Chapter 113: Setting Out

“Hey, Charles!”

The work at the Central Laboratory concluded swiftly. Led out by the staff, Charles keenly sensed that this might be his first and last time here.

As he stepped out of the lab, breathing in the fresh air, someone suddenly approached him.

“What’s up, senior?” he asked, puzzled.

It was Lyle, dressed simply in black fitted pants and a white blouse. Her snow-white hair was casually tied into a ponytail that swayed with her movements, giving her an air of effortless competence.

“You’re really pushing yourself too hard,” Lyle said with a smile. “You’ve been here for over twenty days without taking a single break. Don’t tell me you’ve gone a bit mad from overstudying?”

“I enjoy learning. It brings me joy. Swimming in the ocean of knowledge is truly a delight for both body and soul,” Charles replied with a smile.

“Uh, I just can’t get it. I’ve met too many like you,” Lyle said, shrugging helplessly but quickly recovering her smile. “Hey, junior, want to go on a camping trip to relax and meet some new people? There’s still plenty of free time anyway.”

“Sorry, I have plans...” Charles began.

Lyle quickly interrupted, “Don’t be like that. This time, we’re heading to an island in the north. It’s full of strange and exotic creatures—you should be interested, right?”

“What kind of creatures?”

“That island is a typical uninhabited wilderness, home to many species unlike those elsewhere. The insects there are particularly unique. I heard you’ve been studying insects lately, so why not join us for some field research?”

“Alright, thank you for the invitation, senior. Let me know when you’re leaving,” Charles nodded.

He urgently needed a variety of special insect specimens for experiments. It was difficult to find the right ones through others, so a personal trip would be worthwhile—and a nice change of pace.

“That’s settled then. We leave early tomorrow morning. Don’t forget!” Lyle said before hurrying off, clearly busy with other matters.

Indeed, she was very thoughtful. After watching her leave, Charles returned to his quarters.

The experiment was only halfway done; he still needed to modify the inheritance factors for his “lab mice.”

His only regret was that the middle-aged professor responsible for grafting the inheritance factors was rigid and indifferent, as if owed millions. Every inquiry met with a wall of silence, preventing Charles from forming the skill icons he desired.

However, by utilizing the regulator, he had elevated his “Inheritance Factor Analysis” ability straight to the master level, and was on the verge of self-learning the grafting technique by analogy.

He expected to fully master it within two or three days. Then, he would possess the ability to modify the future development direction of totems at the inheritance factor level.

Of course, such modifications were not without limits. Even at a tremendous cost, the best one could do was upgrade a totem beast of average talent to a superior one. Forget about superlative totem beasts.

Back in the basement, Charles glanced at the approaching Moon Boy and ordered him to obediently squat in the corner and continue working.

This fellow had previously dared to damage an instrument worth tens of thousands—he deserved a fitting punishment to teach him some discipline.

He lifted the spiritual barrier surrounding the experiment platform and calmly resumed his work, facing the grotesque mountain of flesh.

The next morning, Lyle arrived punctually outside the villa, accompanied by a shorter, short-haired girl.

Seeing the two, the girl smiled and greeted, “Good morning, Charles, Eileen.”

“Good morning, little sister Lyle,” Eileen replied affectionately, linking arms with her.

The two girls had been spending a lot of time together lately, growing closer by the day.

“Alright, let’s go. Everyone’s waiting for you,” Lyle said, chatting briefly before urging them to hurry.

Charles then spotted a massive Catbus parked nearby, lounging lazily in the sun.

Several heads peeked out from the windows, clearly curious about him.

“Well, the famous Charles has finally been invited out by me. Stop staring, or our junior here will get shy,” Lyle said to the dozen or so inside.

“Am I really that famous?” Charles asked, puzzled.

Lyle covered her mouth to stifle a laugh. “Charles, you’re wasting that handsome face of yours by burying yourself in study and seclusion every day. What’s more terrifying is that in just a few days, you joined the Enforcement Squad and got into Professor Garfield’s lab. Do you really think you’re not famous?”

“Charles, did you really become Lord Garfield’s student?” someone asked with bright eyes, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Oh, something like that. The professor treats me well,” Charles answered, sparking a chorus of surprised gasps.

Several girls’ eyes sparkled as if they had spotted a rare gem, making him feel slightly uneasy.

Clearly, his statuses—academy elite, one of the five arbiters in the Enforcement Squad, a level-three Fate Mage—made Professor Garfield a figure akin to an academic luminary from the past. Such prestige inspired genuine reverence among ordinary students.

From then on, things became much easier. This aura of distinction wrapped around him like a dazzling halo, drawing people to approach and speak.

It wasn’t until Charles grew impatient and said, “Alright, please return to your seats,” that they quieted down.

A subtle murderous aura emanated from him, instilling fear among these sheltered young scholars. The carriage fell silent.

Having slaughtered dozens of fierce Fate Mages, Charles’s mental state bore a bloody aura of killing far beyond what these sheltered youths could endure.

Lyle paused, then hurriedly smoothed things over. “The journey is long. You can ask questions later, okay?”

The Catbus glided silently on its eight massive legs, swiftly leaving the academy grounds and arriving at a small northern island port.

When the ship arrived, Charles was somewhat surprised.

It was also a giant beast, somewhat like the Catbus—an enormous hollow creature.

Nearly twenty meters long, it resembled a whale, with a large round head tapering towards the tail.

Its back had a nearly two-meter-wide mouth covered by a transparent membrane, inside which gray-black skin formed seat-like structures.

“This is a whale ship,” Lyle explained. “Originally an ordinary whale, but the academy modified it into this passenger vessel. It’s even faster than steamships.”

“Impressive,” Charles marveled.

But unlike when he first arrived, naïve and uninformed, after these days of intense study, he was now a master-level expert in biology. His vast knowledge, if revealed, would surely land him on an autopsy table!