CHAPTER 121: OBSCURE EVIDENCE

"Shaan, so what’s the situation?" Dr. Marshal asked curiously. "Have you found the Doppleshade corpse you mentioned?"

"No. What Sir Kael said was true. I haven’t seen it here at all." Shaan furrowed his brows. "Strange... but how could that be? That creature clearly had a huge body. How could there be no trace of it around here?"

"Hmm... try walking around the ruins. Maybe you missed something that the others also overlooked."

"I’ll try and hopefully find something there."

"Oh, yeah, and try using the Tracesight feature on the Homunculus you’re using. It might help. I can guarantee that."

"Trace sight?" Shaan was silent for a moment, trying to understand Dr Marshal’s words. "What is that?"

"Yes, it’s a new feature that I just implemented in the homunculus you’re using as a test," said Dr. Marshal. "I plan to install this feature in all of my courier homunculi."

"Ah, alright, that’s good. But how does it work?"

"Just say ’Trace sight activated’ and the feature will activate automatically. Simple, isn’t it?"

"Yeah, it sounds pretty easy to me." Shaan nodded his head. "I think I can do that."

"By using this feature, you can see residual mana, blood, or subtle traces that would be very difficult to see with the naked eye," Dr. Marshal explained briefly. "However, this feature is still new and will require a lot of homoculi energy, so make sure you use it wisely."

"Yes, I understand." Shaan nodded his head. "All right, then it’s time to try it. Trace sight activated!"

[Trace sight activated in...]

[3]

[2]

[1]

When Shaan activated the feature, he was instantly speechless. How could he not be? Now, he was able to see the objects around him become semi-transparent. And even when he tried to move his hand, he could clearly see a collection of fine, glowing lines along his arm that had been completely invisible before.

’Jeez, this... this is amazing!’

"Shaan, have you managed to use the new feature?"

"Yeah, I activated it, and it’s actually really cool," Shaan replied in awe while moving his hand around. "I-I don’t expect it to be this amazing. I can see everything now, even the veins inside the Homunculus’s body. They look so... so clear to me."

"Haha, good. At least the feature works properly," Dr. Marshal laughed. "Oh, and about those fine veins you’re seeing—they’re actually mana streams flowing inside the Homunculus. If you can see them clearly, it means the mana inside is still active."

"Ah, I see. Got it."

"This feature also works on any object, as long as that object contains mana," Dr. Marshal explained. "Now, try focusing your sight on those piles of rocks. You might find something hidden over there."

Hearing Dr. Marshall’s instructions, Shaan immediately looked in that direction and found that what Dr. Marshall had said was true. There were strange stains on the pile of rocks in front of him, and they must relate to Doppleshade’s whereabouts.

"Shaan, did you find anything?"

"Yes, Dr. Marshall. I think I found a strange stain on one of these rocks," said Shaan. "I’ll try to get closer and see what the stain actually is."

He slowly walked towards the rock and tried to examine the stain. However, when his hand accidentally touched the stain, a notification suddenly appeared on his screen, making him have a shock for a moment.

[Object successfully identified: dried doppleshade blood.]

"What the—!" Shaan gasped and fell backward in shock. "Damn it, I really didn’t see that coming."

"Shaan, what happened?" Dr. Marshal asked in a panic. "A-Are you in trouble?"

"Ah, no. It’s nothing like that," Shaan shook his head. "I just got startled when a notification popped up out of nowhere, telling me exactly what that mark was."

"Oh, right... about that, I totally forgot to tell you that the feature can also identify any object you touch," Dr. Marshal admitted.

’Oh, that’s an interesting feature.’ Shaan smiled. ’It’s like having an encyclopedia inside my head.’

"So, what did the notification say, Shaan?"

"It said, dried Doppleshade blood."

"Hmm... Interesting. It means the Doppleshade is still here," said Dr Marshal. I think maybe there may be more Doppleshade blood stains around there. Just keep scanning the area, Shaan."

"Yes, Dr Marshal. I understand."

Shaan swept his gaze across the surroundings and realized that Dr. Marshal was right. He saw a lot of other Doppleshade blood stains not far from where he was, and it seemed to form a path, leading somewhere.

"Dr. Marshal, I found more blood stains. They seem to be forming a path," Shaan said as he turned his gaze to the side. "I’m going to follow it and see where it leads. Hopefully, I’ll find where the Doppleshade went."

"I see. Be careful, Shaan."

***

As he followed the trail of bloodstains, Shaan never once looked away. His gaze remained fixed downward, unaware that two large rocks lay directly in front of him.

"Strange, where exactly is this trail—"

A sharp impact jolted him as Shaan hit his head against the two large rocks in front of him. He was knocked down instantly, and within seconds, a bright red warning appeared in front of him.

[Warning: Severe impact to the head, causing energy instability. Homunculus energy decreased by 20 percent.

[Remaining homunculus energy: 70 percent]

[Homunculus status: Safe]

’Damn it... I really need to watch my step better next time.’

"Shaan, what was that sound?" Dr. Marshal asked curiously. "Is everything alright there?

"Yes, Dr. Marshal. I’m fine," said Shaan, gently rubbing his head. "It’s just that I hit my head pretty hard because I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going."

"Ah, I see. Well, thank goodness you’re okay," Dr. Marshal let out a relieved sigh. "Still, you need to be more careful, Shaan."

"Understood, Dr. Marshal."

Without hesitation, Shaan quickened his steps, closing the distance between himself and the corpse until only a few centimeters remained. But then, he froze in place. His face instantly turned pale. Around the Doppleshade’s body, he saw glowing marks resembling a spell symbol’s body.

’B- But how can that be?’