S~c~e~n~t~ (Please keep reading!)

Huh?

Hmm.

Hmm...

Harmonic God-chan was first bewildered, then hesitant, and finally confused... Only after a long while did the deity venture a question:

["Um, when you say scent, do you mean... uh, you sniffed her?"]

"No."

Herbert rolled his eyes and answered irritably, "I meant the scent on me."

You're the pervert with a smell fetish!

Your whole family is!

"Judging by the reactions of Valentina and the others, I seem to give off a very attractive scent. Let's call it a fragrance for now."

"A natural affinity, plus an alluring fragrance-with those two reinforcing each other, I refuse to believe she'd have no reaction at all."

These two traits weren't as simple as one plus one. Together, they could absolutely turn quantity into quality, delivering a powerful visual and olfactory impact on any Magical Beast girl meeting him for the first time.

Whether Herbert's confidence came from having the facts at hand or from a naive narcissism that blinded him to reality, he was utterly certain of this.

No Magical Beast girl could resist a handsome, white-haired boy.

I'm not saying she has to lust after my body right away, but she shouldn't be this cold!

["Oh... you do have a point. Those two traits really are quite attractive."]

"And besides, coming back to that..."

After speaking, Herbert instinctively sniffed lightly, but detected no scent whatsoever from the figure before him.

"She really doesn't have any scent either... hmm, ahem, just pretend I didn't say anything."

Ah, crap.

Well, this is awkward, isn't it?

At that moment, the Harmonic God fell silent for once.

After a long silence, the deity offered some sincere advice: ["I think... there's something a little strange about you."]

["Perhaps you should see a doctor first?"]

"Oh, shoo-"

Herbert huffed angrily.

If I really did see a doctor, care to guess what the biggest thing wrong with me would be?

You!

Herbert was about to keep arguing, but his eyes narrowed.

They had reached the end of the stairs.

The avatar ahead had silently dissipated, leaving only a wooden door standing ajar. A gentle push would be enough to open it.

Herbert paused for three seconds, then gave a mocking laugh. "Heh. Still playing mysterious at this point?"

We've come this far, and you're still playing these little games?

You think I'll back out now?

He snorted, strode forward, pushed the door open, and walked in with his head held high.

Creak-

"Hello! I've come to see you... urgh!"

The instant Herbert entered the room, before he could even make out its interior, his expression changed sharply.

A foul stench rushed into his nostrils!

The air was thick with the stench of all kinds of rotting meat.

The intense, almost burning stink poured into his body all at once through his nose, mouth, ears, and eyes.

Hiss-

Herbert thought he even heard an ominous sound of corrosion, though he had no idea what part of him was rotting away.

He forced his eyes open and saw the room's interior-it was practically a slaughterhouse.

No, a slaughterhouse was far too civilized a comparison.

It was a mass grave!

All kinds of rotting corpses lay strewn across the floor, some stitched together into grotesque configurations.

Scarlet vines coiled around the bodies, slowly rubbing against them as though chewing.

Holy shit!!?

What kind of lair of the Plague Father is this?!

An intense wave of nausea surged through Herbert, making him want to retch.

But just as he was about to become a spewing fountain of vomit, the Holy Mark on the back of his hand glowed faintly.

Hum-

A warm current coursed swiftly through his body, and every trace of discomfort vanished in an instant!

!!!

Herbert's eyes widened. He could hardly believe what he was feeling.

He could still see the dismembered remains before him, but he could no longer smell that stench.

Or rather, although he breathed those odors in, he couldn't perceive them at all, nor did they affect him in any way.

"Keeping the body pure and unchanged-that's a kind of purity too... This is so useful."

If he extrapolated from this discovery, did that mean-he might be immune to poison?

Praise the oath of purity!

Folks, this really is overpowered, isn't it?

After marveling inwardly for a moment, Herbert set off, stepping over the scattered chunks of flesh as he headed toward the center of the mass grave.

At the center of this place of rot and decay was a patch of clean ground, occupied by a massive wooden table.

Or rather, an operating table.

And the person lying facedown on that operating table, her upper body bare, was none other than Svanney, whom he had just met!

"Sir Herbert, you've arrived."

Svanney did not get up. She controlled the vine tendrils as they slid gently over her back, spraying green liquid that melded the severed flesh on both sides together without leaving a single wound.

At that moment, Herbert couldn't help recalling her title-the [Forbidden Scholar]!

This lady really does dabble in sanity-draining research!

"Yes, I'm here."

Herbert answered casually and walked slowly up beside the operating table, studying the prisoner's true body.

Although the dark elf's true body had the same features as her avatar, there were obvious differences.

The first thing that caught his eye was her skin color.

Although her skin still bore the dark complexion of a dark elf, it was much lighter than before, with a distinctive wheat-colored hue.

And, most importantly...

She looked much younger than before, seemingly only eighteen or nineteen, as though she had yet to fully grow up.

Herbert blinked and couldn't help asking, "Lady Svanney, why do you look like this?"

Trying to look younger?

Uh, no, taking good care of herself?

Of course, Svanney knew what he meant. She answered casually, "It was merely an accident during an experiment. The avatar you saw earlier showed my original appearance."

"Oh, I was just a little surprised. Whichever appearance you take, your beauty remains unchanged."

Svanney draped her clothes over herself and sat up, no longer exposing any skin, then studied the first visitor to enter this space.

"You, on the other hand, have surprised me again."

Svanney looked at Herbert's unruffled expression with some astonishment and shook her head. "No one has ever seen this scene and remained as calm as you."

She knew exactly how gruesome her laboratory was, so she naturally understood how difficult it was for Herbert to remain composed.

Looking at Herbert, she couldn't help remarking, "Sir Herbert, your courage and willpower truly inspire my admiration."

Herbert blinked at her words, then understood. He smiled faintly and shook his head.

"It's nothing. Most researchers who devote their efforts to seeking the truth deserve respect."

"Even if their research sometimes looks a little, well, not quite so... reassuring."

"But as long as they don't harm others or cross any real lines, I don't consider them evil."

Herbert narrowed his eyes as he watched Svanney. Although she stood amid corpses, he couldn't sense any evil from her at all.

"Wouldn't you... agree?"