Chapter 80: Poor Little Sid

Broken, thread-like words slowly appeared on the black paper, writing the final stroke before settling into silence.

Sid’s soul no longer asked who Saul was.

Nor did he ask any other questions.

He vanished.

The white text on the black paper gradually faded and disappeared as if it had dried up, and the paper itself slowly disintegrated, as though it had been burned, until nothing remained.

The diary flew back to Saul’s left shoulder and closed itself quietly.

"So, the diary was actually an heirloom of Sid’s family? What kind of ancestor could create a predictive tool like this?"

Given the diary’s immense power, Saul was more inclined to believe that Sid’s family had accidentally acquired it. However, due to various reasons, no one had been able to claim ownership of it, which was why they remained unaware of its true abilities.

But perhaps Sid’s family held clues about the diary’s origins and other secrets. If an opportunity arose in the future, Saul could investigate further.

"For now, dealing with Sid’s grandfather requires careful planning. As far as I recall, Sid once touched the diary, but he couldn't activate it. That means there must be other conditions required to do so."

Saul processed the new information before glancing at his left hand.

"The issue of the soul fragment is temporarily settled, but my left hand… is made of Soul Resin? I think I’ve seen that term somewhere before. Yawn… Let me try to remember…"

Yawning, Saul stretched out his limbs, climbed into bed, and buried his head under the covers.

He was utterly exhausted. Before his thoughts could drift any further, he had already fallen into a deep sleep.

---

Saul woke up before 3 PM.

Though he wanted to sleep until the next afternoon, he lacked the courage to skip work.

A corporate worker could still quit and run away, but in a wizard tower, running away might just mean carrying one’s own severed head in a bucket.

The second floor of the East Tower looked the same as always, but the people had changed.

Senior apprentice Byron had left the morgue the previous day.

As a third-level apprentice, he could no longer continue working in the morgue—it would be a waste of his talents from the tower’s perspective.

Third-level apprentices were usually assigned tasks in the outside world, so like the others at his level, Byron would be away from the tower for long periods.

Before leaving, Byron had instructed Saul that if Constance came asking about the thing Sid was searching for, Saul should push all the responsibility onto him.

Constance was not foolish enough to offend Byron over some unknown object and, in doing so, lose the hidden contact she had placed in the morgue.

The apprentice replacing Byron was an unfamiliar second-level apprentice. It seemed Byron had spoken to him beforehand, as he politely nodded when he first met Saul.

Today’s work was just as intense as usual.

Not everyone was willing to die peacefully.

Saul had to smack a wailing female corpse to put her to sleep before cutting off her ear.

The ear sprouted a pair of wings and struggled to fly away, but Saul tied it up with a string and secured it inside a small box.

That night, Saul finally had a dreamless sleep.

But in a small town, separated from the Gorsa Wizard Tower by a viscount’s domain—

Someone else was destined to have a sleepless night.

---

Since marrying her current merchant husband, Lady Hannah had been living like a noblewoman.

Her merchant husband was often away, so they led separate lives, each minding their own business.

The estate they lived in had been purchased from an old butler.

Because the previous owners had all died, the estate was sold at a very low price.

At first, living in a house where people had died made Lady Hannah uncomfortable.

But after staying there for a few days, she realized—this estate was amazing!

It was spacious, luxurious, had front and back gardens, and came with a full set of lavish furniture.

Living here truly made her feel like a noblewoman.

However, that evening, the front garden of the estate suddenly caved in, revealing a stone coffin buried underground.

Lady Hannah immediately ordered her servants to handle the situation.

Having unknown corpses buried in the estate was disturbing.

She intended to remove the coffin and then demand compensation from the old butler who had sold them the house.

As they moved the stone coffin, its lid unexpectedly slid open.

One of the servants, hoping for treasure inside, took the liberty of peeking in.

But there were no riches—only a shriveled corpse.

Disappointed, the group just wanted to get rid of the coffin quickly.

But to their horror, the corpse suddenly reached out and grabbed an elderly servant standing nearby, dragging him inside.

The old servant screamed and struggled, but he was no match for the corpse’s strength.

The dried, blackened skin of the corpse suddenly started to move, peeling back in layers and stretching into countless thin tendrils.

The tendrils wrapped tightly around the old servant, swallowing him like a python consuming a deer.

The surrounding people fled in terror—except for Lady Hannah.

She was too paralyzed with fear to move, and no one was there to help her.

She wanted to run, but her legs wouldn’t obey. As she staggered, she collapsed to the ground.

At that moment, a withered, dark hand reached out toward her tear-streaked face.

"Which servant…?" Hannah thought, trembling as she reached for the strong hand, already considering how much she should reward the person who saved her.

But when she looked up, she saw an unfamiliar, aged face.

"Don’t be afraid, madam. That was just an accident. After all, I haven’t eaten in a long time."

The old man was completely bald, with black, wrinkled skin and an emaciated frame.

Lady Hannah finally recognized him—

Wasn’t he the corpse inside the coffin?

He had come back to life. And he was noticeably fatter than before!

Knowing she couldn’t outrun him, Hannah began sobbing and pleading for her life.

The woman’s cries irritated the old man. His skin rippled as if alive, his gaze fixating on her pale, plump chest.

"Master."

Another aged voice interrupted him.

The old man turned to see a white-haired man in a black butler’s uniform, holding a set of clothes.

The old man smiled.

"Hunt, I woke up to see so many strangers. I almost thought something had happened to you."

Butler Hunt calmly approached, handed over the clothes, and firmly restrained the struggling Hannah.

"Old Hunt? Old Hunt!" Hannah recognized the butler who had sold them the estate. "Please save me, save me!"

But Hunt gripped her arm tightly, revealing unnatural strength for a man of his age.

Neither he nor the old man paid her any mind.

"I figured my master would be famished upon waking, so I prepared some snacks." Hunt spoke with utmost respect, though his words were utterly horrifying.

The old man chuckled. "Haha, I can eat all of them?"

"I’ve checked—none of them have powerful backgrounds. Please, master, enjoy."

Delighted, the old man seized Hannah and lifted her to his face.

He didn’t open his mouth—

Instead, from his face down to his abdomen, his blackened skin split apart, revealing a gaping, blood-red maw.

With a single "bite," he devoured half of Hannah’s body.

---

Now satisfied, the old man had regained a more normal, albeit gaunt, appearance. His skin remained blackened, tinged with dark red, making it unsettling to look at.

As he donned the robe Hunt provided, he touched his smooth, bald head.

"Looks like my hair will take a few days to grow back. I must look ridiculous." he mused.

"Master, you are always elegant," Hunt responded respectfully.

They walked together into the depths of the estate.

"So, master, did you find the diary?"

"There was a problem. It was stolen, and little Sid was killed trying to retrieve it."

"Ah, poor young master." Hunt bowed, though his face showed no grief.

"Yes, my poor grandson, my last living blood relative."

But soon, the old man brightened.

"Still, Sid was useful. Before dying, he activated the mark I left on him. His spirit will now haunt the killer, leading me to the diary."

The black-skinned elder was none other than Sid’s grandfather—Ralph.

The last surviving member of the Bloodthorn family.

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