Mysterious Hunting Ground

Chapter 233 233. Strange disease
Dean returned to the guest room at five in the morning, "Wake up, man."

"What did you find?" Kaiden yawned and sat up from the bed, rubbing his sleepy eyes.
"Some townspeople are suffering from a strange disease, and the symptoms are a bit like they are turning into werewolves." Dean described his findings, "Will the people you bite in werewolf form turn into werewolves?"

Kaiden shook his head very decisively, "Most of the people I bitten were torn into pieces. There are no ready-made samples, but the voice in my head told me that simple bites cannot transform werewolves. When I first started mutating , I did not experience any symptoms similar to the townspeople who get up late at night to eat raw meat, and my desire for blood is not strong in human form."

"Regarding this strange disease, I suggest you ask Ivana during breakfast tomorrow. She often communicates with the townspeople and has the best information."

"Good idea, let's do it. You can go back to sleep." Dean knelt on the bed, bent back as hard as he could, touched his heels with his back, and started the Red Dragon Meditation routine.

"Wait, don't be busy sleeping. Do you think I can find my relatives?" Kaiden put his hands on his head, a trace of anxiety flashed across his face, "From North Carolina to Arkansas, four months, this journey is like It’s like a dream.”

"We have reached the end. As long as you don't let go at the critical moment and don't hide anything from me, we will see the light of day."

"OK."

……

Two hours later, at seven in the morning, the warm rising sun covered the red roofs of the town with golden crumbs, like red velvet cakes dotted with powdered sugar.

Refreshed, Dean took Kaiden into the bar downstairs.

Chairs were placed upside down on the tables, and Ivana, wearing a blue apron, was humming and mopping the floor between the tables.

"Hi, Ivana."

"You two arrived on time," Ivana put down the mop, put her hands on her waist and shook her sweaty red hair, her soft curves looming under the apron, "The bread has just been baked, eat it while it's hot... specially prepared for big eaters Super size.”

"You are virtuous and considerate. Whoever marries you in the future will definitely be happy for a lifetime." Dean tore off a piece of bread and gave a thumbs up to the woman, "But then again, why are you the only one in the bar and hotel? Are you too busy to come here and haven’t you considered hiring a few waiters?”

"Haisha and Nina were originally helping in the store." A trace of worry flashed in Ivana's eyes, "They ran into trouble and took a leave of absence."

Dean's head moved, he cleared his throat and asked, "Is their family member sick?"

Ivana's face froze when she heard this, and she looked over in surprise, "Where did you hear that?!"

"I went out and walked around the town last night and discovered some interesting phenomena." Dean chewed the mutton salami in the bread and stared at the woman and asked, "Some townspeople even ran to the kitchen late at night. They eat raw meat secretly, are they sleepwalking?"

"Eating raw meat, sleepwalking? I don't understand what you mean." The muscles on Ivana's pretty face trembled, and she shook her head, "Are you hallucinating after drinking too much?"

"I never drink. I can see clearly even a fly flying one kilometer away. I will never see it wrong." Dean pointed to his eyes and said, "Ms. Ivana can Please answer me, are these townspeople sick?"

Ivana turned her back to the two of them and looked away, holding the mop, her knuckles turning white,

"This is an internal matter of Dog Town and has nothing to do with outsiders. Just travel honestly and don't get involved."

"If you don't say anything, let's ask other townspeople. They can't all be as tight-lipped as you, and they will always say something. And according to me, the current situation in Dog Town is very bad. The frequency of patients appearing is Isn't it getting faster and faster?" Dean stared at the nervous woman and said exaggeratedly, and at the same time mobilized his mind to exert psychological suggestions, "If you continue to delay, in less than a month, all the townspeople will be infected and turn into primitive people who drink blood from their hair! "

Less than 1 month!

After hearing this, Ivana closed the bar door with a disgraceful face, walked to the table for two people, and glanced at them angrily and resentfully.
"Why do you have to force me to ask a woman?"

"I can see that you are a kind, enthusiastic and beautiful girl who really loves Dog Town." Dean complimented sincerely, "You must want to improve this situation, right?"

"Glib! I can tell you everything I know, but you have to promise not to mess around first, and inform me before taking any action!"

Dean and Caiden exchanged a look and nodded, "How long ago did this disease start?"

Ivana took out a cigarette from her apron, lit it, took a deep breath, and recalled slowly,

"More than two months ago, little Chris from the east got sick and went to the town hospital for treatment."

"The doctor mentioned his strange symptoms to everyone while chatting in the bar: When the moon rises at night, after the family has rested, they run to the kitchen and eat uncooked beef, mutton, and venison... His eating state is very scary. , he would grin and warn if he was disturbed in the slightest, as if-"

"A food-protecting dog." Kayden interjected.
"That's right," Ivana continued, "Little Chris returned to normal after eating, communicating quietly with his family, and even remembered the scene of his eating. But he just explained that he was starving at the time and wanted to eat Something raw.”

"Can't cake or cooked meat?" Dean asked,

"Only raw meat with blood can satisfy him." Ivana shook her head, "And after examinations at the town center hospital and the major hospital in Fort Smith, little Chris is very healthy. There is no rabies attack, and there is no problem with parasites or sleepwalking. …”

Caiden recalled his symptoms before his transformation and asked, "Did he have nightmares or auditory hallucinations, hearing some strange sounds in his head, like howling wolves?"

"Sorry, I don't know about this." Ivana held a cigarette between her fingers and stared at the sun outside the window and said worriedly, "I only know that since little Chris fell ill, similar patients have appeared in the town one after another. When we wake up and eat raw meat, everyone is discussing it.”

A trace of surprise flashed in Ivana's eyes,
"But the wonderful thing is that the physical fitness of these 'patients' is better than before they fell ill, and they have more energy. Except for having to eat something raw every night and requiring regular deworming, everything else appears normal."

Dean and Caiden exchanged glances, "Is there such a kind-hearted disease in the world?"

"Hmm. So some townspeople think that getting sick is not a big deal. The most indispensable thing in Dog Town is the poultry and livestock raised, which can easily meet the patients' needs for raw meat."

"The other part of the townspeople, led by Connor, his father, the police chief, and the mayor, thought that the disease was very bad and that it was an ominous sign that something evil and dirty was at work in the town. They began to Train townspeople who share the same concerns, organize everyone to patrol every night, and always be ready to defend their hometown."

"Where do the mayor and the sheriff live?" Dean asked, thinking that the managers of these small towns should know something inside.

"They went out to inspect something recently." Ivana said, "They probably didn't come back until Halloween."

Dean swallowed a fried egg and nodded, "Then have you investigated the origin of the disease?"

Ivana shook her head and sighed,
"Doctors have not been able to find any bacteria or viruses in the patients. The sick people range from strong young people to the elderly and children. There is no pattern at all."

"There is no direct contact or contact between patients, so this is not a routine infectious disease."

"But the symptoms are spreading at an alarming rate, and patients are getting faster and faster. At first, one was born every few days, and then several appeared a day."

"Because after getting sick, he became as fond of eating raw meat as a wolf. Connor and his friends insisted that it was a wolf from the mountains that sneaked into the town and spread the mysterious plague."

"Cough, cough..." Kaiden grinned and retorted, "With all due respect, wolves do not have the magic power to spread diseases."

"I also don't think it's caused by wolves." Ivana put out the cigarette butt, stood up and walked around the two of them, "Wolves have existed in our town for hundreds of years. If they carry weird disease-causing factors, It’s not like it just broke out today. In the past two months, hunters also went to the mountains to hunt down a few wolves, and there was nothing abnormal after inspection.”

"Maybe it's not an ordinary wolf causing trouble..." Dean put down the empty plate and supported his chin with his hands, "Ivana, your ancestors have been living in Dog Town for generations?"

The woman nodded heavily with a heavy expression, "My grandparents and parents are buried in the cemetery to the north."

"Have they ever mentioned to you that besides wolves, there are other special beings on the mountain?"

"What do you mean, wild boar, grizzly bear, cougar?"

"It has sharp teeth and claws, and is covered in thick fur. It likes to appear on full moon nights and stands and walks like a human being. This monster has sown the seeds of disaster for the patient." Dean described it vividly.

Ivana opened her red lips slightly and was stunned for two seconds, then chuckled,
"Werewolf? You have such a rich imagination. If there were werewolves in our Dog Town, they would have been in the New York Times because of the large number of deaths, right? But there has been no murder in the town for decades."

"Are you sure?" Kaiden asked reluctantly. He didn't think that if there were werewolves on the mountain, they could coexist peacefully with the townspeople for decades.

Ivana clasped her hands to support her chin and straightened her face, "I have never seen a werewolf in more than 20 years of life, but I have heard from experienced hunters that there are alpha wolves among the wolf packs in the mountains, and they are relatively large. Big, even bigger than a mountain lion, it looks scary.”

Dean raised his eyebrows, "Alpha wolf?" "That is, the best and strongest male and female leaders in a large wolf pack. By defeating all opponents, they achieve suppression of other group members and have the responsibility to distribute food and their own. power."

Dean and Caiden were both lost in thought.

"Okay, that's all I know about mysterious diseases." A trace of expectation appeared in Ivana's eyes, "Besides unreliable werewolves, what other ideas do you have?"

"It's too early to draw conclusions now. We have to investigate and collect evidence. We will definitely make a breakthrough within half a month." Dean said confidently,
Ivana breathed a sigh of relief when she heard this, walked to the nearby washbasin to get a glass of water, and drank it gurglingly.
"Then I will wait and see. If you can find out the truth about the illness of the villagers, I will waive your rent and food expenses for one year."

"Ma'am, you're going to lose a lot."

"Then I am willing to accept the loss. But please remember, don't spread what you said today everywhere. Connor will not allow outsiders to interfere in this matter. If he hears the news, he will drive you out of the town. Don't go into the mountains without permission..."

"Don't worry, we don't want to overwhelm the Alpha Wolf." Dean glanced at the survey progress that increased to 18.00%. "I have one last question. Why is there not a Catholic or Protestant church in Dog Town? This is very unusual in America. rare."

Ivana smiled without thinking,
"There is no reason. There are not many believers in God in the town. Most of the villagers only believe in their own hard-working hands and live by farming and raising animals. Naturally, there is no need for any church. The tradition has been maintained since the town was founded more than 100 years ago. No church was established.”

Dean rubbed his temples, "Okay, thank you for your cooperation. Let's stop talking here today."

……

Saying goodbye to the female bartender, Caiden recalled the content analysis of the supernatural encyclopedia given by Dean.

"This is not an ordinary disease. I suspect it is caused by supernatural forces, such as a curse? There should be an answer on the mountain."

Dean nodded, "Don't be too busy going up the mountain. Let's walk around the town first and look for other clues."

……

Instead of driving, the two left the bar and walked along the river through the town.

The early morning mist filled the orchards, wheat fields, and vegetable fields on both sides of the bank. The townspeople who got up early were already tending the dew-covered vegetables in the fields.

At the riverside shooting range, Connor was leading a group of townspeople to practice target shooting, using a variety of weapons: AR-15s, shotguns, sniper rifles, and submachine guns. The banging sound of shooting suppressed the noise of the river and awakened the entire town. .

"I got up early in the morning to practice shooting. Why do I feel like they are preparing to start a war?" Kaiden said worriedly.
"Connor didn't always think that wolves brought the disease," Dean said solemnly. "They might take the initiative to hunt wolves on the mountain at some point to kill the source of the disease."

"Then we have to hurry up!"

The two left the shooting range and passed by a spacious courtyard when a happy voice suddenly stopped them,
"good morning!"

The middle-aged man lying on a wicker chair basking in the sun suddenly waved enthusiastically to Kaiden, with a hint of humility and flattery in his smile on his red face.

"Good morning, I wish you a happy life." Kaiden replied with a distant greeting, a smile on his lips, and he couldn't help but feel happy, "The residents of Dog Town are quite friendly."

However, Dean couldn't laugh. He subconsciously looked through the records from last night's perspective and compared them with the appearance of the man who just greeted him.

"Good morning, sir." Less than 200 meters away, a charming lady who was still watering flowers in the garden greeted Kaiden again, "You just arrived in Dog Town, right?"

"That's right, we're here to travel." Kaiden smiled.

"Have a good time," the lady stared directly at Kaiden, her eyes gentle and admiring as if looking at her husband, "If you need help, please come to me. My name is Xue Na, I live in No. 58B."

Kaiden suddenly felt something was wrong and forced a smile, "Okay, I remember it."

……

"Mr. Ri'an, can you come here?" A kilometer away, a little girl with braided hair and delicate features like a doll was lying on the side of a wooden fence covered with green vines and yelled,

"Me?" Kaiden pointed to his nose in confusion, his face already numb.
The little girl nodded and shook a box of building blocks in her hand. Her bright black eyes were full of admiration, "My parents are not at home. I am too bored to be alone. Can you come in and play with me?"

"Sorry, I don't know how to do this." Kaiden approached the little girl and gently touched her little head, which was leaning towards her. Her soft braids made the girl immediately narrow her eyes in comfort and purr intoxicatedly. Voice.

The confusion in Caiden's eyes became more intense, "Child, what is your name?"

The girl smiled sweetly, with two dimples showing on her baby-fat face, and said coquettishly with a slight nasal voice, "Luna, my name is Luna, I am eight years old this year."

"Luna, why did you let me play with you instead of calling that guy?" Kaiden pointed at Dean who was watching this scene with a frown in the distance.

The little girl glanced at Dean timidly, "I don't know this big man, and my parents don't allow me to talk to strangers!"

Kaiden bared his teeth, "Then you know me?"

The girl tightened her face and said as if it was natural, "I have never met you before, but at the first glance I knew you are a great person who deserves respect..."

"why?"

"I just thought in my heart, come and play with me." The girl pushed open the wooden fence and held Kaiden's hand affectionately, like a puppy that couldn't wait to call its owner to throw a Frisbee.
"I'm not free now. I'll accompany you next time I have a chance."

……

In just half an hour, Kaiden heard "Hello" from the roadside no less than ten times.
"Man, I swear I haven't been this popular since I left school, but it's my first time coming to Dog Town. Why do these townspeople seem to have known me for a long time?"

"The people who greet you are not ordinary townspeople." Dean looked away from the record, his thoughts condensed on his face, "They are all 'patients' who get up at night to eat raw meat, and they have some kind of connection with you."

"You mean these patients can sense my true identity as a werewolf?"

"Perhaps, as long as you get a little closer to them, they will react. And they treat you like a loyal subordinate, just like an ordinary wolf obeying an alpha wolf."

Caiden was lost in thought.

"This is a huge advantage. You can get whatever you want out of these patients," Dean suggests. "Ask them about their symptoms and see if they have anything in common. They obey you and may reveal some big secrets."

Kaiden gritted his teeth and nodded, then began to walk around the houses on both sides of the river, approaching the patients and chatting enthusiastically.

Half an hour later, Caiden returned to Dean with a blue face.

"Most of these patients can hear wolves howling...especially after the moon rises. Their tempers are gradually becoming irritable, but they have been forcing themselves to endure it, pretending to be normal people to their families."

"This sounds like the process of wolf transformation," Dean's face turned ugly. If a town produced dozens of werewolves, it would become a purgatory in one night.

"There are some differences. The little Chris who got sick first has been changing for more than two months," Caiden said. "He still hasn't grown claws, fangs, or fur... and his physical fitness is far inferior to that of a werewolf... The extent of their wolf transformation It’s very slight…amazing.”

Dean thought thoughtfully, "Have you ever asked about the source of the illness? What channel does the disease spread in the town?"

Caiden shook his head, "I'm not sure. The only thing these patients have in common is that they all live in Dog Town."

"But I also made an unexpected discovery." Kaiden moved his nose and looked not far behind him. A sneaky figure instantly hid in the alley, "During my investigation, this guy has been following me. "

"Let's go." Dean hooked his hand and walked towards the alley not far away, "Let's have a good chat with him!"

(End of this chapter)