Chapter 227: Transmission Route

No one outside the containment room spoke for several seconds.

Only Ethan’s weak murmuring continued behind the reinforced glass while blood slowly trickled down from his broken nose.

Violet immediately entered the containment room with two nurses after Patrick gave a silent nod.

They restrained Ethan again before administering another dose of sedative through the intravenous line already attached to his arm.

The effect wasn’t immediate.

For nearly a minute, Ethan continued whispering incoherent words, his pupils constantly shifting from side to side as though following people that didn’t exist.

Gradually, however, the tension left his body. His breathing slowed, the trembling stopped, and the terrifying smile that had stretched across his face disappeared entirely before he closed his eyes in deep sleep.

Patrick quietly observed everything without writing a single word until Ethan finally fell asleep.

"Interesting. The sedative really worked well, it seemed to be able to weaken the influence of the parasite."

Gideon folded his arms. "Yeah, Violet and Azul already told us but, I don’t think that is a good solution."

Patrick nodded. "It isn’t curing him. But it suppresses the symptoms."

Azul immediately understood what his professor was trying to say.

"If the hallucinations weaken after sedation..." he murmured, "then the parasite is probably already affecting the central nervous system."

"More specifically, the brain," Violet continued. "Not the motor cortex alone. It influences perception, memory, emotions, even decision making."

Patrick finally closed his notebook.

"I believe the parasite isn’t directly controlling the body like a puppeteer."

He turned toward Gideon. "Instead, it continuously alters how the host perceives reality. It creates hallucinations, auditory suggestions and compulsive thoughts until the victim eventually mistakes those foreign impulses for their own."

Gideon looked through the glass again. "So it works like drugs."

Patrick nodded slowly. "Hallucinogens would be the closest comparison. But much stronger."

His expression gradually became heavier.

"Some parasites in nature can reach the brain. Certain protozoa alter animal behavior, while a few parasitic worms may affect neurological function in humans."

"But even those don’t seize someone’s perception this completely. They certainly don’t convince dozens of unrelated people to work toward the same objective."

He looked back at Ethan. "This is unlike anything biology has ever documented."

Gideon remained silent for a moment before another thought crossed his mind.

"What about antiparasitic medicine?"

Patrick raised a brow. "You mean like Albendazole, Praziquantel, Ivermectin? It’s for tapeworms, roundworms, and brain parasites."

"Yes, something like that makes it possible for the parasite to die and be naturally excreted from the human body."

"I’ve considered it. But I honestly don’t know. Ordinary parasites live inside the digestive tract, muscles, blood vessels or, in rare cases, the brain."

"But even when they invade the nervous system, they remain parasites first. This organism..." His eyes narrowed toward Ethan. "...behaves more like a new organ than an invader."

Violet nodded in agreement. "We don’t even know whether it still possesses ordinary parasitic biology."

Azul added, "If it’s truly engineered, conventional medication may not affect it at all."

Gideon looked at the sleeping Ethan once more.

"Maybe. But maybe it does."

The three researchers turned toward him.

"We’re already dealing with an unknown organism. Making assumptions without testing them is no different from surrendering."

Patrick quietly stared at Gideon before a faint smile slowly appeared on his face.

"You really think like a commander."

"I think like someone who doesn’t want people to die because we were too proud to try something simple."

Violet was the first one who stepped up. "I agree with the Chief."

Azul nodded almost immediately afterward. "So do I."

Patrick chuckled under his breath before closing his notebook.

"Very well. I’ll begin screening every antiparasitic medication you should be able to provide for us, I will list everything. Even if the probability is low, it’s still worth testing."

"I’ll provide whatever you need," Gideon answered without hesitation. "Medicine, equipment, personnel, funding. If Greenwarden needs it, Cinder of Dusk will supply it."

Patrick’s expression softened slightly. "I appreciate that."

He looked down at the letter tucked inside his coat. "I’ll also send another dove north tonight."

Gideon raised a brow. "To the same colleague?"

"No." Patrick slowly shook his head. "To another researcher. She’s Greenwarden’s foremost expert on parasitic aberrants. If anyone can tell us whether this organism still behaves like a parasite or has become something entirely different, it’s her."

"You think she’ll come?"

"If she reads Ethan’s symptoms, I’d be surprised if she didn’t."

The room gradually fell silent again as everyone unconsciously looked through the reinforced glass.

It was clear enough now.

Whatever had infected the Eagle Union wasn’t a naturally parasitic aberrant.

It had been engineered and every piece of evidence pointed toward the same conclusion, and when combined with Astrid’s confession, Gideon no longer had any doubt about who was responsible.

The Scions of the Lord.

More specifically the mysterious prophet they called the Void.

If Ethan’s fragmented memories could be trusted, then the missing Eagle Union members were no longer wandering somewhere inside Senduro Highland.

They had already become part of the King’s colony, probably inside its body and with them, the parasite was also being absorbed by the King.

’Those zealots...’ Gideon clenched his hands, ’their objective became clearer.’

A sharp knock suddenly interrupted everyone’s thoughts. One of the guards opened the door before turned to Gideon

"Chief."

"What is it?"

"The civilians Aaron and Kilian rounded up have arrived."

Patrick immediately straightened. "The people Ethan interacted with?"

"Yes." The guard nodded. "We questioned the owner of the tavern Ethan frequented. These are the patrons and workers who had the most contact with him over the past several days."

Gideon glanced at Patrick before turning back toward the guard.

"Any symptoms?"

"None so far."

"Good. If they’re still lucid, we might finally learn how this parasite spreads."

Patrick nodded once. "Then let’s talk to them before that changes."

The guards led them toward another containment tent a short distance away. Unlike Ethan’s isolation room, this one wasn’t surrounded by reinforced walls or additional security.

The people inside weren’t restrained either. They simply sat on folding chairs with anxious expressions, whispering among themselves while occasionally glancing toward the armed Freebound members guarding every entrance.

The moment Gideon entered, every conversation stopped.

A middle-aged man wearing a stained leather apron immediately stood up from his chair. His hands instinctively rubbed against each other, unable to hide how nervous he was under everyone’s gaze.

Patrick offered a reassuring smile before opening his notebook.

"Don’t be too nervous. We’re only gathering information."

The man nodded repeatedly.

"I-I understand."

Patrick pulled a chair and sat across from him.

"Your name?"

"Martin, I’m the owner of the bar. Ethan often comes."

"Tell us everything you know about Ethan Walker."

Martin swallowed.

"He came to my tavern about three times every week, though he is clearly a newcomer. He only started to show up two weeks before winter" He lowered his eyes, trying to remember every detail.

"He wasn’t the type who caused trouble. Honestly, everyone liked him. He always smiled, paid properly, never started fights and... women liked talking to him."

"You’ve seen him with women before?" Gideon asked.

Martin nodded immediately. "A lot, maybe six or seven? Different women almost every time."

He scratched his head awkwardly. "I know most of them because they’re regular customers."

Patrick quietly wrote everything down. "What usually happens afterward?"

"They would drink together for a while, laugh, flirt..." He shrugged. "Then Ethan would ask them to step outside for some fresh air."

"I didn’t think much about it. Couples leave together all the time. They usually came back separately anyway."

"Ugh, if you want to know more, one of the women is here." Martin gestured toward the woman sitting farther inside the tent.

Patrick slowly closed his notebook before looking at her, "You were one of them, correct?"

The young woman hesitated before slowly nodding. "My name is Lily."

Patrick gestured toward the empty chair across from him.

She quietly sat down, both hands tightly holding the edge of her jacket.

"You met Ethan?"

"Yes."

"What kind of person was he?"

"He was... kind and charming." She let out a small, embarrassed laugh. "I actually thought he was handsome."

"He listened whenever I talked," she continued. "Sometimes he acted a little strangely. He’d suddenly stop speaking and stare somewhere behind me as though listening to someone else. I asked him if he was alright, and he’d just smile and apologize."

Patrick nodded almost imperceptibly. "What happened after you left the tavern?"

"We walked around the market for a while. He..." She paused, trying to remember. "He took me somewhere darker behind one of the warehouses. We kissed. It wasn’t forced, I wanted to."

Patrick simply nodded. "What happened after that?"

Lily blinked several times. "I... I don’t know. I remember kissing him... After that Everything becomes blurry."

Gideon carefully observed her expression. It wasn’t the look of someone lying. She truly couldn’t remember.

"When was the next thing you remember?"

"I was already walking home."

"Was Ethan with you?"

She slowly shook her head. "No. I was alone, I didn’t remember where he went too. But it was already midnight and I decided to walk home instead."

"Did you feel sick afterward?"

"No. I feel like usual, maybe a bit tipsy and groggy because I drink too much."

"Anything unusual?"

Lily remained silent for several seconds before answering.

"My throat hurt the next morning."

Patrick immediately looked up.

"Only your throat?"

She nodded. "I thought it was because of the cold or I was drinking too much."

The old professor quietly exchanged glances with Gideon. Neither of them spoke until they left the tent.

"I think we just found the transmission route."

Gideon folded his arms. "The saliva."

Patrick nodded. "The parasite doesn’t need its host to bite people like an aberrant."

His expression gradually turned grim. "If it’s capable of surviving inside bodily fluids, then kissing alone may be enough to infect another person."

Patrick finished her sentence. "Ethan wasn’t seducing those women because he wanted companionship. He was actively making the ’colony’ get bigger."