Lord: Starting with Biological Modification

Chapter 247: Chapter 242: A Clean Sweep

Mia’s heart sank.

A faint scent of fir lingered in the room, but the person was gone.

She moved silently along the wall, scanning her surroundings.

The bed was perfectly smooth, without a single wrinkle. The scrolls on the desk were stacked neatly.

Everything was in perfect order—not what you’d expect from a place occupied by someone who had just been overwhelmed by a drug.

’Where did he go?’

Mia’s gaze swept over every corner of the room.

The window was shut tight.

The only exit was the door she had come through.

’No, that’s not right.’

Her eyes landed on a massive wardrobe in the corner.

Its position was strange. It wasn’t flush against the wall, leaving an unnatural gap. For a subordinate as obsessive-compulsive as Philip, such an imperfection would be intolerable.

Mia walked over and gave the wardrobe a tentative push.

It was heavy, but not immovable. Using clever leverage, she slowly pushed the weighty wardrobe aside, revealing the rough stone wall behind it. Near the bottom of the wall, one wooden panel looked newer than the surrounding stone bricks.

She reached out and lifted it. The board came away easily, revealing a pitch-black opening just large enough for one person to pass through.

’So there is a secret passage, even if it’s as crude as a doggy door.’

Mia didn’t hesitate. She squeezed inside.

She didn’t push the wardrobe all the way back, leaving it partially open. If something went wrong, she’d have an escape route.

In the darkness, she could hear her own heartbeat.

The secret passage was narrow, its walls rough rock and its floor uneven.

It had clearly been dug recently.

She felt her way forward as the air grew damper.

The tunnel sloped downward before rising again.

After about a few dozen paces, a faint light and muffled voices reached her from ahead.

It was the sound of children.

Mia’s heart clenched violently.

She quickened her pace. The exit of the passage was blocked by a loose stone slab.

Cautiously, she pushed it open just a crack and peered outside.

Beyond was a storeroom cluttered with junk, lit by a small ventilation window high on the wall.

The storeroom door was ajar. It was only then that she realized the storeroom was adjacent to the stables.

That was the area where the servants and orphans lived.

’That pervert!’

Mia gritted her teeth.

...

「Outside the church.」

Kael came to a halt.

"The target’s interior is in chaos."

Dozens of black-clad figures behind him dispersed without a sound, slipping toward the chaotically lit church along predetermined routes.

"Xiaolan."

"Yes, Teacher Kael..."

A figure stepped out of the darkness, her long, flaxen hair stirring in the night wind.

Xiaolan’s hands were trembling, clutching a Memory Crystal the size of a pigeon’s egg.

This was her first mission, and as a team leader, no less.

Kael offered no comfort, only handing her a larger Main Recording Crystal.

"Secure the perimeter. Clear out any stragglers."

"Yes, sir!"

"Your squad is in charge of the clergy’s quarters, starting with the Holy Knights’ dormitory."

"Yes, sir!"

"Remember, we are shadows. We only record, we do not interfere. Not unless the targets pose a threat to you."

"We... understand!" Xiaolan’s voice was strained, but she nodded forcefully. The mask on her face couldn’t hide the beauty mark near the corner of her eye. Her figure, which seemed at odds with her timidness, gave off a contradictory impression beneath her stealth suit.

Kael watched her, pausing for a moment.

"Go."

Xiaolan took a breath and turned to give her subordinates a hand signal. Several team members followed her, melting into the building’s shadows.

Kael leaned against a wall, his form blending into the darkness. Shortsword in hand, he guarded this strategic choke point.

「Elsewhere.」

Mia held her breath and slipped out of the storeroom.

She first crept back to the stables. Her own sleeping spot in the hay was empty, but it showed signs of having been disturbed.

’He came looking for me.’

The realization sent a chill down Mia’s spine.

Following the sounds, she found her way to an unfinished tool shed.

Light seeped through a crack in the door, along with suppressed sobs.

She pressed her ear to the door and heard Fabian’s voice, hoarser than usual.

"Come here. Come to me."

Louder whimpers came from the children inside.

"Don’t be afraid. This won’t hurt you." Fabian’s voice softened, as if to soothe them. "This is just a ritual. You and I... we will all be saved."

Mia’s brow furrowed.

’Purification? Using the pure power of children?’ She’d heard too many similar excuses, and every single one led to the filthiest of sins.

Her hand tightened around the potion she carried.

If she just opened it, she could regain her strength and tear out this hypocrite’s throat with her claws.

But she held back.

She had to record the crime first, then she could stop it.

She quietly moved to a hole in the wall and peeked inside.

A few young orphans were huddled together on a pile of hay in the corner, sobbing.

Fabian stood in the center of the tool shed.

He wore a white robe, which stood out starkly in the filthy surroundings.

The drug’s effects were already obvious.

His breathing was heavy, his forehead beaded with sweat, and his body trembled slightly as his gaze fell upon the terrified children.

Mia’s heart tightened.

Fabian moved.

He didn’t walk toward any of the children. Instead, slowly, step by step, he knelt on the cold, dirt floor.

The action stunned everyone.

Fabian took something from his sleeve.

It was a bundle of brown leather whips, tied with a thin cord.

He untied the cord and laid out the seven or eight whips neatly in front of him.

Mia’s pupils dilated.

’This guy...’

Fabian looked up at the trembling group of children.

His voice was strangely gentle.

"Come here, child."

The children didn’t dare move.

"I need your help," he said, slowing his speech as if coaxing them. "The impurity in my heart is roaring. Only someone as pure as you can help me... punish it."

A slightly older boy was pushed forward by his companions and stumbled out.

"Pick it up." Fabian pointed to one of the whips on the ground, his eyes filled with yearning.

The boy picked it up, trembling.

"Come," Fabian closed his eyes, his expression a mixture of pain, anticipation, and relief. "If you love me, you’ll hit me. Whip me with it. Purify me... Purify the filth in my soul."

Terrified, the boy dropped the whip.

"Pick it up!" Fabian’s voice was stern. "This is an order! Every lash is a baptism! You are helping me cleanse my sins!"

Mia was stunned.

She’d seen all kinds of perverts.

But this was the first time she’d seen one who actively asked to be whipped by children.

Mia quietly took out a Memory Crystal, aimed it at the center of the room, and hid herself even more deeply.

’Can’t miss a show like this.’

...

「The church’s clergy residence.」

Xiaolan led her team, moving along the walls.

They recorded the scenes in each room.

The squad members calmly aimed their crystals through the cracks in the doors, recording the clergy’s disgraceful behavior.

The haul was substantial.

Just then, a bird call came from outside the window.

The retreat signal.

Xiaolan immediately gave a hand signal. "Fall back!"

The squad retraced their steps, leaving no trace.

When they returned to the shadow of the watchtower, Kael was already waiting.

Xiaolan placed several crystals, full of recorded images, into Kael’s hands. Her hands were still shaking, but she stood ramrod straight.

"Mission complete."

Kael took the crystals and nodded.

His gaze lingered on Xiaolan for a moment before shifting to another patch of shadow.

Mia’s figure emerged.

She said nothing, simply tossing the Memory Crystal in her hand to Kael.

The operation was a perfect success.

Lord Velin was about to receive a treasure trove of blackmail material sufficient to overturn the entire church.

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