Chapter 84: The Monster in the Laboratory #3

Chapter 84: The Monster in the Laboratory #3

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All materials in the laboratory were protected by security magic.

Even when unfurling a thick scroll, it appeared as blank paper, and the potions couldn’t even be opened.

“Estel, it seems we’ve come for nothing. There’s nothing we can get from here.”

Jonathan said, his disappointment evident.

“The elder said the same. He said that when Carmilla explored this place years ago, she returned empty-handed. It seems his words were true…”

“Of course. This laboratory can only be fully utilized by one person, its owner.”

“Then why did you come here? Why did you come here knowing that?”

Jonathan asked, bewildered.

Why, indeed?

I smiled confidently.

“Because I’m the owner.”

“⋯What?”

“This laboratory belongs to me.”

That’s right.

The exact name of the Secret Laboratory is “Lich Frostwind’s Laboratory.”

This is the laboratory that the notorious Lich secretly hid in the polar region of the northern continent.

After many years, and with the Lich’s defeat and sealing by Michael, no one had been able to enter the laboratory.

But at this very moment, its rightful owner had returned.

“But this laboratory was built over decades ago. You look like you’re only a little over ten years old…”

“Jonathan, what are you talking about? You heard it from Elder Grandpa. I’m much older than I look.”

“No, so it was true? Estel, you were really a Lich! I thought you were just boasting-“

“Do you think I’m you?”

Jonathan’s jaw dropped.

This guy, he said he’d believe anything I said before. So he didn’t actually believe everything I said.

It was annoying, but I decided to let it slide. After all, it would be hard to believe that I was a Lich without question.

“Now, what are you doing? Give me that scroll.”

I took the research materials from Jonathan, who was standing there blankly.

The security magic imbued in the materials was compared against the pre-registered magic and my magic.

Soon, with a faint light, the security was lifted.

-Estel Frostwind’s magic has been confirmed.

As I casually flipped through the scroll, a massive amount of experience points, unlike anything I had seen before, flooded in.

“Read the secret research materials on necromancy. Forgotten memories are restored.”

“Necromancy experience points have greatly increased.”

‘Free experience points, so good.’

Even though I only read a few pages of research material, I gained as much experience as I would have accumulated by hunting monsters in the snow for over a week.

I came here for that reason, but the experience efficiency exceeded my expectations.

And there are still over dozens of research materials scattered here.

“Gather all the materials here. If it looks plausible, bring it all to me. Understand?”

“Scrolls or potions, everything?”

“Everything!”

Jonathan and the orcs dispersed in perfect unison.

If I had come to the laboratory alone, it would have taken ages to search for them one by one, but it’s convenient to have people to boss around.

The orcs brought me research materials tirelessly, like bees collecting nectar from flowers.

“Read the secret research materials on frost magic. Forgotten memories are restored.”

“Frost magic experience points have greatly increased.”

⋯

⋯

⋯

“Necromancy experience points have greatly increased.”

“Destruction magic experience points have greatly increased.”

“Necromancy experience points have greatly increased.”

“Dagger skills experience points have greatly increased.”

Like a private server for an online game with a 100x experience multiplier, experience points soared.

My growth rate was so steep that I didn’t even have time to check how strong I had become.

“Estel, are you okay? Your eyes are glowing! It’s scary!”

“I’m fine. Don’t talk to me, just keep bringing them. I’m feeling extremely high right now-“

“What’s this, like you’re drunk? I’m not sure if you’re really okay…”

Jonathan tilted his head and disappeared down the laboratory corridor.

For a moment, an ominous premonition flashed through my mind.

‘But why isn’t that guy showing up?’

The so-called “Monster in the Laboratory.”

I had completely forgotten about it. My own strength had made me neglect it.

My scalp buzzed. My heart began to pound.

“Wait a moment.”

As I stood up, the orcs all turned to look at me.

Jonathan tried to say something, but seeing my unusual expression, he quietly closed his mouth.

“Jonathan is here. Wild is here, Buffalo is here…”

One, two, three.

One person is missing.

Mark. Why isn’t Mark here?

“Where is Mark?”

“Mark went to find research materials. He’s brought almost everything nearby, so he went to search for anything left in a corner.”

I ran towards the inner part of the laboratory without waiting for Jonathan to finish speaking.

I heard Jonathan shouting from behind, but I didn’t pay attention.

Tap, tap-

Dim lights, flickering as if about to go out, illuminated the corridor.

“Mark!”

I called out loudly, but no answer came back.

‘Could it be already…?’

My heart grew cold.

Was I too careless inside the laboratory where monsters roam?

I raised my fist to hit my head but stopped.

Rattle-!

The door was difficult to open, so I had to put force into it and practically tear it open.

Mark was huddled in a dark room where no light penetrated.

“Hah.”

My strength drained, and a sigh escaped my lips.

“Lady Estel?”

Mark looked at me with bewildered eyes.

“What are you doing here?”

“Ah, Lady Estel, look! I found more. I found a mountain of them. How is it? It’s incomparable to what the others found, isn’t it? I’m the most capable, after all.”

Mark proudly presented the bundle of papers he held.

Suddenly, feeling a sense of anticlimax from the release of tension, I scanned what Mark had found.

“⋯Well, you worked hard, but…”

“Mark made a great contribution. It’s a great help to Lady Estel. Isn’t it?”

To the orc, who was shining his eyes like a baby bird seeking praise, I couldn’t tell him the truth.

-Laboratory Equipment Inventory Reconciliation

-April. 10 rolls of toilet paper, 30 sticks of coffee x 2 boxes…

-The toilet is clogged. Water won’t go down. It’s backing up. Special tools needed!

There was a reason it was hidden in a hard-to-find corner.

What Mark found were not research materials, but merely documents containing trivial internal records.

“⋯Yes, you did well. Let’s go back now.”

“Understood!”

I took Mark’s hand and helped him up. Mark followed behind me, clutching the bundle of papers.

It was then.

“Lady Estel.”

“Why.”

“But who is that standing behind you, Lady Estel?”

Mark narrowed his eyes.

“I’ve never seen them before. They’re not an orc. Is it a friend of Lady Estel?”

Mark tilted his head and narrowed his eyes.

Suddenly, my vision narrowed like a pinhole.

My blood ran cold. If there’s a stranger I encounter in this laboratory, there’s only one possibility.

“Two intruders confirmed. Elimination commencing.”

A toneless, emotionless voice came from behind me.

As I turned my head halfway, I saw the figure of a stranger, gazing at us indifferently like a robot.

And when I fully took in that figure…

Screech-

“⋯!”

It was already too late.

For a brief moment, I saw a girl in a maid outfit.

Then I saw the ceiling. I also saw Mark’s face, who hadn’t yet grasped the situation.

The world turned upside down. Maid, ceiling, Mark.

Then Mark, Maid, Ceiling again.

My vision changed wildly, up and down, as if on a roller coaster.

Not only that, but I also saw my body in a cloak.

Standing there blankly, with my head severed-

“Waaaaaah! Lady Estel!”

A moment later, Mark screamed.

My body is over there, but the sound is coming from my head here. It’s a strange feeling.

“Calm down!”

“Lady Estel’s head was chopped off! How can I calm down!”

Mark dropped the bundle of papers and pulled out a hand axe from his waist.

The maid looked at Mark blankly and took a step forward.

A blade, emitting a cold light, was attached to the maid’s arm.

No, to be precise, it had grown. It had become part of her body, tearing through the maid’s clothes and skin.

“You damn bitch! Revenge, I’ll get revenge!”

“Mark. I told you to calm down. It’s no use trying to fight. My head is more important.”

“He- Head?”

“Reattach it!”

“Lady Estel, can it be reattached just by attaching it?”

Mark muttered with a confused expression, but he didn’t act stubbornly by asking repeatedly.

Mark caught my head, which was about to fall to the ground, and held it high.

His rebound skills were quite excellent. If basketball existed in the world of “Nine Stars,” he might have been a great power forward.

“Attach!”

Crack.

Mark slammed my head down with all his might.

There was no need to hit it that hard…

Anyway, it wasn’t too late.

As the power of “Instant Resurrection” activated, my body, which had been dead for a fraction of a second, returned to life.

“It- It’s attached! As expected, God of Death! Wahaha! Lady Estel, Mark attached it!”

“It’s good that it’s attached, but next time, pay attention to the face direction.”

Creak, crackle.

I grabbed my head with both hands and rotated it 180 degrees. My skin tore, my bones crushed, and my head, which had been attached backward, returned to its original position.

‘That guy, she doesn’t even care.’

The maid was still watching my actions with no change in her expression.

She wasn’t even surprised that my head was severed and reattached, or that I resurrected.

This is the monster the elder warned so much about, the one who easily wiped out Carmilla’s expedition team.

The monster in the laboratory had appeared.