The forest enveloped them in a cloak of darkness as they made their way through it.
A middle-aged man walked cautiously while holding a shotgun. His daughter perched atop his shoulders, her small hands gripping his hair for stability.
However, the middle-aged man knew well that his daughter possessed the capability to walk on her own. Her choice to ride on his shoulders was merely a playful gesture, a game she often played.
Anna, with her blonde hair flowing and her blue eyes dancing with mischief, was adorned in a black Lolita dress, adding to her youthful appearance. Long black socks concealed her small legs, completing her attire.
Twenty years had passed since her birth, but she remained perpetually frozen in the likeness of a twelve-year-old girl.
The woman Anna killed before wasn't her real mother at all; she was merely a stepmother. Her motives for the murder stemmed from her own instinct to kill.
Anna's real mother remained a mystery in his father's past. He had met her during his college years, captivated by her beauty that seemed almost too perfect to be real.
Drawn to her sweetness and kindness, he fell deeply in love. However, their romance ended when she disappeared from him after conceiving Anna.
Initially, he doubted Anna's parentage, but a DNA test confirmed she was 99.99% his blood relative.
From then on, he vowed to protect her, even though she harbored a demonic side.
He discovered Anna's exceptional intelligence early on, initially attributing it to her being a prodigy.
However, everything changed when he witnessed the cold-blooded murder of his first legal wife.
Though he should have reported her to the authorities immediately, his irrational love for his daughter clouded his judgment, leading him to make illogical decisions.
In the end, he chose to conceal the truth, constantly moving from one place to another until they finally arrived in this town.
He had hoped that Anna had changed her ways after years of abstaining from killing, but her recent aggression resurfaced with the appearance of another monster.
He sensed that his daughter longed to encounter someone similar to herself, someone who understood her.
"Anna, did you see the guy we're looking for?" he asked, attempting to start a conversation.
"Yes, Daddy. Anna saw him scouting our town ," she replied in her sweet, childlike voice.
It was astonishing to witness how she, the cold-blooded killer who had taken her own stepmother's life just hours earlier, now spoke with such innocence and calmness.
"Is he dangerous?" he asked, knowing Anna wouldn't harm him, but uncertain about the other monster lurking out there.
"He's still weak," Anna replied. "But I sense his potential is much bigger than Anna," she added.
"What will we do if he attacks us?" he asked.
"Don't worry, he can't beat Anna yet," she replied confidently.
As they continued their conversation, a rustle in the nearby bushes caught their attention.
Suddenly, a massive wild boar emerged from the bushes, its tusks gleaming menacingly.
Without hesitation, Anna spoke up. "Don't worry, Daddy," she whispered.
As the wild boar charged towards them, Anna extended her hand, her fingers curling into a fist.
With a surge of power, she summoned forth the blood within her, manipulating it with precise control.
The blood, tainted with the essence of her stepmother, responded to her command, forming sharp, crimson tendrils that lashed out at the wild beast.
The crimson tendrils pierced the boar's skull with precision, instantly ending its life.
There was no wasted movement; the fight was one-sided, with Anna killing the bore effortlessly.
Looking down to her father, Anna flashed him a triumphant smile. "See, Daddy? I'm really strong," she said, her voice filled with pride.
His father forced a smile, though he was inwardly troubled by the realization that his daughter had grown even stronger after taking another life. For some inexplicable reason, she only targeted women with whom she had been intimate.
The pattern unsettled him , raising questions about the nature of her powers.
"Daddy, he went that way," she said confidently.
"Are you sure?" he asked, confusion evident in his voice as the vast, dark forest loomed around them.
"Anna is sure. I can smell blood from there," she replied with a wide grin.