Chương 300: Chapter : 300

Dr. Panthor ignored the lazy boy. He walked over to a small, rusty stove in the corner. He poured hot water into a chipped teapot. He handed small, mismatched clay cups to the girls. Then, he handed one to Ken. Ken took a sip. His face instantly twisted in disgust. He stuck his tongue out.

"Wow. This tea tastes like boiled tree bark. Do you have any sugar? Or maybe a whole bag of sugar?" Naomi nudged Ken in the ribs.

"Drink it and be quiet," she whispered with a smirk. Dr. Panthor sat down slowly on a rickety wooden stool. He held his teacup with shaking hands. He looked at the Princess with deep, profound sadness.

"You want to know about the Devil Flour," the old man said quietly.

"It is a cursed plant. I devoted my life to it. And it destroyed everything I believed in." Sayma quickly pulled out her notebook. She clicked her pen.

"Please, Doctor. Tell us everything." Dr. Panthor stared into his bitter tea. He took a slow breath and began his story.

"Decades ago, I was a young, ambitious researcher," Panthor explained.

"I wanted to save lives. I studied rare plants. I discovered the Devil Flour growing in volcanic ash. It had incredible, miraculous healing properties. I believed I had found the ultimate cure for human suffering." Princess Iris listened closely. Her violet eyes were full of sympathy.

"You wanted to make medicine."

"I wanted to make a miracle," Panthor corrected her. His voice shook with emotion.

"I wanted to create a longevity potion. A serum that could reverse aging. A medicine to cure any disease and extend human life. It was a beautiful, noble dream." Risa smiled softly.

"That sounds wonderful. You wanted to help people." Dr. Panthor looked at the sweet pink-haired girl. Tears formed in the corners of his weary eyes. He shook his head slowly.

"It was not wonderful," Panthor whispered. His voice cracked with pure misery.

"It was a nightmare. The plant did not want to heal. The plant wanted to mutate." The humid air in the greenhouse suddenly felt very cold. The 13th Unit went perfectly still. They waited for the old man to reveal the dark truth behind the extinct flower.

Dr. Panthor stared blankly at the dirt floor. His frail hands shook so much that his bitter tea spilled over the edges of his cup.

"I synthesized the plant into a concentrated serum," Panthor continued. His voice was hoarse.

"I thought I had perfected the formula. I was so proud. I decided to begin the early clinical trials. I used laboratory guinea pigs for the first test." Sayma wrote furiously in her notebook. She pushed her glasses up.

"You injected the animals with the Devil Flour serum?" Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

"Yes," Panthor nodded slowly. A tear rolled down his wrinkled cheek.

"I injected them. I expected them to become healthier. I expected their cells to regenerate. But I was entirely wrong." Ken leaned against a large glass terrarium. He took another tiny sip of his terrible tea and made a sour face. He listened to the story with a lazy, bored expression.

"The serum did not extend their lives," Panthor whispered. His eyes widened with the terrifying memory.

"It violently attacked their genetic structure. The reaction was instantaneous. The small, gentle guinea pigs began to scream. Their bones cracked and stretched. Their muscles bulged to impossible sizes. Their cute faces twisted into horrific, snapping jaws." Laxmi stopped tossing her flame. She frowned.

"They grew bigger?"

"They turned into monsters," Panthor corrected her. He rubbed his face with a trembling hand.

"They mutated into grotesque, hyper-aggressive beasts. They lost all sense of fear or pain. They broke through their metal cages like wet paper. They destroyed my laboratory. They attacked each other with relentless, mindless fury. It was a bloodbath." Zinia crossed her strong arms. She looked at Laxmi.

"Does that sound familiar to you?" Laxmi's eyes widened.

"The thugs! Augusto and Vane used thugs with glowing veins and bulging muscles. They acted like mindless beasts in the underground bunker!" Naomi gripped the hilt of her dagger.

"You are right. The thugs transformed exactly like that. They lost their minds and gained monstrous strength." Sayma quickly connected the dots. She scribbled a new note.

"Augusto and Vane must have stolen this research. They weaponized this exact same mutated formulation. They used it to create the horrific, body-altering serums for their private army." Dr. Panthor let out a sob. He covered his face with his hands.

"I felt pure moral terror," the old man cried.

"I saw the apocalyptic potential of my own creation. If that serum was given to an army of humans, it would destroy the world. The beasts would tear the Empire apart. I could not let that happen." Princess Iris placed a gentle, comforting hand on the old man's shoulder.

"What did you do, Doctor?"

"I burned it all," Panthor sobbed.

"I permanently destroyed my research. I smashed all my vials. I burned every single page of my notes. I shut down the entire project immediately. I ran away to this secluded greenhouse to hide. I made a solemn vow to never touch the Devil Flour plant again." The greenhouse went totally silent. The sound of the old man crying was the only noise in the humid room. The elite girls were deeply disturbed by the revelation. The tragic origin of the serum explained so much.

It provided vital context to the terrifying monsters they had fought in the dungeons and laboratories. Risa looked like she might cry too. She hugged her medical bag to her chest. She felt terrible for the old researcher. He had just wanted to help people, but he had accidentally created a nightmare. Ken Eliot stood near the glass terrarium. He slouched his shoulders and let out a long, loud sigh.

"Well, that is a very sad story," Ken said casually. He set his teacup down on a wooden table.

"I feel bad for the guinea pigs. They probably just wanted some carrots. But honestly, this tea is terrible, and I am getting very bored." Naomi turned around and gave him a warning look.

"Ken, be respectful. This is serious."

"I am being serious," Ken argued lazily. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets. He looked around the humid greenhouse with half-closed eyes. Internally, Ken dropped his goofy attitude. His sharp mind analyzed the old man's story perfectly.

"This biological history lesson is totally useless," Ken thought to himself. He felt secretly annoyed.

"Panthor's story explains the mutant serum. It explains the monsters. But it completely fails to provide a concrete, prosecutable motive for Mr. Carrion's brutal assassination." Ken mentally reviewed the timeline.

"Dr. Panthor destroyed his notes decades ago. But Mr. Carrion was murdered just one year ago. Carrion successfully synthesized the cure. He figured it out. So why did they kill him? The bad guys already had the mutant serum. They did not need to kill Carrion for that. This whole story is just a massive distraction. It does not give us a killer."