crushed to pieces, leaving only piles of expelled guts behind.

The moment Lude rushed out into the corridor, nearly a hundred eyes on the monster turned to stare at him from every direction.

What the hell was going on? What kind of powerhouse was this now?!

But he quickly dismissed the thought. Inside every one of the monster's eyes was a familiar rune.

Polina. Death-Defying. Was this damn thing her creation?!

But hadn't all the puppets that woman had made disappeared after her death? Wait—you old geezer! Was this your contingency?!

Only then did Lude realize what Lord Hypnos had meant by a contingency: use this powerful living bomb to blow the train into the ravine, and there'd be no evidence left to investigate!

So that was why the old bastard had said only Lude could activate it. This thing would only chase him down and blow up on him!

The next moment, orange-red cracks appeared across the pinkish monster's body.

That day, a railway in the Rhine Kingdom was irreversibly destroyed, and a stretch of cliffs collapsed along with it.

Lude only had time to curl up his arms and legs to cushion his torso and head. The next instant, a roar nearly deafening enough to leave him permanently hearing-impaired rang in his ears. His muscles felt as if they were being torn apart, and he went flying as though he were soaring through the clouds.

Polina's prediction had been spot-on. After taking that blast, Lude truly had no strength left to resist.

By the time Lude regained consciousness, the sun was already setting. He had been unconscious for four or five hours. Polina's final bomb had blown the train off the tracks, sending it plunging more than a hundred meters down the ravine.

Lord Hypnos had been ruthless. He'd erased every trace—and every witness—with one move.

Lude himself was badly injured.

His strongest bones were naturally intact, but his muscles and organs had suffered everything from bruising to being shaken apart.

Even his heart had stopped for a moment.

"Damn it..." Lude muttered weakly. "The old bastard knew I had Dragon Remains for a foundation and could use Flame-Bathed Healing, didn't he?"

He crawled bit by bit toward the wreckage of the tender and piled the coal around him into a small hill. Then he found a bottle of kerosene and poured it over the coal. He lit Polina's lighter, tossed it in, and before long the coal heap had turned into a bonfire.

Then Lude slowly crawled onto the pile of kindling and lay on his back with his eyes closed, feeling the flames soothe the pain in his body.

It wasn't until the next morning that Lude rose from the coal pile, now burned pale gray.