Chapter 14 - 14

Anger 14: 14.

Anger “Are you sure?

As I’ve said before, they exhibit a certain aggressiveness towards the living.”

“No matter, even if they are somewhat aggressive, their physical condition no longer allows them to engage in any strenuous activities.”

Mr.

Fisher looked at the nearly disassembled skeletons in the cells; if these people were still alive, it was a miracle given their minimal sustenance over the long term.

Seeing Mr.

Fisher’s desire to enter, Keken eventually let the soldiers open the gate of the cell and passed him a torch, intending to go in with Mr.

Fisher.

“Actually, you can stay outside; I can go in by myself.”

Keken smiled,

“No worries, I can provide illumination with the torch, and answer any queries you might have on the spot.”

Mr.

Fisher nodded and stepped into the dark and damp cell.

Sensing the entry of a living person, the patients in the cells struggled to rise, but their frail bodies couldn’t move an inch.

They just writhed in place, staring at Mr.

Fisher with their bulging eyes.

A few patients, who had been in the cell for a shorter time and were still somewhat robust, struggled to crawl toward Mr.

Fisher and reached out their hands in madness, but even so, they barely moved a step or two before running out of strength, only managing to roar helplessly in place.

“Have their identities been confirmed?”

Mr.

Fisher squatted beside an immobile patient.

It was only when the torch was brought close that he saw the dried blue substance on the patient’s face.

Just as Keken had said, the blue liquid had seeped out of the patient’s body.

“Ah, this…

this is a bit complicated.

These people come from all walks of life: farmers out in the fields, hunters, merchants from Schwali, and female servants who were traveling…

They don’t seem to have anything in common.

Moreover, according to descriptions from their friends and family, they didn’t visit the same places.

In fact, many of them fell ill without ever leaving their homes.”

The more Mr.

Fisher listened, the deeper his brow furrowed, finding the details Keken described increasingly mysterious.

If there were no commonalities, what could be causing the disease?

“The Western Continent hasn’t had a corresponding disease before, right, Mr.

Fisher?” Keken crouched down, holding the torch, and spoke to Mr.

Fisher, “If you’re interested, you could include them in your new paper.

Mad Blue Disease is just a name I made up.

How about calling it Fisher’s Mad Blue Disease?”

Mr.

Fisher was somewhat bemused,

“It’s not me who’s sick, why use my name for it?”

Keken laughed too, and the torch flickered slightly, shifting the light in such a way that Mr.

Fisher just caught sight of the patient’s somewhat blackened blood vessels.

Something wasn’t quite right.

Mr.

Fisher seemed to have discovered something and borrowed a knife from a nearby soldier.

He made a small cut on the patient’s withered skin, and as they groaned numbly in pain, a blue, viscous liquid slid out of the wound and dripped onto the floor.

“Wait, is that blue liquid their blood?”

Keken also noticed this, Mr.

Fisher had earlier realized that something was off with their body color; he had thought it was due to insufficient nutrition, but it turned out that all the blood in their bodies had turned blue.

The blood vessels and bodily functions seemed unaffected, with no other abnormalities except the blood turning blue.

If that was the case, what about the Magic Circuit?

Mr.

Fisher suddenly thought of this.

Every human has a complete Magic Circuit within their body, though unlike demi-humans like witches, a human’s Magic Circuit comprises only a small part of the body.

The academic community is still hotly debating the reasons behind the formation of Magic Circuits.

There are two mainstream views: one is that the Magic Circuit is a much finer biological structure that cannot be observed due to the limited technology, so humans cannot see them with the naked eye and can only sense their presence; the other view is that the Magic Circuit is an entity independent of human biology, and its perceptibility is due to its origin from a deeper existence, such as the “soul.”

This line of thought flashed through Mr.

Fisher’s mind, and he suddenly held up his hand cane.

At the end of the cane, a light halo with intricate engravings lit up and gently touched the patient’s skin.

But in the next moment, the full glow of the magic light disappeared without a trace upon contact with the patient’s body, causing Mr.

Fisher’s expression to change slightly.

“Mr.

Fisher, what is this?”

Hearing Keken’s puzzlement, Mr.

Fisher didn’t speak but merely touched the glowing hand cane to Keken’s trousers.

This time the light from the cane followed a winding but complete path up Keken’s body.

Then the light circled inside his body and returned to Mr.

Fisher’s hand cane.

“Oh…”

Keken breathed a comfortable sigh and when he opened his eyes again, the haze from the alcohol had completely disappeared, “Is this…

Healing Magic?”

Mr.

Fisher nodded, his expression turning extremely grave,

“The Magic Circuits in these patients have disappeared.”

“Gone…

disappeared?”

Keken was almost shocked speechless.

Humanity had not yet understood the formation of Magic Circuits, nor had they managed to observe the presence of Magic Circuits using non-magical means; yet now, right before their eyes, there was a disease that could completely strip away a human’s Magic Circuits.

And the reason Mr.

Fisher had never encountered such a disease was that they had never come across a case where Magic Circuits had disappeared, nor did they know what would happen to a human without Magic Circuits.

“If those Forbidden Magic Scholars of Schwali knew about this, it would definitely shatter their worldview.”

After a silence, Keken muttered to himself.

The Forbidden Magic Scholars of Schwali are an academic faction in the scholarly world, who, based on the view that using magic imposes a burden on the body, claim that magic is an action that consumes life, which has led to many viewpoints on the uselessness of Magic Circuits.

Mr.

Fisher stood up and said to Keken,

“The conditions here are too rudimentary, I’ll take some samples back to Saint Nali for a closer look.

If I come to any conclusions, I’ll contact you immediately.”

Keken glanced at the simple surroundings and knew that even Fisher wouldn’t be able to come to an immediate conclusion here.

After collecting some of their blue blood and checking their Magic Circuit status with his handcane, Fisher prepared to take his leave from Keken temporarily.

“Are you only staying here for one day?”

As they reached the bottom of the prison building, Keken still felt some regret, “Why don’t you stay a few more days?

I heard that the Kexie Ning Circus is currently touring the South Continent, and I was planning to go see it.”

Faced with Keken’s invitation, Fisher smiled.

After all, he had just brought Rafael and the others out from Kexie Ning, and he wondered if that circus master named Colin would be scared enough to run away upon seeing him again.

“Let’s not, I still have other important matters to attend to,” he glanced at Rafael, who was looking in a certain direction, “If there’s a chance, invite me to the opera house after returning to Saint Nali.”

“The Black Mamba Palace would be more suitable.”

He smiled like a gentleman; the Black Mamba Palace was a prestigious restaurant in Saint Nali, famous for Black Mamba Wine.

Previously, it was exclusively for the Royal Family’s enjoyment, only becoming available to the public after the Council’s reform, although it was expensive indeed.

Fisher nodded, bid farewell to Keken, who was boarding the carriage, and then deliberately walked down the street that sold demi-human slaves.

Rafael followed silently behind him.

Despite the lively atmosphere on the street, the air between them turned eerily silent, like a heavy pool of water.

“Take a look at my goods, passersby, gentlemen — werewolves that guard homes and precious Dragon-man Species with blood and scales that are valuable treasures!”

Fisher glanced at the trembling young Dragon-man Species in the cage, paused slightly as if waiting for something, but after a second or two, the silence remained.

He pinched his hat and continued walking towards the Horse Parking, cane in hand.

Rafael behind him looked at the slaves of the Dragon-man Species in the cages, clenching her fists till her claws dug in, her tail’s tip tied in a small swirl — anyone familiar with the Dragon-man Species would recognize this as a prelude to an outburst.

“Go on, get out of here, Dragon-man Species slave; move away, don’t block the road here.”

Perhaps Rafael had stood in front of the cage for too long, the bandaged Hunter clicked his tongue and waved at her like shooing away a fly.

She just lowered her head, steam beginning to emit from her clothes, frightening the Hunter who instinctively stepped back.

“You damn…

Where is your master?

Why let such a beast roam the streets!”

“Rafael…”

Rafael’s body stiffened, she twisted her head stiffly only to see Fisher looking sideways at her, speaking softly.

She understood the meaning behind Fisher’s words; the game belonged to the two of them.

If she dared to strike at other humans, the game would no longer continue, and then Lar and the others…

Rafael gritted her teeth as if she wanted to shatter them, bowed her head in silence, and even the haunting steam began to slowly abate.

“Ha…

your damn master finally knows the trouble you mad dogs cause running around, stay away from me, or I’ll call the soldiers to take that damn bastard away!”

Watching this scene, the frightened slave trader next to him seemed to see her bound by a slave Seal, his expression turning to anger, and he pointed at Rafael and yelled.

Although Rafael couldn’t understand human language, she saw clear disgust in the Hunter’s face.

Damn damn damn damn damn damn!!

Damn humans!

Damn!!

“Roar!!”

The steam on her body exploded, scalding the nearby slave trader and sending him flying.

She could no longer contain herself, her clawed hands spread like five blades, her pupils contracted sharply, and she charged towards the tall, back-turned figure of Fisher.

The rage in her heart seemed to burn her body to ashes, the whistling steam on her body caused passersby to retreat in fear, lest they were hurt by the enraged Dragon-man.

Yet the gentleman directly in Rafael’s view still didn’t move.

Fisher only looked back slightly towards her, his left hand on his hat brim.

Under the pure black edge of the hat, his eyes were chillingly cold.