So why should she fear this beast? Why shouldn't she fight him with everything she had, until the last drop of blood drained from her body?
Thus, like a thorny vine creeping through the crevices of a stone until it splits the rock in half, her anger and hatred slowly crushed the rock called fear in her heart. Sisi stared at Mr. Piker not with fear, nor with unyielding spirit, but with extreme hatred.
Mr. Piker noticed her unusual gaze. He was used to seeing her look at him with hatred, especially when he tried to rape her every night, but this was different.
This gaze sent a chill down his spine. It made him want to retreat immediately.
His instinct told him to take a step back, but rationality soon forced him to stay put.
Why should he be scared of an unarmed girl who couldn't even push him away? It was ridiculous—especially since he was holding a gun that could kill her in a second.
Thus, Mr. Piker lifted his chin high and mocked her, "Why are you looking at me like that, you little shit? Has your gut grown so big that you want to defy me? I'm getting tired of this. Take off your clothes before I shoot this wolf—"
Before Mr. Piker could finish his sentence, the ground suddenly trembled as if something huge were moving beneath it.
At first, he thought he was imagining it, but the trembling grew worse by the second until he couldn't ignore it anymore.
A loud rumbling came from beneath the floor. He looked down and saw the tiles begin to crack and shatter one by one.
"What the—"
Mr. Piker had no time to react when a giant vine suddenly shot out from the ground beneath him, striking him in the stomach, lifting him off his feet, and throwing him across the room until he crashed into a wall.
"Urk—!" Mr. Piker spat blood as the impact forced him to release the wolf cage. A smaller vine shot up from the ground and conveniently caught the cage before it hit the floor.
But the earthquake didn't stop even after Mr. Piker was hurt. The trembling continued as giant vines burst from underground, destroying the floor and splitting the house in two.
As Sisi continued glaring at Mr. Piker with extreme hatred, the branches and vines from nearby trees began to move toward the house. As if they had minds of their own, they broke through doors and windows and tore apart the walls and roof, making sure the house was thoroughly demolished.
Mr. Piker was aghast at the sight. His eyes stayed locked on Sisi the entire time. He realized that her pupils had changed color, from brown to shining violet, and they glinted dangerously, as if she wanted to skin him alive.
'Witch! S-she is a witch!' Mr. Piker could only scream in his heart, unable to utter a single insult toward Sisi anymore.
Frightened like a cornered rat, his instinct was to struggle as hard as he could.
With shaking hands, he lifted the gun, aimed at Sisi's head, and screamed as he pulled the trigger.
"Die, you witch!"
BANG!
The bullet flew at high velocity toward Sisi, but before it could reach her, a giant vine surged upward, erecting itself like a shield. It intercepted the bullet before slowly lowering itself again.
Sisi glanced at the vines outside the broken window. They responded instantly, slithering inside and wrapping around Mr. Piker's hands, feet, and neck.
The vine around his neck began to tighten, and Mr. Piker could only struggle helplessly before staring at Sisi desperately. With great difficulty, he muttered, "S-spare… me…"
Seeing his hopelessness, Sisi's shining violet eyes slowly faded back to brown.
A wave of dizziness washed over her, and the vine that was strangling Mr. Piker loosened its hold. However, the vines around his hands and feet did not move, pinning him firmly in place.
"Ugh…" Sisi held her head as the intense headache nearly made her lose her balance.
Once she regained clarity, the first thing she did was check on Jojo.
"Jojo!" Sisi rushed toward him and opened the cage.
Jojo leaped into her arms and buried his head against her neck.
He said nothing, but his soft sobs made it clear that he was not truly without fear.
"There, there… it's alright. I'm here with you. I won't let you get hurt," Sisi whispered, comforting the wolf cub, patting his butt lightly before caressing his head. Even though Jojo had shown incredible bravery, he was still a child. He must have been terrified deep down.
As she held him close, Sisi looked around, and realized what she had done.
She didn't know what kind of power had suddenly erupted from inside her, but when her hatred reached its peak, it felt like a volcano erupting, releasing power she could no longer control.
The vines had torn apart the floor, walls, roof, windows, and doors, turning the once luxurious farmhouse into ruin.
She could sense that each of these vines came from the nearby trees. Even the colossal one underground seemed to originate from an ancient tree deep within Roc Forest, one she had never even seen before.
She turned to Mr. Piker, who was still gasping for air after she released him one second before he was strangled to death.
Sisi's gaze turned cold as she said icily, "How dare you beg for mercy after what you've done to me."
Mr. Piker never expected Sisi to be a witch. He was terrified, but smart enough to avoid provoking her further after witnessing her power.
Thus, he tried to reason for his life. "If—if you kill me, then you'll be a murderer. Didn't you tell me, every night I tried to touch you, that you wanted to die a good and clean woman? That's why you rejected me every day. If you kill me, then you're no longer a good woman, your hands will be stained with blood, you're no better than a beast!"