Stella:

She never imagined getting herself in such a mess.

Crazy to think that yesterday, she was packing her things for a walk through the woods. She imagined that the most threatening thing in Sayama would be a bear or other predator.

And now, she was in the middle of a fucking anime battle against a 32 foot tall witch who was covered in a god-like aura. The sheer pressure of her energy threatened to make the entire room crumble. Stella could see tiny blue, sparkling crystals falling into the lava as if the lair started to shed tears with the constant destruction.

Steam came out of the Ogre's nostrils when she exhaled while she prepared to chase them, scraping her foot on the ground like a raging bull. Thank goodness the Knight healed her leg with those shiny hands of his.

However, it was futile either way, proven by the giant reaching the Knight and swinging her foot to send him packing back to the wall in seconds. Stella was pushed away by a few meters by the displaced air. She didn't feel like she could handle more of that much longer.

Worst of all, the Knight impacted the wall so hard that it created a sizeable crack in the jam barricade.

Yeah, all those gooplings and this barrier were made of jam, apparently. It made as much sense as everything else around here, to be honest.

Weirdness aside, it was concerning how the Knight was not moving an inch. If he got out of the picture, they would be screwed big time.

"KNIGHT!" Stella cried.

That only turned the witch's attention towards her. The Human's eyes finally could see the full extent of Grýla's overwhelmingly powerful state. The violent energy rippling through the air, her black, beady eyes, and her murderous smile. Her apron was torn apart, leaving only a scorch mark on her dress.

Before Stella could realize it, she was frozen. Her body... didn't respond.

The giant raised her foot, ready to squash the Human. Until...

"JUSTICE COMET!"

The Silver Knight connected a flying kick onto the witch's side. His foot was glowing in golden energy, creating a trail of energy that made him look, as the name suggested, like a comet.

Grýla stumbled back a few feet, giving plenty of time for Lien to run and approach her. "Are you okay?"

Stella nodded in response, and the Knight landed close to them. His cape and the plates on his shoulders were gone, and his chest plate was deeply dented. The most noticeable change was his visor, now a completely black screen.

The hero flashed a thumbs-up at the girls. "You two helped a lot!" Then he turned his head at the very pissed Ogre. "But now I must handle this alone!"

Stella wasn't very convinced, though. "You sure you can handle her?"

To answer her question, the hero started to make yet another pose. His arms were outstretched diagonally, then he slowly put his hands close to his chest in a circular motion. Stella could feel the air around him changing.

"This is The Silver Knight's true power!" He flared his golden aura, akin to Grýla's. While not as impressive as the Ogre's, it was still an awe-inspiring light show.

That convinced Stella to back down for the moment. "Let's get as far away from here as possible, Lien." She turned to her friend.

The pup nodded. "I'm ready!" And so, Stella climbed on her back, and they fled to a safe corner once more.

The girl really missed the comfort of her tent right now. Though the Wolf's fur was a suitable substitute. In fact, while she got a little uncomfortable with the hug, it wasn't that bad after a while.

The pup was so fuzzy, her fur so warm, so soft...

"Enough of these thoughts! Just think about how weird the licking was!"

Well, she was not wrong.

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The Silver Knight:

He really pissed off Grýla.

The Ogre stared at him with pure rage oozing from her eyes. Her mouth was wide open in a twisted grin, showing her incomplete rows of pointy teeth. The fact she was bathed in magenta light just completed the mosaic of terror that she personified.

However, not even the most frightening villains could make The Silver Knight forget his vow to the queen and the people of Sayama!

"As long as I'm here, you will not lay a finger on those girls! For they are under the protection of I, The Silver Knight!" The hero made his signature pose, complementing the golden glow of his Saniya.

The Giant Witch cackled with laughter. "Alright, 'hero'! Ya have guts, I give ya that!" She stretched her arms to the side as if goading the guard to strike her. "But that ain't enough to beat me!"

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The hero responded with a fighting stance of his own. "You are as powerful as they say, Grýla! Defeating you will be an honor!"

The Ogre scoffed. "Flattery ain't getting ya nowhere!" She charged at the hero, fist ready for a powerful punch!

The Knight flared his aura and concentrated on his fist, clashing against the Giant Witch's! A violent shockwave rippled the air.

After a few seconds, the guard didn't budge an inch. His muscles painfully twitched with the strain, but he couldn't let Grýla get the upper hand again. The good news was that the witch was exerting as much effort as him, judging by her expression.

The stalemate ended when the giant charged a fire attack from her mouth. She shot at her own hand, not caring for it because of her natural resistance, but before the hero could be claimed by pink flames, he used his lightspeed to get out of the way.

With his spell still activated, the Knight revolved around the Ogre and shot her with a series of Saniya blasts on her torso until it was almost drained of ammo. Her growls were proof enough of their effectiveness.

He was about to strike the witch in her leg, but she used an air spell to create a burst of wind that repelled the guard for a couple feet.

Thankfully, he anchored himself with his hands and feet, scraping the ground and creating a trail of destruction. The Knight recovered and ran back to his opponent in a literal flash.

Grýla conjured one fireball in each hand and threw it at the approaching guard. However, he skillfully dodged the two projectiles, then he was about to jump at the Ogre but gave up at the last second. It was a feint.

Who didn't get the memo, however, was Grýla, who conjured a shield just like last time. The Knight purposefully wanted to bait this exact same situation. His new strategy was to wait and let the giant burn through her Saniya reserves, but there was more to it.

The pego jam put one's Saniya into overdrive, but it didn't give only advantages. After the powered-up period subsided, the body suffered a significant toll. Depending on the amount consumed, it could be fatal.

Thankfully, Grýla had a large body, so the amount she consumed wouldn't kill her, but it would make her too weak to threaten them.

However, there was a chance that she could defeat him before the time came. He needed a plan B. The problem was, would the Ogre even give him that chance?

Speaking of which, she was displeased by the hero's deception, deactivating her barrier. "Ain't ya a smartass?" She pointed at him. "But don't fool yourself! I ain't a fucking idiot like my family!"

She put her two hands on the ground, and suddenly, the ground started shaking. That wasn't just brute strength, it was freaking earth magic!

The Knight jumped as far away from her as possible, avoiding the pointy earth spikes that emerged a second later. That was close!

Grýla did not give up, however. She transformed the rocky kitchen floor into a colossal safety hazard. More spikes emerged, but thank goodness the guard knew how to predict where they would appear. It was about paying attention to the subtle tremors on the ground, and he didn't even need light magic to avoid them.

The witch wasn't going to leave it at that, of course. Her chest and cheeks inflated, followed by a jet of water coming out of her mouth. The hero wasn't naive, so he conjured a Saniya barrier. Sure enough, the protective layer started to melt in contact with the acidic rain.

Fire, air, earth, and water. She had access to all four elemental routes. No wonder she was so formidable. If she kept that up, the hero would be tired before she could feel the strain.

Wait... He had an idea.

The Knight knelt and started panting, hoping it was exaggerated enough so the witch could notice his chest expanding and deflating.

That convinced the witch, who chuckled at the hero's state. "Ran outta steam, already?! This weird power of yours ain't that special, after all." She slowly approached the guard with slow and earth-shattering steps.

The hero smiled under his helmet and slowly walked towards the edge of the kitchen, hoping she would take the bait. "Even a beacon of righteousness can make mistakes!"

The witch made a vicious grin that gave chills down the guard's spine. After a few agonizing seconds, he was already at the edge of the massive rock platform. Only one wrong movement to fall into the overheated rock juice.

Thank goodness the cooldown mode on his suit was still working.

Grýla cackled. "I hope defending that Human was worth it for ya!" She swung her leg for a final ki-

"BLINDING HALO!" The Silver Knight's body shone in a blinding, white light. His plan had worked!

The Giant Witch put her hands in front of her eyes immediately. "Damn you!"

The Knight used this opportunity to erupt his aura again. Like a golden flash of light, the hero made a combination of blows with unmatched speed. A blow in her gut, then her jaw, then two blows on her knee joints. After the giantess was brought to her knees, the Knight finalized her with a Justice Comet!

The Ogre fell into the pool of lava, though it wasn't as splashy as the hero imagined. It was more like... painfully hitting the ground, then getting slowly absorbed into it.

Regardless, it worked! Now, the guard had the opportunity to set up his backup plan. He activated his holographic keyboard, which conveniently didn't break. Over the many, many buttons on it, the hero opted for the big, red one in the middle.

A message appeared. Distress signal activated.

What a relief. But wait... where are the girls?

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Lien:

"I'm smelling it!"

Lien had climbed to the mouth of the witch's cauldron. After watching the Knight having so much trouble against the Ogre, Stella planned to use her own cooking against her.

The hardest part was actually obtaining the pego jam. It wasn't an easy climb, but slowly, the pup pulled it off. Now, it was time to go descend.

Descending was a fun experience, sliding with her claws scraping the sticky metallic surface. However, it was loud as heck! Almost made her sensitive ears burst.

She would get into heaps of trouble if she lost two of her senses. Her mother would never let her step a foot out of their hut.

Thankfully, it only lasted a few seconds. However, Lien was now sitting in the sticky jam, barely able to stand up. Then, she quickly pulled a spoon, which they got from the cabinet, and scraped the jam off the bottom of the cauldron. Stella would be so proud!

Speaking of who, Lien was so happy to confirm her friendship with the Human! After all that talk from Grýla, the pup started to doubt if Stella cared about her. Suck on that, witch!

However, it was a little weird when she hugged the Human. Her muscles tensed, and her heart rate skyrocketed!

Eh, maybe she was nervous. It happened all the time!

A more pressing question, however, was how tasty was this jam, anyway? Her mom told her that only adults should taste this treat. But damn! This smelled so good! Besides, she needed to help the Knight. So, she was completely justified.

After deconstructing this moral dilemma, she licked the spoon clean. By Tizohi's antlers, this was divine! It was sweeter than the fruit, but it was so intoxicating! She wanted more!

The pup lapped up more of the jam from the cauldron. Eventually, something... changed.

Like a lightning bolt, something quickly surged within Lien. She was shaking with excess energy, more than ever in her life. Every strand of her fur stood up, and she could feel her Saniya seeping out of her body.

This was amazing! She felt INCREDIBLE!

"YES! YES! I CAN WIN! I FEEL GREAT! I! CAN! DO! THIS!"

"LIEN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" That was Stella's voice.

"Uh... Nothing!" The pup responded.

"Great! Now, where's the spoon?!"

Right, the spoon! She was supposed to give Stella some jam as well. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

Uh...

Where was the spoon?