The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - LLD Chapter 34: A Lord’s Responsibility and Duty (2) (Part 2)

And yet, the tears wouldn’t stop.
She didn’t even try to stop them.

Just like that—

Serapia collapsed on the spot.

“Hhic…! Sob…!”

She must have cried for hours on end.

Across the continent, there were more Free Cities besides Frecce.

Each Free City developed around a specific industry, like mining, agriculture, or livestock.
Frecce, for instance, had flourished through commerce.

And then, there were cities that had blossomed around cultural activities like art and academia—
The cultural city: Orpheum.

Surrounded by high mountain ranges and crystal-clear rivers, the city was a harmonious blend of natural beauty and human construction.
Orpheum was founded by those who cherished learning and the arts.

Over time, it had gradually become the heart of intellectual debates and artistic collaboration.
Now, it stood as a hub where artists and scholars from across nations gathered to exchange and explore ideas together.

Beside Orpheum’s central plaza stood a massive bookstore that could easily be mistaken for a library—
Upon entering, one would be greeted by towering ceilings and endless rows of shelves, resembling a temple of knowledge.

The shelves were neatly categorized by genre and subject.
In the center stood a spiral staircase, leading visitors up and down the multi-level space.

Each floor and section had rolling ladders attached for access.

“Ugh—!”

A young woman, looking barely of age, busily moved up and down between the floors.

She wore a stylish robe of silver and blue.
Her long, pale-blue hair shimmered like silk, and her deep blue eyes held a calm, sky-like tranquility.

With a slender nose and slightly thin lips, her delicate features harmonized perfectly with her clear, flawless skin.

Despite her petite frame, the young woman carried armfuls of heavy books, carefully climbing down the ladder.

Whimpering like an anxious puppy, she stacked the books one by one on the counter with meticulous care.

[All About Every Monster],
[Advanced Magic Theory],
[In-Depth Alchemy],
[Introduction to Curses],
[Transfiguration Magic],
[A History of Classical Magic],
[Evolutionary Biology]…

In an instant, a mountain of books had formed.
The bookstore owner’s glasses slid down his nose with a soft tap.
From his lowered line of sight, the tiny blue-hued girl poked her head out and shouted with sparkling eyes:

“P-Please! I’d like to buy all of these!”
“All of them?”
“Yes!”
“You bought a mountain of books just a few months ago. Don’t tell me you’ve already read them all?”
“They were so fun, I ended up reading all night…”
“Fun…?”

Those tedious, convoluted, headache-inducing tomes? Each over a thousand pages thick?

“Yes! They were super fun!”
“You might be the only one on this continent, Iliana, who finds those kinds of things fun.”

With an expression that said, of course you would, the shopkeeper began organizing the mountain of books by type.
Iliana, the tiny blue-tinted woman, watched him for a moment and then asked:

“By the way, Mister, the whole city seems unusually loud today. Is something going on?”
“Hm? Oh, recently something called ‘monster meat’ started arriving from the commercial city. Probably because of that.”
“…Huh? Monster meat?”
“Yeah, someone’s been selling monster meat lately. They claim it’s meat with the madness removed—”
“That’s impossible!!”

Iliana slammed the counter with a loud thud!

“The madness embedded at the genetic level can’t be removed!”
“Well, I mean…”
“Even if you target the genetic sequence that carries madness, the fundamental energy is encoded into the very core of the gene! You can’t sever that connection!”
“What I’m saying is—”
“So even if you use a spell to target and remove the gene, it won’t erase the energy signature! Unless you completely deny or delete the existence of the gene itself, it’s absolutely! Absolutely impossible!”

Her lips clenched tight, both fists clenched as well.
Her glittering blue eyes under long lashes held an unshakable conviction.

“Uh… Iliana? Even if you explain it with all those complicated words, I’m just a merchant. I won’t understand.”
“S-Still…! It’s a scam!”
“Regardless of the magical theory, what’s clear is that people ate the monster meat and didn’t go mad.”
“W-Wha…? That can’t be right! A-Are you sure you didn’t misinterpret?”
“I’m serious. They ate it and didn’t lose their minds.”
“T-That’s ridiculous…!!”

Iliana’s blue eyes shook violently.

“Who was it? Who brought that meat…?”
“A merchant group called Predator.”
“Predator… merchant group?”

Not a mage?
Not a magic tower?

Iliana fell deep into thought, trying to recall anything she knew.
But no matter how hard she thought, she couldn’t recall any group called Predator.

Even though she had learned through books, Iliana had memorized nearly every kingdom, noble family, and merchant group on the continent.
Yet nothing came to mind. That could only mean one thing.

“It’s a newly established merchant group.”
“Ah…”

That explained why she had no recollection, no matter how hard she tried.

“It’s run by the House of Whitewolf.”
“The House of Whitewolf…?”

Iliana sank back into thought again.
But this time, her thoughts didn’t last long.
A flash of realization struck her.

If it was that Whitewolf County she was thinking of…

“Don’t tell me… You mean the territory in the far north of the continent?!”

Translatin_Otaku

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