163 Bloodthirsty
Selma Payne’s POV:
But this didn’t alleviate the problem at all. It was useless for us to know what it was because we couldn’t find a way to deal with it.
I’d never seen it before. Dorothy’s brows were tightly knitted together. It was clear that she was searching through her memories. “Whether in the books or the werewolf grandmaster’s class, I’ve never seen this kind of mark. I don’t know how to deal with it!”
I suggested she try a weakening spell. Dorothy tried it, but the effect was not good.
Linda murmured something, grabbing the air as if she was trying to catch some invisible ghost.
“Snow… There’s snow everywhere…
“Mother, Father… The pack…
“Why? What I want… Doesn’t exist…”
These meaningless words were so strange that we realized that she might have lost her mind and needed immediate treatment.
I instructed Kerner and another team member to bring Linda back immediately. However, when we handed over our hands, Linda suddenly broke free from my arm like a mad woman and bit down on my neck.
A sharp pain struck me, and in the next second, I felt warm blood flowing out of me.
“Selma!”
Dorothy shrieked and pounced forward, trying to pull Linda away. However, the latter suddenly became extremely powerful, as if a giant had possessed her, and no matter how many people tried to pull her, it was useless.
After a few seconds, Linda let go of me. Her body went limp, and she fainted.
The team members caught her, and Kerner quickly came forward to check the wound on my neck.
“The bite is very deep,” he said with a serious expression. “Fortunately, it didn’t hurt the main artery. Only a part of the skin and capillaries were cut.”
The short ten seconds of blood loss didn’t cause much damage to me. I didn’t even feel the usual dizziness after blood loss. It was as if nothing had happened.
Kerner bandaged my wound, and a few minutes later, I could feel that the wound had disappeared.
Although werewolves had strong recovery abilities, this recovery speed was still crazy!
After entering the forest, everything was not quite right. Not only Linda, but even my body underwent some unknown changes. I didn’t know if it was good or bad.
“Should we evacuate first?” Dorothy suggested, “Two of our team members are already injured. I don’t know what effect this forest has on us, especially you and Linda. You have to be inspected by the werewolf grandmasters.”
She looked guilty. “It’s all my fault. I only checked the surface of the forest and didn’t discover the hidden dangers.”
“It’s not your fault,” I comforted her. “It’s a great demon… Who knows how many tricks it has up its sleeve?”
𝗳𝘳ℯ𝑒𝓌ℯ𝚋𝐧oνe𝘭. c𝐨ｍ
I asked for the team members’ opinions. Some of them felt we could continue exploring, while others felt that we weren’t prepared enough and should return to rest before making any plans.
Kerner was in favor of continuing the exploration. “If we return now, what will happen to Captain Frank? The longer we delay, the more danger he will be in.”
The oppositions were not to be outdone. “Aren’t we worried about Captain Frank, too? However, the security force is an iron rule personally appointed by Captain Frank. We can’t risk our lives without knowing anything. It’s meaningless!”
“How is it meaningless? Maybe Captain Frank is in this forest.”
“You said it’s a ‘maybe’. What if he’s not? We don’t have enough preparation and safety guarantee even if he is. If Linda’s situation happens again, do you have a way to solve it?”
Seeing that the two sides were about to start arguing, I shouted to stop the argument.
“From now on, the small teams will be split into two groups. Those who agree to continue the exploration will stay. We will rest and reorganize before continuing our journey.
Those who agree to return to rest will immediately take Linda back to the first base and explain the situation to General Aldrich, Master Hayley, and Master Kevin. Ask them to analyze the current situation and send more reinforcements.
“All of you are experienced soldiers, and you should know better than me that quarrels are meaningless to solve problems. I hope everyone can calm down. This forest is too strange. Perhaps it affects our thoughts and emotions unconsciously, just like last night’s illusion.
“If we abandon our rationality and follow our emotions, we might fall into its trap, don’t you think so?”
The two teams fell silent. A few seconds later, Kerner said in shame, “I’ve embarrassed myself in front of you, Miss Selma. I think you’re right. We’ve indeed been affected by this forest and become overly agitated.”
Three minutes later, we parted ways with the return party.
“We’ll go back and forth as fast as we can, Miss Selma,” the team member in the lead promised. “If you encounter any danger, please stop immediately and return quickly. Don’t push yourself, okay?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll take on the responsibility of a temporary leader. I won’t let my team members get into meaningless danger,” I firmly promised.
At this moment, the unconscious Linda woke up.
The first thing she said when she opened her eyes was, “Burn that tree! Drink the blood!”
After she finished speaking, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted again.
