Chapter 529

Le rubbed his fists and approached her with a flattering smile. His beautiful eyes sparkled as he grinned. “Odalys,” he asked, “is there a problem with burning a piece of paper with astrological signs on it?”

“No,” Odalys replied.

Orson had hoped to hear something more interesting. He was disappointed by her answer. He wondered if Sophia had lost her mind, burning astrologically-marked paper in her room for no reason.

“This is a love spell,” Odalys suddenly said.

Orson’s disappointment vanished. He gasped, his eyes widening in excitement. “This is a love spell? What kind of love spell was she trying to make?” His voice almost cracked.

He hadn’t expected this after climbing through a window. He regretted not retrieving all the ashes.

Orson was filled with regret. “It seems the love spell works specifically when the other person’s astrological signs are on it. She probably wants to be loved by the Bennett family again. However, judging from today’s situation, these men don’t care about her,” Odalys said, quickly putting away the ashes.

“Then this love spell is useless? We did all that work for nothing?” Orson found it hard to accept. They kept hinting at Oliver, making him believe the love spell could save him. They even had Edie look for it, believing it could stop her incessant menstruation.

The Bennett family seemed messy enough, and if the love spell were useless, everything would have been in vain. “It’s also possible that this love spell is fake,” Odalys said.

Orson’s dejected expression brightened. “Sophia wanted to buy another love spell before, so she was tricked by a fake magician, which led to her losing her virginity. This real love spell maker is hiding…”

“Even Sophia doesn’t know who the other person is anymore. That person realized things weren’t going his way and decided to withdraw. Therefore, I’m unsure if Sophia possesses the real love spell. But the one she burned was fake, so after she used it, she couldn’t manipulate Atlas.”

“So many things happened today, but she stood in the corner observing and did not participate. Edie did the same. Both of them were watching everyone from a detached perspective,” Odalys explained.

Orson rubbed his face, his tall body sprawled casually. “Anything unusual in Windsor’s study?” Odalys asked.

Orson quickly took out his mobile phone and handed it to her. “I’m afraid I can’t see clearly, so I took videos of Sophia’s room and Windsor’s study. I took pictures of all the corners. I’ll send them to you,” he said, hurriedly opening WhatsApp and sending the video to Odalys.

Odalys examined the study footage, her fingertips tracing the phone screen, lost in thought.

“Odalys, how is it? Did you find anything?” Orson asked anxiously.

Odalys stopped the video, handed it back to him, and said, “Opposite his desk, there’s something wrong with the decorations on the offering table. Generally, businessmen put up a picture or statue of a god. He lit two incense sticks, but their placement is wrong. He’s not offering to a god.”

Percival, driving, listened. “Could it be deism?” he asked.

“No. His offering table feels like it’s for the dead,” Odalys said.

Orson was scared. “Damn. Please check it for me, Odalys. Is there a ghost following me?” The six-foot-tall Orson shrank towards Odalys, looking around in fright.

Odalys found his reaction amusing. “What are you laughing at! Come and help me. I don’t want to be caught by a ghost,” Orson said, reaching out to hug her.

He froze, meeting Percival’s gaze in the rearview mirror. His hand shrank back.

“Aha, there’s nothing,” Odalys laughed, the corners of her mouth twitching as she fought back laughter. The usually cold and aloof Orson was now like a cheerful big boy.

“That’s good. It scared me to death. I can die on the battlefield or for proper business, but I must never die at the hands of a ghost. Otherwise, how can I make a name for myself?” Orson said, puffing out his chest.

Odalys ignored him and continued watching the video. She noticed a secret compartment on the side of Sophia’s wall; a corner of the brick was slightly raised.

She glanced back towards the Bennett Villa. It was night, and the streetlights couldn’t illuminate the path to the villa, which was sure to be lively.

“Odalys, did you find something? Should we go back?” Orson asked, watching her expression.

Odalys shook her head, stuffing her phone into her bag. “No need. I think I know what’s happening. Our purpose is mainly to destroy the magic zone they created and let the backlash seriously injure Oliver so he won’t cause trouble. Now that Brandon and Oliver are at the Bennett Villa, they’re all together. They will continue to cause trouble,” Odalys said. Percival glanced in the rearview mirror.

“You’re flushing them out, deliberately provoking them to panic. You spared Oliver’s life. Do you want to see if he has any further actions and whether he can reveal the manipulator behind the scenes?” Percival guessed her thoughts. Odalys was surprised he’d understood.

“Yes, we need to find out who started all this twenty years ago. Someone encouraged them to abandon me and bring Sophia back to replace me. I want to know if this has anything to do with your father’s car accident.”

“But I feel there must be a connection between the two,” Odalys said. Eliminating them now would be a temporary fix; they could make a comeback. Just like the word Percival’s father left in her room: “wait.” That “waiting” didn’t mean doing nothing; it meant prompting them to panic and reveal more. That was the goal.