#i havent gotten parasitology classes yet

[mossy-petrichor]

Hey! I read you're a bug enthusiast and biologist, so I was wandering...

if you were studying the plague beetles with Julian, what would your theories on the beetles be?

Knowing what we know now? The beetles are hematophagous and a host for the bacteria that causes the red plague, and they infect humans by injecting their bodily fluids (ie. saliva, excrements or hemolymph) into blood after opening a wound by biting, much like chagas disease or malaria. Humans are another host for the bacteria which spreads through blood.

Julian got the plague without being bitten because his body absorbed the beetle's fluids and allowed the microbes to get into his circulatory system, much like tapeworm eggs do if you consume infected meat.

Edit: like @agnes-neko-shipper added, it's likely the beetle's fluids got into Julian's bloodstream through a cut in his digestive track (considering it's a pretty big bug) instead of through digestion

Edit ii: there definitely was magic involved! Both for the beetles and for the bacteria. No normal microbe would cause hemorrhage to be that bright red

#correct me if im wrong #i havent gotten parasitology classes yet #the arcana #julian devorak #the arcana game