"Actually, I'm a local; this farm was inherited from my parents."
Peter calmly put down his cutlery and said, as the Chief's meaningful gaze fixed on him.
"You don't look like a local, Peter."
Seeing the strange atmosphere at the dinner table, Kelly quickly tried to change the subject, "My grandfather is an expert in ancient scripts. I believe he can decipher the writings in the cave. Maybe it will solve some mysteries."
The Chief looked at his granddaughter, "Provided that Leno Luther doesn't flatten these caves."
He thanked Peter again, "Anyway, Peter, I have to thank you. If it weren't for you, that person really would have done such a thing."
Kelly asked curiously, "Grandfather, do you know Leno Luther well?"
"I don't know him, but I know he's a wolf in sheep's clothing."
Peter nodded slightly at this, looking at Kelly.
He didn't know if Leno was a wolf in sheep's clothing, but there was a woman truly in wolf's clothing here.
The next day, early morning.
Star-Lord, sitting in his stroller, was intently watching a commercial on TV.
A fully armed gunman was firing a six-shooter.
However, he wasn't shooting bullets, but cookies.
Around the gunman were piles of chocolate chip, shortbread, and oatmeal cookies.
The gunman stood dejectedly amidst a pile of cookies, his gun empty, and frustratingly uttered lines like, "Oh, the bad guys all ran away."
Then, to a high-pitched background music, the gunman's expression suddenly changed, and he faced the screen, saying, "I have cookies, the best cookies in the West, or anywhere, for that matter."
Finally, after the gunman took a bite of a cookie and showed an ecstatic expression, the entire commercial gradually faded out.
Peter watched the idiotic commercial speechlessly and asked Kelly, who was clearing the dishes, "You haven't given Star-Lord any cookies, have you, Kelly?"
"No, Star-Lord is just a baby; he's not suitable for cookies."
Saying that, Kelly glanced at Star-Lord, who was engrossed in the commercial, and continued, "That being said, from my perspective, Star-Lord doesn't seem like a baby who isn't suitable for cookies."
"Are you referring to his weight?"
Kelly shook her head, "No, it's not just his weight and size, but also his current maturity."
Peter asked in confusion, "What maturity?"
"He seems to be able to talk."
Kelly remembered the scene last night when she was taking care of him, and the rascal called her "Mommy."
"Really?"
Peter looked at Star-Lord, who was drooling at the TV, "What did he say?"
How could Kelly, who was inexperienced, say such words? She could only make up a lie, "He said 'hungry.'"
Hearing this, Peter looked at Star-Lord with a surprised gaze.
"Could he really be a 'genius'?"
At this moment, Star-Lord seemed to hear Peter and Kelly discussing him. After moving his gaze from the TV, he gave them an innocent smile.
Meanwhile, at Smallville Elementary School.
Mark and Clark sat in front of the TV.
The TV happened to be playing a Sharp Cookies commercial.
This scene was already very familiar to the children who watched "Looney Tunes" and "Dragon Ball" every Saturday morning.
Clark looked at the commercial on TV and said to Mark, "I think these cookies must be delicious."
"I think you should be careful not to end up like Star-Lord. Desserts are the easiest foods to gain weight from."
Mark felt he should advise Clark that cookies needed to be eaten in moderation.
"Cocoa Puffs, Bran Flakes, and Sharp's Whole Grain Feast—they all sound like things that make you fat."
Mark listed these foods that he considered very dangerous, "Dad said that none of these things can be trusted. Sweets are all evil."
Clark said confidently, "I think a lack of self-control is evil. Clearly, I am the one with self-control."
"No, you don't have self-control, Clark. You will be tempted by the devil."
"You're the one who will be tempted by the devil, Mark."
Clark retorted sharply.
In the afternoon.
After school, Clark and Mark were still arguing about who would be more prone to falling.
As they talked, they again drifted to the topic of devils.
Clark, full of curiosity, asked Peter about legends of demons.
"Perhaps Ms. Kelly can explain to you. Their Kawatche Tribe legends have many stories about demons."
Peter handed the two curious rascals over to Kelly.
"We are not Indians, Peter."
Kelly said displeased, "We are the Kawatche Tribe people who live on this land."
"My mistake. In your Kawatche Tribe legends, are there stories about demons? Or Wendigos? Bigfoots?"
Peter asked curiously, "Or similar stories? There are two very curious children here, and they want to hear strange stories."
"Do you really want to hear them?"
Kelly placed Star-Lord in the high chair, cleared her throat, and asked the two.
Peter looked at her face and had a feeling this woman was up to no good.
"Of course." The two brothers said in unison.
"Alright, this is a scary story. A long, long time ago, a demon came to this Smallville. He wasn't a werewolf, Vampire, or ghoul, nor was he something that came out of a magic forest or a snow-covered wasteland. He was a demon named Dood."
"He killed many people, and the entire Smallville was shrouded in his shadow."
Kelly's tone became low, "Later, a man named John Smith discovered his name through a kind of magic, but Dood committed suicide before he could be caught."
"Is that all?"
Mark scratched his head and asked.
"Yes, the story ends there, but the nightmare of this demon remained. One day, he might resurrect and snatch away disobedient children."
As she spoke, Kelly extended her hand, pretending to be sharp claws, and said with conviction:
"He's right there, when the wind howls through the chimney pipe, and then the stove eye, plugged with an old can lid, buzzes, he's right there. If you're not a good child, when everyone else in the house is asleep, it might be his face looking in from outside your bedroom window."
Kelly deliberately made a low moan, "Or… in the middle of the night, it might be his face peeking out from the wardrobe, staring straight at you."
"And his face will have a slight smile, his left hand will be holding a stop sign used by children to cross the road, and his other hand will be holding the razor he used to commit suicide… So… shhh, don't let him hear you!"
Mark and Clark were completely immersed in Kelly's vivid storytelling.
After exchanging glances, the more timid Clark nervously held his breath, not daring to move.
Although Mark knew that Kelly was most likely spouting nonsense, he was still drawn into Kelly's story.
"Alright, the demon is dead, and Dood has rotted in his coffin, so don't worry about him coming to snatch you away."
Peter came over and patted Clark and Mark on the shoulders, signaling them to quickly wash their hands and get ready for dinner.
After the two rascals left, Peter said helplessly to Kelly, "I wouldn't have thought, Ms. Kelly, that you also enjoy playing pranks."
"A prank? This is not a prank. Our tribe does have similar stories."
"Is that so?"
Peter held Star-Lord and teased him for a bit, then turned to Kelly and said, "In my vague memory, my mother, or perhaps my great-grandmother, would say that a devil in a black raincoat would take me away to make me quiet."
"That was an age of enlightenment when parents already knew that what they did and said could cause psychological harm to their children."
Peter spoke of his vague childhood memories from his past life.
Kelly poured herself a glass of Water and shook her head, "Clark and John, they won't be scared by the story I just told, nor will they suffer any psychological trauma. They are not ordinary children, especially Mark. Did you see his disbelieving expression just now?"
Peter shook his head, "Actually, in some ways, they are just ordinary children."
He could tell that this cunning wolf woman seemed to want to prank Mark because he kept calling her Star-Lord's mother.
Clark was unlucky to be implicated; Mark wasn't scared, but he was.
He was about to continue discussing child education with the wolf woman when the phone suddenly rang.
After answering the phone, he spoke a few words with the other party, then hung up with a serious expression.
"What's wrong?"
Kelly saw Peter frown and walked over to ask him.
"There's a murder in Smallville. The victim is a farmer, and the Police want to talk to the farmers in Smallville to understand the situation."
Charles Boone's farm.
This farm, located at the end of Smallville, was surrounded by many Police and residents at this time.
Peter and Kelly, who was holding Star-Lord, walked to the outer perimeter of the cordon.
Noticing Peter's appearance, Officer Chandler immediately walked over and held up the cordon for the two of them.
Seeing Kelly holding the child, Chandler cleared his throat and introduced himself to her.
"I'm Chandler, miss. Nice to meet you."
He thought Kelly was Peter's new girlfriend. He glanced at her delicate features and hot figure and said with some envy, "Peter is a lucky guy."
Kelly agreed with a nod, but looking at Chandler's face, she quickly understood what he meant.
This guy thought she was Peter's wife?
She glanced at Peter, then at herself standing next to him, holding the child.
Well, it did look a bit like a couple.
While she was still conflicted, Chandler led Peter to the scene.
Looking at the body on the ground, already torn into two pieces, and the wall stained red with blood, Peter's brows furrowed.
"What happened?"
"As you can see, Charles Boone was torn in half."
"When did this happen?"
Peter looked down at the torn body and asked, "Is it a simple murder? Or a robbery targeting the farm?"
"We don't know yet."
Chandler shook his head and said worriedly, "Because we don't know the killer's motive, we called the farmers in Smallville to warn them to be careful recently. Perhaps the killer's goal is the farm's property; some robbers like to target farmers."
Peter nodded and bent down to examine the victim's wounds.
The wounds looked like they were torn directly, not like they were caused by an ordinary knife.
He stood up, his expression somewhat solemn, and looked at the blood splattered on the wall like a painting.
This didn't seem to be the work of a human.