Most often, the poison was applied as a powder or a liquid, for it needed to be absorbed through the skin. At room or lower temperatures, the poison smeared on the body was invisible, but under a hot fire, it melted and emitted a special, momentary sparkle.
Yuder conjured a small flame in his hand. With a whooshing sound, a red flame appeared, and his right hand stung again.
'… I tried to conjure it as small as possible.'
Was his condition off today? Yuder, with a furrowed brow, checked his body. He hadn't felt anything wrong until the morning, and even now, it didn't feel difficult to use his abilities, but somehow his body felt slightly heavy.
'Let's check first.'
Ignoring his mildly stinging right hand, he was about to bring the flame to the body when Kiolle, who arrived a little late, choked at the sight and covered his mouth.
"What are you doing? Don't tell me you're going to burn the body…"
"I'm just trying to check if there's any poison."
Upon clarifying to prevent any misunderstanding, Kiolle reluctantly moved a bit closer.
"Poison? The bastard already drank the poison and vomited it out with his blood before he died. What else is there to check… ugh."
Kiolle's bold approach ended in front of the dead man's bulging eyes, which appeared more horrific under the flame's glow. He backed away, covering his mouth as if he was about to vomit.
"You're not asking me to help with this, are you?"
"I hadn't thought of it, but I'm questioning how you became a senior knight."
As Yuder mumbled this while illuminating Lenore's cheek and body with the fire, Kiolle gritted his teeth in rebuttal.
"The Imperial Knights are formed to protect the capital and the palace, not to dig around in dead bodies!"
His words were reasonable. But if he only wanted to stay clean and distant, what could he possibly protect?
Yuder decided to concentrate on his task instead of replying and started inspecting the body more closely with the flame. Kiolle seemed to be ignored, as he grumbled under his breath, venting his complaints.
"You are such a cheeky and weird guy."
"…"
"You think the proposal of the Peletta duke is better than that of the Diarca family? Ha. You will definitely regret this. If it weren't for the oath, I would have reported this right away. It's frustrating not to be able to do so."
"…"
"The mere thought of the hardships I've been through lately due to that oath keeps me awake at night. I have no idea what you're planning to do here…!"
"I found it."
"What?"
Regardless of what Kiolle was saying, Yuder had found the evidence he was seeking. Under the flame's glow, traces that looked like white powder sparkled on the cheek and chest of the body.
'That's the glow emitted by the thirst-inducing poison. Confirmed.'
A faint shudder ran through him at the confirmation of his suspicion. He moved the flame over to the body's palm, and a faint light shone from there too a moment later.
"There's a strange light… what's that?"
"I told you, I'm checking for poison."
"Poison? But I've never heard of a poison that glows when lit up."
Seeing Kiolle's suspicious gaze, Yuder inwardly thought that Kiolle was not entirely dumb after all.
"Indeed. It's a poison not well known."
'Still,' he thought.
In his past life, after Emperor Katchian took the throne, he and a few nobles began to frequently use this poison, starting a trend of mixing weak and strong poisons for assassinations. The fact that there were trends in assassination methods was indeed comical, but that's how it was.
'Come to think of it, wasn't Emperor Katchian one of the first to use this poison?'
How could someone confined within the imperial palace know of this poison's existence? A question he had not thought of in the past suddenly surfaced.
'I heard the main ingredient of this poison is a mushroom… I should look into it.'
With this thought, he examined the body thoroughly. Then he brought his hand close to the brightest part of the body, the chest. As he lifted the edge of the blood-soaked formal robe and rummaged through the inner pocket, two items fell into his hand.
One was an identification badge made from carved gemstones and metal, and the other was a blood-stained letter.
'A letter?'
As if to better see in the firelight, Yuder subtly slid the letter inside his clothing while feigning a closer look into the inner pocket. On the carefully inspected identification badge, there was significantly more poison shimmering than what had been on the clothing or the face.
'As expected, it's likely the poison was applied when the identification badge was checked. So far, everything's as expected… But what about this letter?'
His heart pounded with an unexpected yield.
He put the examined identification badge back into the pocket of the formal robe and straightened up. Kiolle, who had been watching Yuder's actions, made a face.
"To touch the part where the poison is smeared so casually, even with gloves on… Don't ever come near me."
"The poison is not that strong. Even if you're poisoned, it will only cause severe thirst."
"Is that the only symptom? Then why did that guy… Ah."
Kiolle blinked his eyes and turned his head towards Lenore's body. Yuder quickly headed for the door before Kiolle could say more. He had one more place to go and didn't want to waste time.
"Is it all done now?"
"No. Not yet."
"What? Where else are you going?"
He was about to say it's none of your business, but Yuder quickly shut his mouth due to the sudden sense of someone nearby, pushing Kiolle inside the corridor.
Immediately after, men with unusual expressions quickly descended the stairs leading to the ground floor.
"Is there anyone?"
"They might be hiding inside. Let's go and look."
The men, who had barely reached the spot, looked at each other and exchanged words. They quickly made a decision and opened the door to the warehouse where Lenore's body lay.
Yuder waited until they all entered before cautiously moving towards the stairs. He had bought some time, so he planned to get as far away as possible in the meantime.
'Let's go!'
Kiolle, who had been hiding with Yuder, whispered with a determined look in his eyes and closely followed behind.
'I didn't expect him to follow so soon. What am I supposed to do now?'
'What to do, indeed.'
Among the men who had descended, there was none from the entourage of the Katchian Emperor, whom he had knocked unconscious earlier. If they were waiting for him when he ascended, he could once again launch a forbidden blow and give them a taste of defeat.
No sooner had this thought crossed his mind than the dormant pain in his hand began to intensify to a noticeable level. Yuder gritted his teeth and tried to ignore the growing pain.
But the pain, which he could have easily dismissed on any other day, oddly enough, didn't subside but grew progressively worse. It felt as if a flame had been ignited on dry firewood, spreading throughout his body at a terrifying speed with each step he took. Yuder, feeling this sensation spreading, hastily drew breath.
'What is this?'
He thought it was pain originating from the spot but wasn't sure. This sensation, although somewhat familiar, was strangely different from the usual pain he was accustomed to. However, before he could fully comprehend what was happening, this sensation had already turned into a fire consuming his whole body, from his head to his toes.
It made his body tremble, just like a human witnessing a massive wave approaching in the blink of an eye. Realization hit him like lightning.
―Thump.
He swallowed his breath. The impact hitting his heart rattled his ears, chest, and the inside of his brain.
Then, another thump. Yet another thump.
In that moment, Yuder finally understood, instinctively, the identity of this vast and terrifying sensation he was experiencing.
It was a sign of manifestation.
Like a storm, a massive whirlpool was rapidly expanding its territory within his body. Just like before. Just like in his previous life!
'Why, why now of all times?'
But the storm that had already started didn't allow Yuder even a moment to think properly.
The shock hit his head again, and his vision turned black momentarily. When his vision barely returned, he found himself suddenly dropping to his knees mid-climb up the stairs. Yuder gasped for breath like a drowning man and managed to lean against the wall.
"What, what is this? Is it poison? Did you get poisoned? Touching everything even with gloves on was a stupid move…!"
"Go, back. Kiolle."
Hearing Kiolle's voice filled with anxiety circling around him was quite an unfortunate event for his recovering ears. Yuder, suppressing the gut-wrenching sensation, barely managed to speak.
"Go straight up, pretend to be lost, and turn back."
"What? You are."
"Just go. I'll manage. Go."
"So, it's not poison?"
‘Why does he keep talking when he should just go?’ Yuder, trying hard to suppress the sensation emerging from deep within him, shook his head.
"No, it's not. Just go back!…Ugh."
As he raised his voice slightly, a jolting shock hit him from within his stomach, spreading throughout his body. Yuder, with a twisted face, lowered his head. Seeing Yuder trembling and scratching the wall, Kiolle stepped back a few paces. Fear and confusion were vivid in his eyes.
"Wha, what suddenly…"
Yuder mustered his strength and stood up abruptly. If this fever was indeed the start of the manifestation, based on his memories from his previous life, soon he'd lose his consciousness and experience sensations as if his whole body was being disassembled and reassembled. He had to escape this place before reaching that stage.