LIGHTNOVELWORLD Ch. 43 - Lulu is Lupedos
“This is it.”
What he handed over was a small magical diagram, a complex spell drawn on parchment.
Al wasn’t particularly skilled in healing magic, but he knew how to break and read curses.
“Whoa…!”
“Will this really turn Lulu back to normal?”
“That I can’t say. We have to try.”
Al was informed by Asil that the cat beastman, Lupedos, had been afflicted with a mysterious curse.
Even when they used the Mirror of Origin, it didn’t revert him to his original form.
To be honest, the Mirror of Origin was of a higher level than the magic he could use.
‘This will probably fail. But it will be good for this little lady to see it for herself.’
He had one suspicion about a possibility, but they had to try everything they could.
“Let’s try it!”
“Alright.”
Al wrote Lulu’s true name, Lupedos, in the center of the magic circle and recited the spell.
Flash!
A small glimmer of light appeared on the parchment, flickered, and then vanished.
Had the magic worked?
Yuriana, who had been waiting with bated breath, asked.
“Did it work?”
“I’ll go check.”
He hadn’t said anything because if it failed, he didn’t want to sadden Lulu, who was resting in the next room.
Lately, Lulu had been feeling particularly down, often leaving the room after knocking over a shelf. That never used to happen!
He shook his head.
Levina soon returned, shaking her head.
Yuriana, who had been hopeful, looked crestfallen.
She had thought Lulu would be thrilled if he was restored with a
“A failure…”
“Yuliana, don’t be too upset.”
“To be honest, I thought it might not work. After all, there are people in the kingdom who could use this spell. Perhaps what Lupedos, the cat beastman, is experiencing is something else.”
“What is it?”
Al explained as kindly as he could.
“As Lord Litus mentioned, it is a curse, but it’s a congenital limitation. If he can’t evolve to the next level by his own power, he is destined to live out his life as a cat. It could be a trait that appeared as a mutation.”
“No way!”
Karas, realizing something, slapped his knee.
“Oh…! That’s right. I once heard from Tani that some beastman, a very small number of them, might not be able to continue living as beastman and could be weeded out. The next generation of their offspring would just be animals, but that also applies to the individual?”
“Yes. It’s a curse that strikes without warning, so it’s even harder for the person going through it.”
Yuriana looked even more disheartened.
“So that’s why he got angry when I told him to find a girlfriend. His children would be born as cats, unable to speak properly, and he didn’t even know…”
“Mr. Lupedos will understand.”
“That’s right, Miss. I’ve fixed the shelf by putting in more nails. It won’t collapse even if he doubles his current weight. I promise.”
Following Al and Levina, Karas also tried to comfort her gently.
“Yuriana, don’t worry too much. A limit that one must overcome on their own is something no one can help with.”
“Al, has anyone ever overcome this limit and returned to being a beastman?”
“Of course. It requires a desperate turning point, but it’s not easy. Since Lupedos seems to have his pride, let’s have hope.”
Al spoke without hesitation, not realizing that the
It was a dangerous moment, one that he would regret not consulting astrology after everything was over.
***
Hoo-hoo…
The night was eerily long, the night bird crying loudly.
‘Why is it crying so much? I hope it doesn’t wake the young lady.’
Levina, unable to sleep, got up.
Her insomnia wasn’t just because of the bird.
Dark Town without a boss.
There had been several moments like this before, but never a night that made her heart pound so much.
After making a round on the first floor, she felt a bit more at ease.
In the very last room of the annex, the isolated utility room, Levina sighed lightly.
Finally, the bird quieted down.
Seeing the darkened window, she smiled slightly before turning her head sharply. It was time to sleep.
‘I should get some sleep too… huh?’
It seemed she had seen something rippling outside the window. Not now, but a moment ago when she had looked at the window absentmindedly.
Just a few seconds ago?
Levina couldn’t even swallow the saliva gathering in her mouth as she frantically thought about where her weapon was.
The boss was so paranoid that even messenger pigeons were received outside the Dark House.
Since there was a magical barrier around here, not even a bird could come in.
No weasels, ferrets, mice, or passing cats, except for the beastman Lupedos, could get in or out…!
‘I am…’
The only person she thought of now.
Her beloved Yuriana.
She wasn’t afraid of dying.
But in this place, on the same floor, Yuriana, who was more precious than her life, was sleeping.
Why did she have to move so far from that room? The weapon was in the next room!
At the very least, she must inform the guards and the imperial mage, Al, about this.
Due to Asil’s absence, they were staying in the annex with Karas.
Could she dash up to the second floor where they were likely sleeping?
She had to… somehow…!
Screeech!
“No!”
A sharp whistle blew, followed by the sound of something blunt shattering the window.
It was the beginning of an invasion into the Dark House.
The mysterious intruders did not carry torches.
Were they nocturnal, or skilled assassins? They stormed into the annex, swinging their weapons wildly.
How did they avoid the magical barrier? Who managed to break it?
There wasn’t even time to think about that.
“Ah!”
A searing pain shot through some part of Levina’s body. She didn’t even have time to look back and see what had hit her.
As long as it wasn’t a hook on a rope. As long as her two legs were attached to her body! She would make it to the young lady, no matter what!
Levina, unsure if the liquid on her face was blood, sweat, or tears, began to crawl away from the utility room.
***
Crash!
“Kyaak!”
“Uh… Lulu?”
“Kyah—hiss! Kyahh!”
Still groggy from sleep, Yuriana rubbed her eyes as she got up.
She couldn’t ignore Lulu’s loud hissing from the same room.
Why was he making such a racket in the middle of the night?
“Lulu. Why are you making such a—huh?”
Thud!
“Kyaaaa!”
“W-what is it?”
Yuriana’s bed was in the corner, away from the window.
Therefore, she didn’t immediately come face-to-face with the suspicious person who had broken in through the window.
Lulu, who had been sleeping on the cat tower, jumped down and stood in front of Yuriana’s bed, his fur bristling as he threatened the intruder.
“Kyaaaarrrr—!!”
Even a fattened cat was just a cat.
The powerless cat beastman who couldn’t return to human form lunged fiercely at the armed intruder.
Slash!
“Hmph!”
But Lulu’s attack was useless this time.
The intruder, wearing sturdy boots, kicked him away before he could even use his claws. With a thud, Lulu was sent flying.
He landed right at Yuliana’s bare feet.
Blood. This was Lulu’s blood. Lulu bled while trying to protect her.
“Lu-Lulu…! Lulu, Lulu… Lulu…”
Terrified, Yuriana trembled, her voice shaking as she kept calling Lulu’s name.
She might die. Right here, in this spot.
Her trembling fingers touched Lulu’s limp body.
Run? Fight back? Pull something out of the album to use as a weapon? With what? Bread? Silver coins? That wouldn’t work…
She was just a helpless seven-year-old girl.
With no escape plan coming to mind, Yuriana wrapped her shaking arms around Lulu and pulled her close to her chest.
Even if she couldn’t escape, she would at least protect Lulu’s body.
Her eyes, clouded with fear, were about to close tightly.
Flash!
That was when it happened.
Before the tear rolling down Yuriana’s face could drop onto Lulu’s black fur.
A brilliant white light suddenly radiated from Lulu’s body, now held tightly in Yuliana’s arms.
“What is this?!”
“Ugh!”
‘Lu… Lulu? Are you ascending?’
Whoosh!
In the blink of an eye, the glowing Lulu slipped out of Yuliana’s embrace and took on a human form.
He was Lupedos.
Lulu, now returned to his beastman form with his black hair flowing freely, smirked arrogantly.
“I don’t know who you are, but you’re all dead. Even if I caught you and tortured you, I bet you wouldn’t spill who sent you.”
“Damn it. Was that magic?! Attack him!”
Boom!
But Lupedos was faster.
With a small explosion, an orb launched from his hand took out two intruders cleanly. In one blow.
His senses turned towards the broken window outside.
There were more than a few intruders. Dozens of them.
This was no ordinary situation.
‘Humph. Karas will be taken care of by Al, so I only need to worry about Yuriana.’
“Lu… Lulu?”
“It’s Lupedos, but never mind. What can I expect from you? Just stay still.”
“Wah!”
Lupedos pulled the sheets off the bed and tightly wrapped Yuriana in them.
“This is the only way. There are too many enemies, so I have to move around and deal with them. It’s difficult to hide you somewhere, so keep your eyes closed.”
“O-Okay…”
Lupedos, carrying Yuriana on his back and securing her tightly with the curtain cords, began to move.
There were far too many intruders targeting the Dark House.
After dealing with twenty enemies swarming on the first floor, he clicked his tongue.
“Tsk, tsk. There’s so many of them. Still, it seems like I’ve taken care of most of the ones near the annex.”
There were skilled guards at the main house, so they should have handled it. If not? Well, then they should all be dead!
In the midst of this, he heard a small sound.
“Ah… Al! There’s an enemy over there!”
Swoosh!
A magic orb flew through the air along with Karas’s shrill voice.
Startled, Lupedos leaned back and shouted.
“Crazy! It’s me, Lupedos! I’m carrying Yuriana!”
Al responded, with a small ring of light on his finger.
“I know. It was a type of healing spell.”