Blood Assimilation

"No, you're wrong. I would never harm my own family. My wife and daughter are all I have left in this world. I could never bear to hurt them. You're lying to me!" The man's demeanor had shifted into a state of frenzy, his spirit broken as he adamantly denied the possibility of such a grim fate and reality.

Observing the man's unstable state, Liena persisted, her tone unwavering.

"No, you would. You would transform into an unstoppable monster, driven by the urge to kill and consume your victims. Despite your love for them, you wouldn't be able to shield your family from the horrors of the Demon Seed within you. That is the harsh reality and inevitable fate of someone implanted with a Demon Seed. So, what will you do now?"

The moonlight bathed Liena's figure, casting shadows of her holding her dagger. The light of the moon reflected the sharp edge of her dagger's blade with its glow as Liena approached the man pinned down by Brawler Randy.

"Now that you know your tragic fate, what choice will you make?" Liena whispered, her soft voice carrying a haunting weight to the man's ears, hinting at the decision she expected from him.

After contemplating with a somber expression, the distraught man's demeanor shifted, his firm resolve apparent on his face. He spoke with newfound confidence.

"I understand the decision you're urging me to make. I agree, but before I proceed to give to you an answer, I need a promise from you. If you can assure me of this, then I'll end my life on my own terms."

Liena's expression softened as she inquired: "What do you need?"

"Can you promise to keep my family out of this? They're innocent and unaware of my pact with the demons. Also, can you inform my wife and daughter that I perished at the hands of a magical beast rather than being branded a traitor to humanity and killed as a result?" As he made his pleas, tears welled up in his reddish eyes, though they refused to fall from the confines of his determined eyes.

On top of the man, Brawler Randy, witnessing the scene, felt a pang of empathy and a strange emotion filling his heart. To prevent further tragedy involving many innocent lives, they were compelled to end the life of a man driven solely by the desire to protect his loved ones and their livelihood.

After a moment of silence, Liena responded to the man's plea of wanting to protect his family's life in exchange for his death. Watching the man, her emotions were stirred by memories from her past, but before she shook her head.

Liena observed the man pleading for his family's safety in exchange for his death. Her emotions were stirred by memories from her past, but she shook her head before proceeding to reply to the honorable man.

"I promise. I can even assist them in relocating if it ensures their safety. Besides, someone in your village might have witnessed your actions and could accuse them of complicity."

"Thank you. But relocating isn't necessary." The man expressed gratitude while declining her offer.

Acknowledging his decision, Liena nodded. Despite her orders to eliminate any accomplice of a Demon Seed Bearer, she couldn't justify punishing those who hadn't been implanted with Demon Seed or willingly participated in the decision leading to the man's actions. She found it too harsh to condemn family members of her targets.

With compassion guiding her thoughts, she resolved to aid the man's family to the best of her ability.

"By the way, I didn't catch your name. Once again, I'm Liena." She said.

"Zandi. My name is Zandi." The man replied without much thought. Then, to the surprise of Liena and Brawler Randy, he revealed.

"Actually, I'm from West Wind Village. I knew from the start that you were lying about your identities and where you came from."

Ignoring their reactions, Zandi locked eyes with Liena as he spoke directly to her.

"Though I can't be certain if you'll keep your promise to me, I'm willing to take a chance. I'll trust in this compassionate young man that you'll honor your word."

Taking a deep breath to steady himself and steel his nerves, tears welling in his eyes and trickling down from the corners of his eyes, Zandi calmly requested: "Now, I want you to end my life. Make it painless. I don't want to die an agonizing death."

"…Alright." Liena replied after a brief pause, approaching Zandi with her dagger in hand.

Even though it was callous to kill someone desperate to protect his family, Liena was resolute in her actions, her expression impassive as she approached the man while brandishing her dagger.

Having experienced similar tragic circumstances where her own father, as village chief, transformed into a monstrous being due to a germinated Demon Seed, killing her mother and nearly killing her, she harbored a deep-seated hatred for demons. She sought to eradicate any connection to them to prevent others from suffering the same fate as her family.

Knowing that those infected with Demon Seeds couldn't be saved once the seed began to germinate, she felt no remorse. Only by killing the hosts could the Demon Seeds be rendered useless. However, she remained vigilant, as Demon Seeds would seek new hosts if left unchecked after the old host died. They would have to be eradicated promptly as soon as the host died to prevent new chaos from ensuing.

As she stood above the man, without hesitation, with Brawler Randy standing aside, she swiftly pierced Zandi's heart from behind, ensuring his death with a decisive blow. But her vigilance remained as she pierced his chest again, anticipating any unexpected developments.

Her vigilance paid off when a grotesque creature burst from his chest after Zandi's death, its many tentacle-like limbs writhing menacingly. The grotesque creature with numerous tentacle-like limbs burst forth from Zandi's chest, moving with malevolent intent.

"Watch out!" Liena shouted, seeing the creature's target, Brawler Randy, who was still reeling from the sight of Zandi's death.

Alerted by her warning, Brawler Randy realized the danger as, to his horror, the creature lunged toward him, its tentacles gathering to a point as it aimed for his chest. Before it could attach itself and merge with him, turning him into the unthinkable, Liena swiftly intervened, dispatching the creature with precise gleaming strikes of her dagger, reducing it to scattered pieces on the ground.

Before it perished, the hideous creature emitted a harrowing shrill that could send shivers down the spines of the weak-minded. After dispatching the horrifying creature, Liena breathed out a sigh of relief before sharply turning to Brawler Randy with a stern and angry expression.

"You idiot! Do you want to die? If that thing had possessed your body, I wouldn't hesitate to cut you down too. Those affected by fully and partially germinated Demon Seeds can only be killed, the same verdict as the original host." She reprimanded before walking away in annoyance, having had enough of him.

Brawler Randy was about to defend himself, stating that he would have been okay, but he thought better of it, afraid it would further agitate Liena, aggravating her mood. Instead, he took a deep breath and stomped on the creature that had been wriggling on the ground despite being cut into pieces by Liena's multiple slashes.

"It's not even dead even after being cut into pieces? What kind of creature is this? How repulsive."

Expressing his disgust, he continued to stomp on the various pieces of the sprouted Demon Seed.

The more Brawler Randy thought about the source of the creature, the angrier and more disgusted he became of it. Somehow, the death of the Demon Seed Bearer, Zandi, affected him more deeply than he anticipated, making him question if Liena had truly done the right thing.

He may be unruly, but he discovered he also had a sense of justice, understanding the principle that criminals had to receive punishment and innocent civilians needed to be saved. This dilemma brought about by Zandi's helpless circumstances made him realize that sometimes even doing a good deed may not leave a good aftertaste.

Watching the disconcerting tentacle-like parts of the sprouted Demon Seed still wriggling on the ground as if alive, Brawler Randy worriedly asked Liena: "Are you sure this thing is dead?"

"It's dead." Liena replied without turning to look at him.

"But it's still wriggling like it's still alive." Brawler Randy persisted, apparently unconvinced. He suddenly noticed a piece of black, fleshy tentacle nearing his foot as he spoke to Liena.

"Damn! A tentacle just tried to get close to me. Liena, are you sure this thing is dead? Why don't you cut it into even more pieces, just in case?" He stomped on the appalling tentacle, but it continued to wriggle like a worm, prompting him to back away in trepidation, realizing the resilience of the tentacle.

Annoyed by his plethora of doubtful queries, Liena reluctantly turned around. She explained: "It's already dead because I destroyed its core with my dagger when I attacked it. Those tentacles writhing on the ground are caused by its residual muscle signals. They'll jerk around for a while before stopping completely."

Liena turned back and approached the hut that the rampage of the transformed Zandi had demolished. Though she could tell that Brawler Randy was still unconvinced by her explanation, she didn't care. She had said what needed to be said.

If he didn't believe her words, it wasn't her fault. He didn't appear to pester her anymore with doubtful questions, indicating he had somewhat accepted her explanation.

While Brawler Randy kept an eye on the wriggling black tentacles, remnants of the dispatched sprouted Demon Seed, Liena stood before the demolished hut. She gathered the pieces of the hut in one place and set them on fire, watching as they burned.

Brawler Randy walked toward her, announcing when he was a meter away.

"The tentacles have stopped moving. I think that thing has finally died."