Lord of The Mysterious Realms Chapter 694

With the middle-aged woman's sigh, the door before them vanished completely. From what Jenkins understood, from this day forward, the door would never open again unless Mrs. Hyder or her descendants willed it. And freed from the responsibility of guarding this place, Mrs. Hyder was unlikely to tell her children about it, which meant today was likely the last time this door would ever appear.

The two of them turned their gazes back to the blizzard outside, each lost in their own thoughts. After a long moment, Mrs. Hyder reminded him in a weary voice:

"There is one more thing to be aware of. A strong earthquake occurred while you were underground, likely caused by the explosion. We don't have to worry about an avalanche near the hot spring, but the servants who went for help might be in danger. We may have to wait even longer, so let's get some food and clothing from the manor before we head back..."

Jenkins hadn't forgotten about retrieving his cat from the snow. The poor creature must be frozen after waiting in the storm for nearly three hours.

But when Jenkins reached the spot, he found no sign of his cat on the snow-covered ground. The freshly fallen snow had already buried the small paw prints it had left behind.

He rushed back to the camp by the hot spring and, after a hurried hug with a teary-eyed Hathaway, finally spotted his cat curled up before the fire, sleeping peacefully.

"Chocolate came back about half an hour after you left," Hathaway explained. "He was shivering something fierce, and once he lay down by the fire, he didn't move. We were so scared, but thankfully, he was just asleep." Chapters fırst released on Novᴇl_Fire(.)net

"Oh, I shouldn't have left him out there alone," Jenkins murmured, filled with remorse. "He must have been freezing."

He crouched down, stroking Chocolate's back.

After they finished talking about the cat, Hathaway hugged him again. The man became aware of how improper the posture was and tried to pull away, but just then, Miss Mikhail rushed over and embraced them both, leaving Jenkins unable to break free.

"It's just good to have you back."

Hathaway certainly wasn't going to let go. She simply murmured the words softly into Jenkins's ear.

An indescribable feeling washed over Jenkins. He drew a breath, catching the scent of the two young women, and immediately felt like a creep.

They finally separated before anyone else could notice. Chocolate was now quite displeased, and it took Jenkins a long time to soothe the cat's ruffled fur and feelings.

Now that all the mysteries of the snowstorm manor had been unraveled, all they had to do was wait for the rescue party. With that in mind, they passed a tranquil Tuesday night.

As for his spoils from the trip, with Mrs. Hyder's consent, the head-sized sapphire now rested in Jenkins's suitcase. After placing it inside, he could barely get the lid to close again. Jenkins also coveted the thousand-year-old snow pine by the hot spring. The tree wasn't hollow; it certainly had a solid core. But he felt too awkward to bring it up with Mrs. Hyder, especially since her ancestors had planted it thousands of years ago.

If he asked, Mrs. Hyder would most likely agree, but it would make Jenkins seem as if he were taking advantage of her gratitude.

Though he sometimes acted without regard for the consequences, he was still careful about his image in front of someone so admirable.

"Maybe I can offer her something in exchange," he thought to himself.

With that thought, he fell into a deep sleep.

The following morning, the blizzard still raged, trapping everyone inside. Aside from a few brave souls like Jenkins, who led a daring servant back to the manor for more fuel, most people simply sat quietly by the fire, watching the flames dance.

In the end, Jenkins struck a deal with Mrs. Hyder. He traded his Black Mist Necklace for the thousand-year-old core of the snow pine.

Against a typical supernatural item, Jenkins would have clearly gotten the worse end of the bargain. But the necklace came with an aura of bad luck and some unsavory legends attached, making it very difficult to sell for a good price.

Mrs. Hyder insisted that Jenkins was being taken advantage of in the trade. She was a kind woman, and though she had few worldly possessions of value, she laid out everything she could offer for Jenkins to choose from.

It was a collection of miscellaneous materials and unidentifiable, spirit-imbued items. In the end, Chocolate took a liking to a blood-red sphere, so Jenkins chose that as a gift for his cat.

The sphere felt like glass to the touch and would automatically radiate heat upon contact with skin, making it a perfect little hand warmer for winter excursions. Mrs. Hyder had received it in a trade with a strange Enchanter who had passed through town a year ago; she had no idea what it actually was.

The red sphere's aura was a mottled mix of gold, blue, and green, but the colors were very faint. It was likely man-made, Jenkins figured, and would probably revert to an ordinary object before long.

"Well, Chocolate does have a thing for round objects."

Jenkins shrugged, quickly forgetting the matter. The cat, however, waited until the man wasn't looking, then polished the red sphere with its paw. If Jenkins had turned back at that moment, he would have seen its aura flare with a renewed, dazzling brilliance.

The cat nudged the sphere twice with its front paws, then spat out its own bright yellow pearl. With a gentle touch, the latter completely absorbed the former.

This was the rule of consumption for items of a similar nature. If the Life Pearl hadn't belonged to Jenkins, the cat would have long since devoured that as well.

But the current outcome was excellent. Although the red sphere was nothing compared to the primordial moon, it possessed a slight essence of the sun, which would promote the evolution of its own pearl.

Chocolate glanced furtively at Jenkins again, deciding to give him that thing in the hot spring as a small token of gratitude.

There were five houses by the hot spring in total, and to avoid crowding, people were scattered among the different buildings. By evening, the wind and snow had died down a little. Bored and unable to find Garcia to chat with, Jenkins decided to seek out Hathaway and Miss Mikhail and go with them to see the spring that was said to never freeze.

He pushed open the door, squinting against the snowflakes, only to see the two young women running toward him. Thanks to their two trips back to the manor for luggage, most people had enough warm clothing. They took off their scarves, their cheeks flushed a delicate red.

"What is it?" Jenkins asked.

"We just went to the southernmost house to ask if they needed firewood, and we saw..."

Miss Mikhail's face turned beet red.

"We saw Garcia and Yula inside," Hathaway finished, her own face flushed as she avoided Jenkins's gaze.