Wendigo

In the dim world, a fear that seemed to come from deep within their genes awoke, making most of the people present shudder and tremble.

They all stared in awe at the enormous figure, barely visible beneath the night sky.

A humanoid form, a bare elk skull, scythe-like claws, and enormous, fearsome antlers. The combination made Louis instinctively think of the monsters that often appeared in horror stories in his previous life.

"A Wendigo?" Beneath the night sky, with the temperature plunging below zero, Louis slowly exhaled a cloud of white vapor.

The Wendigo originated in Native American legends from his previous life. It was believed to be a monster formed when a human became possessed by an evil spirit after resorting to cannibalism.

According to legend, it often appeared alongside extreme cold and blizzards, and possessed astonishing strength and supernatural witchcraft.

Its stomach was a bottomless pit, and every living thing became its prey, though it especially loved human flesh. No matter how much it ate, its hungry stomach was never satisfied.

In many works, it was often described as emaciated, with protruding ribs. Its body was covered in rotting fur, and it looked like a bloodstained, foul-smelling corpse.

But through Louis's exceptionally keen eyesight, Yelena's appearance wasn't that exaggerated. Aside from her horrifyingly grotesque looks, which could easily give someone nightmares, there was no foul odor or sign of decay.

A moment later, the same question arose in Louis's mind. If legend says it was once human, does that make it a Human-Human Fruit or a Deer-Deer Fruit?

While Louis was lost in thought, Yelena, now transformed into a Wendigo, moved.

She unconsciously turned her skull, crowned with grotesque antlers, toward the remaining ingredients around her.

A hoarse voice, as if from the depths of hell, came from the mouth hidden beneath those gleaming white bones.

"Such power..."

"!!!" As the words fell, all the Ganan Remnants present trembled in unison, their faces pale as they backed away.

This had nothing to do with human emotion. It was as if something in their genes instinctively drove them to flee from the terrifying beast before them.

Seeing this, the Red-Haired Pirates also recovered from their shock, thoughtful expressions appearing on their faces.

"This..."

"Isn't that the man-eating monster from the islands shrouded in extreme cold all year round?"

"The Wendigo..."

Unlike the few who still had the presence of mind to chat, young Uta was pale and trembling. She had already instinctively hidden behind Shanks, seeking his protection.

Louis slowly stepped forward, positioning himself between Yelena and the food, and tried calling out, "Yelena?"

"..."

Louis's voice brought Yelena back to her senses.

"I'm all right..."

Yelena raised her arm, tipped with ten scythes, and studied her transformation.

"!!!" But the next moment, her own terrifying voice startled her. She instinctively backed away, then tripped over the long tail dragging behind her and landed on her backside, kicking up a huge cloud of icy mist and snowflakes.

"..." Everyone's expressions shifted subtly at the sight, and even the people's fear eased considerably.

Snowflakes billowed through the air, looking fantastical in the moonlight.

Yelena slowly got back up and noticed everyone's strange expressions. Embarrassed, she felt like digging a hole in the ground and crawling into it.

Louis took in everyone's expressions, then turned back to Yelena and suggested, "Try out your abilities, Yelena!"

Yelena breathed a sigh of relief. Pretending nothing had happened, she got up and walked on her hooves to an open space.

She extended one claw, then ice spread from her palm, rapidly expanding. In a matter of moments, it took the shape of a massive war hammer about three meters long, bright blue from end to end and radiating a bitter chill.

Then she raised the hammer and brought it crashing down onto the ground.

"Boom..." A deafening blast echoed for several thousand meters. The ground shook, and dust soared dozens of meters into the air. Cracks appeared and spread a hundred meters away as countless slabs of rock thrust upward and shattered.

The violent shaking caught many of the Ganan Remnants off guard, knocking them to the ground. Their faces showed a mixture of delight and surprise.

Yelena froze at the sight. She suddenly realized that her destructive power could easily harm her own people. She lowered the hammer and abandoned the idea of trying anything else.

The next moment, she used her ability to draw back the bitter cold from the surrounding area, letting the temperature return to normal.

After that, she reverted to her human form and went to help several elderly members of her people to their feet.

"Is everyone all right?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize the shockwaves alone could hurt you."

But the Ganan Remnants all looked delighted. Seeing Yelena grow stronger made them even happier than she was.

Not far away, the Red-Haired Pirates looked astonished and exchanged glances. There weren't many pirates on the Grand Line with power like this.

Louis, however, was thinking about something quite different from everyone else. He marveled inwardly at the wonders of Devil Fruits.

Yelena had grown from 2.2 meters to 6 meters, then returned to human form, yet her clothes hadn't been affected in the slightest. In the end, all Louis could do was marvel: As expected of a shonen manga.

Because the Ganan Remnants were too frail, Yelena's attempt to test her abilities was cut short. The people eventually relit the bonfire and hurriedly ate the food that wouldn't keep.

The Red-Haired Pirates' ship's doctor suggested that Yelena return to their ship with them for further examination.

But Yelena felt that eating the fruit had strengthened her body again and eased her pain. Claiming that she needed to protect her people, she put it off until the next day.

Shanks, meanwhile, beat Hongou to it and readily agreed to Yelena's proposal. He then took his companions back to the ship for the time being.

Late that night, Yelena donned her battered heavy armor and left the stone house. After checking on each of the injured, she headed straight for the stone house her people had prepared for Louis.

She paused outside the stone house for a moment and took a deep breath. Then she raised her gauntleted hand and gently knocked on the wooden door.

Louis soon opened the door and quietly looked at Yelena, fully armed.

Seeing how unsurprised Louis seemed, Yelena's eyes flashed with a hint of astonishment.

But she didn't dwell on it. Instead, she lowered her eyes, looking apologetic, and softly explained why she had come.

"Louis, could I ask you for a favor?"

Louis met her red eyes and replied calmly, "Are you going to demand an explanation?"

Although Louis had an idea of what Yelena was about to do, he still wanted to be sure. If her answer wasn't what he expected, he wouldn't help her.

Yelena shook her head, a hint of resolve flashing in her eyes. In a calm voice, she said, "No. Right now, I just want this people to disappear from the world..."

"..."

"All right. Then I'll help you!"