Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 429 The Metamorphosis

Did the gluttonous king die from overeating?

The guards on the second floor looked at each other in disbelief. Their invincible overseer had actually died from two boxes of pizza.
This scene, which should have been horrifying, didn't seem so terrifying after all.

The murder weapon was not a sword or a gun, nor was it wind, fire, or lightning, but an ever-expanding dough. After completely engulfing Gluttony, the dough did not stop growing. It climbed up the walls and the ceiling, eventually filling the gap left by the broken motorcycle. Only after all this was done did the guards belatedly realize why Ethan had done it—this uninvited guest had used dough to block the prison's entrances and exits.

"Retreat! Retreat! Quickly report to the warden!"

The guards snapped out of their daze, but before they could even take a few steps, they crashed headfirst into a soft and elastic object. Caught off guard, they were thrown several meters by the dough before falling to the ground. When they looked at each other, they all pointed at one another in utter terror.

blood.

His entire body was stained red with blood.

This made them scream like madmen, but after a moment they realized something was wrong. Although they were covered in blood, they did not feel any pain. One of the guards wiped the red liquid off his face and licked it.

It's sweet and sour, with a hint of cheese.

Isn't this ketchup?
The joy of surviving the ordeal didn't last long. They heard a whisper from behind them, as if from the abyss, "250°C roasting."

The old lady who runs a pizza shop once mentioned that a good Margherita thin-crust pizza should be baked between 230°C and 250°C.

Before the jailer who was licking the tomato sauce could react, a heart-wrenching scream came from beside him. The scream didn't last long. When he looked in the direction of the sound, he saw that his "comrades" who were just like him a second ago were now charred yellow all over. The tomato sauce that had covered their bodies had seeped into their skin and stuck to it under the scorching heat.

In an instant, he became the last survivor.

What kind of evil magic is this?!
This was the first time in his life that he realized pizza could be used to kill, and this intruder who swaggered into the prison on a motorcycle was a formidable enemy the empire had never encountered before.

They had heard from the older generation of prison guards about the aftermath of the Violet Commune movement. During the time that nobleman was imprisoned, wave after wave of high-level superhumans broke into the prison, only to be met by a group of monsters that could never be released to the surface.

It was a terrifying being they had never encountered before. In those repeated invasions, the Gluttonous King alone devoured 37 rescuers.

Therefore, they firmly believed that the Watchers were invincible.

But now, a monster even more terrifying than the watcher has appeared. The jailer caught a glimpse of how Ethan climbed to the second floor out of the corner of his eye. He was being lifted up by white dough, which was as nimble as his limbs.

"No, don't kill me! Otherwise, the warden will not let you go. She is ten times, no, a hundred times stronger than the Monitor! By the way, His Highness the Prince and the commander of the Imperial Army are here right now. If you run away with your tail between your legs, you might be able to save your life!"

The jailer stumbled backward, bolstering himself with an almost roaring manner, as he experienced firsthand the despair of the prisoners.

They were standing on the second floor of the prison, watching the prisoners, suffering from the fall, retreat in vain to the edge of the circular arena, only to watch helplessly as the monster in their eyes approached them.

"Now I can rest assured."

The surviving jailer, just like the prisoners he had seen on the second floor who were used as "food," had a ferocious face, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets. His back was already pressed against the soft dough, but he was still retreating in vain. His movements were slow, and he could not close the distance between himself and the monster at all.

The threats turned into meaningless roars and shouts.

This used to be a pastime for them as prison guards; they would still bet on which prisoner the overseer would keep until the very end.

That would be the most painful way to die.

Because Gluttony King usually treats the last prisoner as dessert, he eats very slowly, holding the prisoner in his hand, sometimes screaming even when more than half of their body has disappeared.

And now, he is the last one.

The jailer saw Ethan's right hand raised high.

"That's why you're still breathing."

The expected death did not come; he heard something fall beside him.

It was a parchment book.

"The Flour Elements Handbook - Author: Xiao An"

He could vaguely make out the crooked handwriting on the parchment: “You have fifteen minutes to hand this book to the warden. It contains the secrets of flour elemental magic. Tell her to prepare in advance… Temperature is the secret to a delicious pizza. If you go overtime, you’ll experience the feeling of being fried to pieces.”

The soft touch behind him disappeared. The jailer picked up the parchment book and scrambled to his feet, only to fall twice more before regaining his balance. Without looking back, he ran deeper into the prison.

"Is it a trick?"

The old woman stepped onto the dough and climbed up to the second floor of the circular arena.

She immediately understood Ethan's tactics. The warden was undoubtedly the most troublesome enemy in the prison, and all those who later tried to rescue the master eventually died deep inside the prison.

Eliminating a watcher would undoubtedly intimidate the warden, while the parchment book was the core of the deception tactic, making the warden mistakenly believe that the intruders were after her. They could then take advantage of the gaps in the warden's defenses to launch a feint and rescue young Master Balmont and the hero.

"Moriko, you must have heard that this is the most heavily guarded place in the empire, and any intruder will never return, right?"

The old woman gave Ethan a comforting reminder.

Courage, strength, and strategy coexist.

If the patriarch had been able to find someone with ambition like Ethan back then, perhaps the commune's fate would have been different.

She asked, "What are our plans next?"

"Go find the warden."

"……What?"

In an instant, the old woman's expression froze on her face.

“Grandma, you heard it too, didn’t you? The jailer said the warden is 100 times stronger than that big guy from before.”

On this basis, Ethan handed over the manuscript about flour elements that Xiao An had written along the way. It contained detailed records of Ethan's impromptu ideas on the use of flour elements, as well as various precautions. Simply put, it was like a strategy guide for players before challenging a dungeon boss.

Ethan was greatly disappointed by his previous battle with the Skinner, and he hoped that the Warden, who was 100 times stronger than Gluttony King, could give him a sense of a more evenly matched fight with the help of the strategy guide.

"Let's see how far flour can go."

These words left the old woman speechless.

She decided to retract her earlier assessment of Ethan, reflecting on his behavior throughout the process.

They tore the gluttons in half, roasted the second-floor guards like pizzas, and just now even threatened to plant bombs that would automatically detonate in fifteen minutes inside the bodies of the surviving guards...

This guy can turn the way he makes pizzas into a killing technique!

At this moment, even she felt a chill run down her spine.

Perhaps the young master has made a mistake...

There were simply no like-minded righteous people.

They had simply encountered a deranged killer who took pleasure in slaughtering Silver Empire officials and nobles!

Meanwhile, deep within the prison.

“Sir Cedric, I have long heard of your great name and have been looking forward to meeting you.”

A dimly lit room, which looked like a witch's laboratory.

On the cabinet were human skeletons, as well as some unidentifiable spellcasting materials. The transparent containers were filled with human remains such as fingers, and there were ornaments made of unknown skin on the wall. Cedric did not want to investigate the origin of these things.

What he really wanted to do was stay at the Bloodthorn family's manor and wait for the Other Shore to come out and fight him.

However, he was ordered to personally escort the hero to the prison. This was an order from the Crown Prince himself. He also withdrew all the imperial troops and concentrated all the forces in the prison.

Surprisingly, the Crown Prince seemed convinced that Mir-Bloodthorn could handle the minor disturbances that were happening within their family.

The woman before me, with her amber snake eyes, is the warden of this prison. Compared to the other "deformed" monitors I've seen along the way, she looks the most normal.

Cedric noticed the watchers' attitude toward the warden; their eyes betrayed their deep-seated fear of him. Cedric was familiar with that look, for he too had come from a pack with a wolf-like social structure—the look one gives when looking at the alpha wolf.

Along the way, he heard many amusing anecdotes about the watchers.

They are the product of the failed transformation of the "Spark," and their deformed bodies are all the result of the "Spark's" modification. However, they were not prisoners or lab rats used by nobles for experiments. Before their "transformation," they were all top nobles in the Silver Glow Empire. They received gifts from the king, but they also paid a price for it.

This means that most of these watchers have lived for hundreds of years, with the oldest one having lived from the time of Henry II to the present day.

The passage of time has stabilized his mental state, but his body, distorted by the "fire," can never return to normal.

He was initially uninterested in the warden's invitation and the background of the prison, until the warden offered a reason he couldn't refuse—"You heard that voice too, didn't you?"

Cedric didn't know the source of the voice, but when he tentatively followed the advice given to him by the "fire," his power, which had been stagnant for many years, was once again amplified.

But on the other hand, that "spark" was always hindering his actions.

It repeatedly states that he is no match for the other shore now, because the other shore has already completed its "transformation" without his knowledge, and it is a near-perfect transformation.

What's even more frustrating is that the voice never explained in detail how the transformation was completed, it didn't always appear, and it never answered his inner questions.

“Sir Cedric, your situation is quite special.”

The warden sat down opposite him and, in front of him, poured an ominous yellowish-green liquid into his water glass and pushed it toward Cedric.

"You are the first person that 'Fire Seed' has actively sought out."

The warden scrutinized Cedric, seemingly trying to discern anything special about him. "Based on your description, I believe it belongs to the Simpler family's Fire. But then again, their actions are a desecration of the 'Fire.'"

Cedric did not respond; he waited quietly for the warden to continue.

“Although I can’t leave this prison, I still have ways to know what’s happening on the surface. The Simpler family is training their men with ‘fire’, isn’t that right? Those people called the Skinners.”

This is an unconventional approach.

According to the Simpler family's theory, while such training may not produce absolute powerhouses, it creates a large number of loyal assassins who are completely obedient to the family. These assassins are more than capable of dealing with most high-level superhumans.

Even a powerful figure like Lance, renowned throughout the continent, would die from exhaustion under the siege of the Skinners.

"In my opinion, that's just making excuses for their cowardice."

The warden smirked. “Esh-Simpler was a regular at this prison. He liked the atmosphere. Until one time I mentioned the identities of those watchers to him, telling him that these people were once high-ranking nobles of the empire, just like him. Since then, Ash-Simpler has never come here again.”

“He was afraid of becoming a watcher and dared not use the gift of the ‘spark’ on himself, so the ‘spark’ that should have belonged to the Simpler family chose you.”

She paused briefly, then said, “Congratulations, Cedric Thorne. You have become the first person in the Empire to be chosen by the ‘Fireseed,’ which means your transformation will proceed without any mishaps.”

"Then what about Mir-Bloodthorn?"

Cedric suddenly asked.

As the warden recounted his story, he vaguely understood why the Crown Prince trusted Mir-Bloodthorn.

“He is different from these people.”

The warden responded to his conjecture, “He has successfully transformed, so he can continue to stay in his manor and enjoy the many benefits brought by the ‘Fire Seed’… In this country, no one who has not received the gift of the ‘Fire Seed’ can possibly defeat the holder of the ‘Fire Seed’. This has been an ironclad rule for thousands of years—you should have already experienced the benefits brought by the ‘Fire Seed’, right?”

How do I complete this transformation?

Cedric asked.

The voice's assessment of the other side deeply affected him.

The woman, who was suspected to be from the same ethnic group as him, not only successfully transformed, but also received the evaluation of "perfection".

"Drink this drink I made for you."

"It's that simple?"

"Of course not, this is just the beginning."

....................................

The capital city, the Bloodthorn family manor.

The dark muzzle of a gun was pointed at the figure slowly walking out of the study, but no one dared to pull the trigger, and no one dared to step forward to stop her.

The battle just now was something that these "mortals" could not possibly intervene in.

They witnessed the Blood Duke transformed into a blood giant, all of which was beyond their comprehension.

Now, the terrifying blood giant has returned to its original form.

The bloodthirsty duke, already lifeless, was held in the hands of the red-haired woman and thrown into the ranks of the guards like trash.

Not long ago, she was just a nobody who was easily killed by the hero while chasing him.

"W-who are you?"

Finally, someone couldn't help but ask a question.

"Ok?"

The red-haired woman stopped, glanced at the questioner from the side, and the guards were so frightened that they hid in the crowd. The fully armed guards took several steps back because of her glance.

They heard the red-haired woman's contemptuous laughter, but could only swallow their anger.

Before leaving the manor, the red-haired woman answered their questions.

"I am someone who has reached that realm."

(End of this chapter)