Chapter 445

Odalys’s voice, filled with excitement, broke the silence. “What we saw earlier might have been the golden light from the Stewart family’s ancestral tablet, preserving our memories or consciousness.”

She clutched the bright red veil tightly; the scent of the woman still lingered on it, an exact match to the fragrance clinging to her own skin. “So, not only did the Stewart family ancestors protect us, but it’s also possible your father had a hand in it. Even though he’s trapped here, he must have seen you and instinctively wanted to protect you,” she added.

Her words were barely out when Percival spun around. In the distance, through the gray mist, a lone figure stood beneath a tree, casually sipping from a coffee cup. It was as if the figure sensed Percival’s gaze, because he lifted his cup and smiled faintly in his direction, calmly sipping the coffee as if both watching and not watching at all.

“Father,” Percival muttered.

The figure seemed to sense something, and their eyes locked. But before Percival could speak again, the figure rose and walked away with long strides, fading further into the mist, his form slowly swallowed by the fog.

“Wasn’t that… Percival’s father?” Callum’s voice cracked with disbelief. He rubbed his eyes, unsure if he was seeing things. Percival’s father had been dead for over a decade, and yet, that familiar figure had appeared before them. It was enough to make anyone question reality.

“Don’t dwell on it,” Odalys said gently, her hand resting on Percival’s arm. “You need to let go of any attachments. Maybe only then can we break free from all of this. Once things are over, we’ll free him and bring him back.”

Percival took a step forward, then halted, his foot hovering in the air. He stood there, staring in the direction where his father’s figure had disappeared. He didn’t speak, but his hand tightened into a fist at his side, his jaw clenching. He was holding back a storm of emotions. His father’s death had always haunted him, but to know that even in death, his father had still found a way to watch over him, to care for him, was almost too much to bear. He had once tolerated Edie’s manipulations for the sake of the greater good, but now, the hatred he had suppressed for so long was rising, threatening to consume him.

“It looks like we didn’t come here for nothing,” Percival said, his voice low but steady. “The first thing we need to deal with is the Bennett family. Let’s see who, aside from the Simpson family, encouraged them to abandon you all those years ago.” He paused, then added with a cold edge, “And who made them adopt Sophia.”

His voice regained its calm, resolute tone. As head of the Stewart family, Percival was accustomed to handling matters rationally. Faced with something this large, he could process it quickly. “The initial intention behind adopting Sophia—was it to replace you, or was it to use the Bennett family as a cover for her? Whoever was behind this knows a thing or two about magic. They must have known you had good fortune, and maybe they even knew about the endless ties between you and me, but they couldn’t directly remove you. So they targeted the Bennett family instead, made them abandon you, and left you to die. But your master intervened and changed your fate.”

It all made sense now. Everything clicked into place.

“Yes,” Odalys said, her voice soft but filled with surprise. She knew Percival was sharp, but she hadn’t expected him to piece it all together so quickly.

“Wait a minute, what happened to you two earlier?” Callum asked, still dazed, clearly not understanding what had just unfolded. He had almost fallen victim to some illusion, but it was as if a slap had woken him from the spell.

Odalys turned to Callum, her eyes sharp. “What happened to you earlier!”

Chapter 415 (Note: This chapter number is inconsistent with the previous chapter number. Please check the original source.)

Callum immediately launched into a detailed explanation, recounting every bizarre moment he had experienced. Percival exchanged a glance with Odalys.

“It looks like he, too, got trapped in the illusion,” Percival said with a weary sigh. “We’re lucky he was snapped out of it, or he might have died here too.”

It was then that Percival noticed the brick in Callum’s hand. Callum, sensing Percival’s gaze, quickly handed the brick over. Percival took it, inspecting it closely. Odalys leaned in and pointed. “This looks like the brick from under the candle holder, doesn’t it?”

“There’s still wax on it,” Callum said, rubbing his fingers across the surface, confirming her observation.

“When the house collapsed earlier, the brick must have been flung out,” Percival continued, a look of realization crossing his face.

“It seems your father was the one who woke him up,” Odalys quickly concluded. “It must have been your father’s lingering consciousness that saved him.”

Callum stood frozen, a whirlwind of emotions flooding him. He had never imagined that Percival’s father—whom he had known and respected—was the one who had saved him. He shuddered at the thought of what might have happened if he hadn’t been jolted awake.

“Does your father still have a presence here? Does that mean he’s still here? But how could the dead still have consciousness? And why was he in the Simpson villa!” Callum asked, his confusion growing.

“I’ll explain,” Percival said. “He was brought here and trapped. Someone locked him in this place.”

Callum’s eyes widened in shock, realization dawning on him. “So when you attempted to summon his spirit before, you couldn’t find him because his soul was locked here! Who did this to him!” Callum’s voice trembled with anger. He had grown up with Percival, and the Stewart family had treated him like their own son. Percival’s father had always been kind to him, and now someone had trapped him in this horrible place.

“The Simpson family!” Callum said, his eyes narrowing in fury before Percival could answer.

“Yes,” Percival confirmed softly, his voice carrying the weight of their shared history. His hand tightened around Odalys’s, his large fingers gently enclosing her small hand, as if giving her strength and protection.

Odalys stood there, silent, her thoughts swirling. The image of Percival’s father, and the vision of herself in the bridal gown, kept flashing through her mind. Her gaze fell to the red veil in her hand, the weight of its significance pressing on her heart.

“We should go back,” Odalys said decisively, breaking the tension in the air. This wasn’t a place for conversation; even though midnight had passed, it didn’t mean the place was safe. The energy here was all wrong—the junction of energies was heavy with malevolent force. Staying here too long could damage them physically, or worse, harm their health.

“Let’s go back,” Percival agreed, nodding.

They made their way out of the eerie place, and as they turned to leave, Odalys glanced back. The spot they had been standing in had become hazy, the mist swirling thicker and more ominous, as if trying to conceal something.

Once in the car, Callum drove them back along the same path. The road was quiet, and Callum didn’t speak a word. Odalys leaned against the window, her eyes lost in the vast darkness outside. Though the night was pitch black, she felt as though she could still see that figure from the past.

Around the 1990s, she and Percival had been married.

Chapter 445 (Continued)

But if they had been married, then why did everything go so wrong? Why had she died after jumping from that balcony? Had their lives been interfered with in their previous lives, causing their tragic end? Was her death the result of someone’s deliberate actions, designed to separate them once and for all?