Instantly, the words caught in the witch’s throat, an invisible pressure bearing down on her. Her legs buckled, her own weight increasing two, five, tenfold in a second—and still growing.
The crunching of her bones reverberated through her crushed body. The agony was unbearable, but the consequences were much worse. Locked in place by the crushing, she had no way to escape. She hated it, but could only use her trump card to ensure survival.
As she channelled her mana, however, Adam’s voice cut through her hopes.
"I also thought you wielded symbiotic magic. I didn’t know I was literally correct. Symbiosis through infestation. That’s how you control the forest, that’s how you plan to escape."
He retrieved an empty parchment from his spatial ring, mana dancing on its rough surface into glowing symbols. Although he had never crafted it, he had seen and used it a few dozen times during his college days.
With a thought, he blinked into the gravity zone he had summoned and strapped the parchment, now a talisman, on the witch’s forehead. A vicious smirk split his face as he continued. "Monsters like you don’t deserve second chances. That was my last misunderstanding."
The talisman burst with a radiant light, making the witch tremble in horror. He could use mana! No, it didn’t matter when she felt the paper extirpate her soul while she tried to transfer it to the girl. She couldn’t let it happen!
Adam was correct. She controlled the forest through parasites that carried fragments of her soul, allowing her to transfer it to a new vessel and cheat death—at the cost of time. In this case, the girl was the best target. She could have hidden in her, biding her time to recover while marking her body and slowly taking it over. But he had even seen through that plan!
She wanted to plead with him for forgiveness, to tell him she would atone for her sins. But the pressure denied her even that. Her spells? She had tried already. They couldn’t pierce his skin. Worse, something destroyed her microscopic parasites as soon as they approached him. Infecting him was impossible.
The only things left were the increasing sensation of being crushed, the agony of feeling her soul torn out of her body, and a deep reluctance.
When did things go wrong? Should she have been more amicable when he reached the clearing, or met him outside instead of focusing on devouring the girl’s life force? She didn’t know, but she wouldn’t die without retaliating!
Mana erupted as blood poured down her crushed limbs. ’Sealing my soul isn’t enough, fool. I’ll escape the moment you die, and death will soon reap you.’
Feeling an ominous aura condense behind him and try to seep into his skin, Adam felt his heart pulse with radiant light before he shrugged.
Unbothered, he watched the witch flatten into a mess of ragged skin and blood. Her bones, ground to dust, drifted around the caved-in ground, her death as wretched as the atrocities she had caused to innocent children. Then, he waved his hand to disperse the mana trying to infiltrate him in vain, smirking.
"After how many years will you realise your curse didn’t work? How hard will despair strike when you do?"
He retrieved the talisman, now engraved with the image of the scarlet-haired witch and crowned by seven stars. Like Ignatius, she would repent as a card, unused, forgotten for eternity. That was his sentence; that was what she deserved.
Behind him, the girl trembled. Tears trailed down her cheeks as she stumbled toward the witch, grief and disbelief melding into a despairing grimace. She fell to her swollen knees. The stitches burst open, leaking pus that filled the room with a stench of decay.
Yet, she didn’t even notice it. Instead, she stretched her hand into the blood, sniffling. "No, no, no. You can’t die, Miss Witch of the West. My parents need your cure. I’ll be obedient. I won’t ever cry again. So, please return."
All the controlled rage that had fueled Adam faded at her words. Only a bitter taste remained in his mouth, and a deep sadness in his heart.
For the sake of her parents, she sacrificed herself, gritting her teeth through horrible abuses. Even worse, this innocent child was just one among the witch’s many victims. But those were long gone—only she mattered now. And honestly, he admired her selfless courage.
’She deserves happiness.’ A steely glint flashed in his eyes. ’I will grant it to her. Never again will she suffer. I vow it.’
He grabbed her by the shoulder, feeling her small figure tremble.
She snapped her head at him, tears smearing her grotesque cheeks as she roared.
"You murderer! My parents will die because of you! Everything I suffered, everything I endured is wasted." She pulled on his fingers, trying to fling them off without success. "Leave me alone. I hope you die like you killed her!"
Adam shook his head, a gentle smile curving his lips. Then, he brought her into a warm hug, his voice soft. "The witch isn’t the only one who can cure them."
"Who can, then? Do you think we didn’t beg those greedy cultivators? We gave them everything—even our pride! I’ve seen my father grit his teeth until his gums bled when he prostrated for a chance to cure my mom. Do you know what they said?"
Her voice cracked in rage, her sobbing increasing. "That bitch’s too old to be worth anything. We’ll take the kid... but she’s not even pretty. Fine. Toss in another fifty spirit stones, and maybe we’ll heal her. Commoners are worth less than meat to them! Only the witch showed us mercy."
"You’re no different. Let me go!" She struggled to free herself, drumming with her fists against his chest while he remained silent for a few seconds.
The silence stretched until her strength waned, and only her sobs echoed.
That’s when he muttered. "I know. You worked really hard to help them."
A warm light spread from him, its contact surprisingly soothing her mind. Even her mess of a body seemed a little more comfortable in its glow. And his words... they struck her young heart.