My Disciples Became Scoundrels - Chapter 115

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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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Gai does not wish for Balanus to die. Whether that stems from selfishness or selflessness matters little.
It was already a truth laid bare through his exchange with Kihano.
A man who commits eccentricities and cruelties without hesitation, yet retreats at the crucial moment—that was Gai.
He fixed me with a hardened gaze, a smile forced and wavering at the edges.
“Most people don’t accept something like this so readily, sir.”
“I’ve already bowed my head to Kalan. What’s a little humiliation in comparison?”
In truth, his burden was heavier. Flesh heals, but pride does not.
A chill touched my bare hands. Even from this distance from the lake, the wind carried moisture on its breath.
“Why go this far? Why do you want to capture the Guardians so badly?”
“I only wish to protect my students.”
……
“You wish to protect them as well. Even if what remains is merely Hayden’s husk.”
Gai’s mouth twisted. Even as he smiled, his rage seeped through—unmistakable.
I couldn’t say what fueled his anger. But one thing was clear: he had lost control.
Perhaps he felt insulted. It mattered not. This was my truth. I pulled off the turtleneck.
“Be quick about it. Before the others arrive.”
“You’ve truly lost your mind.”
This time, instead of reaching toward me, he stepped back. Irritation dripped from his eyes like poison.
“Fine. There’s no point parting ways here—I’d only get beaten senseless by your precious students anyway.”
“I won’t let them harm you.”
……A long sigh.
He glared at me as though his eyes alone could split my belly open. Though he wouldn’t actually do it.
“First, I need to meet this woman Talia. I should hear the explanation directly, shouldn’t I?”
In the end, Gai backed down. To fear so little.
“Agreed. Shall we have the wound sewn up at home?”
“You really are a madman, sir.”
He left the room. The door slammed shut with a sharp bang.
I gathered my scattered clothes. Even now, I couldn’t fully grasp what Gai was.
But there remained something naive about him. He’d made grand pronouncements, yet in the end surrendered his blood without any compensation.
Perhaps he was more tender-hearted than I’d imagined. Though his intentions remained obscure.
* * *
Talia’s laboratory.
Cigarette smoke filled the space as always. Dark circles shadowed Talia’s eyes—she’d been awake all night.
She glanced toward Gai.
“So. A Dual Ability User? What are his abilities?”
“Poison and corpses. I handle both.”
Gai, perched on a chair, smiled pleasantly as though yesterday’s commotion had never occurred.
“Necromancy, then. Unusual. And the poison ability—what exactly is it?”
“I have immunity to any poison I’ve previously experienced.”
I already knew about poison immunity. That was Hayden’s ability, after all. When I’d gone searching for Kihano, I’d consumed poison without consequence.
“And I can manufacture poisons I’ve experienced.”
“How?”
“Through my blood.”
……I didn’t know that.
I knew he could make poison, but I hadn’t known it came from his blood.
The man keeps serpents coiled in his belly by the dozen. I’d suspected he hid aspects of his power long ago.
There’s likely more concealed yet. I hope this opportunity brings it to light.
Gai flashed Talia a sly smile.
“So, Talia. Why don’t we hear about your research first? I can provide blood afterward—or not, as you prefer.”
“Research into Dual Bloodline Ability. I’m developing methods to increase the probability of awakening.”
Fire ignited in Talia’s eyes. Do all researchers possess that same fire?
She began pouring forth an expansive explanation without pause for breath.
“It’s not simply inheriting the parents’ abilities—I’m researching the awakening of latent powers, you see? Your blood could advance humanity itself…….”
“Yes, yes. I see. How extraordinary.”
Gai cut her off with a clap of his hands.
“Very well. I’ll cooperate, provided it’s only a small amount.”
“Excellent! Come along. Now I can finally write the paper…….”
Talia sprang from her seat and hurried to stub out her cigarette in an ashtray, her pleasure evident.
Only then, belatedly, did she seem to notice my presence, and her gaze turned toward me.
“You need to leave.”
“Is there really no way I could stay?”
“Of course not. Only research personnel can remain. It won’t take long, so wait outside.”
There was no helping it. Despite my misgivings, I left Gai behind and stepped out.
The lab door opened again about thirty minutes later. Talia’s footsteps were noticeably lighter.
“Come in. Let’s finish discussing the rest.”
The results seemed to have gone quite well. I wish I could learn what they were.
Meanwhile, Gai was pressed close to Talia’s back, whispering like a merchant haggling for better terms.
“Don’t forget the promise you made me.”
“Right, right. And you’d better not forget either.”
……Some sort of bargain had been struck. This was exactly why I’d wanted to keep him out. For now, I couldn’t begin to guess what that promise was.
Once inside the lab, Talia lit a cigarette. Gai quickly produced a flame for her.
It was a practiced motion. So this was what marked someone of Swallow origin as different.
“So you’re looking for someone called the Blood Lord, I gather? Once I restore the memories, it should come back to you.”
“How does the restoration process work?”
“There’s something called a Memory Tablet. Ever heard of it?”
“Yes. It’s the large-capacity version of a Memory Stone, isn’t it?”
Ordinary Memory Stones could only hold at most half a day’s worth of memories.
The larger the stone, the greater its storage capacity. So bulk memories were typically recorded on tablets instead. They were expensive, though.
They served to preserve memories meant to pass down through generations, knowledge difficult to convey through language alone.
“My tablets are kept in the Memory Archive. All six years of my memories are stored there.”
“Impressive—you’ve prepared everything in advance? Your foresight is remarkable.”
“When you die, memories vanish at the rate of one year per death. My family has been storing them steadily.”
“What—! That happens? Does your family die often?”
Gai clapped his hand over his mouth in shock. He was every bit the obsequious merchant.
“Family legacy, you might say. Originally, we were a household that died rather frequently—the nature of going out to battle.”
The Immortal Bloodline. I’d crossed swords with members of that clan on the battlefield before. They were certainly troublesome.
“You’ve broken free from the path your family set for you? That’s remarkable.”
“Well, my father chose to pursue bloodline research and came this way. I inherited that interest, so……anyway.”
She tapped ash from her cigarette into the tray.
“It looks like after I died, I was trying to visit the Archive to recover my memories. But then it seems I died again?”
The Guardians were clearly wary of her seeking out those memories. They may have interfered even now.
“Assassins might still be targeting me. I’d like someone to escort me to the Archive…….”
Talia’s eyes swept across me from head to foot. There was something doubtful in that gaze.
“You are strong, aren’t you?”
I silently produced my Gold Badge and showed it to her. Talia merely took long drags on her cigarette. Her expression was clouded with deliberation.
She probably didn’t want to die again. Gai, who’d been hovering nearby, jumped in.
“If you’re worried, couldn’t we just bring the tablets back ourselves?”
“No. I have to go myself.”
“Is the quantity large?”
“The quantity is part of it, but the real problem is damage or loss during transport.”
Talia spoke firmly.
“I’d rather die than lose all my memories.”
* * *
That afternoon, we set out toward the Memory Archive with Talia.
We used Teleportation Magic as far as the nearby village, then continued by carriage from there.
I would have used a Summoning Scroll if I had one, but those weren’t common items.
Even when dealing with the Blood Lord, I’d barely managed to get one. As for me, it was difficult to obtain, so Kalan had prepared it. You need to reach Obsidian Rank to acquire such things.
Would assassins come? I kept my guard up the entire journey to the Archive. Yet oddly, nothing happened at all.
The carriage came to a halt before the Memory Archive. Cesare looked up at the building with a vaguely disgusted expression.
“Is this a prison or a library?”
The Memory Archive was surrounded by iron bars along its entire exterior, with thick metal doors sealing the entrances.
Gai and Bella remained silent. They’d been quiet since the carriage left.
Partly because Talia had been chain-smoking inside the carriage, leaving them unable to speak.
As tension eased, Talia dropped the cigarette she’d been holding and extinguished it. Color returned to her voice.
“We’ve made it this far. Once inside, security is airtight.”
Following her in, that proved true. We were frisked several times while passing through three separate doors.
“We must prohibit Teleportation Magic to prevent theft. Only authorized personnel may use it.”
“Do what you need to. I’m not here to steal anything.”
Together with a muttering Cesare, I pushed through the fourth door and entered. In a small receiving room, we encountered the archivist.
“Welcome, Talia. Whose memories have you come to view today?”
“Mine. I need to see all six years of them.”
“Will your companions be joining you inside?”
Talia glanced at me—her expression made it clear she didn’t want to let us further in.
The security here was thorough, but one could never be certain. I leaned close and whispered to her.
“Someone like Rokstone might have people inside.”
“Inside the Memory Archive? Surely not…….”
“That’s what they all think, right before a bookshelf crushes them. You expected to die inside the Blood Magic Tower, didn’t you?”
Talia fell silent. After a long pause, she finally nodded.
“……Dein, you alone come with me. And whatever you see in there—don’t speak of it to anyone.”
We left the disciples in the reception room. I hoped they wouldn’t start fighting while we were gone.
The door hissed shut behind us.
As we emerged through the opposite passage, the air took on a cave-like quality—the dry, mineral scent of stone.
The archive opened into a vast chamber lined with shelves. Or rather, shelves carved directly into the stone walls themselves.
Thick tablets of stone were arranged within them like books, their spines labeled with small plaques.
Following the archivist deeper into the cool, shadowed chamber, I let my eyes adjust to the dimness.
“The Roend Family’s section is this way.”
The shelving bearing the Roend nameplate was remarkably large. Even at a glance, there had to be hundreds of tablets.
Were all of these the family’s memories?
Certainly, this was not a sight meant for outsiders. Talia ran her fingers along the spines as she spoke.
“It’ll take at least six hours to read them all. An hour per tablet. Take this one and lay it on the bed for me.”
Several sofas and beds were arranged nearby. I carefully lifted the tablet she’d indicated.
It was heavier than expected.
“Is it heavy?”
“Not at all.”
I should have brought Cesare. Since we couldn’t afford to break it, I laid the tablet as gently as possible at the head of the bed.
“Don’t wake me while I’m reading.”
Talia settled onto the bed using the tablet as a pillow. She was asleep the moment her head touched it.
An hour to wait, then.
As I took a seat on the sofa, the archivist sat across from me with a lantern in hand. She seemed prepared to keep vigil as well. I turned to her with a question.
“Is it impossible for her to wake before finishing the memories?”
“It’s possible, though not advisable. There’s a risk of memory distortion if she interrupts the process.”
I’d have to wait the full hour. I turned my gaze to the shelves, taking in the sight of the Roend family’s tablets lining the walls. At least a hundred, I’d have guessed.
In the darkness, the damp scent of stone rose like an exhalation. The lantern’s glow swayed slowly across the stone face.
Her breathing grew shallow, then steadied. Talia’s eyes suddenly opened.
“Ugh… my head…….”
“Talia. Are the memories returning?”
She yawned deeply and stretched, her face still heavy with sleep.
“Yeah. I remember things from a year ago.”
“Do you have memories of the Blood Lord?”
“Just sending him an analysis report. That’s all I recall.”
The more important memories must be further back. I’d have to check methodically.
Talia drifted back to sleep almost immediately, her head resting on the stone tablet. I watched her for a long moment.
I’d be waiting the full six hours. My mind kept drifting back to the disciples and my companion left in the reception room.
Leaving those three alone together seemed like an invitation to trouble. I was also curious about what arrangement Gai had made with Talia.
Lost in thought, I suddenly heard something in the darkness.
I rose abruptly from my seat. Something was moving toward us through the shadows.
I turned to the bewildered archivist with an urgent question.
“Is there anyone among the archivists trained in combat?”
“What? Why would you—”
“Get everyone ready to fight. Call in the Balanus members immediately.”
I drew my blade. The footfalls growing louder in the distance now turned into a thunderous approach. The archivist’s face showed she’d sensed it too.
“Run—now!”
“Yes, yes!”
She bolted with her lantern. Fortunately, the direction she was running led toward safety.
The sound of footsteps drew closer. A subtle tremor traveled through the stone beneath my feet.
As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I could make out the forms approaching.
Massive lizard-like creatures were charging at me in a swarm. Their gaping maws revealed blunt, brutal teeth.
Monsters. Things that should never exist in a place like this. And there were many of them.
Someone had deliberately summoned them here. This was no accident. Someone wanted to stop us—or specifically, wanted to stop Talia.
The good news is that they show no interest in me or Talia.
Crunch!
The bad news is that they’ve begun devouring the Memory Tablets nearby.
This monster’s name is the Stoneeater.
They were creatures that consumed rare stones without mercy.

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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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