The Man’s Decree

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“Don't worry. Even if it hides underground, I have a way to deal with it!” Francois took out a dozen pills and handed them to Brutus. “You distribute these pills to everyone. Make sure they swallow them!”

Brutus nodded, then proceeded to distribute the pills to the crowd.

Everyone held these thumb-sized, dark pills, clueless about what they were, and thus, no one dared to eat them.

“Jared, what's that? It looks disgusting!” Percy asked Jared while holding the pill.

Jared took one of the pills and gently sniffed it before replying, “This is a Weakening Pill. After taking it, you'll lose your power.”

“What?” Ali and the others were struck dumb.

“Jared, why would they make us eat the pill? We have the strength to help them deal with the bloodthirsty beast and harvest the Grus Divina, don't we?” Ali asked.

“Yeah, why would Dr. Weiss and his people want us to lose our power? What are they up to?” Emily and the rest were also bewildered, unable to understand why Brutus wanted to reduce their power even though he had brought them there to help with harvesting the mystical herb.

Jared held the Weakening Pill and was lost in thought. His eyes slightly narrowed, and his expression became exceedingly serious.

“I think I know why,” he said.

“Why?” Ali asked right away.

“Francois wants us to take the Weakening Pill not with the intention of weakening our power, but to weaken the bloodthirsty beast's. When we take the Weakening Pill, its essence will seep into our bloodstream. So, when that bloodthirsty beast feeds on our blood, it'll essentially consume a large number of the Weakening Pills. As a result, the beast's strength will be greatly reduced.”

After listening to Jared's analysis, Ali and the others turned pale. It seemed that Brutus and his men saw them as nothing more than food for the bloodthirsty beast.

“I agree with Mr. Chance's analysis. I'm sure that must be the case. Otherwise, they wouldn't have gotten us, whose strength had yet to be fully developed, to help them. It seems that from the beginning, they have already planned to use us as bait for the bloodthirsty beast. Francois must have thought of using our blood to deal with it,” Hefe said, his face grim. He had never expected Brutus and the others to be so ruthless.

“What should we do, then?” Percy asked fearfully. “I'm sure they'll force us to take the pills. And if we fight back, we definitely can't defeat them because we aren't their match!”

“Just place the pill beneath your tongue and don't swallow it. Follow my lead, and we'll act accordingly,” Jared instructed in a soft voice.

Ali and the rest nodded, inching closer to Jared.