Chapter 132
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: A Hidden Power
Contrary to my worries, I was able to control the pheromones of two different attributes with incredible speed.
Though I was still a bit clumsy, this was a massive improvement.
It was the result of desperately practicing through the night, cutting back on sleep.
The progress was so much faster than expected that Hestia was left speechless, but even this felt slow to me.
"My Lady, you should stop now. You'll collapse at this rate."
"No, just a little more."
"You can't. There aren't many accessories left."
Hestia pointed to the pheromone stones I had completely used up and discarded. A large pile had accumulated in the corner.
I had prepared them for the return to the south, but I had already consumed more than half.
At Hestia's worried words, I decided to back down a step.
"Then just one last time. That's okay, right? I'm still perfectly fine."
"...You should stop when you're still fine."
"Yes, this is the last one. Really."
It was taxing on my body, so I couldn't maintain it for long, but I had to get a proper feel for it while I could control my pheromones at will.
I proudly watched my pheromones ripple leisurely, extending beyond the training grounds.
"At this level, does this mean I can also retrieve my pheromones stored in the stones?"
"To some extent. Pheromones have a natural tendency to return to their original owner."
"Like a homing instinct?"
"You could say that."
That raised a question.
How could pheromone stones hold onto pheromones?
If the instinct to return to the original body was so strong, wouldn't they try to escape?
"Then do the pheromones in the stones eventually scatter and disappear?"
"No, they don't. Once sealed, pheromones remain inside forever, until they are used up."
"How is that possible?"
That was different from what she had just told me.
Hestia smiled faintly as if she knew I would ask.
"Not much is known about it in detail. But we do know who first discovered the raw stones and revealed them to the world."
"Who was it?"
"A man named Simon, who was called a sage among humans."
My expression hardened. To think a human was the first to discover pheromone stones.
I realized the intention behind their creation was likely not a pleasant one.
Seeing my stiff expression, Hestia's face also clouded with worry.
"My Lady, let's stop now. You've done incredibly well as it is."
"Hestia, is this related to pheromone extraction?"
Hestia looked as if to ask why I would bring that up, but she answered obediently.
"Yes. Since the human body cannot contain pheromones, they needed a medium to act as a substitute."
"But humans can't use pheromones."
How could they activate and use something they weren't born with?
Hestia nodded, agreeing that I was right.
"That is what's so remarkable and terrifying about humans. The sage Simon eventually figured out how to utilize pheromones."
"...By what means?"
The research process couldn't have been easy.
"That human even tampered with the pheromones of young su-in. Their power is still delicate, so it reacts easily to even faint stimuli."
The pheromones of young su-in.
Hestia grimaced as if the words themselves were distasteful.
I felt my heart sink. My hands and feet tingled, and my pulse began to race.
It was as if I were being chased by something.
An unpleasant feeling washed over my entire body, causing my pheromones to surge violently.
"...How could he get his hands on young su-in?"
As I asked, the Artban family came to mind.
They had once joined hands with humans in the past. To become the kings of the East.
They had extracted su-in pheromones, which meant they had stolen them from the young.
I flinched, my body freezing. A scene that had been dormant deep within me flashed by, and my thoughts seemed to stop.
"...There's always corruption somewhere. In the era when humans were still around, there were no laws protecting young su-in. It did lead to the creation of su-in laws, but it's a bitter truth...! My Lady!"
Hestia, who had been explaining calmly, suddenly raised her eyes and called my name in a near scream.
"Wh-what is this...!"
The pheromones that had been spreading around my body began to pulse eerily, enveloping everything.
The trees within my range of perception withered and blackened, their very roots dying in the ground. The snow on the ground melted away, and the exposed earth began to corrode.
The area was so devastated that I worried the Kiraas family might officially protest when they found out.
Even though I was the one who had done it, I blinked in bewilderment, unable to understand the situation.
"...Hestia, what's going on? My pheromones are..."
They're unbelievably strong.
What was suddenly happening? I was at a loss for words, my mouth just opening and closing.
"First, please retract your pheromones, My Lady! If you keep using pheromones like these, your body won't be able to withstand it!"
"...I will."
Feeling dazed, I recalled the pheromones that had spread around me.
The pheromones, which had been surging as if to threaten and guard the surroundings, slowly began to gather where I stood.
Hestia had already raised a defensive barrier around herself.
Cracks instantly appeared on the surface of her solid barrier, and its edges began to shatter.
"Its durability... to be damaged this much already."
Hestia muttered, breaking out in a cold sweat. Tense, I finished absorbing the pheromones and quickly turned back to her.
"Hestia, are you okay?!"
"Yes, I'm fine. But..."
She stared at me blankly. She seemed quite shocked. The same was true for me.
Hestia quickly regained her composure.
"I had considered the possibility... but I never thought it would actually be possible."
"You mean you knew this could happen?"
"...To some extent. Since Black Mambas inherit their parents' power, I once had a fleeting thought that perhaps you might as well, My Lady."
"But I'm not a Black Mamba."
"That's why nature is so mysterious."
Hestia looked at me with wonder in her eyes.
So, to sum it up, because I was born having absorbed Kaide's power, I also possess the abilities of a Black Mamba?
But that was a little strange.
Venom has no effect on me, yet my pheromones contain it?
"You were likely born with venom, My Lady. The inherent properties of pheromones never change."
"...No way. Then it makes no sense that I didn't know until now."
It was all the more unbelievable because nothing like this had ever happened, even during my lessons with Kasana.
How could I have not known this until now?
"Since you weren't aware you had the power, you naturally wouldn't have thought to try. Anyone would be the same."
"..."
"Remember the sensation you just felt, My Lady. It will allow you to use the power you have now."
I nodded blankly.
Hestia was right. I had assumed that of course I wouldn't have such a power. So I never even thought to try.
Because it would never happen anyway. But that wasn't the case...
Hestia smiled brightly.
"Congratulations, My Lady. You've finally become aware of your own power."
"Yes, thank you."
Though I still feel so bewildered.
"By the way, how should we explain this?"
She sighed, looking around at the surroundings with a troubled expression. Seeing the scene I had created, I slyly lowered my gaze.
Even I had to admit this was too much. For something like this to happen in another family's home, not our own.
"This... I'll talk to Sage and sort it out."
It seemed I would have to contact my family and request compensation. A considerable amount, at that.
***
Meanwhile, Mesis, who had witnessed Aileen's pheromones consume everything around them, grabbed the shoulder of Basad next to him and shook him wildly.
"Hey, hey. Did you see that?"
"...I saw."
"Wow, that gave me the creeps."
It felt like being devoured.
Mesis rubbed his arm where goosebumps had formed.
It was the same for Karma and Paymon, who were on standby on the opposite side.
The four of them stared down blankly from a tree, a good distance away from their original position.
It was a good thing they had put up their barriers in time; otherwise, they might have been poisoned by Aileen's rapidly encroaching venom.
Karma clenched his fist so tightly that his knuckles, slick with cold sweat, turned white.
The trees around where he had been standing were already skeletal and blackened with poison.
Moreover...
Karma lowered his gaze.
The ends of his hair, which had melted because he couldn't avoid it in time, were clearly reflected in his eyes.
Since the pheromones were colorless and odorless, if he hadn't kept his senses open from the start, it wouldn't have ended with just this.
It was a quality entirely different from a bird's pheromones.
This wasn't just on the level of giving someone the creeps.
"Wow, Karma. You were surprised too, right? Our lady is really strong. I guess all her hard work was for this moment."
"...It seems so."
"I'm so moved. Is this what the Gaju feels like? I was so touched I almost cried."
Paymon couldn't hide his excitement, his eyes sparkling.
He was trying to gauge just how far Aileen's pheromones had reached.
Karma moistened his dry mouth.
It seemed no one had noticed, stunned as they were by Aileen's ability.
Aileen's pheromones had merely been released with the intent to ward off and guard her surroundings.
It was only that much, yet the area had been transformed to the point where no living thing could survive without a purification process.
It had all happened in an instant.
And in that moment, Karma had thought that he had to flee from Aileen's territory.
It was a sensation he hadn't felt since his encounter with Kaide.
***
At that same time, in the drawing room, two individuals representing their respective families and the aides assisting them sat facing each other.
Eve was pale, having witnessed the rocky start to their meeting.
This matter had to go well for her to receive the full support of the elders, so she was on pins and needles, worried that the first negotiation she was in charge of would fall through.
Noticing Eve's state, Diel was the first to speak in a relaxed tone.
"I wish to establish an amicable relationship with the North. Am I right to assume that your acceptance of this visit means the North shares the same sentiment?"
"An amicable relationship."
Sage's level voice echoed through the drawing room.
Eve watched him anxiously, wondering what he would say.
Fortunately, however, Sage smiled brightly and offered a favorable response.
"That is something I desire as well."