Jenna saw the hesitation on Keli’s face and tugged at her pants again.
“Miss Keli, Princess Keli, I beg you—just for the sake of us being from the same duchy.”
Keli bit her lip. “I can’t promise anything on someone else’s behalf, but I can ask for you tomorrow.”
Jenna had really hoped Keli would go find someone today—right now, even. But seeing Keli’s expression, she knew there was no chance.
Jenna stood up sadly.
Ever since she learned about the parasite, she hadn’t been able to sleep.
Tonight it would likely be another sleepless night.
Keli finally got rid of Jenna.
If it weren’t for the fact they’d grown up together, she really wouldn’t want to get involved in the trouble with the Mutual Aid Society.
Back in the dorm area, Keli knocked on Saul’s door.“Who is it?”
Saul didn’t get up right away when he heard the knock.
He had gotten used to always checking who was outside before opening the door.
“It’s yer old pal.”
“…”
That was a phrase Saul had jokingly taught Keli. But with her stiff pronunciation and awkward tone, it came out sounding completely different.
As soon as Saul cracked the door open, Keli darted in through the gap under his arm.
Once the door was closed, she couldn’t wait to say, “Saul, I might be bringing you some trouble.”
“Hmm?”
“It’s Jenna. You probably don’t remember her…”
Keli recounted the whole situation with Jenna and then said helplessly, “She’s convinced I was once parasitized and then got rid of it, so she’s fixated on me now.”
Thinking of Jenna’s pale face and terrified eyes, Keli added, “Can you tell me where I can find Senior Byron? I want to ask him if he can help again—or if Jenna can pay him herself.”
But Saul didn’t answer right away. He crossed his arms and sat back at the long desk.
“Jenna joined the Mutual Aid Society a long time ago. Why is she just now realizing she’s been parasitized?”
Seeing Saul’s suspicion, Keli began to calm down and reflect on Jenna’s odd behavior.
“She said a Second Rank senior helped her.”
“A Second Rank… senior?” Saul let out a short laugh. “Who’s so kind? Another Lokai, maybe?”
Sid’s face surfaced in Saul’s mind.
Could it be him again?
The new apprentice Sid had brought to replace Saul had already been neatly dealt with by Kongsha.
Since then, Sid had gone quiet and hadn’t shown up again.
But the silence didn’t make Saul feel safe—more like a calm ocean brewing a tsunami.
Now that the two of them had completely torn off the facade, Sid wouldn’t let Saul go, and Saul wouldn’t spare Sid either.
“So why did Jenna come to you?”
“She said I’m the only one who went to the Mutual Aid Society once and never went back, so I must’ve noticed something wrong with it.”
Saul thought for a moment and asked, “If the parasite is as obvious as you say, why hasn’t anyone else in the Mutual Aid Society reacted? Like Doze, for example—he even invited me to join.”
Keli frowned slightly. “You think something’s off about Jenna’s story? They want to use me?”
Saul looked relaxed. “No need to panic. It’s not your fault. There are just things you don’t know yet.”
Keli looked at Saul in surprise.
He was smiling, but it still made her feel a bit stifled.
She realized Saul had some unusual experiences—things she couldn’t be part of, or even know about.
And all of that was because she was still too weak.
Not telling her was a way of protecting her.
Keli didn’t like meddling in other people’s business, but what she disliked even more was not having the power to meddle.
“So… should I still get involved with Jenna’s case?” she asked, pouting slightly.
“Definitely! Tell her to meet me tomorrow at 3 p.m., on the second floor of the East Tower.”
“The second floor of the East Tower?” Keli finally realized where Saul had been hiding out during classes. “What’s there?”
“That’s where I work,” Saul paused before continuing, “It’s the floor where they store corpses.”
Keli had a complicated expression when she left.
Saul figured she was probably feeling sorry for him.
But he didn’t feel he needed any pity—he actually thought this job suited him very well.
Thanks to this work in the East Tower, Saul had quick access to the materials he needed for his body modification and completed his transformation as a Hex Body.
Otherwise, just gathering enough experimental materials would’ve landed him in deep debt.
Once the door was closed, Saul pulled his left hand out from under his sleeve.
Because of his skeletal left hand, he had gotten used to keeping it hidden in his long sleeves.
That’s why Keli hadn’t noticed anything odd—but in fact, Saul’s left hand had already changed from stark white bone to a “normal” but oddly shaped hand with gray-brown skin.
The once pale artificial skin had oxidized over the day, turning into a dusky shade, which also meant it had fused with Saul’s body.
That gray-brown hue had even spread up to his forearm, turning everything before the elbow a faint gray.
Now, his left hand could move freely and had become an ion collector during meditation, greatly increasing his efficiency.
More importantly, Saul’s magic aptitude had improved slightly—just a little, but still a noticeable gain.
Currently, his magic power level had reached an impressive 13 Joules after the stabilization of his left hand.
That might not be the highest value among new apprentices, but the progress was definitely the greatest.
No wonder Senior Byron had offered a hundred credits in exchange for Saul’s Body Modification Formula.
Unfortunately, Byron didn’t have that many credits on hand.
Now, Saul was the creditor.
Byron owed him a favor—and nearly a hundred credits.
Such was the value of knowledge.
Even if that knowledge had been scraped together by Saul through desperate diary studies and tireless experimentation.
…
After leaving Saul’s room, Keli didn’t realize that Jenna had been hiding in Rocky’s dorm all along, secretly watching her through the door crack.
“She went to see Saul, then just returned to the dorm…” Jenna muttered under her breath. “She didn’t go anywhere else. Saul… it must be Saul! But why Saul?”
Jenna couldn’t figure it out. According to Duke, Saul’s magical aptitude wasn’t even enough to support casting two zero-tier spells.
How could someone like that possibly help Keli deal with a parasite?
“Or maybe Saul… met someone?”
Jenna was deeply unsettled.
At that moment, Rocky’s door was suddenly pushed open from the outside, almost hitting Jenna.
“Sorry—huh? Jenna, what are you doing in Rocky’s room?”
At the door were Doze and Duke. When they saw Jenna inside, both had odd looks in their eyes.
Jenna straightened up, avoiding their gazes.
Doze and Rocky were both part of the Mutual Aid Society and hadn’t noticed anything strange about themselves. Jenna didn’t dare warn them, fearing Lokai would find out.
“I… I came to ask a few questions.”
Doze burst out laughing. “Then you should’ve come to me—or to Senior Lokai. What could Rocky teach you?”
Rocky had been standing behind Jenna. Hearing that, his eyes flickered, and he mumbled, “I… I’ve already learned all the basic runes.”
“R-Right!” Realizing he’d gone too far, Doze chuckled and slapped Rocky on the shoulder but didn’t actually apologize.
Duke, however, kept his eyes fixed on Jenna. Suddenly, he smiled. “Jenna… were you just spying on Saul’s dorm?”
(End of Chapter)