Chapter 201: Deadbodies (ii)

After Sora’s warning, the atmosphere in the Wolf Tribe changed completely.

One moment, everyone had been arguing over whether the bodies of Dan and Alex should be burned.

The next, everyone was looking at the two corpses lying before them with fear.

The symptoms Sora had described matched exactly what the two young beastmen had experienced before their deaths. Now that their parents had collapsed in the same terrifying manner, no one dared to doubt her anymore.

Several people stepped forward and spoke in agreement.

"I believe what Sora said. Chief, we should do as she instructed."

"Yes! This is too frightening. If this plague really spreads, none of us will be safe."

"Burn them before more people become infected!"

The tide of opinion had completely turned.

However, the parents of Dan and Alex still refused to accept it.

The two mothers clung tightly to their children’s bodies, their faces wet with tears.

"No! Don’t touch them!"

"They’re our children! We won’t let anyone burn them!"

"If the Wolf Tribe doesn’t allow us to stay, then we’ll leave!"

The four parents gathered around the bodies, clearly prepared to carry their dead children away.

Martin immediately stepped forward.

As the Chief of the Wolf Tribe, he couldn’t simply watch members of his tribe leave while carrying bodies infected with an unknown plague.

He raised his hand to stop them.

"Wait."

The four parents stopped reluctantly.

Martin turned toward Sora, his expression serious.

"We’ve never encountered this so-called plague toxin before. How do you know about it?"

The moment he asked that question, Sora’s heart skipped a beat.

She had been so focused on convincing everyone of the danger that she hadn’t considered how she would explain her knowledge.

In the Apocalypse, plague was considered one of the more primitive forms of viral infection. When she had first begun completing missions, she had encountered similar outbreaks.

Because of that, she had studied countless diseases and methods of identifying them.

Back then, she had memorized information about plagues from different eras, including their symptoms, methods of transmission, and ways to prevent their spread.

It had become necessary knowledge for survival.

But she obviously couldn’t tell the people of the Beast World about the Apocalypse.

Not only Martin, but also the other beastmen were looking at her curiously.

Even Xavier, Ace, Lukan, Ryan, Lucas, and Damien were waiting for her explanation.

If Damien hadn’t been here, Sora could have easily pushed the matter onto her adoptive mother, the Black Bear, and claimed that her tribe had encountered a similar plague before.

But Damien was present.

That excuse would be too easy to expose.

Sora quickly thought of another explanation.

"I saw something similar somewhere else."

Martin frowned.

"Somewhere else? Where?"

"I don’t know."

"You don’t know?"

Sora nodded naturally.

"When my Beast Husbands were ignoring me before, I sometimes left the tribe alone to clear my head. During one of those trips, I saw something similar."

The moment she said that, the surrounding beastmen exchanged glances.

That explanation actually made sense.

The original Kaelira ra had been notorious for running away from home whenever she became upset.

She would disappear for a while, only to return shortly afterward.

Everyone in the tribe knew about this habit.

Martin’s expression became slightly awkward.

As her father, he knew that Kaelira had often run away before, yet he had never really taken the matter seriously.

After all, she always came back.

But thinking about it now, he realized that perhaps he hadn’t been a very responsible father during those times.

He coughed twice and turned toward the four grieving parents.

"I understand that you don’t want to lose your children."

The four people looked at him through tear-filled eyes.

"But you also heard what Kaelira said. If these bodies aren’t destroyed, the entire tribe could become infected."

His voice became solemn.

"Once the bodies are burned, I will have them placed before the Sacred Fire as offerings. That way, the Heavenly God will be able to see them day and night."

The four parents hesitated.

Being placed before the Sacred Fire was a great honor.

Not everyone was qualified to receive such a funeral.

After exchanging glances, the parents finally began to soften.

Just as they were about to agree—

Their bodies suddenly convulsed.

One of them grabbed his chest.

Another’s limbs began twitching violently.

Then—

"Urgh!"

Fresh blood suddenly erupted from their mouths.

The four adults collapsed almost simultaneously.

The entire Plaza fell silent.

For several seconds, no one moved.

Then—

"Ah!"

"They’re dead!"

"Run!"

"Don’t touch them!"

The crowd erupted into chaos.

People scrambled backward, terrified that they might have been infected.

The four people had been standing there alive only moments earlier.

Now they were lying motionless beside the two corpses.

Martin had been standing closest to them.

Before he could take another step, Sora grabbed his arm and pulled him backward.

"Don’t go near them!" 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

Martin immediately stopped.

This time, no one questioned her.

Not a single person.

The sight of four healthy adults suddenly dying in exactly the same manner had completely destroyed everyone’s remaining doubts.

Someone’s trembling voice finally broke the silence.

"Kaelira..."

The person swallowed nervously.

"Will we be safe if we burn them?"

Sora looked around at the frightened crowd.

"As long as you didn’t have prolonged or extremely close physical contact with them, you should be fine."

She paused.

"But I’ll prepare some medicine for everyone later. We’ll take precautions just in case."

The crowd immediately relaxed.

Although fear remained, at least they now had something they could do.

Suddenly, what had begun with two bodies had become six.

And yet no one dared approach them.

Everyone stood several steps away, staring nervously.

Finally, Martin turned toward Sora’s Beast Husbands.

Their fifth-rank Beast Transformation gave them physical strength and defensive abilities far beyond ordinary beastmen.

They were the safest people to handle the bodies.

"Lukan, Xavier, Ace, Ryan, Lucas, Damien," Martin said solemnly. "Help me."

None of them hesitated.

Even Lucas, who was normally obsessed with keeping his feathers clean, gritted his teeth and stepped forward.

The moment he saw Sora nearby, his expression hardened with determination.

If Sora could stand there without fear, how could he possibly back down?

The six men carefully followed Sora’s instructions.

The cremation site was established far enough from the tribe’s living area to reduce the risk of contamination.

It was also positioned away from the water source and any paths frequently used by animals.

Once everything was prepared, Martin personally lit the fire.

The flames quickly rose into the air.

The entire tribe stood in solemn silence.

Even though their customs were different from anything Sora had known in the Apocalypse, she could understand the grief of losing someone.

One by one, the tribe members bowed their heads.

After the fire finally died down, Martin approached the ashes.

He was about to collect them when Sora stopped him.

"Father, wait."

Martin looked at her.

"We shouldn’t touch the ashes yet."

"Why?"

"If there are still traces of the plague toxin, touching them could put you at risk."

Sora’s expression was serious.

"Let’s wait several days. If no one develops symptoms during that time, then we can collect them."

Martin considered her words before nodding.

"All right."

He immediately ordered several people to cover the area with Animal Hides so that no one would accidentally come into contact with the remains.

Once everything was settled, Xavier approached Sora.

"Are you feeling all right?"

"I’m fine."

"Do you want to rest?"

Xavier’s gaze swept over her stomach.

"You shouldn’t have come so close to them while carrying a little cub."

He had been frightened when he saw her standing among the potentially infected people.

Sora smiled.

"Don’t worry. I’ve awakened my Wood Element Ability. This level of plague toxin can’t easily affect me."

Xavier still looked concerned.

But seeing that she truly seemed fine, he didn’t argue.

Even so, he kept watching her quietly afterward.

Only after confirming several times that she had no unusual symptoms did he finally relax.

The danger, however, hadn’t completely disappeared.

Destroying the bodies prevented further contamination from the corpses, but Sora was more worried about the possibility that someone in the tribe had already been infected.

She immediately began searching for mugwort.

After finding enough, she brought it back and showed the tribe members how to use it.

"Find plants like this whenever you see them."

She held up the mugwort.

"Dry them, light them carefully, and use the smoke to fumigate your houses."

The tribe members looked at the strange plant curiously.

They had never used anything like it before.

But after witnessing six people die within such a short period, no one dared to dismiss Sora’s advice.

One after another, they began gathering mugwort.

Soon, thin streams of smoke rose from different parts of the tribe.

Even Sora’s Beast Husbands followed her instructions.

Although their bodies were much stronger than those of ordinary beastmen and their self-healing abilities were considerable, they still didn’t dare take risks.

After all, Sora was carrying their little cubs.

They couldn’t afford to be careless.

Sora’s next order was even more important.

"For the next few days, everyone should stay inside as much as possible."

"Don’t visit other houses unless absolutely necessary."

"Don’t gather in large groups."

"And don’t leave the tribe unless there’s an emergency."

The tribe members nodded seriously.

At this point, no one questioned her authority.

Her knowledge had already saved them from a potentially disastrous situation.

However, there was one person who wasn’t pleased.

Lyra.

When she heard that Sora didn’t want her leaving the tribe, her expression immediately darkened.

"Why should I listen to my daughter?"

Lyra was still Sora’s mother.

In her mind, being a mother meant that Sora should listen to her—not the other way around.

Her mood had already been terrible ever since Serena left the tribe.

For a while, Lyra had felt depressed because she believed she had completely misjudged Serena.

She had treated Serena so well.

She had helped her find suitable Beast Husbands.

Yet Serena had repaid her kindness by leaving and speaking badly about her.

After Serena disappeared, Lyra gradually convinced herself that she had finally understood the truth.

Blood mattered.

If someone wasn’t your biological child, no matter how much kindness you showed them, you could never truly warm their heart.

To Lyra, Serena had simply been a heartless ingrate.

A white-eyed wolf.

But even though Lyra had become disappointed in Serena, she still hadn’t developed much affection for Sora.

In her eyes, Sora had always been ordinary.

Even after losing weight and becoming slimmer, Lyra still thought her facial features were plain.

She looked nothing like the beautiful woman Lyra believed a daughter born from her should look.

Lyra folded her arms and stared toward Sora’s direction.

"She really thinks she’s important now just because she knows a few strange things."

Little did Lyra know that the entire Wolf Tribe was beginning to see Sora differently.

She was no longer merely the ordinary female everyone had once overlooked.

When danger came, she was the one who recognized it.

When everyone else was confused, she was the one who found the answer.

And when the tribe faced a crisis, Sora had stepped forward without hesitation.

Without realizing it, she had begun to reveal a talent that even her own family had never noticed.

For the first time, the people of the Wolf Tribe were beginning to understand—

Their seemingly ordinary Sora might be far more extraordinary than anyone had imagined.