Chapter 424

Orson's eyes widened in shock as he gasped, momentarily holding his breath. Omon's beautiful eyes, once pure and refined, now held a sickly yellow hue, their shape distorted before his very eyes. Her aristocratic nose had collapsed; her small mouth stretched into a grotesque, gaping maw. Her eyebrows were reduced to mere stubs. Her face appeared flattened, her delicate eyes bulging grotesquely, resembling those of a dead fish. Her thick hair had thinned and receded, leaving a stark bald spot on top, like a middle-aged man's.

Her slender, graceful fingers had become thick and stubby. Her breasts had shrunk from a C-cup to an A-cup, and her height, once a modest 5'2", now seemed to be barely 5'. What had once been a vibrant, captivating woman was now a deformed, unrecognizable figure. A faint, unfamiliar odor hung in the air, replacing her usual soft fragrance.

"Is this really Sophia?" Orson's voice trembled in disbelief. His lips moved, but no words could come; he couldn't find the words to express his feelings. Omon was shocked.

"You should take a look at her abdomen," Odalys said, pointing.

Orson, a trained doctor, was familiar with examining bodies. He efficiently separated Henry and Sophia, lifting her top to reveal her abdomen. His eyes narrowed as he noticed a looseness in her stomach.

"This doesn't look like typical bloating from overeating," he muttered quietly. "A woman's stomach doesn't usually get this way unless she's given birth—look at these stretch marks."

His shock was palpable. His words felt inadequate to explain what he was witnessing.

"This body… it's a vessel. A carefully crafted vessel. The Bennett family's luck has always been poor, tainted with negative energy," Odalys explained, her voice measured. "What you see on the surface is an illusion. Once she reached a certain peak, everything reversed."

"Sophia may appear to elevate the Bennett family's luck, but everything about her is a lie. When she was adopted, my aura was still present, masking her true nature. But over the years, she could have prolonged the facade. Instead, her ambition and malice became overwhelming, leading to self-destruction," Odalys continued deliberately.

Orson stepped back, instinctively distancing himself. Even without superstition, her state made him uneasy. He feared her cursed energy might infect him.

"But if she's like this, why did we see her as a beautiful woman before?" Orson asked, his confusion deepening. "How could someone go from so hideous to so flawless? No surgery could achieve this transformation—her height had been stretched, her sickly yellow skin turned pale and smooth, and even her balding scalp became a flowing mane of hair."

It seemed impossible, an illusion.

"Her astrological signs are heavily laden with negative energy—unique energy, so she was chosen. But this was her desired outcome," Odalys explained. "Once selected, she underwent bone reshaping, skin scraping—her body was essentially replaced. She's been using special candles and talismans for years, baptizing her body, allowing her to take on the appearance we knew. She had constant assistance, empowering her, keeping her beautiful."

"That's why she always looked perfect. Before hospitalization, she became a different person. The elderly man working on her energy manipulation died after I thwarted his rituals. That's when I decided to expose the villa, to prevent them from using the cursed energy field to empower her."

Omon's face went pale.

Chapter 421

"So… the people who died in that villa were connected to Sophia? They paved the way for her?" His breath caught in his throat. Over a dozen people had died—each death brutal and horrifying—shaking the city.

"Yes. The murders stirred up resentment, gathering negative energy in the villa. That's how they boosted Sophia's fortune."

"When she attacked Finnian, it was because I interrupted a ritual. The person behind her was killed by a backlash, and Sophia's body began to deteriorate. Desperate, she targeted Finnian…"

"But Finnian didn't know she was after his fortune. By stealing it, she clouded his mind, leading him down a dangerous path."

"And that's when Finnian's true nature was exposed, and the Lark family kicked him out."

Orson stood still, his mind racing. He felt no sympathy for Sophia. He glanced at her on the operating table, then at Henry. He felt strangely detached.

"So what do we do now?" Orson asked cautiously.

Percival had instructed him to follow Odalys's instructions, to prioritize her above all else. The Stewart family, the Lark Group—they were at her disposal. He was her assistant, and he would do whatever was necessary.

"I want to see how much energy is mixed with her aura—how many people's fates are intertwined," Odalys said, her gaze fixed on Sophia.

She gently pressed her hand against Sophia's forehead. Orson saw her fingers tremble slightly, and a subtle frown appeared on her face.

"Odalys? What's going on?" Orson's voice cracked with urgency.

Odalys remained silent, her gaze locked on Sophia. Orson held his breath, anxiously waiting.

Finally, she whispered, "I see… a tangled web of fates. Numerous intersecting lines of fortune—some even point to the Bennett family. Her familial ties… they're closer than I thought. But I don't understand. I never saw a direct bloodline connection."

Orson blinked, confused. "What does it mean that her family line is crossing with the Bennett family? Didn't we think there was no blood relation?"

Odalys muttered, her brow furrowed. "It's not a direct lineage, but it's there. An ancestral link—distant, perhaps a collateral branch. But Henry… Henry isn't related to her at all."

Her eyes narrowed as she placed Henry's wrist over Sophia's body. The energy swirled, intertwining. Her frown deepened.

"Now it makes sense. No wonder Sophia was so desperate for Henry's heart's blood. Their energy is complementary. If she uses his blood, especially with a Love Spell, she could reverse her situation entirely."