CHAPTER 198: CHAPTER-198

Veer moved through the houses like a shadow, pushing open doors, stepping over broken baskets and scattered tools. Every home told the same story—upturned belongings, fresh traces of life, and yet not a single soul in sight. It was as if the entire village had been lifted away in an instant, leaving behind only the mess of a struggle... but not a drop of blood.

That wasn’t possible.

When they met back in the middle of the settlement, their eyes locked, and both spoke at the same time.

"I remembered something."

"I remembered something."

A short, tense pause. Then they both turned toward the same direction. The largest house in the village—the chief’s place.

They broke into a sprint. The night had already fallen heavy, shadows stretching long across the empty paths. The air felt colder here, heavier. Kaya’s steps pounded against the dirt, her pulse thrumming in her ears. Beside her, Veer kept pace easily, his night vision cutting through the gloom. They didn’t even bother with torches—the dark was nothing to them now.

The door of the chief’s house gave way under their push, swinging wide with a groan.

Same story. Scattered belongings. Chairs knocked over. Wild vegetables in a half-toppled basket. The faint smell of trampled grass and disturbed dust.

Kaya didn’t hesitate. She strode in and kicked aside a pile of dry grass, sending stalks flying, scanning for anything out of place.

"Search everything," she ordered, her voice sharp in the stillness.

Veer was already moving—pulling aside mats, lifting baskets, peering into every shadowed corner. Together, they turned the room upside down. Dry grass crunched under their boots as they tossed aside piles of it, searching for the smallest clue—a scrap of cloth, a footprint, anything that could explain where everyone had gone.

The village chief’s home should have held answers. But so far, it only deepened the silence.

After twenty minutes, they stood in the middle of the house, each covering their faces with their palms. They had searched everywhere but found nothing. Veer wiped the sweat off his forehead and muttered, "But damn rabbit! What the hell is even going on with you?"

Kaya stayed quiet for a moment, then looked at him and asked softly, "Do you know something?"

Veer gave her a confused look, as if she was speaking a foreign language. "Are you crazy? How would I know anything?"

"But then," Kaya pressed, "why are you cursing him?"

Veer rolled his eyes and snapped, "Who wouldn’t curse that damn bastard? Just one look at his face and you can tell what kind of monster he is."

Kaya sighed deeply, grabbing her forehead as she tried to think. How could the village chief not even have records of the people living here? Maybe he doesn’t have names or anything official... but still...

She remembered that he wasn’t even literate. So how could there be any record? No lists, no drawings, no maps or anything?

Suddenly, a cold thought struck her. Her face went pale, shadowed with fear. She looked slowly at Veer and whispered, "Hey... what about Cutie Mother?"

Veer was about to scowl at her and ask, Why the hell do you need to know about his mother? But when he saw Kaya’s face, something clicked—he suddenly recognized the urgency in her. He just muttered, "Don’t know."

They looked around again. They had searched every house. Every single one. None of them looked like a home where many males lived. Sure, there were houses—but from what Cutie had told Kaya, his mother had many husbands and children. So how could they all live in these small houses?

They were older people. Cutie was already tall, so his mother must be even older, right? Yet in all the houses they checked, they never found anything like that.

Suddenly, Kaya looked at Veer and said, "Let’s search the forest."

Veer blinked, surprised. "Forest?"

Kaya nodded seriously. "Yeah. Forest."

Veer met her serious gaze and nodded in agreement. Without another word, they rushed out together.

They had just started searching the forest when Kaya and Veer split into two directions. Veer had told her not to wander off alone, but Kaya didn’t listen. No matter what, she was still a soldier—and right now, she was in her serious form.

Both moved carefully through the trees. Kaya already had her gun in hand, ready to shoot at the slightest threat. She pushed aside leaves, scanning every shadow. The forest was dark, and every step crunched loudly on the blanket of dry leaves.

Kaya coughed once. Then twice. Then again. The damn cough was going to give her away, but she kept going, eyes alert, scanning every corner. The deeper she went, the denser the forest became.

It didn’t worry her. Veer could find her anywhere, as long as she stayed within this forest.

She moved with sharp, alert movements—until her eyes caught something unusual. She narrowed her gaze. There, in the middle of the forest, just a few kilometers from the rabbit tribe, something stood out.

Hidden under a thick tangle of vines, trees, and bushes was a cave. From a distance, it looked like part of the forest wall, impossible to notice unless you were close. But there was no mistake—beneath that cover, a dark opening waited.

.

.

A sudden rush of wings broke the silence.

Flap—flap—flap.

Kaya’s head snapped upward. A cluster of birds shot out of the trees, the wind from their wings stirring the dry leaves under her boots. She frowned. Birds didn’t just take off like that at night unless something disturbed them.

Then she caught it—faint but steady—the dry scrape of something moving low through the undergrowth. Not the wind. Too slow. Too deliberate.

Her shoulders stiffened, every muscle wired tight.

A few more birds, hidden somewhere deeper in the forest, began to chirp—short, sharp notes. At this hour, the sound was jarring, almost unnatural. The forest seemed to press in on her, each call echoing too loudly in the still night.

Kaya shifted her weight, eyes scanning, senses sharpened. Something was out there.