The Divine Hunter

Chapter 149

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“Have mercy, good sir!” the old man howled, groveling before Roy, not unlike a dog trying to save its skin.

Roy was about to execute the old man, but Letho stopped him.

The old man quickly banged his head against the ground, and tears fell down his pasty cheeks. Fear squeezed his heart, and it made him piss himself. “Have mercy on me, good sirs! I have not harmed a single soul!”

“I-I cut it off from the dead. I have no blood on my hands.”

“How did you get your hands on the corpse, then?” Letho interrogated.

The old man stammered, “I-It’s the villagers the vodyanoi killed.”

Roy held his fury back and asked as calmly as he could, “So you’re saying that you told the fallen about our plans, and they give you ‘food’ in return?”

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Panta kept quiet, but that was an answer in and of itself. He slowly removed his neck from Letho’s grip and curled up in a corner.

Panta raised his gnarly arm and pointed at the thigh that was lying on the ground. He stared at it with passion, and he goaded, “If you want to know my answer, then all you have to do is take a bite. One bite is enough. I promise you’ll fall in love with its flavor. Its texture and aroma are so, so much better than any meat I have ever eaten. Oh, it is such a joy to eat human flesh.” He licked his lips, and his eyes glinted with indulgence. “Ever since I had a taste of it, I lost all desire for any other meat. It’s as if they are tasteless tree bark. I would vomit every time I ate them. It was then I knew that I couldn’t live without human flesh. Curing it isn’t the perfect way to go. Fres…” The old man suddenly kept quiet, then he said, “It’s better if the flesh is stewed.”

Panta answered vaguely, “I’m an old soul now. I can’t remember when exactly, but it has been a while.”

“Have you met anyone who shares your taste for flesh?”

“No-Nobody wants to take part in this blessing with me.”

Roy nodded. “You can keep the flesh for yourself. Now tell us how we can get in touch with the fallen.”

“Will you spare my life if I tell you?”

“Have you truly never harmed a single soul?” Letho asked.

“In the name of Lebioda, I have never harmed a single life!” Panta adamantly defended himself. “And I am on good terms with all the villagers. They can prove my innocence!”

Letho gazed at the old man. “If what you tell is the truth, then I shall spare your life.”

***

A while later, Panta came out of the hut looking relieved, and he led the witchers to the south side of Lake Vizima. They came to a gigantic willow tree, and the old man caressed the rough tree bark as he puffed. “Every time I bury a dead fish under this patch of soil right before the tree, a vodyanoi priest would wait for me at midnight that very day. I would tell the priest about all the recent happenings in the nearby villages and all the news I managed to collect. They would grant me flesh depending on the value of the information I gave.”

“Can they understand human tongue?”

“That I do not know. Perhaps they will relay the information to their master.”

The witcher checked the surroundings and cast Axii on Panta before he started another round of interrogation to confirm that he wasn’t lying. “I have another question.” Roy stared at the old man curiously. “Most of the villagers are plagued by nightmares, and they seem tired all the time, but you don’t look like you have that kind of problem. That is odd. You come in contact with the fallen a lot more than they do, but why aren’t you affected?”

“I am not sure.” Panta shook his head nervously. He knew the witcher was trying to make him confess his crimes. “I do have nightmares as well, but I don’t have them as much as the others.”

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“I can answer your question, kid,” Letho interrupted. “The nightmares Dagon creates corrupt innocent souls and turn them into bloodthirsty believers, but if the victim is already inhumane to begin with, then the nightmares won’t work as well on them.”

“Wh-What are you talking about?” Panta retreated in fear and was backed to the willow tree.

“Do you have any idea about the consequences that will arise from your actions?”

Panta gulped nervously and tried to weasel his way out in one final, desperate attempt. “Even if I hadn’t told the fallen anything, they would have still killed everyone. I-I’m just trying to survive. You won’t kill poor ol’ me for trying to live, right?”

“But you promised—”

‘Panta killed. EXP +20.’

“There’s a line a human must never cross, no matter what.” Roy tore down a piece of cloth from the body and wiped the blood off Aerondight as carefully as possible.

“You’re getting more and more merciless, kid.” Letho picked up the decapitated head. “You would have never done this to a defenseless old man before.”

“He might have been human, but he was already a monster inside, and getting rid of monsters is our job.” Roy heaved a sigh and sheathed Aerondight. “Let’s clear this place and bury a dead fish. We’re going to have a little talk with the fallen at midnight.”

The witchers came back to Panta’s hut after they buried a dead fish in the ground, then they dug up a dozen human corpses in the fields nearby.

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