Chapter 161
“This snake won’t harm strangers, but it will attack anyone who tries to hurt it,” Odalys said, lifting Sophia with one hand and pushing her toward the cliff’s edge. Sophia struggled, fear flashing in her eyes. “Odalys, let me go! Let me go!” Sophia’s voice cracked, hoarse with panic.
For a moment, as she fought against Odalys, Sophia glanced down at the base of the cliff. The giant python slowly extended its head, flicking its tongue as it locked eyes with her. Sophia trembled, overwhelmed by fear, as Odalys gave her a sharp push. Sophia lost her balance, falling to her knees. She scrambled backward, shaking her head. “It wasn’t me! I didn’t want to hurt you,” she stammered. “I just wanted to spray some snake repellent, to keep you away. It wasn’t me, it wasn’t me!” She struggled to stand before turning and running.
The onlookers, watching the scene unfold, were filled with anger. Sophia realized her plan had been exposed and didn’t dare to stay. Without a second thought, she ran off.
Sophia Atlas called out, stunned as he watched her flee, unable to believe she had left him behind. Just as Atlas moved to follow, Stellan stepped forward, grabbed him by the collar, and lifted him off the ground. “Are you trying to get us all killed? Don’t drag us down with you. She’s crazy. Are you losing it too?”
“Don’t you have any idea why the giant python went berserk this morning! She stole its eggs, and there are no tracks. You guys are ruthless. Allis, you’re not much of a man!” Stellan spat, then shoved Atlas away.
Atlas, stung by Stellan’s words, opened his mouth, but couldn’t come up with a response. He gritted his teeth and turned to walk away.
[Damn, I want to curse too. Who did the giant python offend? They were planning to kill it to keep quiet about what they did. These two are really something else.]
[If Odalys hadn’t caught on in time, the whole village would probably be dead by now.]
[Snake revenge is the worst. Once someone kills its companion, no matter where you go, they’ll track you down and make you pay.]
[Sophia really has lost it. Has she gone completely mad?]
The online commentators were shocked, having initially thought Odalys was charging ahead to fight. Instead, she was trying to save everyone. If she hadn’t stopped Sophia, they all would have been doomed. Even the production team stood there in stunned silence.
Odalys paid no attention to the crowd. Instead, she moved closer to the cliff, kneeling to speak to the giant python before jumping down. “Odalys!” Freya gasped, her heart racing. She rushed forward, only to find that Odalys had already jumped.
The giant python was waiting below and caught her. On the side of the cliff, the injured snake lay still. After Odalys treated its wounds and placed a talisman on it, the wound seemed to be healing. “It should be fine now. Don’t worry. Before I leave, I won’t let anyone disturb you,” Odalys whispered to the python. She knew this ancient creature could understand human speech.
The giant python stared at Odalys for a long moment. She took out a talisman and wrote something in the air before tossing it upwards. The talisman hovered, creating an invisible barrier above them. “As long as you stay inside, this talisman will protect you for three days. No one, and no animals, can get in,” Odalys murmured.
With a sudden thud, the giant python dropped to its knees before her. Its massive form made the ground tremble slightly as it knelt, and Odalys was startled by the force.
“You don’t have to thank me. Meeting is fate, a blessing from God. My mentor always said that all things have spirits, and animals and humans are no different,” Odalys spoke softly.
She was about to climb back up when the giant python’s tail wrapped around her, lifting her up effortlessly. By the time the others arrived, Odalys was already back on solid ground. She turned slightly, trying not to smile, to see everyone staring at her in shocked silence. Her lips twitched.
Chapter 161
“I just went down to check if the giant python was still there. It seems like it’s gone, probably scared off by Sophia,” Odalys lied smoothly. Whether or not they believed her didn’t matter. Odalys grabbed Freya and Selah and started walking back.
No one dared to stay too long, so they quickly followed Odalys toward the village. As they left, the giant python slowly poked its head out from the cliff’s edge, waiting until everyone was gone before retreating back into the shadows.
This entire scene had been watched from the darkness by a hidden figure. From the moment Odalys had saved someone earlier in the morning to later when she helped the snake, it had all been under his watch.
“It seems she wasn’t after me, after all,” Brandon muttered softly to himself. Odalys had appeared and even treated his son last night. Although his son’s fever had broken and his condition was improving, Brandon still hesitated, believing his son might still be in serious danger. Brandon had thought she was targeting him, even planning to kill him. Since last night when she left, he had been observing her from the shadows. He’d realized that she was part of the production team, here for the show.
With that thought, Brandon turned and walked back toward the house. By the time they returned to the village, it was already six in the evening. Everyone was exhausted, barely able to move.
“Are you all hungry? Let’s have stew for dinner,” Odalys said quietly. Selah was still shaken, sitting down with a far-off look. “I’ll go pick some vegetables,” Selah said, standing up to go.
Freya raised her hand and said, “The veggies we had the other day were good. Let’s see if there are more in the woods, and pick some more.”
“I’ll check if there’s any others left, and we can throw in some wild game too,” Odalys offered. Seeing this, Stellan took the wild game and said, “Okay, I’ll take care of chopping these up.”
Chapter 161
Sounds good,” they all replied, splitting up to get to work.
In truth, none of them were really hungry, but since they were filming, it wouldn’t look good if they just sat around doing nothing. So, they chose to actively go out and find something to eat.
Stellan returned with wild vegetables by seven o’clock, and the steaming stew was ready. Finnian and Francis brought over plates, munching on leftover roasted pheasant from earlier. “You guys have it pretty good,” they commented as they watched the others.
Meanwhile, only Sophia and Atlas sat by the fire, tossing the two potatoes they had stolen from the field into the flames. Unfortunately, the fire was too hot, and the potatoes quickly burned.
“They’re burnt,” Sophia said, her heart sinking. These were the only things they had to eat, and now they were ruined.
“Peel off the burnt bits. The inside should still be fine,” Atlas suggested. His hands were wrapped in bandages, and he didn’t dare move them too much. The blisters on the back of his hands made it too painful to touch anything. He hadn’t expected Odalys to be so cruel. She really did want to blow him up. Now, whenever Atlas looked at Odalys, all he felt was hatred, and even an urge to kill her.
“Tomorrow, we’ll definitely find something better to eat,” Sophia said, trying to comfort him. She was worried that he might abandon her. Now, besides Atlas, no one else was paying her any attention.
“Okay,” Atlas answered in a distant voice, his mind clearly elsewhere. He seemed distracted, as though lost in thought. That feeling of impending dread grew stronger. Atlas couldn’t shake the sense that everything was starting to fall off track.
As he fell deeper into his thoughts, Sophia noticed Rafael standing a little ways off, staring at her with an intense gaze. His eyes were fixed on her chest.