The Final Desperation

Genji didn't intend to take this hunt alone. Instead, he waited for the guards to regather before setting off. There were a lot of curses thrown his way for mobilizing the guards during their sleep time, but Genji didn't care. It was more efficient to operate at night because they didn't have to worry about civilians getting in the way.

Edwin and Kathleen had subtle smiles on their faces as they thought Genji had initiated this investigation due to the queen's scolding. They followed Genji and dashed through the intertwining alleyways to reach a dilapidated house. Genji stopped beside it and gestured for Edwin to kick down the door.

A loud crash of broken wood sounded, and the guards flooded the building, yelling, "Stop right there! This is the patrol."

However, only an echoing silence greeted them, with no one in sight. Genji scanned the vicinity and also entered. His compass directed him to a rubbish pile where flies were buzzing around. Genji threw a torch at the mound and watched it burn. When the flames died down, Genji approached and brushed aside the ashes.

A charred metal axehead appeared in his view. This was the discarded weapon of the killer.

"It realized we were tracing it and slipped away," an experienced guard said. "This monster's smarter than we thought."

Genji rolled his eyes and broke off another small chunk from the weapon. "So what? It can run, but it can't hide. Find the owner of this axe."

The shard burned up again, and the request tracking activated. The pointer swung a few times, and they set off again. This time, the needle deviated much faster, indicating the culprit was closer than they expected. After a short pursuit, they smelled blood again, originating from an open window on the side.

They burst through the entrance while the other guards surrounded the property, sealing the escape routes. Upon entering, Genji saw a wooden figure hunched over a mangled body, its lower body standing in the moonlight while its head was hidden behind shadows.

The figure looked up at them, and demonic red eyes bore into their consciousness. At this moment, the clouds parted, letting the full moonlight illuminate their culprit. A bloodied puppet with patches of decaying flesh stuck onto its body came into view, its mouth dripping with blood and its sharp triangular teeth glistening red.

The puppet had a long, cylindrical nose with a rounded tip and messy black hair that hadn't been washed in months. The puppet tilted its head at them, pulled out the axe with a curved, long handle from the body, and asked, "Are you a real boy?"

"What-" The guard at the front was startled by the puppet's strange question and subconsciously voiced his confusion when Genji suddenly pulled him back, interrupting his sentence and narrowly dodging a cleaving glint of light.

The puppet manifested in front of them, its axe narrowly brushing past the guard's face, drawing a thin streak of blood. Genji swung his saber upward at this opening while his other hand reached for [Eye of Horus] to scan his foe.

[Special Stat surpasses opponents by a large margin. Obtaining 100% of the target's information.]

 

[Demon Puppet, Pinocchio]

Health: 34,500/34,500

Mana: 923/960

Con: 58

Str: 58

Dex: 63

Int: 48

Spc: 12

Skills:

 - Mini-boss (Passive): +20,000 health

 - Wooden Construct (Passive): Feels no pain, has no weak points. Will continue to fight until health runs out. 

 - Magical Empowerment (Passive): You won't die unless you run out of mana.

 - Axe Mastery (Supreme): Cleaving intent unlocked.

 - Strings of Mana (Active): You can control your body from a distance using puppet strings.

 - Weapon Conjuring (Active): You can use magic to summon and create a weapon.

 - Wooden Burst (Active): Move at 600% of your normal speed for a second.

 - Flesh Carving (Passive): Wounds inflicted by your axe will have a hard time healing, regardless of effect.

 - Mana Slash (Active): Can empower your attacks with mana.

 - Magical Evocation (Passive): Capable of using basic mana spells.

 

Genji's saber left a small nick on Pinocchio's face before the puppet backed off from the confrontation. Upon landing, Pinocchio examined his opponents, and his grin widened to reveal more teeth. "Great! More sacrifices for mother. I'll become a real boy in no time!"

The guards grimaced at his gruesome yet childish tone and tensely gripped their weapons, wary of the puppet's speed.

"Back off," Genji commanded. "We'll handle this."

Then he dashed at Pinocchio, brandishing his saber to buy time for the guards to retreat. A lightning-fast upward slash met his advance, nearly severing Genji's shoulder if it wasn't for his sidestep. Genji retaliated with his own strike, and they entered a lethal dance full of sharp lights.

Genji took every chance that came to him and forced Pinocchio to keep moving, all while dodging the counterattacks by a hair's breadth. After a few exchanges, Genji suddenly sped up, overtaking Pinocchio's defense and leaving three medium-sized cuts along the torso.

Then he jumped back, allowing Edwin to become the front guard while Kathleen pelted the puppet with arrows. A red mana coated the axe head, and Pinocchio slashed everything out of the air. However, he struggled to move forward as Edwin held firm against his attacks.

Genji charged in with a large flare of shadow flames and slashed down another streak of weapon intent. Pivoting on his foot, Genji borrowed some of the incoming force and entered a frontal exchange against Pinocchio. With each strike, his attacking force increased and was soon on par with his opponent's.

Genji took a deep breath and suddenly switched his fighting style, becoming more ferocious and beast-like. Streams of hot air flowed out the corner of his mouth and wrapped around the side of his cheeks as he pushed his body to exert every ounce of strength. A destructive aura also overlaid this change, further enhancing the force behind his attacks.

Pinocchio struggled against this onset of blows and was quickly disarmed. Genji ran out of air in his lungs at this moment and promptly ended his overexertion. His flames compressed inward as his cutting intent wrapped his saber once more. Genji lunged forward to deal the finishing blow when Pinocchio stretched his hand toward Genji.

A sudden sense of crisis overtook him, and he found himself jumping toward the ceiling, followed by a bone-chilling cold on his feet. His hyper-dodge had triggered and prevented him from being enclosed in ice. The whole area beneath him had transformed into an icy death land, full of skewers in every direction.

"Pull me up," Genji said, spinning his attack downward to clear the icy obstacle.

Bruce understood his intentions and shot a grappling hook through the roof. Using this tension, Genji flipped onto a ceiling beam and watched the battle below.

When his attack shattered the iceberg, Edwin charged through the snow dust and replaced Genji in the assault. However, before he could deal any significant damage, another axe manifested in Pinocchio's hands and parried Edwin's sword. Pinocchio pointed a finger at the shoulder, and a yellow bolt of lightning punctured a small hole through the area.

His axe came around again and forced Edwin to raise his shield. After a large impact, Pinocchio sidestepped a dangerous arrow and continued his relentless strikes. Edwin stabilized himself and endured everything, but the downpour gave him no chance to counterattack.

Suddenly, a metallic pillar smashed into the back of Edwin's knee, causing him to lose his footing. Pinocchio immediately grabbed his shield and yanked it aside, allowing his next strike to land. Edwin's armor broke under this attack, and a thick splatter of blood coated Pinocchio's face. His red eyes intensified, and his grin widened with maddened laughter.

"Now this is fun! Let's go again!"

The first sentence came from the front, but the second one sounded from behind. However, the expected strike never came because Kathleen released a powerful disruption shot at this moment. A loud collision pierced through the room and crashed into the walls, severely damaging it.

Kathleen charged another arrow and aimed at the impact area when the dust cloud suddenly ripped apart to reveal a gleaming axe rapidly descending on her head. Her eyes widened with shock, and she released the bowstring, but the huge difference in speed indicated that she would fall first.

Suddenly, a dagger spearheading a destructive cyclone smashed into Pinocchio's side, obliterating half his body in a cylindrical shape. The impact sent Pinocchio flying like a ragdoll being hit by a speeding train.

'Tsk, this bastard's more durable than he looks. All that and only this much damage?' Genji clicked his tongue in annoyance and shook his sore arm. Then the released arrow brushed past him, creating a whirlwind that wildly shook his clothes.

Genji drew his other dagger and chased after Pinocchio. Opposing crescents of light clashed against each other, cutting down the dust swirl to reveal a severely damaged Pinocchio missing a quarter of his head and sporting only one arm. Red mana threads snaked out from these damaged areas and connected to his previous landing point.

These threads gradually retracted between clashes, pulling the missing parts back to their original positions. However, most of his body had been pulverized, making them impossible to recover. Instead, Pinocchio pulled some broken chunks from the surroundings to replace these parts.

Genji took full advantage of this weakness and bombarded Pinocchio with a storm of attacks, forcing the puppet to perpetually repair his body. Eventually, Pinocchio gave up his efforts and conjured a rain of axes, each attached with a mana thread. Pinocchio snarled at Genji and commanded the weapons to drown him.

An overwhelming number of slashes came at Genji, each attacking with a slight delay to stifle all breathing room. Genji parried the necessary strikes and used the incoming force to maneuver around the rest. But despite his best efforts, Genji still received many deep wounds, which he fortunately kept to non-lethal areas.

After a few exchanges, Edwin charged into the barrage and slammed his shield into the densest part, unleashing a ripple that interfered with Pinocchio's control. Then he slashed through the mana threads and freed Genji from his encasement.

Realizing his precarious situation, Pinocchio released his conjured weapons and funneled their remaining mana into casting a powerful spell. The agglomerations of mana gathered into dense points resembling the twinkling stars in the night sky and began burning. Then these points erupted with beams of fire, threatening to scorch everything in their path.

Genji weaved between these webs and gathered his strength for Lightning Inspiration. Upon receiving an opening, he stabbed out and forcibly cleared a human-sized tunnel toward Pinocchio. Kathleen capitalized on this moment and released her strongest arrow, comprised of half of her total energy.

Pinocchio dived aside to minimize the damage when a black crystal chain suddenly wrapped around his arm. Then, before Pinocchio could react, Genji yanked hard and pulled him into the arrow's path, forcing a direct hit.

The chain grew taut from the force, but Genji wrapped it around his arm, letting it dig into his flesh to forcibly pull Pinocchio inward. Edwin stepped between them and slashed out with his sword, decapitating the puppet. The remnants of his energy also scattered the mana in Pinocchio's body, ending the fight.

[You have slain: Demon Puppet, Pinocchio]

[Your maximum energy has increased by 46 points.]

[You have received: 350 realm coins.]

[You have received: Puppet Killer's Axe]

 

[Puppet Killer's Axe]

Rating: Rare

Durability: 63/150

Requirements: 26 Dex, 30 Int

Effects:

1. Flesh Carving (Passive): Injuries inflicted by this axe will have difficulty healing while in combat
2. Energy Cleave (Active/Passive): You can channel energy into this weapon to make it sharper
3. Sudden Burst (Active): Travel at 300% of your normal speed in one direction

Description: The axe used by a normal puppet given life through magical means. Its former owner sought to become a "real boy" according to his creator's wishes and was cut down in the process. Now, this weapon remains the only evidence of the puppet's existence. 

 

[You have completed the story of Pinocchio, the Wooden Puppet.]

[Pinocchio, the Wooden Puppet]

Description: Pinocchio wanted to become a real boy through some extreme measures, but everything was merely an imitation. After causing countless troubles, his actions attracted the attention of the castle guards, and was exterminated. 

Mission Progress: 2/3

 

When the light in Pinocchio's eyes dimmed, Edwin leaned back and gasped for air. The battle had been particularly stressful due to the puppet's speed and near-instantaneous spell casts. One mistake could have resulted in grievous injuries, if not death. That was how insidious an opponent Pinocchio was.

Edwin calmed down and prepared to drag the body back when he noticed Genji squatting beside the severed head, pulling at the sharp teeth with pliers.

"What are you doing?" Edwin asked, a strange look coming over his eyes.

"Exactly what it looks like," Genji answered, stepping on the head and giving the tool a hard yank. "I'm sure the teeth of a magical puppet have some collection value."

"..."

"Ignore him," Kathleen said as she walked over. "We should know by now that he's weird."

Genji finished harvesting, picked up the damaged weapon, and walked out with the team. Edwin and Kathleen didn't mind his actions since they had no use for an axe. Once the team left the building and the standby guards confirmed the elimination, they called for the city patrol to clean up the area.

Once that was settled, they returned to the castle and tended to their wounds. Many guards immediately fell asleep upon reaching their quarters despite sustaining no injuries.

The next morning, Genji set out early to meet the Tooth Fairy. Upon entering her store and submitting the loot, she quoted a price for the parts. "56 teeth. I'll give you that much for them."

"I'll take 3 bottles of the yellow powder and save the rest."

The Tooth Fairy fulfilled his request and returned the excess teeth.

[You have obtained: Fairy Dust x3]

[Fairy Dust]

Rating: Rare

Effect: Increases the quality of all ingredients used in conjunction with this item when performing alchemy.

Description: A magical dust from the excess material shredded by a fairy's wings. Using it will cause certain ingredients to exert potency beyond their limit.

 

Essentially, it was an amplifier for his potions. Depending on how it is used, it can majorly impact his consumables for the next world. Genji stored the bottles away and returned to receive the queen's bounty. For his work last night, she gave him a rare sword. It wasn't as high in quality as the axe, but it was worth half a month's salary.

Afterward, he joined the prince in his patrol, continuing the search for Cinderella. They repeated this for the next few hours with no results. It wasn't until late afternoon that they arrived at Cinderella's estate.

Upon hearing of his arrival, the stepmother enthusiastically welcomed them in. The prince explained his purpose and the stepmother called for her daughters. They asked for the slipper and went out of sight to try it on. The older sister's foot was too big for the slipper, so their mother suggested she cut off her toes.

"Think about it. If you can marry the prince, you won't have to worry about this injury. It's a small price to pay."

Hence the daughter followed her mother's terrible advice and took up the knife with trembling arms. After ruthlessly trimming her foot, her face turned pale from the pain and she forcibly pushed her foot into the shoe. Agony beyond anything she'd ever felt assaulted her senses and she struggled to stand.

Knowing she couldn't afford to delay, the mother and the sister grabbed her by the arms and supported her out. The older daughter clenched her teeth and hissed with misery but persevered. Anything to marry the prince.

"Prince, I believe my daughter is the one you're looking for," the mother said as they came into view. "See how well the slipper fits her?"

The elder daughter gave a shaky twirl before sitting down. Genji frowned at this scene and wondered how anyone could conceive of such a stupid idea. Did they take them for fools? There was literally blood leaking from the tips!

"Sorry, but I'll have to reject her. Please don't mutilate yourself for this search."

The mother's face twisted with discomfort, but she quickly concealed this emotion and feigned ignorance. "Oh my God! Sally, why is your foot bleeding? Come back. Quick, call the doctor!" Then she apologized to the prince and dragged her daughter away.

Once they were out of earshot, Genji finally spoke up about the situation's absurdness. "Something doesn't feel right. No one should go that far for your hand in marriage. It's sloppy as well."

"Yes. It's almost like they weren't in the right state of mind," Edwin said, similarly disturbed.

"You mean there's a cognition hazard?" the prince asked.

"Maybe. But whatever it is, you should keep an eye on this family. They're not normal," Genji said.

Meanwhile, the mother thought about the flaws in her plan, utterly disregarding her bleeding daughter on the side. "I was too rash. We needed to be more subtle." Her eyes went to the younger daughter, causing chills to crawl down her spine. "Yes, that's it. We shouldn't have cut off the front, but the back!"

"M-mother?" the younger daughter asked, backing away with unease. "Are you okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be? Come over, Sally. Let's try again," she said with an eerie smile, holding the bloody knife from the previous trim.

"Mother, I don't think this is a good idea...Maybe we shouldn't try to deceive him?"

"And why do you say that? Aren't you the one who wanted to marry into a wealthy family?"

"But-"

"NO BUTS! ARE YOU GOING TO COME OVER OR DO I HAVE TO FORCE YOU?!?" the mother suddenly yelled at her, her voice crackling with a hint of insanity. "You are going to put the slipper on whether you like it or not!" To drive her point home, the mother threateningly waved the kitchen knife and cornered her daughter.

"I-I-I'll do it," the daughter answered, her voice quivering in fear.

"Good! Now come over!"

The woman in front of Sally felt foreign to the girl, like she was no longer her mother, but a demonic hag driven purely by an obsession for a higher social standing. Even her voice was twisted with raspiness, and her hair was drier than fire twigs. It was a horrifying situation to be in, but she had no control anymore.

The hag forcibly grabbed her leg, causing the girl to wince in pain. However, this ache paled in comparison to the following sensation as the sharp knife dug through her heel bone. The girl screamed in pain, but the hag stuffed a dirty towel into her mouth, her actions no longer caring but emotionally calculative.

After the hag finished her trim, she wrapped the wound hard to stop the bleeding and forced the girl's foot into the slipper. Then she yanked the girl up and said, "There! Let's go. You want to marry the prince, don't you?"

The girl sniffled an agonized "yes," and the hag dragged her toward the guest room, disregarding the excruciating stumbles along the way. When they entered the room, the hag said, "Prince, I believe she is the one you're looking for. Look how well the slipper fits her. And no bleeding at that!"

However, her appearance only confirmed the group's suspicions. Even the most oblivious guards could tell the girl was terrified and that there was a heavy scent of blood originating from behind the hag. From his position, Genji could even see the knife she used, sticking out from her dress.

Genji signaled to the prince to gently reject the hag and not provoke her. They were not in the ideal situation to fight, nor did they want to with the prince around.

The prince understood the message and pacified the hag. "Madam, calm down. It's not that serious."

"But she's the one, isn't she? ISN'T SHE?!"

A drop of sweat rolled down the prince's face, and the guards moved into position in case of a conflict.

"Come on, answer me! Why are you not answering?" the hag continued. "Is she the one or not?"

"This..." The prince's eyes went to Genji, asking for further instructions or direct help. Genji shook his head and gestured toward the door, saying to find an excuse to leave first.

"She's not, Madam. I believe we've surveyed everything. If there's nothing else, we'll get going now." With those words, the group hurried for the exit, not wanting to stay a moment longer. But right as they were about to cross that point, a light "Wait," called out to them.

The scampering of feet ran down the stairs and stopped before them. "Prince, wait! I haven't tried it on yet," Cinderella said.

"CINDERELLA! WHY ARE YOU BOTHERING THE PRINCE?! DON'T YOU HAVE ANY MANNNERRRRSSS?"

"Shut up! The prince's words say he will test every girl. Why should I be excluded when you force your daughters into my slipper?"

"BIG WORDS, CINDERELLA! YOU THINK YOU'RE THE ONE HE'S LOOKING FOR? HAVE YOU LOOKED IN THE MIRROR? YOU'RE UGLIER THAN A HORSE!"

Bruce silently protested in his sheath, asking, 'What's wrong with being a horse? I'm beautiful, you hag!'

The group tried to slip away during this conversation, but an invisible barrier blocked their way, much to the prince's dismay. They were forced to watch this argument with no way out.

"Then give me the slipper, and I'll prove you wrong," Cinderella fought back.

"TAKE IT!" the hag screeched, ripping the slipper from the daughter's foot and forcibly chucking it at Cinderella.

Enduring the impact, Cinderella slid the footwear onto her foot and proudly stood before the prince. "My prince, look. I'm the girl you met at the banquet."

As if confirming this, the spell hidden within the slipper triggered, wrapping Cinderella in a blue light. The guards immediately reacted and surrounded her with drawn weapons. "She's the culprit. Arrest her!"

Yet the moment they uttered those words, a glaring red light erupted from the slipper and enveloped Cinderella. Wherever the red light passed, Cinderella's flesh began to melt, inflicting excruciating pain. When the light reached her face, her flawless features distorted like melted wax before sliding right off, revealing a horrifying face.

"W-w-what's h-happening to m-me?" she asked.

Those were the last words she managed to say before catching on fire. And from her cinders, a magical force sprung out, gathering everything back into humanoid form. A half-dissolved monster with melting skin and radiating immense heat appeared before them, seemingly devoid of sanity.

An inhumane roar sounded from the creature's mouth before turning to face the group. At the same time, a high-pitched screech came from their side, where the hag previously was.

But instead of the former demented human, a horrifying emancipated figure standing at 3.4 meters greeted their eyes. While the group was focused on Cinderella, a beam of red light had also fallen onto the hag, invoking a similarly harrowing transformation.

The hag's skeletal figure had elongated twice its initial height and stretched her skin taut. All strips of flesh broke during this process, leaving uneven blotches across the thin frame. In her hands, she held an enlarged kitchen knife previously used in her human form. And covering all this were long, uneven strands of flayed hair, resembling those of a decaying corpse.

"Oh, here we go again," Genji sighed, drawing his daggers and stepping forward, placing himself between the prince and the two monsters. "Why do these things keep happening to me?"