Chapter 385: The Wretched Hound of Nouvellebag (1)

Early the next morning, unprecedented chaos erupted in Nouvellebag.

“What in the world is going on!?”

A thunderous roar shook the 9th level.

Major D’Ordume , a prominent candidate for the next warden of the prison, turned his head with a face full of anger.

Lieutenants and Captains, including Bastille, bowed their heads in defeat.

It was all because of the escape of “Night Hound” last night.

Upon hearing the report of Vikir’s disappearance overnight, Major D’Ordume urged his subordinates frantically.

But apart from the information that an unknown doctor had escaped the prisoner area under the pretext of disinfection work, nothing else was reported.

The reason the patrolling was so loose in the first place was due to Major D’Ordume’s reckless orders to proceed with construction despite the suspicious explosive found in the Level 10 area, and to change the deployment of guards to push through with the work.

He couldn’t openly express his anger.

“Was there nothing unusual last night? How could nobody know until things got to this point!”

Major D’Ordume’s inquiries were met with silence from the guards, all bowing their heads.

Then, an urgent report came in.

“S-Sir! You should see what’s happening on the 5th floor!”

Major D’Ordume’s thick eyebrows rose at the report from the breathless subordinate.

Rushing up the stairs to the 5th floor, Major D’Ordume was astonished.

“W-What in the world…?”

The first thing that caught his eye was the huge hole in the Gulper Eel aquarium.

Next, he saw numerous Gulper Eel floating dead on the water.

The extent of the damage was immeasurable, with countless Gulper Eel swept out of the water.

Fortunately, the Flubber mucus patched the hole, so the flood damage wasn’t extensive, but the loss of many Gulper Eel was painful.

Gulper Eel breeding was extremely difficult, with frequent sudden deaths or mysteries during the process of becoming a mature fish.

The growth rate was atrocious.

Therefore, the adult Gulper Eel were priced equivalent to a battleship, and losing so many was an unimaginable loss.

…However, Major D’Ordume’s attention was focused elsewhere.

The Gulper Eel were not even registering in his eyes right now.

The problem was the girl sitting crouched in a corner of the Gulper Eel breeding area, trembling.

Wrapped in a towel provided by the guards, she was drinking warm manatee milk, it was none other than BDISSEM!

“…What happened here?”

Major D’Ordume asked in utter disbelief.

To which BDISSEM sniffled and replied, “I was trying to catch an escapee last night, but I missed.”

“No, why are you even here in the first place… sigh.”

Major D’Ordume sighed, rubbing his forehead with his hand.

Then, someone approached Major D’Ordume.

“What were you doing until now? You’re slow as molasses.”

Major Souaré. She was eyeing Major D’Ordume with a hint of mockery.

“So, are you really aiming to become the warden?”

“Shut it, Souaré. Last night was once a year event for me.”

“Ah, I see. So, while I was taking care of flood damage, Gulper Eel casualties, and BDISSEM’s safety, there was no word from you?”

“…”

Major D’Ordume remained silent.

He just grounded his teeth.

Souaré looked around before speaking.

“The hole in the wall was patched up by Flubber as an emergency measure, which was fortunate. There was some flood damage, but it’s easily recoverable with Level 1 prisoners doing labor. The Gulper Eel casualties are painful, but what can we do? We should be satisfied that BDISSEM is safe. It could have been a catastrophic accident otherwise.”

“…Where is the escapee?”

“Why are you asking me? It’s not under my jurisdiction. I’m just here to handle the damage.”

Fair point.

Capturing escapees was D’Ordume’s responsibility, and Souaré’s responsibility was to interrogate and confine the captured escapees. D’Ordume had no choice but to ask BDISSEM, who was trembling uncontrollably.

“Where did the escapee go?”

To which BDISSEM replied in shock, “H-He’s dead!”

“…Dead?”

D’Ordume momentarily fell silent.

It was highly unlikely for anyone to escape from Nouvellebag.

Even with aura and limited strength, weakened by meager meals and harsh labor, it was impossible to escape from this harsh environment.

Moreover, this was not just any sea but the deep sea, 10,000 meters under.

But action needed to be taken.

“Then where’s the body?”

D’Ordume asked sternly, to which BDISSEM evaded his gaze.

“…He rode a Gulper Eel out into the deep sea.”

“So, he’s not dead.”

“He might as well be!”

BDISSEM’s words held merit.

In fact, riding a Gulper Eel out was not a means to reach the surface.

This was a military secret known only to the guards that prisoners were absolutely unaware of. The 5th floor of Nouvellebag, where the Gulper Eel breeding facility was located, was in contact with over 3,000 circulating currents, but only one of them led to the surface. In other words, the probability of randomly selecting the route to reach the surface was a mere 0.00033101622%.

If the Gulper Eel chose any other route, they would simply roam the vast deep sea and return to their original location, a journey that would take approximately a century, and by the time they returned, anyone inside would be reduced to bones.

“He had no idea which current led to the surface. So, he might’ve fell into a trap current. He’s probably doomed to spend his life in the deep sea.”

“…Probably doomed? It sounds like you didn’t actually witness his end.”

“He is! He is doomed! I-I saw it clearly! Before I passed out, I saw him riding the Gulper Eel out of the hole in the wall!”

BDISSEM desperately defended herself.

D’Ordume remained silent for a long time, his arms crossed.

“…Are you sure you witnessed his end?”

“W-What are you implying? And even if you doubt it, it’s my jurisdiction… Don’t look at me like that!”

BDISSEM was sweating profusely.

Because she was lying.

Otherwise, it might not end with just imprisonment.

Orca, the warden, would’ve never thought that his beloved BDISSEM would end up confined like a prisoner.

“Yeah. There was definitely a hole in the wall! And he even tried to take a Gulper Eel. He probably rode a Gulper Eel out. By now, he’s probably endlessly wandering the deep sea. Damn him!”

BDISSEM rationalized to herself. It was an unavoidable situation, she said.

And coincidentally, Souaré’s testimony supported BDISSEM’s words.

“Come to think of it, the guy who came into solitary confinement this time was saying something strange, right? The guy on Level 8, that chatterbox. He said ‘Night Hound’ would escape soon?”

“The chatterbox? That plague-ridden lunatic?”

“Yeah. He said a guy named Vikir promised him an escape. I thought it was nonsense and ignored it, but it actually happened.”

The testimony of Sakkuth, currently confined to solitary for inciting a riot, was quite decisive.

In the end, BDISSEM was cleared of the charge of missing the escapee.

“Is it done now? I’m going back to my cell.”

Afraid of being reprimanded by the warden and appearing weak to her subordinates, BDISSEM decided not to dwell on the issue any longer and kept quiet.

D’Ordume felt uneasy in various ways, but he judged that he couldn’t proceed with the investigation any further.

The hole in the wall. The missing Gulper Eel. BDISSEM’s firm testimony.

In the end, D’Ordume could only nod his head.

“The Night Hound died while attempting to escape from Nouvellebag. That should suffice for the official record.”

“Well, I agree. He was quite a charming little fellow. It’s a shame.”

Souaré even agreed.

D’Ordume found Vikir’s name on the list he was holding and crossed it out with a pen.

[Night Hound, ‘Vikir van Baskerville’]

Thus, Night Hound was officially declared deceased in Nouvellebag.

“Send a mana telegram to the surface to record it.”

D’Ordume casually tossed the list with Vikir’s name erased to a junior guard nearby.

“Yes, Major.”

The junior guard bowed deeply before taking the list in his hands and walking away to carry out D’Ordume’s orders.

At that moment, Souaré glanced at the junior guard passing by her side.

The heavily creased guard hat, the unkempt tousled hair, the large burn scar covering his face.

And the neat uniform that looked freshly put on.

The name tag on his chest, which seemed new, bore the name ‘Garam Nord’.

‘His vibe seems strange? Was there such a guy among the subordinates?’

But Souaré quickly dismissed the thought.

‘Ah, who cares.’

She was aiming for the position of warden, it was unlikely she would remember the name and face of such insignificant people.

Right now, for Souaré, it was more important to cover up D’Ordume’s mistake as much as possible and create a sense of normalcy.

“Anyway. Let’s wrap up the situation with this. I’ll make the report upstairs.”

“…Ugh.”

D’Ordume just mumbled out a half-hearted grunt.

The escape incident at Nouvellebag, which could have been a catastrophic event, ended somewhat anticlimactically like this.