SSS Demon King System: The Rise of a Dying Extra-Chapter 32: Hunting Dogs. (3)

"I’m not saying a word, bitch," Freya said, spitting on the ground as a sign of rebellion.

Katerina sighed.

It had been difficult to subdue Freya; in fact, she had to use one of her valuable artifacts to be able to seal her.

Right now, Freya was chained by chains of darkness, which absorbed all the spiritual power the priestess tried to use. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

It was an incredible artifact she had gotten very cheap on the black market; apparently, it was an item that had been stolen from the Kaitos mansion, which made the piece even more satisfying to use.

"Tsk, I suppose she won’t fall for torture or something like that," the woman clicked her tongue while biting her nail angrily. In situations like that, Lucile was very useful; however, she had stopped appearing after completing her last job. "Well, it doesn’t matter, I think I already see a good incentive coming."

Freya’s neck turned violently when she detected a familiar smell.

"Hati!" she said with concern; her eyes, previously filled with the rage of a wild beast, were now filled with a mother’s desperation.

Hati was in a terrible state.

An assassin carried her over his shoulder; Freya could see bruises and cuts on her.

She had surely fought until the end.

Upon hearing her mother’s voice, Hati’s ears moved subtly while she opened her eyes with difficulty; upon seeing her mother, they filled with tears.

"Mommy," she said with a thread of voice that barely reached a whisper.

Freya felt as if her heart was breaking; her so different daughter had called her the same as when she was little. What had they done to her to leave her like this?

"Well, I suppose you can understand, right? If you don’t accept our requests... well, in my group there’s a half-giant who loves to ’play’ with women. I’m sure you don’t want that guy to get together with your daughter, right?" the woman’s voice sounded with an arrogant tone, from someone who knows they’ve already won.

Freya’s face contorted at that woman’s horrible declaration. She felt sudden urges to vomit, but restrained herself.

"I-I will say everything I know," the woman finally said.

"That’s better, good girl," Katerina said, patting her head mockingly.

Nothing ensured that woman would take pity on her daughter when she spoke; however, that was her only hope.

"However, there’s a problem: I can’t remove the seal, I’m only a guardian," Freya said with a tired voice.

Katerina’s brow frowned; she pulled Freya’s hair so she would look up.

Her eyes weren’t lying, she could tell.

"Shit... Shit!"

Katerina turned with frustration while biting her nails.

She began to walk in circles while reflecting.

After a while, she sighed.

"Well, kill her. If she’s no use to us, there’s no reason to keep her alive," she finally said.

An assassin unsheathed his sword, approaching Freya, who had given up resisting.

The blade remained suspended in the air; however, before it fell on Freya’s neck, someone interrupted them.

"WAIT!" a voice said.

Everyone turned toward the source.

There was the trembling Hati, who, with tearful eyes, couldn’t allow her mother’s death.

"There’s a way," she said between sobs and hiccups. "The prophecy says that when the priestesses of the sun and moon come together, they can open the temple’s seal."

Freya’s eyes opened with astonishment; she didn’t expect her to speak.

The woman searched with her gaze for Sköll; she wasn’t anywhere.

Had she managed to escape? If that was so, she was her last hope.

"So don’t kill my mommy... Please."

Freya looked at her daughter; her face was full of tears, snot and bruises.

How could they leave her little one like that? Life was so unfair.

Freya sighed; she knew how hard it would be for Hati from now on.

It really wasn’t something a child should experience... No, no one should go through that.

However, it was inevitable, she knew it; so, at least, she should dedicate one last smile to her daughter.

"I love yo—" She didn’t continue the sentence; her head was cut off instantly, rolling on the ground.

Hati’s desperate screams filled the forest.

***

"My daughter ~ come on ~ why do you keep running from me? ~"

"Freki’s" ominous voice resonated in the forest.

How long had she been escaping? Sköll didn’t know; to her it seemed like hours.

The girl didn’t know how long that hell had lasted; however, she didn’t see how to escape from it either.

"Honey, stop playing and come hug your mother," Freki’s voice changed; now it was her "mother" speaking.

With an accelerated pulse and body soaked in sweat, Sköll slowly crawled from her bush, then hid behind a tree.

"Oh, come on, don’t you want to come greet your grandfather?" Garou now said with a playful voice.

She ignored it; it wasn’t him, it wasn’t real.

The young girl moved in silence, reaching another bush and hiding in it.

"Why did you abandon me, sister?" Sköll’s blood froze upon hearing that; she couldn’t help but emit a small choked scream.

She tried to cover it with her hands; however, the sound had already escaped.

"I found you ~"

Sköll felt a chill; she had to flee. Her legs trembled; however, she forced herself to move.

Sköll ran without looking back, while hearing the mixed voices of her family calling her.

Her eyes filled with tears.

Why did all this have to happen? Just a few hours ago, her only problem was that her sister surpassed her and that her father was too strict.

However, all that lost weight now... It didn’t matter anymore; she would do whatever it took to get out of that nightmare. She would be obedient, behave well, train diligently.

But it was too late, it was too late for her.

A root protruded from the ground; Sköll didn’t see it, and logically, she tripped over it.

Rolling on the ground, Sköll saw her end approaching.

She tried to get up, but it was already too close.

"Sköll! Sköll! Sköll!" the voices of her loved ones overlapped in a gloomy symphony.

When she looked up, she found the true form of "that thing."

It was a deformed mass, an amalgamation of her parents, her grandfather and her sister.

A ball of flesh with multiple heads and limbs protruding.

Even being such a deformed being, it was fast; it used twisted hands and legs to move while knocking down trees in its path.

Sköll crawled backward, seized by panic; she had no escape now.

She felt how the rocks on the ground dug into her skin, but she didn’t care.

Though all effort was already useless, she knew it.

But she didn’t want to die; she wanted to return to her grandfather, her mother, her sister and her father; she wanted to return to everyone in her tribe and be able to tell them how much she loved them all.

The creature was getting closer and closer and then, it detached from the ground with a jump, lunging at her.

She saw how the aberration fell on her, knowing it was her end.

However, the end never came; at the last moment, just when the creature was about to descend, a roar was heard.

Sköll witnessed how a gigantic ray of light impacted against the being, completely disintegrating it...

Garou never missed his shot.