Chapter 590: The Monster That Devours Everything

By chance, Jane and Oliver had the same objective.

To rescue the children trapped in Neverland.

Their reasons might differ, but that didn’t matter.

What was important was not the reason, but the act of doing it.

After using [Ptah’s Assistant] to treat the stab wound from a Dagger.

“······”

Oliver created the [Mimic-Wolf] by imitating Red Hood’s wolf creature, climbed on it, and with the escort of the Zombie Puppet, the Flesh Cook, Bathory, and Durance, he moved forward.

The movement itself wasn’t difficult.

Within a short span of less than a month, Jane had indirectly mapped out the island’s geography and explained the direction to their destination.

Oliver only had to give movement orders in the direction Jane pointed.

This was something Oliver could never have imagined doing on his own.

But Jane’s abilities didn’t stop there.

She knew not only the geography but also the dangers and characteristics of each path.

“Ah, this is the front yard of the Red Ones’ creatures. The Red Ones appear periodically, and there are traps-”

-Dudududududududududududu!!!

Before Jane could finish speaking, the Zombie Puppet-Durance fired a barrage of bullets at a suspicious area. It destroyed the traps and the cover where creatures were hiding.

Clang! Boom!

“Kyaahahahaha!!”

Screeeech······Bang!

“Awaawaawaaawaaa!!!”

The traps that were hit by the bullets activated toward the air,

and when the cover was destroyed, various creatures hiding behind it jumped out, screaming.

It wasn’t a problem.

The Flesh Cook, operated by Force, had already acted first.

Force seemed to have gotten used to the Flesh Cook’s body during combat, showing smooth moves as it immediately launched forward.

Tap.

It entered the midst of the hidden creatures and detonated the vast emotions stored within the body, spreading dozens of massive slashes in all directions and cutting the creatures to pieces.

Although it looked rough, its power was clear.

The creatures were swept away in an instant, proving its effectiveness.

‘Now I understand how the Flesh Cook dominated the underworld of Gallos.’

Oliver thought as he watched the power of the Flesh Cook.

Though it wasn’t weak in one-on-one combat, the Flesh Cook was even stronger against a large number of weaker opponents.

That was evident from the characteristics of plague-type black magic and the powerful slashes emitted from his body.

‘Plus······’

The Flesh Cook absorbed the remnants of creatures that had been slashed to pieces by the attack, turning them into nutrients.

Although the damage had been significant, Flesh Cook was able to replenish more energy than he had used earlier.

It might have been fortunate that they fought one-on-one in Gallos.

Considering the plague type’s ability and violent extraction power, it would have been even stronger against multiple enemies.

‘Even with such characteristics, he didn’t do that······’

Oliver was almost lost in thought but immediately shook his head to focus on the present, scanning his surroundings.

The Zombie Puppet-Durance switched weapons as needed, sniping distant creatures and destroying traps and cover.

The Flesh Cook filled in the gaps left by Durance, wiping out all nearby creatures.

Most of it was done in less than a breath.

Given the level of the Zombie Puppet, this was not surprising. One was the dean of Loculi University, and the other was a Finger.

‘Plus, First hasn’t even started moving yet. That means we’re comfortable.’

With a calm, objective assessment, Oliver turned to Jane.

“Miss Jane.”

“Ah······! Yes!”

Jane, who had been mesmerized by the power of Zombie Puppet, snapped back into focus and answered.

“Could you continue with what you were saying?”

Riding on the wolf-creature while swiftly moving, Jane nodded and began talking calmly again.

It wasn’t an urgent matter.

It was just something Jane had learned while staying in Neverland.

Things like the nature of Neverland, Wendy’s role, Pan’s children, those forgotten children who filled in when one of them was missing, and the Forgotten Warehouse where those forgotten children were held and the diary found there.

“······That diary belongs to Pan?”

Oliver asked after hearing a rough summary of the diary’s contents.

“I think so. Since the warehouse and this entire island belong to Pan, it’s likely the diary does as well, don’t you think?”

Oliver nodded at the simple yet sharp speculation. That certainly seemed plausible to him.

“Hmm······.”

“I’m sorry if I said something unnecessary.”

“No, you said it at my request. And it has been helpful, so there’s no need to apologize. Thanks to you, I’ve made up my mind.”

Though she didn’t know what he had decided, Jane didn’t ask.

It was just then that a massive tree-creature blocked their path.

Screeeeeeeeaam!!!

A tree with countless human-shaped sacks hanging from it.

These trees intertwined, forming a massive wall-like barrier that obstructed Oliver’s group.

By the way, the term ‘wall-like’ wasn’t a metaphor, the tree-creature wasn’t just enormous in size; its appearance was fearsome.

As if the resentment of those hanged on its branches had taken root.

Gryaaaaaa!!!

Crunch! Crunch! Crack!!

Roaaaaar······!

Ssssshhhhh······. Ssshhhzzz······.

Heeheeheeheehee!!

Crackle······. Crshhhz······!

Horrific cries seeped out from the dozens of faces growing on the tree.

It was a sight straight out of a nightmare.

Oliver sensed that Pan’s feelings had changed.

“Force······, It seems we need to hurry.”

As soon as Oliver spoke, Force, within the Flesh Cook, retracted one leg and focused his strength.

The air distorted as if compressing around the leg where the force was focused.

Boom!!

And just like that, he kicked the air.

It was a pure kick without any magic or black magic mixed in.

But that kick alone generated enough force that the massive tree-creature ahead shattered into pieces.

It was a sight that was hard to believe even after seeing it with your own eyes.

Oliver spoke.

“I think we can move on now.”

***

Perhaps because of the overwhelming power of the Flesh Cook, the appearances of the creatures significantly decreased after the tree-creature was destroyed.

Taking advantage of that, Oliver and Jane reached Pan’s hideout, located at the center of the Forest of the Hanged.

Jane mentioned that Pan might be there, but Oliver didn’t mind.

Either way, it was a place they had to stop by.

If they met Pan, they’d deal with him, and if not, Oliver would still do what he needed to do.

Whether fortunately or unfortunately, Pan wasn’t in the hideout, which seemed to have been hollowed out from a giant tree. Instead, there were others.

“An enemy! An enemy!”

“Emergency! Emergency!”

“Bzzzz! Bzzzz!!”

Hostile children armed with clubs, wooden guns, toy swords, air guns, and slingshots.

It was Kirby, Slightly, Nibs, the Twins, and Tootles, all wearing the war paint of the Red Ones.

These were Pan’s children, his direct subordinates, and Oliver recognized Kirby, Slightly, and Tootles.

Although it was brief, he had seen each of them once, both in Gallos and the New Continent.

However, it was Oliver’s first time seeing Nibs and the Twins.

‘One of the Twins was killed as soon as I arrived here and was replaced by a new child.’

Oliver recalled the story of how one of the Twins had been trampled to death by a creature.

That might have something to do with why as soon as they saw Oliver, they started expressing extreme hostility.

Although Pan’s children radiated an aura of hostility toward Oliver, it wasn’t really hatred but rather fear-driven hostility.

But whatever the reason, hostility is hostility.

The children, who had war paint on their faces and appeared to be playing with toys, actually aimed weapons infused with powerful black magic at Oliver.

Kirby, armed with a club and toy sword, and Nibs charged from both sides,

while Slightly, the Twins, and Tootles, armed with wooden guns, air guns, and slingshots, tried to shoot projectiles from the front.

It was a fairly skillful attack, and just as Oliver pondered how to respond,

“Stop!”

Crying out, Jane stepped in front of the children.

Seeing her, the children stopped immediately.

“We, Wendy?”

“What’s wrong?!”

“Yeah! Move! We’ll punish him!”

“Yeah, yeah!”

The children, who had recognized Jane late due to fear and the hostility it generated, shouted in panic.

Their concern and fear for Jane were palpable.

They genuinely liked Jane.

“Mr. Dave is a guest I invited. You shouldn’t do that.”

At Jane’s firm words, the children looked confused.

“G-Guest?”

“Yes, a guest.”

“B-But! He’s an adult, isn’t he?!”

Slightly, wearing a fox cape, screamed.

“There shouldn’t be any adults in Neverland! Pan will be angry!”

“Kids, I’m an adult too.”

The children were at a loss for words.

Indeed, Jane was an adult. Even older than the average Wendy.

Even Hook had said that Jane’s age was unusual.

Usually, it’s girls, not ladies, who are taken as Wendy.

“And every child eventually grows up.”

Jane calmly shared a shocking and obvious truth. The children’s expressions hardened.

It wasn’t just about disliking; they were genuinely afraid.

In Neverland, that obvious truth meant death.

Jane turned back to Oliver and asked for understanding as the timing was difficult.

Oliver nodded.

It was something only Jane could do.

After receiving his approval, Jane turned back to the children and knelt down to meet their gaze.

“······Dave isn’t an enemy. He’s my friend.”

“Friend······?”

“Yes, a friend.”

“······B-But the boss said he came to take you away! Is that not true?”

“No, it’s true. He came to take me away from here.”

Hearing that, the children’s eyes widened in shock.

“No! No! Wendy! Don’t go!!”

Tootles, the youngest, leaped into Jane’s arms and cried out.

The other children responded similarly.

It was as if they were children being abandoned by their parents, but on closer thought, it wasn’t just similar, it was the same.

Pan’s children were truly orphans.

Though there were exceptions like Hook, who wasn’t an orphan, according to his words, such cases were extremely rare. Most of them were orphans, he’d said.

Aside from Pan’s children, the Forgotten children and those used as materials for Neverland were also orphans.

There were just that many orphans in the world.

The children tried to persuade Jane.

They cried and begged, saying Pan wouldn’t stay still if Jane left, that Pan would get angry, and that they would be terribly sad if she left alone.

Jane firmly shook her head at this.

“I’m not planning to leave without you guys.”

“What······?”

“You all will come with me.”

“Whaaat-!!”

The children screamed in a high-pitched voice, unsure whether it was a cry or a shout.

They simply couldn’t imagine leaving Neverland.

‘It’s not strange,’

Oliver thought, recalling Hook’s explanation.

Neverland was, at least on the surface, an island for children.

It was a dream and adventure island filled with various sweets, bizarre animals, and moderately strong villains.

For orphans, it was far too sweet a place to leave.

Like a carnivorous plant smelling of sweetness.

‘And, like a carnivorous plant, it’s also a terrifying place.’

As if to reflect Oliver’s thoughts, the children began shaking their heads as if having a fit.

“T-That’s ridiculous! W-Why should we!!”

“Yeah!”

“Neverland is an island for children! We’ll live here forever.”

Slightly, wearing a fox cape, shouted in denial while Kirby, wearing a bear cape, puffed out his chest and praised Neverland.

Both spoke in an exaggerated tone as if performing.

Jane asked them.

“Do you really think that?”

“Of course! Pan made this island for us! An island for children!!”

“Even though you have to act every day, fearing that Pan might kill you if you don’t please him?”

Jane, who had been observing the children, asked again.

This time, there was no answer.

Jane asked again.

“Does this really seem like an island for children, when you know that even if you please Pan well, you’ll still die when you grow old?!”

Jane voiced the horrifying truth she had learned through her conversations with the children and from the diary found in the Forgotten Warehouse.

For the record, Oliver knew this too.

Thanks to what Hook had told him.

Neverland was an island for children. Naturally, no adult could live there, and inevitably, children who grew up couldn’t live there either.

While Pan’s standards were inconsistent, with the minimum being 12 years old and the maximum not exceeding 16 years.

With those standards, Kirby and Slightly seemed dangerously close to the limit.

Though the other children weren’t too far behind.

The problem was that Kirby and Slightly knew the truth.

Even though they knew they would die in just a year or two, they had no intention of leaving.

“We’re not leaving!!”

Kirby shouted, almost as if in desperation.

It wasn’t the silly voice mixed with snorts, but a voice serious beyond measure.

Slightly also cried and agreed.

“That’s right, we’ll live in Neverland! We’ll become one with Neverland!!”

“I don’t care about the outside world, and I don’t want to become a useless adult!!”

The children had their reasons for wanting to stay in Neverland······. No, for being unable to leave.

More than the danger of Neverland, the outside world was also dangerous, plus their sense of identity was tied to this place.

“There’s nothing out there even if we go!”

“Yeah, our mom abandoned us! We have no home! We hate orphanages too! We also don’t want to become useless adults! So, I love Neverland!!”

The children vented the fears they had been holding inside.

The other children also remained silent, agreeing with this.

The real reason the children couldn’t leave Neverland wasn’t that they loved it, but because they feared the outside world. The various threats and the lack of personal worth.

“You’re just like me.”

“······What?”

“You’re just like me. My mom abandoned me too.”

“······”

“Technically, she sold me. For money······. I acted like it didn’t bother me, but it wasn’t okay. I hated that I had nowhere to go back to, I hated where I had to stay. Every day, I had to endure classes I didn’t want······. Just to become something I didn’t want to be.”

The children and Oliver looked at Jane.

Since they were all black magicians, they knew Jane was speaking from her heart.

It was true that she was sold by her mother, it was true that she had been in a place she didn’t want to be, and it was true that she had to learn things she didn’t want to learn.

The reason for learning despite all that.

“If I didn’t do that, I would have become truly worthless. So, I worked hard. Because it was scary to be abandoned again. But still, I was scared of growing up······. I was afraid I’d become like my mom. I hated that idea so much. Sometimes I wanted to escape to a place like Neverland·····. But then, I ended up here? I guess the timing’s a bit off.”

“······”

“After going through such a tough time, I grew up. You know what’s funny?”

“······”

“At first, I became the kind of adult I didn’t want to be, but as more time passed, I became a better adult! Surprisingly, you can still change after growing up!”

“······The boss said that most adults can’t do that. That it just gets harder······. Is that not true?”

The child asked, and Jane answered truthfully.

“Yes, most adults do end up that way. They go through a lot of hardship and often feel more disappointment. Becoming the adult you want to be is really hard, and the odds are low.”

“······”

“But······. If you give up on growing up, you lose even that slim chance. Do you really want that? Do you really want to remain a child forever?”

Jane spoke, remembering her own experiences and her conversations with the children.

Pan’s children. On the surface, it seemed like they were just spending their days enjoying life in Neverland, but they had dreams too.

The dreams that any child would naturally have.

Though there were absurd dreams like wanting to become a dinosaur, what mattered was that they had dreams.

However, in the Neverland meant for these children, their dreams ended as nothing more than dreams and fantasies.

It seemed like a very paradoxical word. Dreams and fantasies.

Change the tone even a little, and their meaning completely changes.

The only thing certain was that if the children stayed on this island much longer, they would surely die.

The children, knowing this, spoke in sad voices.

“But the outside world-”

“-I’ll help you.”

Jane promised.

“I can’t be your real mom, but I’ll take care of you, find you a new home, and help you grow up. I’m a greedy adult, and I have a lot of money······. Dying as a child······. It’s too dull, isn’t it?”

The children didn’t respond to Jane’s words.

Not because they disliked it, but because they couldn’t believe it.

Because no one had ever said such things to them before.

That’s why they had followed Pan.

The fear and terror and the emotions of surrender that had filled their eyes began to be replaced by something else.

But the children’s fear hadn’t completely vanished.

“······But won’t Pan get angry?”

This was the biggest reason why they hadn’t been able to leave Neverland.

It’s estimated that Neverland was founded about 30 years ago.

In that time, Hook is the only one who successfully escaped. But even that was intentional, to maintain Neverland’s existence.

In other words, everyone else has failed to escape.

Not every child would have stayed until old age and death.

Perhaps, the dolls in the Forest of the Hanged are all children who failed to escape.

Children who have outlived their usefulness.

Jane looked at Oliver.

This was something she couldn’t promise.

Oliver read Jane’s thoughts through her eyes, and hesitated on what to say to the children.

Should I say I’ll try my best as usual?

Hmm… No, that didn’t seem right.

It felt too irresponsible, especially in this situation.

A short but long silence passed, then Oliver spoke.

“I’ll take care of Fen.”

The children were a little more reassured than usual, but still hesitant. However, Jane smiled, as if truly happy.

“This is the person I trust most in the world. So, can you trust him too?”

At Jane’s request, the children slowly nodded.

***

After persuading the children, Jane immediately left for the Forgotten Warehouse at the edge of the Forest of the Hanged.

Heading to the place located at the furthest tip of Neverland, shaped like a spade.

Upon arrival, there was a seemingly abandoned warehouse, and Jane knocked on the door with familiarity.

Creak…

As Jane knocked, the Forgotten Children inside opened the door.

The children looked neglected and abandoned, just as their name implied. Without hesitation, Jane told them to leave Neverland, just as she did with Fen’s children.

The Forgotten Children tilted their heads, as if not understanding the words.

As if they couldn’t comprehend combining the concept of leaving with Neverland.

“Is… Is that really okay?”

One of the children asked, unable to believe it.

Like a cow that’s never been outside.

Jane smiled, trying to reassure the children.

“Of course-”

“-it’s not okay.”

Just as Jane was about to fully persuade the children, a shrill, irritable voice broke the air.

Looking towards the direction of the voice, she saw Fen perched on a branch, with countless creatures behind him.

Toy Soldiers, Jolly Chimps, Sack Grandpas, Nutcrackers, Boogeymen, Giant Stuffed Bears, Clowns, Chick Soldiers, Rooster Generals, Wendigos, Slithering Mermaids, Fish-Men, and more. The variety was vast.

It was reminiscent of the time on the New Continent, but with one difference: at that time, Fen’s creatures invoked thoughts of childhood, now they conjured nightmares.

It seemed as though something had twisted Fen’s mind, warping the creatures’ forms.

At Fen’s sudden appearance, the children flinched. The Forgotten Children retreated back into the warehouse, and Fen’s children froze in place.

With everyone’s teeth chattering, Oliver took out a Filgarett, placed it in his mouth, and then stepped forward with the Zombie Puppets.

“Hello, Fen. May I have a word with you?”