With the Serpent God Yig eliminated, the expedition into the underground Serpent People empire came to a close. Duanmu Huai had his puppets inspect every part of the underground ruins, confirmed that all the creatures had been dealt with, gathered their remains together, and incinerated everything thoroughly with the black flames.
Of course, with the death of the Serpent God, most Serpent People in other locations would perish as well. There might be a lucky few who survived, but without the protection of their racial deity, they wouldn't be able to cause any meaningful trouble.
Beyond that, inside the Serpent People's lair, Duanmu Huai and the others also found a diary left by a victim from long ago. It recorded the reason this tunnel had originally come to exist — it turned out that prior to everything, this manor had belonged to a slave trafficker. To avoid detection by the authorities, he had specifically dug this secret passage beneath his manor, originally intending it to extend to the outskirts of the city. But midway through the digging, through what might be called either fortune or misfortune, he had inadvertently broken through into the Serpent People's cave system.
A slave trafficker tunneling straight into a Serpent People den — from a certain perspective, one might call it divine judgment.
Though the passage had been opened, business had not gone smoothly. Several shipments of trafficked slaves had vanished en route, and even the guards escorting them never returned.
So the furious trafficker had personally led men to investigate — and following the Serpent People's tunnels, they had found their way to the Serpent People's lair. And then they were captured.
But they weren't killed outright. Instead, the men were slaughtered by the Serpent People as sacrificial offerings to the Serpent God, while the women were kept to help produce offspring. In fact, those white ape-like creatures Duanmu Huai and the others had seen earlier were the children born from unions between Serpent People and humans...…well, these Serpent People really did have something in common with goblins.
Of course, none of that mattered now. The diary's author had died long ago, the Serpent God was dead, and the Serpent People were dead. All it did was once again confirm the correctness of the Inquisition's fundamental policy — those who are not of our kind will always be of a different heart, and all alien species must be exterminated.
As for what to do with this ruin — Duanmu Huai had Mary call Professor Palmer and ask him to come take charge of the investigation, research, and excavation. Since the Serpent God was already dead, leaving the ruin intact was perfectly fine. In fact, having humanity become more aware of these things would help them be a little more mentally prepared, wouldn't it?
Upon receiving Mary's call, Professor Palmer was absolutely beside himself with excitement, saying he would immediately assemble his team and head to Cornwall — after all, with excavations it was first come, first served. As a middling scholar with an average reputation, being beaten to the punch by someone else would be catastrophic. So he understood the importance of seizing the opportunity, and the moment he hung up the phone he began organizing his team...…of course, since he was taking the train, there was no need to worry about him passing through any murderous hotel on the way.
Mary was responsible for meeting Professor Palmer, while Duanmu Huai gave the client a brief summary of how things had concluded — yes, simply put, the culprit had been eliminated and the matter was resolved.
It was really that straightforward.
Though Earl Best seemed to still have some doubts, Duanmu Huai didn't particularly care. Everything that needed doing had been done — all that remained was for time to bear it out. He wasn't short on money either, and on top of everything, finishing off the Serpent God Yig had earned him a rather excellent new ability.
"HAAH————!"
Duanmu Huai extended his right hand, and in the next instant his right palm suddenly transformed into several thick, writhing semi-translucent tentacles that reached forward and wrapped around a wine bottle, crushing it to powder.
Yes — this was the [Harbinger of Epolyte] Duanmu Huai had obtained. Just as the description said, it could transform any part of Duanmu Huai's body into the limbs of a Great Old One — in simple terms, tentacles.
"Hmm, this is actually quite useful."
Duanmu Huai gave a nod, then thought it over carefully. He extended the tentacles from his bald head — his hair began growing out automatically and stretching longer and longer, then transformed into long, writhing tendrils. It looked exactly like Medusa with a head full of venomous snakes.
"This one really doesn't work."
Looking at the constantly squirming hair, even Duanmu Huai found it deeply unsettling, and promptly dismissed the transformation.
But...…
"If I could use it like this, that would be ideal."
As he said this, Duanmu Huai clenched his fists. After obtaining this ability, he had thought of many ways to use it. The most practical approach he had come up with was to use a tentacle to restrain an enemy, then pummel them with Ora Ora repeatedly — that way the enemy couldn't be sent flying, and he could beat them to death right there on the spot without any trouble.
There was just one small problem.
"I only have two hands."
Duanmu Huai looked at his left and right hands. If he was going to Ora Ora the enemy, he naturally didn't have a third hand free.
Hm?
Wait!
With that thought, Duanmu Huai's eyes lit up. He clenched his fists — and then several thick tentacles suddenly sprouted from his groin area and reached forward.
"...…"
Something about that didn't feel quite right.
Better not go with that one. Using it against a man felt weird, and if the opponent somehow managed to cut the tentacles off, then he...…
At that thought, a chill ran down Duanmu Huai's spine, and a cold sensation settled below his waist.
He should think of some other approach.
Duanmu Huai quietly retracted the tentacles.
He'd gotten such a fine ability, and could he really only use it on Suzume or Kanami?
What a waste...…
"Knock knock knock."
Just then, a knock came at the door, followed by Mary's voice from outside.
"Mr. Duanmu, are you there?"
"Yes, I'm here."
Duanmu Huai retracted the tentacles, stretched his limbs, and called out. Mary opened the door and came in.
"How are things going with Professor Palmer?"
"When he saw the ruins he was tremendously excited — he said something about filling in gaps in ancient history...…are you sure it's alright to expose all of that?"
Mary had joined Duanmu Huai in raiding the Serpent People and had read through the diary, so she naturally understood just how terrifying these creatures had been.
"It's fine. Now that the Serpent God is dead, they're no different from extinct dinosaurs — they pose no threat to humanity. If anything, studying them more is actually beneficial. At the very least, it lets humanity develop more understanding in this area, rather than simply being passive recipients of whatever these things choose to do."
The more humanity learned, the more resistance they would develop against these kinds of creatures. That was also another reason Lorena didn't lose nearly as much [sanity] when encountering them.
"But the title of first discoverer absolutely has to go to you — that's non-negotiable."
"Hm? Me? But...…Mr. Duanmu, it was really you who...…"
"Lorena and I have no need for that kind of recognition. You're the one studying history, aren't you — isn't a discovery like this extremely significant for you?"
This was also one of the conditions Duanmu Huai had set with Professor Palmer — that Mary would be recognized as the first discoverer of the ruins. Mary was a history student specializing in archaeology, and discovering a ruin was perfectly natural for someone in her position — it even had a touch of the legendary about it.
To put it in terms anyone could understand:
It was like a biology student stumbling upon an entirely new species.
Or a medical student discovering a hidden serious illness during a clinical placement.
For a student, this was genuinely impressive.
Of course, in the wider public this sort of thing probably wouldn't bring much fame — but within academic circles, Mary could use this to establish herself. At the very least, with this credential, people would look at her with greater respect, which would also benefit her future academic development.
Rather like Watson — he wrote books, yes, but his actual profession was as an army doctor, wasn't it? And being a doctor didn't stop Watson from following Holmes and solving cases.
After handing the ruins over to Professor Palmer and his team, Duanmu Huai and the others left Cornwall. Mary returned to the foggy city and began writing up her accounts of both adventures, compiling them into a book. Duanmu Huai, meanwhile, didn't sit idle either — after resting in the foggy city for a few days, he quietly slipped away to Yellowstone Park.
And his reason for coming here was singular.
"Should be around here somewhere."
Strolling through the forests of Yellowstone Park and glancing at the volcanic landscape not far off, Duanmu Huai looked around. His purpose here was simple: find the Foundation's headquarters and steal "Deus Ex Machina."
Well — with the Raven's Heart, how could it be called stealing?
"Alright, let's give it a try."
Using the Raven's Heart was simple — just go near the target location and activate it, and there was a chance of obtaining something. Of course, if you could see the thing you wanted to take, you had a chance of lifting it without anyone noticing. But if you couldn't see it, then it was more or less random what you might end up with.
Duanmu Huai recalled that the Foundation's base was beneath the Yellowstone volcano. He had already walked to the edge of the area — logically, directly beneath his feet should be the Foundation's base right now.
So...…
"Raven's Heart."
As he said it, Duanmu Huai closed his right hand — and in the next instant, he felt something silently appear in his grip. He opened his hand with excitement and looked at his palm.
"...…"
Bird droppings.
For the love of — what a start. Try again.
After rinsing his hand with mineral water, Duanmu Huai tried once more.
"Raven's Heart!"
...…
A fountain pen. Well, at least it proved his guess wasn't wrong — fountain pens didn't exactly grow naturally on the ground in Yellowstone.
"Raven's Heart!"
A steaming cup of coffee. What use was that to him?
Again!
...…A rubber eraser?
Again!
...…A love letter? They were living it up down there?
Again!
...
By the time the sun set, Duanmu Huai still hadn't found what he was looking for. Instead, the pile next to him was growing toward the size of a small garbage heap.
Was his luck really this bad?
Duanmu Huai stared at the pile of junk beside him with speechless exasperation. Inside it were A4 paper, a fountain pen, erasers, a blackboard, several chairs, a desk, a safe, a few vinyl records, a security camera, and a disposable diaper...…Duanmu Huai was absolutely certain he did not want to know what kind of research the Foundation members were conducting down there.
Was he really going to have to empty the whole place before he found it? Though the Raven's Heart had pulled off similar stunts before...…
With that thought, Duanmu Huai reached out again...…hm?
What's this?
Sensing a different texture from everything before, Duanmu Huai raised his hand in curiosity — and then...…
"A [Soul Card]?"
That's right — what appeared in Duanmu Huai's hand was a Soul Card.
[[Deus Ex Machina (Legendary)]]
[Cost: 5]
[Attack: 4]
[Defense: 5]
[Effect: Unknown]
["I am the mechanical god who governs causality. Whether to steer the world toward stability or bring greater chaos — all of it is your freedom...…come now, what is it that you desire?"]
[Sealed]
"There's actually a Deus Ex Machina?"
Looking at the card in his hand, Duanmu Huai was completely taken aback. Players on the forum had mentioned it, yes, but since no one had ever actually obtained it, he had only been trying on a whim. In truth, he had already prepared himself for the possibility of giving up and going back to purchase the Reality Anchor blueprint from the Foundation and figure it out slowly through his own research.
He simply hadn't expected that this casual attempt would bear fruit — and yet here he was, holding the real thing.
"Waaah...…Waaah...…!!"
And at that same moment, sharp alarm sirens suddenly blared out, echoing across the sky above Yellowstone. At the same time, lights below the mountain blazed on — it was obvious the Foundation had discovered their greatest trump card was missing.
"...…"
Time to run. If not now, when?
With that thought, Duanmu Huai took a few steps back — and simply disappeared into the darkness without a trace.
(End of Chapter)