The Witch's Anatomical Notes

Chapter 91

Border Disturbance

The Rotten Fang Wolves’ attack had been averted thanks to Lucy capturing most of the ambushers in advance. In the end, only two or three of the creatures truly threatened the caravan.

They charged into the convoy, snatched a few pack horses, and then fled in a panic.

Aside from five mercenaries who suffered relatively serious injuries, everyone else had merely been frightened.

Lucy divided an Apprentice-Level Life Potion into five portions and applied it to the wounds. These burly mercenaries soon regained their vigor as if nothing had happened.

When they looked at her, their gazes carried a newfound respect. After roaming across the land for so many years, they had never encountered a free scholar as skilled in medicine as Miss Felicia.

After a brief rest, the caravan set off again.

It was not until night had fully fallen that they reached the designated campsite.

Lucy hastily finished her dinner, then returned to her wagon. She pretended to sleep but actually sent her mental strength into the Abyss of Nightmares.

This secondary plane space was transforming at a remarkable pace.

As the master of the plane, Lucy could almost reshape the terrain and structures at will by sheer force of will.

Stone houses rose rapidly from underground. Specimen preservation jars and medicinal materials that had been placed in the open were carried by eerie servants into the buildings on the east and west sides.

The potionology equipment and dissection tables were also enclosed within the stone houses.

Lucifer’s gaze remained fixed on the ever-shifting landscape around her.

The eyelashes of this flesh construct suddenly trembled, as if sensing her master’s attention.

She immediately lowered her head, though her eyes could not conceal their yearning for the outside world.

Ever since she had still been just a lump of flesh, she had always imagined the world beyond the glass jar.

Lucy tapped twice on the glass jar with her consciousness. “It is not yet time for you to leave.”

Though she already wore the “angel skin,” Lucifer’s body still lacked many components. This primal construct was vital to the final quality of any future mass-produced versions, so not even the smallest detail could be neglected. It would be a long process of assembly.

Hearing her master’s words, Lucifer obediently curled back into the corner.

When the new modifications gradually stabilized and all the supplies were being moved into place in an orderly manner, Lucy looked around the brand-new space with satisfaction.

The “occult construct” gifted by Mentor Fernando was truly convenient.

The eerie servants inside not only possessed a high degree of obedience, but could also be used for reconnaissance and combat. Their intelligence was not low, either, saving her considerable time and effort.

“From today onward, this place will serve as the temporary ‘Living Specimen Laboratory.’”

Lucy, long dissatisfied with the name Abyss of Nightmares, made this declaration to the empty plane.

The deep purple sky rippled as if responding to its new master’s will.

Voices of the watchmen and the sound of coughing drifted from the camp.

She quickly withdrew her awareness and rubbed her eyes as though she had just been startled awake.

Unnoticed, the morning mist had already begun to rise around her.

The cooks preparing breakfast had stoked the fires, and before long, smoke curled up from the camp.

…

Two days later

On the main road, the wheels rumbled over the crushed stones with a soft clattering.

Lucy was sitting with her legs together on the driver’s seat, leafing through a potionology notebook she had brought from the library. The mercenary captain, Leo, spurred his horse over to her wagon and spoke in a soft voice.

“Miss Felicia, forgive me for disturbing you, but just ahead lies the border of the Kingdom of Cordova.”

In the past two days, the caravan had been attacked several more times by small packs of enchanted beasts, leaving quite a few mercenaries injured.

Under ordinary circumstances, such wounds would have been a death sentence.

Yet this scholar lady could always snatch them back from death’s grip.

Because of this, her prestige within the caravan had risen steadily. Even a rough fellow like Leo now addressed her with cautious deference.

The silver-haired girl lifted her gaze from the parchment scroll.

She still seemed absorbed in the knowledge recorded there, her clear blue eyes glinting with a trace of bewilderment and innocent curiosity under the sunlight.

Leo’s weathered face reddened slightly, and he quickly looked away, raising a calloused finger to point toward the distant sentry post that loomed into view. “Lately, I don’t know what’s happened, but there are many more knights along the border. They’re also carrying out much stricter inspections…”

So he was worried she might encounter trouble here.

Lucy gave a slight nod. “I understand.”

Once the captain left, Lucy once more immersed herself in the potion notes. The extraction methods described there were offering her considerable inspiration.

The caravan continued forward, but it was not long before it stopped again.

Ahead came the sound of harsh shouting, mixed with the uneasy whinnies of horses.

Lucy frowned faintly.

Through the vision of an eerie servant, she saw two soldiers clad in Tower Knight armor riding warhorses as they followed Leo toward her position.

“Heh—”

“Respected scholar, we are knights of the Thousand-Eyed Tower. We ask that you cooperate with a routine inquiry.”

Lucy closed her notebook.

From behind their standard-issue helmets, their gazes clung to her face, raw desire flickering in their eyes. But when they remembered her identity, it was swiftly buried again.

Lucy smiled faintly. “Of course.”

After a brief exchange, the two left with reluctant expressions, muttering about which brothel they would visit once their garrison shift was complete.

But when the two knights returned to their post,

A wizard apprentice draped in a black cloak and accompanied by a dragon-lion called out to them.

That dragon-lion had the body of a lion, but a pair of bat wings grew from its back.

Even from afar, their horses refused to approach and began to sidestep nervously. The two men had no choice but to dismount and jog over to salute.

“Greetings, Lord Branny.”

“Did you find anything?”

“It was just a caravan transporting industrial goods, all the papers in order.” As the reporting cavalryman said this, a cunning idea suddenly flashed through his mind, and he flattered, “It’s just…”

The middle-aged apprentice called Branny stroked his summoned beast and asked casually,

“Just what?”

“It’s just that there is a very beautiful free scholar traveling with the caravan.”

Wizards pursued truth and greatness. Most wizards exercised strict control over their desires.

But not everyone could restrain themselves, especially those apprentices who had no hope of advancement.

And Branny clearly belonged to this kind.

The two soldiers knew well that this seemingly proper Branny was, in truth, an utter lecher.

If they managed to pique his interest, they might get the chance to sample her secondhand themselves.

A wizard apprentice… even thinking about it made the blood rush downwards.

Unfortunately, Branny saw through their intentions with a single glance.

He felt nothing but disdain in his heart.

A bunch of country bumpkins stuck on border duty—what did they know about beauty? How many true noble ladies had they ever laid eyes on?

Yet even as he scorned their idea of “beautiful,” Branny took note of something else.

“A free scholar? Where is she?”

The term free scholar, to most Tower wizards, usually implied an opportunity for a handsome windfall.

“She’s right over there. We’ll take you to her.”

At that moment, Lucy had once again opened her potionology notebook and was immersed in the ocean of knowledge, completely unaware that one day her appearance would bring her trouble.

“You! The silver-haired one, get down!”

Lucy frowned and looked up to see a Tier-3 wizard apprentice approaching with two Tier-1 apprentices in tow.

The moment Branny glimpsed the fair, delicate face beneath the cloak, the greed in his eyes was replaced by raw, overpowering desire.

Now he wholeheartedly agreed with the two cavalrymen.

Compared to the silver-haired girl sitting at the rear of the wagon, those so-called noble ladies were nothing but painted vulgar dolls.

But blinded by lust, Branny failed to notice it at all.

The dragon-lion beside him, which possessed a faint trace of ancient dragon blood and had always carried itself with lofty arrogance as though it had never learned the meaning of bowing its head, was now staring at Lucy.

And as it caught the faint greenish fragrance emanating from her, its expression turned to sheer horror, and its fur began to stand on end.