Chapter 124: Urban Legends and Lab Secrets

“By the way, before we set off, Menglinna has one small question she’d like answered. Are those hospital-related urban legends true?”

“Urban legends?” Yushi seemed taken aback. Perhaps she hadn’t expected Menglinna to bring that up.

“I don’t know which ones you mean specifically, but some urban legends do have a basis in reality. For instance, some vampires really do sneak into hospital blood banks to drink.”

She didn’t deny it. Instead, she gave a vague example, which only made Menglinna more uneasy.

“You’re not actually researching strange creatures underground, are you?”

“That depends on how you define ‘strange,'” Yushi said with a smile. “Remember our conditions—I can’t casually disclose what goes on in the lab!”

“Gulp…”

Things were getting more and more unsettling.

But since she had already accepted the commission, it was too late to back out now.

Menglinna glanced at Nanaya beside her, who seemed completely unconcerned.

Under Yushi’s control, the automatic door before them slid open slowly. As they stepped forward, nozzles on the side walls suddenly sprayed liquid.

“It’s just disinfectant alcohol!” Yushi explained through a speaker from behind.

Indeed, it was only disinfectant alcohol. Menglinna shielded her eyes and continued forward. Then the blowers on both sides of the wall kicked in, instantly drying all the moisture on them.

After this disinfection procedure, the two finally entered the laboratory proper.

Under Yushi’s command, all the lights in the lab blazed on. Even though they were underground, there wasn’t a single dark corner.

But even so, Menglinna still felt uneasy. It wasn’t darkness she feared, but the unknown.

Rumor had it that the hospital researched bizarre creatures in its basement. She hoped it was just gossip, but given Yushi’s attitude, the truth might be questionable.

“Hey, Little Na, don’t you think the lab is creepy?”

Walking down the long corridor, Menglinna couldn’t help but speak to Nanaya.

“Creepy?” Nanaya looked around. “You’re not scared, are you?”

“How could I be scared!” Menglinna shouted, her sore spot hit. “I’m just worried about this mission.”

Stubborn.

Nanaya didn’t bother to argue. She just moved a little closer to Menglinna.

Since they were already in the lab, combat could erupt at any moment. They both drew their weapons.

“Stay close behind me.”

Nanaya held the Flame Giant Whip, signaling for Menglinna not to stray too far.

“Okay.”

Menglinna looked at Nanaya, who was actually shorter than her, and felt a twinge of embarrassment.

But Nanaya was indeed the melee fighter of the two, so the positioning was correct.

With that thought, they pushed open the door to an office.

Although the beast was no longer in the lab area, there were no suspicious tracks in the corridor. For now, tracking it down wouldn’t be easy.

Without footprints or other traces to follow, they had to search room by room.

The office area was nothing unusual. It seemed that due to the emergency, most personnel had evacuated without tidying up, leaving many documents on the desks.

Menglinna glanced at a few. They seemed to be technical discussions on blood therapy, but the terminology was too obscure, and the lighting wasn’t great, so she didn’t read much.

Things like “soul-body separation” were completely beyond her.

Past the office area was the more dangerous testing ground. Through the glass door, they could see all sorts of forbidden experiments inside.

“Is that… transplanting a catgirl’s head onto a human body?”

Menglinna’s voice trembled slightly as she looked at the specimen.

A flat line on the monitor beside indicated the transplant had failed. Whether it was a technical flaw or the experiment had been cut short due to the lockdown, she didn’t know.

“May she rest in peace.”

Nanaya suddenly took Menglinna’s hand. The warmth from her palm made Menglinna feel a little better.

“Rest in peace.”

They prayed briefly for the corpse and left.

The next room was even more horrifying. On the test bench lay only a dried layer of skin.

They didn’t linger. Since there was no beast, they continued their search.

Just as Menglinna opened another door, she felt a breeze.

But wasn’t this a basement?

Nanaya, in front, reacted first. “There!”

Menglinna didn’t hesitate and followed Nanaya in a sprint.

A wolf-shaped beast ran ahead of them. It seemed terrified of the two.

Nanaya wasn’t about to let it off. With good physical condition, she pulled out her badge with her left hand, chanting a prayer while running. A binding ring flew from her hand.

The corridor was narrow, so dodging wasn’t easy. The beast stopped and turned to fight.

With a single swipe of its claws, it tore the binding ring apart. It let out a long howl and bared its claws.

The werewolf, originally on all fours, rose on its hind legs, raising its front claws high. If they got within range, those claws would come down and split their heads open.

However, they also noticed a wound on the beast’s belly. It had stopped bleeding, but looked like it was starting to fester.

They tacitly chose to keep their distance. As long as they stayed out of its reach and didn’t let it escape, they could use ranged divine arts.

“Great Pillar of Lightning!”

Though both were nuns, they used different techniques.

The beast tried to dodge, but the corridor was too narrow. It barely avoided Menglinna’s lightning spear but took Nanaya’s Great Pillar of Lightning square in the face.

The damage made it recoil in pain, but didn’t seem to cause any real harm.

“Isn’t it supposed to be weak to fire? Look at all that fur! Little Na, try burning it!”

Seeing the beast about to counterattack, Menglinna urged Nanaya.

Nanaia began chanting a blessing for them.

As the beast drew closer, Nanaya simply raised her holy seal, and a surge of fire magic gushed forward. The charging beast ran straight into a wall of flames, howling in agony.

Nanaya didn’t let up, increasing her magical output. The beast curled up inside the flames and finally stopped moving.

Thinking it was dealt with, Nanaya lowered her holy seal and went to check.

Menglinna followed, eager to collect proof of the kill and leave this unsettling lab.

She drew a dagger from her belt, lifted the beast’s foreleg, and prepared to cut off its claw as proof. But the beast still had one trick left. Not quite dead, it suddenly swung its claw, knocking the dagger from Menglinna’s hand.

It was sudden. Nanaya, thinking it was over, was still behind and couldn’t help in time.

The beast knew it only had this one chance. It thrust its claw straight at the seemingly frail nun.

Though slow, it was enough to take out a nun like Menglinna.

In a crisis, Menglinna acted without thinking. She swung her holy seal, and an axe made of lightning sliced through the beast’s foreleg.

The claws, already roasted by the earlier heat, were brittle. Menglinna’s lightning effortlessly severed them.

Once the deadly attack was blocked, Nanaya reacted. She rushed forward with a whip strike, finishing the beast off for good.

“Thanks.”

Menglinna held the beast’s claw in her hand, still shaken by the ambush.

After confirming the beast was dead, Nanaya came back and patted Menglinna’s back. “Relax.”

“I’m not tense, I just—”

Yeah, yeah, you’re not tense. Nanaya didn’t want to argue about that. But she noticed the axe in Menglinna’s hand, which hadn’t dissipated yet. “Isn’t that a B-rank divine art?”

“Huh?”

In the heat of the moment, Menglinna had been forced to use one of her stronger techniques. But clearly, a B-rank spell shouldn’t be something she could master at her level.

She let go, and the axe vanished into the air. “Really?”

Nanaya just shook her head. “Don’t take me for a fool.”

Earlier, she could have said Nanaya had no proof. But now she’d been caught red-handed using a spell beyond her current rank.

Still, Menglinna made one last attempt. “Can I explain?”

Nanaya shook her head again. “No need. Some people are indeed gifted enough to master higher-level spells.”

Menglinna let out a long sigh of relief. “I’m glad you understand.”

“But talent is talent. Can you explain where you learned it?”

Faced with Nanaya’s question, the smile on Menglinna’s face froze.

Yeah, how could a C-rank nun have access to a B-rank divine art? If taken seriously, she could have killed a high-ranking priest and stolen the spell. That would be a serious crime, possibly even leading to execution by the Inquisition.

“I…”

She desperately tried to come up with an excuse. Her mouth opened and closed.

But in the end, no sound came out.

Nanaya knew she couldn’t explain. She smiled. “If you don’t want others to know, you’ll have to obey my orders!”

“Gulp…”

With the commission complete, the two took the proof of kill and returned the same way. After another round of disinfection, they handed the wolf claw to Yushi.

“Done.”

Yushi took the trophy with a businesslike tone. “Thank you. I’ll have my staff verify it. Once confirmed, we’ll settle the reward.”

“Okay.”

Back at the guild before noon, as soon as they reached the lobby, Miaomiaonia said the commission had been confirmed and the reward was already sent.

Looking at the heavy gold coins, Menglinna felt dazed.

Before, getting such a huge reward would have made her ecstatic for half a day.

But as she earned more, the joy faded. Staring at the pile of money, she felt she simply deserved it.

After all, she’d nearly been eaten by a giant beast dog.

“We’re even earlier than I thought,” Nanaya said, glancing at the clock. “Since it’s a day off, how about we grab lunch first and then go out to play this afternoon?”

“Play?” A troubled expression crossed Menglinna’s face. Her mouth automatically replied, “But I still—”

Nanaya cut her off. “You don’t think you have the right to refuse, do you?”

Thinking of all the leverage Nanaya had over her, Menglinna had no choice but to comply. “Whatever you say.”

“That’s more like it.”

Under Miaomiaonia’s watchful eye, Nanaya couldn’t resist reaching out and tapping Menglinna’s nose.

Miaomiaonia looked away, fanning herself. “Haha, the guild’s temperature just went up five degrees because of this yuri behavior.”

Blushing deeply, Menglinna couldn’t take it. She grabbed Nanaya’s hand and dragged her out of the guild.

Girl Eating…

As lunch drew to a close, Menglinna couldn’t help but ask, “Little Na, you said we’d go out to play this afternoon. Where are we going?”

“I’m still thinking…”

Nanaya had originally planned to monopolize Menglinna for the whole day on some adventure. She’d intended to pick an easy commission, turning it into a field trip. But the sudden commission had thrown off all her plans.

Even though she was the one who suggested going out, she hadn’t thought of a specific destination yet.

“If you haven’t decided, maybe we can just head back…”

Menglinna, showing her inner homebody, started to back out again.

“No!”

Nanaya slammed the table. Startled, Menglinna shrank her neck like a frightened turtledove.

Seeing her so soft and timid, Nanaya had an idea. “Since you’re such a scaredy-cat, let’s go to a haunted house this afternoon!”

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