Chapter 158
Chapter 158: Children and Guguo Grass
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"Other than that, everything seemed normal, I didn't see Sister Theresa. But there's something that's been bothering me..." Lecter paused to think for a moment, then continued, "Cataloma has always been sending fresh blood to the Church. The children there are handpicked from orphanages all over the world, and the Church's screening process has always been strict. By all accounts, their overall condition should be decent enough. But strangely, I noticed some of them... boys and girls both... how do I put it..."
"Blank stares, numb expressions, looking completely lifeless, like they were all seriously ill... And that girl they called Abel's sister, the gatekeeper said she's been sickly and frail... I know these children have had it rough, I just find it strange, why would children in such poor health end up in Cataloma?"
After hearing Lecter out, I instinctively brought my thumb to my mouth and started gnawing at my nail.
Blank stares, numb expressions, unhealthy children... I remembered seeing Abel at Cataloma the day before yesterday, the way he looked back then was pretty much exactly what Lecter was describing.
But he wasn't like that before. The Abel I'd met back in Sylgaria... sure, he was a little slow, but he was lively. Something must have happened to make him turn out this way.
But what?
Victoria, sitting across from me, laced her fingers together and rested her hands on the table, lost in thought for a moment before turning to Lecter. "Who was in charge of carrying out the screening."
Lecter answered immediately, "A director named Charles. He's the main culprit we caught when we intercepted that shipment, he's also the one who was handling the guguo grass trade with The Gate of Truth."
"Where is he now." Victoria asked again.
"In the underground prison. Ah... what a headache that place is... The jailers don't allow anyone near when they're interrogating prisoners. It's been the Church's rule for hundreds of years... We can't get any information from there, we can only wait."
The underground prison... Charles...
Judging by how he acted that day, I had a feeling things wouldn't be so straightforward. My gut told me he wasn't the one who needed to be the main focus.
We still needed to start from Cataloma... Those blank-faced children definitely had something wrong with them. But what exactly caused them to change like this...
What was it...
No matter how I turned it over in my head, there was only one thing I could connect it to — guguo grass.
Beyond that, I genuinely couldn't think of any other possibility.
I immediately voiced my theory: "Those children, is it possible they've been... taking guguo grass? That's why they ended up like that."
Right after I said it, I suddenly recalled something. Back when we were still in the Empire, something Carlos and Father had talked about.
The heretics had been sending guguo grass to the royal city in a steady stream, yet each shipment was always in small amounts. Their goal wasn't to make money. And based on the current situation, the heretics were persisting in sending the goods over even knowing full well the risk was enormous, which meant this guguo grass had to be something indispensable to them in some way.
On top of that, the plague doctor had mentioned it too. Guguo grass could numb the senses, and could even make a person lose their sense of fear and cause hallucinations... what else was there? Regardless, the gist of it was that the stuff messed people up, its effects not unlike those harmful substances from my past life. So there was a strong possibility that guguo grass could also suppress the central nervous system, long-term exposure would lead to all sorts of aftereffects. Things like blank stares, physical deterioration, delirium... exactly like those children.
Victoria might not be familiar with symptoms like these, but the more I thought about it, the more convinced I became.
Yet Lecter didn't seem to agree with my theory. He knitted his brows: "Those children taking guguo grass... that doesn't make any sense. Why would anyone do that?"
"Hmm..."
I tilted my head slightly to the right and gnawed hard at my fingernail... ah, I'd nearly chewed through my thumb, better switch to the index finger.
Click, click, click... Pfft.
My brain was still turning.
I thought Lecter had a point too.
There was no way the heretics went through all that trouble, risking everything just to send guguo grass to the royal city, only to use it to harm those children... Who in their right mind would do something so pointless, hurting others without gaining anything?
These were all unfortunate orphans. They had nothing, no one cared about them, just staying alive already took everything they had. What could anyone possibly gain from targeting them?
Wait...
No one cared about them?
Didn't that mean—
"Victoria! How long do those children stay at Cataloma to train?"
Victoria heard me and stared silently for a moment, then shifted her gaze toward Lecter.
"Uh..." Lecter scratched his head, a little troubled, "Half a year? A year? I honestly don't know... I'd imagine it varies from person to person, but they all eventually get sent to various church districts to continue their training until they become ordained clergy, that much I do know."
...These children really do have almost no one looking out for them.
So even if something happened to them... whether they went missing or ended up dead, no one would ever notice.
Thinking about it, I felt a dull ache in my chest.
Elle...
The image of a little girl's innocent smile surfaced in my mind unbidden.
If... someone really was plotting something sinister against these children, I absolutely would not let them off easy.
Directly in front of me, Victoria lightly raised her index finger and tapped the table. Thud, thud.
"Lecter." Her reaction was sharp, she understood what I was getting at in an instant. "Go look into the admission and discharge records for those children. Find out where they've been sent over the past 10 years, and confirm whether they've all been properly accounted for."
"Understood."
After hearing Lecter's reply, Victoria turned her gaze back toward me.
"You go to the Academy tomorrow."
I blanked for a second: "Why?"
The children were very likely in danger.
Knowing that, how could I possibly be in the mood to go to any Academy!
"If you're not there, someone will get suspicious." Victoria said calmly.
I furrowed my brow.
...Someone will get suspicious?
After thinking about it briefly, I figured out who she was referring to.
Theresa.
If I wasn't at the Academy, Theresa would notice right away, and immediately connect the dots to figure out what I was up to, then take countermeasures... That was probably what Victoria was thinking... damn it, she was right.
"But..."
But I don't want to just sit on the sidelines.
I had to do something... Otherwise I'd feel awful, I'd feel anxious...
Victoria, naturally, wasn't going to factor in my feelings.
She stopped paying attention to me and turned back to Lecter: "Tonight, go to Cataloma again, see if the situation changes."
Before Lecter could even respond, I jumped in right away: "Let me go instead, my senses are really sharp!"
"How's your body holding up?"
Victoria, in a rare moment, actually asked something that sounded like concern.
"Much better."
She looked me over, apparently deciding I did look full of life, and gave a nod: "Alright then, you and Lecter go together."
She thought for a moment and added: "Don't be seen."
"Got it."
After that, the three of us went over a few more details before the conversation wrapped up.
Right as I was heading out the door, something suddenly came to mind: "Victoria."
She turned to look at me.
"Are there... birds in the royal city?"
"There are."
"How come I haven't seen any?"
"With 'Boswell' around, wild birds from outside can't get in, so there aren't many."
"...Oh."
I nodded, acting like it was nothing.