Unsealing Emptiness

Chapter 355: Beastkin.

Ozul watched the old lady’s back leaving through the tavern’s door.

His eyes fell back on the wooden jug of beer that the tavern owner had placed for him. Seeing that the tavern owner had already run out the backdoor, he calmly took the jug and sipped the beer.

‘Disgusting...’

He spat it out, the lingering taste on his tongue quickly disappeared as his body dispelled every drop of the beer by his will. He at least had that much control over it now.

It wasn’t disgusting as his disgust at everything ‘impure’ but the beer really tasted awful. No wonder people would go unconscious when drinking it in large amounts.

If he didn’t know any better, it would seem like self-torture.

Placing the beer back on the table, he also walked out of the tavern.

.....

. . .

“Where are we going?” Ozul asked as he came out of the tavern.

“Nowhere far...”

The old lady smirked and slowly walked towards the entrance of the rundown manor beside their tavern.

Ozul followed right behind and entered the manor with the old lady.

To his surprise, everything changed the moment he stepped foot into the manor!

The sheer density of the Spiritual Essence inside was incomparable to the outside!

‘That’s surprising...’

Ozul had to admit that he didn’t expect something like this.

Even the residence of the Han family, which supposedly was in charge of the whole Howling Province, had nothing so extraordinary about it.

Ozul looked around, and it was obvious that the density of the Spiritual Essence wasn’t the only thing that had changed.

It had all changed from the worn-out obsolete manor to a luxurious structure that stood taller than any he had seen, at least in this Realm. The land, which seemed to have been drained to the brink of death, was now brimming with life, and the few plants in the corners had grown to adorn the entire area.

The old lady looked back at him and smirked at his reaction. She just thought that his expressionless face was a disguise for speechlessness instead.

Ozul, on the other hand, quickly adapted to the situation.

He was only surprised because this place was hidden from his senses. When he had surveyed this manor earlier, he had found nothing of this sort.

‘Something like those Mana inscriptions?’ Ozul guessed in his heart.

Such an illusion was only possible with those. After all, he could even gauge this old lady’s strength easily. If this manor stayed hidden, it could only be because of something like inscriptions.

Only after a few moments when he had accepted this fact of reality did he take his eyes off of the scenery and notice the people running about.

One thing, in particular, he noted of their features was...

“Beastkin...?”

The more than a few people he saw all had some similarities to certain animals while the rest of their bodies were human.

The only thing that came to his mind was the term Beastkin he had heard when those men talked to Vesta, the former Sovereign of the Beasts.

And that was the moment when Ozul was forced to suppress the countless questions that came to his mind regarding this new race. His curiosity was piqued as he keenly observed the people.

Their features mostly resembled those of humans, but some of them had tails while others had wings.

After a while, he even noticed some who completely looked human, but considering how Vesta also looked like a normal human, he couldn’t rule out the possibility that everyone here was a Beastkin.

‘Right now, the only difference I see is tails, wings, and rarely scales on the skin...’

Looking at him observing them with such a gaze, the old lady frowned in displeasure.

She removed her black hood to show two twisted and rolled horns at the rear of her head. Her knotted hair was entirely white, and her eyes were snake-like with a small slit.

“Are you also one of those people who hate our kind?”

The old lady asked in a calm voice, but the threat laced within those words was only perceivable by Ozul.

“It’s my first time seeing your ‘kind’. I have no prejudice against you,” Ozul responded truthfully.

His answer didn’t convince the old lady as she didn’t think it was possible for someone as strong as this boy to have never seen Beastkin before.

‘Ha... I have to set aside my feelings. For the good of our cause, I can’t let him go...’ she contemplated before sighing internally. It didn’t seem like he hated the Beastkin anyway.

“Let’s go,” she muttered and brought Ozul inside.

...

Ozul kept note of the respectful gestures of everyone towards the old lady on the way.

They arrived at a small room with only a table and a few chairs.

After Ozul entered, the door got shut by itself.

Not surprised at such a show, he sat down calmly.

“So, tell me, boy. Who are you?” The old lady spoke before taking a seat and then continued, “Do not worry. No one can eavesdrop on us without my permission in this room.”

“I make sure never to reveal the origins of those people working for me,” she assured him again.

After all, who knows if someone wouldn’t kidnap their family in a desperate situation?

“I’m from another Realm.”

“Quit joking. I need a serious answer.”

“...”

Ozul remained silent but looked at the old lady with a face that seemed to be asking, ‘Do you think I am joking?’

A few seconds passed by silently as the old lady seemed to be thinking of something. Suddenly, as if she was enlightened. “Are you... one of the ‘Dragon Hatchlings’ who arrived just recently...?” She asked carefully.

Noticing the emotions brimming within the old lady, Ozul hesitated once again.

In the end, however, he still nodded, ‘This is the only way to gain their trust.’

This was also a way for him to deduce the capabilities of these people. Since he was told that one of the highest authorities on this continent had brought them here, he could test these people based on whether they can confirm his identity or not.

‘Let’s hope that you can...’

The old lady intensely stared at Ozul’s face, trying to find any traces of a lie, but in the end, she couldn’t make anything of his expressions.

“This is an important matter. Excuse me...” The old lady stated and didn’t wait for Ozul’s reply before leaving the room.

“...”

Ozul was left alone in the room without an explanation.

Fortunately for him, Jinx suddenly appeared in the room and jumped onto his lap. She kept him company until the old lady returned.

It took her about half an hour when she rushed into the room and opened the door with a loud bang.

She was just about to say something when she noticed the black cat sleeping on Ozul’s lap.

Her eyes narrowed at the scene because she had actually locked the door from the outside. One would have to destroy the door if they wanted to enter without her permission. And she was certain that the black cat wasn’t with him when he had left the tavern and entered this manor.

‘Just how did it enter...?’

Before she could ask anything, she was brought out of her stupor with Ozul’s words,

“What happened?”

Ignoring his question, she remembered the reason she had rushed in here, “What about your friends? Where are they? And will they be joining as well?”

Ozul didn’t waver on the surface, but he couldn’t deny being surprised,

‘That was... fast.’

Right after, he internally gloated. He could have even smiled right now because the first group of people he came across was just what he needed!

They were competent enough to contend against one of the top authorities on this continent!

These people even knew that he was with friends. Such precise information could only be possible if they had spies planted in that other organization which in itself was a great feat.

‘Gaining the power I need won’t take as long as I thought...’

Delighted at his good luck, he couldn’t help but gently stroke his fingers through Jinx’s fur. In response, Jinx stretched her body sleepily, her paws stuck in mid-air, provoking Ozul to touch them.

“Ahem!”

The old lady coughed loudly when she saw that the boy had completely forgotten her existence and had begun to play with that strange cat on his lap.

.....

“Ah. Apologies.”

“Nevermind that. Even if your friends won’t join our organization, for you to join, you will still need to tell us if they are with you. Only that way can we really confirm if you’re really the person we assume you to be,” the old lady spoke sternly.

“I think there is some misunderstanding here...”

“What?”

“I won’t be joining your whatever it is, much less my friends.”

“But-”

“I said I want to work for you. And that means you give me work, and if I do it, you compensate me. That will be the extent of our relation.”

Hearing his words, the old lady’s mood instantly turned down. She exerted some pressure on him, but it barely fazed Ozul.

“And why do you think we even want you?” She couldn’t take this insult without retorting. He spoke as if they were dying to get him and his friends.

“I don’t know if you do. You can refuse my offer, just like I can easily walk out of here,” Ozul answered, straightening his back.

The old lady remembered the black cat on his lap, and looked at him with a stoned face; it seemed that she could do nothing. The people above her already knew about this matter. Even if she wanted to, she couldn’t let him go.

*sigh...*

“Alright. Tell us the location of your friends. If they match our description, it will be confirmed that you’re from a Broken World. We will talk after that...”