Chapter 225

Odalys listened quietly, responding with a mere "Ummm."

"But during the first explosion, Stellan's father must have been injured. But in the second explosion," Freya's voice trembled with curiosity, "I noticed a flash of golden light—was it the talisman?"

Odilys nodded. "Yes."

Overwhelmed, Freya nearly burst into tears. "Odalys, can you give me one? I want one tool."

The urgency in her voice was palpable, as if the talisman could solve everything.

"Not now," Odalys replied calmly. "I don't have time to draw one at the moment. By the way, is Francis with you?"

Freya instinctively glanced at Francis, nodding. "Yes, he's with us."

"Tell him to stay with you for the next three days. Don't let him leave your side. I have some matters to attend to. Once I'm back, you can come find me," Odalys instructed.

Freya quickly relayed the message to Selah and Francis. "Alright, I'll get back to you soon."

Odalys gave a short nod and hung up the phone.

Just then, Orson rushed over with his phone, his voice low and urgent. "Odalys, have you seen the trending news?"

"What trending news?" Odalys asked, slightly puzzled. She wasn't one to keep up with the internet; while she occasionally checked gossip, she wasn't reliant on it.

"The CEO of the Drake Group had a car accident. It's unclear whether he's dead or alive," Orson said, his voice tense. He paused for a moment, then connected the dots. "The Drake Group CEO must be Stellan's father."

"I know," she replied indifferently.

Orson didn't stop. "But there's more. The news is all about you. They're saying you did a divination for Stellan on your livestream, and now everyone's wondering if it has something to do with the accident."

Odalys simply waved him off, unaffected. "Don't worry about it. Let's head into the village."

Orson blinked in disbelief. "Wait, she's not even reacting! She's trending all over the place, and she's not fazed!"

He shook his head in disbelief, but Odalys was already walking away, heading toward the village without a second thought. Percival fell into step beside her.

The tension in the air was palpable as Orson watched them. He expected someone to be thrilled by the attention, but Odalys seemed completely unbothered.

"They were still talking about it on the way back after recording," Orson mumbled to himself. "Even some journalists followed them. They witnessed everything, and now they're backing up Odalys's predictions."

Callum, noticing Orson's fixation, grabbed his arm and pulled him along. "Odalys is a person of importance. A little trending topic won't shake her. We need to focus on the matter at hand. This village is off, and we're here to investigate, not gossip."

With that, Callum drew his weapon and quickened his pace, making sure to stay close to Percival and Odalys. Orson, reluctantly snapping out of his reverie, followed suit, his phone slipping back into his pocket.

As they entered the village, an eerie silence enveloped them. The village felt strangely deserted, as though every door had been shut tight. Then, a blood-curdling scream shattered the stillness, followed by the thudding sound of someone running. Rafael appeared, drenched in blood, stumbling out of a building. Seeing Odalys, he ran straight toward her, collapsing at her feet. "I know I was wrong, please, save me," he pleaded, bowing and knocking his head.

Odalys watched as blood continued to seep from his body, her eyes narrowing slightly in surprise.

"Did someone poison you?" she asked suddenly.

Rafael froze, staring up at her in confusion, as though she had struck a chord deep within him.

Odalys stepped closer, her voice steady but piercing. "Is it true that every month, you feel ill—chills, fever, and sometimes even fainting?"

"Yes, yes," Rafael stammered, his confusion growing.

"And after you faint, all your symptoms disappear, don't they?" she pressed, her gaze unyielding.

Rafael's eyes widened. "Yes… yes, that's right."

He hadn't expected Odalys to know about this. Rafael stared at her, a flicker of fear creeping into his eyes. Why had she come back after the rest of the crew had already left? And those figures trailing behind her—men clad in expensive suits, exuding an air of wealth and power—what was she up to? Rafael thought.

Odalys observed him closely, her voice low and chilling. "You've been poisoned. Every month, you suffer from the poison, and someone comes to give you an antidote after you faint. That's why you always recover, right?"

Rafael recoiled as though struck. "No, that's impossible. It can't be true!" he shouted, desperately shaking his head.

Odalys didn't flinch. "How is it impossible? You're here because you've committed murder, and now they have something on you. They're using you to guard this village, making sure no one gets too close!"

Rafael's body trembled as he staggered backward, his eyes wild with fear.

"You cut the tendons of those villagers, didn't you? After that, you became the village boss, bullying anyone you could find. On a whim, you'd beat them up, and they were too afraid to leave. But that's not all, is it?" Odalys continued, her voice calm but cold.

Rafael's face went pale. "Stop. Please, just stop."

But Odalys wasn't done. "You had a girlfriend once, didn't you? You sold her off to save yourself, and she died the very next day. You didn't even care, did you? You're going to just let yourself rot here, knowing that you'll never leave this place alive!"

Rafael's body shuddered as if her words had pierced him to the core. He paused, his feet rooted to the ground.

Odalys took a step toward him, her voice steady. "You stole Sophia's clothes. You hugged her. You touched her. But you never forced her. If you wanted to, you could have, but you didn't. You never did."

"Do you know what you're doing to yourself?" Odalys's eyes locked onto his, a knowing gleam in them. "You've been brainwashing yourself, thinking you can keep pretending. But you're not fooling anyone—not even yourself."

Rafael took a step back, panic flashing across his face. "Who are you?" he screamed.

Odalys's voice was calm, like a force of nature. "Do you know how your girlfriend died?"

Rafael froze, unable to respond. Odalys gestured to the old house ahead. "That's where it all began."