Top Tier Perversion: Dual Cultivate Secretly

The train reached Copper Town after sunset.

Vincent stepped onto the platform with Anastasia while workers immediately moved toward the forge carriage at the rear to pick up whatever items Leona wanted to shift from the train to the forge in the town.

In the previous iteration, a Railguard had come to ask him for approval of materials for Leona at the crucial time, and not repeating the same mistake, he sent an official notice in advance.

Leona was to be given anything and everything she asked for. If she required iron and the town had a shortage, they could dismantle the entire railway station and trains for it. There should absolutely be no compromise!

Leona did not get down from the forge carriage yet. She was anyway not going to accompany Vincent to where he was heading.

Though, she was done making the artifact to detect the unusual mutation source and had already handed it to Vincent.

Vincent stepped outside the station and activated Karmic Thread Perception.

He wanted to head out to meet the Northern Commander’s reconnaissance group, but if karma wasn’t resolved, he had to spend more time on that than actually finding the source of the monster tide.

Thin karmic threads gradually entered his vision, passing through people, buildings and disappearing into the distance.

Vincent expected another ugly mess stretching across the county, but after looking around properly, his expression changed.

Most of the blue threads were gone.

The town barely had any left, and even those spread out toward the rest of the county were sparse, shocking Vincent, and making him have a glimpse at how unfathomable of a maid Felicia was.

’She actually went through all of them in less than a day!?’

Vincent just explained what had to be done and gave Felicia authority to handle it.

He certainly did not identify every farmer who received grain, every refugee placed in temporary housing or every person who owed House D’Arc something after the recent disasters.

Felicia had apparently figured out the troublesome part herself.

The remaining threads weren’t enough to worry him. Some people might have arrived after she passed through, while others simply hadn’t settled their obligations yet.

They could pay something, work, or resolve it through whatever method both sides sincerely considered enough. He still had around twenty-four hours before the monster tide was supposed to become a serious problem.

That was plenty of time for Felicia to clean up what remained or for him to personally act.

Vincent dismissed the perception and headed for the carriages waiting a few meters away.

Since there was no karma issue, he could now head to the highland borders to meet the recon team.

Two Railguard units accompanied him in his journey, twenty-eight men in total. Rifles rested against their shoulders while ammunition, food, medical supplies and several lanterns had been packed into the other carriages.

Vincent was seated in the leading carriage with Anastasia.

His axe was out and it was resting across his legs, occasionally running a thumb along the wooden handle while watching the darkness beyond the window.

He was about to meet the Northern Commander now and he was not going to take any chances.

He knew how to perform the mountain slash, and without Vanessa’s ability it might be a bit problematic, but he could at least defend himself if needed.

Anastasia was by his side, and she could fight too. There were also the armed Railguards, and Vincent was moving with utmost caution.

The temporary camp near the Highlands border came into view a little later.

Lanterns hung between several trees, horses had been tied beside the road, and muddy scouts moved around a group of tents while checking equipment.

The Northern Commander met Vincent shortly after he got out of the tent.

"Your Lordship."

Vincent was still seated in his carriage but clutching the axe tightly.

Outwardly, he casually glanced at the man and asked, "What did you find?"

The man unfolded a map before him and pointed farther into the Highlands.

"We pushed deeper after the last report. Wildlife is still moving outward, but the routes aren’t consistent. Some groups went north, some west, and others passed through valleys that normally belong to territorial predators. We found abandoned dens and nests along all three routes."

"Any large number of dead monsters?"

"Very few."

Vincent looked over the marked paths. That was enough to confirm what he already suspected, so there was little reason to stand around discussing it again.

"Take us inside."

"As you command," the Northern Commander left to guide the carriages.

They entered the Highlands shortly afterward.

The recon team was on the lead while the Railguards followed in a loose formation around Vincent and Anastasia.

For the first part of the journey, Leona’s compass-like artifact did not have its needle move whatsoever, almost making Vincent wonder whether it was broken.

He took it out whenever they reached an area the scouts considered strange, but the needle either continued to remain still or moved so little he couldn’t tell whether the carriage itself had shaken it.

The terrain gradually became rougher as they left the road.

Trees grew between broken slopes, exposed roots crossed the narrow trails, and several areas looked as though large groups of animals had recently passed through. Mud was torn apart by overlapping tracks, while bushes had been flattened beneath hooves and claws.

They explored two abandoned dens and a patch of damaged woodland before the artifact finally gave a noticeable reaction.

Vincent stopped beside a narrow stream cutting across the trail.

The needle finally moved.

He walked several steps away from the water and watched it settle, then returned. It shifted again.

"Something’s here."

Anastasia crouched beside the stream while Vincent tested several spots along the bank. The response wasn’t strong, but it was consistent enough that he stopped blaming his hands.

The Northern Commander sent two scouts in opposite directions along the stream.

Vincent followed the downstream pair for a short distance while checking the detector.

The needle gradually moved farther, which was strange enough to keep him interested. If the water itself carried whatever caused the mutation, going upstream should have made more sense, but the artifact was giving him the opposite answer.

A scout ahead suddenly stopped.

"M’lord."

Something struggled in a shallow pool between several rocks.

It was a fish.

Dark patches had spread across its scales, turning sections of its body almost metallic. One fin had become thick and crooked, while the flesh surrounding its jaw bulged unnaturally on one side.

Anastasia caught it before it could disappear into deeper water.

Vincent brought the detector closer.

The needle jerked sharply.

He stared at the fish, then at the water continuing through the trees.

There could be something downstream contaminating the stream, or the altered material could simply be collecting there. He had no way of knowing yet, and the artifact wasn’t generous enough to write an explanation across its glass.

Unfortunately, the needle was the best lead they had.

"Let’s follow it a little farther."

They continued downstream.

The stream joined another waterway and entered a narrow ravine where the surrounding cliffs gradually closed in.

More altered fish appeared along the way, although the changes differed between them. One had black growth around its gills. Another floated dead beside the bank with scales hard enough that a scout had difficulty cutting one free with his knife.

The detector became more active as they moved.

Eventually the ravine became too narrow for the horses and awkward for nearly forty men carrying rifles and supplies. Water filled most of the bottom while a thin ledge continued beside it.

Vincent looked ahead, then back toward the Railguards.

"We’ll check where this goes. Hold here and keep searching the surrounding area."

The Northern Commander glanced toward the passage. "How far does Your Lordship intend to go?"

"Not far. If the signal weakens, we’ll come back."

"I’ll keep the men ready."

Vincent nodded and entered the ravine with Anastasia.

The path wasn’t pleasant. Twice he had to use the axe handle to steady himself while stepping over wet rocks, and his boots were soaked before they had gone very far.

The water gradually widened beside them. Vincent felt like they’re going the wrong way but then the detector continued reacting strongly enough. Turning around felt like ignoring the first useful evidence they had found all night.

After another bend, the cliffs began separating.

Vegetation returned first. Grass covered the lower slopes, followed by shrubs, then trees growing beside small stone channels that didn’t look natural.

Vincent slowed.

An irrigation channel joined the stream. Continuing further showed another one.

He climbed the last rocky rise and finally understood where exactly they were standing.

The Highlands opened into a vast valley below.

Farmland stretched from the foot of the mountains toward distant settlements, divided by roads and a huge network of irrigation channels carrying Highland water through the fields.

Wheat covered entire slopes in pale rows, orchards stood around large farmhouses, and other sections contained crops Vincent couldn’t identify.

Some leaves gave off faint light beneath the moon while several fields had enough spiritual presence that even Vincent could feel something unusual from where he stood.

Anastasia raised her eyebrows at this sight in visible surprise. Vincent could feel the faint spiritual presence as he had just started cultivating, but Anastasia could feel something much more.

The more she looked at the farms, the more surprised she felt. Though, she only had a hypothesis for what she was thinking, so she kept quiet until she was fully confident about what she was thinking about.

Vincent lowered his eyes toward Leona’s artifact.

The needle was shaking constantly now.

He looked back at the irrigation channels spreading throughout the basin and then toward the fields.

There were monsters among them.

Quite a lot of monsters.

Boars tore through a crop field near the mountain. A herd of deer had broken through a wooden fence farther away, while wolves circled livestock pens where people were desperately trying to drive them off with torches.

Another group moved between the irrigation canals toward a proper walled town in the distance.

Gunshots echoed across the farmland.

Vincent could not see the source of the monsters but he finally understood why the detector had dragged him here.

It had a limited range which meant the actual source could have been nowhere nearby or anywhere nearby. Its main function was detecting the corruption causing the mutations in greater concentrations.

Though, a large number of monsters could also result in greater concentration, which was exactly what had happened now.

The water carried affected creatures down from the Highlands, and the basin below was now filled with monsters that had fled the mountains earlier.

With this much altered material around, of course Leona’s needle was going crazy.

’There’s just no end to troubles...’

Vincent sighed.

’When it rains, it pours, doesn’t it?’

At this moment, Vincent heard a bell ringing from the town.

He stared at it for a few seconds and then saw something rush through the crops below the ridge.

Anastasia moved first.

"Young master, be careful!" She shouted while killing a boar monster.

Vincent held the axe with both hands and moved to stay behind Anastasia.

He had seen her combat capabilities had no idea that she could easily hold out.

He knew nothing of combat except one axe slash, and followed behind while doing his best to not be a hindrance.

A few seconds later, a wolf leapt at Vincent from between the plants. It was coming from Anastasia’s blind spot.

There wasn’t enough time to think and Vincent planted one foot on the ground, turned his waist and dragged the blade through a familiar slashing path.

The axe struck the wolf across its neck.

He expected resistance.

Instead, the blade cut through flesh and bone so easily that Vincent nearly lost his balance from putting too much strength into it.

The wolf collapsed beside him.

Vincent looked at the blood running along the edge.

’Holy shit!’ He was shocked at how effortlessly he killed it, but didn’t have enough time to celebrate as another creature came from the left.

Vincent recovered the axe, stepped toward the deer monster and repeated the same slash.

The blade entered through its shoulder and cut deep enough to send it crashing into the dirt, but his swing ended too low.

A second wolf was already rushing into the opening.

Vincent tried pulling the axe back.

It was too slow.

A metallic sheen flashed in front of him and the wolf fell down with a soft thud.

Anastasia had made it in time.

"Young master, your recovery is too slow after the swing," she said while turning toward another monster.

She had felt the first wolf slip from her blind spot and was already on her way to help when she saw Vincent swinging his axe and paused. She watched him kill the creatures first and intervened when he seemed helpless.

Vincent sighed while preparing to fight another monster. "I only know one attack."

"I figured," Anastasia killed another boar.

It sounded slightly insulting, but Vincent had more immediate problems.

They kept attacking the monsters and started moving toward the town for shelter.

Vincent kept using the same attack and the axe was sharp and sturdy enough that anything he struck cleanly usually stopped being a problem.

Anastasia continued to handle the creatures that approached during the awkward period where Vincent had to drag the weapon back into position.

After the third time, he at least stopped swinging with more strength than necessary and it genuinely made a difference.

They kept going, and the closer they came to the settlement, the more signs of fighting appeared.

Fences had been broken, crops trampled, and several farm carts lay abandoned along the road. People fired rifles from the town walls while others dragged livestock through an open gate.

A group near the entrance noticed Vincent and Anastasia cutting through the monsters on the road.

At first they simply stared.

Then Anastasia killed two wolves within several seconds and Vincent buried his axe into another monster trying to circle behind her.

Several people immediately ran toward them after knowing they were capable combatants.

The first man was covered in dirt and blood, holding an old rifle with both hands.

"You two can fight, right?"

Vincent barely had time to answer before the man hurried closer.

"Please, help us!"

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