The Yellow-Haired Villain in Soaring Phoenix’s Novels Also Desires Happiness

Chapter 57, Mercury

“Extracted heart…”

Celesia stared at the gaping, grotesque hole in the corpse’s chest, her expression growing increasingly grim:

“Is that the direct cause of death?”

“Probably, but we can’t be a hundred percent certain.”

The balding middle-aged man continued:

“We roughly examined the deceased’s body, and aside from the hole in the chest, we found no other external injuries. So the preliminary judgment is that the cause of death was the removal of the heart, but since the body has not yet been thoroughly autopsied, we can’t rule out the possibility that the deceased may have died first from poisoning or a curse.”

“There are far too many methods to kill without causing external injuries, so there’s no need to dwell on that. What I want to know more is how the heart was extracted.”

Celesia put on gloves and gently lifted the tattered clothing from the deceased’s chest to peer into the grotesque hole.

“This kind of mark shouldn’t be from a sharp weapon, right?”

“Not at all…”

The middle-aged man paused, a hint of fear creeping into his tone:

“The preliminary assessment suggests it was done by bare hands. Someone literally dug the heart out with their bare hands.”

“A beast?”

“A human.”

The middle-aged man replied:

“And from the marks, it might have been a woman.”

“A woman…” Celesia’s gaze grew serious.

“I remember there’s been a rumor in the lower district, about a heart-extracting succubus who lures men on full moon nights and then digs out their hearts to eat.”

Celesia glanced at the pitch-black sky: “Although the weather is bad, according to the calendar, tonight is indeed a full moon night. Does that mean the rumor could be true?”

“Yes… there is such a rumor.”

The balding middle-aged man wiped his forehead even more frequently and vigorously, making one worry that he might accidentally pull out the few pathetic hairs on his head.

“But the lower district is a chaotic mix of people, too disordered. Every day, there are at least a dozen bodies pulled from the alleys and sewers, so we can’t confirm whether the rumor is true or not.”

“No matter if it’s true or not, at least it’s a clue.”

“Yes, let’s investigate. We’ll check right away.”

“What about the other information?”

“Tem… temporarily, there’s nothing else.”

The middle-aged man stammered:

“When we arrived, the heavy rain had almost washed away all traces, and the murder weapon wasn’t even used; it’s really difficult to find any other clues.”

“So, does that mean we can only start from the victim himself?”

Celesia lowered her eyelids, her gaze continuously sweeping over the corpse.

It’s no wonder the middle-aged man looked so bald; a rainy night, murder, heart extraction, the count’s son, and even involving the city’s terrifying urban legends—any one of these, if mishandled, could cost him his job, or even his life.

“You should leave for now.”

But just then, Celesia seemed to have discovered something and suddenly spoke up.

“Huh? No, are we not investigating anymore?”

The middle-aged man was taken aback.

“This is no longer within your scope to handle.”

Celesia looked at the victim’s hand.

Due to postmortem rigor mortis, that bloodless hand was twisted like a frozen chicken claw, as if it was desperately trying to grasp something before dying.

And among those twisted, blood-stained nails, Celesia saw something different.

Scales.

Black, fine scales.

Like snake scales.

“Serpent man…”

As if recalling something, a chill flashed in Celesia’s eyes as she whispered softly.

……

……

“What is this…?”

Of course, Teacher Meira couldn’t really pull out a hammer and electric drill, randomly modifying Mu En like a mad scientist from a story. Instead, she brought Mu En to a lake that looked as if it was filled with mercury.

Not a lake, but rather a well so immense it was hard to describe.

“This is the Well of Silver.”

Meira pointed and said:

“It is both the foundation of the academy and the cage that suppresses that thing.”

“That thing?”

“I know you’re very curious, but about that thing, I advise you to ask less before you become the Crown Bearer.”

Mela shot a cold glance at Mu En, urging him to quickly shut his mouth.

“Then since this isn’t a visit to the cage for moral education, what are we doing here?”

“Of course, it’s to strengthen you.”

“Strengthen?”

“If you want to become the vessel of the Eternal Bell, the most important thing is that your foundation must be solid enough.”

Mela said:

“So I need to strengthen you to a certain extent, allowing you to develop resistance to the complex laws of time.”

“Resistance?”

“In simple terms, it means making you more durable.”

“Durable?”

Mu En was increasingly confused.

“Why do you have to ask so many questions?” Teacher Mela couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

“Because I don’t know anything!”

“Sigh.”

Mela sighed, wearing an expression of disbelief at having such a foolish disciple. She pointed at the mercury well:

“Forget it, don’t think too much, just jump in.”

“Oh, so I just need to jump in… what a joke!”

Mu En shouted in horror:

“Places like this obviously aren’t safe to just jump into, that’s mercury, it’s toxic!”

“Though I don’t know what kind of mercury you understand, in alchemy, pure mercury is one of the fundamental elements that make up everything.”

“I see.”

Mu En breathed a sigh of relief.

As long as it wasn’t the kind of mercury he understood, that was good.

“But it is indeed highly toxic, so I hope you don’t die too quickly.”

“Huh?”

Before Mu En could react, as he turned his head, he saw Teacher Mela’s fair little foot rapidly enlarging in his view.

“Huh? What do you mean huh? Get in there!”

Impatient, Teacher Mela directly leaped into the air, delivering a flying kick that sent Mu En into the well.

“Damn it!”

Feeling the sharp pain in his cheek from the flying kick, along with the intense discomfort of weightlessness, Mu En couldn’t help but let out a heavy wail in mid-air.

“Why does this damn setting of anti-gravity skirts exist in reality too!”

……

Mu En fell into the mercury well.

As if dropping into sludge, Mu En was instantly enveloped by the thick, flowing liquid.

Mu En instinctively held his breath.

But that endless mercury, as if it had a consciousness of its own, rushed into his body through his nostrils, ear canals, pores, and any conceivable opening, madly surging inside him.

A sharp pain struck him in an instant, followed by the feeling of mercury gradually corroding his body, spreading quickly like ink dropped into clear water.

Wherever the mercury eroded, it seemed as though countless years had passed, rapidly decaying into scattered dust.

“Use fire.”

Teacher Meila’s voice rang in his ears.

Without any hesitation, Mu En opened his eyes.

In those azure pupils, suddenly a fire ignited.

The flame of the Withered King was both the death flame that burned everything and the life flame that brought rebirth.

So even when he endured a direct hit from a crowned one, he did not die.

And under the burning of that flame, Mu En’s lost flesh quickly restored, and the newly formed flesh seemed to shine with a mercury-like luster.

But this did not bring him relief.

Because the corrosion of the mercury continued, as if it would never stop.

The intense pain of decaying flesh, the regeneration of limbs, felt like countless ants gnawing at him.

Two completely different yet equally terrifying sensations tormented Mu En’s consciousness madly.

If it were an ordinary person, they would have probably gone insane by now.

But—

“Who the hell do you think I am!”

Surrounded by endless mercury, Mu En’s face twisted in rage as he let out a beast-like roar from his tightly clenched jaw.

“I’ve experienced death countless times—what do I have to fear from you?”

Then, Mu En opened his mouth wide, gulping down more mercury directly into his stomach.

Like pouring cold water into hot oil, two incompatible powerful forces collided violently within him.

—Since he was going to pursue excitement, he would see it through to the end!

……

……

“That’s right, that’s right, just like that!”

Watching the changes happening to Mu En, who was submerged in endless mercury, a spark of excitement radiated from Meila’s bright red eyes.

“The flame of the Withered King merely accelerates this process and increases your chances of survival by ten percent.”

“What you truly rely on is only yourself, Mu En Campbell!”

“Only with such a strong will can you hope to truly grasp this supreme authority someday in the future!”

“Only then—can you help me achieve that ultimate goal.”