Dong—
The bell rang to mark the end of class, abruptly pulling the two girls from their grand fantasies. Without delay, knowing her teacher had tasks to attend to after class, Lisa packed her notebook and pencil case into her small satchel, said, "Goodbye, nun my lord," and turned to leave, pushing open the door.
Andny replied with a farewell, but inwardly she was unsettled. Thinking of what she planned to do next, in this very moment, a bold idea emerged in her mind.
"Andny, come over, we're having a meeting."
She heard Charles's voice in her mind; he was speaking to her through a mosquito familiar. Andny did not hesitate, rising quickly to ascend to the second floor.
Here, Charles sat at the head, occupying the only chair at the end of the room. All the monastery's nuns were already seated around, even Nidalee had taken her place, waiting quietly near the end for Andny to fill the last empty chair and begin the conference.
As usual, Andny's seat was at the end, far from Charles, in the least conspicuous spot, beside Ekta, listening quietly to the powerful witches' discussions, waiting to hear the final result.
Even now, with Nidalee joining and having even less status than her, Andny's voice remained mute in matters of decision-making.
But this time, things changed.
Andny's heart pounded, her mind filled with reckless thoughts. Remembering the goddess's encouragement from the scriptures, she full-heartedly picked up her chair and boldly walked to Charles's left hand, setting her chair down right beside him.
His right hand seat had already been taken by Hattie, who, as the first witch to be purified by the Master, held her place with confidence. The left side, however, had remained empty. Daringly, Andny claimed the seat, flanking Charles together with Hattie.
This bold transgression caused all the witches—except Theresa—to react with astonishment. Immediately, Hattie, Ruth, Sephera, and Sophia fixed Andny with stern gazes, pressing her to submit to unspoken pressure and yield her seat, returning to her lower place!
Ekta, at the very back, felt her own heart pounding—she and Andny were closest, and she knew well from experience what it meant to be the focus of so many witches' attention: the sheer mental pressure was immense. She inwardly whispered, "Come back, Andny, don't go challenging the witches' established order!"
Under the unwavering stares of the four witches, Andny nearly fainted.
Yet, she reached out and took Charles's hand, recalling the goddess's teachings she had just studied. Instantly, courage welled up from deep inside her heart!
Though weak, I am worthy to sit here, to draw closer to the Master and proactively seek his affection!
I am no less than they!
With this resolve, she lifted her head, straightened her back, and met the collective pressure of the other witches.
This, in turn, unsettled even Hattie and the other core witches. If, in the past, imposing their will did not deter a weaker witch, they would have used force.
But now, such tactics were impossible. Having been purified by Charles, they could no longer use force against their sisters!
So the situation froze into an awkward standoff. The monastery's former weakest, most invisible witch, had suddenly stepped into a place just one step behind Hattie!
All the way at the back, Ekta stared in disbelief at Andny.
She really… sat there?
How could she be this bold?
Ekta could not make sense of it, but she was deeply shaken.
Beside her, Nidalee also failed to grasp the subtleties, only feeling the atmosphere turn rather delicate. Yet she knew well enough not to speak out of turn, lowering her head with humility and quietly awaiting the conference's opening.
Among all the witches, only Theresa looked on in surprise, then gave a subtle nod, a smile of true approval appearing on her lips toward Andny.
Sadly, in her tension, Andny failed to notice this approving smile.
"Well, since everyone's here."
Charles nodded gently from the head. "Let's begin the conference."
"First, Nidalee, please brief us on the situation in the Rubble District."
At the witches' end, Nidalee cleared her throat and began to speak. In truth, she simply repeated to everyone what she had once told Charles in the prison.
Once she finished, she did not offer any commentary, lowering her head appropriately. Clearly, in her upbringing, social hierarchy was deeply ingrained, and knowing her own status as the newest arrival, she dared not say anything beyond the basics.
After she finished, Charles spoke, "At the moment, it seems the Mountaineer tribe's Earth Dragon problem was caused by the Abyssal Lord, and it's something I can resolve."
"As long as communication is smooth, we can likely establish an allied relationship with this tribe."
In fact, technically speaking, they were already as close as allies could be. After all, strictly counted, Charles was now the son-in-law of the Mountaineer tribe…
Ahem!
"At the same time, though Lady Anno hasn't said as much, her undertaking in the Rubble District likely also involves the Abyssal Lord." Charles continued, "We can take the initiative to contact her, thus joining forces with Blackstaff Tower as well."
"That means, eliminating the Abyssal Lord is almost a certainty. We might not even have to get our hands dirty—this threat could be destroyed through alliances."
"That's my view. Does anyone have further input?"
The witches exchanged looks, and Hattie spoke first: "If we don't plan to confront the Abyssal Lord directly, then after purifying the Earth Dragon, Master shouldn't need to go to the Rubble District himself. We could handle everything from then on, correct?"
"Given so many complicated factions tangled up in this battle, that place is anything but safe."
Charles shook his head with a smile, "That won't do, Hattie—I can't hide away in the monastery forever."
"Besides, we may avoid direct conflict with the Abyssal Lord, but we can eliminate his subordinate threats, can't we? I also want to test whether my purification ability might benefit from purifying fiends."
At this, Hattie sniffed lightly and fell silent.
"I do have a question," Sophia said suddenly, turning to Nidalee, "What is your tribe's attitude toward Blackstaff Tower and Liberl Port?"
Charles frowned slightly, uncertain as well. He had considered this issue, but fighting fiends—especially demons—was a political imperative for the whole material world, so even with differences or grudges, the parties would unite against a greater threat… right?
It was like facing a deadly plague: even the most divided nations set aside disputes to confront an epidemic together.
As he pondered, Nidalee hesitated, then shook her head: "I'm not sure. Actually, the Earth Dragon was summoned originally specifically to fight off the armies of the Empire of Sein, who invaded our mountains. So, our tribe is really one of the main forces resisting Liberl Port."
"But in recent years, my father has started encouraging tribe members to let go of old grudges and focus on life and the future. After all, the reality is complex, and neither the wars nor the killings can entirely be blamed on the Empire of Sein…"
At the head, Charles nodded quietly; Nidalee's father seemed, at least, level-headed.
Indeed, a hundred years ago, when the Empire of Sein first entered the mountains, many tribes among the Mountain People still retained cannibalistic rituals—making drums from human skin, sacrificing blood, and so forth.
Not ogres, but fellow humans, albeit greatly diminished and weakened by hardship—yet with cannibalistic customs, true man-eaters.
Such barbaric Mountain People, barely different from ogres, initially responded to any outsiders—hunters, lumberjacks, miners—from the Empire of Sein with hostility, raiding and even sacrificing or eating captives.
The Empire's army at first fought only these cannibal clans, but the Mountain People had bonds of marriage and mutual respect for such customs, so when attacked, they united in defense.
Thus, striking one tribe meant confronting them all; before long, it was all-out war…
Ironically, those cannibal tribes were wiped out, and the old generation long dead—so the young Mountain People today seldom even know their ancestors' crimes. Men like Nidalee's father are rare indeed.
Still, Nidalee carried on: "He might say that, yet when it comes to foes who hate Liberl Port and Blackstaff Tower and want to destroy the city, he never hesitates to draw their support, even tried to marry me off to an extremely anti-Liberl Port tribal heir…"
She trailed off awkwardly. Charles nodded slightly. "I see. Your father neither hates nor favors the port. He's a clever politician, telling everyone what they want to hear without offending anyone."
After this, he added, "In that case, faced with the greater cause of 'fighting demons,' he should choose to ally with Blackstaff Tower—which is beneficial. Even his anti-port allies couldn't really fault him for it."
Sophia's eyes remained on Nidalee: "So your father would not, in the middle of our battle with the demons, betray us and the alliance, right?"
At this suggestion, Nidalee's heart nearly stopped—she couldn't believe someone would suspect her father of such villainy: "Never. My father is a man of principle!"
Sophia gave a subtle nod: "Alright, then I have no more questions."
Stepping back, she said no more. The other witches also held their peace. After a pause, Charles continued, "Very well. On to the next topic: Who will accompany me to the Rubble District, and who will remain to oversee the monastery's ongoing operations?"
No sooner were the words spoken than almost every witch raised her head at once: "I want to go!"
Charles gave a wry smile, raising a hand, "Hold on, one at a time."
He looked first to Nidalee: "First of all, Nidalee must go—this trip is to her tribe. Who else should accompany us?"
Hattie was about to speak, but now Andny, at his left, took a step forward and interrupted, "Eldest sister and I will accompany Master."
Immediately, all eyes turned to her again. There was shock, fury, some concern, and admiration—the one approving gaze came from the monastery's archwitch, Theresa.
"Give your reasons," Charles asked.
Andny's heart pounded; she had stayed silent in the first round, preparing for this moment.
Now, taking a deep breath, she set out her case: "First, to ensure the monastery runs smoothly and safely, we can't take too many people away, but our strength must be sufficient. I think three people should travel with Master: Miss Nidalee is essential, and the other must naturally be the strongest—eldest sister."
Theresa gave the faintest nod, her gaze alight with approval.
She had always hoped to see her sisters grow strong, a habit from before she herself was purified. Only with enough strength could her sisters watch over her when she was in trouble!
Andny, clever as ever though once timid, now showed sudden backbone—Theresa was genuinely pleased.
"And on that basis," Andny continued, "since eldest sister is so strong, the third person doesn't need to be powerful, but should be able to gather information. Sophia, although very knowledgeable and strong, said herself she's not suited to rapid travel in the field, and is better at home—right?"
Sophia's face turned awkward, but she nodded. "Yes."
"So, for the last companion, I believe I am best suited." Andny straightened her flat chest, heart racing, but kept her voice proud. "I can control mosquitoes, making it easy to gather information along the way. That makes me the most suitable for this move!"
Her words left the witches completely taken aback. No wonder—before today, no one could have imagined the monastery's weakest witch would be so audacious.
"Well said." At the head, Charles nodded, then asked, "But last time, didn't you say you had to stay in one place for a while before you could control the local mosquitoes?"
Andny hesitated, then hurriedly replied, "After Master's blessing, my strength has grown immensely. I don't need as long to prepare now—I can control unfamiliar mosquitoes as well…"
"How long, exactly?" Charles pressed.
"Uh…" Andny faltered, mumbling, "I haven't experimented yet, but… it won't be long! My strength has increased a lot, and in the mountains of the Rubble District, there's no shortage of bugs…"
Charles only looked at her with a smile. At this, Andny was nearly in tears: "Master, please trust me! I promise I won't hold you back…"
She begged, while behind her, Sephera let out a cold snort, barely able to contain her fury.
So weak, and wants to lord it over us? Can't she see her own limits?
She was about to speak, but Charles nodded and said, "Alright, I'll grant your wish this time."
...
Northwest of Rubble District, deep in the mountains, in some cavern.
This had once been a mithril mine carved out by Stone Giants, but after a century of depletion, it was now abandoned.
Now, however, it had become a den of evil.
Ghostly white flames flitted across the air, illuminating the infernal cave. Greatly decayed bodies hung by iron hooks from the ceiling, flesh sliced away like livestock. The stench was overwhelming—from both corrupt corpses and the hulking hezrou standing like immense bipedal toads, their bodies also covered in pustules…
This hellish tableau would drive any ordinary person to madness. Yet in the deepest recesses of the cave, even worse horrors lurked…
In that deepest lair, a vast pool of blood seethed. There, a hulking, dark-purple monster covered in scales lay immersed in its filthy bath.
Its appearance resembled a centaur, but its lower half was huge and hippo-like, over five meters long with a massive tail. Its upper body contrasted by being enormous and troll-like, eyes burning with a sickly green demonic fire, its face adorned with bristling whiskers and two thick tusks, ferocious and terrifying.
Additionally, its back sported bat wings—clearly too small for flight, flapping as mere assistance for running.
This brute, easily weighing five or six tons, would be unstoppable charging across the land!
This creature was none other than the Abyssal Lord Montport—holder of the contract with Theresa!
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