Robert stared at him, shaken to his core.
’I can’t lie anymore... not like this.’
Taking a shaky breath, he spoke again, this ti with far less resistance.
"To implent soul transfer... from the superior beings’ side... physical contact isn’t necessary," he admitted, his voice quieter now. "They only need a dium..."
Eric’s fingers tapped lightly against the arm of his chair.
"Define it," he said. "What do you an by a ’dium’?"
Robert frowned.
"You’re probably wondering... why Pearl and Keith were infected in the first place," he began slowly.
"On the surface, it might look like Keith left the base too often and got exposed sowhere outside... but that’s not what happened."
He lifted his gaze toward Eric.
"Soul fragnts aren’t always transferred through direct contact. They can be instilled through indirect thods... like air... or even specially designed perfus."
The mont the word perfu left his lips, sothing flickered in Eric’s eyes.
’Perfu...’ His thoughts imdiately jumped to a recent na that had been circulating within the base...a rising perfur known as Purser.
"So that newly opened perfu shop... the one gaining attention recently... its perfur is connected to the superior beings?"
Eric was already halfway to standing, his instincts urging him to act imdiately, but Robert shook his head quickly.
"You’re overreacting," he said. "That’s not what I ant."
Eric paused, his gaze narrowing slightly before he settled back into his chair.
"Then explain," he said.
Robert exhaled slowly before continuing.
"Do you rember... when one of the superior beings gave a woman nad Raya a task?" he asked. "She was told to spread a milk-based perfu around Ivy."
At that, Eric gave a small nod.
"I know," he replied quietly. "Ivy told about it."
As one of the core mbers who often stayed close to Ivy, he had been involved in multiple discussions and strategies.
’Nothing around her is ever random,’ he reminded himself.
Seeing that Eric was already aware, Robert hesitated for a brief mont before continuing anyway.
"That perfu wasn’t just a scent," he said.
"It had an additional effect. Anyone who slled it... would subconsciously form a connection with the superior being behind it. It strengthens their influence... deepens the bond."
He swallowed slightly, his voice lowering.
"But it doesn’t work on everyone. The person has to be significantly weaker than the superior being... both ntally and physically."
Eric frowned imdiately, his expression turning skeptical.
"That doesn’t align," he said. "From what I’ve seen, Pearl and Aunt June aren’t ntally weak."
Robert shook his head, a faint, almost weary look crossing his face.
"Pearl was weak," he corrected.
"She had just given birth. Her body was already at its limit, her mind exhausted."
He paused briefly before adding, "And Aunt June... she’s older. Her resistance isn’t as strong as you think."
Eric fell silent, processing the explanation.
Robert continued, his voice steadier now.
"Even after establishing a link, it’s not guaranteed to hold. In fact, the superior being...Forero...tried to connect with Ember as well."
A faint shake of his head followed. "But Ember was too strong ntally. The connection couldn’t be maintained."
Eric’s mind imdiately ford an analogy. ’It’s like casting a net into a vast ocean,’ he thought.
’You might catch sothing... but most of it slips through.’ Only those who were vulnerable...those who couldn’t resist...would remain trapped.
"So in the end... only a few connections held," Eric murmured.
He paused, then his eyes sharpened slightly.
"No... there should be another one," he said, looking directly at Robert. "Other than Aunt June... is there anyone else?"
Robert shook his head slowly. "No."
Eric studied him carefully, searching for any hint of deception.
Finding none, he leaned back slightly.
"Are you certain," he pressed, "or do you just think there isn’t?"
"I don’t know," Robert replied calmly, eting his gaze without hesitation.
Eric held the silence for a mont longer.
"Fine," he said. "Then let’s talk about sothing else." His tone turned neutral again. "Where are your parents?"
Robert lowered his head slightly, his expression unreadable.
"They’re already in space."
Eric’s eyes flickered.
’Space...The safest place to escape the chaos on Earth... no zombies, no collapsing economy...’
If they had prepared in advance, they would have converted their wealth into sothing stable...gold, perhaps...ensuring their survival.
But sothing didn’t sit right.
Eric took a slow breath.
"If they just wanted to escape the apocalypse," he said, his voice thoughtful but firm, "they could have built a bunker. Hidden sowhere remote."
His eyes narrowed slightly. "Going to space... that’s not just about survival."
A faint pause.
"That’s intentional," he concluded.
Robert remained silent.
Eric chuckled softly, though there was no humor in it, as he idly adjusted the syringe in his hand.
Robert visibly stiffened, a shiver running down his spine.
"They’re helping the superior beings, aren’t they?" Eric continued.
Robert hesitated for a fraction of a second before speaking, his voice low.
"They’re monitoring Earth... making sure nothing interferes with the plan."
Eric gave a small nod, as if confirming sothing he had already suspected.
"Then they must already know," he added, his tone sharpening slightly, "that the zombie virus is beginning to weaken."
Robert gave a faint nod in response.
Eric’s expression darkened slightly.
’It’s co to this...’ he thought. ’Not just fighting sothing beyond this world... but fighting our own people as well.’
He looked back at Robert, his next question coming out steady and deliberate.
"Then tell ... after learning all of this, what do you think the superior beings will do next?"
Robert shook his head. "I don’t know."
Eric didn’t press further. Instead, he moved on.
"Last question," he said, his voice lowering slightly. "What is Ariana planning with the portal?"
His gaze sharpened.
"From what we know, opening a portal requires imnse sacrifice... especially the inner cultivation."
The mont those words were spoken, Robert’s eyes flickered with unmistakable shock.
’They even know about that...?’ The realization hit him hard. ’Then... does that an... they might already have Ariana?’
He lowered his gaze, his voice quieter now.
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