Raising A Few Wives in a Beast Apocalypse-Chapter 185: Mana corruption?

"Well, you're the boss", Abel replied while backing down.

He didn't want to give a bad impression to his targets. He then smiled at Muku and left with the others. As a patient plotter, he didn't mind waiting.

.....

A while later. Back in William's office...

"Hello, Ms, I'm sorry for my subordinate's poor behaviour. I hope you can forgive him just this once. It won't happen again," William apologised to Audrey on John's behalf after he had her join them in his office.

As for why that was... He had instantly noticed that Audrey was way stronger than John when he arrived on the scene. She had gone easy on him. Otherwise, he would have been seriously injured at the very least if she had taken him seriously.

He was certain that she wasn't a spy.

Even though Tilda hadn't told him. Which was because, for whatever reason, her mana signature was similar to Muku's to an extent. Which wasn't something he'd ever seen before.

Everyone's mana signature was like fingerprints, all unique. So, for two people to have a somewhat similar mana signature. They had to be related in some way. Which wasn't natural either. He (William) knew a bit about unnatural mana signatures after all...

Anyway, that wasn't any of his business. Just as he didn't want anyone to pry into his secrets. He wouldn't pry into other people's secrets as well.

"It's fine. Thank you for being objective," Audrey replied while taking off her veil.

It was easy for her to figure out that he was Chloe's father. From his looks to all that had happened up to that point. So, she felt that it would be rude not to remove her veil. He seemed like a steady man. There was no way he'd be too affected by beauty... Right?

"Oh my! No wonder you wear a veil around strangers. Honestly, thank you for doing so. I don't know what would have happened if you didn't..." William was completely caught off guard by Audrey's looks.

However, he quickly regained control of himself. He then proceeded to compliment Audrey's looks without actually saying the usual words.

Audrey just smiled slightly at his indirect compliments. She then gave Muku a sidelong glance. It was like she was silently asking him why he never complimented her.

Muku noticed her look and understood what it meant. However, as a seasoned gaze-ignorer. He pretended not to see it.

Of course, Audrey, who had been looking at him, noticed what he did. She rolled her eyes and looked away. She had gotten used to him doing that. While he never complimented her. She would catch him sneaking peeks multiple times every day. Which wasn't any worse than compliments. So she wasn't too unhappy about his unwillingness to say anything.

William noticed the duo's silent exchange, and he wasn't sure how he felt about it. He liked the fact that Muku seemed to be more interested in the grey-haired girl than in his daughter. However, didn't that mean his daughter, who was madly in love with him, was doomed to have a broken heart when the time came?

As a father, he wanted his daughter to be happy. Which was obviously linked to Muku. However, at the same time, he didn't want her to be involved with anybody, even when she turns eighteen and older. No man was good enough for his daughter in his eyes after all. Which left him feeling conflicted.

Luckily, it seemed he had some more time. He could tell Muku was that kind of virgin dude who was confident in everything else but was slow in making moves.

If it was a certain kind of genre, Muku would have gotten screwed by his own delay. However, fortunately for him, Author-san wasn't sick. So it was all good...

....

A while later...

Much to Chloe's disappointment. William didn't continue his previous topic. He just spoke about mundane things.

Which included asking about Chloe's well-being. How she had been doing since the apocalypse began. If she was missing anything she needed his help with, among other things. Just the general things a father asks about.

Then he made small talk with Muku and Audrey, trying to get to know them better. He was happy to know that his daughter had been lucky enough to be accompanied by such good people from day one.

Though he wasn't completely happy. That was because Chloe and the other two refused to stay for the night. Or even lunch, for that matter.

They said they had their own place with people waiting for them. So, they couldn't stay longer. Especially without talking to the others first.

He did try to talk Chloe into staying, but she gave him a hard no. Which he understood. While they were mending their relationship. I wasn't there yet.

Then again, after giving it a second thought. He felt that it might have been for the best...

So, with mixed feelings. William saw them off. Tilda hadn't made another appearance. Likely dealing with something else.

...

On the way to the mansion...

"Did you sense it too?" Muku asked mid-flight.

"Yeah, they were all like that... Whatever that was", Audrey replied.

"Even my father... Especially my father," Chloe added.

The trio then turned silent. No one said anything. However, they all had hardened expressions on their faces. It was clear to see that there was definitely something going on at the New Life Base. Which they had discovered.

.....

Back at the mansion...

The trio was happily received by the others. Hope reattached herself to Muku, and the group had their lunch.

They then got into the discussion that the ones that had stayed behind had been waiting for...

"So, what did you find? Why does Chloe look both happy and sad?" Jade asked immediately after lunch.

She was out of patience after cooking all the meat while Emily looked on. Which was the second day in a row. Emily suddenly came to her and said that it would be easier for the stronger Jade to do it. So she'll just look on until she ranks up as well.

This was supported by everyone else. So, Jade couldn't refuse. The worst part was how it seemed like Emily was holding out on improving her strength just so that Jade had to cook on her own.

"Well, let's start with Chloe's matter first, then..." Muku went to tell the others about how they found Chloe's father at the base. Then about the other matter...

"So, what you're saying is that. Chloe's father is not only at that eerie place,, but he's running it? On top of that, every person you met there had corrupted mana caused by whatever reason, with him still being the most corrupted. And you sensed a hyper-concentrated corruption source down below?" Jade summarised what Muku said.

That's right, while Muku and the two girls behaved normally throughout. They had been ignoring something very wrong with the base people for the longest time.

It had not been too pronounced when they arrived or spent a little time there. However, the longer they stayed there, the more pronounced it got.

It was an eerie energy mixed into the mana of everyone at the base. With a purer version of it radiating from what they assumed to be the basement, down below. They decided to call it corruption energy until they found out what it was.

On the bright side, while it was eerie and likely very bad. It didn't seem to be doing anything to the corrupted for the time being.

Which was obvious from their free will and happy expressions. It maybe it was so good at manipulating them that no one was able to tell.

"Yeah, and don't forget that everyone is in the base. No matter how young they seemed to be, they were all at least a MR1 Evolver. Which is rather odd for a group with more than a few thousand people so early in the apocalypse," Muku reminded.

It seemed the things William thought were well hidden were actually clear to Muku and the girls.

Honestly, William was just unlucky. Muku and the girls shouldn't have been able to sense the eerie energy. However, they had been exposed to something which gave them that ability.

And, on the matter of the unreasonably high-levelled residents. Normal people wouldn't have travelled in-between bases. So, they wouldn't know what power level was normal for the average person to have at that time.

Which obviously Muku's group had done and knew. It was almost like Muku's group was created to see through everything William tried to hide.

"Oh yeah... So, what are we going to do next?" Jade asked Muku. However, she was looking at Chloe.

Her intent was clear. While she said something else. She was actually asking Chloe what she wanted to do, knowing what situation her father was in.

"Well... Let's observe for now. I told him I'd visit in a few days. If anything has changed by then. We'll think of how to react to it. No one has to go with me if they don't want to," Chloe spoke. She got Jade's indirect question.

"We'll do it like that then, but... You're crazy if you think you're going alone," Muku replied while the others nodded in agreement.

They had all long agreed to stick with each other no matter what after all. So, that much at least was expected. Even Jade wouldn't have let Chloe go alone.

"But... Okay, thank you," Chloe wanted to say that it was her problem and they didn't need to put themselves in such a troublesome situation. However, after seeing their threatening gazes, they dared her to continue what she wanted to say. She ended up thanking them instead.

It felt good to know that she had such reliable people to lean on.