Somehow, that one malevolent spirit grins, idly watching them with an amused face. She could have easily taken down the two elders with just a touch. But no, she deliberately provokes conflict between them just for fun.
"You know what? I could just kill you both. But I would really appreciate it if you hand over the boy willingly. Offer the kid to me, and I promise to let you leave unhurt!
Ratih still holds Adanu Raksa and covers his sight from the mad malevolent spirit. Her concern for the kid she has just met is really like a genuine mother's love to her own son.
"No! You have to kill me first!" she denies.
"Dear! What are you talking about?" utters Barja with a desperate face. "There's nothing we can do to protect him. Don't you see all those demons outside?"
"I don't care! If he has to die here, then I'll die with him," Ratih insists.
"Are you crazy? He is not our son! He has been cursed," Barja argues.
Adanu Raksa is stunned by the old man's decision. He doesn't expect these two elders to protect him. But voluntarily handing him to the devil is such an atrocity.
He tries to break free from Ratih's embrace. But he feels so weak, almost can't feel any life in his two arms.
Two undeads suddenly break the front door. But that one malevolent spirit isn't letting them enter. She simply intimidates them, shouting while releasing some kind of terrifying aura.
"Don't you dare to interfere, you stinky, ugly, rotten faces!"
Whether these living corpses actually understand what she said, or are just instinctively intimidated, they just freeze at the door and block the other zombies from entering.
The malevolent spirit turns back to Barja and Ratih, showing her amused ugly grin. "Did you see it? They are quite obedient to me! Your fate is now in my hands. Better make your decision quickly! I may have lived for hundreds of years, but I am not the patient type!"
The evil spirit even brings her ugly face closer to Barja, knowing that he is easier to play with. The fear inside Barja only grows, making him even more impatient.
"Ratih! Snap out of it already!" Barja shakes the wife's shoulders hard. "Don't you realize our current situation? Give that kid to me now before she changes her mind!"
Ratih turns to him, glaring with mad eyes. "You are the one who doesn't realize our situation! Trusting the devil's promise is the stupidest thing a man can do!"
"But…"
"I had enough of this," Ratih deplores. "I've known for a long time that it was you who sold Tole into slavery, because of your fear of poverty!"
"You? You really believe what they said?"
"Then why did you stop looking for him?"
The old man turns silent, looking resigned with fallen shoulders. He thought his wife had forgiven him, but it turns out she still hasn't moved on from it all.
"Barja! We've made a grave mistake before, and now we've grown too old to fix it all. I don't want to repeat it again. I'd rather die for what I believe than having another regret," Ratih emphasizes.
Barja's facial expression changes slightly. A moment later, his gaze shifts to his machete which is only two steps away from him.
Seeming to regain his resolution back, he picks up the machete and then stands firmly right in front of the floating malevolent spirit.
"Kukuku!" The malevolent spirit chuckles with a palm on her forehead. "So you've made your decision, and decided to confront me, huh? Fine! I'll let you fight for your survival!"
She suddenly spreads her both hands with a strong stroke, releasing a powerful shock that breaks all the windows. To Barja's surprise, his hut has been surrounded by dozens of living corpses.
"Let's see what you can do! Rest assured, I'll just watch here!"
Soon, those living corpses begin to enter the hut one by one. At least, Barja is not completely surrounded because they only enter from one entrance. Those who are stuck by the windows don't have any intelligence to climb up.
Meanwhile, Cakara and Hasya are still busy tracing Adanu Raksa's tracks in the forest. Cakara has followed the trail Adanu Raksa left behind just by relying on moonlight, following the bushes that were damaged after being broken through by the kid.
But then, upon reaching the foot hill, he begins to get confused by so many tracks scattered all over the place. He even sees a few of the undeads going downhill through the dark woods.
"What's going on here?" he mumbles with a disbelieving face.
Suddenly, Hasya pats his shoulder from behind. "Cakara! Look over there!"
He points in one direction where a few malevolent spirits are seen floating around a point in the valley area. As if knowing what might be happening there, Cakara spurs his run.
"He must be there! Quickly inform the others!"
Hasya follows behind him while preparing an arrow with an explosive fuse attached to it. After setting the fuse, he shoots the arrow into the sky where the evil spirits roam.
And soon…
Blarr!!!
It's actually a dynamite arrow. The explosion is not too big, and there's no way it would injure those spirit creatures. But it leaves quite bright smoke in the air, enough to signal others about his current location.
When he and Cakra arrive at Barja's yard, the place is already crowded with living corpses. And all these corpses are all moving in one direction.
"He must be in that hut!" Hasya speculates.
Cakara simply draws his black Damascus sword. "Keep following me from behind! Don't ever move away from me!"
He charges forward, but not too fast so Hasya can follow him. It's not that hard for him to slaughter these bizarre creatures to open a path toward Barja's hut, because they don't seem to be bothered by his presence.
Once he manages to break through the hut…
"Oh, God!"
They both are stunned with pale faces. The hut is already filled with dismembered corpses. Even some of the corpses' arms and legs are still moving slightly.
And there's Adanu Raksa, kneeling in the middle of the room, looking up with a gaped mouth. It's as if he is hysterically wailing his sorrow out, but the wailing is so quiet without a sound.