Chapter 246: Doubt
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Vidomina had mentioned earlier that the Duke had his 200th birthday three months ago.
That would be an astounding age to reach back on Earth, but in this universe, it was not something unprecedented. This was especially true for people who manage to earn titles like the Duke. Even if Baiyi cast aside the possibility of life-extending spells or other miraculous means, the Duke — who had made a living as a renowned martial artist — was an exceptional powerhouse himself. Baiyi deduced that the man was at least really close to Legendary-level when he was at the prime of his powers.
Another important fact was that Vidomina was born when the Duke was 185 years old. On Earth, this would have gone viral in all manner of news, but in this universe, it was simply a norm for elites and powerful people. Most of them only realize their need to pass some heritage or gene around the age of 200. There are even cases like the Scholar, who never got married, even at the ripened age of 300 years old. Of course, due to the Scholar's power cultivation, she still looked as young as a 20-year-old maiden, but for some reason, she just couldn't get herself into a relationship…
For a healthy man who had attained Legendary-level power, the Duke looked like he was around 40 years old even though his real age was 200 years or so. It would still be considered as his adult age — but the Duke was not showing any signs of equivalent vitality. His face, which was as wrinkled as an old tree bark, looked worse than the elderly dragon Yosef.
Not only that, when Baiyi was scanning the Duke with his psychic energy, he found no combat chi response from the man's body — effectively making him no different from a common man who had never practiced any martial art. All the years of power cultivation — during his times in the wars and battles — lost in the wake of a painful illness.
His body had gone way beyond the limit of restoration, it seemed. Baiyi was afraid that even the elderly who had control over the time-based secret technique would not be able to save the man.
The Fifth Walker's discussion with the Voidwalkers had been going on longer than expected. Meanwhile, Vidomina and the Duke did not make a sound to disrupt his train of thoughts; they waited patiently.
He finally raised his head. "Lord Duke, have you ever had an encounter with a demon from the Abyss?"
It was probably the same question every physician had asked, but the Duke patiently replied with the same answer, "No. I never had any contact with the demons."
'Then where could this Blood Curse have originated from?' A curse this strong required a demon to sacrifice its own soul. What event could have prompted such hatred? Killing your father in order to ascend the throne?
Baiyi initially suspected that the Duke may have made a Faustian pact in his past so that he may use their power to get to his current position as the Duke, but he had not found a single trace of such pacts in the Duke's body. And now, the man had denied any contact with any abyss demons, so how did he even end up contracting this curse?
Baiyi asked a barrage of questions: did he ever come in contact with some odd weapons? Had he ever visited an exceptionally inauspicious place? Had he ever taken a shortcut in his training?
The answers were nothing far from what a normal person would answer!
'It can't be that a depressed demon wanted someone to suffer a sort of torment after the demon itself committed suicide, right?' Baiyi shook his head at his own ridiculous conjecture. He asked again, "According to my result, your curse only started… a few years ago, yes?"
That was something else that was strange with the Duke's plight: normally, a Blood Curse would always be invoked for the aim of being passed to the victim's kin; in other words, it could eradicate the victim's offsprings and heirs, even after a very long period of time. Dying by the curse was an agonizing torment. The curse was designed to keep the victim on the line between life and death for a long period of time. When the victim grows so desperate to save themselves, they will remember that their beloved, too, will suffer the same pain and same cause of death…
This inhumane curse was designed to act very slowly so that the victim suffers a lot, but the Duke still had the strength to make a baby 15 years ago. This may mean that the curse had not yet activated back then, or else, why would he choose to suffer that much just to have Vidomina? Just this fact alone made the Duke's affliction different from all other common Blood Curses.
However, this curse was spread to every member of the Wright family! Something only a Blood Curse could do.
The paradoxes and contradictions were really messing Baiyi up.
'Huh. Now that we mentioned it…' Baiyi seemed to have found another problem, and so he waved at Vidomina and gestured her to come over.
The girl obediently loosened her grip on the Duke's hand and rushed to Baiyi. Without much actions or words, Baiyi immediately launched his psychic energy to scan her body.
"Ahh!" Vidomina cried out softly, and her beautiful face reddened all the way to her ears. Baiyi's sudden action was too crass; it was no different from being forcefully stripped.
Even then, with tears in her eyes, she still managed to endure that burning shame and stood stubbornly before him, looking like she was waiting for him to do whatever he pleased.
'Girls nowadays are exposed to way too many materials! Where do they even get this much unhealthy information from?' Baiyi shook his head and retracted his psychic energy after detecting soft traces of a curse in her body.
'Oh, but her body's secondary maturation truly is… um, amazing. How the hell can someone cultivate such a sexualized woman within a young girl's body? Man, I wish I know the secrets just so I can use them on Mia.' The wisp of an incredulous idea suddenly crossed his mind.
Just as Baiyi was going back to his discussion in the Void, Vidomina rubbed her reddened eyes. She did not return to her father's side, and instead, stood beside him, watching him in concern.
After a long while, Baiyi spoke again, "I may need a lot more time than I initially thought. Lord Duke, please, return to sleep."
"I see. Well, you do as you see fit, I'll—" The Duke did not get to finish his sentence before Baiyi knocked him out with a Hypnotizing Spell.
"Every time he is awake, he suffers. I don't want that, so I forced him to sleep," Baiyi clarified his action to the girl.
"I understand, Mentor. Thank you," she replied in a low voice.
After all, beneath the Duke's bed was a powerful hypnotizing formation. If it was not for it, he would have trouble sleeping. It was also because of that formation that the Duke had trouble waking up.
'Or maybe his body no longer wants to wake up.'
Suddenly, there was a soft rapping at the door. Then, she entered the room without anyone's response.
Even a man like Baiyi who had shown no desire so far was stunned.
This person was a goddess-like beauty draped in an aristocrat's dress. Her features rivaled the breathtaking appearance of the Fairy or the Warrior, as well as their ethereal-like countenance. She stood there silently, and her presence brightened the room. It was almost like she was the most wondrous scene that a pair of eyes could feast on.
The gloomy room seemed to have brightened up at her arrival.
"Mom!" Vidomina cried, and then with pat-pat-pat, she leaped into lady's embrace.
'Her mother, huh? No wonder Vidomina is so gorgeous. In fact, no wonder the Duke wanted a child even at the age of 200!'
Baiyi exclaimed as he enjoyed the sight of two women who resembled lilies amidst a vast range of common green, without a single impure desire.