<Chapter 122>
#14. The Calm Before the Storm (4)
Leaving Pel who had stiffened rigidly behind him, Calix gave several additional instructions quickly and efficiently. Bowing deeply, Pel replied that he understood and hurriedly moved away. After confirming his departure, Calix closed the door.
Damn it. What the hell is going on here?
Muttering a curse under his breath, Calix exhaled deeply. His ability to assess the situation calmly was entirely due to his blessing. If it had been a common blessing like “Health,” he wouldn’t have detected anything unusual, but his blessing was “Immunity.”
After firmly closing the door, Calix steadied his breathing and walked toward the bed. The tingling sensation on his skin indicated that this place was contrary to his blessing. From his past experiences, Calix knew this was his blessing’s signal when he stepped into an area with potential infection risk.
“…Mom…?”
The girl, feverish and taking shallow breaths, spoke up as if sensing his presence. Understanding her cracked, feeble voice wasn’t easy. Moreover, the girl on the bed was feverish with sweat beading on her forehead, and her half-open eyes couldn’t focus.
‘This way, I’m not sure if a proper conversation is possible.’
Finding the situation more difficult than expected, Calix folded his arms and fell into thought. The blotchy blisters visible around her neck indicated this was no ordinary situation—too serious to be just a cold. The blisters were too large to be considered hives or a simple rash.
When he pulled back the blanket, the child’s body wearing a short-sleeved outdoor garment was revealed. Looking at the stained clothes, it seemed she had been wearing them for quite some time. The stains appeared to be from burst blisters.
‘Oh no….’
A rapidly swelling blister burst with a pop, and where the fluid touched, another blister began to swell. The problem was that the spread was too fast—much too fast. Calix’s expression hardened as he recognized the gravity of the situation.
There were various types of epidemics, but the moment he saw her, Calix realized this was no ordinary disease. It was clearly not one he was familiar with. Calix quietly covered the child with the blanket again.
“M-mom…?”
Her voice cracked, making an unpleasant sound. The child, who appeared to be about ten years old, waved her hand toward Calix. It was a pitiful gesture asking to be held, but Calix merely looked at her with a dry gaze.
“T-take me too… With you, m-mom….”
By now, the blisters on the child’s neck had grown to the size of fingers. Multiple blisters clustered together were swelling rapidly. Her neck now resembled a frog’s inflated throat when making sounds. Turning deathly pale, the child struggled on the bed, seemingly unable to breathe.
Quickly assessing the situation, Calix hastily moved away from the girl. Then, as if confirming his prediction, the girl, gasping in agony, clawed at her neck. Simultaneously, the enormously swollen blisters burst.
“…Huh….”
Frowning, Calix looked down at the hem of his clothes. Although he thought he had moved quite far away, blood had still splattered onto his garment. Naturally, the bed where the girl had been lying was now drenched in blood.
“What in the…”
He’d been told her condition was bad, but he hadn’t expected the person to die before even having a proper conversation. As Calix grimaced at the sharp smell of blood filling his nostrils, he heard a knock at the door.
“Lord Calix.”
“Wait there.”
After giving a brief instruction, Calix immediately moved. Fortunately, the small cabin was equipped with water facilities. Turning on the water, Calix washed the bloodstains from his clothes and hands, then sighed and looked around.
The interior of the cabin was properly furnished. Unlike the herbalists’ hideouts that were used casually by random individuals, this place showed signs of proper management. Particularly, the height of the objects being adjusted for adults suggested it wasn’t meant as a place to abandon children.
‘Moreover, the food ingredients are ready for immediate consumption….’
Evidence of someone caring for the child to live alone was visible throughout.
‘Was she abandoned in the mountains because of an epidemic?’
That possibility was certainly plausible. From what he’d just witnessed, Calix could roughly guess how this disease was transmitted. However, he had never heard of a disease with blisters that spread at such a rapid rate.
Stepping outside, Calix looked at the two people waiting in place as he had instructed. Having knocked on the open door to announce their arrival, they bowed their heads in greeting as soon as they saw Calix.
“Doria greets Lord Calix.”
“Jupe greets Lord Calix.”
Calix nodded casually as his eyes examined their condition. The disease might have been transmitted to those who first discovered the child. The fact that it spread through blisters meant it could also be transmitted through contact.
Doria and Jupe’s gazes naturally turned to behind Calix. Knowing what those concerned looks meant, Calix spoke briefly.
“The child is dead.”
“……”
“…I see.”
Their expressions revealed sorrow. Taking a deep breath, Calix spoke again.
“Did you have contact with anyone after finding the child?”
“Since it was a situation where we found a patient, we waited at a distance after reporting it.”
It was a satisfactory answer. Relieved that Melty’s safety wouldn’t be a concern, Calix spoke again.
“What are your blessings?”
“Health.”
“Mine is also Health.”
The situation wasn’t bad. While the blessings bestowed by beast-people during coming-of-age ceremonies varied, the blessing of “Health” was common. With relief, Calix nodded. He had been cautious in case they had different blessings, which might have made them vulnerable to infection, but since their blessings were “Health,” he could dismiss such worries.
“If you notice anything unusual, report it immediately. And is there a village nearby?”
“…A village, you say?”
Those who had been perplexed by Calix’s sudden question spoke with serious expressions.
“Even traveling quickly on horseback, it would take a full 8 hours.”
“Do you need something?”
“…8 hours, you say….”
Calix frowned. Even if the child had an infectious disease, it was unlikely they would abandon her somewhere so remote. What if someone got infected during the journey?
“Where did you find the child?”
“This way.”
Jupe led the way to where they had discovered the child. Walking behind Calix like an escort, Doria explained the situation.
“She was lying here like this. When we found her, she was conscious….”
“It’s in the opposite direction from the village.”
“…Surely she wasn’t trying to walk that great distance that would take hours even on horseback.”
Calix smirked at Jupe’s comment and nodded lightly. What they said made sense. But conversely, the child wouldn’t have come such a long distance for no reason. After pondering briefly, Calix pointed in the direction the child seemed to have been headed.
“Let’s go further down that way first.”
“Yes.”
“We will lead the way.”
Without objecting to Calix’s instructions, Jupe and Doria pushed through the dense grass and trees as they moved forward. Because the path was remote, they soon had to move in single file. To maintain visibility, they had to cut through waist-high grass.
Following behind them for quite some time, Calix surveyed the surroundings. Throughout their journey, the lush grassland showed clear signs of wilderness that had received no maintenance.
The child wouldn’t have come in this direction without reason. An abandoned child alone would have had two main options: either come out to the main road to seek help from possible passersby or attempt to return home.
“Lord Calix. The path seems to be getting more difficult. Will you be alright?”
“Yeah. I’m fine, so keep going.”
“Yes. Understood.”
At Calix’s directive, they moved forward without protest. Since they were treading down the grass on both sides to make it easier for Calix to walk, their pace was necessarily slow. Although it felt like they had walked quite a distance, Calix had a premonition that he needed to confirm something.
And not long after, Calix could discover traces of human presence. Despite them not having passed through, there were clear human signs: flattened grass, suddenly dug earth, and broken branches on the lower parts of trees. However, judging from the timing, these traces appeared to be quite old.
“It’s definitely around here. There must be human habitation somewhere nearby.”
“…Here, you mean?”
Unlike the puzzled Jupe, Calix was certain. The path from the village to the cabin was extremely long. But the distance from here to the village was even greater. Given how rough the path was, it was unlikely that the deceased girl had traveled here alone when she was alive. Moreover, in several places, there were clear traces that adults had definitely left behind.
‘It’s not unusual for a village or two in the mountains to remain undiscovered. Or there might be a place similar to the cabin we just saw where only one family lives.’
Assuming this was a remote mountain area with sparse human presence, a village was the most likely possibility. Just then, Doria, who was walking at the front, raised his voice loudly.
“Lord Calix! I think you need to come see this!”
At his cry, which clearly indicated he had found something, Calix smirked and tapped Jupe’s shoulder, who was walking right in front of him. Pushing aside the still unruly grass with his foot, Calix spoke.
“Did you find a village or something?”
Turning toward Calix’s question, Doria’s expression was ambiguous. Hesitating like someone unsure how to explain, he finally spoke.
“Well… there is a village, but there isn’t.”
What nonsense is that?
Frowning deeply at the incoherent explanation, Calix sighed. Moving his feet more quickly to reach Doria, Calix lightly tapped his shoulder. Doria moved to the side to allow Calix to have a better view. Looking in the direction Doria had been facing, Calix finally understood why he had spoken that way.
“Ha… damn it all to hell.”
