Chapter Seventy-One
This was abnormal, Karl thought with absolute certainty. This was beyond his comprehension; after all, he had never seen anything like it that could cause problems.
He poured out one of them, crushed it with his hands to check its composition, and used his technique of infusing holy magic to induce an adverse reaction to determine the magical power within it.
A small amount of ordered magic, catalyzing plants. A compressed alchemical matrix. Plus, some remnants of the plant.
If I remember correctly, it was probably an old root, with fish bones and wax oil used as additives. As far as alchemy is concerned, it obviously has a sufficient amount of technology to support it.
There are no problems at all; at least this bottle is perfectly fine.
"Is what he eats any different from this?" Carl asked casually.
"No, they're all from the same bottle." The shop owner hesitated before asking, "My son...?"
“Theoretically, he should have died long ago,” Karl said without hesitation. “If he had been seriously injured outside, depending on the level of chaos outside, the corrupting power of chaos would have entered his body after three hours, and the wound would have turned into black sores after six hours. When did you bring him back?”
"About... eight hours."
"It's a miracle you're still alive. You must have gone into a final coma back then. Even if I were here, I couldn't have saved the child." Carlton paused and said, "But you still brought him back, and he didn't turn into a disgusting monster. You gave him a large amount of this stuff, and he became the grotesque figure before you, didn't you?"
The boss nodded. He roughly knew that his child had no chance of survival, but when the confirmation was spoken, he still felt so sad that he wanted to cry.
“I don’t know what he went through,” Carlton paused and said, “but the child is still alive, and I don’t know if he’s become a monster. But he shouldn’t be dead.”
"Sir, you mean...?"
“I will do my best to wake him up, but let me make this clear first: if it is a monster that wakes up, I will kill it without hesitation.” As Karl spoke, he slowly knelt down beside the bed, took the crucifix from his neck and placed it on the child’s chest.
Lori stood beside her, her hands clasped together in front of her, looking as if she were praying. She couldn't offer any help, so she could only pray from the sidelines.
Suddenly, a scream of agony emanated from the boy's throat, a desperate sound like a demon from hell falling into lava, sending chills down one's spine.
"Sir, what is this?" The boss trembled all over, because he saw... he saw his child's heart suddenly light up. Golden light emanated from his chest, so much so that the bright light could be seen even outside the chest.
Carl remained expressionless and slowly stood up.
The flowers and vines went berserk, trying to entwine themselves around Karl. But the moment they touched him, they would crumble and fall apart. For some reason, Karl now prevented them from getting close; even the simplest touch would reduce them to ashes.
“That’s all I can do,” Carl said softly. “Don’t touch the cross. Grab a weapon you’re comfortable with. A stick will do. If he attacks after he wakes up, don’t hold back.”
"He's my child, how can I not be lenient?"
“That’s just a monster, he’s not your son.” Carl had already reached the door. “I’ve done what I could, Lori, come with me. We should go.”
......
"Will that child survive?" Lori asked with some concern.
"Maybe, it's a miracle he's still alive." Carlton paused and said, "We need to get going now."
As he said this, he suddenly picked Lori up horizontally, and she gasped and wrapped her arms around Carl's neck.
“Someone’s watching us around here; we’re being followed,” Carl explained simply. “I don’t know where, but we should go, maybe we should run.”
He had done what he could, supporting himself by channeling his holy power into his heart, and then allowing that power to flow through his veins and blood vessels to purify the magic within his body.
In theory, no matter how much magic is in the blood vessels, it will be eliminated by this domineering cleansing method.
He was supposed to wait for the child to wake up, but he suddenly realized that someone was following him.
That's why he left in such a hurry.
This is a residential area with an extremely high population density. However, it is surprisingly clean because it wasn't built using the methods of rural cities; the metal buildings and roads make it easy to clean.
I also saw alchemical golems, used for cleaning. This shows that the administrators here are consciously working to improve the living environment for ordinary people.
If war breaks out here, Karl will definitely cause a massive disaster. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Ketch will likely classify him as one of the fallen heroes.
Furthermore, there are no clergy in this city, and if they spread the news that a priest has been found here, along with a demon, then it's uncertain whether Karl will survive the days that follow.
He only stopped when he could no longer sense the strange aura.
"It's safe now," he said. "Let's get down and go together..."
"Can you hold me a little longer?" Lori whispered. Karl was stunned for a moment, then looked down and saw the child nestled in his arms, her face flushed.
Could it be... because it's too cold? Karl wondered hesitantly, looking at the blush on her face. Her face was all red from the cold.
That's true, though. Her clothes did look a bit thin. They were nice, but far too light for the city. She didn't seem to be cold, so Karl assumed she wasn't bothered by temperature changes.
Because the different people in this team have completely different tolerance levels for temperature, Karl and Deedri don't feel cold at all. Denos and Ghost Lord are considered mortals; the former has his own ways of resisting the cold, while Ghost Lord can only wear more clothes. Lady seems to be afraid of the cold as well, but Ark doesn't seem to be.
Those three monsters must not be afraid of the cold, otherwise they would have shown it long ago.
Perhaps we should find a place nearby to rest, at least to keep the child warm. Thinking this, Karl's nose twitched, and he frowned as he looked at the house in the corner, its door tightly shut, even the windows were closed.
It's not warm here, so there's nothing wrong with doing this. But it's unreasonable to be able to smell something strange inside.
It smells like medicine being brewed; it's a wizard.
Carl quickly came to the conclusion that it might be related to that drug.
But Lori in my arms looks very cold right now, so it would be a better choice to come back tomorrow.
Lori didn't get down from his arms until they were back in their hotel room.
"Are you feeling unwell?" Carl asked, looking at Lori who was standing on the ground.
Lori's exact height is 1.4 meters, while Karl's height is about 1.8 meters. The nearly 40-centimeter height difference means that when she stands, she only reaches Karl's chest, just the right height to be able to lean against him and listen to his heartbeat.
"Hmm." Lori's face was still a little red, and she shook her head vigorously: "Um, I'm going to take a shower first."
As she said this, she rushed into the bathroom. Karl felt a little confused, but he got used to it.
Even in the same place, girls are definitely the kind of people who really enjoy taking baths. They seem to be completely unable to tolerate even the slightest bit of dirt on their bodies.
There was only one bed in the room, and it was the only room on that floor with such a large bed. So it was given to them. Karl didn't think this would be misunderstood; as a believer in God, he had a clear conscience. He wasn't a pervert who was interested in children, and he knew that very well. So as long as his thoughts remained unchanged, there was no need to explain himself to anyone.
Carl leaned against the corner between the bed and the wall, starting to write in his notes. After all, he had plenty of time to organize them today.
However, it seems inappropriate for men and women to share a bed, but Karl himself didn't find anything strange about it. As a believer in God, his integrity was comparable to metal. Even if that were the case, he wouldn't do anything obscene; that would violate his creed.
In addition, Lori was willing to lie in the same bed with him in the first place, because when they lived in the same place, they were in separate rooms at first, until he woke up and found this guy lying next to her with a pillow.
However, to avoid physical contact, he sewed her a rabbit-patterned nightgown. He himself was used to sleeping in his robes, so it didn't bother him.
Thinking about this, he suddenly paused, realizing a serious problem.
That means the pajamas were obviously not with them.
By the time he thought of that, it was too late. After all, he couldn't finish a garment in such a short time.
The bathroom door was pushed open, and he watched as a girl dressed entirely in white walked out, wearing only a simple bath towel.
The bath towel was so thin that it could only be tied around her waist, and the only thing covering her upper body was her hair.
"Please don't look, I'm so embarrassed," she cried out in a short voice. The blush seemed to be spreading from her face to her whole body.
Although her whole body was already a little red because she had taken a hot shower.
Carl realized his rudeness and was about to point to the sweater next to him—the sweater that the little spider had knitted for her, which could be considered a decent choice as pajamas.
But before she realized what was happening, she had already crawled under the covers.
And it stuck to his body.
"Do I have time to take a nap now?" Lori asked, yawning.
These past few days have certainly been tough on a child, as it's been incredibly tiring.
Crossing forbidden zones is an incredibly difficult challenge for a child, even for a powerful being. Because there are places in this world that children are simply not meant to go.
But just how many things has this child seen that he shouldn't have at his age?
With that thought in mind, Karl pulled the blanket up, declaring that anything exposed about the child except his face was blasphemous. This was especially true for a priest.
He didn't want to be killed by Ketchum with tears in his eyes the next time he saw him.
If Lori wasn't lying, the child is only sixteen years old now, which means he has been awakening his powers for four years.
Like high-ranking clergy, once they are granted authority, their appearance will not change.
In that case, the child isn't actually that young. They just appear younger because there's been no interaction with them.
Or perhaps there were other reasons why he appeared so young. He suddenly felt a headache coming on and didn't want to think about it anymore.
Just as he was thinking this, Carl suddenly felt the little guy clinging to him move. When he turned his head again, he met those black eyes.
"Aren't you going to sleep?" Karl asked softly.
"Um, could you... hold me tight?"
This statement came so abruptly that Karl was taken aback, looking at her slightly flushed face.
Wait a minute, wait a minute, it seems like things have taken a wrong turn?
Lori crawled out of the covers, her whole body now in Karl's view. She slowly climbed up until she was close to the corner of the bed and the wall. Then she knelt there, looking intently into Karl's eyes.
"If it's you, then yes, that's fine." She said, biting her lip, her head lowered. "Well, I'm already an adult, sixteen is legally considered an adult... so, um..."
Carl slowly sat up, and Lori closed her eyes, waiting for something.
Then she felt herself being wrapped in something soft—a blanket. He pulled the blanket up and wrapped the child inside.
“It’s still a bit cold; you’ll easily catch a cold like this,” Carl said softly. “Get some rest; you’re tired and need to rest.”
"Um, what I wanted to say was..."
“Don’t bother with that. I promised to protect you. Not for any other reason, but simply because I see you as a normal person. As long as you don’t use your abilities, I will always protect you. I will help you if you are in danger, and I will rescue you if you are kidnapped.” Karl held Lori, who was wrapped up like a dumpling in the blanket, in his arms. He gently kissed her forehead, without any impure thoughts, like an angel bending down to kiss a person’s cheek.
Then he held her in his arms, with very little physical contact, separated by the blanket, except that her head was buried in Karl's chest.
Carl felt the girl in his arms trembling slightly, as if she were crying. He didn't say anything, didn't do anything more, just held her tightly, waiting for her to calm down.
Because there are some things that need to be clarified first, he needs to have a proper talk with the child. Things are different now than before; they need to be discussed thoroughly.
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