Chapter 151

"They can leave, but you're leaving too! Sophia is part of our team!" Atlas said despairingly. Even if they weren't trained in medicine, they could at least stay and help care for Sophia.

Francis turned, a sarcastic smile playing on his lips. "If you want to starve, that's your choice. We don't want to starve here. You think Sophia's some kind of treasure? That's got nothing to do with us. You can hold onto her all you want, but don't drag us into it. You're an idiot, but we're not. We know exactly what Sophia's done. She can't manipulate Odalys with guilt, and don't try it with me. I grew up abroad; I'm not buying into this." He shot back coldly.

Finnian said nothing; he simply followed Francis, walking away briskly. The cameraman hurriedly gathered his equipment and ran to catch up, leaving one crew member behind to zoom in on Atlas and Sophia.

"Since she's injured, you should take her back to rest," Kenny said, rubbing his temples. He had just fallen and was still shaken. His gaze at Atlas was different now.

Atlas wanted to say something, but Kenny waved his hand. "Just take her back to rest." Kenny felt dizzy and wanted to get Sophia back safely. He was worried about what might happen if she pushed herself; all he cared about was staying alive.

Suddenly, Sophia screamed in pain. Curled up in Atlas's arms, her voice was a wall of agony before she shot up, vomiting a mouthful of blood. It felt like her entire body was falling apart.

"Sophia!" Atlas cried, full of concern, quickly reaching out to support her. Sophia looked around frantically. When she saw the giant python was gone, tears streamed down her face. She looked at Atlas helplessly.

"Atlas, I really didn't know they were python eggs! Why is Odalys blaming me like this? Does she want everyone to misunderstand me?" Sophia sobbed, her voice trembling.

The cameraman looked up at the sky, ignoring Sophia.

"Good girl, don't cry. It's all Odalys' fault. She could have saved you, but she just watched as that giant python pressed down on you, crawling all over you. Are you hurt?" Atlas asked, his concern deepening.

Sophia could only feel a deep, aching pain throughout her body, making her feel like she was falling apart. Her chest was tight, her body ached everywhere, but she couldn't pinpoint the exact location of the pain.

"My chest hurts, and my leg bones hurt too. It's a dull pain," she whispered faintly. It was difficult to explain exactly where it was coming from, or maybe her whole body hurt; her bones weren't broken, but they might be cracked. The pain was everywhere, but she couldn't pinpoint it.

"It's alright. As long as you can still feel pain, it means your injuries aren't too bad," Atlas said quietly, helping her up. Her arms, legs, and palms were scraped. Atlas furrowed his brow. "Where did these injuries come from?"

"Atlas, I'm fine." Sophia quickly withdrew her hand, trying to hide her discomfort. But she deliberately placed her injured hand in front of the camera so everyone could see the extent of her wounds.

"Alright, I'll help you back to rest." Atlas saw what she was doing and moved to support her.

Sophia pretended to be strong, forcing a weak smile. She shook her head. "No need. I'm just sore all over, but I can still walk. Let's hurry up and catch up to them. We need to find food."

"I haven't helped search for food in two days, and I'm really hungry now I want to eat meat," she said softly, almost like a child.

Atlas couldn't stop her. He helped her along as they followed Finnian. After walking a few steps, Sophia suddenly felt dampness in her pants. Finnian, noticing her strange gait, didn't think much of it.

"Did I just leak urine?" Sophia's face paled as she realized what was happening.

Atlas noticed her tense up and asked with concern, "Are you feeling okay? Is something wrong?"

"No, no. I'm fine." Sophia quickly shook her head, trying to reassure him. Isn't leaking urine something that only happens after giving birth? The python had been crawling all over me just now. Could it be that the weight of the python misaligned my pelvis? she thought.

Her face flushed with embarrassment, but she dared not say anything. Her fists clenched tightly as she glanced toward Odalys and the others, who had already walked too far ahead.

[Fan Comments (Various):] These two must be a little crazy, right? No wonder they stuck together—birds of a feather, after all. Francis and Finnian want to ditch the team… hurry up and run! You two are the only normal ones in the group. I’m studying medicine. I know Sophia must have been injured by the pressure. That python seemed to do it on purpose. Odalys always says that everything has a spirit. And she knows magic. She must have realized that the python wasn’t ordinary. It must have been sentient. I’m a little worried about Sophia. Odalys is so cold-hearted. She actually watched and did nothing. What if Sophia really dies? Since when does Odalys have an obligation to save Sophia! If you care so much, why don’t you do something?

The fans quickly began arguing, growing louder and more intense. The debate exploded on social media, quickly trending on every platform. Since the start of the show, it had been in the headlines without dropping off. Everyone seemed to be enjoying the drama, watching the spectacle unfold, eager to see these people fail.

In the VIP ward, Hannah, who had been overexcited earlier and hurt her back, had just come out of surgery. Watching the live broadcast, her vision blurred, and she almost fainted again.

Hannah was frantic. "Could this happen? Where did Sophia get the drugs from? Did she drug Finnian?"

"Silly girl. Even if she drugged him, she should have done it off-camera. Why would she do it in front of the cameras?"

Sophia doing this on live broadcast meant that everyone knew about it now. Her reputation was likely to take a severe hit.

Hannah was livid, but with her back still recovering from surgery, she could only lie in bed, unable to move, staring at the screen.

Henry remained silent, seemingly lost in thought.

Hannah, still furious, cursed under her breath. "Henry, can't you do something to bring Sophia back? If she keeps being targeted like this on the variety show, she'll be ruined! Odalys just watched her suffer, doing nothing!"

"If that giant python had really eaten Sophia, I'd make sure Odalys pays for it." The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, almost wishing she could kill Odalys right then and there.

In stark contrast to Hannah's outrage, Henry looked troubled. His voice was low as he spoke. "Mom, the East District land from the Lark family… Orion told me he's already transferred it to Odalys. This means the land Odalys holds can decide the fate of the Bennett family."

"Also, to celebrate Percival's wedding, the Lark family is giving her tens of millions of dollars in gifts."

The entire room fell stunned into silence. Hannah was taken aback, and even Caspian, lying in the bed next to her, was shocked.

Caspian, still disbelieving, moved slightly and muttered, "Henry… what did you just say?"