Chapter 169: Facing Fear
“Tasty meat.”
Yu Sheng extended a strip of jerky before Little Red Riding Hood, his smile gleaming with a strange allure. The jerky bore a deep, enticing crimson hue, its scent rich and inviting.
Yet instinctively, Little Red Riding Hood felt something was off. She caught a hint of something unusual in Yu Sheng’s smile and furrowed her brows. “Wait, what exactly is this…”
“The former ‘Wolf Granny’,” Yu Sheng replied without hesitation, nodding casually. “The one we dealt with in that lightless Little House last time—I brought her back and experimented with different preparation methods. Turns out, it tastes pretty good.”
Little Red Riding Hood’s eyes widened in shock, her breath catching sharply.
Yu Sheng continued his culinary breakdown without pause: “The ribs are great for pan-searing or stewing, leg meat is tough and needs a long boil, and the fatty under-skin bits are best roasted—crisp and flavorful. Some of the innards work well for hotpot, though if handled poorly, there’s a gamey odor. Also, since Wolf Granny was massive, eating her over several meals gets tiresome. So I made most of her into jerky. Seasoned it with spices and salt, then smoked it with Fox Fire. It’s chewy, yes, but the edges are wonderfully crispy. Great on its own or in soup.”
As he spoke, Yu Sheng nudged the jerky closer, smiling warmly at the crimson-cloaked girl. “Just try it. Once you accept where it comes from, it’s quite tasty.”
Little Red Riding Hood instinctively shivered, inching away. Her eyes held a blend of confusion, tension—and a trace of horror. She stared at Yu Sheng, her mind swirling before she finally found her voice: “You… you ate Wolf Granny?!”
“Still eating her, actually. Not finished yet,” Yu Sheng said offhandedly. “Why so surprised? You’ve seen a plate of stir-fried Hunger before.”
At that, Little Red Riding Hood’s eye twitched. She clearly recalled other bizarre deeds this man had committed. Compared to those, turning Wolf Granny into jerky wasn’t that surprising. But knowing didn’t make it less disturbing. She eyed the crimson meat, her unease and faint terror lingering.
Meanwhile, the Squirrel perched on her shoulder, upon realizing what the jerky actually was, rolled its eyes and fainted dead away.
Fox Girl, who had been gnawing on jerky at the table, glanced over with swaying tails. “Try it, it’s delicious.”
Just one bite. It really does smell good.
Really good.
Little Red Riding Hood’s breath grew unsteady.
Voices suddenly echoed within her mind—gentle yet persistent whispers: Yu Sheng’s voice, her own… even Wolf’s.
Just try a bite. Just one.
Urged by those voices, she finally, hesitantly, reached out. Conflict swirled within her—anticipation and aversion. She accepted the dark red meat.
Yu Sheng beamed with a brilliant smile. The savory scent wafted from the jerky, threading into her senses.
“Fear is hard to erase, especially the kind rooted in childhood,” Yu Sheng said softly. “But from today on, you’ll always remember—this fear born from the Wolf… tastes like five-spice salt.”
Little Red Riding Hood blinked, giving Yu Sheng a strange look. “That’s such a wicked Door thing to say…”
“Why face fear head-on when you can flavor it instead?” Yu Sheng grinned. “Makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?”
Yes. It did.
With the solemnity of facing a mortal trial, Little Red Riding Hood shoved the jerky into her mouth, closed her eyes, and bit down hard.
It was tough. Really tough. But… meat. Just meat.
Far in the depths of the Dense Forest, a faint howl echoed from a Wolf.
She couldn’t tell whether the sound was real—or merely her mind playing tricks.
Chewing with fierce determination, she forced it down, feeling the coarse texture scrape her throat.
Yu Sheng lifted his gaze to the window. He sensed the Evil Wolf’s stare—the way it locked onto this place. It had been prowling endlessly, but now… now it halted.
Only for a few seconds.
The Squirrel, lying collapsed on the bed, groggily woke. This poor, often-startled little rodent had endured one too many shocks today. Seeing Little Red Riding Hood chewing on Wolf Granny’s remains, it squeaked once—then fainted again.
Yu Sheng casually picked it up, gave it a few shakes, and brought it back to consciousness. “Wake up, Squirrel. I have a question.”
“Squirrel refuses to answer!” the tiny creature shrieked, squirming.
“What’s the relationship between the ‘Evil Wolf’ and ‘Wolf Granny’?” Yu Sheng asked, ignoring its panic. “Are they the same thing?”
Squirrel stared at Yu Sheng with its tiny eyes, and Yu Sheng returned the gaze in silence.
He could feel the pounding rhythm of the small creature’s heartbeat in his palm, rapid like war drums.
“…Wolf Granny is a facet of the Evil Wolf,” Squirrel finally squeaked, uncertain if its trembling voice was more out of fear of Yu Sheng or the lurking presence of the Wolf. “When it enters the Little House, it becomes Wolf Granny. Outside, when it devours you, it is the Evil Wolf. When it chases you, it is the Wolf Pack… All Wolves are parts of the Evil Wolf. The Evil Wolf is an aspect of the Black Forest itself…”
Its body quivered, neck shrinking further into its shoulders.
“Everything here is tangled together, like a ball of threads, like blood vessels, like nerves. And all of it ensnares the Little Red Riding Hood who fell into this nightmare,” it whispered, voice high and shaking. “The Hunter is also a part of this place. As far back as I remember, the Hunter’s always been here. I don’t know why you seek them, but they won’t help you. They help no one. They only ever shoot at the Wolf…”
Yu Sheng listened, lost in thought.
He extended his senses through the bloodlink, perceiving the movement of the Wolf Pack outside the protection of the Little House, and the shifting gaze of the Evil Wolf.
The Pack had receded from his awareness. The Evil Wolf’s attention had fixed on the Door. Something was forming there.
Wolf Granny was manifesting.
The order of the Black Forest continued its cycle. The stage moved forward, calling forth its next “actor” in the script. His earlier disruption hadn’t stalled its function at all.
Yu Sheng remained calm, as if unaware of the emerging presence beyond the Door. He tore a small strip of jerky and offered it to Squirrel. “Eat.”
Squirrel bolted, leaping onto the bed, eyes wide in panic. “I… I am Squirrel! Just a Squirrel! No no no, Squirrel doesn’t want that…”
“You must also confront the fear in your heart,” Yu Sheng said earnestly. “Little Red Riding Hood has already eaten it. Now it is your turn.”
“Squirrel… Squirrel Knight fears nothing!” it shrieked. “Squirrel Knight… please, don’t do this…”
Yu Sheng tossed the meat aside casually. “Alright, I won’t force you.”
Squirrel froze, stunned by the unexpected mercy, clearly not believing it would be let go so easily.
Yu Sheng turned away from it, instead looking to Little Red Riding Hood. “Alright, you’ve rested enough. Time to go back.”
She looked up, confused.
He pointed to the Door.
The shadow outside was coalescing into a full Entity. The sound of heavy breathing grew near.
“Wolf Granny has arrived,” Yu Sheng stated evenly. “It’s dangerous to stay here. I’ll have Irene escort you out.”
“Wait… you never said—” she began.
“Bringing you here was just to trigger this key event,” Yu Sheng said with a raised brow. “This is as far as you go. It’s a team operation—everyone has their own task.”
She opened her mouth to protest, but Irene, perched on Yu Sheng’s shoulder, had already extended her hand.
A chill gripped Little Red Riding Hood’s mind and yanked her outward.
In a blink, the girl vanished from the wooden cabin.
Yu Sheng was quiet for a moment, then looked to his shoulder. “Seriously, can’t you make that a bit more pleasant? Every time you wake someone up, it feels like a heart attack.”
“Well duh, how else are you going to wake them instantly without conditions?” Irene rolled her eyes. “She’s up now, cursing out loud. Want the livestream?”
“Pass,” Yu Sheng waved it off, rising and stretching before grabbing the Tetanus Staff leaning against the Door. “Get ready.”
The knocking came a second later, echoing into everyone’s ears.
BANG BANG BANG. BANG BANG BANG.
The wooden Door reverberated with the sound, a rhythmic urgency that struck deep into the heart.
“Wolf Granny is here!” Squirrel screamed, leaping to its feet and dashing in circles on the bed. “Squirrel… Squirrel Knight needs to prepare! Needs to prepare!”
BANG BANG BANG.
Yu Sheng smiled brightly, lifting the brutal Wolf Fang Club as he strode to the Door and flung it open. “Come on in!”
The wooden Door swung wide. Standing there was a twisted creature, tall and hunched, cloaked in black fur, its form distorted and long, wearing a soft cap.
A thin, almost non-Wolf-like clawed limb reached forward toward Yu Sheng.
Yu Sheng swung the club down with fury.
“You think you get to call yourself Wolf Granny?!”