Three years after Ethan killed her, Eveline had mastered the fungal network—her true body—wielding it as a weapon surpassing her former powers. Keeping this secret from Miranda, she'd confided only in Heisenberg. Now, she plotted a reckless scheme: protect the Dimitrescu sisters from cold, forcibly save Dimitrescu, use Donna's illusions to escape, and ensure Heisenberg, Donna, Angie, and Moreau survived to mock Miranda together.
"Let's see… shield the sisters from cold, drag Dimitrescu along, and get Donna out with her illusions," Eveline mused.
Using the fungal network Miranda had nurtured for a century, Eveline aimed to save her "family" and humiliate Miranda. Half-baked or not, she'd drag everyone along. Floating into Dimitrescu's castle to warn her of Ethan's escape, she found her plan already derailed.
"Ugh, he's already here?"
"I knew Heisenberg's games wouldn't kill him," Dimitrescu said, carrying a bottle of Sanguis Virginis wine. "I've got him strung up by both arms—he's not escaping. He'll be my daughters' meal later."
Eveline followed, learning Ethan was captured. But something nagged at her.
"Funny, I saw Ethan wandering the castle on my way here," she said.
"What?" Dimitrescu froze.
"I told Cassandra when I passed her—she's probably chasing him now."
"Then I'm not worried," Dimitrescu said. "My daughters, unlike Heisenberg, are competent."
"Underestimate Ethan, and you're dead," Eveline warned.
Frustrated with Dimitrescu's arrogance, Eveline zipped through the castle, worried for the sisters. Even their near-invincibility had weaknesses—cold and poison. Ethan, who'd exploited Jack and Marguerite's vulnerabilities, could do the same, whether by luck or intel.
"Bullets can't hurt me…" a voice sneered.
"I wasn't aiming at you—the window!" Ethan shouted.
"What? AAAAH!" a scream followed.
Rushing to the kitchen, Eveline found Bela Dimitrescu, weakened by freezing air from a shattered window, facing Ethan. Acting fast, Eveline manipulated the fungal network, spreading mold to seal the window and block the cold.
"What the—?" Ethan exclaimed.
"Haha! We've got the best friend ever!" Bela crowed. "Now you're mine! I'll slit your throat and stuff it with worms!"
"Wait, Bela! Regroup first!" Eveline urged. "If he breaks another window, I can't keep sealing them! You could die!"
"Fine," Bela said, cooling off. "I'm chilled anyway. Next time, I'll toy with you till you break!"
Bela dispersed into insects and fled, leaving Ethan alone, stunned.
"Thanks, Eveline," Bela said later. "But why not let me kill him there?"
"No way. Fighting in that room was suicide. Cold's your weakness—you could've died! Then I'd never see you again. I can't lose you."
"Die? Us Dimitrescus?" Bela laughed. "We're blessed by the great fungal network. No need to worry. Next time, I'll win and drink his delicious blood. Oh, it'll be divine!"
"…You're not listening," Eveline muttered.
A shadow crossed Eveline's face. Bela flinched, sensing a sudden killing intent. Trying to escape as insects, she found herself trapped by walls of black mold, closing in. Forced back into human form, Bela cowered in terror.
"I just want to be with my favorite people forever… If you're so eager to die, I'll be alone again!"
"E-Eveline…? We're friends, right…?" Bela stammered.
"No, family," Eveline said. "So… let's become one."
"No, stop, Eveline! I'll disappear…! AAAH!" Bela screamed.
The black mold surged, swallowing Bela whole. She was gone.
"If Ethan's gonna kill you anyway, become mine!" Eveline cackled. "Haha, so tasty, Bela! Hahahaha!"
Her maniacal laughter echoed. Even in her childlike form, Eveline was a devil obsessed with family—a truth Bela learned too late. Someone else had witnessed it all.
"Bela… Eveline, why…?" a voice gasped. "Eek!"
"What're you doing over there, big sister Cassandra?"
Cassandra Dimitrescu, searching for Ethan, had spied the scene from a corner. Eveline's head twisted 180 degrees, her gaze chilling Cassandra, who tried to flee as insects. But while Eveline approached slowly, a wave of black mold raced across the floor, cornering Cassandra in the armory with no escape.
"Damn it… Please, why, Eveline?" Cassandra pleaded. "What did we do?"
"Weaknesses mean Ethan'll kill you. He won't let anyone who took Rose live. So I'll keep you safe inside me—because I love you all so much."
"If you love us, let's have a tea party again! Give Bela back!" Cassandra begged.
"Don't worry. You'll live on as my sustenance. Bela's consciousness, yours too, I'll keep intact. No more frail insect bodies weak to cold—you'll have immortal mold bodies."
"Sounds like a win-win, right, Cassandra?" a voice said. "Join us."
"Bela…?" Cassandra whispered.
The mold writhed, forming Bela Dimitrescu—her terror gone, eyes adoring Eveline. This was Eveline's "conversion" power, amplified by her control over the fungal network, reborn as a tool to remake her "family."
"I let the Bakers run wild, and Ethan destroyed them," Eveline said. "So I'll take you all in. You Dimitrescus value family—you get it, right?"
"We'll always be with Eveline now!" Bela said. "So happy. Come, Cassandra!"
"No, I won't… Snap out of it, Bela!" Cassandra cried.
"Snap out of it? Oh, Cassandra…"
Eveline spun her body to face forward, manipulating the mold like a liquid to envelop Cassandra's mouth, restraining her. Invading her from within, Eveline and Bela grinned wickedly, then Eveline's face turned cold.
"No one in this village is sane to begin with."
"MMMPH!" Cassandra screamed, swallowed by the mold. Another gone.
"Mmm, kindred flesh is so tasty… way better than Marguerite's cooking," Eveline said, rubbing her stomach and licking her lips.
Lady Dimitrescu appeared, searching for Ethan. "Eveline, have you seen that bastard Ethan Winters who killed Bela?"
"Ethan? Haven't seen him," Eveline lied.
"And Cassandra—she's been wandering the castle but now she's gone. Know anything?"
"I might've heard a scream earlier."
Eveline didn't lie outright—she knew Dimitrescu trusted her love for the sisters. Dimitrescu believed her instantly.
"Cassandra too…? I'll never forgive you, Winters!" Dimitrescu roared.
"By the way, where's Daniela?" Eveline asked.
"Daniela's in the solarium, I think," Dimitrescu said. "Can you protect her from Winters?"
"Solarium, got it. I'll make sure Daniela's safe."
Safe, but not her body. Licking her lips, Eveline glided to the solarium. In this mad village, true insanity revealed itself unnoticed.
---------------------------------------------------------
🚀 Want more?
📖 Unlock 10+ early chapters on my Patreon!
💖 Support me here: patreon.com/DaoistRoeoNQ
🔓 Get ahead of the story today!