Chapter 160: Chapter 160: I Get It: To Eradicate Future Troubles
There had to be something strange going on, but Faye Yardley couldn’t figure out what it might be.
"What did you all eat yesterday? It’s not like they all had a fatal allergic reaction at the same time, right?"
Bonnie Callahan looked up at Faye Yardley, her expression blank. "I don’t think we ate anything we shouldn’t have. My aunt, other relatives, and I all ate the same things they did."
"Oh, what district were they in? If you want, I can ask someone to look into it for you."
"District 1389."
’1389?’ Faye Yardley thought. ’What a coincidence. I was just there today.’
’Could Bonnie Callahan’s uncle be the Old Shepherd we killed?’
’But the others don’t match up. The Serpent Maiden and Chubby were obviously not her male and female cousins.’
"What’s your uncle’s last name?"
"Shepherd. Here, take a look. We even took a group photo yesterday."
As she spoke, Bonnie Callahan shared the group photo with Faye Yardley.
Seeing the photo, Faye Yardley breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, it wasn’t the same Old Shepherd she and her brother had killed.
"Tell me their names, and I’ll have my brother ask around for you. As it happens, we know people in District 1389 too."
"Faye, thank you."
Faye Yardley’s thoughts turned to the Serpent Maiden, and a theory began to form.
Considering Chubby’s habit of handing out candy, and the fact that Bonnie Callahan’s cousin was pretty and cute, if the two had met, she might very well have been given some of Chubby’s candy.
"Did your uncle and cousin give you any candy?"
"Yes, but I didn’t eat it." As she spoke, Bonnie Callahan pulled a pale yellow candy from her backpack.
The moment Faye Yardley saw it, that same inexplicable revulsion welled up inside her. "I think I know why they died. If you trust me, let me get rid of this candy. It’s probably an egg laid by a Serpent Maiden, one that uses a human body as an incubator for its young."
As she spoke, she had the system call up a video clip: the scene after she had boarded her younger uncle’s raft, where Chubby offered her a piece of candy. She had turned the tables, forcing Chubby to eat it himself. Then, two fleshy orbs had burst from his stomach, which, when cut open, were filled with tiny snakes. Finally, the woman with him had gone berserk and transformed into the Serpent Maiden.
She then blurred out herself, her brother, and the others in the clip, packaged the edited video with the pale yellow candy, and sent them to Zachary Pierce. Only they had the reach to warn more people to be wary of the Otherkin.
Bonnie Callahan was already frozen in shock. She never imagined this could be the truth. A chill ran down her spine, and her limbs trembled slightly, overcome with lingering fear. ’Thank God, thank God I didn’t eat it.’
While she was still in a daze, Faye Yardley had already called her brother, explained the situation, and sent him the edited video so he could warn others.
The candies didn’t just come in one color; they had to be vigilant.
If the Shepherd father and son had taken in the Serpent Maiden, they might have had some other kind of relationship—after all, the Serpent Maiden called Chubby her son. That was their own family’s business. But for it to drag other people into it was enough to make anyone panic.
It was impossible that there was only one Serpent Maiden, and it was just as unlikely that she was the only one using humans as incubators.
Ethan Yardley said he would check with their younger uncle to confirm what had happened to Bonnie Callahan’s relatives. If their suspicions were correct, he would have no choice but to let his uncle use the situation to garner some goodwill and build his reputation in District 1389.
After all, their personal grievances with their uncle couldn’t be allowed to affect hundreds of thousands of innocent people.
No sooner had she hung up with her brother than a call came in from Zachary Pierce.
She repeated everything she had just told her brother to Zachary Pierce, clarifying that the only evidence she could provide at the moment was the clip involving Chubby. They would have to find any further proof themselves.
Zachary Pierce expressed his sincere and earnest gratitude, then cut straight to the point. The matter was urgent. He would take advantage of the fact that inter-district communication was currently possible to spread the news as quickly as he could and warn more people about the Otherkin.
Surviving at sea was already a great enough challenge for the Human Race; they shouldn’t have to be used as tools by the Otherkin on top of it all.
Bonnie Callahan had calmed down by now and was waiting quietly to the side.
When Faye Yardley hung up, Bonnie stood and bowed to her. "Faye, thank you."
"Miss Bonnie, you should tell your other relatives too. If any of them have this candy, collect it and give it to Mr. Pierce. He’ll take care of it."
"Okay."
Faye Yardley didn’t have any good solutions for this kind of situation. If not for her instinctive revulsion, she feared she would never have noticed a thing.
It was probably due to the combined effects of her Full Level Luck Value, the +Luck accessories she wore, and her Talent. Without them, she feared she would have fallen for the trap.
Perhaps seeing that things had finally calmed down, Willow Yardley came over with a tray of tea. "Sister, Miss Callahan, please have some tea."
She put down the tea and promptly disappeared. Willow Yardley felt that as an aberrant life form herself, it wasn’t appropriate for her to join their discussion about the Otherkin.
Bonnie Callahan spoke with all her relatives and collected three more candies. Surprisingly, aside from her male cousin, none of the others who received the candy had eaten it immediately, each for their own reason. Upon learning the truth, they too were struck with a wave of lingering fear.
After sending the candies to Zachary Pierce via a designated Red Envelope in their small group chat, Bonnie Callahan said, "Faye, could you please tell Pierce to accept the Red Envelope in the group? I’m worried he’s busy and might miss it."
"Okay. You should send that video to your relatives and friends while you can still contact them."
"I already did. They might not have believed me otherwise." Bonnie Callahan was now more angry than sad, and she spoke through gritted teeth, "From now on, my hatred for The Snakefolk is irreconcilable!"
"Right, right. Well, you’ll have to work hard then. The Serpent Maiden is quite powerful. Since you’re here, why don’t you go check out the training room to the left? It’s perfect for someone in your current mood to get stronger."
"The training room? Okay."
After "tossing" Bonnie Callahan into the training room, Faye Yardley went to the planting room, making sure to call Willow Yardley along.
"Eamon, Willow, do you know about The Snakefolk? Are you familiar with Serpent Maidens?"
Eamon’s little green face turned white. "I don’t know them personally, but I’ve heard stories. A long, long time ago, a town in our homeland was occupied by the Snakefolk. It took us over a hundred years to reclaim our territory and completely drive them from our world. Even now, we have no love for ordinary snakes back home. We have a standing policy: better to kill an innocent one than to let a guilty one escape."
Willow Yardley smiled and gestured to her own body. "I’m essentially still a robot. Even though I show signs of life, our Attributes are fated to be unappealing to The Snakefolk. So they don’t bother us, nor do they bother any other race related to machinery."
"Oh, I see." Faye Yardley turned to Eamon and asked, "So did The Snakefolk enslave your people? Or did they just use them as living incubators?"
Eamon shook his head. "I’m not sure. The truth is, even the ones who were enslaved didn’t survive in the end."
"Ah, I get it," Faye said. "No loose ends."
