Chapter 2756 Void Demon <TOC> Chapter 2758 Elemental Seed
Translator: SumTLMan
Void Demon?
When everyone heard this name, they were all taken aback and, almost involuntarily, lifted their heads to look toward those void monsters outside the arena platform that were continually clamoring.
Generally speaking, Void Demon does not specifically refer to a single race of monsters but is a generic term. So long as it is a monster in the void, it can be called a Void Demon. Thus, the monsters surrounding the arena platform could barely count as Void Demons as well.
Shrew also noticed everyone’s gaze and gave a cold snort:「I’m not referring to these domesticated monsters.」
「If it’s not this kind of monster, then is it a special title?」the Gray Merchant said with a curious hum.
The so-called special title is, in fact, a special name.
The void is too vast; in Jon’s words, the void is the concept of the cosmos. From the macroscopic perspective of the cosmos, the varieties of monsters it nurtures are endless; however, from the perspective of an individual wizard, void monsters are far fewer, only a scant few are commonly seen. The vast majority of monsters a wizard might never encounter even once in their lifetime.
Such void monsters that are seldom discovered, even if their species are numerous, so long as their activity range does not overlap with the territorial scope of the Wizarding World, the fact that wizards rarely see them leads to special treatment: they are given special titles.
After all, when wizards conduct research, they certainly view things from their own vantage point.
Just like Void Traveler, which is a special title.
However, Void Travelers are still too few. Basically no wizard has ever studied them, so they’re merely recorded under a special title.
If a species of void monster with a special title has been deeply studied by wizards, or has interacted indirectly, so that its attack methods, traits, and way of life are understood, then it may go a step further and possess its own clan name, code name, or even an individual personal name.
For example: Chaos’ Shunonez, the Chupacabra, and the『Many-Headed』 Igodogo…… They sound like human names, but in fact they are names of void monsters.
These names are not necessarily bestowed by wizards; they may also have been uttered by the void monsters themselves, or learned by wizards through indirect understanding.
Monsters that bear names like these also count as special titles.
Hearing the Gray Merchant’s inquiry, Shrew nodded:「That’s right, a special title.」
Recalling Shrew’s earlier look of shock upon seeing that robe, and the desire in her eyes she could hardly conceal, the Gray Merchant hesitated and asked:「Is it the Chupacabra?」
The Chupacabra is a small-bodied void monster, goat-headed, human-bodied, and scorpion-tailed, its appearance somewhat similar to goat demons of the Abyss; however, a Chupacabra’s physique is far inferior to a goat demon’s, and its size is only half that of a goat demon, most being around one-point-five to two meters tall.
The Chupacabra also has a hallmark trait: almost all Chupacabra are blind.
But to call it congenitally blind isn’t quite right either.
There are eye sockets on a Chupacabra’s skull, and at birth there are spherical crystals akin to eyes. According to magic creature studies, these spherical crystals have a photosensitive function but cannot form vision. As the Chupacabra grows, these spherical crystals gradually atrophy until there is nothing within the sockets, absolute darkness.
Many wizards speculate that the Chupacabra may be a distant offshoot of the goat demons. Unable to compete with the mainstream goat demon factions while staying in the Abyss Plane, and unwilling to be swallowed and wiped out, they fled the Abyss and eked out a hard existence in the void. Their degenerated eyes are one piece of evidence.
For if a Chupacabra’s eyes could grow out intact, then the only difference between it and a goat demon would be size; their looks would be nearly indistinguishable.
Even though the Chupacabra is inferior to goat demons in overall qualities and even lacks eyes, it has its own outstanding aspects.
For instance, powerful mental power and the ability of spatial teleportation.
Many wizards jest that the Chupacabra traded the frailty of its flesh for powerful mental power, and traded its naked eyes for the ability of spatial teleportation. Though merely a jest, not a few wizards feel this may be the truth. And the evidence…… is still the eyes.
By the logic of evolution and degeneration, the Chupacabra’s eyes should have been eliminated long ago; why then do they possess eye-like organs in infancy, only for the eyes to disappear upon maturity? Some wizards, using this as a pretext for study, discovered that the Chupacabra’s eye sockets are like a casket, and the eyes like an offering, very reminiscent of a ritual that sacrifices eyes.
If it truly is a kind of ritual, then this belongs to ritual internalization, meaning: the internalization of the ritual.
This is clearly distinct from external rituals observable to the naked eye. Unless there is a Chupacabra that is preternaturally wise from its juvenile stage and willing to communicate proactively, it is very difficult to confirm whether this is indeed a ritual.
Regardless of whether this conjecture is true, the powerful mental power and highly efficient space ability truly grant the Chupacabra much greater security for survival in the void.
Think of the Void Traveler: clearly a creature frail to the extreme, yet it moves through the void like a fish in water.
The reason the Gray Merchant brought up the Chupacabra is that long ago Shrew had expressed a desire to use Chupacabra organs to modify her flesh, to make herself better adapted to the void’s environment for future needs.
However, void monsters with special titles are all rare, and the Chupacabra is no exception.
Although wizards have more or less finished studying its traits, that does not mean it has been discovered often. One merely encounters it a bit more frequently than other Void Demons with special titles; but in aggregate, it is still rarely seen.
Moreover, the Chupacabra’s mental power is strong; often, before a wizard discovers them, they have already used spatial abilities to flee, utterly uncatchable.
And the void is the Chupacabra’s home turf; a wizard’s desire to capture them is a task of considerable difficulty.
These past ten-plus years, Shrew has roamed all the major auction houses and even sought out the underground trading guild of Deer Island Lorenbeil, yet every time she returned with her feathers singed.
The Gray Merchant understood all too well Shrew’s obsession with the Chupacabra; thus recalling her earlier excitement, he guessed in that direction.
He felt nine out of ten certain of his answer; however, Shrew shook her head, her gaze dim and deep:「It’s not the Chupacabra, it’s…… Seamus.」
……
At the same time, on the other side of the arena platform.
Daus’ eyes shone as he caressed the robe on Kael’s body with an intoxicated face:「This, this really is Seamus’ hide?」
Angel:「You’ve already asked that five times. How many more times do you plan to ask?」
Daus paid no heed at all to Angel’s tone, muttering to himself:「Isn’t this my first time seeing Seamus’ hide? It’s truly beautiful. When I stroke it, I feel my soul trembling!」
「This is also the very first hide that so perfectly fits my hand feel, it’s practically tailored for me. So perfect, so moving…… it’s as if my name were written upon this hide.」
Daus gazed at Seamus’ hide as if bewitched, like a man staring at his lover.
「Do you hear it? It’s calling my name. It’s saying, I’m waiting for you; I’m yours; I shall belong to you!」
Not only Angel, even Kael was disgusted by Daus’ brazen shamelessness and backed away desperately. But Daus clutched his hand and would not let go, he even pressed his own face against it.
Yes, he just pressed his face to Kael’s arm, feeling with his cheek the coolness of Seamus’ hide while he kept inhaling, as if sniffing a lover’s body scent.
「How fragrant, so this is Seamus’ scent…… So the aroma I smelled in my midnight dreams, that was this very scent?」
Even Vai couldn’t take it anymore. His psyche had only just been injured and he didn’t want to speak, but looking at Daus’ creepy-fan behavior, he couldn’t help spitting out a retort:「You’re so delirious you can’t even tell good from bad in smell anymore? What you’re smelling isn’t Seamus’ scent, it’s Kael’s sweat stench.」
Daus argued vehemently:「No! It’s a fragrance! A faint, cool fragrance, that’s the scent that ensnares my very soul!」
Vai:「What ‘cool fragrance’, you’re hallucinating!」
「No, absolutely not!」
Just as Vai was about to continue with his mockery, the Black Count’s voice sounded in the mental connection:「There is indeed a strange fragrance, and it smells a bit familiar……」
If Daus says something, Vai won’t believe it; but if his lord says it, could there really be a fragrance?
Vai hesitated a moment, then walked to Kael’s side and buried his head as well.
Kael now looked like a big tree, with two koalas hanging from his two arms, Vai and Daus.
Vai drew a deep breath for a long time and, beneath the acrid odor of metallic reagents on Kael, finally caught a faint, cool fragrance.
Though this cool fragrance was very, very faint, one had to admit its presence was strikingly strong.
Vai’s sense of smell had a gifted boost; in sensitivity to scent he was stronger than many witch-women who loved perfumes.
This light, cool fragrance was the most paradoxical scent Vai had ever smelled. The scent is clearly faint, yet once smelled, the impression it leaves is intensely deep; clearly a clear, cool fragrance like that of a high-peak flower, yet with a captivating allure that intoxicates and cannot be resisted.
It’s more heady than many allure-fragrances enhanced with Shuolomon.
In the words of some perfume-loving witches, this is more high-end. Without leaving a trace, it makes people flock to it and gradually go mad for it.
This kind of fragrance Vai was smelling for the first time.
But since his lord said the scent was familiar, could it be that his lord had smelled it before?
「Would Seamus…… have such a fragrance?」Vai asked the Black Count while recalling what he knew about Seamus.
Seamus is a void monster that possesses power near that of a formal wizard from the moment of birth; upon entering its growth phase, its strength basically reaches above true knowledge. It is well-versed in the way of space and can move unobstructed for short distances in the void…… Though「short distances」, within the vast environment of the void, are still extremely far.
In body size it counts as petite among void monsters, yet it is still four or five times larger than a human. Its appearance is much like a raptor; on each side of its body there appears to be a broad, gigantic wing, but in reality these are not wings; their function is more like a gecko’s tail.
Once it encounters danger, Seamus can sever its「wings」, expend the space energy stored within, and achieve the goal of fixed-point teleportation. At the same time, the severed wings will generate spatial collapse at the original location, thereby sweeping up a few spatial storms.
Put plainly, it’s like a wizard using a planar passage in a moment of crisis, a means of escape. But Seamus need not worry about backlash; it casts instantly, and at the moment of cast can also threaten the enemy, making it impossible to lock onto its whereabouts.
This ability, however, has shortcomings. For instance, it must have left a void anchor in advance in order to survive by shedding its wings. Also, because it is a fixed-point teleportation, if the post-teleportation position is surrounded as well, it becomes quite awkward. Lastly, although the wings, like a gecko’s tail, can regrow after being severed, the needed time is counted in decades. During that period, if Seamus encounters a formidable foe, it can only live with its tail between its legs.
But though the shortcomings are many, they do not mar its brilliance.
This self-preservation of surviving by severing its wings makes it almost impossible for wizards to lock onto Seamus.
Every wizard knows that Seamus’ entire body is treasure, whether hide, bone, or flesh, all are useful. Especially the hide and bones, which can substitute for many space materials that have been lost to time. Even if not refined into an alchemy item, they can serve as the primary casting material for a planar passage, and because they possess innate space properties, they aren’t consumed in a single use and can be used repeatedly.
But even if you know all this, what use is it if you can’t catch it?
Moreover, Seamus’ strength is basically above true knowledge. A true-knowledge level monster and a true-knowledge level wizard are two different concepts. And a true-knowledge level void monster and a true-knowledge level (non-void) monster are again different concepts.
At the same realm, void monsters do not fear wizards in the least. Thus, wizards capable of hunting Seamus in the Southern Region can be counted on one hand. This makes Seamus materials all the rarer and more precious.
At least, in the Southern Region, no materials from Seamus have flowed out for a very, very long time; and every time they appeared at an auction, a frenzy would ensue. Though the majority of the frenzy is pre-hype orchestrated by the auction houses, in the Wizarding World, where information transmission is relatively inefficient but the ability to discern truth from falsehood is highly efficient, the very fact that a wave of public opinion can be built means it truly has such value.
Hence, when Daus learned this was Seamus’ hide, his covetous drool was about to drip as he spouted a pile of brazenly shameless words. Knowing Daus as he did, Vai understood his thinking very well, most likely he wanted to gamble on a chance…… After all, if Angel could be so generous as to lend out Seamus’ hide, maybe a bit of smooth-talk could cadge a freebie?
After recalling so much intel regarding Seamus, Vai found that no information mentioned Seamus having a fragrance.
Such details may seem trivial to common folk, but in the Wizarding World, because perfume alchemists exist, the matter of scent is generally not overlooked.
Since none of the intel mentions the fragrance on Seamus, it’s highly likely Seamus’ scent is nothing special?
After reasoning out this answer, Vai still felt a bit unsure and looked to the Black Count.
The Black Count pondered:「Monsters in the void basically do not have a scent; they consciously suppress the emission and spread of their pheromones.」
The reason is plain on reflection: in the void, exposing one’s pheromones is no different from a hunter exposing his position in a dark forest; beasts can follow the scent and catch up to kill you.
Thus, most void monsters have no pheromone leakage, i.e., no scent. But this is not absolute; some void monsters do emit odors.
However, void monsters that do emit odors are, for the most part, widely avoided.
For those that dare to flaunt their scent are either so powerful they fear no challenge, or so weak they need to lure, or to kill by luring, through releasing odor. The former can’t be beaten, so they’re skirted; the latter aren’t worth the trouble, if you resort to such petty tricks, you can’t even make it onto the stage, and there is no need to waste time crossing them.
「Ancestor means, this isn’t Seamus’ scent? Then what scent is it?」Vai hesitated, then said cautiously:「Is it a human’s scent?」
If it’s a human’s scent, and not Kael’s, wouldn’t it be someone connected to Lord Super Dimensional?
Of course, it certainly wouldn’t be Lord Super Dimensional’s scent. After all, they had been in contact for a while; if Lord Super Dimensional bore such a scent, it would have been discovered long ago.
But if it isn’t Lord Super Dimensional’s, could it be Lord Super Dimensional’s…… lover’s?
This cool fragrance tinged with allure, if it is a body scent or perfume, it’s basically impossible that it comes from a man. Then it could only be a woman closely connected to Lord Super Dimensional?
How could the Black Count not grasp the thoughts in Vai’s heart:「This is the scent of the Abyss. As for where exactly it comes from, you can ask Angel yourself.」
Angel had actually wanted to speak for some time, but with Vai and the Black Count conversing, it felt impolite to interrupt. Now that the Black Count mentioned him, he immediately picked up the thread:「It’s the scent of a Panaces Succubus.」
To be precise, it is the taste of saliva in a Panaces Succubus’ mouth.
Back then, after the Panaces Succubus 『Hai』 experienced the Rhythm of the Ocean in La Sutherland, the reward she gave Angel was a Seamus corpse.
Spat out from her mouth.
A Panaces Succubus is, after all, a powerful succubus of the Abyss; her saliva naturally contains certain transcendent properties. As time passed, the transcendent traits gradually dissipated, but the strange fragrance contained in the saliva remained.
This is also the fragrance source the Black Count spoke of.
Angel explained only the source of Seamus’ hide’s fragrance; he did not go into the details of how it got stained with it. The others tacitly refrained from asking; if it involved privacy, asking would only be awkward.
Vai turned to Daus:「Now you understand, right? The scent you smelled in your midnight dreams is not the scent of Seamus’ hide, but the scent of a Panaces Succubus.」
Daus cast Vai a sidelong glance and snorted coldly:「Whatever scent it is, at least it isn’t the stench of fungal blight.」
Vai’s pupils contracted; clutching his chest, he backed up several steps…… His whole person took a critical hit, and his expression gradually went slack.
In the eyes of the others, Vai had originally been in color; now, he seemed suddenly to turn black-and-white. Even the art style shifted from realism to abstraction.
Daus paid no attention at all to the shattered-defense Vai; instead he turned to Angel, a fawning, ingratiating look in his eyes, his meaning self-evident.
Angel could naturally read Daus’ meaning and gave a light laugh:「If you can produce something that interests me and is of commensurate value, I’m not unwilling to trade with you.」
Seamus’ hide is indeed very precious. Even without being refined, it can to some extent amplify space abilities; coupled with its status as an exceedingly rare material, Angel cherishes it greatly.
Since obtaining Seamus’ hide, so long a time has passed, and all he has done is craft for Eremy a heart-guard to shield the Seed of Distortion. His own armor is still at the preliminary-sketch stage. By rights, Angel wouldn’t lightly use it as a bargaining chip.
But there are exceptions to all things.
Development can’t keep pace with change.
Ever since Haralenne began following Angel, he has had a stable「void network.」When he contacts Woof Woof, he often hears it talk about happenings in the void, among them mentions of Seamus’ traces, and even of spatial anchors laid by Seamus.
Because of this「void network」, Angel actually has an opportunity to obtain Seamus materials again; thus his words were no lie.
If Daus can indeed come up with something that interests him, he does not mind parting with it, albeit painfully.