"Although there are still members remaining, there are only two on rotation, who can only handle minor daily ailments. They can't save someone who's really courting death. All teaching and experimental activities within the academy have been suspended, including those graduation projects that might involve danger. In short, if any of the students remaining in the academy act recklessly now, they will be truly dead unless they have a means of resurrection."
He shrugged, completely unaware that he had almost killed himself.
"In addition, it seems that the little princess has been called back to her family, so the research institute is now unusually quiet."
"It seems you can finally focus on your studies."
Ale suddenly sighed: "Yes, but you just rejected half of it."
So researching those hunting dogs was also part of your project?! Only half of it! I can't even imagine what dangerous species the other half might be!
After a few casual words, I eventually steered the conversation back to the purpose of my trip to see him.
“So Hiro went to the Sacred Tree Stronghold too… He didn’t even tell me, that’s really his style.” Taking the glasses from Gulu, he wiped them repeatedly before adjusting their position on his nose. Arlie looked thoughtfully at the picture book in his hand. “However, about the Chimera…” He was silent for a long time before shaking his head. “I can’t say.”
"Didn't you also succumb to temptation and research related content? Although you were stopped in time after the academy discovered it."
I randomly found a reasonably spacious table to sit down, and looking at Ale, who was surrounded by a group of monsters that looked like long-eared kittens, I couldn't help but move further away.
Although they look cute, these guys always remind me of some less pleasant things, such as decapitation, dismemberment, and piercing. In short, I can hardly find any other kind of terrifying memories besides terrible and horrible.
“But you should also know that those memories have been sealed away by the academy.” Yare tapped his head lightly. “I can’t just touch the seal, otherwise, at best I’ll be brainwashed, at worst I’ll be directly…”
As he spoke, he raised his hand across his neck and forcefully slashed to the side. I could almost see vibrant colors escaping rapidly from the cut, followed by the large head rolling off with a thud, tumbling helplessly a few times before finally stopping at my feet, its face still bearing the familiar expression as it lay upside down.
Fortunately, the hallucination quickly subsided, and Arie's head remained perfectly in place on his neck, with no visible injury to the skin of his throat.
I remained silent.
From the academy's perspective, for forbidden entities, regardless of their true form—whether experimental records or mere memories—it is perfectly normal to completely erase them from the world unless one's abilities are currently insufficient.
Arree was one of the few participants in the incident who was allowed to keep his life after multiple rulings. This may be partly because his mind was manipulated and controlled by someone, rather than acting on his own initiative, and partly because his involvement was not deep, and the little knowledge he had stored in his mind could be completely removed from the influence simply by sealing it away.
I certainly wouldn't risk my friend's life being threatened again just because of some speculation.
What I need is his wisdom.
Even without knowledge related to chimeras, he is still an expert in the field, even more familiar and knowledgeable than his mentor who supervises him.
“That’s not what I need,” I said bluntly. “What I need is your assessment and speculation, as a scholar who focuses on studying monster ecology, regarding any potential doubts about this matter.”
He seemed somewhat interested, put down the booklet, turned to me, and gently pushed up his glasses: "Go on."
I thought for a few seconds before uttering the words I had been carefully considering: "First of all, there shouldn't be any abnormalities in the beast tide fluctuations of recent years, right?"
“No, they’re all around the average, and in the last two years, the numbers have even been lower than they were more than a decade ago,” Arie said without hesitation. “The gloom in the peripheral areas has also lessened a lot as a result; otherwise, no one would dare to organize and send out extermination teams to check the situation inside. Doing that during the peak season for monster activity would be practically suicide.”
I nodded: "Secondly, I need to confirm that the chimera is a man-made monster, and that monsters are born from ordinary creatures infected by a substance that spreads from the gray area, and then gestated over a period of time, right?"
"If you're referring to the outskirts, then that's correct."
Arlie answered just as earnestly: "However, the closer you get to the inner area, the more diverse the ways in which monsters are born and gestate. The dark curtains that you see everywhere after entering also have the potential to breed monsters. Although it is slow, it is still something we must be wary of. This is one of the reasons why we strive to purify the land and environment during each large-scale cleanup, because this can effectively eliminate a part of the source of monster production."
"However, the cleanup team that infiltrated the center again last year reported back on further exploration of the Dark Zone. They discovered that near the presumed point of impact of the Black Tide, there exist some creatures whose true nature we have never been able to identify. It is certain that these creatures could not have been conceived in a normal material plane, and their behavior and ecological habits are beyond our comprehension. In addition, they all carry a small amount of abyssal aura, which raises their danger level several notches."
It even involves the abyss?
I was taken aback: "Those creatures can also escape from the restricted area?"
If so, the shocks that follow will be terrible.
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