Mom and Dad had already gone to sleep when I returned to the hut.

In my past life, Uncle George and the others had planned to sneak off in the dead of the night tonight.

I never expected Uncle George and the others to return in a dejected manner the following day, though. Their condition was wretched. Their exposed arms and lower legs were covered with numerous red welts from insect bites, a dense accumulation that was shocking to behold.

Uncle George and Aunt Talia looked extremely unpleasant and remained silent, obviously having suffered greatly. They had likely attempted to escape under the cover of night but ended up lost in the woods, spent the entire night struggling, and finally had no choice but to return the same way they had come.

I couldn't help but scoff inwardly as I looked at their dejected appearance. I had originally planned to lead the tribesmen to go out and track them down myself, so I hadn't expected them to return entirely on their own.

I noticed that they remained restless and kept wandering around the tribe even after returning. I accidentally overheard their conversation—they seemed to be thinking of grabbing some antiques and fleeing again to make money from them.

In the meantime, Rova appeared distressed when she saw Vincent's injuries. She pulled him to the side, pointed at the pouch on her body, and took out several medicinal herbs to apply to his wounds.

Vincent unexpectedly blew up on the spot, snapping, "What is wrong with you? Get off me! You're rubbing absolute filth all over my skin! It's so disgusting! Get the hell away from me!"

Rova, who understood a few phrases of Caldornese, was instantly distressed. She took hold of Vincent's hand, apparently intending to speak, but Vincent unexpectedly struck her with a backhanded slap.

"Get the hell away from me! I wouldn't even be in this absolute shithole if it weren't for you. It's all your fault, you disgusting savage! Get lost!"

That single slap instantly drew the attention of the whole tribe. They were already resentful of how Vincent had looked down on their food the previous day, and now, everyone closed in around him, fixing Vincent with cold, ominous glares.

Uncle George hurried to Vincent's side and blocked him with his body, glaring fiercely ahead. "What do you think you're doing? How dare a bunch of worthless savages try to lay a hand on my son! He's your chieftess' man! I'd like to see who dares make a move!"

I looked at them and thought to myself that this family was truly stupid beyond belief. They actually presumed they could run wild in this tribe by taking advantage of Rova's affection for Vincent.

They had been thoroughly spoiled by Mom and Dad, not knowing that no one in this tribe was going to coddle them the same way.

It was then that an elderly tribesman stepped forward, his fierce gaze landing squarely on Vincent. It looked as though his status was even higher than Rova's.

He waved his hand, and a group of tribesmen brought over a wooden box, out of which came a hair-raising hissing sound. He then opened his mouth and muttered a few words, as if performing some kind of ritual chant.

Vincent realized something was wrong and instinctively retreated, his gaze filled with panic as he looked at me. "What are these savages saying, Kingsley?"

I could only vaguely understand a few phrases, but I got the point. "They claim you've been cursed by a shamaness. They want to lock you in a box full of snakes for a day and a night to drive out the evil spirits."

Upon hearing that, Vincent instantly let out a terrified scream. "I'm not doing it! You have to save me, Dad!"

"I'd like to see which one of you has the guts to lay a hand on my son! He's the husband of your chieftess! You can go ahead and try if you dare!" Uncle George gritted his teeth, a grim expression on his face.

His threats did nothing to stop the advancing tribesmen, though.

He suddenly spotted me, rushed over to me in a few strides, and shoved me into that box full of snakes.

Uncle George slammed the lid of the box shut and sat directly on top of it, making absolutely sure I couldn't break out of it no matter what.

Mom and Dad watched this scene in disbelief, their expressions freezing for an instant before turning into terror and rage as they rushed over, screaming.

"What are you doing, George?" Mom yelled, her voice cracked and hysterical with tears.

Mom and Dad struggled to pull Uncle George down from the box.

Dad pushed himself to the limit, his face turning bright red, but Uncle George didn't budge at all, even adjusting to sit more comfortably.

Aunt Talia and Vincent also realized what was happening right after that and scrambled up onto the box one after another, terrified that I might escape.

"Vincent is my only son! He has been sheltered and pampered since childhood, and snakes are his greatest fear. He would die if they shut him in there!" Uncle George didn't sound even remotely guilty. Instead, he acted like he was doing us a massive favor.

"Kingsley has always been sensible and has always been looking out for Vincent. He should just take Vincent's place and endure this punishment instead. He's a tough one, so he'll be fine! He'll be out after being locked for 24 hours."

Uncle George spoke with total indifference, acting as if I were being forced to do something completely safe.

Those tribesmen, who had been restless moments before, ceased all movement after seeing that I entered the wooden box, waiting silently on the side.

Mom wept heart-wrenchingly, pounding her hands desperately against the lid of the box. "Get off there and let my son out right now, George! Kingsley is still in there!"

"Finally feel distressed now, huh, Heidi?" Uncle George scoffed.

His voice was dripping with malice and sarcasm while asking, "Why did you remain silent when Vincent was on the verge of being confined inside? You just stood there and watched it happen. Do you even deserve to be Vincent's aunt? You're losing it now just because it's your own kid, huh?"

He paused for a moment, his tone becoming progressively scathing while saying, "It's too late now, though. He's a mere nobody anyway, so he might as well die in Vincent's place. He'll at least be making one last contribution to the Walker family before perishing for good."

Mom was probably completely infuriated by Uncle George's remarks. She pulled and tugged desperately at his clothes, ripping a large section of his collar loose, as she cried, shrieked, and cursed in a hoarse voice.

Uncle George started losing his patience, his expression hardening drastically. He suddenly raised his hand and slapped Mom hard across her face. "What the hell? How dare you lay a hand on me! Have I been too lenient with you?"

Dad threw his usual politeness out the window, roaring as he lunged forward and violently yanked Uncle George's arm. He had spent his life buried in his study, though, so he was simply no match for Uncle George, who spent his years roaming the streets, making fights and brawls a commonplace matter.

Uncle George roughly shoved Dad aside within seconds. Dad staggered, took a few unsteady steps, and then fell hard to the ground, groaning in pain.

There were thumping noises emanating from within the box, which seemed to please Uncle George. He grinned widely before laughing with triumph.

"You shouldn't take it too hard, Heidi. I'm still your brother, so once Kingsley is dead, you can focus entirely on raising Vincent instead. He'll be the only one left to continue the Walker family line, after all."

Vincent quickly came to his senses and said hurriedly, "You can rest assured that I'll make sure you're looked after when you're old, as long as you leave that house of yours to me, Aunt Heidi."

Mom and Dad wept in despair on the side. There was no way the two of them could push Uncle George and the others off the box.

Their desperate wailing resonated through the air.

"We're really sorry, Kingsley!"

"It's all our fault—we shouldn't have come here in the first place! I'm so sorry, Kingsley!"

Uncle George and the others didn't budge. They looked coldly at Mom and Dad as they cried helplessly. They then exchanged a look and hopped off the box once all movement inside the wooden box stopped completely.

Mom and Dad also seemed to sense what had happened. Dad's eyes turned bloodshot as he shrieked in pure rage, "You're a monster, George! I swear I'll never let you get away with this if anything happens to Kingsley!"

Mom, on the other hand, had already fainted and collapsed to the ground due to excessive grief.

Uncle George and the others retreated a few paces, while a bunch of tribesmen moved in and pried the wooden box open, causing all four sides to hit the ground and kick up a cloud of dust.

I stood in the middle of the box, holding a snake in my hand, while the other small snakes scattered in all directions the moment the box opened.

Those present stared at me in absolute shock. "How is this even possible?"