Becoming a god by raising witches

Chapter 18, How could he know so much?

"what happened?"

Hannah turned to look at Locke.

Locke took off the scarf from his neck and wrapped it around Hannah's face, covering her mouth and nose.

I am now immune to some diseases, but Hannah is not.

What if we encounter an infectious disease?

Hannah assumed her brother thought she was cold, so she silently accepted his kindness, extended her fair and slender hand, and knocked on the door.

Peter only opened the door a crack, not fully, but the unpleasant smell still rushed into Locke's house.

Locke recognized the smell—the stench of rotting corpses emanating from homeless people who had frozen to death on the street.

"Hannah, Locke, is something the matter?"

Peter, a man in his thirties, asked with a furrowed brow. He had a thin face, dark skin, and taut muscles; he was a dockworker who had made a living by doing manual labor for many years.

"Uncle Peter, we'd like to ask if you've had any diarrhea lately? Have any family members started dancing strangely?"

Hannah asked directly.

Hannah is a kind-hearted person who had helped Peter's family before, so Peter's attitude towards her is relatively good. If it were any other reporter, they would probably have been kicked out by Uncle Peter long ago.

He has a lot of worries to deal with right now.

"Hannah, our situation is worse than you think."

Uncle Peter opened the door and let Hannah and Locke in.

Inside the shabby rented room, two people lay on the bed: Mrs. Mindy, Uncle Peter's wife, and Britney, Uncle Peter's daughter.

Uncle Peter's eldest son, standing beside Mrs. Mindy, glanced up at Locke and Hannah and said nervously,

"Dad, why did you let them in?"

"Don't worry, Hannah isn't a bad person."

Uncle Peter comforted his son, then turned to look at Hannah.

"Hannah, about two weeks ago my wife started dancing strange dances like those people in the square. We thought she was possessed, so we took her to the church. She did get better after we came back, but after only two days, her condition got worse and she died from the pain. I suspect she must have some kind of strange disease. We don't dare to say anything and plan to raise money to bury her."

Later, Britney, like her mother, started with diarrhea, which then turned into her dancing strangely. The cost of burying two people was simply too high.

Locke knew that Uncle Peter was hiding part of the truth.

Mrs. Mindy's parents were veterans who died in the Kingdom's wars, so Mrs. Mindy received a pension from the Kingdom every year. If news of her death were to spread, Peter's family would no longer be able to receive the money.

That's why Peter didn't bury his wife immediately after her death. As for Britney's death, it must have happened recently, and her body hadn't started to smell yet.

Seeing that his wife and daughter had both died, Uncle Peter probably felt that his family had been infected with the plague, so he was afraid to tell others and dared not bury them. In addition, burial would indeed require a lot of money.

It wasn't until Uncle Peter saw the group dance in the square that he realized they weren't the only ones infected with the disease, so he let Hannah and Locke in.

In his view, everyone was a neighbor, and if they were going to get infected, they would have done so long ago.

That's why I told Hannah part of the truth.

At that moment, Hannah was thinking about something else; her brow was furrowed, and her heart was heavy.

“Uncle Peter, you should have taken Mrs. Mindy and Britney to the hospital sooner.”

"I'm sorry, it's my fault, it's all my fault."

Uncle Peter felt extremely guilty and covered his face with his hands.

Hannah asked a few more questions and, after learning more about the specifics, decided to leave Uncle Peter's house and head to the next victim's family.

Before leaving, Locke gave Uncle Peter some advice.

"Don't throw the white cloth into the Cosol River. Recently, two new bereaved care companies have opened on Carroll Street, which mainly provide cremation services. They can solve one person's problem for just 20 mcg. You can certainly afford 40 mcg, right?"

Remember to bring two earthenware urns. I guess their most expensive item is the urn, so bringing your own will ensure you don't spend an extra penny.

Also, you and Luke need to go to the hospital for a check-up. The poorhouse on Mar Street offers paid medical check-ups. It's said to be run by the wife of a retired general, and military descendants get a 5% discount. The check-up for the two of you will only cost 100 mcg.

Well, one last thing, believe me, this isn't possession. Early intervention and treatment are crucial.

Uncle Peter and his eldest son Luke watched in astonishment as the boy walked away.

Is this still the same unreliable Locke who only knows how to search for witches?

How does he know so much?

Even Hannah couldn't help but show a curious expression.

"How did you know that two new cremation companies had opened on Carroll Street? And how did you know that the workhouse on Mar Street offers medical check-up services, and even know the fees so clearly?"

"Hannah, you won't miss a single news item in the newspaper, and I won't miss a single advertisement."

Locke raised an eyebrow. He had been looking for a lot of jobs lately, so he naturally had more information than someone as illiterate as Uncle Peter. Moreover, he was good at finding ways to save money.

Next, the siblings visited other people in the apartment; some were in worse situations than Uncle Peter's family, while others were in similar circumstances.

Without exception, they all used water supplied by Compass Water Company.

The victims' symptoms included diarrhea in the early stages, convulsions and paralysis in the middle stages, and complete loss of control over their bodies in the late stages, including silly laughter, uncoordinated "dances," and excessive sleepiness.

So those people dancing in the square are already in the late stages.

The onset of the disease takes about half a month to a month, and if left untreated, it will lead to death.

The reason why Old Tom's apartment building, where Locke lived, was better than Old Joel's apartment building and had fewer cases was entirely because they had recently switched to Compass water company; the previous company seemed to have no problems.

As for Mrs. Amor's family, it was because they were laundry workers who needed to be in constant contact with water, so their water requirements were greater than those of normal families, and they had more opportunities to come into contact with water.

Back at the apartment, Locke began preparing meatloaf lunch, while Hannah started writing her investigative report, first recording everything she had seen and interviewed that day.

At the same time, she also wrote a letter to the government seeking help for these poor people who are sick but unable to see a doctor.

To make the letter more convincing, she described the symptoms and condition of the patients in detail.

If those public officials see it and ignore it, Hannah will have to wait for the investigation results before sending a letter to the government.

While the siblings were busy, the window creaked open.

A dark shadow appeared on the windowsill.

Chapter 19, Using Backdoors

The witch Irene never misses a meal; she returns as soon as she smells the aroma of meat.

Locke served the meat patties, and she was the first to eat them.

Hannah, who had no appetite, was also lured out by the aroma of the meat patties. She put the letter in her coat pocket, sat down at the table, and watched as the black cat began to eat the meat patties with its paws without any regard for its image. Her own cravings were also awakened.

She reached out, grabbed a meat pie, and took a big bite. The aroma of meat and onions instantly filled her mouth.

Eileen's meow and Hannah's exclamation rang out at the same time. The two exchanged a glance, indicating that they had met someone of their kind.

Locke sat down in his seat with satisfaction, picked up a meat pie, and put it in his mouth.

[Ding! Successfully fed the witch!]

[Witch favorability +1]

[Witch Irene Mostia's current favorability rating: 9/100]

In addition to the main meal, Locke also made two "desserts" for Miss Irene, the gluttonous witch: sweet potato cakes.

Of course, I wouldn't feed her during lunchtime, but rather during afternoon tea or other times, in short, before dinner, to ensure that I can feed her 5 times a day and gain 4 points of affection.

After finishing the meat pie, Hannah hurriedly prepared to leave.

Locke quickly put on his coat and followed Hannah.

Eileen smelled the aroma of sweet potato cake from Locke's pocket, and with a leap, she sat on Locke's left shoulder.

They first mailed the letter to the mailbox, and then went to the Compass Water Company.

The receptionist at Compass Water Company watched the young couple with a smile.

Because their target audience isn't the wealthy people of the West End, they wouldn't look down on someone wearing a worn-out coat. Furthermore, the fact that this teenager has spare money to keep a cat suggests that they aren't extremely poor and may have a stable job with a decent salary.

"Distinguished sir/madam, what services would you like?"

"Our current water company is too expensive. I've heard that Compass Water Company's fees are very cheap, so I'd like to know where your company's water source is?"

Hannah asked with a smile.

The receptionist's smile widened.

“Our water is indeed the cheapest in the entire capital. Our water source is the same as that of the East District’s water company, which comes from the Kosol River.”

Which downstream branch?

Locke asked directly.

The receptionist paused slightly, looked at the boy with the pet, and politely replied,

“It’s a branch of Ceci, but don’t worry, our water purification technology is recognized by the kingdom, and we have the relevant qualifications and certifications.”

The Cési River is one of the three major branches of the lower Kosor River in the western district, running through the Peté and Mar districts, as well as the Cési district. The Mar and Cési districts are the two poorest areas in the capital.