The Final Desperation

A full day had passed since the team left on the expedition, making this Genji's eighth day in this world. After he left the zone occupied by the thousand-eyed lady, Genji found a remote location to rest for the night. He avoided any more fights and fully recovered his strength before moving out.

On this day, the companion prism by his waist began reacting. Understanding the event's significance, Genji spread his senses and dashed toward the other party. It was better to meet up with a teammate so they could share the burden of these dangers rather than confronting everything alone.

Given Genji's current situation, any addition to the party would greatly improve his odds of survival. Luckily, this zone was relatively safe, so there weren't many obstructions along the way. After dashing out of the forest and running along a road by the mountainside, Genji arrived at the outskirts of a simple village.

This village was marked on the map, albeit with limited detail. Travel between this village and the royal capital was not mainstream, with few explorers making the trip. The capital is only aware of the village's existence because a local mage occasionally sends reports about their situation.

This was also how the capital discovered the problem with the previous village. After all, it would be strange if someone suddenly stopped responding for no reason.

When Genji reached the vicinity, he found Joki, the spearman waiting for him. They weren't too familiar with each other since he was hired on the last day, but they knew of each other's abilities. By Genji's estimate, Joki ranked third in overall strength, just below Edwin and the hoodie guy.

This alone testified to his strength because it was unknown who was stronger between the two. While Edwin was solid in general and could fulfill many roles, Hoodie guy had never demonstrated his full strength. All the realm members in the team, including Genji, had taken a relatively modest approach and withheld their trump cards.

Joki greeted him with his weapon in hand and the prism in the other. "Good to see you. The mage here has already told the queen about our situation. Now we just need to regroup with everyone and lead a second investigation."

"Sounds good. Let's get going then."

However, Joki had a hesitant look. "Before that, can we take a detour?"

Genji looked over with interest and asked, "What's wrong? Did you find something?"

Joki nodded. "The villagers here have been disappearing recently. They go home at dusk and don't come out. When we check the inside, they are nowhere to be seen. There are no signs of struggle or traces of magic. The villagers are scared and begged me for help."

Genji immediately understood what Joki wanted to say. "You suspect this is related to the previous case?"

"I'm not certain, but there's a chance. The most recent disappearances involve a pair of children, no more than 10 years old. Unlike the others, they left a trail of breadcrumbs when they vanished. I was about to look for them when you arrived."

"Sure, I don't mind," Genji agreed. "You can lead the way."

Joki nodded in appreciation, and they began their journey. The breadcrumbs they found were stale and being picked apart by ants. Genji estimated them to be around two days old, though he could be wrong due to other factors. They walked through the village, around a mountain, up a cliff, and through the forest.

Eventually, they arrived at a literal candy land where the ground was made of marshmallows, the bushes of cake, and the river was a molten stream of chocolate. At the center of this was a house made of gingerbread cookies, held together by buttercream and decorated with fondant of various colors.

The smell of sugar overpowered all others, almost to a nauseating extent. It was almost like they could smell the diabetes in the air.

"What weird place did we enter this time?" Genji asked, speechless.

Astros jumped off his shoulder, broke off a nearby cracker, dipped it in the chocolate river, and enjoyed the treat. After finishing, Astros waved at Genji, beckoning him to try it as well. Genji accepted the suggestion and copied Astros's actions.

Joki was dumbfounded by this display. How could they be in the mood to eat when there could be danger right around the corner?

"Relax. It's not poisonous," Genji said, noticing his gaze. "Unless you count the excessive amount of sugar."

"That's not the point. Aren't you getting too sidetracked?"

"No, because we're not the ones who will take action." Genji patted Astros and asked him to scout the house. Astros was the perfect choice for this task because his skill set ensured no one would actively attack him.

Astros, glad to finally be helpful, yipped cheerfully and strolled toward the house. After slipping through a crack in the windows, he found an inconspicuous spot and took out his phone. A few minutes later, Genji received a recording of the interiors through his communication device.

He waved Joki over and played the footage. The video started with an atrocious hag sporting countless warts across her face, uneven eyelids, a large hanging nose, and a hunched back that could be mistaken for a semicircle. She walked slowly across the frame, using a cane made from what resembled human thigh bones to support her limping right leg.

A girl around seven years old followed behind, her head down and biting her lips nervously. They arrived at the fireplace where a sealed pot sat, cooking unevenly under the intense heat. The hag cautiously poked the lid, letting thin steam escape along with the faint sizzle of rendered fat.

The girl's stomach growled at the smell, but she knew this meal was not for her. She had been persisting for the past few days on nothing but stale bread and repulsively sweet candy, but never anything as substantial as meat. As such, she was plagued with constant hunger and feebleness. The countless chores from the hag certainly didn't help her case.

The hag ignored her, removed the pot from the fire, and brought it to a locked room in the back. She fumbled with a pocket on the side of her black robe for a few moments before fishing out a rusty key that weighed at least five kilograms. With her hands shaking, the hag pushed the key into the door and gave it an awkward twist.

Behind her, an eerie glint passed through the girl's eyes. It was unknown what she was thinking, but her eyes never left the hag. It was as if she wanted nothing more than to tear her apart and devour her flesh. That was how much hatred was between them.

They entered the room and saw a metallic cage holding a boy of eight years old. The hag approached with a scary grin and handed the cooled pot over. The boy, delighted at the meal, dug in ravenously, paying no heed to his starving sister or the ominous glint in the hag's eyes. All he cared about was the meal before him and the easy life he was living.

Due to this, the boy showed signs of chubbiness and clumsiness. After the boy finished the meal, the hag approached and rubbed his fingers. She felt the plumpness between her bony fingers and nodded in satisfaction. Then, as if subconsciously voicing her thoughts, the hag quietly muttered, "Yes, keep growing. Only then will you be meaty and delicious."

The video ended after that as Astros retreated from the doorway and escaped the terrifying house.

Seeing this, Joki's anger raged like an inferno, and the tips of his fingernails turned white from the exertion. The shaft of his weapon vibrated subtly, and he was about to storm the house when Genji grabbed his shoulder.

"Hold on. Something's wrong with the hag."

"And what's that? That she's a cannibal and grooming the children as food? I can see this as clearly as you!"

"No, that's not it. It's her eyes," Genji explained. "It doesn't look right. How do I explain it? It's like she's saying one thing but thinking another."

"And why are you defending her? Won't all of this end if we just kill her?"

"Calm down and think rationally. Don't you think there are a lot of suspicious points?"

Although unwilling, Joki followed his advice and reined in his emotions. After several deep breaths, he asked, "What's suspicious?"

"I'll show you," Genji said, rewinding the footage to the moment when the pot was slightly open over the fire. He paused at a time without the steam and pointed at the meat inside. "Do you notice anything unusual about this scene?"

"No. What are you trying to show me?"

"What about now?" Genji zoomed in, revealing a simmering finger bone, identical to their own.

Joki's eyes widened in shock, and his grip loosened. "W-what?! Why is that there?"

"As you can see, that's human meat in there. Sick and twisted interests aside, don't you think it's counterproductive to feed this to the kid if she's raising him for food? No matter how she feeds him, the output will never match the input. So that begs the question, what is going on?" Genji gave him some time to accept the truth before saying it aloud. "When all possibilities are exhausted, what remains must be the truth, no matter how unbelievable it is. The witch isn't the monster; it's the children."

"B-but why? How? It doesn't make any sense!"

"Look, we can rack our brains over this all we want, but it won't solve anything. In this regard, I'm with you on the violence part—just toward different targets. If you're still hesitant, I'll make the first move. That way, you won't have as much guilt."

"But what if you're wrong? What happens then? Can we trust whatever this device is?"

"That's a responsibility I'm willing to bear. Unlike you, the lives of innocents don't bother me. I would rather kill wrongly 100 times than let a potential danger go. It's my life that we're gambling with, and I'd rather not make any stupid decisions because of morality."

With those words, Genji drew his saber and strode toward the cabin. Joki followed with tumultuous emotions, still trying to wrap his head around this sudden twist.

Astros met them along the way and jumped back onto Genji's shoulder. Like this, the solemn team reached the door and knocked. Genji's grip tightened around the handle, ready to act at a moment's notice.

The shuffling of items was heard, followed by the clacking of a cane. The door opened, and Genji instantly kicked out. The hag flew aside, leaving the girl wide open. Without giving them any time to react, his saber stabbed out, shallowly grazing her chest. The attack missed because the girl had jumped back right before the saber fully extended.

This confirmed Genji's suspicions since a normal girl couldn't have avoided that. Genji immediately pursued the girl and manifested [Curse Bearer] for a few bursts. A typhoon of cutting intent filled the house and destroyed everything. As the walls crumbled, Joki dashed toward the hag, grabbed her by the collar, and brought her to safety.

A trickle of blood flowed down her forehead as she weakly opened her eyes. Joki had never seen so much despair in a person before. It was as if the person behind that hideous appearance had died inside. Her absent gaze went to Joki and regained some light.

However, the emotion that came over her wasn't hope or joy, but rather a plea for death, a sweet release from her painful existence. The very concept that kings and immortals fear, she desired.

"Hey, talk to me. What's going on? Are you a cannibal or not?"

"I-I am," she sobbed heartbrokenly. "But they're demons! T-they f-forced m-me t-to eat my own c-children. Hansel, Gretel. They died for nothing."

At this moment, a light explosion sounded from the half-collapsed house, and Genji slid through the rubble. He shook off the cracker dust on his clothes as he stopped beside them and addressed Joki. "Now's not the time to get sentimental. Help me get rid of them first." Then he dived right back into combat.

"I'll be right back," Joki said to the hag before following Genji. They jumped the collapsed crackers, and Joki finally saw their opponents.

The opponents were burly demons, with thick yellow skin and curled horns, nothing like their previous appearances. They had shed their innocent facades and taken on their true forms for combat.

Joki's anger soared at this realization, and his mana boiled along with his mood. Flames covered his spear, and he stabbed out with all his fury. The burly demon blocked his strike, but Joki transitioned the stab into a downward slash, molding the flames into a bladed shape.

A burnt cut dug through the stomach and carved into the thigh. Genji took advantage of this wound and appeared behind the demon. His saber emitted an oppressive momentum and left a deep gash on the back. Bruce channeled his blood control powers through this wound, commanding the blood to crystalize and rupture the demon from the inside.

However, the demon's skin was very thick and resistant to tearing. As such, the blood spikes only stretched the skin, giving the demon a thorny appearance. 

They each landed one more attack before the other demon forced them back and gave their partner time to recover. This demon was noticeably stronger because he had eaten just minutes before the battle and could fully exert his strength. This was the demon posing as the caged boy.

The male demon roared at them before invoking seven green fireballs behind his back. Joki and Genji charged forward to disrupt him when the demon detonated the fireballs. Joki conjured a rock wall to block the impact while Genji compressed his energy and intent for *Stealth Dagger*.

When the wall came down, Genji burst forward and hacked down. The demon crossed his arms above his head, but the blade easily cleaved through bone. By the time the blade stopped, only a thin strand of skin held the arm together.

Genji kicked at the head when a harpoon of green flames flew between them. This forced Genji back and brought enough time for the demon to save his arm.

However, the demons weren't the only ones capable of ranged attacks. Right after the female demon threw her spear, Joki blasted her with lightning bolts. Joki then slashed out a ring of flames and dragged the demon into a one-on-one confrontation. Elemental attacks and melee strikes flowed one after the other, demanding the demon's full attention.

Meanwhile, Genji utilized his greater agility to dance circles around his opponent. With each cut, more poison seeped into the demon's body, eroding his thick skin.

Bruce also did his best to hinder the brute's movements, attacking the tendons and bones from the inside. Together, they crippled the demon's mobility and destroyed his regeneration factor.

The demon stumbled backward and crashed into Joki's stray spells, enduring more injuries to the back.

Genji brandished his saber and approached menacingly, blocking off all paths of retreat. The demon's partner was in a similar situation and eventually, they crashed into each other. Their backs were pressed together as Genji and Joki cornered them from both sides.

Joki's flames flared brighter than ever, reflecting his vibrant emotions. Realizing their peril, the male demon turned to his partner and was about to suggest a final stand when a claw suddenly pierced his chest. A look of astonishment and betrayal flashed across the male demon's face, but the female demon only sneered at him.

Forget a last stand; only she would survive. The female demon was fed up with taking care of him, treating him like a king while she had to perform all the chores. Now that they were in a crisis, this pent-up resentment finally exploded and compelled her to take drastic action.

The demon yanked out her claw, revealing a pulsating sphere the size of a fist. Dense mana oozed from its cracks, a product of the demon's remaining life force and energy. She shoved this core into her mouth and fiercely chomped down, activating the volatile mana to empower herself.

Cracks broke out across her body, inflicting permanent harm, but the sense of danger increased exponentially. A big attack was coming, and it might kill everyone.

"Cover me!" Genji yelled, wrapping his blade in a vortex. His energy rapidly drained as he charged up his finisher.

Joki understood the assignment and stabbed his spear into the ground, unleashing a wide spell that disrupted the lingering hellfire. Genji stepped forward and manifested in front of the demon. As his blade came down, the demon realized she didn't have enough time and decisively ignited the gathered energy to induce a nuclear explosion that would kill both of them.

An unstable aura spread from the demon's chest, rippling outward at a dangerous rate. Intense light pierced through Genji's pupils as the precipice of the explosion dawned on him.

Genji's vision blurred from the overcharge, but that didn't stop his next actions. A silhouette burst forward from his body, covering the small distance between them. Genji performed the swap, and his blade dug into the demon's neck. Genji felt his energy rush into his opponent's body and smothered the rising danger.

The next moment, his saber exited the other side, reaping the demon's life along the way. The explosive energy scattered under his fierce vortex, and his vision soon returned to him.

A deep exhale left his lungs as relief swept over him. Another crisis had been slain.

[You have slain: Twin Demons of Bewitchment]

[Your maximum energy has increased by 120 points.]

[You have earned 600 realm coins.]

[You have obtained: Volatile Mana Core]

 

[Volatile Mana Core]

Rating: Epic (Lowest quality)

Type: Consumable

Effect: Charge this with 10,000 points of energy and activate it when needed, causing a massive explosion.

Description: A mana core that was forcibly halted mid-detonation. Its energy has scattered, but its pre-inscribed instructions have not. Give it enough energy, and it will still follow through.

Note: This construct is damaged. It will continue to leak energy during storage.

Note 2: Conversion between shadow energy and mana is somewhat inefficient, so you need to charge more energy than what the former owner had to.

Note 3: Due to its unstable nature, it's recommended that you only fill it up 90% of the way and charge the remaining 10% during use.

 

Genji put away the cracked core and returned to check on the hag. After so much fighting, it was time to get some answers. Yet when they found her, she was already dead, hanged from a willow tree with a makeshift rope. Strangely enough, the hag had a content smile on her face, as if released from a burden. Below her, 29 candy canes stood, each representing the gravestones of her former victims.

Genji gave the scene a moment of silence before asking, "How many villagers disappeared?"

"Including the recent children, 30," Joki answered without delay.

With that, the case of the missing villagers drew to a close, adding another story to Genji's mission.

[You have completed the story of "Hansel and Gretel"]

[Hansel and Gretel]

Description: What initially appeared to be mysterious disappearances turned out to be the doing of demons. They would tempt villagers in their sleep and lure them into their lair. They would numb their prey with sweetness, fattening them up and taking on their appearances after their meal. The most recent of which were two young children and a mother they tormented for fun.

Mission Progress: 5/3