Chapter 163

The house was pitch-dark, with no lights on inside. But Odalys knew that Brandon and his son were both inside, watching her. She stepped inside, her boots echoing slightly on the empty yard. The air smelled faintly of something unusual, a fragrant scent wafting from inside. As she pushed open the door, the lights in the living room flickered on.

“You’re here!” Brandon’s aged voice called out, breaking the silence.

He was dressed in a black vintage suit, his pale hair slightly disheveled. His bony face revealed no emotion, but his sharp eyes were fixed on her, piercing as ever.

“It looks like he’s over the fever and able to sit up now. The poison in his body has been temporarily suppressed,” Odalys said, turning her head to glance at the middle-aged Keylor beside Brandon, giving him a slight nod.

Keylor looked pale, dressed in an oversized T-shirt that only highlighted his frailty.

“Did you save me?” Keylor coughed softly, bowing his head in gratitude.

Odalys stood calmly, her hands clasped behind her, raising an eyebrow. She let out a low chuckle. “It seems you have some questions for me.”

“If you’ve got something to ask, just ask. I don’t like to beat around the bush,” she added, her voice clear and confident.

She had come with a purpose. If it hadn’t been for that scent, she wouldn’t have been watching this place.

Brandon took a slow drag from his cigarette, exhaling a cloud of smoke after a pause. He studied her thoughtfully through the haze, as if trying to see through her. To his surprise, Odalys stood unfazed, and he couldn’t read her mind.

He began, “From the initial production team to that night in the village, you stood outside my house for two minutes. Then, pretending to be on a walk…”

“You’ve had your eye on this place. Last night, you came to save my son. What is it you want?” Brandon’s voice was old but still strong.

Odalys narrowed her eyes, meeting his gaze without a hint of unease. “Help me check something,” she said softly, pulling out a stick from behind her.

[Time Stamp: 6:39 PM]

Chapter 163

Brandon looked at her, confused, before taking the stick from her hand. As he held it, he noticed dried blood on the surface, with a faint metallic smell lingering.

“This stick has a peculiar scent, almost like the one in the air here. Is this yours?” Odalys asked, her voice low and deliberate.

The stick had been used to stab a giant snake. After pulling it out, she had kept it. Now, the scent it carried seemed to match the one wafting through the house.

Brandon shook his head slowly. He ran his fingers over the stick, tapping it lightly before speaking. “This stick may look ordinary, but it’s been soaked in a special solution for several years.”

“The scent and the stick have merged together,” he added, handing it back to her.

Odalys frowned. She turned her head toward the lit scented candles nearby. “But this scent is the same as the one coming from the candles you’re burning.”

“It’s different. Our scented candles are freshly made, while the scent on your stick has been aged for years. It may smell the same, but the effect is different,” Keylor suddenly spoke up, his voice weak but clear.

Odalys’s curiosity deepened.

“Freshly made scented candles mask other odors in the room, but aged ones, after years of accumulation, can be both a scent and a poison,” Keylor explained.

Odalys’s eyes widened in understanding.

“So this stick, which seems to be covered in scented candle residue, is actually poisonous?” she asked, her voice a bit sharper.

Keylor nodded slightly. “After soaking for years, the wood has turned lilac.”

“That’s strange,” Odalys said, even more puzzled now. “Someone had taken a poisoned stick and used it to stab a snake, but clearly, the giant python would have been of far more value.”

“There’s nothing strange about it. This poison has a unique effect. Over time, it can control the human mind,” Brandon suddenly added.

Chapter 163

Odalys’s fingers tightened slightly. The answer felt almost within her grasp, but she couldn’t quite catch it. An unusual sensation began to spread in her chest, an unsettling feeling that gnawed at her.

“But the stick was taken from a snake,” Odalys finally admitted.

When Brandon heard her mention a snake, the cup he had been holding slipped from his hands with a clatter, crashing to the ground. Water splashed on his clothes, and his hands trembled as he stared at her.

“Was it the snake from the forest at the edge of the village?” Brandon’s voice was shaky, almost fearful.

Odalys nodded, recounting everything that had happened earlier that day. She kept her gaze fixed on them, noting every detail of their expressions.

“Was there something wrong with the snake’s injury?” Odalys suppressed the rising confusion within her, her voice soft as she asked.

Brandon fell silent for a long time, his gaze distant, as though lost in thought. Time passed slowly. Odalys remained patient, not interrupting him. When he finally snapped out of it, it seemed as though he had aged a decade.

“A giant python is poisonous, but the older they get, the more intelligent they become. It’s difficult to control them. Some people, in order to control these adult giant pythons, target their offspring instead,” Brandon explained. “If what you said is true, then it’s possible that the stick was driven into that snake to control it, to use it to subdue the giant python,” Brandon continued.

Odalys was completely bewildered.

“Why would they want to control a giant python?” she asked in a low voice.

Brandon let out a quiet laugh, though it was laced with anger. “The giant python has venom in its body, and the fluids it secretes can be used to make all sorts of different poisons. Murder is a common crime; if the giant python does the killing, swallowing a person whole leaves no trace, no evidence. The giant python is more loyal than any human, making it the perfect assassin.”

“The one in the forest near our village may be about to ascend to a higher form. It has become sentient. It doesn’t attack humans, but it won’t let anyone near its lair either. I never imagined someone would harm its offspring,” Brandon said, his eyes burning with barely contained rage.

Chapter 163

He slammed his hand hard on the table, the sound echoing through the room.

“So these scented candles, are they unique to your house, or does everyone in your village have them?” Odalys asked, her confusion deepening.

But after entering the village, she hadn’t noticed this scent anywhere else, only in Brandon’s house.

“Our village has a long history of making scented candles. They can be used as fragrance or as poison, and my family has a tradition of weaving fabric. We use the scent in the cloth we make. The fabric we produce absorbs the scented candles, and it can stay fragrant for a long time without the need for perfume,” Brandon explained.

Odalys’s mind wandered briefly to the piece of clothing she had seen at the Stewart Villa, the one in the pond. That garment had been made from the clothing of the dead. It not only carried the scent of the scented candles but also the lingering energy of the deceased.

“Is your family the only one in the entire village that makes clothing?” Odalys asked in a low, measured tone.

Keylor, who had been silent until now, hurried to answer. “Of course not. Our fabrics were famous all over the world. Back in Crownridge, we were well-known and respected.”