Chapter 156: The Cold Truth

Saul almost threw a Strike the Undead spell.

But recalling that this shadowy figure hadn’t shown any clear malice last night, he held back his impulse to fight.

“Who are you? Why have you been following me?”

The shadow gradually became clearer, revealing a slender figure that seemed to be wearing a dress. However, its facial features remained indistinct, except for a pair of eyes that grew even redder.

“Why?” The shadow leaped onto the table in two steps, sitting down. The books on the table passed through her body, yet she remained seated as if unaffected. “If it weren’t for Gorsa telling me to watch you, do you think I’d want to follow you?”

“The Tower Master? You…” Saul suddenly recalled two past incidents.

The first was at the entrance of Hanging Hand Valley. Standing among the swarm of head-shaped creatures, he had seen a human-sized shadow within the Soul Wave Sensor.

At first, he thought he was seeing an evil spirit, but Nick reminded him that the sensor hadn’t even been activated.

The second was on the sailing ship, where, while resting on the deck, he again saw the same shadowy figure within the sensor. This disproved his earlier assumption that the shadow was the evil spirit Morton.

“You’re the spirit that appeared in the sensor? You’ve been following me all this time?”

“That’s right,” the shadow swung its legs. “Ever since you left the wizard tower, I’ve been with you. I watched as that Nick tricked you into Grindstone Town, I saw you bully a little girl and dig out her eyes, and I witnessed you toying with that useless apprentice in the tower.”

Saul’s heart tightened. He quickly recalled whether he had ever spoken about the diary while alone.

Fortunately, his communication with the diary was always through telepathy. To an outsider, his behavior might seem strange, but they wouldn’t be able to detect the diary’s existence.

“The Tower Master asked you to protect me?”

“Hah!” The shadow let out a short laugh, seemingly mocking Saul’s wishful thinking. But then, in a way that indirectly confirmed his assumption, she said, “You could say that. After all, he did say to make sure you don’t die.”

“So, the two times you appeared in the sensor, you were saving me?” Saul asked, but he didn’t even wait for a reply before quickly adding, “I really must thank you for your help. Without you, I might not have made it back to the wizard tower.”

No matter whether the shadow was telling the truth or not, expressing gratitude wouldn’t cost him anything.

But he couldn’t allow this shadow to keep following him—otherwise, many of his experiments and research would become impossible.

“Even if I didn’t help at Hanging Hand Valley… you should still thank me! Otherwise, do you think Gorsa just happened to show up?” The shadow’s voice started off indistinct, but then grew firm and self-assured.

At the same time, she saw right through Saul’s thoughts. “Are you trying to get rid of me? Hmph! You think I want to be stuck with a boring guy like you? Your research is so basic it’s pathetic!”

Her voice grew sharper. “But Gorsa told me to stay for now and answer any questions you have about Morten.”

Saul abruptly looked up, staring into those crimson eyes, and quickly pulled out the puppet doll that Gorsa had given him.

At this moment, the doll’s eyes had turned even redder.

“You… you’re Madam Yura?”

Could this be what Gorsa meant by Yura’s uniqueness?

This eerie form was indeed different from ordinary spirits. Her personality also seemed childlike.

But the moment she heard the name Yura, the shadow’s voice turned cold. Even without a visible face, Saul could feel the darkness in her tone.

“I am NOT Yura!” she snapped. “I’m just a copy Gorsa created in an attempt to revive his wife.”

Saul drew in a sharp breath. “Creating souls?”

“Forget it. No point explaining to a Level 2 Apprentice like you. Just call me Vini. I have nothing to do with Yura—not even half a syllable’s worth!” The spirit, now identifying as Vini, wagged her finger at Saul.

This shadowy figure was unpredictable—lively one moment, gloomy the next. Just like an evil spirit, her moods were erratic.

“Alright, enough about that.” Vini crossed her arms—though the moment she did, her hands seemed to disappear. “What do you want to know about Morten?”

“If someone is possessed by an evil spirit, will there be any lasting effects on their body and mind?”

According to Byron, after defeating Morten, Saul’s hands had melted away, and his entire body had nearly dissolved like wax.

Although he somehow recovered afterward, the incident still worried him.

“Yes. Most people who get possessed suffer severe consequences,” Vini answered with eerie enthusiasm, as if she found the topic delightful.

“You were possessed by a full-fledged wizard-level evil spirit. Normally, even if you were saved, you’d be sick for years—or go insane outright. That level of corruption isn’t something to take lightly.”

Vini hopped off the table and strolled behind Saul, hands clasped behind her back.

“But your spiritual grease absorbed most of the dangerous soul energy, and whatever it couldn’t handle somehow vanished after Morten died.”

She pressed her shadowy hand against the back of Saul’s head.

A cold sensation seeped into his pores, freezing his skin and muscles—but in the next moment, it was gone. When he checked, his body was perfectly fine.

“Your spiritual power is abnormally strong, and combined with that magic array, you disrupted Morten’s consciousness. That’s probably what kept you alive.”

“But that’s the strange part.” Vini moved in front of Saul, her shadowy fingers now pressing against his forehead.

Saul met her gaze with steady eyes, refusing to flinch.

“It’s like a tough bone suddenly turned to porridge—instead of leaving behind any lingering resentful fragments, it actually boosted your spiritual power. Was this Morten’s anomaly… or yours?”

Completely vanished?

Saul shut his eyes. There was only one explanation—the diary.

The diary wasn’t interested in soul energy or fragments—only in imprisoning the consciousness of the dead.

Without it, he would have either gone insane or suffered permanent damage after being possessed by such a powerful evil spirit.

Vini, unaware of the diary’s existence, was still puzzled. She withdrew her hand, rubbing her fingers together.

“Is this your innate talent? No wonder Gorsa values you so much. A soul as pure and clean as yours… this is what a living person’s soul should be.”

Saul was starting to understand Gorsa’s experiment.

Was Yura’s consciousness corrupted after death?

Reviving her wasn’t as simple as finding a new body.

Purifying a tainted soul must be incredibly difficult and dangerous.

If Gorsa had tried everything but failed, was Saul’s soul talent his last hope?

But Gorsa had mostly left Saul to develop on his own. Perhaps even he wasn’t sure if Saul’s abilities could help.

“Sigh…” Saul lowered his eyes. “Tower Master Gorsa is a good man. He teaches me, protects me, and is working so hard to revive his wife… Maybe this wizarding world isn’t as cruel as I thought.”

But the moment he finished speaking, Vini burst into laughter.

Her laugh grew louder, echoing through the chamber, sharp and piercing. Saul’s head throbbed in pain.

“Vini… Madam Vini?”

Saul covered his ears, but the sound drilled through. Warm liquid trickled from his ears.

“Madam Vini!” he shouted.

Finally, she stopped.

Her red eyes dimmed as if clouded with moisture.

“You’re too naive! In the wizarding world, only cold laws and even colder self-interest matter. Emotions? They’re just mutual investments.”

Seeing Saul’s silence, Vini chuckled.

“You don’t believe me? Then let me tell you one more truth—”

Adopting a slow, deliberate tone, she mimicked Gorsa’s voice.

“Gorsa’s wife, Yura? He killed her with his own hands. And this so-called resurrection? It’s just his way of securing a backup plan for himself.”

Next Chapter

Table of Content