I Woke Up from Hibernation and Found a Husband - Chapter 78

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 78
A person bearing beast ears and fangs collapsed to the ground, blood scattering in their wake. With most of the transformed monsters already vanquished, the crisis was effectively over.
‘Is this the end of the rampage?’
Yet Claire could not bring herself to celebrate.
“Damn beasts. Even these filthy Beastmen are causing chaos.”
“Could this one be among the masterminds?”
“Possibly. Nature doesn’t change, does it?”
The words directed at the dying man were harsh. Everyone’s nerves had been sharpened by the unprecedented terror attack, and personal resentment toward Beastmen only sharpened their tongues further.
“Don’t listen.”
Theodore gently grasped Claire’s wrist and guided her away. Just as she nodded numbly to the sudden wave of exhaustion and turned her gaze aside—
‘Hmm?’
Her eyes met those of the dying Beastman.
Bloodshot crimson eyes gazed at her with desperate urgency.
‘Why?’
He moved his lips as though he had something to convey, gasping soundlessly.
Claire pushed her hearing to its absolute limit, focusing intently on the shape of his mouth.
‘G… r… a… n… t.’
‘Grant? Is that someone’s name?’
Before she could think further, the man’s head fell limp.
“Inform His Majesty that the situation has been contained. And you—attend to the wounded…”
In place of the Emperor and Elliott, who had swiftly evacuated due to their lack of combat ability, Aaron remained to command the scene until the very end.
From all corners came murmurs of admiration—that Aaron possessed the qualities of a true hegemon.
“Those capable of moving, assist with the wounded!”
Claire stared at his blade, droplets of blood falling from its edge. The blood had partially cooked and blackened from the electrical current woven through it by his ability, leaving streaked stains across the steel.
Hero or slaughterer. For now, he leaned closer to the former.
‘Did our eyes truly meet?’
Though it felt like merely a fleeting glance, Claire dismissed it as her imagination and turned away.
‘A drug made from Beastman blood. Rampaging Beastmen appearing suddenly in the Imperial Palace. It would be stranger if they weren’t connected.’
Claire gazed up at the full moon. Dozens of humans had perished, yet the celestial orb above remained unchanged, serene and distant.
* * *
“The drug we mentioned. Rumors are spreading that it’s the cause.”
“The one that accelerates ability awakening.”
“Yes. The common thread among all those transformed into monsters was that potion.”
The day after the catastrophe, Claire, Kenneth, Theodore, and Ebon gathered at the Voltier Mansion in the Convent. Ebon was with them as well.
“It wasn’t only the Imperial Palace. Similar monsters appeared throughout the city. They rampaged wildly, but after a certain time passed, they turned to powder and vanished, or so they say.”
Those who crave abilities exist everywhere, regardless of station.
Nobles consumed by inferiority, lacking abilities themselves.
Commoners desperate to overturn their lives.
Humans drawn to abilities themselves, yearning for their power.
The demand for the potion spreading through the Market was born from such desires.
“The scope of this terrorist attack seems to have been limited to the Convent, with no incidents reported in other regions. But who knows what the future holds? No one can predict when something like this might happen again.”
Everyone nodded at Kenneth’s words. It had been an unprecedented crisis—one that had nearly resulted in the complete annihilation of the Empire’s most illustrious nobility.
“Is Umbra’s objective the destruction of the Empire?”
“If their only goal were destruction, it would actually be easier to prepare for.”
An organization that had operated hidden in the shadows had now begun such bold, overt activities that it had shaken the Imperial Palace itself.
Theodore recalled Gregory, who had manipulated House Voltier from behind the scenes for countless years before suddenly revealing his true nature in an instant.
‘Is it merely a matter of overthrowing the regime, or is this a signal that something has been prepared?’
He clicked his tongue in frustration. He had been constantly manipulated, and yet he knew almost nothing concrete about Umbra.
“For now, let’s investigate the Beastman. We need to prevent that creature—the breeder or whatever he is—from producing that vile drug in the first place.”
Claire, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, spoke up.
Her words weren’t spoken merely out of kinship as a fellow Beastman. Investigating the specific role of ‘breeder’ seemed more advantageous for understanding the very nature of the organization called Umbra.
And.
‘Grant.’
The dying Beastman’s murmur kept echoing in her mind.
Those eyes that had wavered until the very moment the light faded—as if pleading for Claire to recognize him.
That image kept resurfacing in her thoughts.
“Now that I think about it, that dying Beastman said something. Grant. Whether it’s someone’s name or a place name, we’ll need to investigate, but…”
“What? Grant?”
At Claire’s words, Ebon looked at her as if he had heard something unexpected.
“Do you know who that is?”
When Kenneth asked on Claire’s behalf, Ebon nodded.
“Yes, I’m not certain if it’s the same person, but the Grant I know is just one person. And he’s a Beastman.”
At those words, the gazes of the other three intersected.
A clue had been found.
* * *
Before going to find Grant, Claire and Theodore visited the Everett Estate. Ostensibly it was an invitation for a reward ceremony, but the real reason was that Ilya had indicated she had something to tell them about Ian.
“Welcome.”
Ilya, who had been waiting for them in the Reception Room, rose with a pleased expression. The refreshments on the tea table were mostly filled with the kinds of desserts Claire favored.
“Thank you for the invitation.”
“I should be thanking you first. Thank you so much for saving Jeron. By the way, that item—it wasn’t your father’s, was it?”
At her words, Claire’s expression became composed.
“You know my father?”
“Know him? I know not only your father but your mother as well. If you’re curious about the two of them before you were born, I’d be happy to tell you.”
At those words, Claire swallowed hard. Apart from Angela, these were stories about her parents she was hearing for the first time. She couldn’t help but be curious.
“Then I’d appreciate it.”
The three of them took their seats. The story began, accompanied by the sweet aroma wafting from the honey-infused milk tea.
For not everyone is a gift bestowed with an ability.
Like Rozina and Ian, there were those who were exploited because they possessed abilities, and there were also those who never wanted the ability in the first place.
Geo, the only son of Ilya Everett, belonged to the latter category.
“Mother, I hate this power.”
House Everett, one of the Empire’s four great noble families, possessed the ability of decomposition. The powerful bloodline granted Geo command of this ability, yet he was too fragile to bear an ability that bordered on death itself, one with such devastating lethality.
“Everything my hands touch simply breaks. Always.”
From childhood, Geo had been a boy who loved delicate and adorable things—small animals and plants.
The child who found purpose in cherishing and caring for fragile creatures began to crumble gradually when his ability manifested at the age of eleven.
“I’ve hurt someone again because of me.”
“It’s not your fault. You’re simply not yet accustomed to wielding your power.”
“That inexperience cost that rabbit its leg! It’s because of me!”
Geo could not control his ability. At first, he believed that with adaptation, he could live an ordinary life. But he was wrong.
“I hurt my teacher today. When he saw me, he screamed… Why is this only happening to me? Mother and Uncle both command their abilities so well—why can’t I?”
Perhaps it was the fear he harbored toward his own ability. Despite years of training, Geo could not properly control it.
The uncontrollable, devastating ability destroyed everything he held dear with such ease, and each time he felt shame and intimidation, control became even more difficult—a vicious cycle.
“Geo, why don’t you go out to the Garden today? The weather is absolutely lovely.”
“Outside?”
“Yes. We’ve made new Flower Beds, and built a new Nest—you can hear the birdsong.”
“I don’t want to go out.”
“Hmm?”
“If I don’t go out, that place will remain peaceful.”
Eventually, Geo fell ill.
As his heart darkened and sank into shadow, it was perhaps inevitable that pain would find his body as well.
“Geo, you should take some medicine. Yes?”
He remained confined to his room, waiting only for the day of his death. Perhaps if he died like this, he could end both his ability and this nightmarish existence.
Yet Ilya could not simply stand by and watch her son waste away, his breath stolen day by day.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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