The Bigshot's Superstar Wife - Chapter 38

Chapter 38: Crizelda

“Take it easy,” Athena urged gently, her hand on his shoulder to keep him from overexerting himself. “You’ve been unconscious for a while. Rest for now.”

Xianli blinked a few times, trying to collect his thoughts. “Where… where am I?” His voice was raspy, and his gaze darted around, confused.

“You’re safe,” Mors reassured him. “We found you after the quake, but you were burning up with fever. We’re in a cave near the forest.”

Xianli looked at them both, still disoriented. “The earthquake… it was… it came out of nowhere. Did we make it out in time?”

He winced as a sharp pain shot through his head. Athena quickly pressed a hand to his forehead, feeling his temperature had dropped to a more manageable level.

“You’re safe,” she repeated, her voice calm but firm. “But we need to know what happened. Before the earthquake… Did you meet anyone?”

Xianli’s brow furrowed as he began to piece together his fragmented memory.

He swallowed hard, trying to recall the details. Finally, his expression cleared, and he spoke with cautious certainty.

“We met another team before everything… got crazy. It was a group with a long-haired woman, Crizelda… Daphne’s stepsister.”

He paused for a moment, as if weighing his words. “She… she looked off, strange. I don’t know… something about her didn’t sit right with me.”

You noticed something was wrong with that person’s appearance but disregarded your thoughts? How crazy could you be?

“They were left alone to talk. Daphne wasn’t in a good mood after that, and they ended up in a fight. We left before things got worse.”

Athena and Mors exchanged a glance, both of them taking in Xianli’s words carefully.

They hadn’t told him about Daphne’s infection, nor did they mention the massive number of Zerg-infected beasts they had fought.

But Athena’s mind was already turning, her thoughts racing. Could there be a mystery when the sisters talked?

“Crizelda?” Athena repeated, her voice low, trying to understand what he had said. “Did you notice anything else unusual about her? Anything… strange?”

Xianli paused again, his hand reaching to rub his temple as if trying to recall more. “I can’t say for sure, but… there was something about the way she moved.”

Could she be injured? Is this man really accepted in the military? How could he only notice such flaws? He didn’t even ask what happened to those pair.

“Like… she wasn’t fully in control of herself, almost like she was… like she wasn’t herself at all. It’s hard to explain.”

Mors stepped forward, his expression serious. “Do you think Crizelda could have been infected?”

Xianli’s gaze flickered toward Mors, his eyes widening in realization. “Infected… with something like a virus or a disease?”

Did this guy burn his head?

“It’s possible. I don’t know what happened to her after we left, but if she was with Daphne, it might explain… a lot.”

Athena’s thoughts whirled. Slowly, the parts were beginning to come together.

Crizelda’s strange behavior, Daphne’s volatile state, and the strange and unpredictable outbreak they were witnessing.

Something was wrong with the virus, and it was spreading faster than they had anticipated.

She looked at Mors, determination in her eyes. “We need to find them before they cause more damage. They might be the key to understanding all of this.”

Crizelda and her partner might have been infected earlier.

Xianli’s eyes flickered with concern as he struggled to sit up again. His gaze darted between Athena and Mors, his voice laced with worry.

“Where is Daphne?” he asked hoarsely, his body still trembling from the fever. “Is she… is she okay?”

Athena and Mors exchanged another silent glance, the weight of the situation sinking in.

Athena hesitated for a moment, choosing her words carefully. They hadn’t told Xianli the full truth yet, but it seemed that now was the time.

Mors was the one to speak, his voice low and grave. “Daphne is… not herself anymore.”

Xianli’s brow furrowed in confusion. “What do you mean? She was fine when we left…”

“Daphne is infected,” Mors interrupted gently but firmly. “She’s become a Zerg-puppet.”

Xianli blinked, his eyes widening in disbelief. “What? No… that doesn’t make sense. She couldn’t have… but she was fine…”

Mors gave a heavy sigh, sitting beside Xianli and resting a hand on his shoulder to steady him. “The virus doesn’t show its full effects immediately.”

“It takes time to take hold. The night before the quake, you said Daphne had developed rashes. Those were early signs of the infection. By the time you left, she was already at risk.”

Xianli’s face paled, and his breath hitched. “The rashes… I should have noticed that it wasn’t ordinary… I…”

“It’s not your fault,” Athena interjected quickly, her voice soft but firm. “The infection is insidious. It takes hold quickly.”

Xianli ran a hand through his damp hair, still struggling to process the reality of what was happening.

“I… I should have protected her. I should’ve done something sooner…” His voice trailed off as he stared down at the ground, guilt, and regret mixing in his expression.

Athena placed a reassuring hand on his arm. “You couldn’t have known. None of us could have.”

Mors nodded, his expression unreadable as he stood. “We need to act quickly. The longer the infection spreads, the harder it will be to contain.”

Xianli, still looking shaken, glanced up at Mors. “But… is there anything we can do for Daphne? Can she be saved?”

Athena’s gaze grew serious, her lips pressing into a thin line. “We don’t know yet. We’ll have to find out, but the situation is dangerous.”

“The virus spreads through the infected, turning them into puppets controlled by the Zerg. Daphne may not even be conscious anymore.”

Xianli clenched his fists, frustration, and helplessness flooding through him. “So, we’re just going to leave her like that?”

Mors turned to face him, his tone unyielding. “We don’t have a choice right now. Our priority is to stop the spread of the infection.”

“We can’t afford to let it reach the other regions. If we don’t act fast, more people will be infected, and the entire planet could be at risk.”

Xianli took a deep breath, his shoulders sinking as he processed the information. He knew what had to be done, but the weight of his failure to protect Daphne was hard to shake.

His voice, though quieter now, held a firm resolve. “Then let’s make sure we stop this. For her… and for everyone else.”

Mors nodded. “We’ll find a way to contain the virus. But first, we need to head out and locate the others before it’s too late.”

Athena’s eyes were far away, planning what they would do next. “The virus is traveling faster than we can track. We have to move now. Every second counts.”