A Returner’s Magic Should Be Special - Chapter 132

Chapter 132

RMSBS - Episode 132 . The Alchemist’s Unspoken Desire (3)

Pureus was exuberantly talking to someone else in the musty basement .

“Now that we’ve got our hands on the hardest material to obtain, it won’t take us too long to reach our goal . ”

An archaic piece of magical paraphernalia lit up the basement .  

[“This marks the end of the long, long period of time we have spent on this research . ”]

The voice heard through the magic equipment was so loud and heavily distorted that it was barely discernible . However, considering the distance between the two was so large, the sound quality could be considered very good .

“It’s all because you have done your best to assist me . I didn’t receive this much support, even when I served as a professor . I never imagined I could perform this kind of experiment . ”

[“How do you feel about going against God’s will?”]

“It’s refreshing . ” 

Pureus smiled as his face exuded unbridled joy .  

“I feel so refreshed! It doesn’t even feel like my feet are on the ground right now . It’s as if I’m flying! Of course, it’s not because the long period of hard work I have poured into this research has finally been rewarded . And it’s certainly not from some naive sense of pride in achieving the desire of all great alchemists . It’s because of the ecstasy of revenge! I can now finally crush the prideful Alchemy Society!”

[“Don’t relax just yet . Do your best until you have completed this research, oh Great Seeker of Eternal Life, Pureus . ”]

The voice conveyed its intentions slowly but clearly .

[“As promised, your research will be published under your name across the Kingdom . You will be the best alchemist on the continent . Every alchemist in the world . No . Every human in the world, will look up to you . ”]

“It’s a great honor . ”

The communication was terminated .

“Hihihi . ”

Pureus giggled before closing his eyes . He couldn’t suppress the rapturous smile that crept onto his face .

‘I am closer than anyone else to the most essential truth . ’

He grinned . Just the thought of it made his heart burn blazing hot .  

Eternal Life .

The unobtainable, sought after by the kings and philosophers of legend; a life that continues forever .

An act contrary to the natural providence set by nature, and an ability that has proved capable of eluding even the greatest of minds .

“It’s almost over . I’m almost there . ”

How many years have I invested in this research? It was not enough to describe it as a lifetime after entering alchemy .

Achieving my wish is just around the corner . There was no possibility of failure now . It was theoretically perfect .

I only need just a little bit of material to complete my research nicely . Just an ever so small amount .

‘A little bit from some Wizards . ’

It was a material that he couldn’t lay his hands on for such a long time . The location he had setup in was well placed to avoid the eyes of investigators, due to its remoteness . On the other hand, discovering talented wizards to use had been more difficult than plucking a star from the sky .

The discovery of a human being who possesses even just one magical circle was an utterly fortuitous event . Most of the talented wizards left early for the Empire’s Hebrion Academy or other such prestigious institutions .

‘I’m so lucky . The materials came to me by themselves . ’

Wizards that have reached the Third-Circle are typically wizards with the potential to still grow further . At first he was convinced that they were investigators, so he was very wary of them . However, that turned out to be nothing more than a delusion of his .

Pureus almost cheered as he watched them accepting his favor without doubt . He wanted to capture them right away and use them as materials, but he held himself back again and again . He could not afford to ruin this golden opportunity .

After waiting for them to fall asleep, Pureus released the Chimera to hunt them down .

‘They will be used as honored material vital in approaching greater truths . ’

They would be happy to serve a greater purpose . He truly felt this from the bottom of his heart . Just as he thought that this was the end… 

[Chimera Unit 1 has been destroyed]

Alarms sounded from the sensor attuned to the biometrics of the Chimeras .

“What?”

Unit 1 was a Chimera he had poured his heart and soul into making . Even though it was one of the first Chimeras he had made, and thus one of the weakest, it was strong enough to easily slaughter Third-Circle wizards . He had sent this Chimera to retrieve the valuable samples from the male mage .

This immediately raised some questions . How did the male wizard react to this raid when he should have been fast asleep?

There was only one answer .

‘He was on guard . ’

[Chimera Unit 2 has been destroyed]

Even the second one sent to the woman’s bedroom had been destroyed . And not long after, Unit 3, the perfect Chimera, had also been destroyed .

“…”

Unit 3 was the most powerful Chimera he had ever produced . A very powerful Chimera made as a result of several coincidences . It was a Chimera that had power comparable to a knight of the Empire .

What was supposed to be simple prey had instead proved capable of easily slaughtering even his perfect Chimera, like plucking weeds from a garden . Pureus couldn’t believe the situation he found himself in .

Rather, he remained skeptical of the situation he found himself in . The fact that his Chimera had been destroyed by wizards at the Third-Circle was something that his pride could not handle .

But reality would not suffer anyone’s delusions of grandeur . Now that even the third Chimera, his magnum opus, had been destroyed, there were no Chimeras able to stop them .

[Chimera Unit 4 has been destroyed]

[“Shit!”]

Pureus slammed his desk . A flask near the edge of it fell on to the floor .

“Chimeras aren’t disposable like pawns!”

He prepared these Chimeras with his heart and soul, to fight back in the event investigators decided to march troops on his laboratory . They were not supposed to be consumed in vain .

“No, I should not panic just yet . ”

If he wanted to judge the situation objectively, he needed to swallow his pride .

He knew they were mercenaries at the commerce organization, but he wrote off their potential as threats due to their age . He hated to admit it, but he misjudged their skills completely . They were some of the most talented people he had ever seen .

He had a strong sense of foreboding that something had gone wrong . It felt like he had touched something that he shouldn’t have .

The two were approaching his own lab at a normal walking pace, hardly slowed down by the Chimeras that were supposed to kill them . The situation had been completely overturned, and he was now in the position of the hunted instead of the hunter .

“This is dangerous . Really dangerous . ”

Pureus began to bite his nails . It was a bad habit of his that reared its head when he was nervous .  

His happiness from finally completing his research had been completely shattered . His eyes had even begun trembling as he looked at his trump card . He didn’t dare play it… but he was starting to feel a bit desperate .

Pureus sighed . Although it was incomplete, there was nothing else he could think of to regain control of this situation now .  

He decided to play his last card .

* * *

“It’s not easy, dealing with two at the same time . ”

Desir and Romantica, who had just killed the two Chimeras guarding the lab, opened the door and entered the room .

The lab was cold and dark .

[Light]

The spell light illuminated their surroundings .

There was no sign of Pureus . Desir spoke, as if already expecting this turn of events .

“There must be a secret passage . Romantica, use magic to search for any crevices with airflow . ”

For wizards specializing in wind magic, like Romantica, finding hidden passageways was something like an inherent trait .

*Whoosh*

A gust of wind swept through the lab, and Romantica pointed at the closet .

“It’s down here . ”

A simple security device was installed, but Desir dispelled it within the blink of an eye . As Desir brushed the security system to the side and pushed the closet out of his way, stairs that descended into darkness were revealed .

They walked down the stairs . Romantica and Desir were alert and ready to use magic at any sign of danger .

They soon entered an open room that was incredibly spacious and dreary . Even Desir wasn’t expecting there to be this much space in the basement of the mansion .

Even more surprising was that the underground facilities he could see were of such superior quality that they could not be thought of as being from a lab built 100 years ago . They did not lag behind modern facilities in the slightest .

As they looked around, a voice emanated from somewhere close .

“… Who-Who’s there… ?”

There was a mixture of fear in the man’s trembling voice . Desir judged that he was not an enemy .

“We’re the wizards who came here to kill the alchemist . ”

“You’re here to slay the fucking alchemist!?”

Hearing Desir’s motive, the man shouted desperately .

“Please save me! I’m over here!”

The voice was heard from inside a black glass wall that lined both sides of the corridor .

“Are you in the glass wall?”

“Yes . There’s a button on the wall . When you press it, a glass door will open . ”

Just as he said it would, the glass door opened after Desir pressed the button . What then appeared was a man tied to a clamp .

“… !”

Romantica let out a small scream out of shock .

The man was in terrible shape .

His arms were blackened like coal, half of his face was covered with severe wrinkles .  

Seemingly undernourished, the body was severely thin . He was barely alive .

Desir checked for traps in the room with detection magic before approaching the man .

[Ice Cutter]

The blade made of ice broke the iron bars and cut off the shackles that bound the limbs of the man .

“Thank you very much . I thought I’d die like this . ”

Tears streamed from the man’s eyes .

“It’s okay now . ”

Romantica and Desir closely inspected the wounds on his body, comforting the man .

“Desir, this is… ”

Although his skin was terribly disfigured, some of the wounds adorning his body looked like small puncture marks left by syringes . It was fairly obvious that the man had been turned into a human test dummy, pumped full of various alchemical fluids and subjected to all kinds of harm .

“Were human experiments conducted here?”

Desir asked in a heavy voice .

Judging from the condition of the man’s body and his mental state, he’d clearly been through extensive physical abuse .

“Yes, I went to the mansion to see the lord, but at one point I suddenly passed out . When I opened my eyes and I found myself here . I’ve had a hell of a life since that day . ”

The man quivered, recalling what had happened .

“The Alchemist injected us with drugs and observed us . He’s the devil incarnate . ”

“Us?”

Romantica’s face turned pale .

“Are you saying there are more people in here?”

“I don’t know how many people there are, but with all the screaming I heard, quite a few people must have been captured like me . ”

“…”

Desir thought for a moment before turning towards Romantica .

“Romantica, take this man and the rest of the survivors to the surface . In the meantime, I’ll deal with the Alchemist . ”

“Desir!”

Romantica tried to stop Desir, but Desir had decided on the best course of action and would not be easily dissuaded .

“We need to divide our roles . There’s a Chimera out there that we haven’t dealt with yet, and we need someone to protect the survivors from it . Besides, if the Chimera comes in here, I’ll be in trouble . ”

“Let’s do it together . ”

“We are not yet sure what Pureus will do in the meantime . I’ll stop him, so kill the Chimera as soon as possible and come help me . Is that okay?”

Someone had to do it .

“… Okay . ”

She had no choice . Romantica supported the man and left to find the remaining survivors .

After Romantica left, Desir walked down the hallway and looked at the writing someone had handwritten on the glass wall with some kind of pen .

Woman in her 40s . X

Man in his 40s . X

Woman in her 50s . X

Man in his 50s . X

… … 

…

Inside one of the rooms marked with an X, a dead and dissected body was visible on the lab table .

Desir realized what the X sign means .

It was a sign of death .

They had been cruelly treated as test subjects and then died miserably .

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