My Disciples Became Scoundrels - Chapter 113

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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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“F-fuck. What the hell?!”
A panicked voice rang out. The Mage who’d shown us the way stood frozen, shifting his weight nervously from one foot to the other.
Only Bella remained unruffled. She glanced sidelong at the Mage.
“Master, is this all right?”
“Yes. I was planning to intimidate them anyway.”
“Then it should be fine.”
―Bang, bang!
After a few more strikes, the door shattered. Through the jagged opening, I could see a terrified woman.
That must be Talia. I slipped my hand through the gap and unlocked the mechanism.
The room reeked of cigarette smoke. Ashtrays scattered about were crammed full of butts.
The rest of the space matched that disorder. Papers and books lay scattered everywhere, junk piled haphazardly in the corners.
In the midst of that chaos stood Talia, hair disheveled, frozen stiff at the sight of me.
“Damn it, who are you? Here to kill me?”
Her voice trembled even as she spat out the curse. I approached her and whispered low.
“Talia, I know you’re dealing with the Blood Lord.”
Blood trafficking is illegal. Research samples are meant to be obtained only through donation, though few people follow that principle strictly.
Still, if illicit dealing is exposed, sanctions follow. Severe ones.
Talia certainly wouldn’t want that. She took a step back.
“…Who’s the Blood Lord?”
Playing dumb, then. But her expression was strange.
“If your connection to illegal organizations comes to light, it will be rather inconvenient for you.”
“Illegal organizations?”
Not denial, not feigned ignorance—something else entirely. She seemed unsure of herself, anxious.
It was different from simple fear of me. Cold sweat beaded on her forehead.
“Just give me three, thirty minutes. I only need to confirm one thing…….”
―Boom!
A powerful tremor shook through the building. Before I could process what was happening, screams erupted from outside.
“Rockstone has escaped! He’s set the Research Laboratory on fire!”
“This lunatic bastard……! Which lab?!”
“The Dual Bloodline Research Laboratory!”
At those words, Talia’s head snapped around. Her colorless face flushed crimson in an instant.
“Rockstone, you son of a bitch! You’re destroying my research?!”
Talia shoved past me and bolted toward the door. Fear had evaporated from her expression entirely.
I rushed after her. Outside was bedlam. Black smoke billowed up from below.
Mages were spraying water, but the flames outpaced them. The corridor in the meantime was packed solid with people.
“Evacuate! Don’t use the lifts!”
“We need to save the research materials! We have to use the lifts!”
Everyone was bundling things together as they fled. Some pushed large hand trucks piled high.
The crush of bodies made forward movement impossible. Talia disappeared into the crowd. Somewhere down the stairs, I guessed. But the press of people made even a single step difficult. Just as I stood trapped—

―Bang!
The gunshot froze the corridor. Everyone’s face went blank with shock.
The barrel pointed skyward. Bella’s crimson eyes glinted with lethal intensity.
“Would you all mind stepping aside?”
―Crack, bang!
After a few more shots into the air, people scattered left and right. Even without ever seeing a gun, they instinctively understood the threat.
Those who’d been cramming into the lift hesitated and glanced back at Bella.
“I’m in a bit of a hurry. Would anyone mind giving up their spot?”
“M-me!”
“How kind of you. Thank you.”
The lift emptied in seconds. Bella would make an excellent negotiator.
Thanks to her, we descended quickly. The moment we stepped out, the smell of burning hit hard.
Flames raged from all sides. Curses and shouts grew increasingly clear.
“Rockstone, you bastard! My ten years of research……!”
Beyond the blaze, I could see Talia facing off against someone—presumably Rockstone.
With fire raging all around, Rockstone was cornered. Talia held a Knife in her hand.
“You stole the research materials and couldn’t even leave without burning them? I’ll tear open your belly and see what’s inside.”
She looked ready to run him through. Cornered, Rockstone trembled violently. As Talia took another step forward, he screwed his eyes shut.
Then he hurled the Document Bundle directly into the flames. Talia’s gaze snapped toward it.
“No, not my research!”
Talia threw herself forward like a woman possessed, snatching the documents from the flames just before they caught.
Crack!
The burning bookshelf collapsed straight onto her—hundreds of volumes, the full weight of it.
I ran forward, drawing my blade. If she’d thrown herself into the fire without thinking… I prayed we weren’t too late.
Whoosh!
The Blade Wind drove the flames back in a rush. The bookshelf shattered under the force. I swept the debris aside and dragged her clear.
Then it dawned on me.
Talia was dead.
Instant death. Her skull was crushed beyond recognition. There was nothing—no first aid, no recovery—only ruin.
We’d made it all the way to the Blood Magic Tower, and the lead had vanished again. Rockstone was already trying to slip away.
Bang!
“Ugh!”
A gunshot rang out. Rockstone crumpled, blood pouring from the hole in his shin.
“Great. Thanks to you, everything’s gone to hell.”
Bella planted her boot on Rockstone’s head and trained her gun on him, her voice dripping with murderous intent.
“Why did you do this? What’s your game?”
“I… I was just…”
Was he a Guardian too? With Talia dead, I’d need another way to get answers.
The basement at home was newly dug out anyway. Drag him down there and loosen his—
Shift!
A sound came from Talia’s direction.
I’d watched her die with my own eyes just moments before.
Her shattered skull was knitting itself back together. Flesh was filling in, rebuilding. Her head reformed, whole again.
She lurched upright.
“Ah… what…?”
Talia pushed herself up, disoriented, her eyes darting around the room.
Her expression was blank—as if waking from a dream. She didn’t even cry out when she saw Rockstone.
No. It couldn’t be.
“Talia, do you remember? You were talking with me just now.”
“Huh? Sorry. Who are you?”
She scratched her head absently, then froze as blood smeared across her fingertips.
“Damn it… I’m not supposed to… Did I die again?! What year is it?”
Now I understood. Now I knew why she’d had such a strange reaction to the mention of the Blood Lord.
This was her bloodline ability.
“Is your power Immortality?”
The price, it seemed, was memory. Each death cost her everything before it. Talia trailed off, her mouth working without sound.
Just then the staff came running. They finished dousing the flames that the Blade Wind had already broken.
The Mage who’d led us here earlier was among them. He rushed to examine Talia with alarm.
“Talia! Are you dead?”
“How… how many times have I died?”
“Perhaps… six times?”
“Six times means six years lost? I was in the middle of research, so the deadline…”
Talia scrubbed her face with both palms. When she lowered her hands, her eyes were wild, barely sane.
“My room… I need to go to my room. I need my notebook…”
“I’ll take you. There’s also something I need to tell you.”
I steadied her as she wavered, speaking quickly before she could push me away.
“Who are you? Outsiders aren’t allowed.”
“We have information. About the parts you can’t remember.”
Talia paused. She glanced back at the Mage with a questioning look, silently asking if my words rang true.
“He’s a skilled information broker, actually.”
“… Fine. Let’s go to my room.”
Bella would handle Rockstone. She caught my eye and nodded sharply.
I returned to the Research Laboratory with Talia. She dug through the clutter and found a single notebook.
Her shoulders sagged as she skimmed its contents. She collapsed into a chair.
Her face was dark. She lit a cigarette and fixed me with a sharp, cutting stare.
“You’re Dein, right? You said you know things about me?”
“Yes. Some of it.”
What I knew was only her deal with the Blood Lord—but a bait cast now might reel in much more.
“You’ve died frequently of late, it seems. How long has it been?”
“……A month and a half.”
Counting this one, that made six. A month and a half ago was around when we’d captured the Blood Lord.
“Does it say how he died?”
“Looks like an assassin got to him. Every time I left the Blood Magic Tower, he turned up dead.”
Talia lit cigarette after cigarette, her expression hardened with visible fury. The Mage beside her ventured to speak up carefully.
“Talia. Just so you know, the thesis presentation is in a month.”
“What? Already? Haven’t I done the research?”
“Yes. But it burned up earlier.”
“How much of it?”
The Mage explained methodically. Talia’s expression remained surprisingly composed.
After hearing him out, Talia drew a second cigarette and lit it.
Her voice came through with an eerie brightness.
“Well. I should die.”
It was the peculiar cheerfulness of someone who’d already let go of everything. The Mage clung to her anxiously.
“That’s why you kept your memories stored away, remember!”
“But the blood sample burned up. How common are people with a Dual Bloodline? By the time I recover my memories, I’ll miss the deadline.”
Dual Bloodline.
Ordinarily, a bloodline ability is inherited singly. There are cases of possessing two or more, but they’re extraordinarily rare.
Talia’s eyes were hollow as she drew on her cigarette.
“But you can’t die, you have to keep going! You’ll come back to life anyway.”
“If all my memories scatter, at least I’d have some peace.”
In her current state, there was no point talking about the Blood Lord. She’d already discarded it all.
She glanced at me and waved her hand dismissively.
“Whatever. Just go. I’m going to die.”
“Talia. Your memories are necessary.”
“I don’t need them. Even if I recover my memories, without the blood sample I can’t finish the thesis anyway…….”
“I will bring you Dual Bloodline blood.”
At that, Talia’s eyes lit up.
“Really? Truly?”
“Yes. Though afterward, I’d like to ask a favor of you.”
“I’ll do anything!”
Thankfully, Talia’s enthusiasm had returned. The Mage too seemed relieved. I turned to him.
“Could you send a Magical Letter?”
“Yes! Just tell me what to write and who it’s for.”
“Send it to Cesare at Balanus Domus. The message is…….”
Hayden had awakened his poison ability in childhood.
And Gai, a Necromancer, had entered that corpse.
Because the two powers had mingled, Gai now wielded both abilities simultaneously.
The form was somewhat different, but he too possessed a Dual Bloodline. The kind of bloodline that would interest Talia.
“Bring Gai. As quickly as possible.”

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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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